Figure Unboxing and Review: Cardcaptor Sakura (Good Smile Company) Base

Figure Unboxing and Review: Cardcaptor Sakura (Good Smile Company) Base

Saturday, November 11, 2017 / No Comments

And now after looking at the awesome packaging which this figure came with, we will now look at its base. The huge and detailed base is one of the reasons why this figure is so popular, and there is just so much to talk about the base alone that I felt it warranted a post on its own!

Let's start by looking at some features of the base that's just so attention grabbing. First, the star and moon at the top, flanked by the transparent wind-wings effect. It creates this delicate feel that does not overpower Sakura due to the duller gold color scheme. Though, we do see that GSC did not slack off on sculpting the sun and moon embellishments and the sun has different shaped rays while the moon's surface is rounded.

Things such as the sun and moon (12 o' clock direction) can be removed, while the round gold ball/planet (6 o' clock direction) can be rotated about its axis. There is a rod that goes right through the planet. This same rod mechanism is seen for the round gold circles (3 and 9 o' clock direction) which can be rotated as well.

All around the rim of the base, you will see these evenly spaced circles that have a varying amount of black in them. This is probably linked to the different states of the moon (i.e. new moon, gibbous moon, full moon, etc) and I find that this really adds a very good touch to the figure and links it well to the theme.

Well, I mean... if stars are blessing Sakura, I would assume that the moon loves her too, right?

But of course, that's not all! We have the planets orbiting around Sakura too. In fact, there are 5 of them and they can be rotated about the axis (shown 2 images later).

Let's start by looking at 3 of them first. We see that they actually sport different colors and designs. Some of them have a color marbling effect (white and yellow ones) while the remaining red one is more-or-less just plain red. These are on different heights and length away from the axis also, making it perfect to play around with them without them blocking each other. 

The axis itself has another gold planet on it. This gold planet can be rotated about its axis as it has a gold rod through its middle. But unlike the rest, it cannot be moved around. There is also a seam line through its middle, which you can see clearly from the image above.

Directly under that gold planet is a gear that is intricately sculpted -- and I say this because it is definitely quite difficult to sculpt something with equal spaces between each groove.

Under that gear and bolt, you will see that the rods linking the planets to the axis converge. They form this stack of tiny rounds which can be rotated. This is how you can move the planets 360 degrees around.

Returning to the remaining 2 planets, we see that there's a teal one and a yellow one that's reminiscent of Saturn. The difference in design between these 2 and the other 3 really set the mood for variation and detail for the base.

The teal planet is able to rotate about the rod it is on, similar to the gold planet. It's the only planet out of the 5 included that is able to do that.

Next we see some close ups of the teal and yellow planet so you can view the marbling better.

This planet vaguely reminds me of the milk/vanilla+chocolate chupa lollipops :D

A view from above to see all the intricate designs at the bottom of the base. From this angle you can also clearly see that the peg that will be holding Sakura in place. This peg goes into a peg hole at her right leg and is basically the only support for the figure.

Though it may seem like there is limited support (which I agree), Sakura does not shake at all when attached to the base. But I'm not too sure if this is directly related to how stable she is on that tiny peg... but judging by her pose and the base, the figure's center of gravity must be quite low.

 There are so many different wind effects, such as the swirly ones and the sharper wing-like ones. These add depth and dimension to the figure and I just love clear parts in a figure so this is like a win-win for me!

The back of the figure is quite underwhelming as it simply lacks the details the front shows. However, if you ever get this figure, you will never be looking at the back so let's just let that slide.

Stay tuned for the assembly tutorial and the review of Sakura herself coming up next!

Written by Reina-Rin

Figure Unboxing and Review: Cardcaptor Sakura (Good Smile Company) Thoughts on Packaging

Figure Unboxing and Review: Cardcaptor Sakura (Good Smile Company) Thoughts on Packaging

Friday, November 10, 2017 / No Comments

One of the best figures released this year is Cardcaptor Sakura with her ridiculous amount for shipping, which totals to about 10k yen. While I wouldn't consider getting her off the aftermarket due to the high shipping price, getting her off pre-order on Good Smile Company at 25k yen with free shipping was definitely a steal.

Other than her box being absolutely huge (as you can see from the images below), the inner panels of the box showcases the pretty illustration. Her name and set version is printed in a beautiful shade of grey which keeps it elegant and calming to look at. Her name and set is printed all around on the outside of the box as well, gold on the pink box.

