... OK, not really. I just have no real material for Cardcaptor Sakura.
Cardcaptor Sakura is about the trials and tribulations of one Sakura Kinomto, the Chosen One who is to battle the forces of supernatural evil with her ability to tap into the power of the Clow Cards with help from her friends, including the sarcastic Kero-Chan. It is an incredibly popular series that I have again, yet to watch. In my defense, I sat through the movie, but it was dubbed and MY GOD was it bad.
I picked this up in Montreal, without much competition it would seem. I suspect it was the lack of a box that deterred people, but hey for $20 CAD loose and complete, you really can't ask for much more.
Originally released in 2015 for about 6,200 yen, I'd say this was an above average priced figure, and as such the contents of the set were definitely fairly robust:
- 1 x Main Figure
- 3 x Face Plates (Smiling, Shouting, Embarassed)
- 10 x Posing/Gripping Hands
- 1 x Star Wand
- 1 x Sealing Wand
- 1 x Sealing Wand Wing Effect (for "Fly" effect, also usable on the figure)
- 1 x Sakura Wing Effect
- 2 x Clow Card
- 1 x Sealing Wang w/Clow Card Effect
- 1 x Kero Chan (with posable head) with stand.
- 1 x Figma Stand
The little parts for holding in the Fly effects are tiny and easy to lose, so I wouldn't change them over unless you know you can recover them if they drop.
I actually have the Figuarts release as well, mostly because like this one I found it for dirt cheap. The Figma is definitely by far the better looking one, with a better detailed.. .well, everything. It's mostly visible in the fabric detailing and the head/face. I'm actually curious how these companies had such differing art styles for the same character.
I THINK this is her default battle outfit, but as I said I've never really watched the show, but it's certainly the only outfit I'm actually aware of. I feel that if this was a Figma 1.0, the finished product wouldn't look as well proportioned. Colours are nice and bright, as is intended with the character.
Face plates are also incredibly well made, and are perfectly framed by her hair.
Another nice touch is that designers made her skirt such that you can pull it apart to reveal a gap, where you can fit the Sealing Wand handle for ride on mode, effectively enabling her to do a hands free riding pose as she doesn't really need to hold the shaft. I'm sure this isn't the only figure to take into consideration this sort of thing, but it's certainly the first Figma I've run into that does.
Articulation isn't this figure's strong suit, though I guess it's not terrible given what you have to work with. As mentioned, this is a Figma 2.0, so she's that going for her, with enhanced range of arm motion due to the pull out shoulders. Due to the design of the outfit, Sakura also has slight waist motion, though she has no mid torso joint. The main issue, however, is the skirt, that really limits the forward motion of the legs, though strangely less that the backwards motion. Either way, you're not getting good sitting or crouching poses, though fortunately she doesn't really do much in terms of action scenes,
Don't expect much action out of Kero-Chan either, though to be fair at least they gave him a ball jointed head and a flight stand,
Much better than a female cat with a rotating head, pipe cleaner tail, and a set of testicles.
While cutesy characters are normally outside my appetite, you really do get to appreciate the quality of a good paint job on these. As I mentioned earlier, colour selection is on point with this figure and all her accessories. Truly great stuff as to how well they've captured the energy of the on screen character and applied it here. With regards to actual paint on the figure, I think I see it in the whites, the reds, and of course her hair. The accessories also feature quite a bit of paint, which makes them look fantastic. The application of glossy white to the large wing effects is very nice, with good coverage while not washing out the detailing, something I really appreciate having dealt with the pain in the ass that is working with that type of paint. Paint applications are all even and smooth. Finer details on the accessories are also well painted. Overall, this is up to your usual Figma standards.
Build quality is overall not really an issue, as everything generally fits together and poses well. It's worth noting that the small pieces that hold the white wing effects in place are easily misplaced, so use caution when disassembling. Another issue is that the peg holes for the wing effects are actually square, so tolerances are very important. QC wasn't quite there and there was some minor paint overspray into the hole, which made inserting and removing the peg somewhat challenging.
Based on my experience, I'd say this is a very charming and well made Figma release, and comes with enough parts to recreate some iconic poses that I've come across while browsing screen caps and other official art. Articulation is somewhat hampered but realistically speaking, you probably wouldn't use it unless you're really getting creative. The gap in the skirt really is an ingenious addition, and makes it a breeze to pose the figure in flight.
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