It’s the spring season and what better time than to take a cycle by the beach!

Well technically Singapore is in the summer season 24/7 so I guess any day is a good time. =/

This post features my next level up in photoshop power as I finally learned how to do a semi-decent motion blur and radial blur effect. Do enjoy.

You might want to view the larger versions by clicking the pictures. I think the pictures look better that way. :3

Cycling along the rolling hills of green/yellow

One should cycle slowly through the leaf litter. You never know what might hide in it.

Looks like Tsukasa isn’t very good with cycling

Oh wait! What is Haruhi doing here?

This doesn’t look good. And nice bike there Kyon.

“L” is for “Loser”

Oh noes Tsukasa!

That had to hurt…

Basically spent the whole afternoon lying on my belly in the heat of the sun at Pasir Ris Park.

My neck hurts and I got a sunburn. =/

I was joined by oOgA, zh3us and Papershot who have shots of their own. Somewhere. =/

Pretty proud of this piece. It’s not pretty but it withstood the strong sea breeze and any uneven terrain it encountered to keep the girls upright.

The stand that came with the ex:ride bicycles can’t do squat. =/

The world on the other side of an iPhone

Figurine Life! comic is on hiatus until my university is finished pounding the crap out of me which would be about May.

I’ll post whatever figu reviews or what not in my spare time but don’t expect much. =/

I guess we now know what those two were doing at a park =/

And all too soon it is Lunar New Year once again!

Incidentally, it coincides with Valentines’ Day this year so that means one less figurine-related post to do. :3

Certainly, it would be interesting to see how couples out there deal with this.

Meanwhile, the WLNF gang was invited to kodomut’s place for a day of steamboat and awesome figurine fun!

And not just kodomut, even his figurines put up a warm welcome for us! :3

There was a short round of gift exchange.

Not customary of course but nevertheless still fun to do.

Red packets don’t always have to contain money…

Valentines’ Day Red packet

Since zh3us is effectively married to his Azone Nanoha, Konata sought the opportunity for a red packet.

There was food abound and everyone got down to eating.

Rare tako luka was served as well.

Mmmmmm…….tako….. :3

Then it’s time for a little after dinner tea as everyone settled down.

“I wonder where is everyone…”

“Why do you have a different cup?!”

Of course, we could never have so many figurines with us an not take PICTURES. :3

The place was soon a frenzy of activity as we got down to what we do best, figurine photography.

kodomut got hold of Shazzsteel’s Exceed Nanoha and some SERIOUS photography too place.

We even got roped in as photography crew. XD

You can check out the results of the shoot at kodomut’s blog.

“Buy a kodomut today!”

“He comes with photography skills and a portable lighting system”

The only shot oOgA could get. He needs more skill XD

And soon there was plenty of fun and mayhem around in the house.

Just check it out.

Tako Lukas at play

Dreamy Tako

The new Queen of Takos :3

zh3us’ Nanoha handles kids/moe blobs well

“Wheeeeee!”

Don’t piss Nanoha off

She has a very sharp magical device thingy

“RAWR!”

“RAWR!”

“WAAA!!!”

So anyway, The Banzai! Effect wishes all a Happy Lunar New Year!

If you are celebrating it, here’s wishing you many red packets!

If you don’t, just enjoy the holiday while it lasts. :3

“Happy (Tako) Lunar New Year!”

It has been months since the release of the di:stage, a adaptable platform which you can not only position your figmas, but your nendos and puchis as well.

Being a figma nut, I’ve naturally purchased a few of my own . :3

You can always scroll down to the bottom to see the figma theatre if the review bores you :3

The di:stages come in two flavors, clear and black.

Personally, I don’t feel there is much to compare between the two if you intend to do dioramas since they will likely be covered but I guess clear versions make for nicer “naked” stands.

You might want to invest in a few sets of extension sets if you want to get the most of your di:stages though. I think one extension set per two normal sets is a good guage though that really depends on what you intend to do.

Comes with cut-out speech bubbles of various types

Basic instructions

It is times like this that I am reminded of the Japanese penchant of packaging packaging with more packaging.

I once bought some Castella and discovered I had to unwrap it at least 3 times before I could get to the cake itself (you could say I nearly thought the cake was a lie =/).

And as Konata demonstrates, I have quite a pile of bubble wrap and nothing to do with it.

About 20 layers of bubble wrap I think

Not a bad bed I guess :3

However, given the sheer number of parts large and small, transport and storage is a problem though I have managed a pretty nifty transport solution if I do say so myself.

Each container carries 3 basic sets and 2 extension sets. Usually sufficient for most outdoor use.

If you manage to find others with di:stages or is filthy rich, you can assemble a whole bunch of di:stages and build your own structure.

Of course, that’s not the only thing you can do with your di:stages.

The good folks at figma.jp have been releasing a whole set of printable dioramas and props which you can use with your di:stages and your figmas.

Even though the site is in Japanese, I’m sure you can navigate the page relatively well.

The instructions are also pretty obvious with plenty of picture illustrations such that even if you can’t read a single moonrune, you should do fine.

Unless you suck worse than a grade schooler in arts and crafts =/

I decided to first give their Blue Sky set a shot.

You can see the results below.

So peaceful…

Hmmm………

It doesn’t look half bad but it seems kind of flat.

Another piece I tried out was the cash register counter.

This one took much more effort. It didn’t come out as good as I’d hoped but it certainly looks a hell lot better than some flat 2D construction.

It even comes with small figma and di:stage boxes. :3

It’s probably good for a few shop setting uses.

I would love to borrow zh3us’s figma-sized apron to use with this set. Maybe I should make my own…..

Haruhi lays claim to the money making cash register

Perhaps I can make a story out of this?

But it would seem Konata isn’t satisfied with the flat grass…

“Don’t worry, I can appreciate how it feels to be flat”

Instead, she suggests 3D (but still fake) grass.

Hmmm…. an otaku favoring 3D over 2D…………

Well, the effect does seem better.

