Delayed collection update time!
After taking more photos, I realized I still hadn't shared a couple other photos I took a month ago, so I'll include the major stuff~! Today was a crazy mail day, so that's why I must share!
Firstly, let's do something a little different. How about KH-based things first?
Here are my lovely KH:BBS keyholders/keychains that arrived today. I only got the ones for Aqua's Rainfall (left) and Terra's Earth Shaker (right). They're heavier than they look, but they've got lovely details. <3 I'd be even happier if there were colored versions available, but I don't see that happening for a while, haha.
I'm still wondering why there haven't been any figures for the BBS trio yet. ;A; Maybe a little patience will pay off in the end?
Official material? Afraid not. This is a compilation fanbook with nothing but sketchwork throughout! It's a shame that the cover and all the corners got bent a bit, but that's what happens when people stick with cheaper shipping materials + paperback books.
Adorable back~!
Now about the book itself. From my understanding, it's a group effort from around a dozen artists at DA, all doing many different drawings/sketches when it comes to the KH series. There's something from every single game and even some parody works. With so many people involved, you really get to see a bunch of different styles. Even though nothing inside is colored (although I have seen some of the works colored on some of the DA artists' pages, just not in this book), I still really enjoy seeing all these works. :) One of my favorites in the book? A group shot of the BBS trio~!
I even got this nifty Xemnas pin from the group! :D It's so difficult/impossible to find anything Xemnas-related when it comes to merchandise, I'm glad to have something I can say is!
While I'm on the topic of DA artists, I might as well share the following two other books.
Here's Nyanko-chan's BLKBT B&W artbook. It's pretty hard to see the cover besides the black due to the type of cover it is, haha. All around, how much one can like this book depends on their personal preference. Do you like Nyanko-chan's style and general themes/subjects she tends to cover? While I like a good portion of her works, I still haven't been able to get into the gory stuff, so some of this book doesn't appeal to me. It's handled very well, otherwise!
Iruka-Loves-Kakashi's oneshot (??) yaoi book with her own original characters. I was probably much more amused by the whole thing than she would be hoping for, but sometimes it's all you can do. XD It's mostly PWP, and she admits in the Forward section how it's mostly OOC material. I unfortunately don't know the characters featured in this book outside of the descriptions, some of which are incredibly hard to read due to the tones being too light. A problem I do have is that the English is not always correct; there are spelling/grammar errors sprinkled throughout the book. Looking past that, it's still amusing to read through, although it's not perfect in several ways. I think this was a one-time release for her? Well, you have to start from somewhere, no matter what genre you decide to pursue. :)
Moving along, now we hit the other gaming stuff!
I believe I've mentioned buying the PS3 import for Tales of Vesperia, but I hadn't shown actually receiving it, whoops. Here's the PS3 cover!
As for playing ToV, I'm still a bit split about the whole thing, but not for the reasons you'd suspect. I'm still bitter/disappointed about the PS3 version never being released in N.A., although there were apparently hints to imply we'd get it. I could just go look on YouTube and watch the whole game in English, that's very true. However, watching a clip on YouTube is very different from playing the actual thing!
ToV is possibly going to end up as my favorite Tales series game, from the look and gaming style I've seen. Of the main party members I've seen so far, I really like everyone, even Estelle with her innocent self. Yuri is awesome, Repede is crazy adorable, and I want to see more of Raven! I adore how fluid and smooth the visuals are, I'm kind of amazed by how far of a leap this is from Tales of the Abyss. They finally got the hang of making scenes look more dynamic without feeling so stiff. <3 Although the music, as usual, isn't really standing out to me just yet, I'm still open to whatever may happen. I'm just going to have fun with this anyway~!
My gameplan is to get through as much/finish ToV in Japanese, then I can go watch everything in English. However, what I have seen is that there are again cutscenes that were originally voiced in Japanese are suddenly voiceless in English. The English release failures strike again. D: It makes me worry for the rest of the game in some ways.
