Evangelion OP - "Cruel Angel's Thesis" | ENGLISH ver | AmaLee

Just listen. It is amazing.

The anime is two decades old but its fanbase is still out there. And just listening to the English interpretation of the opening theme... wow. I'm too freaking tired to really delve into a discussion, but I will say, I do adore this song even more! 

#LeeandLie

Gainax: Festive Asuka and Rei

Once in a while, I get something that I don't expect that isn't on my Christmas list. These two are one of those things and let me just say, these are a rather nice surprise. Let's check out the very festive Asuka and Rei:

Starting off with Rei Ayanami. Again, very festive little figure and the box definitely concurs with the Holiday spirit!

"Limited Edition", it says. I'm sure it's not as limited as they would like one to believe. But on to the figure.

Here's Rei out of the box! She comes with a manga which is all in Japanese so I bothered not to really get into it. It may have a festive cover, but it retains the violent Evangelion theme, least from what I scrolled through.

There is some assembly required when you open Rei which is pretty straight-forward. She's a very pretty and somewhat 'sexy' looking Santa helper; and Pen-Pen is in her sack along with some presents. Nicely colored, vibrant, and glossy. I have to say, Rei doesn't look natural with red since it's her fellow pilot's color, but for an AU version, I'd say it is okay.

For a small figure, the details aren't that bad at all. It's passable.

Asuka's box is the same design but to concur with the raging Eva pilot, her's is red. Red and gold is a good combination, by the way.

Again, same aesthetics. Nothing to really report here.

She comes with the same manga that Rei had(I believe, least the cover was, didn't look at it in depth) so I decided to just post a pic of her without it.

Like Rei, there is some assembly required to get Asuka standing by the chimney with her Christmas boot full of candy canes. The gripe I have with Asuka's display is that she has a 'hollow' chimney. Meaning if you turn her around, you'll just see an empty back. You can't turn her all the way around and see a 'finished' model, unlike Rei.

But like Rei, Asuka has a lot of good details for being a tiny figure. And just with her pose alone, there is a bit more sexuality involved with this Eva Pilot. Then again, isn't Asuka the more desired one between the two? If we are speaking about putting them to an adequate age where we can talk like this, that is.

Festive. Well detailed. It's an Evangelion Christmas themed figurines! They're unique and very much appreciated. The downside is that they are also unique to a certain Holiday so I can't really display them until the Holidays. Wow, how odd is it to talk about the Holidays now when it was just barely over a week and a half ago? Anyways, on to reviewing more figures here!
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Japanese Import(?): Asuka Soryu Langley

I recently received some imports from a friend of mine who just came back from Japan. So that means, full on imports from the land of the Rising Sun itself! And here we have Asuka Soryu Langley looking eerily calm and so casual. Let's jump right into the review.

As I mentioned, calm and casual, something we aren't entirely used (least not me) when it comes to the fiery Evangelion pilot! Here she is sporting a red peacoat, black leggings, and some black leather riding boots. Aside from her color scheme, obviously familiar hairstyle, and the color scheme, there is no indication that Asuka is an Eva pilot.

Oddly enough, her choice of handbag isn't as fancy as one would imagine with Asuka. Then again, it looks more like a slim briefcase used for school/work rather than a fashion statement. Function versus cosmetic, I suppose.

If anyone is wondering, she did come in a box but since she was being transported via luggage, space was an issue, so she had to be taken out. Still, there is nothing much to miss; if her box storage is anything like the other one I got (yes, I have another fresh Japanese figure from Japan) then I'm not missing much. Here's a fun fact: she came from a "vending game machine". And let me tell you as a toy collector, this kind of statue, good details, vibrant and sharp paint job, and some known characters... her just coming from a regular vending machine is something!

Since there is no articulation, I'll go ahead and tangent off to the posture. While a lot of Asuka statues are there highly capitalizes on sexuality (whether heavy or light), this one is, as I mentioned earlier, casual and neutral. Sure it's feminine, but it's not posed to be overly sexualized. Just a pretty young woman in her fashion (but functional) clothing waving to someone. Oh, and I suppose her boots are mahogany, not black. With the right lighting, one can see that.