And it feels nice to touch too :3

Maybe I should expand it and make it a golf course……

And with that, lets begin the figma theatre :3

Haruhi’s Cosplay Cafe

Time: After school

“And it stank really bad!”

“I know! I thought it stank very bad too!”

“Yuki, bring these to the customers.”

“Two super-sized bowls of ramen. Enjoy.”

“Hmmm?”

Konata: “I guess someone’s feeling pink today”

“I wonder if I can get Kagamin to join me in working at the cosplay cafe…”

Meanwhile…

“I get this feeling that Konata is thinking inappropriate thoughts about me… I should punish her later…”

Not much of an ending I know =/

I hope you guys have fun with your di:stages :3

Met up with zh3us, ederuferuto, YuKi-To, ScorchNRoses and Maverick after Seiransai and somehow ended up at GCA again.

But instead of shooting cosplayers, we set up our cameras and started taking pictures of our figurines instead! :3

ederuferuto’s figma Drossel

Zange-chan wants leek :3

Rin has no body yet she is smiling…… creepy…

Yutaka and Minami with my yo-yo balloon

“Tea will be cheese and leek for today”

My Kagamiku tries on the wings zh3us made. Nice fit ^^

Like something out of a movie?

Tsukasa is so messy…

Angel Kagamiku finds a Reimu

“An unexpected meeting”

“An unexpected tragedy”

“A magical fishtail”

“A cry of sadness”

“The arrival of an angel”
*Please ignore glaring inconsistency ^^;*

“The warmth of comfort”

“No Drossels were harmed in the making of this post”

“You are wearing the wrong color again today. You deserve to be spanked”

*Censored for the public*

A very random post indeed XD

*snipe snipe*

Came across this particularly interesting piece of news about national food from a Malaysian friend of mine  that I felt deserved a short 4koma…

KUALA LUMPUR – MALAYSIA is starting a food fight.

Laksa, nasi lemak, Hainanese chicken rice, chilli crab and bak kut teh are all Malaysian dishes, Tourism Minister Ng Yen Yen declared.

On Wednesday, Datuk Seri Dr Ng accused other countries of ‘hijacking’ local dishes such as laksa and nasi lemak, and said it was high time that Malaysia claimed them as Malaysian.

‘We cannot continue to let other countries hijack our food,’ she said, without naming the countries.

‘Chilli crab is Malaysian. Hainanese chicken rice is Malaysian. We have to lay claim to our food,’ the minister said after she launched the Malaysia International Gourmet Festival.

But some food critics disagreed, saying that it would not be possible for a country to claim ownership over the dishes.

Malaysian celebrity chef Rohani Jelani said that food in general is not politically divided.

As people move from one country to another, they also take with them the recipes of their favourite food.

‘I think it is difficult to claim ownership or to say exactly what food originated from where. This is because there are no boundaries when it comes to food,’ she told The Straits Times.

Singapore food celebrity K.F. Seetoh agreed that it would be impossible for anyone to claim ownership over food, even if a certain dish is easily available at a certain place.

Source: The Straits Times

And here’s the 4koma.

As usual, click on it for a larger version.

Gee, I wonder why it was called HAINANESE Chicken Rice then.

And isn’t Bak Kut Teh made from PORK RIBS? (well not everyone in Malaysia is a muslim so yeah……)

Malaysia, Truly Asia.

Yesh, simple 4koma this time. I’m half dead from tests.

Super late I know.

Just started university again among other things so time has been pretty scarce for me to do any figurine related stuff (although oOgA has been off having fun with kodomut without me).

So anyway, let’s check out the latest Nendoroid Playset by Phat!, the Japanese Living Set.

Packaging is the same as the School Life playset.

The diorama aside, I find that the major plus point for these sets is the accessories that come with it which are often Nendoroid and figma compatible.

Such props are not easy to find after all.

Instructions for dummies

Setting up is also fairly simple, no Japanese required.

Set A is the left side of the room and is relatively plain. It does come with a rather nice fold-able table and includes with it a cupboard, a meal set, a cushion and some wooden bear ornament (made of plastic of course).

Set B, on the other hand, is more interesting.

One of the walls comes with a recessed shelf and it also has it’s own host of accessories such as a sheath-able ornamental sword, a pot, dangos, a teapot complete with cup and tray as well as a washbasin (LOL).

One of my fav items in the whole set

I find the wash basin a riot

The set also comes with special nendoroid hands which allows your nendoroids to hold the dangos provided.

Also, the diorama apparently has a “ninja wall”. That brown part of the wall is meant for placing a provided sticker with words on them. The “ninja wall”, as I call it, allows you to stick 2 of the given stickers and swap between them by flipping the wall. This obviously has other uses……

Nendo Miku will demonstrate the above points.

Dango for you?

Ninja wall

Both sets can be combined to form a full room.

I like this  because the doors on both ends makes it more flexible in terms of entry points compared to the school set.

Nendo Miku invites Nendo Kagamiku for tea

Nendo Kagamiku notices someone at the door

It’s Nendo Kaito!

Nendo Miku apparently installed an anti-intruder security system

I’ve also done a short little story with the SOS Brigade using the playset.

So I’ll end this post with it.

Enjoy.

The comic is read from right to left. Click on the thumbnails for a larger version.

Inspired by my new acquisition of Signum, I finally got off my lazy ass to do another comic.

Check it out after the jump.

Looking back, I realise that the last comic I ever did was way back in Nov 08.

Holy shit what have I been doing? Although I have been doing figurine theaters so I guess you can’t say I’m a TOTAL lazy ass.

You can check out my old comics hosted in Anime Banzai! here.

So what do I have this time? It’s basically a random storyline I thought up.

The conversation is left intentionally vague so as not to be too wordy and also to leave myself room to expand further (if I want to ^^).

I even left a cliffhanger for good measure (I think I have been reading too much MSN).

All in all, it’s just for the fun of playing with figmas. XD

The comic is read FROM RIGHT TO LEFT. Click on the thumbnails for the larger version.

