Blog 086 > The Pirate & the Lolita

Damn, I couldn’t help it! Not only a new Gothloli Asuka pre-order for August-September, but now grabbing two new pre-orders for October-November! First, a 1/8-scale “Space Pirate” (from Intron Depot 4) with bright-blue hair, black leather and yes, lots of skin, lol.

Second, a 1/8-scale “Gothloli Ryofu” (from Ikki Tousen) with bright-green hair, white stockings, plus removable two-piece top, removable bloomers and removable skirt! In other words, yes again, lots of skin, lol. Snatch ’em now before they disappear forever… or until a possible re-release, haha. Meanwhile, looks like several low-budget months of ramen for me…

Blog 085 > Does Faking It Matter?

So this morning, I come into work at my cubicle and check my emails. And oddly enough, just for the heck of it, instead of auto-deleting, I checked my home spams to find an “Anime Figure” email from another collector: “H-Gurl”. Definitely not your typical spam! And guess what? Her email was simply a friendly message complimenting my collection and noting some “red flags” concerning possible bootlegs or fakes in my collection. With my Tessa Testarossa (Full Metal Panic!), I agreed with her assessment, not to mention the scratches, deformities and poor finish. But for such a scarce version at the time, paying $1 or $2 (plus shipping) on ebay was better than nothing…

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Blog 084 > Shana & Himekuri Girl, Finally!

A-ha! Finally! Sorry about the last two teasers, but no more! After more than a month since my last photoshoot, here’s the full photoshoot of my 1/8-scale “Gothloli Shana” and 1/7-scale “Himekuri Girl” figures!

Manufactured by Toys Works, this flaming-haired blazing-eyed gothic-lolita PVC version of Shana — from the anime Shakugan no Shana (4 of 5 stars) — features her smiling in a white short-sleeved top with a black skirt and stockings. She bends forward with her orange-wrapped sword behind her, and her trusty companion Alastor hanging as a pendant from her neck. Fiery yet proper, haha!… Meanwhile, designed by Yoshizaki Mine — of Sgt. Frog (Keroro Gunso) fame — for the cover of the Japanese magazine Comic Himekuri, sculpted by Tomohide Enoki, and manufactured by Kaiyodo, this purple-and-black gothic-lolita PVC version of this cute cover girl portrays her kneeling in a skimpier top, a more-colorful and elaborate hair adornment, and a longer more-flowing skirt. On top of that, while not apparent in the photos, the intriguing paint scheme is embedded with tiny dust-sized sparkles, like a glistening sheen of rainbow mist. Wow, glad I got her!

For this Canon photoshoot, I saved 73 shots, then narrowed it down to these 60 shots. (For 10 of the 60, I Photoshop-enhanced the poor lighting by duplicating the image layer and applying a “Screen” blend at 50% opacity). Now, without further ado, enjoy the photoshoot!

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Click for Full Photoshoot (60) >>

Blog 078 > Will Figures Never End?

Ah, finally! My first figure-collection update in ages! Finally moved out the boring 8-year-old vases from the stepped wall in the living area, and replaced them with my collection of still-boxed anime (and Lara Croft) figures! Jeez, 17 figures still boxed! For those who don’t yet know, with the exception of some of my earliest figures, I don’t open boxes until I’m ready to do a full photoshoot. Then once I’ve finished the photoshoot, I display them in the ever-rising shelves above my laptop setup. Only 37 figures opened! And yesterday, I just bought and added a third tier of shelves to make room for new post-photoshoot figures. Argh, will it never end? But now, more pics…

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Blog 072 > Gothloli Melancholy!

Yup! It was bound to happen! A “Gothic Lolita” version of Haruhi from the wildly popular anime The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. At $130.00 USD, this pre-painted 1/7-scale resin figure features Haruhi in a gothic black-and-white dress, adorned with red roses and red shoes, and featuring her optional musical attachment: Her electric guitar! And according to this accompanying link, Mikuru and Yuki are soon to follow! Gotta have them! But damn, too pricey. Maybe I’ll wait for the PVC versions, lol.

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Blog 066 > Ikki Lolitas!

Finally, a new figure photoshoot! Nearly a month since my last photoshoot! This time, I’m presenting my 1/7-scale gothic-lolita “Ryomou” (standing) delivered back on January 1st, 2007, and my 1/7-scale gothic-lolita “Kanu” (kneeling) delivered back on December 5th, 2006. Both characters appear in the sexy martial-arts anime series Ikki Tousen (4 of 5 stars, my maximum for half-season!).