And here's an example of why it sucks to get into something after the initial "buzz" has died off quite a while ago.
You might wonder why I bothered looking for the ToV English strategy guide. Well, my translation skills are sucking, not that I was an expert anyway, but it's very easy for me to get confused in non-KH (???) import games. What sucks is that this copy was the cheapest I could find for the now out of print guide, which was around $40; most people sell it in the same condition for easily over $75, if not closer to $125+. I was very lucky to have found what I could!
And although I know her name is Estelle in English, I tend to refer to her as Esther. Blame how I hear it in Japanese and how I prefer the sound a little more, haha. OTL
Care to see what new Pokemon items I got since the last update? Well, here they are!
A couple random figures from an Amazon seller. Here's the Arceus clipping figure and my second Quilava kid figure (incorrectly labeled as a clipping figure by the seller!). I like seeing Arceus have different poses, and the Quilava kid is actually a bit larger than the other one I got, as well as it having a neat little pose. <3
From the same seller as the above, here's the Zoroark + Zorua zukan set. There are two sets available for this duo, but I much prefer this one because I like the poses more.
Given that Zoroark has the "option" to stand on her hind legs or walk on all fours, I generally prefer the latter, strangely enough.
Speaking of Zoroark, here's my summer grail item that arrived today~!
Here she is in all her glory~! It's the 7-11 lottery figure of Zoroark, which I was able to get with the special help of happyjolteon. For the record, in comparison to the other two 7-11 lotto figures I have, Zoroark here is larger than the Arceus one yet technically slightly smaller than the Darkrai one, if only because Darkrai has a base while Zoroark doesn't. Otherwise, she is huge and probably my favorite Zoroark figure. <3
I thought I'd share all the Zoroark figures I've gotten to this point. From left to right:
clipping figure, zukan from above, custom figure, large Tomy figure, 7-11 lotto figure
I'm not sure if I'll really "need" any more since I got my grail. The only other one I'd be interested in is that Bandai prize one, but I believe they're only gotten from game machines or so? Good luck finding one, hahaha.
Slightly older order from nanoplasm, here's the Mew soft vinyl figure. It's so adorable and easy to squish! Although I'm not really an active Mew collector anymore, there are little things such as this that make me remember the old times. XD
Another part of my last order from nanoplasm, here's the snap-together set for Cyndaquil, Quilava, and Typhlosion. It may not seem like it, but I've always had a blast when it comes to these sorts of kits. Back in the day, I even used to get some of the Evangelion kits where the instructions were again all in Japanese, but I still had fun. Thankfully, this trio (I still haven't bothered with the Pikachu included) made of fairly sturdy plastic, so I don't need to worry about them breaking. Getting the stickers on was the real challenge, though! I really love the Quilava here~!
And here's the crazy awesome custom Zekrom plush by system69. I really don't think the photo does real justice to it, but it's surreal how detailed and intricate this plush is. It's a wonderful rendition of Zekrom and is one of the more unique Pokemon-related plush I've had the honor of owning. :)
To finish this entry off, here are my current Pokemon gen. V plush that I like the most so far or have a special place in my heart. Group photo until the new merchandise comes out!
Have I thought about which gen. V Pokemon I'll probably collect? Sort of. There are ones that I think I'd like at least a couple things for, like figures and plush, but there may not be many that I'd try to go crazy out of the way for, when it comes down to what's been revealed so far.
Since I've already done a bit of collecting for Zoroark and a little for Zorua, I may stop actively collecting their stuff soon because they're not at my top favorite levels, haha.
I will say that the new Pokemon I'd probably like to get at least one thing each (plush, figure, etc.) are the following:
Tsutaaja (possibly its evolutions, maybe one more than the others)
Shimama (possibly its evolution/s if there are any)
Mamepato (possibly its evolution/s if there are any))
Ononokusu
Victini (I'd probably go for a large Tomy plush!)
