Alleyne from Queen’s Blade (Orchid Seed Version) (NSFW)

Alleyne from Queen's Blade

When figure companies produce products of characters from shows with large casts, it’s typical for them to make figures of most, if not all, of the principal characters. Such a move is logical; after all, figure collectors are, well, collectors. This figure is anomalous, then, as it’s the first and only figure of a Queen’s Blade character that Orchid Seed has ever produced. It seems like an almost random decision for them to make this figure, as it doesn’t resemble much of their past catalog, but then, when a figure looks this nice, I suppose quality is the only explanation that is needed for this figure’s existence.

Alleyne figure

Alleyne is a character from the original Queen’s Blade series. Designed by well-known anime artist Matsuryuu, she is unusual in that while most of the Queen’s Blade characters are defined by their individuality (there can, of course, only be one queen), Alleyne is strongly associated with Nowa, the young half-elf whom she takes into her care. Alleyne serves as a mentor to the younger girl, and from their relationship we see that she is an inveterate teacher, constantly analyzing the performance of her charge (and their foes, when they engage in combat). Despite valuing discipline, Alleyne is also warm and kind.

From what I can tell, Alleyne is a popular character but I don’t remember that she made much of an impact in the Queen’s Blade anime adaptation. She did make a couple of appearances in the show’s bonus OVA series, though, and despite typically being presented as honorable and dignified, Alleyne is no less prone to fan-servicey moments than her castmates. In particular, the OVAs depict her fellating Nyx’s staff and stripping down and doing push-ups in a comically theatrical manner.

Alleyne figure

That sexualized presentation continues with this figure. This figure is produced by Orchid Seed, a company with a long history of making fan-servicey figures. Its size is quite impressive; while most Queen’s Blade figures are 1/8 scale, Alleyne is sculpted in 1/6 scale, towering over most of them. Indeed, she seems even larger than her listed scale, being that she stands about 26.5 centimeters in height despite bending over at the waist.

Alleyne figure

This figure is based off of artwork done not by Matsuryuu but by Tsutomu Miyazawa, who worked on the anime adaptation of Queen’s Blade. The depiction of Alleyne in the illustration doesn’t differ extensively from her original design; however, the figure is quite dissimilar to both. While Alleyne’s design is typical of many female anime characters – large head, relatively small body, and slender limbs – the figure gives her a more robust body build, with a proportionately smaller head, long legs with exceptionally thick thighs, and broad hips.

Alleyne figure

Her cup size has also been drastically revamped; Alleyne had a fairly modest bust, at least by Queen’s Blade standards, but this figure gives her chest a sizeable enlargement. Accentuating their newfound growth is their shape, which gives a slightly more realistic impression of weight.

Alleyne figure

Interestingly, in a move reminiscent of MegaHouse’s old Risty figure, the sculptor has given Alleyne a prominent six-pack of abdominal muscles. That’s definitely an unusual choice, as even fighter girls in anime generally don’t have strongly-pronounced musculature. I like it a lot, though. In fact, I like all of the changes that were made from the source artwork; while Alleyne’s original design is very cute, this figure adaptation is quite a bit more distinctive.

Alleyne figure

Alleyne’s clothing consists of a foliage bikini – a little silly-looking but typical of what she wears in the show. Unsurprisingly, it can be removed. Orchid Seed even provides an English translation for its instruction sheet, which is both appreciated and unfortunately rare (they are, as far as I remember, the only Japanese figure company to do so).

Alleyne figure

Removing her bikini is a straightforward process with one caveat; Orchid Seed used some kind of weak, gummy adhesive to keep her bikini top on. That’s a little annoying since it’s sticky and leaves a residue (which I haven’t yet tried to clean up). Hopefully this gummy stuff won’t cause problems later on (such as when dust and dirt accumulate on the figure). (I should mention that my figure also had some odd marks on it which looked as if they were caused by paint transfer, except they appeared to be too dark to be paint. They cleaned up after some rubbing with a Q-tip and isopropyl alcohol.)

