Tag Archive for collectibles

Tasty Peach Studios – Halloween 2015 Meowchi Review

I got this year’s limited edition Halloween Meowchis from Tasty Peach Studios as soon as they went live on their website. If you’re not familiar with Tasty Peach Studios, I have written about other plushies from them before (here and here). I couldn’t choose between the adorable witch and demon, so I got them both.

They are both super soft and are made from the same minky fabric as the other Meowchis. Both of these limited editions also have their own unique facial characteristics.

witch-meowchiThe witch is green and has a felt witch hat attached to her head. She also has cute little warts on her face and one tooth sticking out of her mouth. Her eyes are slightly slanted to give her a mischievous look, as though she is thinking about putting a spell on you. The felt that makes up her hat is stiff and a kind of scratchy. There are ear holes on the hat to accommodate her ears. Witch Meowchi is the perfect familiar for any kawaii witch!

demon-meowchiThe demon is red and has devilish horns sticking out of his head. He also has felt wings on his back, which are made of the same type of material as the witch’s hat. Rather than the standard rounded tail that most Meowchis have, he has a pointy tail, just like a real demon! On his face, he has evil little fangs and the same mischievous eyes as the witch. Demon Meowchi is ready to cause all kinds of mayhem on Halloween!

halloween-meowchis-2015-tails halloween-meowchis-2015

The witch and demon Meowchis are still available on the Tasty Peach Studios website (as of this writing), but they probably won’t last long, being limited editions. They are $25 each, as are all of their limited edition Meowchis (the standard Meowchis are $20). If you miss out, they will be available again in January during their “last chance” offering of this year’s limited editions.

Tasty Peach Studios: Lychee Meowchi Review and Comparison

Lychee Meowchi

I said in my review of the Disapproval Meowchi and Nomwhal that I would post a comparison of Tasty Peach Studios‘ different Meowchi plushies as soon as my Lychee Meowchi came in. It just arrived today!

The Lychee Meowchi is a darker shade of pink than its Strawberry counterpart. Whereas the Strawberry Meowchi is a softer, more subdued shade of pink, the Lychee Meowchi is a darker, more vibrant shade. The Lychee Meowchi has light pink in its ears instead of the normal white. It also has a different face, featuring an open mouth. All of the previous non-limited edition Meowchis have the same face as the Strawberry. The new summer Lychee and Mango varieties have unique new faces (the Mango has a winking face).

Lychee Meowchi from Tasy Peach Studios Lychee and Strawberry Meowchis

I mentioned in my previous post that the Disapproval Meowchi was a little bit bigger, felt more densely stuffed, and had a slightly different fabric texture than the Strawberry Meowchi. The Lychee Meowchi is the same size and feels stuffed about the same as the Disapproval Meowchi. The fabric also feels most similar to the Disapproval Meowchi. The two newer Meowchis feel a little bit smoother than the Strawberry Meowchi. I’m guessing they changed how they are made at some point, and I would guess that Strawberry Meowchis from the newer batches would feel more similar to the other newer Meowchis.

Stack of Meowchis Lychee, Strawberry, and Disapproval Meowchi Pyramid

The tag is on the left ear, like the Strawberry Meowchi, but it hangs from the top of the front of the ear like on the Disapproval Meowchi and tends to obstruct its face. It is also looser, so it is difficult to get it to stay out of the way. I prefer the tag placement on the Strawberry Meowchi much better. It is off to the side of the ear and stays out of its face. I can never decide if I want to remove the tags from my plushies or not, so I just end up leaving them on. If you collect plush toys, please let me know in the comments whether or not your keep the tags on them. I’m genuinely curious about what other collectors do.

 

The Lychee Meowchi’s color is similar to that of the Nomwhal’s strawberry syrup, but just a little bit lighter. I took a photo of Nomwhal, both pink Meowchis, and Kyandi to compare the pink colors in each plush:

Tasy Peach Studios Pink Plushies

I also have the limited edition Cream Reindeer Meowchi Variant pre-ordered, and I’m sure I’ll get some others in the future as well. Tasty Peach Studios posted a photo of a prototype giant Strawberry Meowchi that is even bigger than the Nomwhal! I will most likely have to get that one when it is released! I think it’s safe to say I’m addicted to these little guys now!

