Figma Cryska officially preordering

Preorders have officially started from online retailers for the Figma of Scarlet Twin Cryska Barchenowa.  She retails for around $35-$47 USD depending on where you get her and should ship in June.  Figma's maker - Goodsmile Company - has updated their English-language Figma website with all the details.  This is the Japanese-language sell-sheet, courtesy of Hobby Search:

Figmas usually come with a couple of alternate faces.  Cryska will have three - one of which is a rather out-of-character bashful moe face.  She also comes with a pistol and a transparent, articulated Figma stand.

Worth noting is that this particular rendition of her is based specifically on the character design used in the animated series, by character designer Umiko Hara, which is also true of the Yui Takamura Figma which was announced a couple of months ago.  It differs somewhat from the design seen in the original visual novel and printed materials as created by Total Eclipse's first character designer, Sou Miyata (which I prefer much more).  Miyata's designs are being rendered in PVC by Kotobukiya.

Cryska will make the fouth Muv Luv character to be Figma'd.  The first was Alternative's Meiya Mitsurugi back in 2009, followed by a limited-release xBox game pack-in Sumkia Kagami Figma.  Yui is due out in April.  No word yet on any other Muv Luv Figmas.

Words of advice: It is difficult to gauge the popularity and production numbers on Figmas.  Sometimes they sell out quickly and jump dramatically on the secondary market.  Other times they hang out for a while.  If you want them, your best bet is preorder.  Shipping is reasonably low on them.  Look over in the "Supply Container" links for Hobby Search, CD Japan and HLJ as possible sources that I've always had good results with.

I wish the Figma Meiya came with a third face.  Her oujo smirk look would have been cool...

Some coverage for Volks

The first Muv Luv TSF action figure products were Volks' A3 - "Advanced system of Action Arms" series of figures, which are rather like oversized Revoltech figures (although they predate the Revos) that are available only in the Japanese domestic market via Volks' online shop, their collector show booth sales, and secondary market sources that can carry a rather significant markup.  That availability issue is unfortunate because they're beautiful items that come in a huge range of variations, and Volks has even offered various very limited edition figures of BETAs for their A3 products to do battle with.  If you've been following the "TSF In Action" series of fiction, diorama and customizing articles in Hobby Japan and collected TSF Cross Operation mooks, you'll note that the the whole root cause for the Muv Luv Total Eclipse portion of the property is to sell A3 figures.  Volks had invested early in the Muv Luv series, offering licensed prepainted resin figures of the Muv Luv characters and core TSFs, some articulated dolls, and a rather extensive series of painted PVC blind-box figures of the numerous Unlimited/Alternative characters that are as frustratingly exclusive as their A3 figures.  They've recently launched their own limited plastic kit TSF collection as well.

But the relatively limited availability of these figures means there isn't much coverage for them in the English language.  CollectionDX reviewer 'VF5SS' has amended that shortcoming in the west's Muv Luv information pool with a snazzy review of the A3 F-14D "Jolly Roger" Tomcat.  Feast your eyes, and start rooting around in your wallet...

[Photo from Volks' website.]

Afterward, you can look longingly at what A3 offerings Volks is bringing to the upcoming latest Wonder Festival...

Plastic kit of the Russian TERMINATOR

Kotobukiya has announced the May release of their non-scale plastic kit of the Soviet TERMINATOR Tactical Surface Fighter piloted by the Scarlet Twins:

If I'm understanding correctly, the TSF's distinctive camo pattern is pre-painted on the kit, which is quite a selling point!  It comes with a flight stand, unit marking decals and - as revealed by Koto USA's Facebook page -  a gruesome little BETA "Venator" class soldier figure:

The Su-37UB kit - which is personally one of my favorite TSF designs - will cost you between $50-$65 USD before shipping, depending on where you get it.  Given that these kits contain anywhere up from 400 parts, a great display stand AND this one seems to have pre-painted camo, that's a bargain in my opinion. (That's less than twice what you'd pay for the Revoltech figure, but the plastic kit is about twice the size.)

Look for it at Hobby Search and Hobbylink Japan, over in the "Supply Container" links on the right.

I do hope they offer the Su-37M2 variant used by Lt Colonel Latrova's ill-fated Zhar Battalion, as I really liked the colorway on that unit's camo pattern.