While she does have detailed nipples, Alleyne unfortunately lacks any hint of genitalia; her crotch is as smooth as a Barbie doll’s. Being that Orchid Seed has not had any qualms about making fully explicit figures in the past, I’m guessing that the absence of a vagina is due to Hobby Japan policy. It’s a little puzzling, being that Queen’s Blade often tries to get as close to porn or hentai as it can without crossing the line, but then, I suppose there are several instances in larger entertainment media where one can witness this phenomenon (female-fronted American pop music, for instance).

Alleyne figure

Alleyne’s expression is generally more analogous to the source art than her body physique, with the noticeable exception that she isn’t blushing. It’s kind of an odd expression that isn’t easy to read; without the flushed cheeks, it’s difficult to tell whether Alleyne is embarrassed, disgusted, or angry. Absent any familiarity with Alleyne’s personality, one might assume that she has a tempestuous disposition, which would be quite the incorrect conclusion. Similarly, her pose is a little strange, being that it looks a little like she’s cocking a finger gun at her head, but then, such an unusual pose naturally attracts attention, and her bent right arm also puts the flexed muscles of her biceps on display. At any rate, one could concoct a humorous explanation for the combination of her pose and her annoyed or exasperated countenance.

Alleyne figure

Orchid Seed’s Alleyne is a very lovely figure with an exceptionally impressive sculpt. Her body sculpting is exquisite, from the evident muscles of her stomach, arms, and legs to the detailing of her toenails. The decision to eschew her original appearance for an older, somewhat more realistic design is an admirable one in my estimation. Her unexpectedly large size makes all her good points even better. She’s certainly one of my favorite Orchid Seed figures already. I can only hope that one day they’ll decide to make a figure of Irma that looks this nice.

Alleyne figure
Alleyne figure

This review is, as usual, one of the last ones out of the gate; Alleyne has also been reviewed at Reflective Boundary, Neath Grim, Figyura, and Wieselhead, so go visit those sites for more words and pictures.

Alleyne figure
Alleyne figure
Alleyne figure
Alleyne figure
Alleyne figure
Alleyne figure
Alleyne figure
Alleyne figure
Alleyne figure
Alleyne figure
Alleyne figure
Alleyne figure
Alleyne figure
This entry was posted in Figure Review and tagged , , , , , , , .

49 Responses to Alleyne from Queen’s Blade (Orchid Seed Version) (NSFW)

  1. blackice85 says:

    Glad she looks good in person, I just happened to order her recently so I’m still waiting on shipment.

  2. TomTheCat says:

    I knew I’d buy this figure the instant I saw the first pictures. I’m glad Orchid Seed didn’t delay her too much and didn’t mess her up. Well, Orchid Seed isn’t known for messing up things, but you never know…

    But what’s the deal with that sticky bikini? I must admit I haven’t taken mine out of her box yet. Should I cast her off asap so that her clothes can’t spoil her skin or is it better to not touch her at all? Can the glue (?) be removed or will the bikini fall off without it? I had assumed that it’s just draped around her neck and hangs in front of her breasts by itself. And what about the panty leaves? Are they okay or are they just as sticky?

    Btw, I like your “natural” set. In my perception, it’s very much in character with an elf. (Don’t know Queen’s Blade or Alleyne, so can’t speak for her actually)

    • Tier says:

      I’m not sure why they used that gummy stuff; it’s not really necessary and it leaves a shiny residue behind that will probably attract dirt and grime. I’d certainly think about cleaning it off, especially if you live in an area that gets humid in the summer. I didn’t try to reattach the bikini top but I’d imagine that it will stay in place reasonably well without the adhesive; maybe they just didn’t want any chance of a nipple slip showing while the figure is in its packaging or something. The bottom doesn’t have any adhesive so that’s something, at least.

    • new2figures says:

      didn’t want to take mine out of the box either, but I did it to take off that gummi glue. got lucky, the right one came off easy with no residue and the left one attached itself inside the leaf leaving nothing on the figure.