While the 9-inch-standing Ryomou was sculpted by Hiroman, and the 4.5-inch-kneeling Kanu by Satoshi Ishiyama, both PVC figures were manufactured by Orchid Seed in the frilly black-and-white “Gothic Lolita” style. (Additional recolored versions are available in the pink or striped “Alice Lolita” style.) As an added bonus, Kanu’s white top is detachable to reveal her fullness. I haven’t detached it yet, lol. For this Canon photoshoot, I saved 50 shots, then narrowed it down to these 35 shots. Enjoy!

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Click for Full Photoshoot (35) >>

Blog 042 > Evangelion Lolitas!

Ah, finally, an Evangelion gothic-lolita figure photoshoot! Here, we welcome 1/6-scale “Gothloli Rei” and 1/7-scale “Gothloli Asuka” from the psychological post-apocalyptic classic Neon Genesis Evangelion. While the blue-haired Rei Ayanami was sculpted by Suzu (Atomic-bom) and manufactured by Amie-Grand with a polystone-resin price-tag of $110-120 USD, the red-haired Asuka Langley was sculpted by Naoki Nishimura and manufactured by Kotobukiya with a PVC price-tag of $30-40 USD.

Note that resin is harder heavier less-deformable and more-detailable, but also less-flexible more-brittle and more-expensive than PVC. Luckily, you can’t tell that both of Rei’s index fingers were superglued back on, lol. So for this two-hour photoshoot, I saved about 65 shots, then narrowed it down to the 50 shots you see here. Enjoy!

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Click for all 50 >>

Blog 040 > Think Inside the Box!

Boxed Anime Figures
Photo 01 by xJAYMANx | Click to enlarge

WOW! Been almost a month!… Well, got three new figures over the past few days (Photo 02). So I decided to take a few photos of the 10 figures I haven’t opened yet… Photo 01: Gothloli Rei and Gothloli Asuka from EvangelionPhoto 02: Natsuki from Mai-Hime, Motoko from Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, and Bunny Girl Haruhi from Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Photo 03: Chii from Chobits, and Gothloli Kanu and Gothloli Ryomou from Ikki Tousen… and lastly, Photo 04: Gothloli Ryomou from Ikki Tousen (once again), Battle Damaged Ryofu from Ikki Tousen, and Ritsuko from Kujibiki Unbalance… Gotta find time to do a new photoshoot! See ya soon!

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Blog 030 > Half-Naked Death Can Be So Expensive!

Hmmm, there’s a “Wish List”, then there’s an “Impossible Wish List”… Coming in late January 2007, between $100 and $150 USD (not including shipping) on two different figure sites — HobbyFan.com and E2046.com — this tauntingly demonic girl, half-dressed in feather and leather and metal, this 1/7-scale “Morte the Death Bringer” resin figure is undeniably breathtaking! Yet expensively out-of-reach… Like I said, quite nearly impossible, hehe…

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Blog 020 > Going All the Rei!

Rei from Neon Genesis Evangelion
Rei from Neon Genesis Evangelion | Image from Hobby Search

hey, a late xmas present!… on tuesday, dec 26th, after dinner, drove to the post office to pick up my latest anime figure… “gothloli rei“!… in fact, here’s the preview that i wrote for LasVegasOtaku.org back on sept 24th…

Going All the Rei!

If you’re a figure collector, or even if you’re not, you’re probably tired of seeing the seemingly endless versions of Rei and Asuka from the classic anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion. But that feeling may soon change!

Coming this November, a stunning new GothLoli Rei Ayanami will be available for your collecting pleasure. Sculpted by Suzu (Atomic-bom) and manufactured by Amie-Grand, this eye-catcher depicts a demurely kneeling Rei in a frilly white choker and top, as well as a leathery black skirt and stockings. At an impressively detailed 1/6 scale, Rei kneels at nearly 7-inches tall.

However, the sturdier polystone resin pushes her price to a blue-hair-raising $110-120 USD. Is she worth it? Well, if you’re a die-hard fan of Evangelion, GothLoli culture, or both — and can maybe skip meals for a few weeks — Rei might very well be!

Blog 015 > Night Saber! Part 1 of 2

Hey! My newest photoshoot taken today on Sunday, Dec 17th! In this case, I decided to go back and feature the first figure i ever ordered, way back in April 2006. That is, the first figure to grab me, strongly enough to own her: my 7-inch 1/8-scale “Saber in Gothic-Lolita Black” figure (the same “Saber” from Fate/Stay Night). So, to improve upon my original September-2006 photoshoot using my crappy HP digicam, today I used my Canon and a dark forest-fiery backdrop, took a total of 75 saved shots for 2 different poses (with and without skirt), and somehow narrowed it down to the best 50 shots…

Click for all 50 >>