It's now Mid-December 2021, and things have been chugging along. Despite being on "vacation" since the start of the month, I've barely had any time to rest, what with parenting duties and just general adulting. But, as with all things, there came a time when that bout of insanity ended and I was able to get back to basically doing nothing productive.. you know, like an actual vacation.
Of my lengthy backlog, a recent shipment of TBLeague figures had my utmost attention, for the usual reasons of just being awesome. These figures arrived here as part of a rehoming project a buddy is undertaking, and it's a good opportunity to take a look at some more of the licensed figures using the TBLeague bodies.
I've started my little journey here with my most anticipated piece, Satan from 7 Mortal Sins, released by Toyseiiki.
Satan was the first release in the 7 Mortal Sins line up, but the follow up figure, Lucifer, never got released, nor did anything else by Toyseiiki. I think they got like what, four figures out the door and then they were never heard from again.
Retailing for 19,800 Yen, this is probably one of the more sanely priced 1/6 Japanese figures I've seen recently, though that's not to say at $190 ish USD that the price doesn't hurt.
Contents include:
- 1 x TBLeague Seamless Body (S36?)
- 1 x Headsculpt
- 1 x Costume set (Cape, Gauntlets, Bikini Top, Belt, Bikini Bottom, Leggings, Knee Armour, Boots)
- 6 x Hands (Fists, Open Palm, Gripping)
- 1 x Battle Axe
- 1 x Wired Cape
- 1 x Stand
The stand is pretty basic. I mean, sure it's got some nice velvet on it, but otherwise yeah its.. basically a rectangle. It does come with a arm, which I didn't bother to take out for photography purposes.
Satan is the embodiment of the sin Wrath, and basically walks around carrying a giant battle axe wearing what, quite honestly, is a pretty typical Anime battle bikini ensemble. Yeah it's revealing, but by this point it's pretty much tradition for these types of series.
Like the Star Ace Catwoman, actual fabric used for this figure is relatively low. Catwoman had her mesh body suit, and Satan, well she has her pleather leggings and cape. Otherwise, you're pretty much look at plastics featuring various degrees of pliability. Great from a durability perspective, though not particularly luxurious.
Since I can't think of anywhere else to write this, I'll just do it here - I feel that they made the hands too small for this figure.
The head sculpt features sculpted hair, and overall looks pretty good to me from an accuracy perspective, and wouldn't look out of place on a scale statue. Size is appropriate, and the detailing in the hair and helmet are well within the acceptable level for quality, with the horns coming in slightly lower as I felt they could have put in some proper ridges.
Facial expression is that of disapproval, which seems appropriate given the personality of Satan.
So, I'm guessing Toyseiiki used the S36 body for this and all their other figures. They all kind of looked alike, and TBLeague even advertised their S36/37 as being best for Anime women. Like most of the TBLeague female bodies, this one looks nice with the bonus of an impossible, gravity defying bust, which isn't out of place when you're talking about the world of Anime. However, I just feel that the body itself should have been one that was more full bodied, as the various pieces of official art paint the image of a battle hardened warrior that is used to the rigors of carrying around a giant axe.
Having said that, it's always the body that carries this type of figure, and while it doesn't look accurate per se, it's a very visually appealing construct with proportions that wouldn't look reasonable for a real person, but when you go Anime, you might as well go nuts. I think if you slapped a realistic head sculpt on this body, it would just look completely and utterly wrong.
TBLeague bodies generally offer an excellent range of motion by themselves, and that's what you should expect here. By itself, you can put the body into all sorts of lounging and contortionist poses. Wrist and ankle articulation aren't as good as properly jointed figures, but it's functional. At the very least, allowances for ankle tilt were included in this design, unlike the Star Ace Catwoman.
What's interesting is that of all the TBLeague bodies I've handled, this one is the most limber. To me, it's almost like the silicone itself was more elastic or something, as getting the limbs into position took less effort on my part.
The long hair, lovely as it is, affects range of head tilt. Also, if you're not careful, you'll end up like me and neck strap. Not the end of the world, but annoying.
Another interesting design choice is Satan's gauntlets. They aren't wrong per se, but I think the proportions aren't right, especially with the elbow section. I say this because despite the pliability of the plastic, you basically can't bend Satan's arms beyond what's in the the photo.
I can understand the hair, but to have gauntlets designed in a way that doesn't let you properly bend the arms, well, IMO that's a paddlin'.
From a paint perspective, there really isn't a whole lot, with the vast majority of apps used for accent and weathering purposes. In terms of quantity, I think there's more paint on the axe than there is on the body. I'm happy to say, however, that the general quality of the paint applications is what I'd expect from a Japanese company, so overall quite crisp and clean. No overspray and minimal bleeding. A definite better resulting product than the Star Ace Catwoman, despite them both having similar materials for their outfits.
Lastly there's Build Quality. I've mentioned that the body itself is solid and strangely, easier to pose. But what of the Toyseiiki components? Well I'm happy to say that again, its definitely better than the Star Ace Catwoman. To start, the details on the various plastic pieces are sharp. Straightly lines are actually straight. There are no blemishes on sharp edges or other raised details. A sober person was responsible for the sanding process. No warping was observed. So basically, things you'd expect for a figure of this price point.
Getting the head on was a bit challenging, but I think that was more due to the fact the neck moved very easily. The hands, however, came off and would attach with the expected amount of force. Never once did I get the feeling that I was going to rip the Armature apart at the wrists or anything like that.
Toyseiiki wisely made all the parts of her outfit that are prone to snapping, such as the wings on her ankles, out of a really soft plastic that has effectively handled all the relatively rough treatment I've thrown her way. Not that I've tossed her down the stairs or anything, but I'm not exactly mindful of the various bits and bobs when setting the figure down.
I'm a huge fan of absurdly dressed Anime women, and Satan is no exception. While a body that focused on accuracy rather that simply large bust would have been nice, I don't have too many waifu in this scale, and the ones I do are Medicom RAH. If you've handle a RAH, you'll know you generally live in fear that one day you might slightly overtorque a joint or set it down the wrong way and BAM, you're out $250 USD, presuming you can still find a replacement for whatever figure that might be. It's nice when you only have to deal with ridicule and dust.
It would have been nice to see where Toyseiiki would have taken things had they still been in business. Maybe it would have led to the development of a more muscular female Anime body, or at least one with more substantial arms and legs. For now though, there must be warehouses out there filled with these S36/37 bodies, as the one company that could have used them doesn't exist, and there aren't exactly many kits out there that require the use of Anime body proportions. But never say never, I suppose.
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