Many figures allow your mind to wander when seeing them in a different light. Native's Yoshii Hotori is not one of those figures, what you see is what you get and what you're
getting is a popping stone fruit up on display. The company based their figure off an original illustration by the artist abec who's unbeknownst to me, while a more familiar face turned up on
the sculpting side in Kawanishi Ken who shaped the entire lineup of the animated versions from Black Rock Shooter released by Good Smile Company.
Staying mostly true to abec's illustration; which is also included on a printed card with the figure, Native decided to skip the tears of joy most prominent in Hotori's
right eye. Now having been turned into plastic she also expresses a higher level of uneasiness like some flesh-eating forest inhabitant was lurking in the shadows.
Being equipped with long twin tails and a string whistle, Yoshii Hotori was released in late June this year as a scaled 1/7 figure.
Native are not only known for their dedication to naked skin, they also make rather interesting packaging for their products. While imagination may have run a little dry for this figure
as they stuffed her in a gigantic gymnastics plinth it's still a lesser luxury compared to standard figure boxes.
Deconstructing the box reveals not only a mundane base but also a properly scaled gymnastics plinth and a brown clipboard so Hotori may check who's attending, so to speak. A very limited
knowledge of kanji makes me guess that this character is, having quickly glanced at her red brassard that's pinned on her left arm, either a gym class teacher or temporarily in charge
of a group of healthy youngsters.
Let's not beat around the non-existent bush, this piece is about the fine art of deflowering and what drove me to Yoshii Hotori was that very wager of innocence. With the jacket zipped down, shirt pulled up and tights sliding across skin from ample thumb pressure one can skip the sexual innuendo and go straight for the final lesson.
Native are comfortably resting on that lone throne when it comes to figure nudity and stellar execution, mostly thanks to the competition being absolutely terrible with few exceptions.
This figure is hands down one of the best crafted ones that I've come across in terms of sculpting and paint job. I also welcome the company's decision to hold off the waterworks but that's a personal preference I'm sure some
will disagree with.
Technically speaking there are few notable flaws, there were some minor blotches on the plinth and one color mishap on the jacket; both not visible by the human eye unless you're longing
for a restraining order. The details put into this figure are a treat to behold, the wrinkles on the clothes and sneaker soles to name a few.
There's a first time for everything, just ask Hotori. For me, this is also the very first Native product that has graced my cabinet. Native, who basically are Max Factory after dark have done a great job with this figure which oozes high quality as you've come to expect from their previous work. It's not perfect, but for a figure of this kind of character it's not far from.
