Rozen Maiden Figure Collection

Product Information/Specifications

Introduction

I first saw these Rozen Maiden Figurines on Chara-Ani.com's website.  There were two options to get them.  You can either get them individually as blind box trading figurines with a bonus plastic strap for ¥950 each or get the set with a replica of the doll case.  Of course, being the nut that likes to get things in set with a bonus, I wanted the best option by going for the set.  But, it doesn't come with the straps which didn't matter to me since it was just a single colour strap with the words "Rozen Maiden" on it.  However, I learned that these could only be brought from Chara-Ani.com's website or their physical stores.  So, there was no chance for me to get them until I saw YesAsia taking pre-orders for them.  It was a bit pricey than the suggested Japanese retail price, but I went for it since it's not going to be easy to find them elsewhere.

For the record, the blind boxes were released first on January 2006.  The special case set didn't go on sale until May 2006. 

Some of the pictures aren't clear & good.  If I have time, I'll redo the bad ones & repost them.

Rozen Maiden Figure Collection Box

Looks weird doesn't it?  When I pulled it out of the shipping box & out of the bubble wrap bag, that's what it looked like.  I'm like "Are you kidding me?" & "That's it?" when I saw it.  I was expecting some sort of outer box to protect it aside from that plastic wrapping.  When I was thinking it was a bootleg (which was highly unlikely), I saw the official stickers on the bottom.

 
The real deal

Seeing those stickers, I realized that's how the Rozen Maiden Figure Collection was sold.  Pretty weird to me since you would want to protect the box.  And what a nice box it is.

Although it's small & missing the handle to pick it up like a suitcase, the box case is beautifully made.  The box has that leather-like appearance showing the wrinkles & creases as if the box is an actual case.  Plus, the gold etching is very bright & appealling with hardly any bleeds.  It's dead clean.  It's a shame that the box is plastic or else it would make this box more nicer looking & durable.  I'm not too sure what it's made of, but it seems like it won't last long if you don't treat it properly.

Inside the case

When opening box lid, you need to open it carefully.  The lid almost bends all the way back due to the weight.  Anyways, opening the case, you will see the full set of the Rozen Maiden Figure Collection.  There are five characters.  They are Shinku, Hinaichigo, Souseiseki, Suiseiseki, & Suigintou.  Remove the figurines or the clear plastic casing & you will see SD versions of the dolls.  Now let's look at the figurines.

Again, there are five figurines in this set.  Only two stands are included here & they are for Hinaichigo & Souseiseki.  You need to attach the base on the bottom of their feet & it's a bit hard.  However, you don't need to put it all the way in as there is a stand on the back that holds up the dolls on their butts.  Although the feet are round for the dolls, they amazingly stand pretty well on their own with the expectation of Hinaichigo & Souseiseki.  For Shinku & Suigintou, they balance on the tips of their long hairs as support as they stand with their tiny feets.  For Suiseiseki, it's mainly her dress that does the trick.  Although the dolls are in SD form, I do find them kind of ugly a bit.  Anyways, to the paint work.

The paint job is above average.  Although it's very clean on most areas, some parts suffer such as the blue laces on Suigintou's dress.  That's a lot of bleeding.  But the other parts such as Suiseiseki's headband lace, Souseiseki's scissors, & Hinaichigo's strawberry, are beautifully done.  However, I'm going a bit easy here since these are small trading figurines so the paint job isn't going to be dead on good.  The hair ribbon on Hinaichigo's head is a good example as you can see the white paint is pretty much painted straight.

The molding job isn't too shabby.  It's well molded into shape.  There are some molding problems on some areas like Suiseiseki's watering can being slightly out of shape on the sides.  Also, there seems to be some ceases on the faces.

 

Five Alice contestants

Obviously, these aren't the faces we are used to from the anime & possibly the manga.  However, the expressions are there even though the faces are very simple for a SD format.  This is why I said these are a bit ugly to me.  Nevertheless, the etching job done on the eyes are clean & Shinku's blushes are pretty good with the toning.

Overall Conclusion

The Rozen Maiden Figure Collection isn't too bad if you don't mind the SD style here.  Although they are a bit on the flat side, the details on them isn't too bad & the paint job is fairly decent for something at this size.  Chances are I won't display them out of the box.  I'll probably have them resting in the box with the lid open or just place the box somewhere.  That's only when I can find some room for them.

I give the Rozen Maiden Figure Collection an 8.5/10.  The paint job & workmanship on making these figurines stand is amazing.  However, I don't like the SD faces.  It can be a bit creepy for some people.  But I think ugly would be the proper word for them.

Looking for the Rozen Maiden Figure Collection set with the case isn't hard if you are living in Japan.  From my understanding, they are still available & probably aren't close to selling out.  But for people outside of Japan & possibly Asia, you will have a tough time getting them unless you are willing to pay a bit more for them from an online auction or something.  At the time of writing this review & the rate they are flying out of the shelves, I don't see them having a price increase in the near future even though they are exclusive items.

Photos were taken using Sony DSC-F828 digital still camera.

Last updated on May 21, 2008