Figure Review: Shuraki Trinity Box 04 NEEDA 1/8 PVC Figure Box Set

I don’t know about you, but I love it when you get more than you deserve, and this figure box set certainly provides you with more than enough goodies you deserve for the price tag.

Needa or Nida is the fourth figure in the Shuraki Trinity Box series and is by far the best. Each figure in the Shuraki range is based on character illustrations by the top anime and video game artists in Japan, Needa has been created by the renowned artist Shunya Yamashita.

If your new to Shunya Yamashita figures this box set is a good place to start. The figure is immaculate and you get a full colour booklet featuring plenty of artwork based around the characters and back story for Needa and to top it off you get a 70 minute drama CD, but unless you can understand Japanese you won’t appreciate this as well as you know you should. For collectors of Yamashita figures Needa offers something different to your collection, with its darker than usual colours and huge gun instead of the usual gigantic swords.

Needa comes with far more options than any other figure I have seen so far. For a start she can have two different lengths of gun, one shorter than the other, but both still very big (each version can have an optional bayonet). Secondly she has two different sets of clothes, one a smart military uniform and the other the sames but torn up in kinky kind of way. I suppose you could even have her in just bra and panties if you wanted. You can also have her dagger in hand or sheathed, her hat is also removable.

The paintwork on this figure is superb, as should be expected from Good Smile Company, infact the paintwork on her torn clothes seems to be a bit better than on her standard uniform. The seams on the removable clothes are hardly even noticeable and don’t detract from the figure at all.

The only gripe I do have with this figure is getting the gun in her hand, this can be a nightmare, even the instructions aren’t very helpful. The gun comes in three parts: barrel, body and butt. What I didn’t know at the time is the body of the gun separates again, top and bottom, so you can then slide her hand around the trigger, none of this is illustrated properly on the instructions. Or perhaps I was just being daft and doing it wrong, you’ll see what I mean if you get this figure.

Eye on Asia SCORE: 5/5

One of the best figures in recent times, very high quality, distinctive figure and loads of optional parts and accessories. A trinity of goodies give this figure a holy 5 out of 5.

link: Shuraki: Trinity Box 04 NEEDA (NIDA) 1/8 PVC Figure Box Set

Figure Review: Ikki Tousen Dragon Destiny CHOUN SHIRYU 1/8 PVC Figure

Like many figure from Alter this Choun Shiryu is not about boobs or explicitness, like the Griffon Ikki Tousen figures, it’s more about the characters personality and strengths making this Ikki Tousen figure one of the most serious and original so far.

The idea of having the characters eyes closed seems like an odd idea. You would think it would make the figure look plain faced and boring, as the eyes are  often one of the main features of anime characters. However, Choun’s face is perhaps the best feature of this figure. Alter have done an excellent job of capturing the focus, concentration and energy on Choun’s face. The quality of the sculpting of the face is far better than the vast majority of figures I’ve ever seem, her face really does look alive and you can almost imagine her opening her eye’s at any moment, energized with some mystical power. I think perhaps an optional face or head with open eyes might have gone down a treat with this figure. The photo’s really don’t do her justice.

Alter have always excelled at highlighting and shading and this shows most on the hair. Choun’s hair is fantastic, very well highlighted, as grey can often look very flat on these figures. And the join in her hair is hardly noticeable either.

Choun’s school uniform does a good job of complimenting her contours. The colours seem darker than on other versions of her, but they do seem more natural because of this. The pleats in her skirt are very well done and capture the movement nicely. The skirt is also removable should you wish to expose her a little more, but this is not recommended as it also exposes one of the few bad points of this figure, the seems at the tops of her legs are very visible, this isn’t a problem so long as you keep her dressed.

The socks and shoes are very well sculpted, however, there is almost no highlighting at all. There is some shading on the sides of her shoes but not much. The stripes on her socks seem unnaturally shiny too.

Choun comes in nice sturdy packaging featuring the Dragon Destiny logo and windows on all sides except the bottom. Infact the packaging is identical to the Kanu figure previously released by Alter only green instead of blue. You also get an instruction sheet showing how to correctly put the sword and sheath in her hands. The display base is the usual clear blue plastic that neither compliments nor detracts from the figure.

If your the kind of person who doesn’t like figures of scantily clad ladies, or are too embarrassed of people seeing them in your bedroom then this is the figure for you. Or if you collect Ikki Tousen figures then this is something different to add to you collection.

Eye on Asia SCORE: 4.5/5

link: Ikki Tousen Dragon Destiny CHOUN SHIRYU 1/8 PVC Figure

Figure Review: Art of Shunya Yamashita CoCoNA 1/7 PVC Figure

Cocona is a big classy figure that certainly has a presence about it. Have it on any display and it is the one figure your attention is always drawn towards.

Despite her cheeky face Cocona, like many other Shunya Yamashita works, is not a girl figure,but more of a woman figure. She is very busty and big thighed.

This figure is posed in a nice solid position and is well balanced even without the display base. Her dominating sword is a sight t behold, measuring 26cm in length and exquisitely detailed, this has to be one of the biggest anime figure swords ever.

Her thumb resting behind her belt and the ribbon blowing from her back give the figure enough of an impression of movement to keep it looking alive.

The colours used on Cocona are unusual to say the least. Her silver armour has a pinky-purple pearlescent effect to it. This is visable in bright rooms, however, if the figure is being displayed in a dark room the amour can look just grey and very flat. The pink used on her clothes is fairly dark compared to other Shunya Yamashita figures, but the dark pink is one of the factors that draws your attention to this figure in the first place. This can be a double edged sword though as you can find your attention being drawn to her arms, that use alot of this pink, rather than other parts of the figure.

Cocona’s hair is a spectacle to behold, the choice of colours is fantastic and really comes alive. The transition from deep, rich blue to light, aqua blue is wonderful. Cocona’s hair is the best figure hair I have seen n some time and is complimented nicely with two pink flowers.

Despite all the Shunya Yamashita figures being of busty ladies with huge swords, they always manage to have something fresh and original to each character and this one is no different, and is one of the most eye catching out of hem all.

The packaging for Cocona is an odd one, it seems to be the only figure that doesn’t state Shunya Yamashita on the box. I find that unusual as I would have thought it a good selling point for Movic’s first figure of this kind.

One big downfall with this figure, and it’s a failing of many anime figures, is the display base, it’s huge and ugly. Made of thick translucent white plastic and measuring 21cm in diameter. It looks like it should be used for microwave cooking.

Eye on Asia SCORE: 4/5

link: Art of Shunya Yamashita CoCoNA 1/7 PVC Figure