After receiving them, I have to say they're not as awesome as I had hoped, but the cuteness probably makes up for it.
A box of 8 charms is surprisingly small. I blinked incredulously as I fished out the set from the shipping box. According to Hobby Search, the box carrying the 8 charms is 21 x 9.5 x 6.6 cm. Yes, that's actually quite small (smaller than my Flynn plush doll, I believe). Anyway, you can tell that all the charms are cute just by glancing at the stock images on the box.
By ordering an entire box I was granted one extra charm, which is Jude Mathis from Tales of Xillia. In a normal box set, you only receive 8 charms, but the extra one comes separately. Keep that in mind if you want Jude. You won't get him if you order/buy just one figure (like on Play-Asia). Jude's box is actually different from the other boxes. He gets a nice indigo box that is labeled "Not for Sale".
In any case, you get two characters from each game, with the exception of Tales of Xillia. I'm aware that almost all of the charms have some seamlines. Usually seamlines don't bother me, but some of the ones on my charms are just awful. Fortunately bad seamlines and so-so paint jobs don't make the charms repulsive. They're still bloody adorable, especially when they're just sitting in the palm of your hand.
The (relatively) good ones
Some of the poses used for the charms are based off concept art. It gives a very classic feel to them, especially for the characters from the older games, like Cless.
Cless looks like...well, Cless! There's nothing about this charm that truly irritates me. It looks like Movic put in some effort to conceal Cless's seamlines by adding spiky hair. It also helps that Cless has a headband which goes around his head from the outside. It feels like the developers gave the first Tales of hero special treatment, which I truly appreciate. I certainly prefer that over crummy flaws!
Cless looks like an awesome champ! Especially with that red cape!
The first one I actually opened was Jude since his box was separate from the others. He's obviously not flawless, because the paint job on the charm is different from the stock photo on the box. Of course, that's a given for any product. Jude's left eye is really the only thing that might bother me. There is a bit of a paint wearing off around the top right of it, smudging the colours.
Here's a warning for you, my dear readers. Jude's paint job looks worse in a photograph than it does if you're just holding him. For example, his lips aren't as bad as the photo makes them out to be. I kept trying to take some decent ones from different distances and angles, but they still came out with the same result.
Honestly, without zooming in so much, Jude looks decent. You know, ignoring the giant unnecessary seamline on top of his head.
Asch probably received the best treatment (next to Cless). The paint job overall is decent, and let's face it, his hair is awesome. I do love how there is an unhappy expression drawn on his face because it completely fits his character. He also has his hand on the hilt of his sword, so anyone who goes near him will probably get hurt.
Does Asch have weird seamlines on his head? Nope! Asch and Lloyd both have lovely heads!
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| What are you looking at? |
...what?
Kratos is one of my favourite characters in the Tales of series. It brings me great pleasure to say that he doesn't have awkward flaws like some of my other charms.
I favour this little mercenary over the other characters because he's got lots spiky hair and wears a look of disapproval on his face. I must confess I find that expression highly amusing, especially on a tiny charm. In addition to that, he has his arms crossed! I love it!
Bad Seamlines
Flynn's charm would have been fine if it wasn't for the horrible seam line. It looks as though his hair wasn't glue together properly... If there's one thing I like about Flynn's hair, it's that there are some spikes sticking out from the back. I would have have criticized Movic if they made his hair flat.
Movic used Flynn's pose from his concept art, which I think is quite nice because it suits him well as a knight. I personally like his smile here. It's not the same confident smile found on the concept art, but I can't help but adore it.
Bad or Odd Paint Jobs
Oh, boy, someone must hate Luke, because he got the worst treatment out of all the charms. That's not to say that all Luke charms have issues. This is just coming from my charm specifically.
Luke's got this huge leak spilling out from his left eye, two moles beside his lips and a big gash in the middle of his face.
Unfortunately there's a spill flowing from his right eye and there's something odd with his left eye. There's a tiny paint bump on his pupil, but it's only obvious if you angle him a certain way.
Kratos is one of my favourite characters in the Tales of series. It brings me great pleasure to say that he doesn't have awkward flaws like some of my other charms.
I favour this little mercenary over the other characters because he's got lots spiky hair and wears a look of disapproval on his face. I must confess I find that expression highly amusing, especially on a tiny charm. In addition to that, he has his arms crossed! I love it!
Bad Seamlines
Flynn's charm would have been fine if it wasn't for the horrible seam line. It looks as though his hair wasn't glue together properly... If there's one thing I like about Flynn's hair, it's that there are some spikes sticking out from the back. I would have have criticized Movic if they made his hair flat.
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| Noooo! Seamline, go away! |
Bad or Odd Paint Jobs
Oh, boy, someone must hate Luke, because he got the worst treatment out of all the charms. That's not to say that all Luke charms have issues. This is just coming from my charm specifically.
Luke's got this huge leak spilling out from his left eye, two moles beside his lips and a big gash in the middle of his face.
Unfortunately there's a spill flowing from his right eye and there's something odd with his left eye. There's a tiny paint bump on his pupil, but it's only obvious if you angle him a certain way.
Paint spills coming from the eyes actually bother me. They aren't as obvious when they're mixing with several other colours, like in clothing. But spills on the face? Yes, you can definitely see the flaws because there are fewer details. Also, I can't stand the two moles next to his lips because it looks bad and I can't remove them. Furthermore, the gash can be very obvious under the light. Unfortunately the flash on the camera removes it, so I can't even show off his battle scar in this review.
It's too bad this particular Luke charm received bad treatment because he looks quite cute with that smile, doesn't he?