Page 1

Page 2

Page 3

Page 4

Page 5

Maybe I’ll continue, maybe I won’t. Who knows ^^

Also, let’s all have a moment of silence for Fate, who broke yet another hand in her noble endeavor to keep both me and you entertained. T_T

It’s summer and so a trip to the beach is a given!

The Lucky Star girls kick back and enjoy a day at the beach.

Don’t ask me why they are still in their winter uniforms though. I have absolutely no idea either.

To be honest, Singapore doesn’t have much of a beach to boast about.

Being in the middle of a major shipping route, the water ranges from somewhat brownish-blue to down right murky.

Nobody knows what lives in the waters. Assuming anything lives in it at all. XD

“Look Miyuki! I think that’s Malaysia…”

That said, unless you like island or ship watching, there’s not much in the way of scenery either since both usually fill the horizon.

Konata, in an attempt to see further out, climbs higher up the rocks, dragging Tsukasa with her.

Poor Tsukasa ^^;

But hey, where is Kagami?

I guess she’s not interested in frolicking around in the sand.

A quiet place with a good book and a nice sea breeze is certainly a way to enjoy a day at the beach.

Meanwhile, the rest of the girls continue their shenanigans.

Looks like fun XD

I don’t know about you guys but I sometimes find just walking along the water edge of the beach in the evening and enjoying the breeze quite relaxing.

Sadly, I don’t have the time to do so usually.

“I wonder if there are any seashells I can use to scare Tsukasa with…”

Back at the table, Kagami pauses from her reading to enjoy the peace and quiet of her surroundings.

All good things must come to an end though. XD

Konata: “I’m back!”
Kagami: “I wouldn’t have minded if you stayed away longer.”

Well, it looks like Konata, Miyuki and Tsukasa are done playing at the beach.

So now’s the time for some lunch. Though it looks like Miyuki brought along a tea set. I wonder why.

Konata seems excited though.

Miyuki: “Well it was just sitting at home so I thought I’d bring it along…”

The girls had packed some bread and sandwiches, with some tea along the side.

After a fun time playing around, they settle down for food.

There’s plenty to talk about as they munch on their food.

Tsukasa seems to be taking a few photos to remember the day by.

With their stomachs full, the girls climb up the rock cropping to enjoy the breeze and admire the view.

Konata: “Ya’know Kagamin, if all you do is sit around, you’re going to get fat.”
Kagami: “Shut up.”

And that ends the girls’ day at the beach.

Lovely set of wooden table and chairs I managed to find recently. XD

Fits figmas pretty well and it folds too like an actual picnic table.

And of course that ceramic tea set which was a pretty surprising find.

While I was walking around, I had an unexpected find……

Apparently Nagato Yuki happened to be in the area as well.

There was no sign of the rest of the S.O.S Brigade though.

Although she spotted me, she made no reaction besides removing her glasses to look at me.

As I walked past her, I could not help noticing what was on her notebook……

Eh?……EH?!?!!?

PS: Many thanks to inferno0748 for Yuki’s guest appearance ^^

As mentioned in my figma Kagami Cosplay ver. post, how can you have one Kagamiku and not have the other? XD

Mikku Miku Kagami pretty much screams MOE and the interchangeable faces provided are very obvious in that aspect.

With her in my collection, I guess I am officially both a Lucky Star and Vocaloid fan.

Wonder if they’ll release a separate Witch Cosplay Konata Nendo?

Possibly one of the most adorable Nendoroids yet (and definitely the most adorable in my collection), Mikku Miku Kagami came in with the figma but I decided to put up a post a little later after figma Kagami Cosplayer ver.

Traffic control and all that you know. =P

A short count puts me at a total of 7 leeks. I believe I’m all ready to do shot of Unlimited Leek Works.

Gotta find a day to try ^^

Anyway lets get down to business.

Kagami is happy to see me ^^

And here she is straight from the box.

Such an adorable blush \(^_^)/

She bears the same features as her figma counterpart, costume, twintails and all.

Again, K H for Kagami Hiiragi

Kagami bears alot of resemblance to the Hatsune Miku Nendoroid too although that’s probably stating the obvious.

Trust Good Smile to resuse the same mold, paint a different design on it and milk us for more money.

Such wonderful assholes they are XDD

As you can see, the head design is essentially the same.

Though that makes for easy swapping of heads which is a good thing ^^

Look no figma hole!

There is a major difference between Kagamiku and Hatsune Miku and that is the consequence of Kagamiku having a shorter set of twintails.

Kagamiku essentially uses the same legs as Miku (see what I mean about using the same mold lol) and those legs are not flat soled. That means that in all my pictures of Hatsune Miku standing without her stand, Miku is actually supported by her twintails. Kagamiku’s twintails however do not touch the ground and so is now the only Nendo in my collection that cannot stand on her own power.

Which would explain why my pictures include the stand which is something I usually don’t do.

Saturday Night Fever

Of course, you can’t cosplay as Hatsune Miku without leeks.

And here they are.

Makes you wonder why the Hatsune Miku nendo only came with one leek. Everyone else has two. Maybe she ate one during shipping.

Mikku Miku Kagami also comes with some special stickers, of which only the sweat drop is of any use.

The others are far too transparent to make it obvious they are there. It was nice of them to provide extras for other nendoroids as well.

And now for the first of Nendo Kagamiku’s killer moe faces.

Well, actually it was the first pic so it’s not much of a surprise heh.

But sleepy drooling Kagami is just awesome. It looks like she just woke up while mumbling “I want to ***** with Konata” XDDD

And here is probably my fav pic of the lot. You can see the use of the sweat drop sticker as well.

眠い～

It’s currently my wallpaper ^^

And the other killer moe face is teru teru Kagami!

UWWWOOOOOOOOOOOH!!!

I have no description for this face. It’s just too ……………. cute for words.

It’s almost a crime to sell something this cute.

Anyway, looks like Hatsune Miku is here to welcome Kagamiku into the family. Notice the slight differences in the costumes.

お手！

Looks like the whole Vocaloid gang is here to welcome Kagamiku.

But where’s Kaito?

