DSC_0108
Good afternoon, and welcome to another episode in the ongoing series, "WTF Did I Just Buy???".
This past Friday, I was unfortunately unable to make it to an EB Games too see what deeply discounted goods were available for $5. I was, however, in the East end of Toronto, and was nearby a pawn store that I had visited months ago, one that happened to carry toys in addition to the typical gamut of goods. As I was browsing through the cabinets, this particular item caught my eye. Needing a bit of repair, it appeared to be complete so for $10, I figured, why not?
Presenting Figma 104, Suika Ibuki from the game series "Touhou Project".
Being an anime gamer, I have heard of this series by name, though I've never played any of the entries, so be warned, my info on this character is pretty much all Internet research based. Suika Ibuki first appeared as the final boss in an offshoot Touhou game entitled "Immaterial and Missing Power". From what I gather, what you see is what you get - she's an Oni (Demon) that lives in the fictional world of Gensoukyou where the Touhou games take place. She's supposedly abnormally strong, has the demeanor of a cheery child, and is basically drinking sake at every possible moment. Finally, she values strength and fair play while despising dishonesty and cowardice, despite being slightly less honest than a typical Oni. In addition, she doesn't kidnap humans, as this is a sacred bond of trust between Oni and Humans.
I have to say that for a character from a relatively popular game series, there isn't that much information I could dig up.
The set comes with the figure, three total expressions (neutral, drunk, and happy), her Ibuki Gourd, three coloured charms on metal chains, one moulded plastic chain for a dynamic whipping action, a Chibi clone cast in a floating pose, and a variety of hands, including one attached to her Sake dish, several hands dedicated to holding the Gourd, and of course the typical Figma stand along with attachment for the Chibi figure. As full disclosure, the repairs I had to make seemed to be super gluing her transparent skirt piece back on the upper body and a horn to her head. Her lower body came detached as well, and while there is a ball and socket arrangement to reconnect the pieces, it doesn't quite seem to hold together that well. I'm not entire certain if this is because the socket sucks, or because it was meant to be glued together, as due to the outfit, there doesn't seem to be much articulation at that point anyway.
Being Figma 104, Good Smile Company had at this point established itself as an quality operation, but things are a bit crude compared to todays standards. The overall design appears to be on point - based on what I could see from available artwork, the figure captures the intent of the character design and replicates the look in 3D. As always, things will change slightly based on the artist, but the trademark features are there including the various accessories, her dress and bows, and of course, the horns on her head.
Articulation is of course, comparatively limited when discussing a Figma 2.0, but for a 1.0 it's pretty typical - ankles, knees, hips, waist, shoulders, elbows, forearms, wrists, and neck. As one would expect, the dress limits the degree of movement the legs can move, just like with Twilight Princess Zelda, so overall, get ready for some epic standing with the figure, albeit showing more leg. The end of her ponytail can technically rotate, if you want to add a point to the articulation score card for that. The Chibi figure, unlike the one that came with Angela Balzac, has no articulation whatsoever.
Paint and finish is kind of where the age on the figure shows, though as always, it a solid product. It just seems that paint apps are a bit on the heavier side, and detailing isn't as crisp as they are today. This is probably most evident on the plastic chain parts, as well as the finish on the hair. Paint masking in general isn't bad, but there are weak spots to be found, for example the white lines on the gourd. Decal work is very crisp, with no real concerns from me. The various charms attach to the figure via working plastic clasps that hook onto her pony tail and wrists. You can also attach the gourd to her chain around the waist, but for me, it was a major pain to deal with. As mentioned above, the Sake plate comes with a dedicated hand, whereas the Gourd has a sliver that can be removed and utilized with one of the dedicated hands, depending on which grip you want her to hold the Gourd with. Any of the coloured charms can be removed from the metal chain and put on the moulded plastic one for an attacking pose.
A neat addition to the Figma shelf, if for nothing else other than the drunken expression, and all the accessories that go with it. There's much personality in the set, and I feel that it would be a great accent piece, particularly if your figures all of the stoic variety. I can't imagine this figure being particularly expensive, seeing how nobody talks about it at all. I'd love to learn a bit more about the character and all that, so hopefully someone in the digital world will reply with some sort of input.
That concludes another episode of "WTF Did I Buy?".
DSC_0108
Good afternoon, and welcome to another episode in the ongoing series, "WTF Did I Just Buy???".
This past Friday, I was unfortunately unable to make it to an EB Games too see what deeply discounted goods were available for $5. I was, however, in the East end of Toronto, and was nearby a pawn store that I had visited months ago, one that happened to carry toys in addition to the typical gamut of goods. As I was browsing through the cabinets, this particular item caught my eye. Needing a bit of repair, it appeared to be complete so for $10, I figured, why not?
Presenting Figma 104, Suika Ibuki from the game series "Touhou Project".
Being an anime gamer, I have heard of this series by name, though I've never played any of the entries, so be warned, my info on this character is pretty much all Internet research based. Suika Ibuki first appeared as the final boss in an offshoot Touhou game entitled "Immaterial and Missing Power". From what I gather, what you see is what you get - she's an Oni (Demon) that lives in the fictional world of Gensoukyou where the Touhou games take place. She's supposedly abnormally strong, has the demeanor of a cheery child, and is basically drinking sake at every possible moment. Finally, she values strength and fair play while despising dishonesty and cowardice, despite being slightly less honest than a typical Oni. In addition, she doesn't kidnap humans, as this is a sacred bond of trust between Oni and Humans.
I have to say that for a character from a relatively popular game series, there isn't that much information I could dig up.
The set comes with the figure, three total expressions (neutral, drunk, and happy), her Ibuki Gourd, three coloured charms on metal chains, one moulded plastic chain for a dynamic whipping action, a Chibi clone cast in a floating pose, and a variety of hands, including one attached to her Sake dish, several hands dedicated to holding the Gourd, and of course the typical Figma stand along with attachment for the Chibi figure. As full disclosure, the repairs I had to make seemed to be super gluing her transparent skirt piece back on the upper body and a horn to her head. Her lower body came detached as well, and while there is a ball and socket arrangement to reconnect the pieces, it doesn't quite seem to hold together that well. I'm not entire certain if this is because the socket sucks, or because it was meant to be glued together, as due to the outfit, there doesn't seem to be much articulation at that point anyway.
Being Figma 104, Good Smile Company had at this point established itself as an quality operation, but things are a bit crude compared to todays standards. The overall design appears to be on point - based on what I could see from available artwork, the figure captures the intent of the character design and replicates the look in 3D. As always, things will change slightly based on the artist, but the trademark features are there including the various accessories, her dress and bows, and of course, the horns on her head.
Articulation is of course, comparatively limited when discussing a Figma 2.0, but for a 1.0 it's pretty typical - ankles, knees, hips, waist, shoulders, elbows, forearms, wrists, and neck. As one would expect, the dress limits the degree of movement the legs can move, just like with Twilight Princess Zelda, so overall, get ready for some epic standing with the figure, albeit showing more leg. The end of her ponytail can technically rotate, if you want to add a point to the articulation score card for that. The Chibi figure, unlike the one that came with Angela Balzac, has no articulation whatsoever.
Paint and finish is kind of where the age on the figure shows, though as always, it a solid product. It just seems that paint apps are a bit on the heavier side, and detailing isn't as crisp as they are today. This is probably most evident on the plastic chain parts, as well as the finish on the hair. Paint masking in general isn't bad, but there are weak spots to be found, for example the white lines on the gourd. Decal work is very crisp, with no real concerns from me. The various charms attach to the figure via working plastic clasps that hook onto her pony tail and wrists. You can also attach the gourd to her chain around the waist, but for me, it was a major pain to deal with. As mentioned above, the Sake plate comes with a dedicated hand, whereas the Gourd has a sliver that can be removed and utilized with one of the dedicated hands, depending on which grip you want her to hold the Gourd with. Any of the coloured charms can be removed from the metal chain and put on the moulded plastic one for an attacking pose.
A neat addition to the Figma shelf, if for nothing else other than the drunken expression, and all the accessories that go with it. There's much personality in the set, and I feel that it would be a great accent piece, particularly if your figures all of the stoic variety. I can't imagine this figure being particularly expensive, seeing how nobody talks about it at all. I'd love to learn a bit more about the character and all that, so hopefully someone in the digital world will reply with some sort of input.
That concludes another episode of "WTF Did I Buy?".