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I'm just curious as to why people buy figurines of anime characters? No hate intended, just genuine curiosity. I can appreciate that some of them are beautifully made and nice to look at, but I personally would much rather have a poster as I prefer the way illustrations look as to the way figures look. I'd also like to know what got you interested in them in the first place, as from what I can gather, most of them have to be imported, thus meaning you spend an awful lot of money on a small plastic statue. What's your favourite figure that you own and why?

The only reason I buy them is to decorate my book shelf. I have a relatively small collection, so I'm probably not the typical figure collector.

Fair enough question. Here's my answer:

1) The collector aspect. Anybody who has ever collected anything understands this concept. It's fun having an interest in some category of physical object and then going out and obtaining examples from that category that please you.

2) The aesthetic angle. I just really like the look of figures. Yes, it's true my particular interest is somewhat narrow: sexy females with weapons. But I also like non-sexy cute figures (like my 1/10 Beach Queen Index) or items that I find "cool" looking like my Valley of the Wind gunship. So far, I have not found myself getting bored with these objects even though all I do is look at them occasionally.

It's true these items tend to be pricey. I hear from those less new to the field than I am that in the not-too-distant past, figures were not quite the expensive proposition they are today.

Bottom line is that collecting figures is another way to continue enjoying what is my main hobby: watching anime. If I really like a character from an anime, I enjoying having a tactile, 3D representation of it ... oh, who am I kidding ... of her.

Right now, my favourite figure is ...

This Deliciously Bodacious Double Dollop of Heaven

I love her pose, I love her bikini, I love her ... well, you can probably guess I what I love. I also love that she's a 1/4 figure. The bigger the better I say.

I only own a few figurines, but I'm the kind of guy who collects them as an extension of my main hobby; watching anime (pretty much just like Blood- just said).
Collecting DVDs/Blu-Rays/Manga remains my main hobby, but I do like to own a 3D representations of my favourite characters (this Arcueid figure was my very first one).

My favourite figure is this gorgeous Shiki Ryougi 1/7 by Goodsmile. Yes it did cost 100$, but since I'm a MASSIVE Garden of Sinners fan, it's worth every penny.

Because they appeal to my sense of aesthetics.

fireaxe wrote:

My favourite figure is this gorgeous Shiki Ryougi 1/7 by Goodsmile. Yes it did cost 100$, but since I'm a MASSIVE Garden of Sinners fan, it's worth every penny.

I have one of those, too. So pretty. One of my favorites.

Last edited by Kruszer on Thu Aug 04, 2011 8:14 pm; edited 3 times in total

Impulse really. If I come across a figure of one of my favorite badass female characters that looks really nice and I have the money then I might buy it. I have to really want it though and it doesn't happen too often. They look nice, but I have to say I collect them more because I like the character than for that. I don't really have a favorite.

My small figure collection looks like this.

st_owly wrote:

I'm just curious as to why people buy figurines of anime characters?

I don't want to be rude here, but if you can't see why these would appeal to people, then I'm not sure what type of answer you're looking for.

It's like asking what we find attractive, and everyone's going to have a different answer.

Quote:

I'd also like to know what got you interested in them in the first place...

An old friend got me into collecting. His collection was always an eye-opener when we walked into his place. He was... passionate, to say the least.

Despite all his lovelies, one stood out in particular for me and I've wanted it since I saw it. Thankfully, a poker game changed its fate.

Though, I'm very strict at what type of figure I collect. I'm not into the sexy poses or scantily clad vixens. I like my figures like I do my anime: slice-of-life. Embarassed

Quote:

...thus meaning you spend an awful lot of money on a small plastic statue.

It's interesting you say this, because my importing has actually waned over the years. Before, we had no choice because the market didn't exist locally as it does today (and talk about expensive!). Now, I see figures delivered weekly and I buy locally. They're a bit more expensive (for the product itself), but the costs are usually no different than importing with shipping fees.

But yes, it's a very expensive hobby.

I think my expense was justified recently when a furnace technician came to our home, saw the collection, and literally tilted his head to look up the skirts of my collection.

Quote:

What's your favourite figure that you own and why?

I don't have just one, but several:
Al Azi (Demonbane) - Max Factory - rel. 2006

Louise (Familiar of Zero) - Alter - rel. 2009

Kagami (Lucky Star) - FREEing - rel. 2009

Sanya Litvyak (Strike Witches) - Alter - rel. 2010

Noumi Kudryavka (Little Busters) - Alter - rel. 2010 (I am making it my personal goal to collect as many figures of this outstandingly gorgeous girl as I can)

Those are just but a few of my favorites.