Looks like he’s gotten too engrossed in his ice cream and forgot about Kagamiku.

With all that he eats it’s a wonder he doesn’t get a toothache

And Miku dishes out the discipline yet again.

Hatsune Miku runs a tight ship with the Vocaloids

Stay tuned for more reviews! I still have 4 more figmas to go!

Possibly more XD

She just got released and I just got it.

It’s Kagamiku in all her figma glory and no sane Lucky Star fan can be without her. Now we just need a Tosaka Rin Kagami figma and a Miko Kagami figma to make it complete.

Many more photos after the break along with a special! ^^

If you have noticed, I finally got myself a white backdrop for photoshoots at home. I’m guessing you guys are sick and tired of seeing my messy desk and that Linksys router already. That’s not to say you won’t be seeing it again though lol.

With the exams finally over I can finally begin my reviews of my figurines that I have been sitting on for over 2 mths so look forward to many more reviews coming up.

Back to the current topic. For those who do not know, this version of Kagami comes from the Lucky Star OVA. As to how Kagami came to wear this wonderful costume is best described with a video.

So lets take a look at Kagami straight from the box.

Adorable isn’t she?

While she may be cosplaying as Hatsune Miku, there are certain differences, most notable her twintails which are nowhere as long as Miku’s though no less cute if not more.

Also, note the differences with her arm acessories.  Kagamiku cosplayers might want to take note.

K H for Kagami Hiiragi. The moeblob cat design for the arm is cute too.

Her headsets are the same though.

Such a cute blush

I have noticed that a major gripe with some people is the the body joint which was introduced sometime around when Yagami Hayate from Nanoha StrikerS was released.

While Hayate’s body joint was not that visible due to her black barrier jacket, Kagami’s silver costume makes it very much visible. It seems to be sufficient to prevent some people from buying her.

To be honest, I don’t see what the joint really does considering you don’t get much articulation from it (only for Kagami. Hayate moves pretty well with the joint). It is true that the joint is rather disconcerting if you concentrate too much on it. Not to mention it makes Kagami look chubby around the waist. Bet she’s trying to diet right now =P.

Kagami comes with the ranka pose!

Certainly something I didn’t expect them to include into the package when I first saw the preview.

Well, it just means I don’t have to photoshop a hand for the Lucky Star gang if I ever want to do the pose.

You can see Nanoha, Exia and ??? do the ranka pose courtesy of my photshop last time.

Kira~

キラ～

Of course, you cannot cosplay as Hatsune Miku without leeks.

<3

And here’s the face that is pretty much the clincher for buying the package. I was surprised they never included such a face for Kagami in the original figma considering how much they used Kagami as a tsukkomi for Konata’s boke.

And the best part is that both Kagami and the cosplay ver. Kagami (or Kagamiku) are able to exchange faces. This is going to make posing alot more fun.

I was too lazy to bring out Kagami to try on the angry face so I just took one of Kagami’s faces and put it into Kagamiku.

Double キラ～

And now for some comparisons with the real thing, Hatsune Miku herself.

An unexpected meeting……

While taking the photos, I noticed that Kagami was alot less balanced as compared to Miku though that can be attributed to the fact that Miku’s twintails are much longer and heavier with the weight center much lower as compared to Kagami.

Kagami’s twin tails are also unable to swing too close to the body so her twintails occupy quite some lateral space.

Kagami: “My leeks are bigger than yours”
Miku: “So is your waist”
Kagami:” >_<||”

A leek comparison shows that Kagami has the bigger leeks though. Will this be a cause for future tension? XD

Almost like a family photo XD

Anyway, it seems Miku approves.

And now for something I cooked up.

Stay tuned for the next review.

You can’t have one Kagamiku without the other you know…… XD

It’s been a week since my exams have finally ended and I can tell you that freedom is SWEET.

Even so, administration here and there has resulted me in having to return to the university on certain days and I thought perhaps it was time I did a photoshoot of a few places in the National University of Singapore (NUS).

With the Hiiragi sisters of course XD.

Now just imagine the same place, but so filled with undergrads that you can’t see the floor

With the end of semester exams mostly concluded, the multi-purpose halls which host the students as they feverishly scribble down painfully memorised answers to mind numbing questions in hopes of getting that elusive “A+” are conspicuously empty.

Not for me it isn’t

Although it seems that for some, the trials and tribulations continue.

And they wonder why it is so deadly. Anything that cute is bound to kill people somehow.

In response to the recent Influenza A or H1N1 threat, thermal scanners were setup for fever detection.

Apparently it was hell on the first day it was set up though that was to be expected.

Don’t mess with it. It’s probably a SARS veteran

So is it supposed to be Star-Track or a misspelling of Star-Trek?

I made a short trip down to the science faculty, my home for the past year and the years to come.

It has plenty of nice lecture halls with dimmable lighting. A very nice and helpful feature that greatly aids students in sleep… I mean reading the lecture slides.

Large enough to house many sleeping students

A canteen serves the science faculty and the food there is fine. A lot of people mention that the canteens at other faculties serve better food but it’s not that bad here.

As if the average science undergrad has the time to even savour the carbohydrate, protein and lipid mixture he is shoving down his buccal cavity if he shoves anything down it at all.

I only just noticed that all the notice boards are empty

Tsukasa spots something that most anime watchers would usually spot. Care to guess the name of the science faculty canteen?

So I can say I eat at the Macross Frontier on a regular basis and it would be a half truth

NUS is an abbreviation for the name “National University of Singapore”. But students here have a better name for it which is the “National University of Stairs” as the girls are discovering.

There are so many stairs and so many hills to climb that it is such a pain. Especially if you are rushing for tutorials. You can be on the 3rd floor, cross a threshold and end up on the 6th floor. I think the Engineering faculty has it the worst though (which makes you wonder since they ARE the Engineering faculty lol).

Would you like to be serviced sir?

Next it is a short trip to the Arts and Social Sciences faculty. On the way, we pass by the Yusof Ishak House which houses the Student Service Centre for all your student needs.

Someone once mentioned to me that the centre is where students go to be serviced.

