My first post for the year 2013, and this time it will be a mini-review on the pair of figma I got yesterday:
figma Archetype: he & figma Archetype: she, (flesh color version)!
This pair is the remake version of the original product number EX00 figma archetype: he & she. It was made-to-order on the Good Smile Company online shop, so it may be a little difficult to find at the time you are reading this, if you hadn’t make an order in advance.
Unlike the #00 he/she “blank” version, this latest remake features flesh-coloring instead of just being transparent. The hand-joints have also been updated from the rounded one to the longer peg type that you will find in current release figma. Both of those are positive changes in my book.
Both the he & she (each sold separately!) comes packed with the following:
- figma body (he/she)
- figma stand + base
- figma ziplock bag
- extra interchangeable left hand x3
- extra interchangeable right hand x3
Both the he and she have relaxed open-hand type as the default set of hands. Then the clenched/closed fists, and another set of hands for grabbing. The fourth and final pair of hands (middle column, in the above image) have a more significant difference between the two genders; the male sporting a tensed open palm, and his female counterpart gets a pair of open palm but with the last two fingers closed together.
The bodies are rather well-defined on the front, especially the male with all those muscles (and that “man-boobs” chest; must have done too much regular push ups). Their backs are a little less on the details (wished that she had a more “shapely” butt…), but like most figma, you won’t be seeing much of their backs with the stand attached anyway.
Because the entire figma of he/she are of hard plastic material, they seemed to be more prone to scratches. At least with typical figma, their clothes are usually made with those soft rubber-like plastic, but the he/she have none of that so be extra sure to handle them with care.
You can separate the head into 2 parts, just like the majority of figma. But not much of a point in doing this, unless you went out of the way to duplicate a bunch of he/she’s faces with your own custom mold.
So how does the he & she compare with other figma, in terms of height?
I shall just put up a few examples below…
Seems like the Persona 4 (Yukiko, on the right) line has a size scale resembling the the Archetype pair. In case you aren’t aware, Yukiko (and Chie too) is more like a 1/14 scale and is a tad proportionately smaller compared to many other female figma. The size and scale difference isn’t too obvious, until you put the different figma side by side.
Yep, the he is probably the shortest male figma available right now (excluding Erio, who is excused for being a child). I believed Link is nearly as short as he though.
And then we have Kiritsugu, who is really tall…
Packed with no prop or accessory, what can you do with the Archetype he/she?
Oh I don’t know – you will have to dig out some creativity. The easiest use for the he/she is to change out their head and body with other figma for a quick clothes swap.
Another thing I wished the new Archetype could have were broader feet and toes (like what Sunred have). The slim angular feet that the Archetype comes with isn’t too good for balancing without the stand. The she especially, which I had a more trickier time balancing her even with two feet.
What the Archetype(s) are best at is their poseability. With nothing to stand in the way (no hair, clothes, etc.), the he/she offers a much wider range of movement for the joints.
<- Some unused spare parts that I put together on the she. XP
My Verdict:
For just a bare-bones figma, the Archetype he/she can be rather costly if you are living out of Japan (like me). I bought mine for above S$60 each, which is costlier than the average figma. I would recommend the Archetype only to figma enthusiasts – whether you intend to use them as a base for your own custom figma, or just wish to further complete your figma collection.
Apart from those reasons, there isn’t much else the Archetype can do for you. If you want nude female bodies for your figma ladies, go get one of the Revoltech Queen’s Blade and attach your desired figma head instead.
As for me, I got other plans for the Archetype. They might just come in handy for my future figma-related comics…
And lastly of course, you can use the Archetype as your wooden mannequin alternative for art. You can bet for sure I will be doing that~ ^_^
If only these two had been less expensive! I’d love to have some just for the sake of having blank figmas(not to mention the endless part swapping possibilities). Too bad they didn’t include some random accessories, then cheap people like me might have better reason to buy them =/.
They were actually quite affordable at 2500Yen, but us non-Japanese residents have to pay that extra cash for the proxy and delivery. =(
I prefer the he more than the she. The he sure can make some badass fighting poses – must be because of that “sexy” ripped body of his. ^_^
Gahh, I’m so regretting not pre-order She >.>
Why they didn’t make this a normal release T_T
I still have an unopened She that I am looking to sell away. But I guess because of the relatively high price tag, not many people are that interested to buy it off me.