What little dynamic is given in this figure still provides us with a very lively piece. Her outfit dancing with her movements, her hair slightly waving out due to her movements, it's still a rather satisfying piece.

Speaking of lively and other Asuka's, here she is next to my other statue based Asuka's; with the sexualized Asuka(kotobukiya) being a winner for 2014 statue. While all four are imports, two are given to me directly as an import 'present'. This particular Asuka was also brought back as a present from a friend.

All in all, this Asuka is a nice little touch to my Evangelion(Asuka) collection. She's fun, casual, a bit out of character, but still follows the theme that makes Asuka recognizable. I am very happy to have her and definitely will consider her in my growing number of statue catch for this year. 

2015 Collection Highlights

This is my 3rd annual "Collection Highlights". Following suit of my 2014, this year is a bit different than the last. Now while I collected as much as I can, I feel like I don't have the big bang quality nor do I have a lot variety. Things were a bit tight on the funds this year so I think I'm more or less on the Hasbro side(Marvel Legends are my cheapest and growing collection). The times I was collecting did bring joy in my life so I can't really complain. So here we are!

Marvel Legends: As I stated, this year I gained a lot and let me just digress... I didn't capture the one BAF I should probably have: The AoU Hulkbuster BAF. Room and funds were into big play this year and... I'll get that someday. Also one thing about the selection this year, there are no more Toybiz ones since I didn't buy any. And this year, I started gaining this 'meh' attitude towards Hasbro's supply since there were so many 'repeats', rehashes, and lacking of accessories. Now I may sound like I hate Legends... I really don't. So without further adieu, these are the top notches in my list. And yes, the majority of them came from the Odin BAF series.

Iron Fist, Scarlet Witch, Captain Marvel, Spidey 2099, Spider-Woman

Top Legend: 

We should not be surprised that it is Jessica Drew that wins this. I have been waiting for an updated Marvel Legend of Spider-Woman so long that when I heard that she was coming out, I was elated beyond belief. She isn't a perfect Legend, and she still suffers from Hasbro's disease of 'lack ofs', but, it is still an adequate figure! So great that I have three! Thank you Hasbro!

Build-A-Figure(ML): I will be honest that since Hasbro is the main supplier of BAFs, this year suffers; now there were variety this year, that is for sure! I did not even get half of the BAFs that came out for a few reasons and the ones I got, well... I only have three total so the battle for who is number one BAF remains on this three:

Odin, Hobgoblin, Thanos

BAF Legend:

I wanted it to be Thanos, believe me. Thanos is my favorite character out of the three and I was looking forward for a brand new Thanos figure for such a long time. It also helped that Thanos as a BAF came with Spider-Woman for one of his parts! Unfortunately, Thanos did NOT deliver. Low articulation, not exactly diverse in the form of poses... no accessories. Odin would be my second favorite with how unique he is and he comes with an accessory; So with that said, Hobgoblin took the trophy for 2015. He has more accessories, he is unique, and he is pretty fun to pose. That's the tricky thing with rating BAFs... is it the set or the figure itself that makes these guys? For Hobgoblin's case, it's him as the figure since his set wasn't that great to me.

Imports: This particular genre did not come with a lot of choices for 2015. I did not buy a lot since imports are not cheap by any means(the ideal number for candidates are five, but again, money was not easy to come by this year). So with my choices being limited to the three... well...

Iron man, Elsa, Harley Quinn

Most Enamoring: 

Elsa is not even in the same league--and while I love that cute little figure, it doesn't fit the mold of how to put it against the S.H. Figuarts that I bought this year; still she is an import so I had to include her in here. Now between Harley and Stark, it was really hard. I wanted to really say Harley Quinn but there was just something so much more entertaining in this Iron Man import that I could not justify Harley taking the trophy. It was a coin toss, but I have to say that Iron Man is superior between the two (in my humble opinion).