I don’t know if he meant it like cars as in students who have broken down get serviced or some OTHER meaning.

Empty after the exams

The Arts and Social Sciences faculty is home to the Central Library which is the haven for students during those feverish days before any exam be it mid-term or end of the semester. During those days, students camp overnight in the library, desperately trying to cram as much information into their poor brains.

Some inevitably breakdown and stuff like this happens…

At least you can’t say NUS is boring.

As you can see, the difference in population in the library before (the video) and after exams is stark.

I wouldn’t be surprised to see a tumbleweed roll by seriously

Just below the Central Library is The Forum. It usually hosts a variety of events running from bazaars to cultural events and is usually very crowded.

Of course, things usually die down once the exams start and obviously there’s no reason to have anything on after the exams either.

The girls finally get a chance to take a break and have a snack.

Though it seems Tsukasa forgot to bring the cups.

I wonder what Kagami is staring at?

The shop over there is the central Co-op which is home to a certain controversy (or whatever you want to call it) which you can read at riuva. Since I don’t read manga nor have any other reason to buy stuff there I usually don’t visit the central branch of the co-op.

My next stop is the Engineering faculty which has some of the nicest scenery since it is pretty high up on the hill that NUS sits on (which is why I hate going there).

Now imagine many more of those steps. And you climbing it.

Certain buildings overlook Singapore’s seaport. It may not be aesthetically pleasing to the eye for some, it is still nevertheless quite impressive.

The girls sit down to admire the scenery for abit. Finding a nice spot for them to sit was a tough job.

However, it was soon time to leave as the clouds started to grow ugly. I’m seriously disliking the recent weather in Singapore. If it isn’t glaringly hot, it is a downpour with winds that can bend a tree.

Why even have a noticeboard then?

P.S: I just got news my Kagamiku figma and nendo are here XD

Wow, it’s already 2 months since my last comic.

Well, inspiration is hard to find and university ain’t helping.

Anyway, enjoy this small little special I thought up while I was in the bath (apparently most of my ideas come from there for some reason. Maybe that’s why most of them are yuri =P)

Click on the thumbnail for a larger version

Don’t we all wish that life was a game with save points? :D

Don’t worry Konata, your life partner will come. Assuming your father allows him to XD

Hope you guys liked it.

It’s another Nendoroid and another Vocaloid! Will they ever stop coming?

Not if I can help it. XDD

It should be pretty clear by now that I’m aiming to collect all the Vocaloid Nendoroids. There’s no doubt Megurine Luka will get hers. The question is, will Meiko get one? She seems to suffer from a lack of love (alot like Miyuki).

Let’s get the show started shall we.

Outfit-wise, Kaito is quite plain as compared to the other Vocaloids though they gave his coat a kind of sparkly shine which you probably won’t be able to see in the photos.

Here he is fresh out of the box.

Front view

Side view

Close up

I have been listening to alot of Vocaloid songs recently on NND (nico nico douga). Kaito seldom comes up though. Some of the songs created can be very enjoyable but some are just exceedingly painful to the ears, especially when the electronic element is very prominent.

Here’s a decent song featuring Kaito and Meiko.

Kaito comes with his trademark scarf and blue ice cream/popsicle. His scarf can be arranged front or back. It’s a pity Kaito isn’t cast-off or I’m sure there will be many pictures of a scarf-shielded naked Kaito Nendoroid floating all over the net (there is already a decent amount of 2D versions of those floating around).

Scarf at the back

Scarf in the front

GAR face?

Mmm… popsicle…

I’ve always wondered where the Vocaloids got their item associations. I know Miku got her’s from Orihime’s leek twirling act in Bleach. I have absolutely no idea about the others though.

“Hello everyone! I’m Len and I’ll be your host for today’s special event, the Vocaloid Battle Royal!”

“Shortly after arriving here, newcomer Kaito challenged current rankings champion Hatsune Miku to a showdown. Rin is currently on site to provide you the latest updates. On to you Rin.”

“Thank you Len. I am currently at the site where the battle will take place. I wonder what sort of battle will we be able to witness today.”

“The fight will take place on an elevated stage with nothing to prevent the contestants from falling over. Kaito is certainly brave to challenge a powerhouse such as Hatsune Miku.”

“And that’s the sound of the bell!”

“Looks like Kaito is going all out for the first strike by using his popsicle! Certainly an early end to this fight would be advantageous to him.”

“Oh? It seems Miku is unfazed by Kaito and is in fact egging him on to attack! Could this be a trap?”

“Trap or not, Kaito’s gone in for the kill with an aerial attack! Will Kaito actually manage to topple the powerful songstress?”

“And there it is folks! Miku’s infamous twin-tail whip! A perfect example of both offense and defense, Kaito has just been knocked out of the air!”

“What’s this? Miku has taken out her leek! Looks like Miku is getting serious folks! Kaito had better get up fast!”

“And there it is people! The Levan Polka! Kaito’s as good as gone now that Miku has unleashed her ultimate attack!”

“And Kaito’s out for the count! Better luck next time! This is Kagamine Rin, signing off!”

Hope you guys enjoyed that. =P

The long awaited Yagami Hayate is finally here to complete the Holy Trinity of Nanoha StrikerS.

2 weeks. That’s how long I have had Hayate before I did this review no thanks to school work.

But hey, better late than never like they always say.

Mahou Shoujo Lyrical Nanoha remains one of my favourite magical girl series with the best season in my opinion being the second season. Season 1 was kinda off-putting at the start with the “monster-of-the-day” routine. I enjoyed Season 3 though I’ve heard many complaints about the boring training arcs or lack of lolis or something.

Anyway, let’s get down to business.

Here’s  Hayate fresh out of the box.

One of the first things I noted was that the point of movement for the torso is located much higher than usual (under the breasts so it’s a under-boob joint?). The other thing I noted was that she was uber cute. XD

Here’s a close up.

