Defining timing. Maybe when you grab a new figure two hours before a plane takes you away on vacation and you spend quite some time exploring unknown territory both physically abroad and in
your mind figure wise. Or perhaps suffering from paranoia having pre-built the set long before reading a review by Nopy regarding the cold cast treatment given by Kurushima.
Before showing off the contents revealed by trembling hands I'll quickly mention the reasons behind acquiring this character. Every now and then when the obsession for
supreme quality temporarily fades the choices become limitless when looking for that special someone to portray. For this particular review, the decision fell on Mie who is
an original character from Private Beach 3, created by Kurushima. Finding out more about her origin proved difficult, no thanks to the manufacturer's Geocities inspired website.
Mie herself has something special that I find appealing in figures. It's not about nudity, though skin is an obedient subject, nor is it about the angles showing off the character going treasure hunting in the nether regions. It's actually all about that comatosed mug. The face is a usual culprit when a figure makes or breaks it and this is where, in my eyes, Mie shines; her facial expression is almost the sole reason she emigrated from Japan to Nowheresville. That and the mirror base.
Listed as a 1/6 scale and measuring in at 24cm / 9.36in long Mie actually feels more like a 1/7 bordering 1/8. She comes in a box containing a styrofoam container due to being crafted in cold cast resin, a material people outside Japan tend to skip as it's very brittle in nature. Some stores even warn potential buyers of the risks involved and it basically comes down to luck getting a figure in its pristine form. Having never been much successful at gambling I made sure to stock up on super glue should the need arise. Fortunately, Mie arrived in near perfect condition with the exception of a pink anomaly on her left foot.
Included in the box besides the figure itself is a mirror base, an optional bikini top and a required front part of the bikini bottom; unless you're into Brazilian waxing with Barbie dolls. There is
nothing sculpted as far as genitalia goes which may be a let down to some but on the upside you get an interesting approach to dealing with one's swimsuit instead.
"What the hell is she doing?" was a recurring question that kept popping up among viewers during early promo shots of this figure. A fair question as you usually don't see ladies hitting the beach stretching
their bikini bottoms for the passing crowd, especially not while wearing stiletto heels. I wish I had a straight answer, but I don't, though if I were to guess it would be relieving
pressure considering how tight the bottom piece clamps around her rear.
This is definitely a sexy figure though I wouldn't go as far as calling it an oozing pile of sex. If naked skin automatically takes your mind to a missionary position then perhaps
Flunitrazepam shouldn't be in your blind date arsenal.
I reckon most collectors outside Japan will skip this figure for a couple of reasons. It's rather pricey, it's made in cold cast resin and it's from a lesser known company. All three
arguments are hard to object to, though I will say that Kurushima has surprised me with their latest offering. It has its flaws; like the aforementioned pink color scratch incident,
the bikini bottom doesn't connect properly in the front and I do find the hair a little plain. On the upside there's great skin tone shading with a fairly
done paint job overall leaving a few hiccups here and there, most which are not spotted by the naked eye. While surgically enhanced, the breasts do look alright though it appear Kurushima spent far more time sculpting them compared to her backside, for example. Not to
mention the non-existent genitalia even if it doesn't necessarily hurt the figure's appearance as it does realistically.
If you're planning to pick this up my only advice would be to take notice of the red arrow on the styrofoam before removing the final tape plastered around it. It points to the side
which should be facing upwards before you lift up half the packaging. If you're doing it the other way around there's a high chance that the figure will fall out of its hiding place which
isn't the best practice when in such a frail state. Should you also have a spare pair of Kaiji dice, feel free to roll them prior to clicking the order button.