      • Tier says:

        That is lucky indeed; my figure has this big shiny spot on her left tit (quite visible in the pictures) where the adhesive hasn’t come off. I’ll probably try rubbing it off with my fingernail or a kneaded eraser or Magic Eraser something before trying anything more drastic.

  3. Tian says:

    Wow, it’s surprising that this is Orchid Seed’s first QB figure. That seems right up their alley, and they had collaborated with Hobby Japan on the Seven Deadly Sins before.

    I usually hate swimsuit figures but this one’s great for the reasons you mentioned. I agree that the abs add a lot. The leaf bikini also makes it stand out so much from other swimsuit figures.

    • Tier says:

      Yeah, that is definitely a little weird; I guess Queen’s Blade came a little earlier but the character designs seem to fit the sort of things that Orchid Seed would do (for some reason, I just thought of Cattleya’s design and that one peculiar Al-Azif figure that Orchid Seed did).

      It’s a sad thing when a man says he’s tired of seeing sexy girls in bikinis, but I have to agree; they don’t really excite me much anymore, either. Alleyne’s body sculpt really makes this figure shine, though. And her size is very impressive, too; as nice as she looks in all her pictures, she’s even more eye-catching in person.

  4. afreet220 says:

    I have to admit the shape of her top is my favourite, a little bit pendulous 😛 It’s such a shame that I have no way to display her in my room at least for the near future.
    Amazing pictures as always Tier!

    • Tier says:

      Thanks very much XD Hopefully you can find a way to display her sometime, she definitely deserves to be seen. And uhh, cleaned off of that adhesive stuff, maybe.

  5. vulpesfulvus says:

    And this is why I hate missing out on preorders. I see there is a more tanned version of her up for preorder; hopefully this bodes well for a reissue. Definitely a fan of the abs.

    • BostonBrandon says:

      I came really close to preordering this one but went for Maid Yome Yuki after deciding that one platinum blonde was enough. I have to say that I would have been really disappointed after seeing your shots had it not been for my visit to amiami earlier.
      Alleyne looks great for sure, but have you seen Tony Taka’s latest!?! Good God, I only have room in my heart for one leaf bikini!
      Though, Orchid Seed gets good marks for depicting what I think is some fantastically realistic wet hair.

      • Tier says:

        Yeah, that new Tony figure looks really nice too. It’s funny that you mention that, though; I’ve got Alleyne lording over Iris right now; as nice as Iris looks, Alleyne’s size is just incredibly impressive. If I’d known that that Tony figure were coming out, I might’ve stuck in a group shot of the two. At any rate, more of a good thing is, well, a good thing.

    • Tier says:

      Hopefully so, or perhaps you can find one on Mandarake or some other secondary retailer; it seems like quite a few people were interested in this figure so perhaps there is still stock available somewhere.

  6. Asa says:

    I really like the blurred background in the first few shots, it actually did give it a delicious creamy foresty feel. The flock or fake moss or whatever in focus in the later shots kind of spoils it for me, though. 🙁 Overall I really like what you did with this shoot, but there’s something about that clearly fake plant matter, and her base that doesn’t sit well.

    Oh well. As I said, nice bokeh in the first few. 😀

    • Tier says:

      Yeah, I know; I didn’t like those shots, either. The full-body shots are always meant for review and evaluation purposes of the figure rather than to show artistry, though (which is why they always get stuffed at the end). Back when I talked about dropping the shot count in the review posts, the all-around full-body shot sequence comprised the ones I really wanted to drop, but these posts are ostensibly reviews, so I include them, even though they I usually don’t like them.

  7. Cerberus says:

    Sweet shots. Is that some real moss you used? looks like real jungle stuff. I kind of like them partially in-focus since it gives some feeling of DOF.
    One big problem for scaled figure full-body shots is that it’s hard to make the figure part of the surrounding environment naturally, mostly because of the base. I agree that most of the time It’s just more for a review purpose. That’s why I really love those figures that can stand without the base. sadly they usually don’t have very dynamic poses.

