When I look at Alter’s lineup, there aren’t any figures that I’d consider bad. Oh sure, they’ve got quite a few figures that I don’t particularly care for, but they are supreme with respect to quality, and you can see it in every figure they make. On the flip side, consider Taki Corporation; they don’t have a single figure that I like and their works are distinguished only by their misshapenness. Then take a maker like Kotobukiya; they’ve been around forever and they put out pretty good figures. I can’t think of any that stand out, though; there are a number of Alter figures that I knew I was going to buy as soon as I saw them, but I can’t think of any Kotobukiya figures that I can make the same claim for.

Daiki Kougyou, however, is a different sort. While Alter is consistently superb and Kotobukiya is always solid and Taki is reliably bad, Daiki Kougyou’s figures are all over the place. They’ve crafted masterpieces like the miko version of Kanu Unchou, which can easily go toe to toe with anything Alter’s ever chucked out. And then you have figures like this, where you scratch your head and wonder what they were thinking. Further, while Alter, Taki, and Kotobukiya all tend to adhere closely to the original character designs, Daiki Kougyou often eschews convention and offers its own spin on existing characters. For example, many of their figures are sculpted by Toshirou, whose style has its own inimitable idiosyncrasies, and they have an upcoming figure of Ikkitousen’s Ryomou Shimei as re-imagined by Shunya Yamashita, who of course has an easily-identifiable and distinctive flair. They’ve also made a figure of Sei which is unusual in that they didn’t bother giving her a left arm, and her face looks a little bit like Dr. Julian Bashir from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

So when I look at this figure of Haruhi, it’s a bit surprising to me that it comes from Daiki Kougyou. It looks more akin to something that Max Factory or Good Smile Company would make, since it’s a very faithful representation of the character. It’s also an amazing figure, and while I think miko Kanu is the best figure that Daiki Kougyou’s ever made, Haruhi is right up there as well.

Haruhi Suzumiya is, of course, the titular character of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. Normally I’d assume everybody who might read this review has watched the show and knows what it’s about, but I’d be incorrect on that score, since I haven’t finished watching the first season myself. On the unlikely chance that anyone reading this doesn’t know who Haruhi is, she is the effervescent, incorrigible leader of the SOS Brigade and the enigmatic epicenter of all the events in the show. All the events that I’ve watched thus far, anyway.

Sculpted in 1/8 scale, she actually looks a bit larger than that. It might be because her head is so large relative to her body, but just eyeballing her, I’d guess that she’s on the upper end of 1/8 scale or the lower end of 1/7 scale.

Haruhi comes with a rather unusual base. She plugs into a huge musical note, an eighth note I guess. The plug protrudes right from her rump so there’s no easy other way to display her. The note is made of plastic and is a bit flimsy, although it’s sturdy enough that it won’t bend unless you’re really putting some force against it (it’d probably break before bending, anyway). The note then goes into the second part of the base, a plain round plastic disc.

The other loose part in the box is Haruhi’s guitar. You push the neck into her left hand; the body balances against her leg and torso. She doesn’t really get a firm grip on it, so I’d recommend not jarring her too much. The guitar has real strings, which is good and bad; it gives it a more realistic appearance but it’s also an annoyance because the strings keep sliding out of the nut. The guitar does look quite awesome; it’s got twenty frets and the tuners, pickups, bridge, and volume knobs all have a chrome-look paint job.

Incidentally, I’m not sure what sort of guitar this is supposed to be. I also wonder why we never see pointy guitars like Ibanezes or Jacksons in anime. Personally, I like guitar designs with a Strat body and a pointy stock.

Haruhi herself looks absolutely incredible. Her face does an excellent job of capturing her lively personality, and the pose is both playful and hot. Her stockings are made of fishnet material rather than being printed on, and the effect is marvelous; there’s some natural shading around the back of her knees and towards her ankles where the material sort of bunches up which looks great. If you’ve got a pantyhose fetish, this is the figure you want.

