Fate/Stay Night follows a two week period in the life of Shiro Emiya, Shiro who is a good boy who helps out anyone who asks has a dream of being able to make the world a better place and save people’s lives, however Shiro finds himself in the middle of a battle royal between magi and their summoned epic here servants. Shiro have little skill in magic himself manages the call fourth a Saber servant and thus he becomes one of the magi who is competing for the Holy Grail a legendary chalice that can grant wishes.
Saber is Shiro’s servant, and is independent reserved and often will act coldly as she has learnt to suppress her emotions. Saber’s full name is Arturia Pendragon and she wields Excalibur as her Noble Phantasm, she also fights with Caliburn and her magical sheath for Excalibur which bequeaths immortality, Avalon.
Packaging:
Saber comes in a standard Figma box.
On the front is a window for viewing the figure, on one side is the Figma logo, on the other is a picture of the figure, on the back there is relevant information, all in Japanese, and pictures of the figure in various poses with their various accessories. Instructions for swapping face pieces and other items are usually printed on either inside of the box tabs or on a piece of paper slipped inside the packaging. Also take note that all figures you purchase have the correct authentication printed or stickered on the box.
Inside the box the figure is held between two pieces of moulded plastic, with spaces for their accessories. The extra hands and the base of the Figma stand are stored in plastic bags underneath the figure in the plastic moulding. Figures are usually wrapped with plastic in certain areas to protect the paint. Boxes also come with inserts which act as backdrops in the box and can be taken out and used for backdrops while displaying figures. Saber's backdrop is a landscape with a picture of her standing triumphantly.
Figma’s also are supplied with a small zip-lock bag to store all the accessories in, the name of the figure can be written on this bag so that figure accessories can be stored neatly. Figma’s also come with a neat little device for storing the extra hands in.
Packaging = 6/10
Stand:
Saber comes with the standard Figma stand. Made of clear plastic it has three points of articulation which move forwards and back on hinge joints, one joint is at the bottom where it plugs into the base, one in the middle and one where it plugs into the Figma. The articulation of the stand allows the Figma to be posed in a variety of dynamic poses, and because it is clear it does not interfere with the aesthetic of taking dynamic and exciting photos.
Stand = 7/10
Sculpt:
This is Saber Knight Clothes version.
Saber's overall design is great, she is tiny and cute yet has heaps of clothing and armour which nicely contrast her tiny frame.
Starting from the top, her hair is well sculpted and the detailing of her bun is so nice, her gauntlets and breast plate are nicely moulded, her breast plate can be removed to show her nice peasant style top. Her armoured boots look great and her skirts are wonderful, and the soft PVC front piece is very cool and allows for a range of leg movement, there is also added movement in her skirt pieces, they are able to move around and the inner white piece can move in and out, this allows her sculpt to be great and yet does not restrict figure articulation.
She then has puffy white pants and where you would normally find the standard Figma panties it continues to be the top of her trousers with an extra piece of skirt, all in soft PVC. They have really utilized her characters design to hide nicely the Figma joints, with a soft PVC sleeve at her shoulders, hiding the unpleasant Figma shoulder joint.
Sculpt = 9/10
Paint:
Saber has a wonderful colour scheme, she has a lovely royal blue with chrome silver armour, there is some nice gold detailing and her purple front skirt piece ties in well with her purple hair ribbon. Saber is also painted very well, as all the Figma’s are. She has lovely details on her breast plate and the paint detail on her skirt and inner skirt is very nice, the gold adding a very nice regal touch.
Saber's accessories are very nicely painted, with shiny silver blades, Caliburn having gold, blue and red detailing down the blade and on the hilt, with a nicely decorated sheath. Excalibur has a simpler design with just gold and blue decorating its blade hilt and sheath. Both with very fine and intricate paint work.
Paint = 9/10
Articulation:
Saber use’s the standard Figma joint system. Figma joints are hinge joints with pegs on either end allowing both forward and back movement and rotation.
