In all my years of collecting SWORD and space toys, ive never been able to pin down a C21 Zero X toy. Its still on my hitlist and especially so after seeing Ferrymans beautiful work on the new box for the toy. However, japanese model and toy maker Aoshima came to my aid a couple of years ago by producing a die-cast version of this flagship of the Sword fleet. Because O.X has appeared in several guises, in the SWORD annual, Thunderbirds are Go! movie and the opening episode of Captain Scarlet, the company made two slightly different versions of the craft. I was lucky enough to get the Thunderbirds version, courtesy of my good friend Terry, a capain scarlet specialist. Differences between the two models aren't massive, but the level of detail in each model is astounding.
The model is about 18" long and is as exacting as any fan of the ship could want. The MEV (Martian Excursion Vehicle) alone is packed with features, and this is only about 2" long itself! It has a flip open cannon on the roof, an ejecting escape capsule and retractable rubber caterpillar tracks underneath fold down flaps. The only thing it is realistically missing are the twin whip aerials from the back, but given the scale of the model, these would have to be almost as fine as human hair to fit the model. The MEV joins the main body magnetically and is shrouded by the chromed aerofoil nosecone in flight. Lifting Body 1 and 2 clip to the body of the ship with simple attachments and the whole model is robust and heavy. The individual sets of landing gear are all present, from the drop down nose wheel on Body 2 to the retractable wing tips on Body 1 with opening doors and pop out wheels. Its an amazing model, whichever version you opt for and although expensive at £70 + depending where you find it, its a real keeper. Also included with this version is a tiny Martian Rock Snake! Awesome
