Anime Figures: Tokyo’s Hottest 50 Figurines (A J!-ENT Book Review)

May 11, 2008 by Dennis Amith 

“Anime Figures – Tokyo’s Hottest 50 Figurines” is an awesome book from Cocoro Books specifically for the otaku who are into figurines. In Akihabara, these sexy figurines scream”own me”, “buy me” and many otakus do just that. If you have considered getting into PVC collecting, this book is an excellent resource for those planning to collect these figurines. ”

BOOK: Anime Figures: Tokyo’s Hottest 50 Figurines

PHOTOS BY: Shimono Yoshio

COMPANY: Cocoro Books (DH Publishing, Inc.)

PAGE COUNT: 82 pages

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

If you like your women sassy, sophisticated and synthetic, then get in line, ‘cos anime figures are hot and getting hotter! The half-naked lumps of plastic that line the shelves of Japan’s otaku stores ooze such sex appeal that demand and supply might as well live on different planets. That’s all well and good if you’re the The Man, but with prices as high as a tokyo’s tenth-grader’s skirt, how’s the “real fan” of My-Hime, To Heart2, or even Night Shift Nurses, ever gonna get his hands on his significant other?

The answer is Anime Figures – Tokyo’s Hottest 50 figurines.

For much (much!) less than the price of one figure, 50 of the hottest girls to come out of Tokyo’s sexiest anime products are introduced in gorgeous, glossy full color. Some you already know – Rei Ayanami from Neon Genesis Evangelion, Mizuho Kazami from Please Teacher! – and some you’re gonna wish you knew- Mizuki Takase from Comic Party and “bodacious bovine babe” Sanae Aizawa. Totally authentic, totally hot, this sizzling collection of PVC pin-ups is a must for every red-blooded anime fan.

Although I personally never owned a Japanese anime PVC, I’ve seen them so many times in Akihabara, sold at anime conventions and I can see why otaku really go for them.

These PVC action figures feature anime characters in the sexiest and seductive pose, really good craftmanship and a keen sense of detail on umm…certain body parts. These figurines are the ultimate in fan service but the chance to own them is a collector’s dream.

The book features two pages with photos of Tokyo’s hottest 50 figurines. Americans will no doubt know Amane Misa of “Death Note”, Belldandy of “Ah! My Goddess”, Ayanami Rei of “Evangelion” and video game fans who may know Tojo Mitsuru of “Persona 3″ and Shieri and Shion of the popular “Melty Blood” series.

The photos by Shimono Yoshio really capture the craftmanship of the figurines. The sculpting are very well done and one thing that these PVC’s sure do emphasize a lot are on the female character’s breasts and nipples sticking out through their clothing. Also, the fan service of a anime girl with her skirt flowing in the wind and a peek at her underpants.

It’s quite perverted if you think about it, especially if you are not into figurines.

But for toy collectors in America who like detail for “Star Wars” figures, especially that Slave Leia and Scarlett or Baroness of GI Joe and how their curvatures are shown and give them a slight fan service, the Japanese figurines make sure that the otaku gets their money worth.

One PVC featuring Shion of “Melty Blood”, is shown on all fours in her school girl outfit (maybe looking for something she lost in the ground) and of course, fan service giving a sneak peak of her rear end.

The creator of the model made sure that the curves were well done, especially the lines from her umm..panty region. And Shimono made sure the lighting was perfect to create the shadowing in his photos.

The most jawdropping figure was of an original character named Aizawa Sanae dressed in a cow-like cosplay with a cowbell around her neck ala choker but no bra and the detail in the breast area, the creators went all out in making sure everything looked realistic in a fantasy sense. The figure just screams “Got milk?”

By saying that, by no means is this book for the kiddies. The book and it’s slip case cover have a big red words in the back that say “Contains PVC Nudity”.

Also, I have seen these figures from Akihabara blogs and I can definitely understand why these figurines are attractive to the consumer.

These figures scream to the otaku… “Buy Me”!

So, if you have any remote interest in PVC figurine collecting especially for video game and anime characters, this book is definitely for you.

“Anime Figures: Tokyo’s Hottest 50 Figurines” is strictly a photo book with really cool photos of Tokyo’s hottest figurines.

Each photo has a name of the character and at the end of the book, there is an identification to what series the figure belongs to, where it can be bought and how much.

PVC figurine collecting is not cheap by any means. But as a collector of “Transformers” and having owned various toys, this hobby can definitely be addictive.

But as a guy, you can understand why these figures are popular. It’s pure fan service and one enjoys it from an anime or video game series, why not own a figure that you enjoy in an interesting pose?

So, far I have been enjoying the books targeting a certain niche of Japanese pop culture from Cocoro Books and I can see this becoming a natural “must-own” for the otaku who want to start collecting the figures.

In that case, this book is highly recommended for those fans because it’s definitely a great resource.