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And another Alter’s figure. Noumi is Alter’s first girl from the visual novel Little Busters. I’m a big fan of Key’s chara design so i was happy when Noumi was annonced from Alter. I nearly canceled her twice but i don’t regret not doing it at all. Noumi is really cute and this figure is full of happiness/cuteness. That’s why i choose her to do two sets of pics, the first one being finally a new entry in my “Girls and Flowers” serie, and the second set of pics are the usual review ones. Hope you’ll like the pics and that you will add this cute Noumi in your collection, she is definitely worth a grab !

This Noumi is a dynamic, sweet and lovely figure, with a bright expression on her face. You won’t find a better version of the character, Alter did a perfect job respecting the girl. She looks like she was just taken outside of the game, full of energy and with a cute smile on her face. And of course, the paint job is perfect and even if Noumi’s clothes are not special in any way, a big effort was made with her hair, it’s really detailled and it add a nice impression of movement. With her pose and the general flow of the figure, it looks like Noumi is jumping and i think that Alter is becoming better and better with the dynamic poses (and the one foot pose).

This is what i call a near perfection figure: dynamic pose nicely done with a real sense of flow, respects totally the original design of the game and the paint job and PVC quality is top notch.

Noumi gets 5 Exelica out of 5

And for more pics, another review at Shadonia

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Here’s finally my (late) review of the big Nanoha from Alter. There are already lots of pics of her around and great reviews so you don’t need to hear much good about her, you already know everything. In fact, i’m pretty sure that if you’re a figures collector/you have lots of money/you’re a Nanoha fanboy/you just sold the house, you already got her in your collection.

So yes, like Fate, Nanoha is a masterpiece, eveything is finely painted and it’s for sure the best Nanoha available on the market. And i’m sure it’ll stay like this for a while. But i heard some people got problems with their Nanoha’s and i got one with mine too. The “pearls” on her dress and clothes goes off or are not correctly glued. On mine it’s the one on her left arm that is not correctly fixed. Still, it’s a minor problem compared to GSC “oh i forgot to write World is Mine on the base” problem …

Nanoha is a big and beautiful figure, perfectly painted and a must have for any figures collector or fan of the show. But keep in mind that maybe your Nanoha will have some little problems, nothing than can’t be fixed with some glue. And i hope you have lots of patience, Nanoha takes quite a while to be ready to expose, after taking out all the protections and everything.

Nanoha gets 4.5 Exelica out of 5.

And of course check the other reviews from Meronpan and Optic for more beautiful pics and more details on her.

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Another girl from an eroge, the cute Sora from the game “Yosuga no Sora”. She is quite a hard figure to review. She looks quite simple and not colorful at all. And that’s a problem, as i know lots of people didn’t order her because of that. And she doesn’t looks too good in pictures.

Don’t take me wrong, i love the way she looks, but compared to all the colorful figures we’re getting lately (and i’m not even speaking of the dynamic poses and great bases), she will look boring to some, too simple to others. But for me, that’s what i like about her. I love the more realistic colors, the nice proportions of her body (more realistic too), her cute shy expression, and the melancolic feeling i get just looking at her. And i love her legs, because for once, we get a figures with knees, yes, detailed knees, at least way more than usual. As i’m a legs lover, i’m quite grateful for that ^_^.

Sora looks great and her body is nicely sculpted and proportioned, she has a cute face and it’s even better with her towel (nicely done too). Her shyness and the way she’s trying to envelopp herself with her towel are totally cute. Her hair is nicely painted too with no paint dots or anything. Overall the paint job is fine, not as good as, let’s say Alter, but it’s still nice. And don’t forget the rabbit, totally cute too.

Good work from Megahouse but nothing spectacular either. it’s Megahouse so it is exactly as expected, never worth, never better.

A melancolic shy cute and delicious looking girl named Sora is waiting for you. Maybe you should pick her. She is worth it, i promise you.

Sora is getting four Exelica out of five.

This last pic is to show you exactly the way the figure is. What you see is what you get.

For more pics, check the review at Happy Soda, a beautiful review at Tentacle Armada and another great review (with “wet” pics ^^) at Visual Fanfare. Sora review is up at Shadonia too.