Sailor Venus S.H. Figuarts Review

Sailor-Venus-Figuarts-Heavy-Metal-Snapseed

This review is on the Sailor Venus S.H.Figuarts figure. Sailor Venus has always been my favorite sailor scout, so of course I jumped at the chance to get this awesome figure of her.

She comes with her Sailor V mask, different interchangeable faces and hands, and Artemis the cat. She can be displayed in many different poses and her joints and the paint applications look great.

Sailor-Venus-SHFiguarts Sailor-Venus-Figuarts-with-Artemis

The stand is a bit awkward. It has a clasp to hold onto her leg instead of a peg and a hole on her back like most figures I have. She falls over occasionally because of the stand design. It is also more difficult to swap out her face and hands that on some other figures I own, such as the Nendoroids. Sometimes, it also feels a bit awkward to try to pose her.

Sailor-Venus-Figuarts-with-Hello-Kitty-POP

I briefly considered trying to collect all of the sailor scouts, but that would get far too expensive, so I will most likely stick to just this one. If they ever make one of her in her Sailor V  outfit, I might get that one as well too. If Good Smile ever comes out with Sailor Moon Nendoroids, however, I just might have to collect them all.

Sailor-Venus-Figuarts-Heavy-Metal-Snapseed

I do wish she came with some more accessories, however. Her transformation pen or wand would have been nice. Still, Sailor Venus is an awesome figure and she is worth getting if you are a fan of Sailor Moon.

Tasty Peach Studios: Nomwhal and Disapproval Meowchi Plush

I preordered the Nomwhal and Disapproval Meowchi from Tasty Peach Studios back in April, and they finally arrived in the mail yesterday!

Before I talk about the latest items I purchased from this company, I feel like I should give a bit of background. Tasty Peach Studios is a small company based in Indiana that sells items featuring cute Japanese-inspired characters. They offer a variety of plush toys, t-shirts, jewelry, and more. They sell their merchandise on their website and at various anime conventions. I’ve only purchased their plush toys, so I can’t comment on the rest of their adorable items, though I’m sure they’re just as awesome as the plush.

Most of their plush toys seem to be based on food. Their main line of plush, Meowchis, are mochi kitty cats. They also have plush dolls of several other food inspired characters, as well as Zombie Alpacas. The first plush I purchased from Tasty Peach Studios was the Kyandi llama plush, and I’ve been in love with their plush characters ever since. Eventually I caved and bought the Strawberry Meowchi too. It’s a super cute pink cat! What’s not to like?

Nomwhal

Nomwhal-front-TPSI was super excited for the Nomwhal plush when it was announced. Nomwhal is an ice cream cone narwhal. It is the perfect companion for Kyandi, the cotton candy alpaca. It looks like vanilla ice cream covered in strawberry syrup and sprinkles. Its horn is an ice cream cone, of course.

He is made of super soft minky fabric. The main part of his body is pure white and he has pink on his back and head with embroidered sprinkles. The pink color is a darker, more hot pink shade of pink than the pictures on their website and Facebook page.

Nomwhal-from-Tasty-Peach-StudioHe is kind of awkwardly shaped, and it is difficult to get a good picture of him that shows his face and body details. I guess that kind of goes with the territory of being a narwhal though! His awkwardness is part of his charm! (I keep calling him “he.” Truth be told, I don’t know what gender Narwhal is supposed to be. It is pink, but I think of it as a “he” for some reason.)

Nomwhal is quite a bit bigger than the rest of the plushies from Tasty Peach Studios. It measures 15 inches long. At $35, it is also the most expensive plush they currently offer. If you are a fan of large plushies, it is well worth the price.

Disapproval Meowchi

Nomwhal-and-Disapproval-MeowchiDisapproval Meowchi started off as an April Fool’s day joke. Due to high demand, Tasty Peach Studios opened up preorders for it so everyone who wanted one could actually get it. It’s grey and its face is the “look of disapproval” emoticon. ಠ__ಠ

He is just a hair bigger than my Strawberry Meowchi. He feels slightly more densely stuffed than the Stawberry Meowchi as well. The fabric on each Meowchi also feels a little bit different. I’m not sure if this was intentional or if they switched manufacturers at some point. I have a Lychee Meowchi ordered as well, and I’ll compare all three of them once it arrives.

