Today it’s Volk’s Japanese Mail Order figure 1/8 Shiranui Mai. This is my first Volks figure and while she’s very nicely done she does have some things that could have been fixed. I was able to get Mai at Comic Con this year for an amazing price and wasn’t able to pass her up!
She’s got a cute face, but doesn’t seem shy enough for someone who is trying to cover herself up after a wardrobe malfunction.
You can tell they tried to do their best with her hair and to give it amaizng detail, but it does bug me how they used a shiny paint for her hair.
I do like her eyes and the bit they added for blush
Love the bright colors for her Kimono. I believe it’s a Furisode, but i’m not entirely sure…
I say Furisode since it’s got the long sleeves, but then i’m not entirely sure. If i’m wrong let me know!
no undies on either? poor girl can’t afford much clothing can she!
Very Nice Rack!
I love the stuff in her hair!
I doubt i would have gotten Mai if it weren’t for her amazing price. In the end i’m glad I got her since she’s just so pretty. I love the Kimono and would love to see it on her properly. Her hair does bug me a tad bit and her base is just a plain black oval but she doesn’t really need it which is nice since you save space.
-Figure Info-
Manufactured by Volks
1/8 Scale
Initial release in April ‘09
Price of 6,500 Yen
Mai may be a tad bit difficult to find but not impossible! Check out these fine retailers to find your own!
beNippon
HobbyLink Japan
Hobby Search
J-list
Kid Nemo Company
Otaku Fuel
Play Asia
Toylet
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6:28 pm on August 21st, 2009 1
I’m normally not interested in half-naked figurines, but I really like this one. The concept is the same-old “Oh no! My kimono’s falling off! I need to cover my boobs in a sexual way!” kind of pose, but with a twist. It’s as if she wants to look sexual, but she ends up looking coy and innocent without playing the moe card.
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 21st, 2009 at 6:33 pm
same, i don’t usually get these kinda figures but she was just too pretty to pass up
6:29 pm on August 21st, 2009 2
Hmmm… I’ve got a love/hate relationship with Volks, but this one seems like a positive to me. As for their other figures, well… overpriced and crap.
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 21st, 2009 at 6:34 pm
gonna have to agree with you there, which is why this was my first Volks figure and i only got her since she was an amazing price
6:43 pm on August 21st, 2009 3
Sweet kimono there. But is it just me, or does her hair kinda look like its made out of chocolate?
To be completely honest though, Mai walks around half naked most the time anyway, so having her suffering a massive wardrobe malfunction is pretty much par for the course -_-
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 21st, 2009 at 7:19 pm
oh it does look like chocolate! now i’m tempted to eat her hair!
Snark Reply:
August 21st, 2009 at 8:13 pm
Y’know, I’m pretty sure I’ve seen a fetish for that before
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 21st, 2009 at 8:15 pm
now i’d only eat if it were real hair
7:07 pm on August 21st, 2009 4
I don’t any Volks figures, but Mai does look good (some ugly seams on the back though). I also don’t own any half-clothed figures such as her. I should remedy that ^^;
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 21st, 2009 at 7:20 pm
you should pick up your own Mai then
7:24 pm on August 21st, 2009 5
Wow, I absolutely love the flowers on her kimono. It looks really nice! Loove the background, too!
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 21st, 2009 at 7:30 pm
thanks, the background was just a place mat i had
7:27 pm on August 21st, 2009 6
I see you really are picking up with your reviews. I also remember this from a while back, really liked the pose too.
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 21st, 2009 at 7:36 pm
trying to make sure i keep my readers interested with new posts!
8:20 pm on August 21st, 2009 7
When I first learned about her I decided I wanted to get her, but she was a limited preorder with Hobby Japan. Later I canceled her preorder, and was glad I did so due to Alphamax’s.
Still, I have her…or rather, her limited 2P color form. Of course, lol, that cost way more. Anyway Volks could, of course, for their PVC figures, always do a better job, but she looks fine enough indeed. I have yet to unbox my limited.
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 21st, 2009 at 9:32 pm
the other colored version is pretty snazzy as well
9:17 pm on August 21st, 2009 8
Loving the kimono, but yea hair should never be gloss a finish. The pose it is all that original but for some reason I can’t put my finger on this on pull it off well. Maybe it’s the facial expression.