    • Tier says:

      Yeah, it’s some packaged moss I got from the local crafts store. It works reasonably well, though I think maybe I should have gone for a darker variety. I just glued it to a big backdrop that had been covered with wadded-up newspaper and plaster cloth.

      Most of the time, I really don’t like taking full-body shots, particularly on backgrounds like this. I usually hate showing the transition area from the floor to the backdrop wall. I also always have a great deal of difficulty trying to get the backdrop to look straight (it’s often a little bit crooked); that’s typically not noticeable on the usual cowboy shot style I like to use, but it can often be easily seen on the full-body pictures. Unfortunately for me, those shots tend to be the most clicked-on, and I know that when I’m looking around for pictures of a figure that I’m thinking about buying, I always prefer to look at the full-body pictures, so I can’t elect to not take them, unless the post isn’t actually a review, which was actually part of my big huge future plan to talk more about photography but well … I’ll write it someday.

  8. Adam says:

    It does seem a shame that Orchid Seed has done so little with Hobby Japan outside of the Seven Deadly Sins. They’re obviously well-versed in the art of cast-off figures, which would seem to go hand-in-hand with the gratuitous fan service inherent in all HJ’s original anime properties. I suspect it comes down to licensing agreements. HJ seems to award one particular manufacturer the lion’s share of the figure rights for each new series and everyone else can (maybe) pick up a few scraps here or there.

    As for Alleyne, she’s generally excellent, though I wasn’t exactly pleased to break one of the pegs on her base while trying to revert the cast-off after I was done shooting. It looks like it’s going to be a pain to fix, too. I felt the peg design might be flawed, but I haven’t seen anyone else complain of similar issues, so I guess I just ham-fisted it.

    • Tier says:

      Yeah, it does seem that way, or at least, it seems like they allow a maximum of two manufacturers to do a particular product line (MegaHouse and Griffon with Queen’s Blade, Orchid Seed and Amakuni with 7 Deadly Sins, and so on). That could also explain why we’ve seen some one-off Samurai Girls figures (or maybe Yagyu Jubei just really is that popular, I dunno).

      Ouch, that really sucks. Yeah, I actually have this same problem with a different figure (Max Factory’s old Croche figure); I’m not entirely sure how to proceed. I really don’t trust my steadiness to try to drill it out with a power tool, particularly since Croche has very small feet, and I lack a pin vise. I recall that when I was photographing Alleyne, there was a moment where I did kinda feel like I might break a peg while trying to remove her from the base, so it might not just be you.

  9. AEduque says:

    This is sweet, I was hoping you’d do get the figure wet or something like that, but this is still good! Yeah you’re right the added toned body she has really makes this figure stand out more and not just a sculpt of an illustration. Hmm, after you mentioned her hand being something like sticking a gun to her head, I cant unsee it anymore, but it’s still good. This figure’s quality really throws off a lot of the perceived negative stuff like the finger fun or the lack of lady parts 😛

    Regarding the bikini top sticky parts, in case you get paint transfer you can use magic eraser for that. Thankfully, her hair covers those parts anyway.

    • Tier says:

      I didn’t think of wetting down the figure, but I did forget a couple of things; it would’ve been kinda neat to get a group shot of her and Daiki Kougyou’s 1/6 scale Reina. I also could’ve used the president, as I haven’t brought him out in a while, though I think Alleyne is actually substantially larger than him in terms of body proportions. Yeah, while I would’ve liked some more explicit anatomy, I’m not going to beef about it; she still looks great and it wouldn’t be easy to see, anyway.

      Ah, okay; I’ve never actually tried using Magic Erasers on a figure before, I think, though I do actually have a few of them here, which I bought for doll stuff. I should give that a try, then.

  10. MaybeNotMyRealName says:

    Nice! Four new figure sites to check out!

    and…

    Yeah, none of them are on par with Tentacle Armada. (Not a big surprise though.)

    Thanks for the review, and for sharing some additional links.

