Hobby Maker Expo: Good Smile, Max Factory, Phat! Company

9:30 AM on 02.20.2012   |   Jonathan Tubbs

Always on the tail of Wonder Festival is the Hobby Maker Exhibition, another even where manufacturers gather to show off their upcoming goods to potential buyers. For us, it's another opportunity to gaze and drool at what's coming down the line. Of course you can expect a company like Good Smile Company along with Max Factory and Phat! Company to be at the event.

Despite the silly exposure of her front, Good Smile Company's Inori from Guilty Crown is looking very lovely with the the amount of motion sculpted into this static figure. Kyouko from Puella Magi Madoka Magica was on display still lacking any color. With a weapon like hers, would have been cooler to have a more action orientated pose that her current joyous "I'm holding a spear!" pose.

Max Factory's Luka from Vocaloid still has me on the fence. The pose and body look wonderful but her hair and head look very round compared to the official art and with the clear PVC, it feels like the hair lacks any real detail. The ultra petite figure of Menma from Ano Hi Mita Hana no Namae wo Bokutachi wa Mada Shiranai in her swimsuit has me wanting her to eat... oh, she is eating. Well, more. Eat more. Then there's Maria and Kobata from Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai. They do not come off as cute in their cat girl outfits, especially when you consider that pose and their age.

Phat! Company still continues to show off its boys from its original Shinsengumi Characters series. A mix bag of men to choose from, some handsome and some... just plain silly. Seriously, what's going on with the fiery round hair of Hajime? Looks like a mutant orange made into a helmet. And in the many releases of Izanagi from Persona 4, Phat! Company showed off their version who looks very bored to be there. MegaHouse's version may be similar but at least there's a little more action happening with the arm posed.

[Thank you to Tokyo Hunter for the photos!]