Reshiram
Zekrom
Firstly, let's do something a little different. How about KH-based things first?
Here are my lovely KH:BBS keyholders/keychains that arrived today. I only got the ones for Aqua's Rainfall (left) and Terra's Earth Shaker (right). They're heavier than they look, but they've got lovely details. <3 I'd be even happier if there were colored versions available, but I don't see that happening for a while, haha.
I'm still wondering why there haven't been any figures for the BBS trio yet. ;A; Maybe a little patience will pay off in the end?
Official material? Afraid not. This is a compilation fanbook with nothing but sketchwork throughout! It's a shame that the cover and all the corners got bent a bit, but that's what happens when people stick with cheaper shipping materials + paperback books.
Adorable back~!
Now about the book itself. From my understanding, it's a group effort from around a dozen artists at DA, all doing many different drawings/sketches when it comes to the KH series. There's something from every single game and even some parody works. With so many people involved, you really get to see a bunch of different styles. Even though nothing inside is colored (although I have seen some of the works colored on some of the DA artists' pages, just not in this book), I still really enjoy seeing all these works. :) One of my favorites in the book? A group shot of the BBS trio~!
I even got this nifty Xemnas pin from the group! :D It's so difficult/impossible to find anything Xemnas-related when it comes to merchandise, I'm glad to have something I can say is!
While I'm on the topic of DA artists, I might as well share the following two other books.
Here's Nyanko-chan's BLKBT B&W artbook. It's pretty hard to see the cover besides the black due to the type of cover it is, haha. All around, how much one can like this book depends on their personal preference. Do you like Nyanko-chan's style and general themes/subjects she tends to cover? While I like a good portion of her works, I still haven't been able to get into the gory stuff, so some of this book doesn't appeal to me. It's handled very well, otherwise!
Iruka-Loves-Kakashi's oneshot (??) yaoi book with her own original characters. I was probably much more amused by the whole thing than she would be hoping for, but sometimes it's all you can do. XD It's mostly PWP, and she admits in the Forward section how it's mostly OOC material. I unfortunately don't know the characters featured in this book outside of the descriptions, some of which are incredibly hard to read due to the tones being too light. A problem I do have is that the English is not always correct; there are spelling/grammar errors sprinkled throughout the book. Looking past that, it's still amusing to read through, although it's not perfect in several ways. I think this was a one-time release for her? Well, you have to start from somewhere, no matter what genre you decide to pursue. :)
Moving along, now we hit the other gaming stuff!
I believe I've mentioned buying the PS3 import for Tales of Vesperia, but I hadn't shown actually receiving it, whoops. Here's the PS3 cover!
As for playing ToV, I'm still a bit split about the whole thing, but not for the reasons you'd suspect. I'm still bitter/disappointed about the PS3 version never being released in N.A., although there were apparently hints to imply we'd get it. I could just go look on YouTube and watch the whole game in English, that's very true. However, watching a clip on YouTube is very different from playing the actual thing!
ToV is possibly going to end up as my favorite Tales series game, from the look and gaming style I've seen. Of the main party members I've seen so far, I really like everyone, even Estelle with her innocent self. Yuri is awesome, Repede is crazy adorable, and I want to see more of Raven! I adore how fluid and smooth the visuals are, I'm kind of amazed by how far of a leap this is from Tales of the Abyss. They finally got the hang of making scenes look more dynamic without feeling so stiff. <3 Although the music, as usual, isn't really standing out to me just yet, I'm still open to whatever may happen. I'm just going to have fun with this anyway~!
My gameplan is to get through as much/finish ToV in Japanese, then I can go watch everything in English. However, what I have seen is that there are again cutscenes that were originally voiced in Japanese are suddenly voiceless in English. The English release failures strike again. D: It makes me worry for the rest of the game in some ways.
