So I may have a slight Fate addiction. Not enough to throw money at every single Fate product I see, but enough that if I see anything reasonably price or on sale, I will fight tooth and nail to bring it home. This particular piece is actually one I've been chasing for over a decade now, and it's not particularly rare... I'm just really really cheap. Actually, about 5 years ago I was able to get one for cheap, only for it to be a bootleg, which of course wouldn't fly.
Presenting the Good Smile Company 1/7 Fate: Unlimited/Codes Saber Lily statue.
This particular specimen came from my summer trip to Albera, and if the box looks a bit beat up, that's because this statue has been around for a long time - since 2009. It's been popular enough that they've reissued it twice over the years, and I don't think GSC has ever released an updated version of the statue unlike the Motocurraser set.
Like most statues, you're not going to get too many loose parts. In this case you get the main statue, Excalibur, Avalon with Sheath, and an extra hand to hold said Sheath.
If you're a Fate collector, you'll instantly recognize this pose. Knowing the way these statues work, there 's probably some character select or status screen where Saber Lily pulls off this pose.. Artoria has never really been one with a bikini model body, so the fact her curves are basically pretty minimal isn't surprising, nor is she ever shown to be muscular. So all in all, a pretty typical Saber sculpt, with the bonus of having a face that is recognizable to modern audiences, something that wasn't always the case.
Now, one of the amazing things is that despite being so old, this statue still holds up quite well. It didn't really occur to me to consider this, but I did actually have a few Max Factory/Good Smile Company pieces from back in the day (sadly I no longer have my Mai Shiranui) and yeah, the generally still hold up.
Detailing on the face, hair, and outfit are nicely done. Very sharp on the fabric details n particular, whereas the metal armour parts are smooth as one would expect. Paint Application is pretty consistent with modern pieces, with some observable weakness in some minute areas, though due to the slightly larger 1/7 scale things aren't that obvious. Paint on the weapons is exquisite. I like the use of glossy and matte White paint on the dress. Also the use of actual flesh tone paint is a welcome touch.
Nothing really to report from a Build Quality perspective, but it is interesting to note that this one of the only statues from this era I've handled recent that didn't require a hot water bath and spinal readjustment. It makes me think that perhaps Max Factory/Good Smile Company were one of the early adopters of the hybrid PVC/ABS statue tech, which would account for their higher than average price for this piece.
That's pretty much about it. Nothing too crazy of exotic about this piece, but it's a nice low key success story that shows if you wait long enough, someone will sell what you're looking for at an acceptable price.
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