Also, Hayate’s battle-skirt (I think that’s what it’s called) is completely unattached. Which is bad news as it means potential chances of paint rubbing off. Guess you have to be more careful or take some precautionary measures. Though to be honest, I don’t see why they can’t make it attached just like Fate’s.

The skirt is unattached and free to move

Hayate has quite the few accessories though. She comes with 2 versions of her book, her staff, a cap and a set of wings.

To be honest, the thing about Hayate I liked alot was her wings. White battle armour with black wings is just awesome.

And of course there’s Hayate’s cap. Interestingly, a second hair component with a protrusion was provided specifically for Hayate to wear her cap. Not a bad idea.

Notice the protrusion and the notch in the cap.

Here’s a close up of Hayate with her cap on.

Naturally, the cap has many other uses as well.

Meet Thumb-san. Maybe I should make a 4-koma with him.

So anyway, lets move on to some of the official poses (those printed behind the box).

Hayate taking a test flight around the room.

Diabolic Emission!!!

A little close up…

Probably my favourite pic of the batch

After getting herself used to the surroundings, Hayate goes to inspect her troops. Nanoha and Fate greet their Commanding Officer ^^

And a short weapon inspection…

With the formalities done, it’s time to have some fun!

“All for one and one for all!”

Being able to do this pose makes getting all three of them worth it.

I need to get down to customizing Hayate’s stand soon.

Side View

Oh, did I mention that Hayate’s wings can be used for other figmas too?

You can click for a larger version ^^

It gives you WINGS!!!

Actually, I never liked the stuff =P

Also as a side note, I have created a new category specially for my Figurine posts called “Figurine Theater“. This is to separate my posts from the Figurine Watch! category and make my posts a tad more accessible.

Thanks for keeping tabs on TBE!

Today, I finally dug myself out of a pile of reports and tests only to find out that the commercial conspiracy that is Valentine’s Day has crept up upon me. Excuse me for being a cynic here but being ronery does do that sometimes . orz

Tsukasa, however, is plenty happy as she gives out her homemade chocolates to the gang!

<Information>

Valentine’s Day in Japan is different in that girls are the ones who give out the chocolates. Chocolates given to (girl)friends are called 友チョコ(tomo-choco or friend chocolate), to guys or male collegues 義理チョコ (giri-choco or obligatory chocolate) and to a certain someone, 本命チョコ(honmei-choco). Guys who recieve such gifts are expected to return the favour on White Day, which falls on March 14.

Though, I heard from my sensei that this practice seems to be on the wane. Seems girls in Japan would rather recieve than give chocolate (who wouldn’t?). Then again, surveys are only so accurate. ^^

</Information>

Taking advantage of lunch break, Tsukasa proceeds to start giving out the chocolate she made, which she even packaged into nice little boxes.

The first to receive Tsukasa’s gift was Miyuki. Certainly not unexpected but definitely a pleasant surprise.

“For me? Why thank you!”

Next up is Konata. She is in the same class after all. Catching her mid-cornet, Tsukasa approaches.

Hmm… Why is Kagami standing outside the class room?

Konata recieves the chocolates happily. Unfortunately Konata has none for Tsukasa. A new game came out recently and time flies when you are having fun.

Konata blew her budget on the game anyway. At least there’s the cheap chocolate to look forward to after Valentine’s Day (Lucky Star Episode 13 ^^).

Why is Kagami staring so hard at Konata?

As the last bell chimes and school ends, Tsukasa makes a call to check with Nanoha and Fate about meeting up.

It appears though, that Nanoha and Fate have unexpectedly run off on a Valentine’s Day vacation somewhere. At least that’s what was said on the answering machine. Guess the chocolates would have to go to someone else.

Haruhi pops in looking for Konata, who unfortunately had just left the class room.

Tsukasa offers Haruhi some of her chocolates but gets rejected.

Appearently Haruhi is only interested in chocolates from aliens, time travellers or espers. Or any combination of the three. Tsukasa, unfortunately, is neither.

“I’m not interested in ordinary chocolate”

Haruhi leaves the classroom only to have Konata step back in again. Talk about luck. Since Tsukasa is almost done giving out the chocolates, Konata invites her to go home together.

Looks like Kagami followed in after Konata. Why is her face so red?

What are you up to Kagami?

“It’s not like I made it specially for you or anything…… I just couldn’t find a smaller box…”

Seems Kagami has been working hard too.

Anyway, Happy Valentines Day!

If you got someone to go out with, good for you!

If not, you can always come to our irc channel and hangout with the ronery people ^^”    orz

It’s that time of the year again!

If you are celebrating it, I’m sure you are pretty busy right now.

My figurines are joining in the celebrations as well, come check out what they are up to this CNY!

Shortly after arriving, Miku calls for an emergency meeting for the Nendoroids. Once gathered, she announces the commencement of “Operation Red Packet”.

Miku explains that they have arrived at a most fortunate time.

Chinese New Year is here and it has provided them with a perfect excuse for exploitation and extortion.

While Miku understands that the briefing was called early in the morning and at the last minute, inattentiveness will not be tolerated. After swiftly rectifying the problem, Miku continues the briefing.

Miku explains that during Chinese New Year, children are given license to extort money from married couples and elderly. This is done by presenting said targets with a pair of oranges. Money is then received in the form of red packets. The targets are unable to refuse for fear of getting bad luck for the coming year.

Thus, to take full advantage of the situation, “Operation Red Packet” was concieved.

By utilising the state-of-the-art ORdinance for Arming Nendoroids Greedy for Extra caSh (code named O.R.A.N.G.E.S), the Nendoroids will be able to earn lots of money at low cost.

Miku has quite the artistic flair with chalk ^^;

The plan was roundly applauded and supported.

Thus a list of targets was drawn up and the operation put to immediate action.

The first target was swiftly located and approached. Hatsune Miku was passing by when she was ambushed by the O.R.A.N.G.E.S wielding Miku and her merry gang of nendoroids.

Seeing as the attacker was her Nendo counterpart, Hatsune Miku put up no resistance and yielded to Miku’s demands.

With the first target on the list down, Miku and her merry gang move on to the next target.

