This is the weekly Figure Friday post, covering the figures released, announced and such during the past week. There will be the best figures of the week and the worst, as well as news, delays, releases and re-stocks.
As always, click on the first picture to go to a site with more information on the figures, and the pictures after the description for the Flickr page, where bigger photos can be had. As always, post is not entirely safe for work, be advised.
Five Hot:
1.
Baldr Sky Dive1 Kirishima Rain 1/8 GK by Volks Turn A-brand
Another Volks GK A-brand, after the “La campanella della benedizione” figures from some time back. This figure looks nice, has a simple yet elegant dress, a nice amount of details. The right flow and creases of clothings, etc. I just wish she had the other figure’s face, to make her perfect.
October 26th, 2009, 12,00 yen, unassembled and unpainted. Volks Web Site Store only no direct link to the item, sorry.
Click the “More” tag for more photos and figures! 
Original art
2.
Tony Taka original characters Nekomimi Maid 1/6 PVC figure by E☆2 (Etsu)
I love Tony Taka’s work. It’s great. I love sculpts based on his work, they’re great. This is an Etsu and AmiAmi limited item, based on an original art-piece. Two-girls, maids, catgirls. This is exceedingly alluring to the male figure collector. Sadly, it costs about triple what the original GK cost, and it’s not like there are a lot of angles from which to properly view them. Still, beautiful.
14,800 yen with tax for both, March 2010, 260mm. Get them from Etsu.
Original art
3.
Samurai Girls Hanzo Hatori 1/8 PVC figure by Alter
I wasn’t sold on her skirt’s edges back in prototype days, but they’re cool now. Of course, her limited version comes with the double-katana, and I’m not too fond of the regular version’s oversized blade-shuriken. Comes with rods to help with the dynamic pose, which are annoying, but you can’t have it all.
Limited double-katana photos from Kumo’s blog.
Lovely model. And yes, the glasses look a bit out of place, heh.
January 2010, 220mm (including base), 8,800 yen. Reserve (normal version).
Original character art
4.
White Album Ogata Rina 1/8 PVC figure by Good Smile Company
Not only does she look considerably better than her counterpart, Yuki Morikawa next to which she can be displayed, she just looks gorgeous. Nice hair colour, nice dynamic pose, nice outfit which tends to check many of the marks I like, and just well-made.
Just one thing, her face seems a bit wide and she seems to lack a bit of chin, but still, not hardly enough to diminish her prettiness.
January 2010, 210mm, 6,190 yen. Reserve. Good price.
5.
Shunya Yamashita Emaretta-chan Black Armor Ver. Creators’ Labo #021 1/6 PVC figure by Yamato
This is a sweet figure. Very Conan-esque, Swords and Sorcery monster-vanquisher style. You can take the cloak off, though I think I like her better with it. Yes, she’s not dressed enough for serious adventuring, heh.
The base being black is very nifty, and if it’s slightly ashy-coloured it’s even better. I suspect it’s both reflective and attracts dust and fingerprints with extreme ease, which could be a tad annoying.
Compared to the original, I think the cloak is more striking in the original version, but I like this one enough as well :)
October 2009, 240mm, 7,800 yen.
In other news, the Lineage 2 Elf (last week‘s top figure) also has her undergarment cast-offable, but if I get her, I’ll let her keep them. After all, aside from the gentle face, what I like are all the details on her clothes, and I’m not a fan of “The Crack”. Via Nekomagic.
Three Not:
In case you’re wondering why the “Five Not” section is so empty, it’s because the Ikkitousen figures this week came out not by Taki Corporation or Daiki, but by Griffon. No, these figures are not awesome; but neither are they horrible. All are NSFW, just so you know.
Kanu Unchou china dress damaged clothings.
Ryomou Shimei china dressed damaged clothings.
We also have an ero-figure by Yamato, of Naked Star The Girl in the Divisional Page, alternate hair and ribbon colour version.
There’s also this shibari (#link) figure of Tsugumi-chan by Okayama Figure Engineering, which is quite interesting.
1.
Hyakko Kageyama Torako 1/8 PVC figure by Beagle
What is up with her face?! Nothing exciting about this figure, truly seems like trading figure quality, and not on the higher end, and then I saw the price… 8,000 yen, for this piece of crap?
December 2009, 8,000 yen. Reserve.
2.
Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann Nia Swimsuit Ver. 1/8 polystone figure by Amie-Grand
I am sure this is an assessment many would disagree with, but I dislike this figure. Its look is certainly /unique/, but not all Unique is good. Her hair is dazzling and draws the eye like a cartoon, but I’m not sure it’s fitting for a figure.
Also, I’m not sure I like the level of details in her face, or lack thereof, paint-wise. Polystone.
December 2009, 120mm, 11,000 yen. Pre-painted and assembled. Reserve.
3.
Queen’s Blade Wandering Soldier Reina 2P Color Ver. VMF action figure by Yamato
This goes here for the same reason the Revoltech Melona did. Not because it’s from Queen’s Blade and has sexual overtones, but because the face sucks. The face is truly horrible, and can’t be redeemed.
I can’t even tell what the default expression is supposed to be. Not too keen on the alternate ones either.
And yes, it’s cast-offable.
And erm, wow! It’s VMF, not a revoltech. And it costs like a full figure, so, really really not.
January 2010, 7,800 yen. Reserve.
News:
Square Enix Goods on TokyoHunter’s blog.
47th Amusement Machine Show coverage on Nekomagic. Prize figures you can get on arcade machines.
Releases and Re-Stocks:
Upcoming Releases from Kumo’s Blog:
Nendoroid Saber Lily (I ordered!)
Nendoroid Riannon (cute!)
Nendoroid Arawn.
New releases:
Saber Lily Distant Avalon, Good Smile Company, sold out in most places, but Play-Asia seems to still have them!
upLark’s Ayanami Rei with entry-plug interior.
upLark’s Nia, from Gurren Lagann.
upLark’s Viral, from Gurren Lagann.
Rram from Makai Kingdom, by Griffon.
Re-stocks:
MegaHouse special edition Queen’s Blade Ymir (more weapons).
Chara-Ani Nendoroid Hiragi Tsukasa normal version, of Lucky Star.
Brilliant Stage Sakura Nanako by MegaHouse.
Reserves:
Enter Brain’s Selvaria Bles from Valkyria Chronicles.
Nendoroid Alphard, from Canaan, by Good Smile Company.
Sales:
Weekly Special on Play-Asia, Creator’s Labo #016 Non Scale Pre-Painted PVC Figure: Jingai Makyo Ignis (Black & Red Version) $40
Sales spotted by AnimeFigureSales:
Vita by Alter 5,400 yen.
And a cute figure to end it all: Kallen from Code Geass merged with her Knightmare, Gurren!
Geekorner-Geekulture. 
Do….Cking….. *dies*
Thanks again for this week’s figure friday!
I’d say “Anytime”, but “Next Friday!” :D
And yes, Docking Friday, LOL.
…Oppai docking action. LOL.
Loving the first figure, Volks never fails with their figures IMO. I wish they were more wallet-friendly though.
And that swimsuit Nia… HORRIBLE. I like the drill, but… poor Nia ;A;
and that Kallen figure is ADORABLE!
Volks: And pre-painted and assembled too ;)
I mean, the symmetric docking action garage kit is 5,400 yen, but painting it well enough to be worth it is a whole different matter.
I might have to get Me-Kallen :D Meckallen? Mech-kallen? LOL.
I was thinking about Rina as she is voice by Nana Mizuki in the series but I know she will be an inpuslive get if I go ahead.
Other than that, not many others which peek my interest this week. ^^
There’s always last week, which was small and epic. This week also had a lot of mulling on the “Five Hot” corner, there were 2-3 other figures that nearly made it. ToHeart2 models for instance.
I love the Rina and Hatori fgures, too bad they’re too pricey.
The sad thing is, Rina is actually relatively cheap…
Well if I would get Rina I am forced to get Yuki. :))
Resist the urge to be a completionist! That way you miss out on nice things cause you don’t want things that are not so nice, or buy things which you don’t really like, heh.
But what you like :)
Skirt with knives, I’d probably want to see more of that.
Kallen Guren cross over, very cute <3
You mecha-girl lover ;)
Some really nice figures this week.
2 and 5 really pop out to me.
Wait till I review my latest two figures, though I’m not sure if to post the photos of Shizuka with her clothes off, or just link to them.
Man do I want Rina, I still wish she had normal clothes on though, she’s cuter off stage. I’m not sure I can bring myself to purchase Yuki. I want the set but I have other things to do with my money.
As for Hatori, I didn’t realize the difference was the double-ended Katana, I too prefer this over the oversized shuriken.