    • Tier says:

      Ahahahaha, man that’s harsh. Nonetheless, I’m glad to have been of help! (I think they are really great sites myself XD)

      • MaybeNotMyRealName says:

        Don’t underestimate what a great job you do. There are three things I want in a figure review site:

        – Lots of great photos from all kinds of angles
        – Good photographic skill and sense
        – Meaningful text (no text is better than rambling or forcing details, but it is nice when someone shares a figure or character’s history, why they bought the character, their impressions, what, if anything, doesn’t translate to camera, etc.)

        You pretty consistently nail all three of those. I genuinely appreciate your excellent reviews. Keep up the great work!

  11. Wieselhead says:

    vacation comment, you better do this on a cloudly day.
    I rewatched the certain Ova with her and Nowa, it was really sweet.Often people look down on QB for having risky fanservice, but often the animated things are surprisingly well done.

    Alleyne is such a pretty figure, the sculpting is awesome and in the big scale, you can appreciate the details much more. I don’t really miss the details at her private parts, but I think something pink would have looked quite nice next to lovely bright skincolor, I love her skincolor and texture, it looks so good and gives Alleyne a soft appearance. For anime figure standards her boobs have an unusual curve, it’s a great rack ^^

    The pose is not my favorite one, I can imagine a few more appealing ones, but I still like the figure a lot as she is. Orchid Seed should also make a stunning and big Echidna, no Nanael as well. I always liked the self centered angel with the cute behind.

    I also liked Adams pictures of her a lot, but yours are also really good, as always the lighting is impressive. I wanted something slightly different in my pictures, but Alleyne looks beautiful anyway

    • Tier says:

      I was pretty impressed that they put together some reasonably compelling backgrounds and personalities for the characters, even though they were all created by different artists for gamebooks. Some of them were a little unexpected (I didn’t think Nyx would be a poor peasant girl, for example) but I suppose that just shows what a small role inhibition plays in any part of Queen’s Blade.

      Having kept her on my desk for a little over a week now, I’m even more impressed by how nice her sculpt is. She doesn’t really look like an Orchid Seed figure; if anything, she looks more like a Max Factory figure, I think, in terms of how well her body is sculpted.

      Haha, I liked your pictures a lot, too XD I wouldn’t take it to heart or anything, though I have to admit, I’m kinda happy to see a number of people taking better and better pictures of figures in an environmental portrait style. I like to think that I played some role in that, being that I first saw this style at HappySoda and that site played a huge role in me getting into figure photography. It kinda makes me feel like I’m giving something back to the community.

  12. Galih says:

    Yay, thanks Tier for reviewing this figure. The first time i saw this figure, i instantly fell in love with her. Her leaf swimsuit really suits her appearance as an elf. Her face and that pose are really WOW! I have liked her design for quite a long time. Hell, i don’t even watch QB, but sometimes i saw Alleyne’s artworks and they tingle my fetish radar, i really like especially her red beret and her outfit, it makes her sexy but brave.

    Tier, do you preorder Ciel Alencon from GSC? She looks very good but really expensive. Her weapon is more badass that that of Alisa Illinichina, it looks like alien from alien film.

    • Tier says:

      Umm, hmm … I’m not really sure, I guess. She really does look nice, but 14,000 yen is nuts for a 1/8 scale figure, and GSC/Max Factory figures have a tendency to hit the bargain bin soon after release. I don’t think I’m dying to own her, so what I’ll probably do is wait and see if she gets a big price cut; I wouldn’t be surprised if she did.

  13. Kusano says:

    The instant I saw the abs in from the proto-type, I knew had to pre-order it. My first purchase from Orchird Seed and I was fairly surpassed by the sculpt and overall QC of the figure. Allleyne’s pose is rather awkward but the rest of her voluptuous figure totally makes up for it. Now they are even releasing an “ebony” P2 colour version which is also highly tempting lol.

