Welcome, readers to my review of the G.N. Project Vol .1.5 - Wolf Girl figure. The figure is, in many ways, an addendum to the first mass released Wolf Girl figure, which I looked at in a previous post, as linked here.
https://oroboru.wixsite.com/website/post/snail-shell-g-n-project-vol-1-wolf-girl
I'm going to focus on the things that are specifically brought to the table by this release, rather than a complete overview.
So this release costs about 600 Yen more than the previous release, and like the Aqua Figma that has made a cameo appearance on this page, is very much fun in the sun oriented. The set costs about 600 Yen more than the other one and while Snail Shell did pack in a lot for that money, I can't get the feeling that a lot of stuff of thrown in just for the sake of having it there. Either that, or when the ladies in the G.N. Project universe go to the beach, they go throw down.
A list of contents is as follows:
- Main Figure
- 3 x Face Plates (winking, growling, neutral) - love, love, love the winking face)
- 3 x Front Hair (no sunglasses, sunglasses on brow, sunglass on nose)
- 3 x Pairs of Feet (sneakers, sandals, shoeless with toe movement)
- 8 x Posing/Gripping Hands
- 1 x Metal Pole (spear/umbrella shaft)
- 1 x Spear Tip
- 1 x Pistol
- 1 x Pistol Bayonet
- 1 x Robotic Claw
- 1 x Thigh... thing.
- 1 x Cannister
- 1 x Connector for Cannister
- 2 x Cannister Cables
- 1 x Wolf Girl Tail
- 1 x Handle for Metal Pole
- 1 x Umbrella Tip
- 1 x Umbrella to Pole Attachment
- 1 x Umbrella Short Handle
- 1 x Carrying Case for Pistol/Bayonet
- 1 x Umbrella Top
- 4 x Swords
- 2 x Carrying Case Prop
So clearly, a lot of stuff. Interestingly, the instructions reference two additional pieces to connect the gun to the Cannister Cable, but I can't find the things. Not sure if mine went missing, or the cut them out at the last minute.
So I was mistaken in my previous write up. The Cyborg legs do add a bit of height to her. It's not gonna drop Wolf Girl back into Figma range, but it does put her a bit more in line with the Legends releases.
While Wolf Girl is dressed for the beach, sharp eyed readers will note that basically she's the same as Armoured Wolf Girl, but with different window dressing, which most notably is the lack of robotic parts. The base body remains just as highly articulated, with the slight advantage of having nothing restricting the ankle movement, which puts this version slightly advantageous when it comes to actually getting into poses. None of her feet are die cast metal, as you'll have to work a bit harder to find that center of gravity. There are, of course, fewer actual points of articulation overall as there is no need for them.
For some strange reason, the manual for this figure doesn't really go into the customization aspects of the figure, almost like they decided to rescind it or something. But never fear, the parts still come readily apart. This is the breakdown as suggested in the original manual, but naturally you can break it down even further.
Connection between parts is pretty typical - line up the joint, snap fit, done.
Unlike the first release, this head features faces with rotating eyeballs, for all your posing needs. I honestly never expected to see such a change, especially when it happens within one figure release. It's definitely more flexible than the other system, though if you don't have tools handy manipulating the eyes is a bit annoying.
This figure, however, still retains the same cavity inside the head itself, meaning it still has the receptacle for the eyeballs that came with Armoured Wolf Girl. The question now is whether Snail Shell is continuing with the rolling eye balls and discontinuing the use of the eyeballs, making it unique to Wolf Girl, or will they continue to do both?
Very few surprises with regards to paints, as most of her is basically the plastic colour itself. Paint apps are generally well applied, with the strange, strange omission that is half the rings on her biceps are unpainted. Not one of two - but rather, literally only half the ring is painted, so if you're lazy like me there's a chance your photos will look weird. Of all the strange things to save money on, this has got to be amongst the top 10 I've encountered.
Build Quality wise, nothing really to complain about beyond the visor becoming unglued on one hair part and needing to be reattached. Otherwise, very solid with regards to materials and joints, and a better overall experience that Armoured as this figure didn't have a bum right knee, The accessories generally fit together nicely, though if I may point out a few things...
Accessory wise, I believe there's usually an optimum number, and then there's going overkill. This figure definitely fits into overkill.
So she's got weapons, which is nice, but it's almost like she's out for war. I still can't figure out what exactly the Cannister converts into when you pull the handle out. There's also A LOT of parts forming to get the various weapon form, which is kind of annoying and if you're me, nerve wracking because then you kind of worry about missing parts. Now if Wolf Girl had been given one weapon with transforming forms, that would have made life a bit easier. It also seems like half the modes are there just because... like the gun case blast shield and the really weird Umbrella canopy shield.
I found that for the most part, the pieces fit together quite well. The sole exception would be the swords into the Umbrella canopy, which don't exactly sit in the grooves perfectly. Which, might actually be a blessing in disguise as I have no idea how easily the plastic scratches.
Then there's the use of metal... n what seems like a "we have to put metal SOMEWHERE" move, the main Umbrella/Spear shaft and the two cables that connect into the Cannister are both metal. Not hollow stuff either, so it's relatively heavy stuff.
In the case of the shaft, I found there was really no easy way to keep it held in the figures hands, especially after combining it with all the other parts for the Umbrella mode. In the event of the cables, while the stiff cable made posing the claw thing nicely, but posing the pistol in the figures hands was a bit of struggle, as you're really posing the cable then connecting the body, as opposed to having the cable being flexible enough to just go wherever you want. Furthermore, I'm thinking metal isn't normally black, so after some play wear maybe the black will start to fade away from where the folds are.
So overall, a very solid play experience, and thanks to some better luck of draw on QC, the figure itself is much easier to handle and pose than her predecessor. The faces with diverse expressions are nice, and the rolling eyeballs are a fantastic touch that I hope stays.
I just think Snail Shell went a bit overboard with regards to the accessories, or more accurately, I feel there's way too much micromanagement of small parts, as it made switching between the various pieces of gear more of a chore than it ought to be. But as they say, variety is the spice of life... maybe they'll find a better balance the next time one of these gets released.
Full gallery can be found here.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/22877494@N02/albums/72157719186974998
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