Strawberry-and-Disapproval-MeowchisMeowchi’s are pretty small. They stand at 5.2 inches tall. As with all of the limited edition Meowchis, Disapproval Meowchi was $25 (the regular “flavors” are $20 each). This seems pretty steep for such a small plushie. They are made of high quality minky fabric, however, and have beans in their bellies to help them to sit upright. Still, for the price I would say that they are more collectors items for adults/teenagers than toys for small children. Disapproval Meowchi’s face alone makes him worth the $25. The only thing I don’t like is the tag placement. It covers his face too much when it is facing down the right way.

A few more things

Tasty-Peach-Studios-plush-toys

The gang’s all here! At least until my Lychee Meowchi arrives!

I was a bit disappointed that it took so long to receive my plushies. The shipment for the Nomwhals came in on time in July. I wasn’t aware that it wouldn’t be shipped until my Disapproval Meowchi came in as well since I ordered them together in one order. After inquiring about it, they said they won’t ship items separately if you ordered them together. The shipment containing the Disapproval Meowchis (as well as the Lychee and Mango Meowchis) was delayed by customs, so I had to wait almost two extra months to get my Nomwhal as well.

Considering how much they charge for shipping (not to mention the costs of the products themselves), I would have thought that they would make an exception for preordered items, and just ship them as they came in. If the shipping costs really are that big of an issue, some kind of acknowledgement that they actually appreciate their customers would have been nice (such as a coupon code for my next order or some small trinket or something!).

Instead of appreciation for the people who preordered, I noticed on their Facebook page that they were starting to get a bit rude to customers who asked about their preorders over the last few weeks. I understand that it can be annoying answering the same questions over and over again, but not everyone reads every single Facebook post or knows to scroll to the very bottom of their website and click on a tiny, tiny link to read the FAQs. Normally Tasty Peach Studios seems friendly to their customers on Facebook, so I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt this time and assume they either let someone new respond to customers on Facebook, or that it’s just a one time thing do to the stress of getting these items out.

That said, I will still likely buy more plushies from Tasty Peach Studios in the future. I will just try to be careful about ordering multiple items at once if they are preorder items. I plan on getting their Pug Wonbon plush when it is released, as well as a Unicorn Meowchi and Rainbow Meowchi if they ever release plush of those characters.

Haru-Chan Nendoroid Review

Haru-Chan-Nendoroid-on-Koi

I bought the Haru-Chan Nendoroid solely because of how adorable she is. She is apparently a mascot for Japan’s NHK General Newswatch 9 and stars in her own webcomic on NHK ONLINE called Haru-Chan’s Weather Trivia.

Haru-Chan is the goddess of spring and all of her accessories fit the theme. You can check out her website on NHK ONLINE here. It’s all in Japanese, but there is a video that explains some things in English… for some reason.

Haru-Chan's Weather Trivia Comic Strip

Haru-Chan’s Weather Trivia Comic Strip

She comes with a giant koi that she can ride, three faces, different lower body pieces for sitting and standing, a cute little cat, an extra hair piece, and three different wands. The kanji on the top of her head says “Haru,” which means “Spring.”

Haru-Chan's-Weather-Trivia-Nendoroid

The pictures online showed the cat holding onto the back of the fish, which was one of the main reasons I wanted this figure. While it can technically be posed this way, it’s a bit difficult to get the cat to stay on. There are no pegs or anything to keep him attached to the fish. Instead, his front legs just squeeze the fish’s tail and you have to set him on the back of the fish just right to get him to stay. Even if you get him on, he usually falls off eventually.

Haru-Chan-Spring-Nendoroid

Other than the issues with the cat staying on the fish, the only problem I have with this figure is that the standing lower body piece doesn’t stay on very well. It’s too loose and separates from the upper body piece too easily. The sitting lower body piece doesn’t have this issue, however. I prefer displaying her sitting on the fish anyway.

