B-Club Prepainted Polystone Collection - Emma Sheen 1/7

I've featured the Popy B-Club Polystone Collection on the blog a couple of times before; these are basically figures made from a mixture of plastic resin with a filler material that creates a stonelike feel. The first reaction I usually have to these would be similar to artifacts made out of ceramic or porcelain - "shit, don't break it!". I'd lie if I say I was a fan of the material but there are many rare Gundam character figures out there who haven't showed up in more durable materials like PVC so what are you to do? This figure is an excellent example; when was the last time you saw Emma Sheen in her Titans uniform? That's right - never! It is almost always that boring green and white outfit she wore onboard the Argama (and Bandai seems content with upping her chest size for each new release as the main improvement).


The figures in the Polystone series come in boxes with no clear window section for you to peek inside, but you will at least get a very clear illustration of what you should expect to find in there. Looking at the box it appears the figure had an original MSRP of 12800 yen which is quite pricy for a figure 20 years ago. Nowadays the price seems less impressive with MegaHouse pushing the upper limits for what a mass-produced Gundam character figure can cost all the time, we are somewhere in the 40000-range already). I picked this figure up second hand for ¥5000 back in 2021 which I thought was quite a lot back then, today I would consider it a steal. I am convinced the secondary market prices will have risen significantly since then too. As always though, the main problem is to actually find one for sale. There are many rare characters released in Polystone that I have only ever seen for sale once in a blue moon every ten years or so. There is no point trying to actively collect these but just count your blessings if you get the opportunity to pick one up at all.


The packaging is typical for the Polystone Collection figures I have seen. The product is packaged neatly in a styrofoam insert with a separate pocket for the base. An additional protective layer on the form of a bag helps to further avoid paint chipping damage. There are no loose parts or accessories.


Here we see the figure out and about. One foot has a long and sturdy peg that goes into a drilled hole in the base. The fit is quite loose and you can easily rotate the figure on the base and so special care must be taken when handling it, hold on to both base and figure or separate them when moving it around. The character designs of Zeta are overall exceedingly slim and the figure matches the show's art direction well, actually my first thought was "Oh Emma, why are your feet so big?". I guess there are reasons many uniforms don't have brightly coloured boots but what is a girl to do? I love all of the Titans uniform types but maybe the boots should have been dark with a red accent instead but Zeta is a child of the 1980s after all.


The shoulder patch isn't entirely straight on but it looks really good overall, lots of bright colouring and the uniform itself has some nice shading effects and creases too.


Alright, now to address the elephant in the room. This figure is not a portrait of Emma Sheen but creepy vampire with a strange nose trying to hypnotize you. The proportions of the face aren't even close to what is displayed on the box cover where the face is rounder and at least a little bit looking like the character is supposed to. This lady is a generic member of Paptimus Scirocco's entourage that he charmed away while visiting some Titans military base a year ago or so presumably. As a generic Titans office it looks great, but if you want an Emma Sheen figure this is unfortunately not your thing.


I'll close out with a comparison of two other related figures from the smaller PVC-ranges. First we have Sarah Zabiarov, also a member of Paptimus' fail-army dressed in a common Titans uniform (released around the same time in December 2005 as part of the Bandai EF Collection Zeta Gundam Heroines Vol. 2) and Emma in her best likeness in my opinion, in an A.E.U.G. flightsuit (released in April 2006 in the EF Emotive Figure Collection Z series).

I was hoping to do a headswap on a Zabiarov figure but the scales of the two are not close enough. I might have the A.E.U.G. flightsuit repainted into Titans colours though, that should prove fairly successful compromise I think. There are a maybe half-a-dozen or so other figures of Emma in her classic civilian green and white outfit but none of them stand out as superb likenesses in my opinion. I'm still waiting for someone out there to do the Titans crew justice in figure form, MegaHouse stop fawning over GQuuuuuuX already and do a sweet Zeta Gundam 40th Anniversary set instead...

B-Club Prepainted Polystone Collection - Lunamaria Hawke 1/7

Just in time for Valentine's Day, how about a little review of one of the most pointless characters in Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny? For this purpose I have dug out an old B-Club Polystone figure released in March 2006, at a time when the television series had already concluded the year before. I don't know any additional circumstances surrounding this particular release except that Hobbylink Japan at some point had it listed for $140 which seems crazy.


The figure comes in a near cube-shaped box of roughly 20 cm per side and weighs in well over half a kilo. These polystone figures often weigh a lot, kind of like porcelain. I notice the item code 2529-12800 on the box which lends some credence to the astronomical prize on HLJ. I have noticed that Japanese item numbers like these often bake in a price in yen as the last digit but I sure didn't pay ¥12800 but rather ¥2000 when I scouted it at Mandarake a couple of years ago. This makes it one of the cheapest 1/7-figures I have found but as with many Gundam-themed collector items the problem isn't necessarily the price, but actually finding them.