The window is really small on the side of the figure and doesn't showcase much of her base at all. Due to the thickness of the cardboard box, the inside of the box is really dark and you can't exactly view her beauty if you keep her all shut up in the box.

I would have appreciated a full window when you open the box instead, however, there is a book-mark sized illustration there which would be difficult to insert anywhere else... so perhaps my idea isn't too feasible.

Here's a zoom-in of the illustration if you are interested.

Removing the sheet with the circle window reveals the figure in her full glory. You can see her right in front of her base as if she is already assembled, but trust me... it is really quite a pain to put together... if you don't have time to do it on the day itself.

I will write another article regarding the assembly, but for now, let's look more on the packaging here.

A close-in shows how much plastic and foam is included in this figure. This is understandable, since she comes with so many delicate features and bright colors. There are quite a few removable parts as well so those would need to be protected well too.

Right above her outstretched right arm, you will see this metal piece. There are 2 of such pieces on the blister and it is meant to hold the two pieces together so it doesn't come apart during shipping. They are a pain to take out and may need a little puzzle solving on your end, but hey, anything to keep Sakura safe, right?

I'm sure GSC doesn't want to have to replace her due to any damages incurred during shipping as well!

Some of the accessories she comes with include her wand and of course the planets on her base. The whole base is practically intact already, however, some parts have to be removed for a moment in order to fit Sakura on it. This will be covered in the "Assembly" post later.

The other side also features two more planets which are already attached to the base. The rods holding the planets can be moved, which means you can arrange the planets to suit your display. She also comes with some replacement parts -- tiny gold stars, which are used at the hem of her dress.

Each star here is individually attached to the hem. There is a thin extension at one apex per star and that is used to insert into the hole of the dress. In addition to the extras which GSC provided, we see that there is actually a plastic sheet covering each individual star. If you had no idea how fragile these are... you'll know after looking at this!

From a lower angle, we see that she is so detailed, right down to the numerous layers under her skirt. While her base is mainly gold and brown (which sets the feel of elegance), Sakura is mainly red herself. I find that red is a color that suits Sakura perfectly and this figure has managed to bring out her fun, cheerful and innocent sides all in one figure!

I will be looking at the base, assembly, and figure in the following articles so do stay tuned if you love this figure as much as I do!

Written by Reina-Rin

Devi's Japan Travels Part 8: Himeji & Tottori

Devi's Japan Travels Part 8: Himeji & Tottori

Thursday, November 9, 2017 / No Comments

Ujitey day 5: Himeji with friends

While me and my husband were traveling from south to north, a good friend of mine started from Tokyo towards south with his wife. So we decided to meet halfway our journey and we happened to be near each other so, fun times ahead! We agreed on Himeji, as I had never seen the castle either and wanted to see the castle with the sakura. Although sakura was very late this year and I would probably get lucky snapping even one 'iconic' shot of the castle with flowers.

We wanted to get there fast so we took the highway - which meant we had to pay the toll fare. I am going to stress this again (as I did in my previous blogs) toll fares in Japan are quite high, so if you do a road trip through Japan be sure to not do long distances every day as it will cost you a lot of money (unless you are loaded of course..). That is why we decided to stay longer in one place every time and go to different places in the surroundings from there. Even with this plan it cost us a lot of money and we will change our road-trip strategy accordingly from now on. We learned from it - hope we can help others. Japan is not a cheap country already but without the toll fares we would have easily stayed within our budget. This time we surpassed it because of these costs (also ferry, etc.).

Back to the road - on our way to Himeji! We saw some beautiful landscapes on the way there, mountains with rivers, little villages, this is why I love road-trips.

I love these little road signs next on the highway, most places have their own sign, a 'specialty of the area' sign of some sort.

We arrived in Himeji and drove through the city to find the castle parking lot. We were already really late and we didn't have a dataplan for Japan. If you go to Japan and you need internet I highly recommend a portable wifi router, it's the easiest way to always connect to the internet (and access to google maps, whatsapp, line, etc.). I thought we wouldn't need it (silly me..). I saw some trees with sakura so I was getting a bit hopeful while still skeptical that we would see a lot of sakura trees around the castle. Also the city sceneries were really nice, I am really into architecture, especially the Japanese one. So seeing old houses, temples, etc. is one of my favourite things to do when I travel. Just walking around a city, getting lost, finding my way and having a good local meal is a good time for me.