Haru-Chan-Nendoroid-on-Koi Haru-Chan-Nendoroid

It might seem silly for an American to buy a figure based on something from a random Japanese news channel, but just look at her! You know you want to add her to your collection! I’m keeping her on my desk right now, right next to Madoka. They look so cute together!

Haru-Chan-and-Madoka-Nendoroid

Overall, Haru-Chan is one of the cutest Nendoroids I have. I plan on keeping her on my desk all winter to remind me that spring will be here soon!

Puella Magi Madoka Magica Nendoroid Review

Puella Magi Madoka Magica Nendoroid

I bought the Nendoroid of Madoka in her magical girl outfit after finally watching the series. This Nendoroid is super cute and comes with plenty of accessories and extra pieces.

One of the best things about this figure is that she comes with Kyubey, who has two bodies to chose from. He can be posed sitting or hanging from Madoka’s arm. She also has three different faces, an extra set of hair bows with longer ribbons, and her bow and arrow.

Madoka Nendoroid - Good Smile

I do have a couple issues with this Nendoroid. When I took her out of the box, I noticed that some of the parts felt kind of sticky and she had a plasticy smell. At first I was afraid that she might be a bootleg, but I found out that some Nendoroids have a problem with stickiness , particularly older ones that have been kept inside the packaging for too long.

Apparently they add a plasticizer to the PVC to make Nendoroids softer and more flexible. If you keep them sealed in the box, especially if they are stored in a hot environment, the plasticizer evaporates and leaves a sticky residue on the figures. You can apparently clean them with dish soap to remove the stickiness, but I want to make sure I’m using a soap that won’t damage the paint on the figure before I attempt it.

Kyubey and Madoka Nendoroid

The other minor issue is that her hand comes loose sometimes and falls off when I try to pose her. I believe this figure is an older design, which could explain both the problems with stickiness and loose connectors. I think newer Nendoroids have tighter connectors so they don’t come apart as easily.

Puella Magi Madoka Magica Nendoroid

Overall, I’m glad I got the Madoka Nendoroid Figure. She is super cute and looks great on my pink desk with the rest of my pink action figures.

There are several other Nendoroids of Madoka as well, including her in her schoolgirl uniform and Nendoroids of other characters in the series, such as Homura. I may get one or two more Puella Magi Madoka Magica Nendoroids in the future.

Linkin Park Nendoroid Petit Nendoroid Set Review

Linkin Park Nendoroid set with stage

I saw the Linkin Park Nendoroid Petit set in the dealer room at a convention once, but they were too expensive there. Luckily, Hans got them for me for Christmas last year. They are an odd thing to have Nendoroids of, but Linkin Park is one of my favorite bands, so I had to have them!

The entire band is included in this Nendoroid Petit set. They all come with their respective instruments and accessories so you can pose them like they are in the middle of a show. For extra effect, you can listen to their albums while playing with them… err… I mean… posing them to display. Adults don’t play with figures. Don’t be silly… (Also, don’t mind my Little Mermaid Lego set in the background…)

Linkin Park Nendoroid set Linkin Park Nendoroids

They are Petit Nendoroids, so they are quite a bit smaller than regular Nendoroids. They don’t have extra interchangeable pieces for each figure like the larger Nendoroids either, but the set does include the entire band and their musical accessories. Individual clear round bases are also included if you don’t want to display them on the stage.

  Linkin Park Nendoroids Petit  Linkin Park Nendoroids Good Smile

They are also super cute, like most Nendoroids. As far as I know, these are the only Nendoroids out there based on real people rather than fictional characters. You know you’ve made it when they start making action figures based on you!

Linkin Park Nendoroid set with stage

This Linkin Park Nendoroid Petit set is a unique must-have item for Linkin Park fans and Nendoroid collectors alike.

 

Animal Crossing New Leaf Isabelle Nendoroid Review

Isabelle-ACNL-Nendoroid

I got the adorable Isabelle Nendoroid figure from Hans for my birthday last year. She is my first Nendoroid, but definitely not my last.