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 21st, 2009 at 9:39 pm
yeah i feel that i’ve seen this pose done before somewhere else as well
10:02 pm on August 21st, 2009 9
I feel like she’s looking back at someone “Excuse me, I’m changing, please leave me alone” XD
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 21st, 2009 at 10:03 pm
yeah like being all coy and shy
3:49 am on August 22nd, 2009 10
The new Volks figures, from La campanella della benedizione, at least and especially Agnes Boulange and Chelsea Arcot (I covered them here), look spectacular.
But then again, you never know what happens in the transition from resin to PVC.
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 23rd, 2009 at 11:17 am
i hope they do make that Yoko into a PVC
5:52 am on August 22nd, 2009 11
I like this version, because she is so cute and sweet in her kimono. But it’s a Volk figure, and often, the price is high ^^
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 23rd, 2009 at 11:18 am
the prices on volks figures can be a bit high sometimes, but i was lucky and found her for cheap
11:00 am on August 22nd, 2009 12
I’ve got a few Volks figures and while the quality isn’t super great, I think they make up for it with interesting poses and characters. Mai looks really nice here, although she seems a bit demure; I think this figure was based off of a Queen’s Gate illustration, but she also strikes a similar pose before battles in the King of Fighters video games (third picture) where she is anything but bashful.
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 23rd, 2009 at 11:19 am
well seeing those gifs gives me a tad bit more insight onto her character
10:38 am on August 23rd, 2009 13
I gotta agree with you on the hair, but she is one smexy figure. Love the kimono/furisode lol. I remember seeing the proto shots of her months back. And that is a very nice price, specially for a figure in these times.
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 23rd, 2009 at 11:20 am
lately figure prices are just crazy expensive!
Meimi132 Reply:
August 24th, 2009 at 10:08 am
They are!!! 8800 yen for a 1/8th scale is bloody crazy… Don’t see how they rose so high so quick…
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 24th, 2009 at 11:06 am
some i understand when you see the overall jump in quality, but others are just high to piss us off
7:48 pm on August 23rd, 2009 14
I, too, couldn’t pass this one up, and pre-ordered it from play-asia.com back in Nov. 2008. I received her back in June, but I have yet to remove her from the box. I guess I need to find a proper spot to put her first.
Anyway, I ran across this ebay listing the other day, and according to the pictures featured in the listing, Mai does have have undies: http://cgi.ebay.com.sg/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=120446077891
Who knew??
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 24th, 2009 at 11:07 am
how do you remove her kimono them?
C.G Reply:
August 24th, 2009 at 9:49 pm
Well, I decided to investigate for myself (forgive me, Mai, for peeking!). It looks like the only way she can be displayed without her kimono is to separate one of the (super) glued joints that holds it together.
I wouldn’t recommend breaking a glued joint on any figure just for the sake of cast-off. Irreversible cast-off is not true cast-off, and I hate when folks advertise a “new” figure as such when it’s not. All this proves is how the figure was assembled in the factory.
But since cast-off is the latest rage, it does make one wonder why this figure was not designed for real cast-off in the first place — especially for the higher prices nowadays.
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 24th, 2009 at 9:51 pm
most likely it was originally designed as cast off but when it went into a approval they denied it. So instead of just re-designing it they glue down what was meant to be cast off and keep the original design. well at least this solves the mystery!
9:56 am on August 24th, 2009 15
i’m more a fan of her P2 blue version actually…..i found both versions in akihabara for about $60usd….my boyfriend bought the same one you have. you make me regret not buying her.
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 24th, 2009 at 11:07 am
the blue version is very nice, but i’m a fan of pink myself
11:31 am on August 25th, 2009 16
I’m waiting on my first Volks figure myself! I ordered the Horo one coming out this fall and I really can’t wait. I expect it to be FAR superior to my Cospa one!
Dancing Queen Reply:
August 25th, 2009 at 11:36 am
that horo does look pretty snazzy
6:54 pm on August 27th, 2009 17
Wow pretty slick looking figure!
Dancing Queen Reply:
September 3rd, 2009 at 11:22 am
she is pretty awesome
11:56 pm on September 11th, 2009 18
Your photographs are splendid.
May is in my wishlist, she’s beautiful. Her face is very fine.
1:46 am on October 3rd, 2009 19
Nice one !