Next review will be Noumi from Alter, a big surprise for me as i wasn’t expecting too much. I should have. More soon.

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For a beautiful figure like this new version of Kos-Mos, you don’t need to read any review. Just look at the pics and you’ll just fall in love with her.

Kos-Mos is not only a figure, it’s more like a piece of art and she is just perfect. Big, beautiful and nicely painted. A masterpiece.

For more info on her, you can check the two great reviews (with really great pics) at Tentacle Armada and Wolfheinrich’s World.

And i’m sorry for the not so good pics of mine, this girl is too big for my lens and i had lots of problems taking pics of her.

It’s not a surprise that i rate Kos-Mos five Exelica out of five. If you like Xenosaga or the design, you can’t miss her. She’s still available at E2046.

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Strike Witches was not the best anime, but it was enjoyable. Not for the story (and not *only* for the pantsu shots), but for the characters. The witches team was full of different personalities and it was fun watching them develop their feelings and fear about the war. So i was glad when i hear that Alter was making the figures, as i knew it would be the most accurate version of the characters that we could get (compared to the Kotobukiya’s ones … i was NOT happy to know that they were making them too …).

First girl from the team, the cheerful Yoshika. And i am not disappointed with the way Alter choose to present her. She really looks the same as she is in the show, with a bright smile on her face. The chara design is really nicely respected, all is near perfection, the proportions of the body, face, body, colors. All is here and that’s always nice. And like always with Alter, the retail version is exactly like the proto shots so if you preordered her, you won’t be disappointed by what you’ll be getting.

Now the only strange thing is her weight. I think it’s the first time i see a figure that weight nearly nothing. It’s crazy when you take her in the hands, she’s so light ! Maybe it’s because she fly in the anime but really i was surprised ! But not a bad thing but it does feels a little cheap because of this. Strange but the quality if the figure is not cheap, with accurate painting (but seen better from Alter) and great overall look. And i love Yoshika’s face a lot !

A great work from Alter, i’m sad to see that for now i’m the only one who preordered her …

So if you like the show/character/Alter, buy her right now, she is worth it.

Yoshika gets 4 Exelica out of 5.

Good: nice pose, great overall look, paint work looks good, an original character in a sea of Sabers and Mikus …

Bad: feels cheap (because of her weight), painting’s not as precise as usual Alter’s work, not a lots of details (compared to other Alter’s productions, like Jubei), the base is NOT good.

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So the figure i was waiting for the most is not as flawless as i thought she would be. I mean, yes she does looks awesome and the painting is indeed way better than on World is Mine, but there is still some flaws there and there and again i will say that Good Smile QC is not as great as it was … Worse part is the base, constitued of three parts glued together. Sadly the hight of each part is not the same as the others so there is like five millimeters difference between the front of the base and the back … And the chains are a real bother to put on, the instructions are really stupids, we can’t see anything on it … Because of all that, the gun can’t really stay in place so if you move the figure , beware.

Still it’s not all that bad and the overall look of BRS is great and the retail version looks like the proto shots. So you won’t be disapointed, but i do hope these (minor ?) problems are not affecting all BRS.

Black Rock Shooter gets 4 Exelica out of 5.

Good: Great overall look,beautiful base, good paint job (the coat looks awesome !) .

Bad: Base isn’t flat, chains are a bother to put on, gun’s not standing correctly. Quality control again ?

Other reviews at Happy Soda, wawawawasuremono, kodomut, Tentacle Armada, Animatic Figmation and GTOunet (french)

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I believe i’ll be the only one giving a bad review to this one, please read my conclusion at the end of the post before insulting/throwing rocks at me ^^

World Is Mine is only getting three Exelica out of five.