And here's an example of why it sucks to get into something after the initial "buzz" has died off quite a while ago.
You might wonder why I bothered looking for the ToV English strategy guide. Well, my translation skills are sucking, not that I was an expert anyway, but it's very easy for me to get confused in non-KH (???) import games. What sucks is that this copy was the cheapest I could find for the now out of print guide, which was around $40; most people sell it in the same condition for easily over $75, if not closer to $125+. I was very lucky to have found what I could!
And although I know her name is Estelle in English, I tend to refer to her as Esther. Blame how I hear it in Japanese and how I prefer the sound a little more, haha. OTL
Care to see what new Pokemon items I got since the last update? Well, here they are!
A couple random figures from an Amazon seller. Here's the Arceus clipping figure and my second Quilava kid figure (incorrectly labeled as a clipping figure by the seller!). I like seeing Arceus have different poses, and the Quilava kid is actually a bit larger than the other one I got, as well as it having a neat little pose. <3
From the same seller as the above, here's the Zoroark + Zorua zukan set. There are two sets available for this duo, but I much prefer this one because I like the poses more.
Given that Zoroark has the "option" to stand on her hind legs or walk on all fours, I generally prefer the latter, strangely enough.
Speaking of Zoroark, here's my summer grail item that arrived today~!
Here she is in all her glory~! It's the 7-11 lottery figure of Zoroark, which I was able to get with the special help of happyjolteon. For the record, in comparison to the other two 7-11 lotto figures I have, Zoroark here is larger than the Arceus one yet technically slightly smaller than the Darkrai one, if only because Darkrai has a base while Zoroark doesn't. Otherwise, she is huge and probably my favorite Zoroark figure. <3
I thought I'd share all the Zoroark figures I've gotten to this point. From left to right:
clipping figure, zukan from above, custom figure, large Tomy figure, 7-11 lotto figure
I'm not sure if I'll really "need" any more since I got my grail. The only other one I'd be interested in is that Bandai prize one, but I believe they're only gotten from game machines or so? Good luck finding one, hahaha.
Slightly older order from nanoplasm, here's the Mew soft vinyl figure. It's so adorable and easy to squish! Although I'm not really an active Mew collector anymore, there are little things such as this that make me remember the old times. XD
Another part of my last order from nanoplasm, here's the snap-together set for Cyndaquil, Quilava, and Typhlosion. It may not seem like it, but I've always had a blast when it comes to these sorts of kits. Back in the day, I even used to get some of the Evangelion kits where the instructions were again all in Japanese, but I still had fun. Thankfully, this trio (I still haven't bothered with the Pikachu included) made of fairly sturdy plastic, so I don't need to worry about them breaking. Getting the stickers on was the real challenge, though! I really love the Quilava here~!
And here's the crazy awesome custom Zekrom plush by system69. I really don't think the photo does real justice to it, but it's surreal how detailed and intricate this plush is. It's a wonderful rendition of Zekrom and is one of the more unique Pokemon-related plush I've had the honor of owning. :)
To finish this entry off, here are my current Pokemon gen. V plush that I like the most so far or have a special place in my heart. Group photo until the new merchandise comes out!
Have I thought about which gen. V Pokemon I'll probably collect? Sort of. There are ones that I think I'd like at least a couple things for, like figures and plush, but there may not be many that I'd try to go crazy out of the way for, when it comes down to what's been revealed so far.
Since I've already done a bit of collecting for Zoroark and a little for Zorua, I may stop actively collecting their stuff soon because they're not at my top favorite levels, haha.
I will say that the new Pokemon I'd probably like to get at least one thing each (plush, figure, etc.) are the following:
Tsutaaja (possibly its evolutions, maybe one more than the others)
Shimama (possibly its evolution/s if there are any)
Mamepato (possibly its evolution/s if there are any))
Ononokusu
Victini (I'd probably go for a large Tomy plush!)
Reshiram
Zekrom