Preorder Roundup: 2015.06 Edition

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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.

It’s been a while. Six months, in fact. I’ve been a pretty lazy bum of late with regards to blog upkeep. The sad part is I had 90% of this post penned back in February, but opted to hold off in hopes that I could get a new review out first. That hasn’t happened and the preorder commentary is somewhat time-sensitive in nature, so I’m pushing this out now before it grows any more stale than it already has.

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Preorder Roundup: 2014.11 Edition

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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.

After my previous preorder post, I decided a more frequent cadence might be beneficial to keep these posts from growing so monolithic in nature. This is the first of what will hopefully become a mid-quarter format. I still managed to find fourteen figures to talk about since August, which was a bit of a surprise as well as a strain on the budget given that some manufacturers, notably Alter, seem to have dramatically shortened their preorder windows here recently.

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Preorder Roundup: 2013.02 Edition

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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.

Another exciting WonFes has come and gone, which means it’s probably a good time to take a look at the backlog of figures from my preorder short list.

(Actually, I’m not timing these posts around WonFes. That’s just how long it takes the backlog to reach critical mass.)
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Review: Alter 1/8 Kanetsugu Naoe

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I had the opportunity to watch the anime adaptation of the Hobby Japan original franchise Hyakka Ryouran earlier this year and found the experience rather trite. I went in expecting an ecchi harem anime and that’s pretty much what I got, which would be fine if the series just wasn’t so damn generic about it. Where something like Sora no Otoshimono managed to feel fresh and hilariously over-the-top, Hyakka Ryouran felt formulaic and, ultimately, forgettable. I had expected much the same going into the Queen’s Blade anime only to come away pleasantly surprised to find a serviceable fantasy/action anime underneath all the overt sexualization, so I had hopes that Hyakka Ryouran would also exceed expectations, but alas, no.

Whatever Hyakka Ryouran‘s failings as an anime, the franchise has at least produced a small bounty of quality figures, which I think owes to the skillful character stylings of Nitroplus artist Niθ and the fact that Hobby Japan partnered with Alter for the majority of those figures. I have rarely been so tempted to pick up every single figure from one particular series as I have with Alter’s line of Hyakka Ryouran figures. They’ve been exceptionally good.

Naoe is my third Alter Hyakka Ryouran figure after normal and swimsuit Jubei, which I’ve previously reviewed. Naoe is introduced fairly late in the series as a comically inept henchman and she is painted as a bit of a self-important dunce. I found her to be one of the more likable characters in the anime, so when Alter unveiled an attractive Naoe in full combat regalia as their latest non-exclusive figure it wasn’t hard to commit to a preorder.
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Preorder Roundup: 2012.03 Edition

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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.

It’s been over five months since my last preorder write-up, so there’s a lot of ground to cover. Let’s get started.
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Review: Alter 1/8 Yagyu Jubei ~Hobby Japan Swimsuit Ver.~

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When Alter announced a Hobby Japan-exclusive version of Hyakka Ryoran heroine Yagyu Jubei clad in revealing swim attire, it didn’t take long for me to decide that Jubei was a character worth at least two figures. Acquiring this version of Jubei was made complicated by the details accompanying the release announcement. Beyond the simple fact that Hobby Japan won’t ship outside Japan, Jubei was also to be limited to 1,500 pieces distributed via lottery. It seems that the old “first-come, first-served” adage need not apply here. The lottery clause effectively eliminated the option of ordering the figure through a proxy service because there was no guarantee that they could fill the order.

I had noticed in the past that the US-based ToysLogic seemed to carry Hobby Japan exclusives from time to time. I contacted them regarding the new Jubei to see if they would be accepting orders. A few days later, I got a response that they would indeed be accepting orders for the HJ exclusive. I was concerned as to how they would get around the lottery problem, but I didn’t press the issue and decided to place my order through them. A box from ToysLogic arrived at my doorstep seven months later.
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New Release Roundup

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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. 😕