Sakuya Izayoi is a stage 5 boss from the Touhou Project games 7-9, 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 the 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.
Sakuya Izayoi is the only human living in the Scarlet Devil Mansion and is head maid. Sakuya however is no ordinary maid and has the ability to manipulate time, her other talents include cooking and using her throwing knives.
Sakuya Izayoi is the only human living in the Scarlet Devil Mansion and is head maid. Sakuya however is no ordinary maid and has the ability to manipulate time, her other talents include cooking and using her throwing knives.
Packaging:
Sakuya 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 molded 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 molding. 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. Sakuya's backdrop is a blue and white scene with a clock face on it. Sakuya 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 = 8/10
Stand:
Sakuya 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:
Sakuya's overall design is lovely, she has a pretty little maid outfit and yet she looks like she could kick some serious butt.
Starting from the top her hair is nicely sculpted and detailed with her two plaits are made of soft PVC so that they do not restrict movement. Her face is nicely shaped, her arms and legs are also nicely proportioned and I really like how she isn't way too skinny like most Figma girls. Her maid outfit is very well designed. Nicely sculpted with ripples and folds in the fabric of her skirt and apron, her shirt also has nice fold in it, she also has some areas of soft PVC on her aprons bow, her frilled sleeves and her puffy sleeves, allowing her unrestricted movement in these areas. Her legs are really nice, and although that sounds like a strange thing to comment on it is true, she has really nice shaped thighs and you can barely see the joint at her hips which is fantastic, also half way down her thigh she has her knife holster which is just made of hard PVC, it would have been amazing if Max Factory made it removable, but it looks great anyway, and her knife fits snuggly inside it. And lastly are her very cute shoes. Now I have to admit that the main selling point for me was her shoes, cute white socks and then just lovely heeled black shoes, they look so smexy!
Overall I am very happy with the sculpt, she just looks great.
Sculpt = 9/10
Paint:
Sakuya has a colour scheme of blue and white, with some red and green thrown in. Like most Figma's she is painted in block so nothing particularly special about her paint work. She has little to no mistakes and her eyes are very nicely painted indeed.
Sakuya's accessories are well painted, nice shiny silver blades to her knives, very few mess ups on paint on her accessories, and her faces look great, I really love her eyes they look fantastic. Also her watch is painted particularly well, with very good detail, it looks just like the real thing.
Paint = 8/10
Articulation:
Sakuya 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 top of her neck is a Figma joint that allows the figure to look side to side, down and up. 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:
Sakuya is therefore highly posable and can be posed in a variety of ways. With the use of the accessories supplied, her mop, her six throwing knives, her magical pocket watch, and her sheathed leg knife, she can be displayed in a number of poses, ready to attack with her throwing knives in hand, cleaning up the place with her mop, using her magic with he pocket watch, and macking a quick attack with her other knife. However there are a few areas in which articulation is restricted as her skirt is made of hard PVC her leg movement is somewhat restricted.
Articulation & Pose = 9/10
Enjoyment:
I will break down enjoyment into two categories: Accessories and Play Value.
Accessories:
Sakuya comes with three facial expressions; a plain expression, a glaring expression, and a grinning eyes closed expression. Sakuya also comes with an assortment of hands; a pair of open hands, a pair of hands for holding her throwing knives, a pair of fists, a pair of hands for holding items, and a hand for holding her knife.
Sakuya also comes with her pocket watch which she uses for her powers, which is pre-attached to a hand, she also comes with seven knives, six throwing knives which are all separate and can be slotted into her special knives holding hands, this is a nice feature because it allows you to create a number of looks and action poses, rather than having the standard item pre-attached to a hand. Her seventh knife is a larger one which is sheathed to her leg, to sheath simply pop her leg off at the hip and then slide the knife into the holster.
Lastly she has her mop, because no maid is complete without and instrument for cleaning. Also Max Factory have included a sheet of effect stickers which can be attached to the figure to create more fun and expressive scenes. A very nice touch Max Factory.
Play Value:
I will break down play value into two categories: Compatibility, with other figures and accessories, and general play.
Compatibility:
Sakuya is very compatible with other Figma accessories, she can swig Sake, battle with an array of weapons and even cheer her friends on to victory.
Next up is a height comparison, as you can see she is on the shorter side of the Figma height scale, and is around the same height of the other Touhou girls and the Haruhi Suzumiya Figmas.
General Play:
In general Sakuya is an awesome figure, she has lots of spunk and attitude, I really like the combination of cute dainty maid and tough knife wielding warrior. I recommend for Touhou fans or collectors of the Touhou Figmas.
Enjoyment = 9/10
Over all Sakuya Izayoi scores 8.3/10
