IKEA! Let's build a cabinet!

Five years ago, if someone would have said, "Let's go to IKEA!" I would have laughed. It is not that I did not like home improvement and decor, but I had always felt that IKEA was just toy furniture and needed to be assembled similar to a plastic model kit.


Now that over half of my furniture comes from IKEA it doesn't seem so funny anymore. So what would an Otaku~ish person find interesting at IKEA? Bookcases and display cases obviously!
Work in progress
I just recently purchased this case and am currently playing with different light set-ups

To make your own case, this is what you will need:

• a Detolf display case

• Furniture lighting, Grundtal 3 pack (I am using nickel-plated)

• 3M Double-sided mounting tape, usually used for things like mirrors (you can use screws to mount the lights, but when you want to rearrange them it will leave holes)
  

• Mini-clippable spotlights (sadly, I have not found ones I like yet, IKEA does offer a few book case lights, but I don't like them, I will be trying some over the next few weeks)
  

Remember, lights get hot! Be sure not to cover up their air vent holes and don't put them too close to your figures! To be safe, don't leave the lights on when you are not viewing the case. Always keep figures out of direct sunlight! To help hide electrical cords you can buy plastic shrink wrap tubing, I believe at IKEA it is called Montera.

No, this is not my whole collection. Hopefully, over the next few weeks I'll get the lighting squared away and post pics of the complete case. Please post any suggestions on lighting or background displays! I still have not decided if I should just leave the back of the case clear or to cover it up.

Shugo Chara episode 56 review

The power behind the throne.

The long anticipated return of the former Queen has finally arrived. But just as you guessed, there is only one spot to fill so fate has dealt her cards.



Yet, life goes on.

So what if the girl you fantasized about once in a while turned out to be a boy? Naw, you are probably still straight. Maybe a little confused, but that's Ok.



The truth hurts.

Tell one small white lie and the next comes right along. But where would the fun be in stopping here? I did not forsee the Jack and the Queen facing off from the start with a charade battle, but there is loads of potential for fun ahead.

What do I think about group Character transformations? There must be an anime convention nearby. Shugo Chara doki does have some interesting stories underneath but the show has been watered-down to your random enemy of the week that getting through all the dilution makes it pretty tough to swallow. Stick with the comic book. However, you can bet I'll peek at all the future Nadeshiko episodes as they come around ;)
Will a Rima and Nagihiko pairing surface? At the very least, maybe some slapping action will come about!

Megane-Ko!

Can you tell what's going on here?

I'm sure all the big To Heart 2 fans will see it right away. Yes! We have Megane-Ko and Pettan-Ko! It's a shame that the original sculpt of Yuma did not come with glasses. The original production was quite a long time ago and accessories were not really economical at the time I guess. Or maybe the artist was not a Yuma fan; I sure hope not! These glasses belong to Charu, btw. Do you consider Ikuno Pettan? Or you prefer to think of her as Tsun-dere?

If you have not heard, right now bigbadtoystore.com is having a big sale. A few nice To Heart 2 figures are on sale for under 20$ USD. Notably, Yochi and Charu. You can also pick up the maid version of Manaka for about 35$. HLJ and Hobby Search are also having a figure sale. I was able to pick up a Sasara along with Shiro from Fortune Arterial. They should arrive sometime next week.

Even coarse tea has flavor when freshly brewed~

番茶も出花
'Bancha mo debana'

Thus' is my favorite phrase to say in Japanese. Indeed, it deserves much time to ponder and reflect upon over a warm cup of tea. I translate it as, "Even plain girls grow up beautiful."


According to WWWJDIC, "Even a homely girl looks beautiful at the peak of her youth." Literally, it would read: coarse tea also brews freshly.

Here is my favorite figma and my favorite revoltech (Moyashimon revoltech is not out yet :eyespin:)
I know the picture is a little blurry, sorry about that. First time trying to get the light to bounce off the moon onto the figure but in the end it didn't work out.

Figma Headache

Finally decided to bite the bullet and order Fate Testarossa (or Fate T. Harlaown for you dedicated fans) at an inflated price. The price was not too bad at 35$ actually. With shipping it came out just over 40$. Ordered this figure off of Amazon.com which is rare for me to do as I only order books and CDs from them usually.

Anyway, the package arrived in 3 days time and I was all smiles until I heard, *clink* *clink* inside the box. Oh-no, please not something wrong, I have not even opened the box yet! (all figma boxes *clink* as they contain individual parts :eyespin:)

Sadly, when I looked inside, Fate was in two halves, seperated at the torso. Either this was a problem at the factory or Elvis Presley was driving the mail truck since there had to have been a whole-lot-a-shaking going on. Upon closer inspection there seems to have been a manufacturing problem with the I-joint assembly that holds the upper body to the pelvic area. I tried to press it in hard, but it still pops out. It seems the inside of the Pelvis was not machined round enough so the I-joint does not seat properly inside. I could dremel it out but that might make the figure loose which is a far worse scenario.

In the end, I pressed it in as hard as I could without damaging the legs and it seems to hold well enough. As long as I do not bend her body section there are no problems, but it does limit the pose-ability, and should we as consumers have to 'settle' for defects in brand new goods? This is the 3rd figma I own and all three of them have had some 'issue' in regards to the quality of manufacturing. I am very grateful that Max Factory tries to keep their prices very low with great craftsmanship, however, if the original quality is not reaching the consumers then that is a bigger issue than saving a few dollars.

EDIT:
After applying the fingernail varnish like Anonymous suggested, it works good enough. This is only a temporary fix as fingernail varnish is made to come off after time. This is good since it does not damage the figure. The figure is able to hold its pose as long as needed, but it did come loose once I began moving the joint around. I applied a new coat and everything is all better. A more permanent solution might be model varnish, but I am not brave enough to try that.

Domo-kun at Target stores!

If you have not been to Target recently then most likely you have not heard about the Domo-kun campaign! For the current season you can now buy Domo-kun goods varying from candy to dolls at most Target stores at great prices. Anyone who has imported Domo-kun goods over the past few years knows how much of a premium most companies charge. Target is selling the small plushies for slightly over 7$ USD and you can even get little candy bags like these for just over 4$! It's definitely something fun to look into if you plan to give some candy to your friends. Don't forget to pick up the Domo-kun vampire teeth sweets!

Dai Mahou Touge!

Dai Mahou Touge!

A new figure is coming out by Wave scheduled for a spring release next year. It just happens to be none other than, Punie, from Dai Mahou Touge!

The show was released as an OVA set sometime back in 2006. Why did they just recently decide on a figure? who knows.

If you are not familiar with the series, it's about a princess who has come to earth to train for her role as the new queen. What the surprise is, how one becomes the queen. The series is a very violent comedy. There is nothing obscene but sometimes there can be blood and broken bones. If you have seen Dokuro-chan this is along the same lines. Punie's catch phrase? "Because submission is a Princess' way..."

This figure is modeled after the official art work, and I like that. Coincidentally, the series is scheduled to be released in North America very soon through Media Blasters. Th official name has been changed to Magical Witch Punie-Chan.

More figure information
DVD information