The Polystone figures typically come in tailor-made polystyrene packaging that can keep them safe on their long and dangerous intercontinental journeys. Notice the special bag containing Lunamaria's trademark pointy strands of hair. At the bottom of the parcel you can see a large circular black base that we won't have any need for in this review, this is one figure that is not in need of any support. In fact, one problem I have with many of these larger figures it that their footprints are usually very large.

Polystone figures lend themselves well to exact sculpting free from the issues that bendy PVC figures tend to have. I also suspect that their longevity will be much better as well. The paintjob is also on point here with distinct and clear anime-style painting with some nice shading where appropriate. While the Z.A.F.T. markings may seem a little plain they are well in style with what is presented in the show.


As crisp and stylish as the figure is, I think it really misses the mark when it comes to the perhaps most import thing; character likeness. I have noticed that smaller PVC figures often do a better job of hitting the right spot, perhaps because their detail level is slightly more granular and that makes it more in line with the drawings from the show? I don't know who the person we are looking at is, but she is clearly wearing Lunamaria's outfit.


The most obvious discrepancy here is the hair colour which has taken on more of a red than purple tone. The eye decals are big and very cartoony but still do not capture the soul of the character very well in my opinion. I can be more lenient when it comes to other facial features because as we all know, anime characters rarely have any which must make them a real challenge to get right.


Lunamaria Hawke may have been a pointless character with no really redeeming features or interesting personal development but that sure hasn't stopped Bandai from drowning us in figures of her; outclassed perhaps only by Lacus Clyne in numbers. There are many better choices out there whether you are looking for smaller or bigger figures and so I'd give this one a pass.

B-Club Prepainted Polystone Collection - Sayla Mass 1/7

I was making really good headway into the Senshi Forte Part 13 review when I realized that I don't have a booklet at hand. That is part of the soul of these figures for me so I had to find a cheap extra from the capsule variant and order. First World-problems, etc. Since this means that the review is on hiatus for a bit I dug up something from the archive instead. Bon appétit!


I don't get around to reviewing as many character figurines as I'd like but hope to grow that section of the blog over time. Today's item is a bit of a rarity I guess, although it is hard to find much information about it. The B-Club brand will be familiar to kit builders looking for rare conversion parts or even rarer garage kit-style resin kits of unusual suits, vehicles or even spaceships. There are also a number of prepainted figures of various characters available, some of which are incredibly hard to find although prices aren't always that painful. This 1:7 scale figure of Sayla in her E.F.S.F. uniform, manufactured by Popy in 2004, is possibly a limited edition that was exclusive to the Bandai Museum but I haven't been able to confirm it. I purchased the figure a couple of years ago for a modest sum of ¥3000.


Polystone figures are quite brittle and easy to damage but as long as you have the original box available it should be safe and sound. The cardboard box contains tightly fitting styrofoam protection that wraps elegantly around the figure, which is also protected by fine paper to help avoid paint scratching or chipping.


So just what exactly is Polywhatnow? Well, it is a compound material where resin is mixed with powdered stone. The feel of the figure is almost like porcelain but rougher to the touch and fairly lightweight. I saw someone comparing it to pumice and I can see where they are coming from. While it wouldn't survive much abuse it should avoid issues like warping or oily residue which is the fate of many plastic figures as they begin to age.


Overall the quality of the figure is really on point but the end result goes into uncanny valley. The proportions and colour choices are really on point and is a fine representation of the cartoon character but... there is something really strange about this pose. What exactly is going on here? Sayla looks lost in thought staring into the empty sky while failing to fully rest her hands on her knees and just what the hell is that base supposed to be? When was the last time you encountered someone sitting like that?


Sayla's expression sits somewhere between "was that really my brother I saw?" and "This lecture is boring me to tears.". I have to say though, the more I study the detail of the sculpt and paint applications the more impressed I am. If this had been a Converge figure for example, the uniform paint would have bled onto the neck and the gold trim would have been all over the place and so on.


Interestingly, this very figure also has a smaller sibling in the Gundam Heroines Selection 1 series (there was only one set) also made by Popy in 2005. While I didn't include it in the picture here that figure comes with just the same type of ugly base.

Overall the Sayla figure carries a kind of vintage quality to it in way of the artistic style - it feels very much in tune with the artwork from the original Mobile Suit Gundam series artwork. This becomes really evident when you compare it to more expressive and idealized figures, such as this MegaHouse RAHDXG.A.NEO figure from 2015.