While browsing, two upcoming bishonen figures caught my eye…. yep, I’m always on the look out for lovely looking boys lol~ And I think the industry is clearly directing them at the female market…
These two characters are from the girls visual novel (Otome / Neoromance game) Harukanaru Toki no Naka de 遙かなる時空の中で.
Super quick summary of the Harukanaru Toki no Naka de story: One day the heroine and her friend are sucked into a well and find themselves in another world (Kyo). Being the “chosen one”, she has to help Kyo fight against their enemy and restore peace.
The very popular PS2 girls (dating) adventure game is currently in its third installment and the figures are based on characters from the third game.
The game has also spawned a number of anime and OVA. I have to admit I haven’t finished watching the anime. Why are heroines in such animes always SO WHINY AND ANNOYING? *pissed* So yeah… I didn’t get past episode 2 in the first series. I may attempt to watch the OVA 舞一夜（まいひとよ） for the sake of Sakupyon tho’ but anyway…
I’ve not played the game either… erm… so far I played only BL visual novel games but… these boys look rather yummy indeed 
Okie, here are some side-by-side comparison of the original character design and their sculpted counterparts. Looks pretty good eh? Yoshitsune Minamoto (left) and Masaomi Arikawa (right).
However, my personal preference for collecting figures are for chibis and action figures, not statues cos of limited display space at home… unless they are on sale of course 
So I may consider getting these chibis from Hiiro no Kakera (緋色の欠片) instead. It is another otome game cos they’re cute AND because they’re also by Kotobukiya.
There are 7 different chibis and 2 secrets. The thing I like about Kotobukiya one-coin figures is that as long as you buy the full box, you definitely get all the characters. I don’t like too many surprises when it comes to collecting figures ^^ not economical since they are already so expensive. Anyway these chibis are 5cm tall.
You can pre-order them at CDJapan or Playasia ^^ To be released in Dec 2008.
I might have prejudice against Harukanaru but after seeing some of the merchandises and knowing the plot, i feel the story is quite empty.
“The Chosen One” formula is repetitive, like iy or not the if the chosen one is a heroine she’ll be surrounded by many boys and the girl will be annoying.
Im not being jealous but i have a perfect example which Ayashi No ceres by Yuu Watase, Aya the main character is sooo whiny and annoying.
Even thou they’re bishonen, they’re not included on my wishlist.
I think the OVA Maihitoyo theatrical release should be ok… the plot sounds quite interesting. The heroine finds a mystery man (voiced by Sakupyon) who lost his memory. He is linked to a fatal dance who kills the performer after it is performed. If all else fails, at least it is a movie so it is shorter and the probability of being annoyed is less than the series haha.
“The Chosen One” formula is very common theme cos it is effective and has the widest reach. But the difference is in the storytelling. Harukanaru, Ayashi no Ceres and Fushigi Yugi can be really annoying. Even 12 Kingdoms heroine was annoying at first but the refreshing concept of casting mystical Kirin in the story kept me interested. Fortunately, she stopped being whiny really early in the series and went on to become a strong and well-rounded character.
Hey even Kyou Kara Maoh is about the Chosen One theme XD but it is entertaining cos it doesn’t take itself too seriously. It is meant to be a parody of sorts… I mean Yuri was sucked into a -toilet bowl- and appeared in the other world lol~ Harukanaru (sucked into an old well), Fushigi Yugi (sucked into a book)…
They’re expensive loh, those statues. I’m more for the one-coin chibis. They are characters from the PS game. The illustrator is the one who did Zanka artbook, the one I bought recently ^^
Gah! Yuu Watase’s works are sucks.
maybe becoz im a girl, i dun usually pay attention to female chara in anime/manga unless they’re really annoying or cool.
Anime heroines tht i love are from, You Under Arrest, Howl’s Moving Castle (recommended), and some other animes i forgot to mention right now. XD
Tht one coin? Is it Kotobukiya also?
What does “one-coin” term means? is it because the base small or as if one does vending machine toys? (most likely not)
Oh i dont follow Kyo Kara Maoh, thou the series have some ‘dedicated’ fans in here but i know the toilet bowl story. XD
Yea, when it involves female character as a lead x_x Her recent (and very 1st) BL work is actually pretty good. The art is great and the characters and story is quite interesting.
I think partly cos the female characters are really not that great in many animes… so not just cos we’re girls that we don’t notice them ^^ I love the women in Seirei no Moribito and Claymore. I like Spirited Away too. I’ve not watched Howl. It is in the to-watch list.
I believe the one-coin name comes from those toy vending machines. Cos usually you insert a 500 Yen coin (one coin XD) then turn the knob to get your trading figures housed in the “round/egg-shaped” container right?
Yesh~ the Toilet Bowl is a classic XD I’m half-way through KKM Season 2. I have the Season 1 R1 DVD Boxed set (the packaging turned out to be rather disappointing tho’ not cheap leh… so angry =_=) Maybe if I bought the disks individually, I get better packaging. Anyway, I’ll be getting the season 2 boxed set -only during a sale- when it comes out, just for keepsakes. I think most of the time, usual R1 versions are only worth getting during a sale, unless they mentioned that there are special editions of it.
Which leads me to my gripe with R1 Haru wo Daiteita DVD x_x nice cover but no booklet. Unforgivable. They probably thought there isn’t a big BL market in the US so they skimmed on the packaging to save cost. I think next time I’ll only get R2 versions of BL DVDs if I can afford it.