In terms of overall quality, the sculpt is second to none. Her legs are long and well-proportioned and her ass is dead sexy. Her face lines up perfectly with her arm (I know you all remember Alter’s Hikaru, who was sighting down her gat with the wrong eye), and she’s got a guitar pick clenched between thumb and middle finger, which is a very nice touch. Similarly, the paint job is superb; she’s got a pretty simple color scheme here, but everything looks fine, from the muted tones of her guitar to her signature bright yellow hair ribbon. Daiki Kougyou also really nailed the color of her eyes as well.

I picked up Haruhi from HLJ’s sale and I’m wondering why I didn’t buy her earlier. As you can probably tell, I really like this figure; it’s cute, sexy, unique, an outstanding rendition of Haruhi and a remarkable figure in general.

Another review is up on foo-bar-baz. His pictures are quite brighter than mine. I don’t recall coming across any other reviews of this Haruhi.

Up to the tizzop

HARUHI: Alright, since our last movie was so great, our next movie has to be even better! And we need to make sure that it appeals to the Americans.
KYON: Why America?
HARUHI: Because all the best movies are big in America! If we can make a movie that hits it big over there, we can expand the SOS Brigade overseas. We’ll start the SOS Brigade North American Division! I’ll still be the leader, of course.
KYON: … I see. And just what sort of movie are you planning to make?
HARUHI (pacing in a circle): It has to be profound. It has to speak to the cultural sensibilities of Americans. It has to emphasize their rich history, their resiliency, their unshakeable passion for freedom and their love for life. And it has to have sex. And lots of violence. And sex. (looks up) I’ve got it!
KYON (thinking): Oh no.
HARUHI: The movie will be called … “Mikuru Asahina in Escape from Guantanamo Bay!”
MIKURU: No!

KYON: Look … isn’t there already a movie in America with this name?
HARUHI: So what if there is? Our lawyers will take care of it.
KYON: What lawyers? When did you get lawyers?
HARUHI: What do you care? Just do the voiceover already!
KYON: Ugh …

KYON (narrating): In a world where confusion reigns supreme and terror lurks behind every corner lives Mikuru Asahina. She lives a carefree existence, enjoying each day and never wanting more. But one day … her life as she knew it … came to an end.

YUKI (monotone): There is no escape. Drop your weapons and surrender yourself.
MIKURU: I – I give up! Please don’t shoot me!
HARUHI: Yuki! Be more energetic! You need to sound like a crazy American!
YUKI (monotone): … This is the end for you. Surrender peacefully … you raggedy towelhead.
MIKURU: Towel … head?
KYON (thinking): This … this already makes no sense.
KYON (narrating): So without cause or reason the American government sends Mikuru Asahina to their top-secret prison. What terrors await her there? (looks up) Hey, this part of the script is blank.
HARUHI: I know. I didn’t write out this part. I want the acting to be completely natural here.
KYON (thinking): As if anybody could act naturally around you. Although by now, nothing that Haruhi does surprises me.

KYON: Agh!
MIKURU: Ahh! What … what is that?!
HARUHI: Isn’t he cute? I found him shuffling around behind the club building so I took him with me. (looks at Kyon) Kyon! You’re supposed to be narrating!
KYON (narrating, in a flat monotone): Behold the mighty Inju Ouji, the prince of tentacles. His half-pint stature belies his supersized lusts, and with his sinuous, slippery tentacles of seduction he slides himself effortlessly – (looks up, agitated) You’ve got to be kidding me! I’m not reading this!
HARUHI: Hmph, fine! No one wants to hear your voice, anyway. Alright, Mikuru, take off your clothes.
KYON: What?!
MIKURU: No!
HARUHI: Here, I’ll come help you.

(Mikuru cringes as Haruhi advances towards her. Kyon quickly interposes himself between them.)

KYON: Wait, look, you said you want this movie to be big in America, right?
HARUHI: That’s right! This scene will be legendary!
KYON: Not if nobody ever sees it! Americans are very squeamish about these sorts of things. If this film gets an R rating, nobody will watch it and you won’t be able to expand the SOS Brigade.
HARUHI: Hmm … I suppose that’s true. Very well then! We’ll move on to the next part … ah, I forgot the prop! Everyone, rehearse your lines while I go get it.

KYON: Asahina-san … I need to go get rid of this thing (points at the tentacle monster) If you start running now, right now, you can get very, very far away. Far away enough that Haruhi can’t do anything to you.
MIKURU: It’s okay … as long as I’m with you, I feel like I can endure anything.
KYON: Well, I need to go find some place to put this. Stay strong, Asahina-san. (picks up the Inju Ouji) Ugh, it’s sticky.

