By
TReina -
Monday, October 8, 2018
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While the Angelic Angel versions used to take the world by storm with their colorful costumes and their symbolism to the ending of µ's, the announcement of Aqours later caused their hiked prices to fall rather drastically for less popular characters. And now, with PDP announced as well, I am struggling to get Honoka's goods before the new mobile game: All Stars! bring the prices up a notch again.
Kousaka Honoka... Prize A in the Ichiban Kuji!
The box is rather plain, coming in a white box with some print-outs of the figure to give a feel of what the figure would look like when assembled. However, do note that these pictures cannot be trusted sometimes, and unfortunately, this figure comes with a printing defect (that many others experienced as well) making it difficult to put her into the advertised pose.
As with most prize figures recently, she also comes in a simple blister to keep her safe during transport. Every pocket is deep enough to hold all the items securely and surprisingly, the smell of plasticizer isn't overwhelmingly strong for a figure this old, that hasn't been opened before.
We also see that she comes mostly pre-assembled and all you have to do is connect the figure to its base and place the opened yellow fan in her hand!
While purple is more of Nozomi's color, I have to praise Banpresto for choosing purple because it fits the red of Honoka's kimono so well without taking the limelight away from the figure! It's also a good size for the figure itself, making it easy to squeeze this figure into displays.
The base also features a small portion of flowers and a portion of sparkles as well. The pegs are also of different sizes so there is a 'correct angle' to display her at and you wouldn't mess it up.
Once out of the box, we realize that there is a fatal printing error with Honoka. Her head is... tilted slightly too much and hence the fan wouldn't be able to sit flush with the peg on her hand and remain in the advertised position.
This seems to be a common problem across many platforms and reviews, but seeing as this is a prize figure, Banpresto wouldn't and didn't do much about it. If you managed to get a flawless copy, good for you, but if not, you could try using her hair as support to hold the fan in place.
I love the hair accessory as it features such vivid colors that tie in with the orange of her hair. The curl of her new braided hairstyle also makes the figure look that much more dynamic.
While her pose and how her face is sculpted makes her look a lot more feminine than how she is like in the series, I think that this is a rather good buy due to the strong colors that makes her so attention-grabbing no matter which display she is in.
However, as this is a prize figure, be prepared to have lesser quality figures. For instance, the flower decals on her left sleeve does not reach all the way to the yellow hem. The material also sports less creases, and hence appear less soft, than how scale figures are sculpted.
Due to her pose, the obi isn't visible from the front, but it is in full view from behind! The white is a nice contrast against the reds and yellos and the floral pattern ties the concept of her kimono together while still adequately setting itself apart due to the color scheme employed. That being said, the sculpting is a tad poor where the string meets the sash, creating this extra pinch of white material sitting above the purple string.
The white pom-pom and purple tassel is another one of my favorite points of this figure! The way the purple tassel is sculpted just looks so dynamic and attention grabbing! It's also a nice contrast to the red and yellow as well. On the other hand, the white pom-pom could use a little more shading, but the sculpting is alright given its price point.
And last but not the least, three points. Firstly, the flower at her neck has a two toned color which makes it subtle yet pretty. I never noticed that it was there until I got the figure. It was a wonderful surprise to see how much a one flower can add to the figure.
Secondly, the layers of her kimono that you can clearly see under her folded arms. Each layer feature a different sculpting and painting style and I'm particularly impressed by the second layer which has detailed and precise yellow hems painted onto it.
Lastly, the stockings/boots. The red ribbon is painted on so precisely, with no painting errors at all. On the other hand the sculpting could be slightly better in showing that the ribbon is there to hold the ensemble together.
All in all, I think that the sculpting work is decent but could be better. There is a lot more shading that has to be done to the figure to elevate it as well. That being said, I love the attire and the vivid colors used. This same strong point is seen in the figures of the other eight girls as well, so if you like a particular member, I think this is an excellent and worth-it buy... while the price is still decent (2k yen and below).
~ Reina-rin
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