Wonder Winter Festival, Wonder Summer Festival, Chara Hobby Expo, Gundam Conventions, Anime Conventions, and every other otaku convention happening in Japan. This isn't even including the numerous gaming conventions like the Tokyo Game Show which happen every year, or all the conventions that happen way across the world in the US. Anime Expo and Comic Con come to mind. It's either a great time to be an anime/comic/game fan, or it's a time where you just wonder where to get that next wad of cash to feed this frenzied craze. =PWonderFest Summer 2006 has just wrapped up over in Japan, and it's just given people like me quite a few more anime figurines to drool over. Kotobukiya, Alter, Max Factory, Goodsmile, TakaraTomy, Toypla and quite a few others preview more of their money-sucking commodities, which I will be taking a very brief look at now. Being more into anime figurines than anything else, that'll be mainly what I'll talk about here. Most are only hitting stores in 2007, time enough to amass the moolah.I'll start with Alter, since they had the most in terms of stuff that caught my eye. First up, you guessed it, more Fate.Name: Ilya swimsuit 1/6 scale PVCRelease Date: January 2007Price: 4800 Yen A rather cute Ilya, and the first where she looks pretty much like the anime. The one from Kotobukiya (released this month) just looked weird to me. Nice swimsuit, nice pose, though I would have preferred her in her purple fur coat get-up.And now, for something looking SUPER HOT. ^^Name: Rider swimsuit 1/6 scale PVCRelease Date: Spring 2007Price: n/aYup, it's the purple-haired Rider, in a swimsuit again. She looks ever so slightly more voluptious compared to the Hobby Japan special one. Slightly better 'proportions' too, if you catch my drift. No surfboard for this one, but if you aren't getting the HJ version, what better way to satiate that Rider appetite. Heck, get this even if you're a lucky bastard who's getting the HJ one, lol. 1/6 scale, so it's big AND sexy. What else could you ask for? =)Alter are also releasing a Fate/ Hollow Ataraxia trading figure set, which, from first glance, looks like quality. Since it's HA instead of Stay Night, we get a coy Saber, magical girl Tohsaka, Karen and some characters I don't really know of. But they look good nonetheless. I like the detail on the figures, just like those other Type-Moon characters Alter is releasing which has those awesome figures of Saber and Rin. =P According to reports there are 7 figures in all, including the obligatory 'secret' figure.Name: Fate/ Hollow Ataraxia Trading FiguresRelease Date: January 2007Price: Around 4700 YenAh, finally got that over with. On to other stuff. Another figure of Sachikawa Eri of School Rumble is in the works, and I must say, it's looking pretty good.Name: Sachikawa Eri swimsuit 1/6 scale PVcRelease Date: February 2007Price: 4800 YenHopefully the transparent plastic she's lying on turns out to be a deck chair or something when final production commences. That would make the figure perfect. =DLouise de Valiel gets another rendition of herself, this time seated atop a folding ladder, and looking slightly better than Kotobukiya's version (I seem to say that alot...=.=;). I definitely like this figure. Very good likeness to her anime counterpart, in my humble opinion.Name: Louise de la Valiel 1/8 scale PVCRelease Date: February 2007Price: 4800 Yen Anyone remember Rindoh Rina? Or if you know anything about the game Pastel Chime Continue, you should recognize this figure. Which I don't expect. I don't really know her name right now, but this is looking to be another very beautiful figure from Alter, in a subdued kind of way. Looking at both this and the Rina figure, you'd never think these girls are from a H-game, doing perverted err, stuff.Name: "Whatshername" 1/8 scale PVCRelease Date: Spring 2007Price: n/aI wasn't totally attracted to the Rina figure, but this one may just make me get both. ;P I like the way the finishing is done on the paint job, giving her dress a slightly smoky look in the gray regions. Her hair is also done well, sharp and separated at the ends. And blue hair turns me on, for whatever reason. ^^Oh, and some cutie figures of Navel's characters, including Shuffle! girls. Yay. =)Now, let's take a look at Goodsmile and Max Factory. Though yet again, Fate gets first dibs on everything.Name: Saber maid 1/8 scale PVCManufacturer: Good Smile CompanyRelease Date: January 2007Price: 4500 YenSurprise, surprise, it's Saber in a MAID costume. Yup, I think my predictions of the Saber mermaid will come true soon, haha. Well, what can I say? It's Saber as a maid. The figure isn't painted yet, so I can't really comment. Yeah, pretty nice, but I've never had a thing for maids.Name: Majikina Mina 1/5 scale PVCManufacturer: Good Smile CompanyRelease Date: January 2007Price: 7800 YenA very hot Majikina Mina of Samurai Spirits is the next figure on offer from Goodsmile. I remember one a while back from Toypla, but that one is nowhere near this version. (Was this one ever a resin?) Mina is sculpted holding her trademark bow, and whatever semblance of clothes she has is being blown ever so enticingly by the wind. ;) It's huge, 1/5 scale to be exact, and the price is pretty steep too. but don't let that stop you.And here's a picture of a bunch of Fate figures standing together. I see gorcery girl Sakura there, so this probably confirms that Goodsmile is probably the main player in the manufacture of that figure, whatever it is that amiami says. =)One rather interesting thing I noticed was the Orchid Seed Ignis figure on show. NO EXPOSED BOOBIES! So, is this the real figure that's coming out in a few months? Or another, censored version. I don't think they're that stupid, so I'm putting my money on this being the completed PVC to be released in November.Name: Ignis 1/7 scale PVCManufacturer: Orchid SeedRelease Date: November 2006Price: 5800 Yen So, is this bye bye to all your hentai dreams? ^^ Though, this does make me want to buy it. =PAnd Witchblade's Masane from Orchid Seed? At 1/6 scale? Yummy. Though if you're getting Koto's or GDH's, you really shouldn't blow your money on this.Name: Masane Amaha 1/6 scale PVCManufacturer: Orchid SeedRelease Date: n/aPrice: n/aIn terms of PVC figures, Kotobukiya didn't have too much on offer. A few ToHeart figures, which I'm sorry to say, didn't interest me too much. I think I've said this once before. Cut off the girls' heads and you're left with the same body in the same uniform, hehe. However, I'm willing to forgive this one here. ^^Name: Tamaki Kousaka 1/7 scale PVCRelease Date: January 2007Price: n/aA pretty nice looking figure of Tamaki Kousaka if I'm not mistaken. Sorry, my ToHeart viewing was sporadic and incomplete at best, hehe. Pretty hair, nice base, and she's holding a bag. I like figures holding bags, cups and whatnot. They give it that slight uniqueness over a girl doing nothing; ie. your normal running/standing/hopping poses.And of course, there were a number on figures on show which are coming out real soon. A few notable ones were Zero no Tsukaima's Louise, Eruruu from Utawarerumono, and Yomiko Readman from R.O.D (Read or Die).Name: Louise de la Valiel 1/8 scale PVCRelease Date: October 2006Price: 5040 YenThey seem to have settled on a nice pentagram base for her. That's a good thing. Here's Eruruu, and Koto has screwed up her face once again. =/Name: Eruruu 1/8 scale PVCRelease Date: September 2006Price: 4410 Yen Name: Yumiko Readman 1/8 scale PVCRelease Date: October 2006Price: 5040 YenOkay, that's about it from me. I like Alter's recent releases mostly, and definitely hope Koto picks up the pace in terms of their anime figures. Oh well, here's to another year of figure-buying and anime fests. =D>>> ToyzlogTags: PVC Figures, Figurines, Toys, Anime, Anime Toys, Japanese Toys, WonderFest 2006, Wonder Festival Summer, Tenjou
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