Friday, May 6, 2011

Review: [Bandai] S.H.Figuarts Cure Black


Figure Information
Manufacturer: Bandai
Origin Series: Futari wa Precure
Scale: Non-Scale
Height: Approximately 13cm tall
Original Price: 3,675 Yen


Figure Box:

Like her Partner, she follows the same box design as it captures her colors, Black and Pink though in a sense the box color combi worked well for Honoka and not pretty much here since the overlayed color was pink, kinda off but I understand it's Nagisa's Cure colors, but yeah, pretty much like I usually say (and I'm even beginning to sound like a broken record), it's just a box and the real contents lies within the figure especially since this is an articulated figure.



Figure Details:

I really liked Nagisa's mold better for quite a number of reasons, first being that she doesn't have any visible neck seamline; second having no miscolorations; third being that she has a lesser chance of the left shoulder popping but yeah, darn you bandai and qc issues, it's still the left pad, and I know I'm not the only one who encountered these. Overall her matte black finish is really good and her hair even though more lively than the original work is pretty neat for me as it adds life to this wonderful Figuarts. Other details are very very nice and her skirt is also made of soft material although it's more solid compared to Cure White in terms of proper placement.



Accessories:

Similarly to Cure White, she's got two open hands, a pointing hand and two extra faces: a smiling one and an angry one. A lit bits on the faces, the angry one, it's absolutely great as it really captures a great image of Nagisa and I must say it's my favorite face here; the smiling face, on the other hand, I think this is another QC issue and probably a rare case (my friend didn't encounter it on his) since mine, despite the amount of force I've used, it won't friggin lock so I avoided the said face a bit since I can't ridiculously lock it. And lastly for the similar contents, she also has a custom base though I think it's the very same design as Honoka's, correct me if I'm wrong though. XD



But wait! what's that other you see above her face? It's the bonus I mentioned in the previous review. There's something Black possesses which is why I reviewed White first and it's because of that part, it's actually the hand wherein they hold each other's hands (finishers and whatnot yuri moments) and you can peg it to Black's left and White's right, allowing you to recreate some of their most noticeable scenes.



Well, though Black offers more, I still do want them rainbow bracelets but yeah, pretty nice touch for Bandai, kinda forces you to get White eh? :))

Articulation:

Well yeah, she has the same capabilities as of that of White with just a minor difference; basically since Nagisa has shorter hair, her neck is totally free of any hindrance and her skirt is probably less extend-able since yeah her skirt's compact attachment kinda prevents you from doing it all out compared to Honoka's. As for the rest, it's practically the same thing already. XD





Well, one thing quite wasteful for me is the other open hands but yeah still nice a nice bonus but if memory serves me quite right, Nagisa doesn't really open her hands that much unless it's Black Thunder/Pulsar time, she's pretty much a head on fist fighter as opposed to her martial artist partner. But yeah, quite a decent amount of action poses suit Black perfectly and this because of the fact that she wears cycling shorts and thus, doesn't make any leg bending/raising poses weird to a sense that you see a glimpse of heaven. And as mentioned before, her angry face is perfect to go with these action poses!





And of course like any other later Cure Duos, she goes well with her partner and yeah, these two must definitely be together since they can't even reach Cure-dom form without the company of the other and their fairies.







Final Thoughts:

Well, I didn't really like Cure Black's SHF before when I saw a review cause she looked really pale for some reason but having her on hand makes a totally different opinion of the figure. And in fact, even as a Honoka fan, I actually loved SHF Cure Black much more than Cure White since she's just there, a very good representation of Cure Black (even though not the best there is). And for any Cure Collectors, the leader of the original Cures is a must get and she's very much worth it. But yeah, it's a golden rule as well that once you get her, you need White as well, or vice versa. So, up to you, if you'll wait for a possible Max Heart version in the future but yeah, season 1 Nagisa is something I'll definitely recommend.



Rating (Out of 10)
Details 9
Accessories9
Articulation10
Price 10
Overall:9.5

3 comments:

  1. Interesting... A figma like figure with all the pose-ability of an SHF... And of Cure Black too!

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  2. Didn't the s1 Cure White and s1 Cure Black end up getting figmas too? There were so many Cure White and Cure Black figures its hard to keep track.

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    Replies
    1. Nope, no figmas, only Figuarts for both s1 and Max Heart versions :)

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