At the head a Figma joint is used at the top of the neck allowing the figure to look up and down and turn their head left and right, however looking up is restricted somewhat by the design of the back of the hair. To change the faces on Figma’s the front piece of hair is removed and then the faces can be taken of and swapped.
The shoulder consists of a double joint, a ball joint which sits inside the upper body, this is attached to a ball shaped Figma joint which acts as the shoulder, and this allows full range of motion to the shoulder. Further down a Figma joint is used as the elbow and bends in and then out straight and there is some slight rotation for the lower arm to turn in and out. At the wrist the various hands plug into a small hole at the end of the arm. Each hand also has a hinge joint, which not only allows the hand to rotate but also to move up and down which gives the figure realistic wrist movement.
A waist joint is located in the middle of her torso. Waist joints are ball and socket joints, a ball joint will be attached to the upper body and which plug into a socket in the main torso, this gives the body twisting movement and bending forwards and back. At the hips a three jointed ball and socket joint is used. One ball plugs into a socket at the bottom of the torso acting as the hip joint; this allows the hips to turn side to side, lean forward or back, then on each of the other two ball joints the legs plug on. Each leg has an inner socket which the ball joint plugs into, this piece allows full range of motion from the ball joint and also allows the thigh to turn in and out as it pegs inside the main leg piece.
A Figma joint is then used as the knee allowing the knee to bend backwards and then out to straight, and there is some slight rotation for the lower leg to turn in and out. The ankle also is a Figma joint allowing the foot to point and flex turn in and out.
Saber as mentioned before has several points of articulation incorporated into her skirt design. At the back of each skirt piece there is a Figma joint allowing the skirt to in any direction, then the inner skirt can move forward and back slightly and the inner white piece can further move in and out, this allows Saber to be posed in dynamic positions without her skirt interfering with articulation.
Pose:
Saber is therefore highly posable and can be posed in a variety of ways. With the use of the accessories supplied, her two swords Caliburn and Excalibur, she can be displayed in a number of poses, standing with her hands layered on her sheathed sword, drawing her sword from its sheath, battle ready with sword in hand, and even on the attack with two swords at once. However there are a few areas in which articulation is restricted, although her skirt design allows for a good deal of movement and freedom Saber cannot get into a sitting position unless the skirt pieces are removed.
Articulation & Pose = 9/10
Enjoyment:
I will break down enjoyment into two categories: Accessories and Play Value.
Accessories:
Saber comes with three facial expressions; a plain content expression, an angry yelling expression, and a teeth gritted battle expression. Saber also comes with an assortment of hands; a pair of fists, a pair of hands for holding or resting upon her swords sheaths, a pair of hands for holding items, an open hand, and a pointing hand.
Saber also comes with her two swords, Excalibur, with it's sheath Avalon, and Caliburn, with it's sheath, and last but not least an extra fringe piece with her hair blowing in the wind, a nice touch my Max Factory.
I will break down play value into two categories: Compatibility, with other figures and accessories, and general play.
Compatibility:
Saber's hands can be used for a number of other Figma accessories, she can use all of Signum's weapons except the bow, she can fight with Vita's and Cute's, she can even attack using a broom! She is not sure of the leek though, and has no real use for a prayer rod, however with a little alcohol she will even sing with Miku's microphone. So Saber is able to use a good range of other Figma items, which increases her enjoyment factor.
Next up is a height comparison, as you can see she is on the shorter side of the Figma height scale.
General Play:
In general Sabe is an enjoyable figure and one of my favourite figures, and you can tell this because she now has the most scratches! She has lots of spunk and is a well designed figure. She is able to pull of her character's personality very well, and as one of the first Figma's she is top quality.
Overall Saber is a great figure, and there is a reason why she is one of the most owned Figma's, and thats because she is pretty yet strong and has lots of attitude.
Enjoyment = 10/10
Over all Saber scores 8.3/10