Granted, I don't think Movic is the only company with some obvious paint spills. My Milla figure from the Kyun Chara pack had a pretty bad spill on her wrist. I generally don't bother with too many paint spills if they're not obvious, but I can't not see the eye whites on a giant head.
Lloyd is the main character from the Tales of Symphonia game...so he shouldn't have bad eyes, right?
It's sort of gross when you think about it. Even from far away it's very obvious, which makes the charm look rather cheap. To add salt to the wound there's this weird dot/mole on his chin that cannot be removed. Poor Lloyd is so flawed. It's unfortunate because he's the only one of the only characters without a giant seamline on his head.
On a more positive note, I fancy his two shiny swords. The fact that Lloyd has both of them out gets a thumbs up from me. Plus they're painted silver instead of just plain gray. Lloyd would have been perfect if his eye wasn't defective. I actually quite adore this one.
I have to say I was surprised when I pulled out the Dhaos charm because the colours look different from what I expected. I thought the orange would be a bit more vibrant and less dull. I honestly don't recall it looking like this in games/official art. I mean, it's not horrible, just odd.
The paint on his hair is also cracking a little. Here's a warning for those of you who might consider purchasing this in the future. Be careful when you're hanging charms off your keyrings or bags. The paint might chip off.
On another note, I'm surprised they included Dhaos instead of Chester. He's the only one that's evil in this set. Even the Tales of Series A Trading Mascot box set there are no enemies. I suppose Dhaos is really popular among the Tales fans. Otherwise, the developers would have chosen Chester, Cless's best friend.
Also, Dhaos looks pretty cute for an antagonist.
Summary
Pose: 7.5/10 (Despite being tiny, they all have their own poses. Sure, their bodies are pretty much the same, but at least their arms are different.)
Sculpt: 7/10 (Cute as they may be, they're all very similar. It comes with purchasing a set of trading charms/figures. Also, I'm usually all right with seamlines but some of them here are pretty awful.)
Paint: 6.5/10 (There are some obvious leaks on some figures, but I wish they didn't do it on the faces)
I have a love-hate relationship with these charms. The love comes from the fact that they're adorable (yes, I've mentioned this multiple times in my review) and that some of my favourite characters are in this set. The hate comes from the flaws that could have been avoided. Seriously, why distribute figures/charms with goop coming out from the eyes? That just makes products look cheap.
I'm a fan of the characters from these games (except maybe Dhaos...I don't really care for him) so I purchased set B and not A.
If you don't think too much about how detailed the charms are then it's a decent purchase, especially if you're a fan of the Tales of series. Or if you're a fan of chibi characters. I don't regret picking these little guys up because their cuteness makes up for most flaws. I just didn't expect eye spills. Hopefully if you order a set, you won't have the same problems I have.
Manufacturer: Movic
Purchased from: Amiami
Price: 3280 ¥ for a box of 8 + 1 bonus (Original price: 4000 ¥)
Thanks for reading!
~Suich
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| The HORROR! |
Granted, I don't think Movic is the only company with some obvious paint spills. My Milla figure from the Kyun Chara pack had a pretty bad spill on her wrist. I generally don't bother with too many paint spills if they're not obvious, but I can't not see the eye whites on a giant head.
Lloyd is the main character from the Tales of Symphonia game...so he shouldn't have bad eyes, right?
It's sort of gross when you think about it. Even from far away it's very obvious, which makes the charm look rather cheap. To add salt to the wound there's this weird dot/mole on his chin that cannot be removed. Poor Lloyd is so flawed. It's unfortunate because he's the only one of the only characters without a giant seamline on his head.
On a more positive note, I fancy his two shiny swords. The fact that Lloyd has both of them out gets a thumbs up from me. Plus they're painted silver instead of just plain gray. Lloyd would have been perfect if his eye wasn't defective. I actually quite adore this one.
I have to say I was surprised when I pulled out the Dhaos charm because the colours look different from what I expected. I thought the orange would be a bit more vibrant and less dull. I honestly don't recall it looking like this in games/official art. I mean, it's not horrible, just odd.
The paint on his hair is also cracking a little. Here's a warning for those of you who might consider purchasing this in the future. Be careful when you're hanging charms off your keyrings or bags. The paint might chip off.
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| Ouch! |
Also, Dhaos looks pretty cute for an antagonist.
Summary
Pose: 7.5/10 (Despite being tiny, they all have their own poses. Sure, their bodies are pretty much the same, but at least their arms are different.)
Sculpt: 7/10 (Cute as they may be, they're all very similar. It comes with purchasing a set of trading charms/figures. Also, I'm usually all right with seamlines but some of them here are pretty awful.)
Paint: 6.5/10 (There are some obvious leaks on some figures, but I wish they didn't do it on the faces)
I have a love-hate relationship with these charms. The love comes from the fact that they're adorable (yes, I've mentioned this multiple times in my review) and that some of my favourite characters are in this set. The hate comes from the flaws that could have been avoided. Seriously, why distribute figures/charms with goop coming out from the eyes? That just makes products look cheap.
I'm a fan of the characters from these games (except maybe Dhaos...I don't really care for him) so I purchased set B and not A.
If you don't think too much about how detailed the charms are then it's a decent purchase, especially if you're a fan of the Tales of series. Or if you're a fan of chibi characters. I don't regret picking these little guys up because their cuteness makes up for most flaws. I just didn't expect eye spills. Hopefully if you order a set, you won't have the same problems I have.
Manufacturer: Movic
Purchased from: Amiami
Price: 3280 ¥ for a box of 8 + 1 bonus (Original price: 4000 ¥)
Thanks for reading!
~Suich
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