Marisa Kirisame is a secondary main character from the Touhou Project games 3-12, which are a series of shooting games. Touhou Projects plot revolves around strange phenomena that occur in the realm of Gensokyo, an isolated community which was once haunted by yokai, now in present day human and yokai coexist in Gensokyo, however the seal which surrounds Gensokyo has weakened and more things from the outside world appear in Gensokyo.
Marisa Kirisame is a human magician who lives in a house in the Forest of Magic. Marisa is an avid collector of stuff and so her house is filled with various items she 'borrowed' from people. Marisa is also a solitary person who spends most of her time researching magic. She is selfish, sometimes violent, and has a disagreeable manner, however underneath it all she is honest and hard working. Although she first appears as an enemy in the games she does befriend Reimu Hakurei, and visits her at the shrine often. Marisa uses high-level destruction magic and borrows a lot of spells and skills from other characters.
Packaging:
Marisa 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. Marisa's backdrop is of a starlight night sky. Marisa also comes with a special cut-out to use with the Di: Stage.
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 = 7/10
Stand:
Marisa 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:
Marisa's character design has changed throughout the Touhou Project games and so this is Max Factory's interpretation of Marisa's character design.
Marisa's over all design is great, she is very well sculpted and she just is so darn adorable.
Starting from the top, Marisa's hair is just wonderful, it's flowing and wavy and her fringe is nicely detailed, her bangs are made of soft PVC so that movement is not restricted. Her facial expressions are well sculpted and have a lot of personality in them. Her dress is nicely shaped, her puffy sleeves are made from soft PVC as is the front part of her jacket so that her movement is not restricted. Her apron is lovely, with ripples and creases as if she is standing in a summers breeze, frill around the outside of the apron is also sculpted well. Her dress and petticoat are also blowing in a summer breeze, and her petticoat is nicely ruffled. The bow on the back of her skirt is lovely and made of soft PVC. And lastly like Reimu she has a lovely pair of bloomers under her skirt, the bloomers are a part of her leg sculpt, with soft PVC panties completing the bloomers at her leg and hip joint. Marisa also has nice legs ruffled sock and very cute low heeled black shoes
I also have to mention her hat, which is very nicely sculpted and completes her adorable witch look.
Sculpt = 9/10
Paint:
Marisa has a simple colour scheme of black and white, with a little spot of red being her bow in her hair. So not much to say about her paint work. Only one or two mistakes.
So onto her accessories, her facial expressions are well painted, her eyes are just lovely. Her Hakkero is nicely painted and so is her book.
Paint = 7/10
Articulation:
Marisa 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 under her chest. 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.
Pose:
Marisa is therefore highly posable and can be posed in a variety of ways. With the use of the accessories supplied, her witches broom and hat, her cup of tea, her spell book, and her Hakkero, she can be displayed in a number of poses, sipping on a cup of tea, reading her book, flying through the sky on her broom or with her Hakkero in the middle of using her 'Master Spark' attack. However there are a few areas in which articulation is restricted, like most Figma's her skirt stops her from sitting down as it is made of hard PVC, also this means she cannot do extreme leg movements, however she is able to kneel which is nice. One note worthy thing is that unlike a lot of Figma's she is nicely weighted and so it is easy to pose her and she rarely falls over.
Articulation & Pose = 7/10
I will break down enjoyment into two categories: Accessories and Play Value.
Accessories:
Marisa comes with three facial expressions; a smiling expression, a yelling expression, and the very cute grinning expression. Marisa also comes with an assortment of hands; a pair of open hands, a pair of fists, and a pair of hands for holding items.
Marisa also comes with her signature items. A witches broom, a tea cup and saucer (which are pre-attached to hands), her witches hat, and her spell book (pre-attached to hand). She also has her magical item, Hakkero, which she uses to cast her 'Master Spark' spell (pre-attached to hand).
Another neat accessory are her additional shoes with clips on the bottom so that she can ride her broom. Simply take off one pair of shoes and slide on the other and clip onto the broom! A wonderful addition by Max Factory.
Play Value:
I will break down play value into two categories: Compatibility, with other figures and accessories, and general play.
Compatibility:
Marisa is able to a number of other Figma accessories as her holding hands will are not fully closed. She can get savage with weapons, protect herself from robbers with a baseball bat, use magic cards to make sake (she is a witch after all), and even sing a song if you ask her nicely. So all in all she is a very versatile figure.
Next up is a height comparison, as you can see she is on the same height as Reimu and so is on the shorter side of the Figma height scale.
General Play:
In general Marisa is a lot of fun to play with, she has loads of expression and character, and she looks great beside her friend Reimu. She also can be swapped around with other Figma body parts to make very cute combinations. So I am very satisfied with the level of play I can get out of her, she is a happy new addition to my ever growing collection.
Overall I love Marisa, she is now one of my favourite figures, she is just oozing cuteness and she looks so cheeky. And lets face it who can resist a cute little witch.
Enjoyment = 9/10
Over all Marisa scores 7.7/10