The S.O.S Dan leader was spotted strumming her guitar and with a unified call for money, the nendoroid gang approached.

The S.O.S Dan leader was not known to give in easily to threats.

However, the novelty of the situation and the sight of nendoroids crowding around her suddenly managed to tickle the leader’s fancy and prompted her to concede just for the fun of it. Little did the Nendoroids know that were such a demand raised at other settings, the S.O.S Dan leader would have been far less forgiving.

With their objective achieved, Miku and the gang move on in search of other prey. However, one must wonder what went on in the S.O.S Dan leader’s mind as she looked intently at the O.R.A.N.G.E.S. Perhaps some future plan is being hatched?

Next to be approached were the Blue and Purple duo of the Sailor Fuku girls and the demand was quickly voiced.

The twintailed Purple member initially showed signs of resistance. This was quickly resolved by the persuasion of the Blue ahoge member who showed unusual enthusiasm in convincing the former to participate.

The twintailed Purple member conceded defeat and proceeded to give in to Miku’s demands.

However, the exchange was interrupted by the arrival of the Pink haired grroup member. The Pink haired member showed uncanny knowledge of the ritual and informed the twintailed Purple member that since she was neither married nor elderly she was not obliged to concede to Miku’s demands.

Realizing that she had been tricked by the Blue ahoge member and her yuri tendencies, the twintailed Purple member focused her wrath on the Blue ahoge member.

During the commotion, Miku and the nendoroids managed to escape.

An attempt to ambush the last member of the Sailor Fuku girls failed miserably as  she apparently had been forwarned.

Thus, Miku and the nendoroids moved on to the last two targets on the list. They were located in short order.

Despite having knowledge of the ritual, they were willing to participate. Apparently, they already saw themselves as a couple.

Upon giving out the demanded monies, the couple proceeded to celebrate this supposed “new step” in their relationship. Miku and the gang were thus treated to a rather passionate display of affection.

With all targets exhausted, the operation was brought to a close and deemed a success.

Profits will be used to fund any future operations.

—–End of Report—–

And that’s that.

For any serious folks out there, it’s a joke lol. I’ve always thought the red packet thing was kinda like extortion. But hey, if you are getting money who cares? XD

This took me almost 2 days of work with the photoshopping and phototaking. I hope you enjoyed it.

I decided to try out a speech bubble style I happened to come across in the internet. It seems to fit the nendos.

Anyway, have a great Chinese New Year!!!

I have absolutely no idea what it’s called in Japanese though. =P

To shunt oOgA’s devious attempt at poisoning me off the front page, let’s have a short review of my recent purchase.

It’s the Vocaloids Miku, Rin and Len in all their Nendoroid glory!

What was originally a trip to take advantage of a figurine sale at a local shop for figmas Rin and Len turned into Nendo shopping spree when I chanced upon a relatively hard to get Hatsune Miku nendo that was dropped from pre-order by someone else. I ended up spending twice as much as expected but hey, it a NENDOROID!

Anyway, this pretty much resolves my nendoroid-less woes. Articulation in figurines ftw.

So first up we have Miku. I think she’s on her 3rd run already so I kinda got her pretty late. She really is popular.

Lets have a few close ups.

Her face makes me melt…

As expected, Miku has TRIPOD POWER, all thanks to her twintails. No worries about lack of support there XD.

Note that Miku here is not the same Miku that appeared in my Nendo Playset special. That was my friend’s ^^

Miku’s hinged twintails are removable. Here’s a close up.

And another close up.

Miku is number one! In the vocaloids that is. We all know who MY number one is

I call this, “An Anatomy of Hatsune Miku”. Yeah, studying human anatomy is getting to my head. Ever touched a cadaver before? XD

Miku seems surprised

Now for the kawaii poses.

<3

*cue the levan polka*

figma Miku joins in

And for our faithful readers, a special little something you should recognise if you watched this vid…

Lets move on shall we ^^;;

Next up is Rin.

I particularly like the face in the middle. It reminds me of Misao from Lucky Star for some reason. VA~

If you noticed the blank face, Rin and Len comes with a set of stickers each for you to customise your own expressions. Handy.

Is it just me or does one of the faces look like Konata’s?

Box comes with cute illustration picture

And here’s Rin herself.

As I played with them, I noticed that they pretty much can’t stand independently (except Miku) though that’s not surprising given their large heads. Blu-tack is also limited somewhat given their weight as well. Oh well, I just have to get creative I guess.

Interestingly, Rin’s ribbon is removable. I do not know why it is so though. Perhaps it is for painting and production.

Do you like half-ribboned Rin?

Now for the kawaii poses again.

3/4 profile…

FANG POWA!

You will listen to her song!

And last but not least, Len.

Len also comes with a blank face and a set of slightly different facial stickers. Will have to explore their uses.

Len also has his own removable hairpiece. Fortunately, he doesn’t suffer too badly from hair-drop syndrome unlike Konata (but I still love Konata).

When hair loss gets serious

Len’s tuft of hair always reminds me of Chiaki from Minami-ke, whose own tuft of hair was most prominently featured in Okawari. I suppose it acts as Chiaki’s  “Bakayarou” antenna or maybe like Okaeri’s ED suggests, a happiness antenna.

Anyway, back on topic to more kawaii poses.

3/4 profile…

An embarrassed Len is fine too…

Incidentally, I noticed that Good Smile Company has an interesting way of making joints…

That’s kinda creepy in its own way…

And now for the obligatory group shot.

Gotta be one of the best shots. Besides the ROFL-copter of course XD

If you are wondering why I didn’t bring out the playset this time round, it’s because I have plans for it. Stay tuned for a little special I’ll be cooking up.

We will now continue with our usual programming, “When Zombie Nendos Attack!!!”

“RAWR~”

Where’s oOgA and his zombie killing friends when you need them?

Incidentally, I’m seriously starting to run out of space…

It’s been sitting around for quite sometime now since I was pretty busy near the end of last year. I was also waiting for my friend to bring in his nendoroid to do a photoshoot since I (sadly) have no nendoroids of my own.

