Apricotsushi Unboxes: Rin Matsuoka by Altair

10 / 15 / 1510 / 17 / 15

As a rule, I try not to buy many scale figures (talk about expensive!), but after I saw Altair’s Rin Matsuoka sculpt, there was no way I could resist. I preordered him in a heartbeat and pined away many months until he finally arrived on my doorstep late in September.

Of course, a new scale figure calls for a new unboxing video! I try to show off all the details in my latest video, so if you’re interested in this figure, I highly encourage you to give it a watch:

Unfortunately, it seems like there is an ongoing problem with this particular figure, which I only found out after browsing user comments at My Figure Collection. Multiple people have reported that there is a small, yet noticeable, gap between one of Rin’s feet and his swimsuit. Low and behold… Mine has it too! I probably wouldn’t have noticed this if I hadn’t seen complaints from others, which may be a cautionary tale in not reading comments, but it also goes to show that I don’t inspect my figures with the true eye of a collector. Luckily it’s not a particularly glaring flaw, but it’s likely the reason why Rin is still available for sale, despite the other Free! Haruka and Makoto figures selling out so quickly they needed re-releases.

Regardless, I’m still very happy! Would a flaw like this ruin your appreciation of a figure?

The Best Splatoon Merchandise to Satisfy Your Inkling Craving

10 / 12 / 15

Who doesn’t love Splatoon? Nintendo’s new fun, fast-paced, and drop-dead adorable IP has stolen many a heart over the last few months, and it’s not hard to see why. When I’m not jumping online for a quick match in Turf Wars, I’m humming my favorite songs and dreaming I’m half as fresh as the inklings inhabiting the world of Splatoon. If you’re like me and can’t get enough of this amazing title, here are five items you need to put on your wishlist immediately!

Sunday Spotlight: Abstract Cactus Fan Art

10 / 11 / 15

I’m quickly realizing that it’s going to take a lot of willpower not to just feature amazing artists in my spotlights every week! There are simply too many awesome people out there making art, whether it be fan art or otherwise Makku of Abstract Cactus is an artist I’ve been following for over a year now, and she stands out in particular for a really eye-catching, signature style.

Like Romy, who I featured the other week, Makku is a big fan of otome games. Head over to her Tumblr and you’ll quickly realize that Hakuoki is her otome game of choice, but she also has many illustrations of other popular nerdy characters. Some of my personal favorites include Lina and Naga from Slayers sharing a parfait and a slightly unsettling Hatoful Boyfriend birthday image. I also can’t neglect to mention the gorgeous Masato Hijirikawa (from Uta no Prince-sama) fan art she drew for my birthday last year!

Okay, so if it wasn’t obvious already, I’m totally partial to Makku’s work. Be sure to give her a follow on Tumblr and Twitter if you are, too! She’s also currently open for commissions right now and in need of money to pay some medical bills, so if you like her work, do consider hiring her to draw your favorite character!

Japan Envy: Kirimi-chan x KFC = Kentucky Fried Salmon

10 / 9 / 15

Sanrio’s salmon fillet mascot character Kirimi-chan has teamed up with an unlikely partner for her latest collaboration: KFC. That’s right, Kentucky Fried Chicken establishments in Japan will now be offering fried salmon, because why the hell not!

Billed as special fall Hokkaido salmon, the fried salmon will be available for one month only from October to November, both on its on with tartare sauce or in a salmon sandwich. To celebrate the collaboration, Sanrio has even created a new friend for Kirimi-chan called Agemi-chan, which comes from the Japanese for “deep fried,” or “age.”

You can head over to the official Kirimi-chan x KFC website to see the full menu, but more importantly, they have wallpapers:

At least those of us outside of Japan can have something fun to enjoy from this collaboration! In related news, somehow I totally missed this promotional video Sanrio released where Kirimi-chan transforms all of her friends into bishonen:

Kirimi-chan was never my favorite Sanrio character, but she may be growing on me…

BL Game Kickstarter Witch Boy Magical Piece Needs Your Help!

10 / 8 / 1510 / 8 / 15

It’s amazing to see how Kickstarter and other crowdfunding platforms are enabling games such as visual novels to go directly to their audience for funding! The latest in exciting Kickstarters is the boys’ love (BL) visual novel Witch Boy Magical Piece from Sekai Project, which is looking to fund the game’s localization through crowdfunding. With only 10 days left on the clock and still a ways to go to reach its $57,000 goal, I’m going to tell you why this game is awesome and deserves more support!

Sunday Spotlight: XO Mia Cosplay and Geek Lifestyle Blog

10 / 4 / 1510 / 4 / 15

Happy first Sunday of October! For the first Spotlight of the month, I’d like to urge you all to check out Mia, an awesome cosplayer and blogger at XOMia.com.

I first learned of Mia’s site after stumbling into photos of her adorable Isabelle cosplay. I love how all of the Animal Crossing characters in the group photo above have been translated to humanoid versions, but Mia’s Isabelle takes the cake. She even has a makeup tutorial if you want to recreate the look yourself!

Like me, Mia specializes in all things cute and nerdy, but her particular area of focus tends to be cosplay and con recaps. I don’t go to a lot of cons myself, so I really love being able to live vicariously through her! If those things sound up your alley too, I definitely recommend her fun site.

October Community Game-Along: Kusoge

10 / 1 / 15

Ah October, a time of pumpkin spice lattes and spooky decor! This used to be my favorite time of year when I lived in a country that actually celebrated these things, but now I have to satisfy myself with shrimp on the barbie or some other appropriately Aussie thing whenever the holiday season rolls around.

But I digress! October would be the perfect time to do another horror-themed Community Game-Along like I did last year, but I thought it would be fun to shake things up with a different kind of horror this time. That horror is… kusoge! Literally “shit game” in Japanese, kusoge can range from unplayable garbage to diamond-in-the-rough titles that have some unpolished aspects but shine in other areas.