Statues: While I did not get a lot this year, it still is a decent number and the competition was there. Bishoujo remains to be my dominant supplier for this area. Nonetheless, these are the catch of 2015 in regards to statues:

Rei Ayanami, Batwoman, Juri Han, Jubilee

Winning Statue: 

Juri came on top with Batwoman a close second. Jubilee was cute and Rei was a good pick but I would be lying if I denied the idea that I would have let both teens win the slots for the sake of sexuality. Juri and Batwoman are head to head but I think Juri just has more intricacy--and maybe that doesn't fall on the product but the character design. Still, Ayanami was the none Bishoujo out of the four and she was just plain fan service.

Shout out: This category is new and I have to say that this particular 'winner' does not come in abundance. Marvel Select are hardly something I collect but I do have them as display. This particular guy is the first I have ever opened and I have to say, it was well worth it! Amazing thing! While lacking some articulation and accessories, stable, well painted, and all that.... it's a fine addition to my Iron Man shelf.

Marvel Select Hulkbuster

After Word: This year did not produce a "THE ONE" kind of deal. While I will say that I adore the majority of my catch this year, I believe there was just so much clutter in my 'life' that I can't say any figure really stood out. STOOD OUT. I did not get into a Hot Toy this year and they are almost a guaranteed winner. Regardless, I think 2015 was a decent hunting year. I had a lot of fun with those I caught and 2016 seems even more promising. Maybe if I get lucky this year I will have a Hot Toy on the review slot? Well, here's to the new year then! 

Sega(?) Statues: Rei Ayanami

Let's take a break form Marvel altogether and check out the anime avenue, shall we? Admittedly, I'm not the biggest fan of Rei Ayanami from the Neon Genesis Evangelion, but there was something very enticing about this figurine that caught my attention! If it isn't obvious just from first glance then I am going to surmise that you are brand new to my blog. Regardless, let's just review things thing, shall we?

So apparently "Sega" made this piece which strikes me odd since when I think of Sega, I think of video games like Sonic and the likes. To hear that they have a hand in figurines is a bit of odd new idea, but here we are. The box itself isn't strikingly attracting; there are some cool little homages in there and the yellow tape does concur with Rei's police woman outfit. Oh, and there is an Asuka figure, but for some reason, she isn't getting the same treatment as Rei.

When I think of Rei Ayanami, I think of the lackluster, stoic, and ominous Evangelion pilot that Shinji(the bitch) seems to have his eyes set on despite having a fiery (and a bitchy) red headed russian girl ogling over him--for some strange reason. Though what this Rei Ayanami statue delivers is different from how I usually see Rei, obvious by the 'sexy' police uniform and her unusual position to be handcuffed to a pole and standing rather sensually despite her humiliating position.

  

 

The one thing that really gets me about the posture is that it makes Rei stand out in a sexy way. She never really was that kind in the anime(both Rebuild and original) since she was a bit of a 'doll'-like persona. This figurine shows what could possibly be Rei's sex appeal with both posture and the blue outfit that adorns her lithe body. Of course the fact that she is in bondage accentuates the idea of her charms, doesn't it?

There is something to be said about the position she is in. I'm more than willing to gamble that the handcuffs are hers and yet Rei finds herself on the receiving end of it. How is that? Why is that? What this figurine implies is more than sensual for someone who has my own taste. The expression on her face is classic Rei, but with a bit more ... hmm... submissive and humiliated look to it. Again, something that I truly think is enticing about the whole idea of this.

And just because I am a pervert, we will scrutinize her bonds. The platform as well, the road or what not is... well it's an awesome addition. Here's another great little addition that draws the whole Evangelion picture aside from Rei:

I don't understand the writing, but I will say that it's Eva Unit 01. Wish I knew what it said. Oh well, let's look at the figurine some more!

 

At the end of the day, I didn't think I'd get a Rei statue willingly, but because this one has a few attracting qualities, here I am. Don't get me wrong, if there was an Asuka version of this(her being in distress), I would've bought it in a heart beat, but alas, hers wasn't as enamoring. Well, it was since it's Asuka, but you know, where do I put another Asuka?

Speaking of Asuka, Rei will get her space with Chibi Mikasa, Yuna, and this lovely Asuka figure!