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Figure Review: Kaname Madoka (Banpresto)

Wednesday, October 12, 2016 / No Comments
Do you know who this is.......?
Yes, it's Kaname Madoka, everyone's favorite Mahou Shojo!

Base
As expected of a prize figure, the base is very plain, with only a pure white circle. Though I wasn't expecting much, it remains a bummer to see that there wasn't at least her name and series title featured.

Setting that aside, the base holds the figure upright well and I cannot see the base causing much issues in the future as well.

Posing and Assembly



A 360 of Madoka shows us that she's in a simple pose but the way her hair is sculpted makes her look a bit more dynamic. Likewise, her outfit adds in small points of dynamism as well, which I would cover later.

Pose-wise, it does suit Madoka well as the figure shows her insecure side that was a major part of her personality, especially at the start of the series.

Assembly is simple as usual, simple by placing her onto her base,

Sculpting and Painting
Her hair is being blown backwards in the wind and the element of movement is seen on both her hair and the ribbons. The strands are not chunky at the end, unlike some prize figures.

Sadly, her hair on her scalp area are not sculpted.
From here we can see that her dress is very detailed. The ribbons are all well-sculpted, even the ones on her shoes. The white puffed-up skirt has suitable creases and looks extremely lightweight. All the ruffles are well-sculpted too. However, nothing beats the underside of her skirt.
All the ruffles at her underskirt! However, it's a bit disappointing that the innermost ruffle wasn't hidden better and actually looks like a longer shorts instead.
From the front of her dress we can see a lot of details. First off, we have her choker and gem that is lined with gold and the whole gem is covered with glossy paint which makes it look more realistic than with matte paint.

Frills are necessary for a Mahou Shoujo and Banpresto certainly didn't cut corners with it. The small ruffles on her chest looks very cute, and the seam of her bodice to her skirt is very abrupt though it does join well.

The ends of her pink bodice part ends with a white pattern that is very crisp.

Lastly, the shoes are detailed with the ribbon winding around her foot. There are no paint spills for this in my copy, which is a very good point for prize figures, as most of them would have some paint flaws when such a strong color is used on a white surface.

Enjoyment
Madoka has a lot of prize figures as well as pretty scale figures and this pales in comparison. Personally, I don't think that this figure would make a good statement piece, but if she is a good bargain, it will definitely be worth it to grab her!

~ Reina-rin

Figure Unboxing and Review: Yuuki Yuuna 1/8 Scale (Alter)

Tuesday, October 11, 2016 / No Comments
Today I bring to you...
A Yuuki Yuuna figure by Alter. With my favorite character made by my favorite company, it was very difficult to resist and say no to purchasing her. Despite so, I held on for quite a few months before I finally decided to cave in and purchase her.

To my defense, I got her after my midterm papers (as a reward to self for hanging out throughout, no doubt), but on the same day, I got my pre-owned Morgiana figure from Amiami (which I would review at a later date) as well as my White day Kousaka Honoka Tatepos.

Without further ado, let me start my review for this gorgeous figure.

Packaging

As you can see, Honoka's tatepos box is in the first picture, but I won't be reviewing about it in this article as Yuuna makes up a long article by herself.

Yuuna's box uses a lot of pink which is her image color as a Hero (Normal Yuuna is red instead). I actually prefer the normal Yuuna a lot more than the Hero Yuuna and I hope that someday she'll get a figure that can live up to the quality of this scale figure by Alter. One can always dream.
Yuuna in her packaging shows that she doesn't come with much, but her dynamic pose makes up for it. The dynamic appeal in her pose doesn't like with how her body is twisted, but more of how her coat is fluttering in the wind. It does have quite a far bit of shading which I will address later.

She comes with 2 Gyuukis as well, and you can actually pose her with either, both or none. I love almost all elements of Yuuna and chose to pose her with both.

Base

Yuuna's base is definitely not plain but isn't terrifically majestic as well. It would have been better if it used some of the Shinju's roots (sacred tree) but if I were to rate this base on its own, instead of what it could be, it definitely deserves more than a pass.