Good: Framed base is awesome, looks great on a wall

Bad: Sculpt not so awesome (it’s ok but not really detailled), paint job is not precise at all (dots, sloppy painting and difference of colors between the samples), and the quality check is awful, you have little chance to get a flawless WIM (from what i’ve seen)

Wow great quality control, no writing at all on the base, if you think i was harsh with this review, this picture says it all … My friend got this WIM, his version got an ok paint work but no World is Mine inscription … (edit : now another friend told me the hair on his WIM is ending semi translucid … and his base is poorly painted too …)

So in total with the seven WIM i’ve seen/had in hands, only three got correct painting and one doesn’t have the WIM text. I’m sorry but i think it’s the worst control quality check i’ve ever seen, Good Smile did report the figure, but seeing the results, i don’t know why they did … But at least they’re making their nendos right, so it’s fine, no ? …

I’m pretty mad at Good Smile right now, so i hope Black Rock Shooter is really going to be awesome …

Now for World Is Mine, it’s still a good figure if you plan to put it as a frame on the wall, it will look great and it’s very original. And at least on the wall, you won’t see the paint problems or the missing text

I’m sorry i’m very mean with this figure, i do love my World Is Mine a lot, but it’s really sad to see this much problems on a figure pushed back for a reason we don’t even know.

Hope you all got a version without flaw ! (meronpan got a kinda correct version, check his review for macro pics here)

The review is up at Shadonia and Kodomut

Others reviews here and here

And Happy New Year to you all !

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Just pics this time and no real review, as this one is not that new. Still a nice figure for any fan of the show without any flaws or anything. Dynamic and sexy pose and beautiful colors, i love Akiha a lot.

For more pics, check the review on Happy Soda here

And a preview of the next review :

Merry Christmas (late) everyone !

Next reviews : World is Mine (two colors) – Chii Gathering – Kos Mos 1/4 Gathering and Black Rock Shooter. World is Mine is next , probably tomorrow.

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Here’s finally one of the most preordered figure this year, the 1/7 adult version of Fate Harlaown by Alter. This version is MASSIVE and if you remember the “old” version , well she’s two time her size. The amount of details are doubled too and the overall quality got a big boost too. We can easily call this Fate the ultimate version, as i doubt we’ll ever see again a Fate so big and detailed.

Alter work on Fate is flawless, she is exactly like the proto shots and the paint work is just great. Lovely shiny paint and every clothes parts are finely painted without any mistake. It’s perfect and it’s what we should get all the time. Sadly not all figures manufacturers are as good in the painting details as Alter … Fate’s hair is impressive too and her pose is dynamic and sexy as the same time. This Fate is an otaku dream, you can’t even tell it’s only PVC (and ABS of course), as if you put her in the midle of cold cast kits or resins, she will still stay the center of attention. Yes, she’s THAT awesome .

If i had to find a bad thing about her, well it’s the base, the same one like the other Nanoha characters. But who cares ? She could have been even better with a designed base but oh well …

So overall, this new Fate is THE one to get and i’m impressed by Alter’s work on her. A new reference for sure.

Without surprise, Fate Shin Sonic Form gets 5 Exelica out of 5. I truly believe she’s the most gorgeous figure this year and she’s too impressive to miss. So if you love Fate, don’t miss her !

Hope you like the pic and i’m sorry about the comments, i made a mistake when editing and deleted them …

And go buy your Fate right now !

Another review at Blue Blue Wave

And the box review at Saku’s

Meronpan’s back with a great review too here

Review is up at The Inferno Project here too

And another review at SonicVer2 here

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And here’s my fifth (!) Lala, this time the Ichiban Kuji from Banpresto. The figures from Banpresto are still not on par with bigger manufacturer like Alter or Max Factory, but they’re getting better. The painting is accurate and looks ok and the colors looks good (but Lala’s hair is maybe too flashy for some people). But sadly PVC’s quality is still kinda cheap so it doesn’t looks/feels as good as your usual figures. Still, Lala looks great in her see through dress and her cheerfull face is cute, with nicely painted eyes (but her mouth is too big). Even with the bad points, i like this version a lot, she’s bigger than the usual size (28 cm) and i just love her face (and her great legs ^^) .

This Lala from Banpresto is a nice looking figure, with a good pose and nice paint work. Just don’t expect too much and you’ll be happy with her.

Lala gets 3 Exelica out of 5.

As you can see on the pics, the PVC used by Banpresto isn’t the best quality so on pictures it looks like toys and quite cheap. But in real it’s a little better than that so it’s fine.

And some random pics, because i redid pics of Signum and Kureha so yeah :

Signum

Kureha

Kureha is still one of the best figures ever, don’t you agree ? She looks so great and i love her expression ! Just lovely.