While I knew I had a bunch of pre-orders set to come out in March, a majority of my planned items have been shifted due to delays while a few were obtained as a last minute change of heart. I was checking my HLJ orders today and noticed a few of the figures are now being processed for shipping, which means they should be here in a few days and I’ll be stuck with more bills to pay.
Orchid Seed: Lineage II Elf Mage
This figure has been delayed for a few months and it looks like she’s finally getting deployed! There have been numerous chatter about this figure and it’s easy to see why. I’m glad I had pre-ordered this figure, it’s definitely going to be a hot item. But will the paint quality be as good as the prototype photos? And how will the decision to make this figure with cast off parts affect the finish? Guess I’ll find out pretty soon, heck, as I was typing this I just received the shipping notification from HLJ. Sweet!
Yamato: Velvet
This figure was flying completely below my radar until a couple weeks ago. While I’m aware that Yamato have been known to come out with some sub-par figures, this company is no stranger to me. I’ve been collecting their Macross Valkyries ever since they first started producing them. But anyway, I found out about Velvet (Odin Sphere) from browsing around MFC – I really hate that place. LOL
The prototype images were stunning, the pose and cast off is sexy; this may be Yamato’s best figure yet, or so people say. Looking at this figure also led me to Mercedes, which I opted for the Alter version. Yamato’s Mercedes looked to static to me and doesn’t seem to match Velvet. I was late on that pre-order though, so I hope there will be enough stock – I ordered it from HobbyFan.
Alter: Fatina
Like Velvet, I was completely oblivious to the existence of Fatina from The Tower of Druaga. When I saw the figure, I was captivated by her pose and the movable weapon. I was debating whether to get her companion Kaaya or not – Kaaya looked dull compared to Fatina and the figure just didn’t inspire me. But I wanted to get Kaaya as a set to go with Fatina. But in the end logic won (for once) and I decided to get only Fatina. I just know I’m going to have fun taking her photos! =)
Alter: Metatron
Yes, I’ve finally caved in and got Metatron. I held off for the longest time thinking I could go on without looking at her again, but I was wrong. She kept popping up on forums, reviews, news, etc. and everyone loves this figure. I can’t blame them, Alter did a great job with this one. I kept referring back to Tier’s review of Metatron which just tempted me even more. Well, it was in stock at HLJ so I finally decided to pick it up even though this is the worst time financially with all the pre-orders coming out. Will I regret getting her? No. Will I suffer the wrath of hell (aka the wife)? Yes.
Alter: Mio Akiyama
That’s right, after months of telling myself I won’t get onto the K-ON! bandwagon, I’ve failed again. I decided to pick up Mio to go along with Yui and Azusa. I’m guessing (and hoping) Alter will release the rest of the band members, that would be so cool to display the full band together. It’ll be great for photo shoots! I blame Tier again for this impulse buy, every time I log in to MFC I see his Mio picture in the side bar as the top Picture of the Month. Oi!! >_<’ Anyway, it’s being processed by HobbyFan at the moment as it’s discontinued from HLJ. I hope I don’t get screwed over again due to an inventory database error!
Square Enix: Metal Babble
Well, just for fun, I picked up a little soft vinyl metal babble toy as it was on sale from HLJ. Dragon Quest was (and is) one of my favourite RPG’s of all time, it’s up there with Final Fantasy and I’ve been playing the series since the very first one on the NES. The metal babble is one of the elusive enemies that yielded an extremely high amount of experience points in the game. I’m not too sure how big it is, but I thought it would be fun to put on my desk at work or on the dash in my car. lol
UPDATE (04/06/10): Received all items – be on the look out for their reviews in the near future! =)
Metatron is definitely a great, great figure, and I’m looking forward to the L2 elf and Velvet, particularly since they both have castoff features. I kinda liked Fatina but I didn’t get her in the end, and I’ve seen very few photo reviews of her and Kaaya, which is rather odd for a pair of Alter figures. I kinda wish that Tsuki-board would go to a picture of the week format instead, cuz I’ll be honest, I’m kinda tired of seeing my own picture there every day.
Man, I don’t remember the metal slime … it sounds familiar and I can see it in my brain, but I can’t remember fighting it. I never got Erdrick’s Sword in that game, either.
I’m looing forward to finally getting Metatron – she keeps popping up every now and then in the back of my mind. I think that was a sign from my subconciousness telling me to buy her already. LOL
L2 Elf Mage and Velvet are in transit right now, I should have it next week – I’m trying to think of a suitable background for them. Will probably try to do some outdoor shoots now that weather is warming up again.
I didn’t see that many reviews of Fatina and Kaaya either, the few that I did see of Kaaya didn’t look very impressive. Fatina looked so much better so I thought I’d give her a chance. I’m also guessing these two aren’t that popular due to the series they derived from.
The month is almost over, so maybe your Mio picture won’t be there much longer. LOL
The metal slime actually had two versions. The metal slime and this one that I got, the metal babble. They were rare encounters in the DQ/DW series and very hard to kill (1HP per hit, if you hit) and they often run away. But the award massive amounts of XP which usually means an instant level up for your characters. =D
i thought i commented here <.<
anyway wow nice orders.
fav one is of course mio =)
fortunately i have metatron since 2009 , and believe is a awesome figure!! i get hot every time i see her jakjakjakjak… Good adquisition!
Saludos!