AMG sakura!! Sort of.

Himeji is a very touristic place. Many have visited Himeji and its castle and there are numerous beautiful pictures online. We saw a lot of photographers with expensive looking cameras and attributes setting up their stuff and taking pictures.

Himeji castle, the lack of sakura pains my heart

 Gate of Himeji castle

After finding our friends at the castle gate we went inside the castle, it was 1000 yen for an entrance ticket but once we got inside we just saw a lot of wood and it was really crowded. We shambled through the castle and we had to wait before we could enter some rooms because of the amount of people. Honestly it wasn't really worth it for me, the outsides of the castle was nicer. There was a very nice shrine next to the castle park and the park itself was also quite nice to walk through. We walked around with our friends and finally got some dinner. 

 View from the castle

 A lot of weapon racks

 A lot of wood, nothing much to see though

Castle grounds

 Pathetic attempt to get that 'iconic' shot of Himeji castle with sakura

Sad, really.

Trying to get one 'iconic' look-at-me-I-am-so-flowery shot, saddest thing ever.

 Nice sunset, walking around the castle grounds. This is the back-side of the castle

We found one (sort of) blossoming tree!!! Hoo-rah! Now, exploit as many shots as you can get with this tree trying to get that spring Japanese feeling picture.

After walking around and having some dinner we decided to call it a day and said goodbye to our friends who also had a long road ahead.

Ujitei day 6: sand dunes and snowy mountains

The next day was a very nice and sunny day. We decided to head for Tottori and I drove a bit as well. I am not used to the left side of the road so it was, well, interesting. Arriving in Tottori the first thing we did was get some McDonalds. I know I know, we never really eat that and love Japanese food but I had such a french fries craving! Sometimes you just have to indulge (a lot). 

We didn't look up anything about Tottori so we just followed some signs and drove up to the castle, thinking it was a castle, but they were mere ruins. Sakura wasn't blooming here either but it would have been beautiful to see. There were yatai, or little food stands, on both sides of the main road to the ruins selling all kinds of foods like yakisoba, taiyaki, and etc. It was quite the climb to reach the ruins, and it was a very windy day.

Just following the signs, going all Navidevi on Japan, feelin' too cool for school (LOOK MUMMY NO MAPS!)

 Entrance to the castle ruins with yatai

 A gate to the ruins

 Quite the climb..

 Beautiful view from up the castle grounds

After this we saw on a map in front of the castle where the sand dunes were, and not expecting much we decided to drive there. But when we arrived... We did not expect this at all..

 Di... did I arrive in the Sahara?

 The dunes were so high!

This large dune was called the horse's back, because of it being shaped like the back of a horse. It was hard to climb, the soft sand did not support one going up.

In the summer this oasis dries up, we were lucky to see it because it was still spring 

Beautiful view of the sea, there were nice waves because of the wind

Walking around here it was like I entered the Sahara desert. It was so windy, sand was flying everywhere. After walking around we went back and we had to first get rid of all the sand. It was everywhere! Time to go back home, let's put the destination in the navigation! Navidevi here we go!

But, wait a second... What is this trickery?? Why are we directed through a very different road? It was starting to get dark and the navigation was directing us through the mountains! We kept on climbing and climbing, I was getting a bit nervous as it was getting dark and there was still a lot of snow on the roads..

 Leaving Tottori on the highway

 All nice and well up until here..

 Wait a second, I don't remember this road

 Errr, we are getting quite high, there's snow on the side of the road and it's getting dark..

 Yikes! Sharp turns and narrow roads! MOMMY HELP ME

 After about an hour we got out, and we got this as a reward

PHEW, we made it out! Lol I wasn't scared at all lolol

Japan never ceases to amaze me. Even getting lost in the mountains, the landscapes were very mesmerising. But I wonder why the navigation took us through this place, could it be what the old lady said was true? That the roads that were closed due to snow would be opened in a few days and these had already passed so the navigation picked up on that? Just my own theory. Who knows. Another mystery for this world. We got some good videos out of it (private of course, no one needs to hear me scream we were gonna die on a mountain top in the snow). 

All in all, Japan keeps surprising me. We went from sand dunes to snowy mountains in one day! Satisfied and relieved we came back home, it was time to rest up for another day, and another adventure. Onwards, to Kansai!

~Written by Devi~