Tag Archives - Beat - Tentacle Armada

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Tamaki Kousaka from To Heart 2 (Sports Lessons Swimming Version)

written on March 27, 2011 by Tier

BEAT Tamaki Kousaka from To Heart Figure Review

I sometimes give my figures informal nicknames, particularly if I have multiple versions of a particular character. I’ve got E.T. Miku, transvestite Yoko, gangsta lean Saber (review pending for over a year), and now I have this figure, which I’ve taken to calling fat Tamaki. It’s not a very charitable nickname and its accuracy is questionable as well, but the main thing is I had planned to cancel this figure. Unfortunately for me, Hobby Search revised their cancellation policy while I wasn’t paying attention and so I was stuck with my order. I guess I could’ve simply refrained from paying; I don’t think Hobby Search would have carried out any reprisals against me, since I’ve purchased the equivalent of an economy automobile from them these last couple of years. However, I did appreciate some aspects of this figure and now that I have her, there are some things I like about Tamaki, and some things I don’t, which is better than how I expected to feel.
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Posted in Figure Review | Tagged 1/6 scale, beat, Figures, Review, swimsuit, tamaki kousaka, to heart 2 | 26 Comments

Wind Goddess Rafale from the Amaha Collection (NSFW)

written on February 2, 2010 by Tier

The battle bikini is one of the most stereotypical tropes in fantasy art but if you ask me, it doesn’t get nearly as much appreciation these days as it should. For example, when Sega resurrected the Golden Axe franchise, they did the right thing in selecting Tyris Flare as the heroine but then they revealed an appallingly lowbrow taste by giving her pants. To be fair, her famous battle bikini is unlockable, and since the game seems to have been quite awful I doubt anybody else cares, but the mere option of pants still demonstrates the disrespect this timeless battle uniform receives. Also, when Wrath of the Lich King was released, Blizzard inexplicably made all of the armor sets as puritanical as could be, despite having gone entirely the other way when they designed The Burning Crusade. Now, one could argue that a battle bikini might provide inadequate protection in a frozen wasteland, but I have my doubts that a heavy suit of full plate is any more practical for trudging about in the arctic. Furthermore, if realism were really the name of the game, all of the characters would be wearing fur coats and mukluks, as even a full-body cast iron tuxedo ain’t going to protect nobody when a hundred foot-long dragon decides to step on you.

Fortunately, the beauty, utility, and elegance of this piece of equipment is still apparent and to that end, we have here an homage to the battle bikini in the form of Wind Goddess Rafale. I don’t see anything here that validates her divinity, but I will take the manufacturer’s claim for what it is worth.
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