The base ties to two elements in the series -- Yuuna's color, and flowers. For those who watched the anime or read the novels, I'm sure you'll know that each girl is based off on a flower and the theme of Yuyuyu revolves a lot around flowers (Mankai and Sange, literally Blooming and Wilting).
In addition, I like that some of the flowers are pink, giving them a dimension as the pink ones seem to be submerged. Furthermore, there are flower petals around too, giving us fans both the impression of Mankai and Sange, both of which are important and saddening concepts in the series.

Posing and Assembly




A simple 360 of Yuuna shows that she has a lot of intricate details which I would be covering in the next section. For this, I would like to point out that her figure has a lot of feeling of movement, from her cape to her hair and even the ribbon on the chest armor.

Assembly for Yuuna is as simple as putting her on her base. The rest of her body comes as a whole piece and not much work is required to put her together.

On this section, I'll also talk about her faerie that came together with her, Gyuuki!



Here is the front and back of the two Gyuukis. They each come with their own circular bases which you can sit them on. These bases come under their blister for each respective Gyuuki. However, there is only 1 pole stand for the floating Gyuuki.

Gyuuki's head can be rotated and removed. Tip for those who want to switch them up!

Sculpting and Painting
This section is where this figure begins to shine and I'll like to kickstart this by pointing out the amount of shading which her cape got. Of course, this is the underside, which is usually neglected, but not by Alter! I was initially quite skeptical about how much shading there was for the underside of her cloak (as you can see the pink shade is coming up quite strongly even in photos) but became quite pleased by when I actually displayed her. The shadows by natural light actually blocks out how sharp her shading is and adds a lot of dimension to her figure!
From here, there are many things that can be analysed so I'll begin from the top. The ends of Yuuna's hair is very crisp and clean and individual strands are sculpted. It's more apparent when looking at her ponytail, which I'll get to in a while. 

The tips of the hairband holding up her ponytail are colored pink and creates a sharp gradient, however, it doesn't look too jarring. 
The hair clip on her bangs is covered in glossy paint and there are no paint spills.
Bringing it down to her costume, it mainly uses black, pink and white. There are absolutely no paint spills on my copy and the pinks are well differentiated by being matte and glossy. With the lighting casting reflections, I'm sure you can discern which are the matte and which are the glossy ones!

The red ribbon on her chest has a sense of movement and doesn't fall limply on her. There's a line of white to give it some form of pattern. Needless to say again, no paint spills. The white line is perfectly centered as well.

As seen, Yuuna's outfit is quite tight on her and the creases in the white fabric parts do well to show this. Nevertheless, the look of it fluttering in the wind creates the effect of being lightweight. Similar to the red ribbon, these are slightly flexible and can resist damage but make sure to not apply too much force on it.

On myfigurecollection, some users also commented that she has a bit of a cameltoe. I would like to mention that it isn't obvious and I don't feel like there was any emphasis placed on it, when compared to swimsuit figures or especially Hentai figures.

Even from the back, the details on her outfit are consistent and Alter definitely didn't slack. You can also see that the top of her cape has its own share of shading as well.
Remember when I mentioned that her ponytail shows individual strands? Well, the strands that make up her ponytail are sculpted too, making it look like her hair is really tied back.
Of course, not forgetting her ponytail itself!

Enjoyment

I would definitely recommend her to anyone who wants a simple but dynamic figure, loves the series, or just want pink-themed figures in general! She looks great from a lot of angles and looks amazing even on her own in a detolf. She is one of the prettiest figures I own and I'm proud to have finally gotten her!


October: March comes in like a Lion, Hibike! Euphonium 2, Long Riders!

Sunday, October 9, 2016 / No Comments
In life, be it virtual or real, we experience an awfully prolonged downtime which in turn adds on to our sufferings when we try to break out of that heavy shell, especially if nothing seems familiar anymore to our horror. Then we realise that we might have had let our imaginations run a little too far, so far that it is now another daunting task to bring ourselves back to where we were supposed to be. This month feels like one of those times, but it is still a relief knowing that there is something for us to hold on to. Yeah, my eyes have sparkled a bit upon hitting on some information. Fall has long started, but my anime list has just awakened.

3-gatsu no Lion, or March comes in like a Lion, is one of the titles that have intrigued me recently. Okay, maybe not that recently. After all, the books have gone past 12 volumes but my attention hadn't quite registered their presence in depth until about a month ago. The anime adaptation is definitely on my list, since there isn't a reason not to indulge in the other. Besides, an anime helps rest the eyes from all that page-flipping and such. Honestly, a little action is preferred. Don't worry, I still know what I am getting at. The anime had premiered on October 8th, and will run for 22 episodes.