PetrifiedJello wrote:

st_owly wrote:

I'm just curious as to why people buy figurines of anime characters?

I don't want to be rude here, but if you can't see why these would appeal to people, then I'm not sure what type of answer you're looking for.

I ask because figurines seem quite specific to anime fandom, and even then, I've found that they are a niche within a niche, so to speak. Yes, you get figurines from series like Dr. Who etc, but they don't tend to be scantily clad girls (at least not that I've encountered.) I can see why they appeal to people to a certain extent, and I'm genuinely interested in why people like them and why you find them attractive, as everyone has different tastes, and I enjoy learning about something I don't know much about. I can appreciate a well made, attractive looking figure, but I wouldn't know if one was "better" than another just by looking, or why a certain one would be so much more expensive than a similar looking one. A figurine is always going to stay the same no matter how you look at it (aside from moving it around) whereas you can rewatch a DVD/reread a book and gain something new from it each time (to a certain degree). I hope that's a slightly better explanation. Smile

Well, like Blood said, its a part of the collector mentality that feeds our hobby. Especially for me, I like to collect all parts of a show, starting from anime, then the manga, then the figures come next. I especially like Nendoroids, Figma and Revoltechs especially. Its just an added part of being an otaku/nerd/collector, and once you hear its siren song, getting away from it is almost impossible. But, for most of us, we wouldn't have it any other way.

I own 20 figures over three years of collecting. I have two rules when it comes to buy figures: no ero and no repeats of same character. I really like buying figures for these reasons:

1) Aesthetics. It's the same reason why I buy art or paint the walls -- it is decorative. And I really enjoy looking at the characters.

2) It's the only way I can support some series. Nagasarete Airantou is my favorite really bad show. The anime will never be licensed. The manga will never be licensed. But I do have, at great expense, a Suzu figure, and being able to own part of this show makes it worth the cost.

3) You can't pirate figures. While having digital copies of some rare and obscure shows is a source of pride, it's not really impressive. Owning a rare or obscure figure? That's priceless.

4) Rarity. Few figures get made, and fewer make it to America. Figures are the one of the few things I can afford that not everyone could also collect.

5) New figure smell. Opening that box for the first time, there is this beautiful smell of PVC that you can't get any other way, unless you go to the hardware store and stiff the pipes or something.

My favorite figures?

Hojo Kuniko (Shangri-La)

Holo (Spice and Wolf)

Osaka (Azumanga Daioh)

Melanchthon wrote:

2) It's the only way I can support some series.

3) You can't pirate figures. While having digital copies of some rare and obscure shows is a source of pride, it's not really impressive. Owning a rare or obscure figure? That's priceless.

Those are two of the main reasons why I collect, aside from the obvious "I like the way they look sitting on my shelves". I used to collect cels, but since now that's for all practical purposes impossible, collecting figures is the next best way to own a small piece of a favorite show, as most of my collection is built around my favorite anime/manga series and favorite characters (11 Asukas and counting!). Also, I figure that it's one of the ultimate expressions of anime fandom.

Some of my favorites:
Asuka.

Haruhi Suzumiya. This was the figure that prompted me to start collecting. When I was looking up this link, HLJ's page seems to suggest that there are 25,000 of these out there! Who would have guessed?

Osaka. You have good figure sense, Melanchthon.

A figure will really grab my attention if it not only is a good rendering of the character, but also manages to express the character's personality (the figures above all do a fine job of that).

If I had a poster on my wall in lieu of every figure I own, my apartment would look like an extremely busy, cluttered mess. Okay, truth be told my place already sort of looks like a unicorn threw up all over it to a degree (I'm a fan of the rainbows & glitter, etc.) but I do try to keep the wall decor to "semi-adult mode"-- aesthetically-spaced wallscrolls and framed posters, properly hung with nails and all that. And since I live in a one-bedroom, wall space is at a premium-- especially considering my need for shelves & display cases and having to work around such inconveniences as windows/doorways/patio doors/outlets, etc. As a result, figures are preferable at least partly because as an expression of fandom they're more condensed than wall art. To me, they "pack more of a punch" (though obviously the OP would disagree).