But that is so gonna change when my Mikku Miku Kagami nendo comes ^^

So lets take a look at the goods.

The playsets come in 2 versions, A and B, each with their own accessories and each forming part of a full classroom. The accesories certainly formed the larger part of my motivation to buy this set though the classroom setting is a great back drop for pictures. I feel very tempted to buy nendos now. ^^”

The instructions are pretty idiot-proof and easy to understand even without being able to read Japanese. The sets can be stacked upon each other to make multiple floors though i didn’t do it this time. I’m not crazy enough to buy multiple sets just to get multiple floored setup.

Upon seeing the playsets, Haruhi was raring to go and quickly enlisted the help of the Lucky Star gang to start building it up. Konata seems enthusiastic but Kagami isn’t too sure…

But who can withstand Haruhi’s whimsical whims anyway? XD

“That’s an order!”

And so work begins as Kagami takes the leadership role as usual. This is something new to them and it would take some time for them to figure it out. I wonder what Haruhi is intending to do with that table?

The girls set up the blackboard and the display board first while Kagami supervises. I wonder why it’s called a blackboard when it’s green?

As the girls mount up the wall, we finally see what Haruhi’s been up to. It seems the table was for her to get a better vantage point to give out orders. Kagami is annoyed that Haruhi isn’t helping out with the work.

With a push and a shove, the windows are also set up. Tsukasa and Miyuki proceed to check if the structure is sturdy while Kagami and Konata set up the table and chair. Haruhi does nothing.

The process is repeated and soon set B is complete too. Kagami and Konata proceed to join the two halves while Tsukasa and Miyuki set up the computer. Haruhi does nothing. I guess Kagami gave up. ^^”

“Push! Push!”

And with that, the classroom is complete. The girls go off to take a break.

With some small accessories missing

Oh look! It seems we have a visitor.

I guess she just wants to use the computer. I wonder what is she using it for?

Ah… She’s surfing Leeks ‘R Us, the best site for leeks and leek related goods.

Now she’s writing on the blackboard. What will she write?

Oh No! Someone’s coming!

Kagami:” That’s odd, I thought I saw someone in here.”

I guess we know what Miku wrote on the board. I wonder how true is it?

And that’s that.

Now for a few random shots that I took.

Honestly didn’t consciously place them that way. it just happened… It looks like they are under arrest or something.

The girls doing exercises. Singaporeans doing NAPFA should know what they are doing ^^”

And as a final bonus, how’s one-tailed Hatsune Miku?

Many thanks to my friend who (temporarily) donated his Miku nendo for this photoshoot ^^

Hope you enjoyed this post guys.

It’s the new year and I’ll roll out my very first comic for the year!

Inspired by an off-hand comment by a good friend of mine, I decided to explore what might happen when 2 epic shows collide.

Lucky Star and Star Wars.

I give you, Lucky Star Wars (yeah, not very original I know but very catchy ^^).

Comic after the break.

As usual, it is meant to be read like manga (i.e right to left) although that only matters for 2 panels.

Click on the thumbnail for a larger version

I hope you guys enjoyed it.

I decided to try something I never done before and that is to do some photoshopping of the character’s faces as suggested by someone on the forums I frequent. As you can see below, the effect is quite startling.

Happy to “NOOOOOOO!!!!!”

I initially had (and still have) doubts as to how far I can actually do this to make up for the lack of expressions the figmas have.  However, I’m pleased with how it has turned out for this case so all’s well I guess.

Now that my nendo playset has come in, I need to think up a few more ideas. Do look forward to a review (assuming I will do one XD)

Christmas is tomorrow and the Figmas in my display cabinet prepare for their very first Christmas together!

As you can see from the pic, that’s the papercraft christmas tree provided by the figma website. Perhaps you might want to try it out?

It took me about a day or two to cut it out due to the tree’s multiple “spikes”. It took so long because of other commitments (*cough* games *cough*).

Kagamin is in charge of organising this small little party. Here she is carrying the base for the Christmas tree.

And here comes Konata and Tsukasa with the tree stand. Konata is smart, she somehow convinced Tsukasa to carry the heavier end ^^”

I guess the heavy stand was too much for Tsukasa. Konata is going to get a scolding from Kagamin for sure later ^^”

Oh, looks like Konata is done fixing the tree stand. She certainly seems pleased with herself . d(^_^)b

Konata and Miyuki go off to settle other matters such as food while Kagami and Tsukasa continue to set up the tree. The tree is looking pretty good.

Nanoha joins in the party straight from work. Working in the TSAB is tough. Good thing she got a half day off. Tsukasa mails Konata and Miyuki that Nanoha is here.

It’s greetings all around as Konata and Miyuki return. Looks like Konata brought the star for the Christmas tree.

Konata takes a (undeserved) break and watches as the rest of the gang proceeds to finish up the tree. Looks like Tsukasa isn’t sure how to continue. Being the organiser is busy work for Kagami as she has to help out the gang and arrange for entertainment on the phone. Fate arrives straight from work too and Nanoha is so overjoyed she runs for a hug.

The tree is almost complete and Tsukasa puts the finishing touch on the tree.

Haruhi pops in suddenly, giving Kagami a big surprise! Konata is obviously happy Haruhi is finally here. Since the tree looks so nice, Tsukasa takes a pic with her handphone which she got back from Kagami.

Seems that Haruhi wants to join in on the entertainment with her brand new guitar that she “borrowed” from somewhere else. ^^”

Kagami has a headache.

And Miku arrives! Looks like Miku was the entertainment Kagami was arranging.

Oh well, Haruhi and Miku decide to perform together and all is well. God Knows anyone? XD

Looks like they are enjoying themselves.

Hmm… We haven’t seen Nanoha and Fate for sometime now… Where are they?

Never mind… >_>

I hope you have enjoyed my little Christmas special. I know I promised a 4koma and whatnot but the crash of my 500GB HDD meant that I lost all my photos and and mini project data. So I kinda have to start from scratch.

Anyway, have a Merry Christmas!