-Aka
I think they made sure everyone prefers it, so they’d get it ;)
Got a link to Rina’s normal clothes? And to be honest, I think she’s such an ace figure she’ll do well on her own. No one needs to know about Yuki :)
None on me at the moment. I’m just referring to memory from the series.
Oh, I know, I’m just curious how she looks in the series.
Maybe I’ll google it later :)
Seconding Tony’s Girls Girls Girls! figure. It’s a shame that most of us won’t be able to get our hands on it.
And I can agree somewhat with your opinion on Amy Grand’s Nia. It doesn’t look as though they really put too much effort into transitioning her from resin kit to mass market polystone, especially for that price. Though if I had the cash, I wouldn’t hesitate.
I actually prefer Hanzo’s Normal Edition with the shuriken and it seems like I’m in the minority for it. I think it does a good job counterbalancing the figure. With the katana, too much attention is given to her dress.
Hm, you wouldn’t hesitate with Nia if you had the cash, that means you’ll put her also before other figures?
Unlimited money is not interesting, cause there’s no choice. The real choice with each figure is much less “Is it worth $x”, but “Is it better than the other figures I could get with $x”?
Hm. You are in the minority. Then again, Tier likes “pregnant Saber” ;)
Well, it’s a minority that’s actually good being in: You’re happier paying less for the easier to get model. May we all be happy with that, heh.
As for Tony Taka’s model, you can always brush up on painting and get the much cheaper GK? :D
I think if I had an infinite paycheck, I’d still be selective. Nia is on my list, just very low compared to other releases.
I’ve always wanted to tackle a garage kit but from what I’ve learned about myself after many failed gunpla, I’ll rely on polystones and coldcasts for now. (;´Д`)
Or pre-painted PVC kits, don’t forget :D
Yeah, I need to make a post or two about my miniature armies.
BTW, why the email change? And you need to tie your Gravatar to this email as well :)
Actually, just forgot lol.
DAMN – got some great ones coming out. I love the one by Shunya Yamashita – hot girl with a BIG sword!
Goddamn, Shunya Yamashita’s designs look exactly the same, yet they’re still fucking awesome
Takes a special kind of genius to earn money for doing the same thing over and over, heh. Well, aside from in bureaucracy.
None of these figures for me. I know what I’m about to say probably applies to the next Friday Figure post and not this one but the only figures recently opened to reservations that I’m interested in would be the AlphaxOmega Nel and Hiyori. And Oddly enough I’m more drawn to Hiyori then Nel (even though I love Nel’s character way more).
Are the eyes too far apart on the first one? It kind of seems like it.
I think out of these, the only one I might get would be Tony Taka nekomimis. 2 for one and I’m a big fan of T2 artworks + figures.
Hm, I’m not sure about the eyes. But the other figure, which is generally boring, has a much better head. I wish I could have one’s body and the other’s head.
More GSC figures standing on one leg. You know what the Ogata Rina figure reminds me of? Chu Chu Astram. Exact same pose for her legs. I kinda wish GSC would stop making so many figures standing on one leg with boring poses. Leave the standing on one leg figures for truly dynamic poses like Canaan’s and find something else for figures like this. Not that they’d care about what I say.
Aside from that, not really interested in the rest. That “other girl’s face” does look a lot better though.
Well, this time there’s an excuse for the one-leg pose, which is the original art. Of course, I won’t be surprised if they bought the sculpt based on it because it stood on one leg?
Or perhaps they look at the data: We release one-leg poses, and people buy them, thusly, obviously they want one-leg poses!
I think the truth is like this: We want 1-2 one-leg pose figures, and if we buy more it’s in spite of it. Then again, I don’t have a one-leg pose yet, and Rina is cute.
Also, technically, that Canaan is not a “one-leg pose” figure, because she’s completely in the air when she does it. That one leg is lower is irrelevant. Details. A piffle. :D ;) :P
Canaan IS a “one leg pose” because there’s a peg attached to one of her leg for support. If the peg was attached to her but, that’s a different story. :P
My guess is they probably chose that pose for the one leggedness of it.
Dang! I should have expected an alternate Colour Version of Emeretta.Too bad my regular version is already on the way ^^
Wait what?Thats a VMF Reina? I tolerate shitty faces on my actionfigures but not on a full price figure
Some of these “Action figures” with crazy prices kinda surprise me. It kinda defeats the purpose, as it can break and snap with greater ease.
The “I just bought version X, now they release a better version?!” is well-documented. It especially helps those that were on the fence before. It pushes them over. The figure companies are pushers ;)