(Kyon leaves. Haruhi returns a few moments later.)

HARUHI (returning): I’m back! Are we ready? Where’d that idiot Kyon go? Oh well, who cares, we don’t need him for this next part anyway. Places, and … action!

MIKURU: Ah -

MIKURU: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
KYON (returning): I couldn’t find a good place to put that tentacle monster, so I just threw it in a dumpster. I hope he doesn’t crawl out and come across any girls going home – what … WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!
HARUHI: It’s something I borrowed from the Robotics Club! They’ve been working on it all year. They call it the Odaiba Sentinel! Cool, huh?
MIKURU: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
KYON: Wow, it’s really cool, they – I mean, no! It’s not! Did you even ask their permission to take it?!
HARUHI: Why should I have? I’m sure they would’ve said yes. They’re not even using it right now. I’m sure they won’t mind.
MIKURU: AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
KYON (thinking): I wonder if her lawyers can get us out of this too.
HARUHI: Kyon, you idiot, you’re supposed to do the sound effects!
KYON: Er, right.
(Kyon plays a file on the computer)

KABOOM! BLAMBLAMBLAMBLAM

MASTER CHIEF: Miss Asahina, are you alright?

MIKURU: Master Chief, you’ve saved me!
MASTER CHIEF: Don’t mention it. Let’s get you out of here.
MIKURU: Thank you, Chief!
OMINOUS VOICE: Did you really think you’d be able to free my detainees so easily?
MASTER CHIEF: … Who … was that?

BLAMBLAMBLAMBLAM

BARACK OBAMA: YIPPIE-KI-YAY, MOTHERFUCKER!
MASTER CHIEF: Argh!
MIKURU: Chief! No!
KYON (thinking): Crap, we’re definitely getting rated R now!

BARACK OBAMA: Hahaha, did you think you could escape so easily, little girl? Nobody takes my detainees from me!
MIKURU: No! Please let me go!
BARACK OBAMA: Let you go? You belong to me now! You’re mine forever! You’ll never return home!
HARUHI: Wasn’t it great of the American president to agree to appear in our movie?
KYON: Wait, is this in the script? I don’t see this in the script.
BARACK OBAMA: Let the bombs fly and let the historians count the bodies! That’s the way the United States of America rolls! Who the hell do you think I am?! AHAHAHAHAHAHA!
KYON: This isn’t in the script. I think he’s speaking on his own!
HARUHI: Who cares! That laugh was perfect, perfect!

KYON (narrating): So poor Mikuru was imprisoned, alone, unnoticed, and forgotten. When will she get out? What will she have to do to earn her freedom?
HARUHI: Outstanding! I’m sure we’ll get an Oscar for this! What should I wear to the awards ceremony? What should I do with my hair? Should I wear it up? Should I let it grow long? What should I say during my speech? I guess I don’t need to thank anybody because I did all the work!
ITSUKI: Suzumiya-san, can I take this armor off? It’s really heavy and warm inside.
HARUHI: Hmm … no, we might need to re-shoot some scenes.
ITSUKI: Can I take the helmet off at least? It’s getting hard to breathe in here.
HARUHI: Hrmm … no, I want you to keep wearing it.
ITSUKI: Ahh …
KYON (thinking): This is so stupid. Why can’t I escape from all of this? Am I in prison too?
HARUHI: Cut! And that’s a wrap! This is going to be incredible! Just wait and see!

Alright, a few quick words for the real review here. Mikuru is manufactured by Orchid Seed. She’s really, really small. 1/7 scale? Ha! She might be 1/8 scale if you’re being generous, 1/9 scale if you’re being realistic.

She comes with two heads rather than a detachable face. Her sad head doesn’t fit very well on my Mikuru figure; I’m not sure if this is a common problem or the result of something I did.

Overall, I wouldn’t say that this is a great figure. I’m not sure if I’d say it’s even a good figure, mainly due to her tiny size. On the other hand, I really like both her faces and I had a lot of fun shooting these pictures, and that counts for something, right?

Up to the tizzop