Periodically, I like to take a look at new figures that are available for pre-order. This isn’t intended to be an exhaustive list, but rather a selection of new releases that I personally find interesting or notable.

Wave – 1/8 Aisaka Taiga [China Dress Ver.]

• Character: Aisaka Taiga
• Series: Toradora!
• Scale: 1/8
• Height: 190 mm
• Material: PVC
• Company: Wave
• Price: 6,500 yen
• Date: Nov. 2010
• Link 1: Dengeki
• Link 2: Tokyo Hunter
• Link 3: Nihonju
• Link 4: Otacute

Toradora! fans will be pleased to note that Wave will be releasing another Taiga figure later this year. I haven’t watched this series yet, but it’s near the top of my “planning to watch” list and I definitely want to get a Taiga figure at some point. This particular Taiga looks interesting, but it should be noted that it’s yet another JP mail order exclusive, so I’m not too eager to jump through those hoops for a figure I’m only on the fence about.

On a side note, I believe this is the first time I’ve written about a figure from Wave. They seem to do mostly 1/10 scale stuff, which is smaller than what I typically go for. I’m curious as to what level of quality they typically deliver.

Kotobukiya – 1/10 Hanshin Tigers Lum-chan [Repaint Ver.]

• Character: Lum
• Series: Urusei Yatsura
• Scale: 1/10
• Height: 160 mm
• Material: PVC
• Company: Kotobukiya
• Price: 3,900 yen
• Date: Jun. 2010
• Link 1: Kotobukiya
• Link 2: AmiAmi (JP site only)

I usually use “1/10 scale or smaller” as grounds for instantly disqualifying a figure from further consideration, but I felt like this rather unique Lum figure was at least worth a mention. One can only guess that the marketing department over at Kotobukiya made a thematic connection between Lum’s trademark tiger-striped bikini and the popular Japanese baseball team the Hanshin Tigers and this is the result.

Curiously, AmiAmi is only making this figure available through their Japanese site. The figure shows up via search on the English site, but attempting to pull it up results in a message that the figure is not available. Hmm… 😕

Alter – 1/8 Akiyama Mio [Festival Ver.]

• Character: Akiyama Mio
• Series: K-ON!
• Scale: 1/8
• Height: 210 mm
• Material: PVC
• Company: Alter
• Price: 6,800 yen
• Date: Aug. 2010
• Link 1: Alter
• Link 2: Hobby Search
• Link 3: AmiAmi

Alter’s “Festival Version” Mio is now available for preorder. I previously covered this figure as part of my Winter Wonder Festival write-up.

My feelings about this figure haven’t changed drastically since seeing the coverage of said event. I certainly like this Mio better than Alter’s previous attempt, but we’ve already seen hints of a very similar, but better (IMO) Mio from Max Factory.

Between this and the Max Factory version, I’ll wait for the latter, but what I really want to see is a figure with Mio in her ending sequence outfit. I feel like I’m starting to sound like a broken record on this last point. -_-

Alter – 1/8 Amae Koromo

• Character: Amae Koromo
• Series: Saki
• Scale: 1/8
• Height: 230 mm
• Material: PVC
• Company: Alter
• Price: 6,800 yen
• Date: Aug. 2010
• Link 1: Alter
• Link 2: Hobby Search
• Link 3: AmiAmi

Here’s another figure I previously covered as part of my Winter Wonder Festival write-up.

As with Mio, my impressions of Ms. Koromo really haven’t changed since the show. I really dig the Alice and Wonderland attire, which is the main selling point of the figure for me. There’s also the loli aspect, which could be a negative for some. This is a pretty tasteful figure though, so I’m not particularly bothered.

Unfortunately, there’s a good chance that this figure will be one of the first victims of this year’s budget. At this point, I think I have enough funds for about two more figures and I already have those funds earmarked for GSC’s Tohsaka Rin and either Max Factory’s Mio or Append Miku. I’m toying with the idea of selling one or two figures out of my collection this year, which could free up funds for Koromo. We’ll see.

Cospa (Resinya!) – Non-scale Aegis [Heavy/Normal Armor Versions]

• Character: Aegis
• Series: Persona 3 / Persona 3: FES
• Scale: Non
• Height: 265 mm
• Width: 350 mm
• Depth: 260 mm
• Material: PVC
• Company: Cospa (Resinya!)
• Price: 16,000 yen
• Date: Sep. 2010
• Link 1 (Heavy Ver.): Resinya!
• Link 2 (Heavy Ver.): AmiAmi
• Link 3 (Heavy Ver.): Hobby Search
• Link 1 (Normal Ver.): Resinya!
• Link 2 (Normal Ver.): AmiAmi

Resinya’s Aegis from the the Persona 3 series is now available for reservation. I previously wrote about this figure for both the Wonder Festival and Miyazawa Model Exhibition events earlier this year.

One unexpected change you’ll notice about this figure versus what was shown at the tradeshows is that Aegis will come in two versions that are basically identical except for the fact that she’s wearing a vest and helmet in one version (i.e., “Heavy Armor Version”) and nothing extra in the other (i.e., “Normal Armor Version”). AmiAmi lists the armored Aegis as the regular edition and the other version as a limited edition.

My thoughts on Resinya’s Aegis are still very much mixed. On the one hand, this figure is a deliciously detailed and large version of my favorite character design from the Persona video games. On the other, my last experience with Resinya was a bit of a letdown, so I’m reluctant to fork out big bucks for Aegis sight-unseen. Even if that wasn’t the case, the budget crunch I described above would still apply.

Re-Release: Alter – 1/8 Yagyu Jubei

Finally, for those who missed her the first time around, Alter is re-releasing Jubei from Hyakka Ryoran. Other than a new release date of Aug. 2010, all the same details as before apply, so you can check my original preview and review posts. FWIW, I grabbed Jubei on the first go round and felt like she was one of my best purchases of the past year.

Sometimes I wonder how and why manufacturers decide to re-release certain figures and not others. 😕