    • Tier says:

      Orchid Seed doing a recolored version is definitely a tradition for them, and she does look quite nice, though I like this version better just because it’s her original color. This is definitely a great figure to pick for your first figure from Orchid Seed; I’ve got a few of their other figures and many of them aren’t quite as good, though I do have a few more recent figures (such as Ignis and Lucifer) that I haven’t really looked at yet, and they could be just as good, too.

  14. Steve Chen says:

    Ummm Master Tier
    in as much as I keep knocking my head to the wall for this lost opportunity by OS to implement the “detail” we all so love ( Maid Bride comes to light), this figure has one thing that MH figs of QB doesn’t have, a molded faint line…………..hahahaha, beggars like me can’t be choosers. In MH’s case, they kind of cheated by applying slightly different hue in their pudenda’s are.
    The gummy substance OS used reminds me of Captain Liliana’s starfish nipple caps. maybe that’s good in Japan because it’s in a temperate zone but in the tropics, the figure will soon be suffering rubber rot or worst.

    Back to your shots, I like the veggie motif. Fits her like a salad. And, as you mentioned Risty, Mohio,he/she also sculpted both Risty and Alleyne. The guy/gal sure loves to put beer packs on his/her ladies.

    • Tier says:

      Ah, did MegaHouse put some weird adhesive on the pirate girl, too? That reminds me that with Siggy, they supplied some kind of double-sided mounting tape; I haven’t removed Siggy’s pasties in years and I have no idea if they’ve left any sticky stuff on her skin or not.

      I didn’t check the sculptor’s past work but that makes a lot of sense if he sculpted both figures; I recall that Risty was pretty special because she looked so different than MegaHouse’s other Queen’s Blade figures. I thought that was a very strange thing for them to do, as most manufacturers prefer a uniform appearance when making figures from one series, but she came out really good which, as with Alleyne, is all the rationalization one needs.

  15. Devastator001 says:

    Also got mine and def. enjoying her my only problem is paint transfer on the back of her neck from the bikini :p but gonna try that isoprophyl alcohol thing you mentioned to try and clean that up

    • Tier says:

      Oops, forgot to respond to this. Yeah, mine had the same issue; it cleaned up pretty easily and without damaging the figure. I haven’t yet tried to wipe off the residue from that sticky crap they used to attach her top; being the paranoid person that I am, I might look for some sort of non-fibrous swabs just so that no little cotton threads get stuck onto her skin.

  16. Halbred says:

    Yup, this is happening (someday). I missed her initial pre-order, so I’m stuck waiting for her to go on sale at MFC for a price I can stomach. Really just gorgeous, though, and big, which I love. Great photos; if I was on the fence before, I’m not anymore.

    • Tier says:

      She’s a really pretty figure; Orchid Seed did a great job with her. It looks like she was a wildly popular figure, so I’m guessing that she might show up preowned at a decent price.

  17. Rene says:

    what a hot bod she looks really good naked

  18. Kavaris says:

    Very nice photos and review!!!
    I liked the lighting and the bokeh background gives off a forest feel which compliment the figure well.
    Hope to see you doing a breakdown shot for this. It has been a while since u last did one!
    Appreciate ur work!

    • Tier says:

      Thanks very much! I’m not so sure I’m going to do a breakdown for this set since there’s not very much to it, but I’ll keep it in mind the next time I use this background, which will probably be pretty soon.

  19. Shikimori says:

    Hello, I want your opinion about the Alleyne EX Color, thanks.

  20. Souther says:

    Hi Tier,
    There is an Alleyne china’s version. It is selled without box. It is much cheaper than japanese version. Do you know the difference between each version ?

    • Tier says:

      I would imagine that the China version is fake. Generally speaking counterfeit figures are worse quality than the authentic figure, but sometimes it can be really hard to tell.

  21. Pedro says:

    Just some months ago I got my original ALLEYNE though , prior to that, A little while before the original was released I got my ´´hand made ´´ copy which is simply PERFECT in terms of finishing and details such as her delicate lower parts very well defined , besides the painting which makes this copy look ´´healthier ´´than the original which is pale . I am jolly glad for having them both ,like the two sides of a PRECIOUS COIN !!!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *