When word first broke over a year ago at Wonder Festival 2007 Summer that Vispo’s Seyada Tara kit would be seeing a PVC incarnation from Daiki Kougyou, shock and awe was a phrase that handily described my mental state. While she doesn’t fit the normal spectrum of what I’d look for in a 2D girl, her phenomenal retro-futuristic design combined with the epic sculpt and sheer colossal presence of the figure compelled me to plunk down the large portion of paycheck required to fund her acquisition. All the pieces are in place for a truly historic figure, but does Daiki live up to the task? Read on!

The first round of the explosively popular Shuraki multimedia figure series concludes with the appearance of Rize, Italian Shuraki and member of the mysterious White Raven organization. Armed with a massive halberd and clad in a diaphanous blue gown, her design is surely a match for any of her predecessors – but how does she compare in figure form? Read on for the final installment in our Shuraki review series (until the second batch is announced):

Volume four in the wildly popular series of Shuraki multimedia figures is in some respects a return to more familiar territory, as design duty for Nida was entrusted to the ubiquitous Yamashita Shunya. His designs have been adapted in figure form by just about every major PVC manufacturer in the past few years, but as the first Yamashita offering from Goodsmile there was curiosity regarding how the maker would handle the adaptation compared to those with longer track records. As we’ve come to expect with this series the result is very favorable indeed:

Our Shuraki figure review series continues in this third installment featuring French-themed villainess Char Rhousemann. The Shuraki frenzy that consumed figure fans through much of 2007 had cooled somewhat by the time she came out in January of this year, but with Needa recently released and Rize coming at the end of the month it’s high time to get back into the thick of things. Check out our Mishiro Akatsuki and Riu Meifeng reviews first (if you haven’t already, or need a refresher on what the Shuraki series is), and then continue the saga with our look at the contents of Char’s multimedia package:

What are girls made of? If you said “sugar and spice and everything nice”, you wouldn’t be far off. If you said “food”, you’d be closer still. If you said “polyvinyl chloride, paint, artificial strawberry fragrance, and carcinogens”, you’d be talking about Cafe Reo’s Strawberry-chan, the first figure to be released based on designs from Okama’s Food Girls artbook and the first I’m aware of to use scent as a gimmick. Who could pass up a figure with such curious credentials? Certainly not me, resulting in the review you’re about to see:

This French Doll (Cerberus Project) Kanu figure has a long history, starting life as a resin kit before moving last year to mail order limited PVC release and finally to full distribution in this alternate black and white color scheme. Like the Pearl Black Ryomou before her this kit is a glimpse back in time at French Doll’s craft before he fully matured as a sculptor, but nonetheless has so many charm points that I couldn’t pass her up – not to mention being the only castoffable entry in the Cerberus Ikkitousen lineup thus far. Read on for a look at how UArt managed with their latest PVC conversion:

We conclude our coverage of last week’s World Hobby Festival Ariake 18 Final with an overall “meta” look at the event. If you’ve been wondering exactly what WHF is or why it was canceled after nearly a decade of successful operation, this is the post for you:

Wrapping up the meat of our pictorial coverage of WHF Ariake 18, we take a look at the coming PVC and resin releases of professional makers present at the event. Includes uncensored looks at Yamato’s Animal Girl Bonnie and Daiki Kougyou’s Sugimoto Anna, a gallery of Musashiya’s castoff Ikkitousen cold casts, and Kurushima’s “swimsuit” Kanu resin, among others:

We wrap up our coverage of the garage kit side of WHF Ariake 18 with a final sweep through the day’s photo shoot, catching dozens of great figures that didn’t quite fit in anywhere else. A lot of sculptors worked really hard to make this final event one to remember, and all their hard work paid off:

With the early ’08 release of the To Heart 2: Another Days expansion new life was breathed into the venerable Leaf bishoujo game franchise, resulting in a significant garage kit presence at WHF Ariake 18 which we document here. Nanoha StrikerS continues into 2008 with the strong showing it had last year, and while reduced in number there were still a few Fate/stay night kits of note that were worth taking a look at:

The fervor surrounding Lucky Star, Gurren Lagann, and the Vocaloid virtual idol character Hatsune Miku (and now Kagamine Rin and Len) has continued strong since the summer of last year, and WHF Ariake 18 saw a fresh crop of kits emerge based on these popular franchises. We’ve got a round up of many of them below (and a few older ones as well), for your perusing pleasure:

Osiris of sculpting circle Heavy Gauge is one of the most skilled hands working in the PVC figure arena today (Holstein Hanako-san, Guernsey), and it’s unsurprising that his personal garage kit work is equally remarkable. Along with his Heavy Gauge colleague Kana he participated at WHF Ariake 18 yesterday under the circle name “3D Megane”, where the painted prototype of his Persona 3 Aegis (Aigis) kit was on display. The results of an ensuing photographic frenzy can be found below:

We continue our coverage of WHF Ariake 18 with a look at the [ERO] garage kits present at the event. If something you were expecting to see here is not, odds are we’ve covered it in past event coverage; I’ve tried to generally avoid redundancies, though they do creep in on occasion. I should note that this particular batch contains more extreme content than usual, so those of weak stomach and those not of legal age to view explicit content should look elsewhere. I repeat: those not legally able to view sexually explicit material should not browse past this point. If you’re an adult with an open mind, by all means proceed!

Sculptor Toushirou of circle Cobra-Kai is known for his epic large-scale works, usually featuring characters with voluptuous builds and his trademark heavy-lidded eyes. When I first saw the rough draft of his resin rendition of Fate/stay night‘s Saber at last Wonder Festival I momentarily didn’t recognize it as his work; she seems so far afield from what he normally sculpts. But now that the kit is complete it’s apparent that it’s none other than his genius hand at operation, and this is a kit that made one of the biggest impressions at yesterday’s WHF Ariake 18. See below for a full castoff [ERO] gallery:

What happens when two of the bishoujo sculpting masters of Japan decide to tackle the same subject with their own unique interpretations? We found out yesterday at WHF Ariake 18, where I was treated to my first look at the completed renditions of two new Gurren Lagann Yoko “space look” resin kits by two veteran hands of the craft. See below for gallery reviews of both:

I just walked in the door from World Hobby Festival Ariake 18 Final and am now in the midst of processing images for our site coverage of the event. First up is a preliminary overview of some of the exceptional items on display at the Big Sight today, which will be followed shortly by a roundup of news from PVC makers who were there (lagging slightly behind the Tokyo-based blogs due to the four-hour trek home after the event ^^;;). Stay tuned!

I had never purchased a New Line figure before this one was announced (in the past they were primarily known for expensive cold casts whose looks never quite fit my budget), but when the fishnet version of their “private” Kousaka Tamaki was announced my willpower crumbled and I placed the preorder. Preview shots hinted at a figure that positively exuded erotic pheromones, and it was with high hopes that I embarked upon this review following the figure’s release last month. While ultimately the finished product isn’t quite as impressive as the prototype shots I’m still quite happy with the end result, explored in detail below:

When we first saw her in prototype at Wonder Festival last summer and later learned of her castoff potential, a preorder was mandated by some sort of federal law. With two of the top figure makers in the business collaborating on the project and a price that shouts rude epithets at the rising cost of oil (not to mention her demonic good looks), who could possibly resist Shizuka’s allure? Not me, which is why I am making this post:

When we first reported on this item back in November I was a bit skeptical as to how it would turn out; it seemed like a bunch of expensive knick-knacks worth less than the sum of its parts, little more than an attempt to sucker Ikkitousen fans like myself into parting with our hard-earned cash without providing much in return. After having the chance to peruse my copy in person my opinion has not changed, but as both a sucker and an Ikkitousen fan I have to say I’m happy with the result, and would appreciate being pandered to in a similar fashion by other shows in the future (Sekirei, I’m looking at you). Read on for a textbook primer on how to be swindled in style:

When Movic’s race queen Musubi was first announced at last summer’s Wonder Festival I was pretty excited, coming off the successful release of their first Musubi PVC a few months before. With a strong affection for her character and the obvious castoff potential exhibited by that unpainted prototype, expectations went a bit wild… The following eight months became an exercise in coming down to earth, but I wasn’t prepared for quite the extent of the inept production that awaited. Read on for a look at how a decent kit didn’t quite meet its potential:

PS. Thanks to SbebiWan for pointing out that there was nothing in this excerpt. ^^;;

Kuro no Franco (Franco il Nero) hit store shelves today as the second figure in Alter’s trilogy of heroines from last year’s dynamite Nitro+ eroge Zoku: Satsuriku no Jango (Tre Donne Crudeli). Following on the heels of December’s Donne Anonime would be no small feat, but if successful the acrobatic pose chosen for Franco’s incarnation had the potential to outclass even the Woman with No Name. Does Alter’s production prove up to the task? Franco would like to have a word with you on that…

When we first came across Orchid Seed’s Anna last October I was clueless about this blond clone of a certain pink-haired Gainax android, but as I began researching her background for this review I realized that not only was this figure an atypical representation of the game from which she’s derived, but that the game itself looked really cool. This isn’t a review of the game, of course, but of a figure that I still maintain is very cute – though perhaps not quite one to make the cut for those of us on an increasingly tightening budget. Read on for details:

The combination of a Yoshizawa Mitsumasa sculpt and a Yamashita Shunya design is enough to evoke a Pavlovian drooling response in many figure collectors, myself among them. Formerly available exclusively in limited resin kit form, the announcement from Yamato at last summer’s Wonder Festival that the Yamashita / Yoshizawa team’s coproduced Ayanami Rei would be coming in PVC was incredibly welcome news. Following shortly on the heels of other significant Yamato releases last December Rei was lost in the shuffle here at HD, but we’re happy to finally be able to bring you a review of this great figure!

As the maiden release from rookie figure brand First Class, the first Yuria 100-shiki figure to be mass produced, and the first figure to ship with this particular LED light-up base gimmick, I opted to make the purchase despite some initially questionable preview images at Amiami and elsewhere. While I was ready for the iffy sculpt and cast quality, I wasn’t expecting some rather more substantial deficiencies in the kit that makes this sadly one of the year’s most disappointing releases thus far. Read on for the unfortunate truth: Update: it turns out the packaging did contain a support intended to prop the kit up after all; I’ve revised the final score slightly as a result, and details can be found at the bottom of the review.

When we first came across this kit last November I was excited by the prospect of a Bible Black figure coming from a maker other than the infamous C-Works. As the flagship release from a maker new to the scene I felt Miyabiya’s Imari was worth checking out, and the previews painted a guardedly optimistic picture of what lay in store – but just how does she stack up against the competition? Read on!

When Cattleya was first announced as part of the Megahouse Excellent Model Queen’s Blade lineup last September I was overjoyed. Given her ponderous dimensions and niche fetish appeal I thought her inclusion in the series would be unlikely, but it seems someone with decision-making power at Megahouse HQ recognized the appeal of her monumental design for what it was, and decided that justice must be done. The justice ended up so great that it could hardly be contained by Cattleya’s 120-cm bust, so I give fair warning – if the prospect of such developed womanly attributes makes you less than excited this review is not for you. Otherwise, read on for more gushing fanboyism than is probably appropriate:

I swore off Taki figures shortly after reviewing their first Kanu last fall, yet here we are with a review of the recently released china dress version. Am I an idiot? Maybe (probably, yes), but at least I’ll acknowledge my addiction… Read on for a look at just what a weakness for marginally sexy castoff sculpts will get you:

I was wavering on a preorder of Manyuu Chibusa for a few months after she was announced. I’d seen her recently at the Cerberus Project booth at Wonder Festival and WHF, and while I liked the design it was obvious she wasn’t castoffable, and seemed bereft of other worthwhile gimmicks. In the end I caved in, convinced that a character whose name literally means “magical breast” would be worth having – and boy, am I glad I fell prey to this pair. The salacious details of a very surprising figure follow:

When French Doll’s Ryomou was first announced for PVC conversion last year I was psyched to have the chance to own a classic Cerberus Project kit without going to the trouble of painting it myself. I missed the deadline for the Comic Gum mail order edition though, and was thus even happier to hear that she would be reissued in this alternate “pearl black” color scheme. While I would’ve prefered the original colors, the chance to own a kit like this could not be passed up, so I bit the bullet and put in an order. Was she worth the trouble? You make the call:

Ever since Goodsmile’s Hatsune Miku Nendoroid was first revealed last November, the explosive popularity of this figure was a foregone conclusion. By simply taking the route of an already established net meme the figure practically advertised itself, and by the time it shipped two days ago had racked up over 50,000 preorders – ten times the number produced for the initial release of Shuraki Vol. 1. Does Miku live up to the hype? Read on to find out!