Hibike! Euphonium has returned with its second season. Quite unfortunately, I didn't even realise that there was going to be a new season. I had actually bought the first novel which the series is based on, but very quickly the book became stuck in between the pages with no tell-tale sign of continuity for me. Yeah, if only I had checked out the manga adaptation instead. Reading a novel in Japanese is still considerably mind-boggling for me. Anyway, this is definitely an adventure that I would love to go on! I am still looping the music from the first season. There is something about being in an ensemble that beats all other feelings. The anime had premiered on October 6th.


Another series that has caught my attention is Long Riders!, which is all about cycling. Yeah, the radar is beeping strongly now! This time, the focus is on a group of college girls. Sure, there is the greenhorn whom we all have a soft spot for. The person who will blossom into this unstoppable force is set for another bout of familiarity. Hmm, but this one should feel a lot less violent, if anybody knows what I mean. I miss cycling, though mine isn't anywhere remotely close to what those characters are doing. I am definitely looking out for this series, because it just screams a lot of things. It had premiered on October 8th.



What are you readers currently watching? Fall seems to have a bigger trench with all the sparkling gems that are waiting to be uncovered. For now, I am fixing on those three. There is also the dwindling attention span to take care of. Anyway, I am sure that there will be enough to entertain me for a while! Happy watching!

Eccentrically Yours.

Written by J.Fluffysheep ♪

Digimon Adventure tri.: Kokuhaku

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When Digimon Adventure tri. was first announced, I shared the news with any friend of mine who bothered to listen. After all, most people I know grew up watching the Digimon anime series on TV every week, played the video games on the Game Boy and PlayStation and even owned 'Digivices', which were essentially glorified pedometers. The Digimon Adventure tri. anime movie series was created to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the franchise and was slated to air in 6 parts.


The sequel to Digimon Adventure and Digimon Adventure 02 features teenage versions of the Digidestined we all know and love taking on new threats and challenges. Amping up the nostalgia factor are new versions of the iconic opening and ending theme songs. Music to any Digimon fan's ears, no pun intended.



Unfortunately nostalgia does not guarantee quality and I was close to giving up on the anime after sitting through the first and second installments. Poor production value, draggy slice-of-life sequences and questionable writing meant that I was only watching Kokuhaku for old times' sake. Bad art is the biggest sin that Digimon Adventure tri. could commit due to the significance of the project and the fact that the series was scheduled to be released as a set of films and not an episodic anime that aired weekly. The only sliver of hope was the final sequence of events in Ketsui (the second installment) and I was curious to see the plot develop beyond that.



Fortunately, Kokuhaku's pacing and plot development improved from the previous films, cutting out unnecessarily lengthy slice-of-life sequences the Digidestined had. The emotional impact and sense of urgency was apparent too, as Koshiro (or Izzy, for old-timers) fought against the clock to determine the source of Meicoomon's infection at the end of Ketsui. Lo and behold, said Meicoomon would conveniently re-appear, causing the gang to have a battle on two fronts.

Another plus point for the movie would be its focus on the Digimon themselves and their bond with the Digidestined. Through the course of the first two films, they felt more like pets appearing for the sake of comic relief, spectacular evolution sequences and battles that ensued. 

In this installment, their role is emphasized due to the threat that they face. It could potentially wipe precious years of memories they've had with their partners. Their desperation showed as they tried to hang out and have fun with their partners for what might be the last time before they part ways.

Digimon Adventure tri. is picking up the pace and I'm actually looking forward to the fourth movie premiering in late-February next year. The cast from 02 has yet to make a full appearance and the amount of loose ends left at the end of Kokuhaku warrants a viewing of the fourth film, at least in my eyes.

Written by ET


Halloween 2016 : Kyuutarou-kun 吸太郎くん

Friday, October 7, 2016 / No Comments
Name : Kyuutarou-kun 吸太郎くん (OC Chibi)
Character : Basketball Vampire
Position : Point Guard for the Okinawa High
Height : 175cm  Weight : 64kg
Birthday : 8 October 1995

Kyuutarou-kun loves playing basketball (and his packet of fresh blood). He is a point guard for the Okinawa High. As a dracula, he has an extra-sensory perception on all the players in the court, giving him an on-court intelligence. He is a mastery of ball handling.

Every night he begins his training at 12am when the moon is at the fullest. He perfects his ball handling skills by dribbling between his legs and throwing candy in the air and catching it in his mouth. As a result, he can skillfully manoeuvre in and out of his opponents like they are traffic cones. He possesses the power of hypnotism which enables him to daze the defender for a few seconds, enough for him to do a crossover towards the basket. Then he passes the ball to whoever is available; his teammate who is going for a dunk or the one standing just outside the three-pointer arc.



Kyuutarou always keep a packet of fresh blood to keep him energized. Be careful not to get captivated by his cuteness or else you too will get hypnotised!

Written by Max

Mangaka Spirits Wall-of-Fame September 2016

Tuesday, October 4, 2016 / No Comments

MANGAKA SPIRITS
Wall-of-Fame September 2016
"Life is like a pencil that will surely run out, but it will leave your beautiful drawing of life."




"Mangaka Spirits" (Manga + Ka = A person who draws manga) captures the spirit of sketching, drawing and all forms of artwork by ordinary people. In this Wall-of-Fame, we feature the artworks of aspiring artists all over the world. Through their works, we hope to find inspiration in the things we do and hopefully unite as to a common purpose.



Mangaka 78 : Kyla Alexa Ashford
Age : 14
Artwork : Sora from Kingdom Hearts
Art Materials : Color pencils and Color pen
School : Villagers Montessori College
Favourite anime : Full Metal Alchemist
Hobbies : Playing video games
Country : Philippines
https://www.facebook.com/kylaalexa.ashford








Mangaka 79 : Dolly Ting
Age : 12
Artwork : Best Friends of Year 6 (OC)
Art Materials : MediBangPaint

School : SJK (c) Chung Hua Bintulu 2
Favourite anime : Re:Zero
Hobbies : Drawing and reading manga
Country : Malaysia








Mangaka 80 : Trisha Orbe
Age: 14
Artwork title: Existential Crisis
Art materials: Paintool Sai
School: Lanao Chung Hua School
Favorite anime: Your Lie in April
Hobbies: Reading and roleplaying
Country: Philippines
https://www.facebook.com/link3yn









Mangaka 81: Idham Jamil
Age : 18
Artwork : Onodera
Art Material : Pink Pen
Favourite Anime : Angel Beats
Favourite Hobbies : Playing Yugioh, reading novels and drawing
Country : Malaysia
Quote : "Keep drawing until senpai notice you"
https://www.facebook.com/idhamjempol










  
Mangaka 82: Flower Jeon
Age : 13
Artwork : "Love through my eyes"
Art Material : Medibang app
School : Living Stone International School
Favourite Anime : Another, Tokyo Ghoul
Favourite Hobbies : Singing and writing quotes
Country : South Korea
Quote : "Forget what hurts you, but never forget what it taught you"
https://www.facebook.com/flower.jeon








Mangaka 83: Tsundere-Shy OneeChan
Age : 15
Artwork : Ruby Kurosawa (Love Live Sunshine)
Art Material : Pencil and Caligraphy pen
School : SMK Sultan Abdul Samad
Favourite Anime : Love Live school idol project, Love Live sunshine, Sword art online and Tokyo ghoul
Favourite Hobbies : Drawing anime, play games and badminton
Country : Malaysia
Dream : To be an animator of anime
https://www.facebook.com/ahmad.faries.12








Mangaka 84: Tokido Saya
Age : 15
Artwork : Koishi Komeiji from Touhou
Art Material : Sketchbook for Galaxy app
School : Coral Secondary School
Favourite Anime : Little Busters
Favourite Hobbies : Drawing, playing Project Diva F1st & 2nd and Arcade games
Country : Singapore
https://www.facebook.com/shiki.hanasekun









"Mangaka Spirits" is approved by our mascot Yushiko, an initiative brought to you by Milkcananime. Please submit your artwork via pm to our Facebook. Only approved artwork of reasonable calibre may be featured in our Facebook and Mangaka Spirits Wall-of-Fame.