She comes with three different faces and a bunch of accessories. My favorite accessories are the music notes and my favorite face is the super happy one. She even has a little bell in her hair!

Isabelle-Animal-Crossing-Nendoroid Isabelle Nendoroid

She is well-made, like all official Nenoroids. All of the pieces fit together perfectly and the paint looks great. I don’t have any complaints at all about this Isabelle figure. She is just too adorable!

Isabelle-ACNL-Nendoroid

There are two different versions of Isabelle available: the regular summer version that I have and the winter version. I think the one I have has the cuter faces and accessories. I think the winter version also only has two faces, as opposed to three.

Majora’s Mask Limited Edition Skull Kid Figure Review

Skull Kid Majora's Mask Special Edition Figure

After missing the preorder for the limited edition of Majora’s Mask 3D, I decided to hold off on buying the game just in case I managed to find the limited edition somewhere. I wanted to wait to play it until I got a new 3DS XL for the bigger screen anyway.

As luck would have it, I found the limited edition of Majora’s Mask 3D at the Cleveland Classic Console and Arcade Gaming Show in July. I paid much less than eBay sellers were charging, though it still set me back more than the original retail price. My husband also managed to get the Majora’s Mask limited edition New 3DS XL from the same scalper seller.

Majoras Mask 3DS Limited Edition

The figure isn’t as amazing as I expected. The plastic feels a bit cheap. Mine also had a little scuff on the mask. The rest of the paint looks fine, though.

SkullKid Majora's Mask Figure

Compared to other figures I’ve gotten with limited edition games, this one is nothing special. It’s still cool to have a figure of Skull Kid, however. It’s worth having if you’re a hardcore Zelda fan. If you’re just looking for a cool collectible figure, you might want to pass.

SkullKid Majora's Mask Figure

The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D looks much better than the N64 original, though if you’re like me, you probably won’t notice unless you’ve recently played the N64 version. I have a habit of remembering older games as looking better than they actually did. The added 3D effects are always a nice bonus as well.

Cynthia Pokemon Center Nendoroid Review

CynthiaPokemonNendoroid

I have so many figures in my ever expanding collection, I might as well start reviewing some of them on my blog. I just got the Pokemon Center Cynthia Nendoroid from Good Smile. I missed out on the Red Nendoroid, so made sure to get Cynthia before she got too hard to find. Since she is one of the few Nendoroids available in the United States, I just waited for the US version. I bought her from the Pokemon Center on Amazon instead of from the Pokemon Center website for the free two day Prime shipping.

She looks awesome, but doesn’t have as many parts and accessories as most other Nendoroids. She has two faces, a couple extra arms, and one extra leg. The only accessory she comes with to hold is a Pokeball, but she does come with her Garchomp, which more than makes up for the lack of other accessories. It would have been nice if she had one more face, but I’ll probably use the default open-eyed face most of the time anyway.

Cynthia and Garchomp - Pokemon Center Nendoroid

Cynthia and Garchomp - Pokemon Center Nendoroid

Cynthia and Garchomp - Pokemon Center Nendoroid

Garchomp’s arms, legs, and head move to allow him to be posed in different ways. He doesn’t have any extra parts, however. I think it would have been cool if he had an extra head with a different facial expression (maybe a closed mouth), but I guess since he’s considered an accessory for this figure, that might be asking a bit too much.

The paint applications on both figures look great. I didn’t notice any major issues with the paint on either figure. The only slight problem I noticed so far with either figures is that Garchomp’s arm fall off easily when trying to pose him.

Cynthia Pokemon Center Nendoroid

The box seems cheaper than the other Nendoroids I have because it lacks a clear plastic window. I’m not sure if that is just how the American versions are made or not, of if it is just this particular figure.

All in all, Cynthia is a worthwhile figure to add to your collection. Just make sure to get her before you’re forced to pay scalper prices! I will most likely get the N Nendoroid when he comes to the US too. I’m still holding out hope that they will rerelease Red due to his popularity. For future Pokemon Nendoroid releases, I’m hoping for Misty, Gym Leader Erika, and Gym Leader Sabrina. Misty with an extra mermaid body would be amazing!