Another consideration for me is that the figures I collect often come from series that don't really have 2D wall art available anyway. For example, no one makes JoJo's Bizarre Adventure wallscrolls or posters (and if someone actually does, for the love of God please tell me) and since it looks like the rest of the series will never be licensed (again, hope I'm wrong but not holding my breath) I'm going to be content reading my scanlations and supporting the ~~cult~~ franchise in merchandise sales. That philosophy is actually how I got into figure collecting in the first place: I loved the Natsume Yuujinchou anime but since it's apparently not popular enough to warrant a DVD release, I kept my fansubs and bought the lovely figure (and eventually the manga as well). So actually, a rather large percentage of my figure purchases fall under the, "How else can I support it financially?" category.

And last but not least, well... there's something strangely compelling and downright sexy about the 3D representation of 2D characters as realized through figures. I like picking them up and examining them from different angles, frankly. And I'm not the stereotypical collector either so one can't just chalk it up to "a man thing." It may be a bit fetishistic in some respects, but there you have it. I just like seeing & handling scale-model plastic representations of characters I like. Period.

Melanchthon wrote:

5) New figure smell. Opening that box for the first time, there is this beautiful smell of PVC that you can't get any other way, unless you go to the hardware store and stiff the pipes or something.

At first that initial whiff of spankin' new PVC was off-putting to me but after enough positive reinforcement... *salivates* I get a little excited smelling it. Laughing

Anyway, my 5 favorite plastic beauties, in no particular order and subject to drastic change as new lovelies are released:
5. The Gyro RAH (Real Action Hero) from Steel Ball Run (part 7 of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure);
4. Jotaro Joestar DX figures (both color variations) from JoJo's part 3 (his shirt-- it's so tight you can see his navel);
3. The Jotaro Joestar Super Figure Art piece, also from JoJo's part 3 (as you can see, I apparently have a thing for this surly Japanese schoolboy);
2. The Rohan Kishibe MSP (Master Stars Piece) figure from JoJo's part 4;
1. And last but not least, dear Natsume of Natsume Yuujinchou. Natsume is the ideal man (when he grows up, thanks-- I don't swing that way).

Well . . . as other have said they're collectables. It's like asking why collect manga or anime? You do because you like it. (Not to give the obvious answer but that really is why.)

Another reason, and a more concrete one at that, is that many figures are beautifully crafted. I have the extravaganza set for Haruhi and it is amazing. All of the little details are unbelievable.

I'm also a big fan of Nendoroids because they are cute. (As a girl collector there aren't a lot of options.) I have quite the variety from Lucky Star, Haruhi, Black Butler, GiTS, Death Note, and a few others. I also have the Nendoroid minis. (I dearly wish that FMA would have been picked up, but Good Smile seems to prefer Baka Test and Queen's Knight. I mean a Nendoroid Ed would have made my day!) These figures are posable and changable; and interchangable as well! I also have bought doubles of the Nenoroid characters. I have my own cube at work and on display is Sebastian, Yuki from Haruhi, and L. Yes, people at work call them dolls, but the sight of L panicking at his cell phone makes my job of answering useless calls so much better.

To pick a favorite is rather difficult since I rotate them out of their boxes and onto the shelves. Right now my set from Bakuman is out, before that was the Black Butler set.

As for the importing yeah it really isn't all that bad. Typically I don't import one figure only so the cost is divided. Also if you pre-order a lot of places discount the cost of the item and that eats into the import cost as well. Lastly, if you don't import local vendors have a habit of passing along the cost of the figure and then some (at least where I'm at). So in some ways importing can be cheaper.

I don't really buy them anymore, but I have bought a couple of small figures in the past.

The reason why is because I liked the show the characters are in.

Though most of the figures I bought could be considered toys when compared to those really expensive figures they sell.

http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j20/EricDent7/HPIM0621.jpg

http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j20/EricDent7/HPIM0625.jpg

http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j20/EricDent7/HPIM0623.jpg

As you can see in those pics (though this is not all the stuff I have, I have a bunch more Godzilla figures, more of the Negima Figumates & a couple more Veritechs) my collection is kind of small.

As others have already said, I like having a 3D representation of the characters I find aesthetically pleasing. The character doesn't have to be from a show I've seen. I just have to like what I see, although having a character I like is a bonus.

As for my favorite figures:
Kanu Uncho and Yoko - I just thought they looked gorgoues.
Ichigo Sculpture Arts - I like Bleach and that figure is just awesome, especially the base.

poonk wrote:

The Jotaro Joestar Super Figure Art piece, also from JoJo's part 3 (as you can see, I apparently have a thing for this surly Japanese schoolboy)

And why not. I happen to think he's damn good looking. HLJ was having a clearance sale and that was one of them, so that figure is now going to be mine.

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