Building a collection of anime and video game figures is an expensive hobby. The small collection I have (some of which have been covered on The Otaku’s Study) has easily cost me a few thousand dollars to acquire over the last couple of years. Therefore if you are someone whose favourite characters shift with every season or prefer mainstream characters, and don’t have some form of disposable income, then it might not be the hobby for you. While the most popular figures will sell out during their pre-order period, in situations where you do have the luxury to do so, knowing a figure is tailored to your preferences is essential to ensure you get value for money.
As I have had to pull back from purchasing any new figures for the past couple of months, rather than write reviews of new releases, I would like to share a look at my current figure collection through this new photographic series. I hope my sharing these may help you in deciding whether purchasing a particular figure is a wise decision or note.
Yama no Susume, also known as Encouragement of Climb, is a 2013-2018 anime series which is based off the original manga written and illustrated by Shiro. While slice-of-life franchises involving cute characters doing sports activities are not uncommon, this took a more unusual route by focusing on mountaineering. You can watch the full series on CrunchyRoll if this sounds like something relevant to your viewing interests.
Although they unfortunately did not expand to the remainder of the lead cast, Japanese figure manufacturer PLUM created figures based on protagonists Aoi Yukimura and Hinata Kuraue – with summer and autumnal variants available. This figure is the summer variant featuring energetic mood-maker Hinata Kuraue. It see’s her perched on a wooden bench in her colourful hiking gear, posing all cool-like while resting against her backpack.
Coming in at 19cm (190mm) in height, this is a 1/7 scale figure which went at a standard retail price of 15,000 yen when launched during October 2018. As of writing, you can still find the figure available pre-owned via AmiAmi and other sites, often at a reasonable price compared to RRP.
