Tomorrow Queen Lolli was released on 01 December 2011 on Bambaland. Prior to the sales, various news sources from ThreeA warned of its limited amount, as it has been pre-made to a fixed quantity. While the exact edition size was never revealed, this led to a mad rush to seize a piece of her on the morning it was released. I was there and I was cartjacked three times and didn't manage to land one that day. Now, seeing that I have a piece in hand for this review I think it's natural you might guess that I got mine through the notorious secondary market.
Truth be told, I was rather tempted to. While it was sold for 85USD (with 3A discount), she was immediately priced at 180USD (with bidders) and more on eBay. This is where I find ThreeA's anti-flipper principals rather hypocritical. Bottom line, if you don't want people to flip your product, don't make them in such limited quantities. 'Nuf said.
Anyway, shortly after the drop, I managed to trade her with my GID Nabler on KR. I'm thankful for the fellow collector who agreed to trade her with me... I'm not sure if he'll decline to be named, but I guess a simple Thank You here would suffice.
I'm quite excited to get Lolli, mostly because she's boasted to have an upgrade on the basic body that was standard issue to all TQs released so far. Before her, there were minor changes made to the ankle ball joints of Princess and Vanilla, though I won't say was a significant improvement. For Lolli, the TQ released right after Princess and Vanilla, the body is totally new. But before I point out the differences, let's just enjoy the figure in its glory all by itself...
Lolli comes donning a tube dress with slanted pink lines on a white base. There's a pink theme going on for her, as she sports pink gloves, dress, heels, and even pink hair. I think the bright colours are rather apt for Christmas, being the XXX'mas 2011 TQ that she is. She comes with a holster strapped to her left leg, where the dress slants lower, sporting a pistol that actually belongs to AP Popbot. I always found something sensuous about the way the holster strap disappears into her skirt, which I like. But I als0 thought that the holster should be on the right leg where the skirt ends higher, rather than competing for space on an overcrowded right leg.
Comparing her pistol with AP Ascended revealed absolutely no difference. The weathering and base colours on the pistol are identical, well... at least to me. The gun is new to the TQs, apart from the shotgun that Yumiko's equipped with. However, Lolli's not able to hold the pistol properly. I find that rather irritating, cause that means the pistol is only included for the look of it. If you try to make Lolli grip her gun, you'll find that her index and middle fingers are sculpted together, and so they cannot separate to allow her index finger to fit into the trigger guard. Even if you whip out your exacto and separated the two fingers (like what most people did for de plumes), I doubt her thick index finger can fit into the tiny hole, which was meant to be held by articulated fingers that belonged to the AP Ascended. Well, let's just force her fingers apart and make her hold the darn pistol. Alas, even doing that, I haven't been able to align the pistol axis and Lolli's arm in one straight line. When I try to pose her as though she's about to shoot someone down, with her arm extended, it looks rather awkward.
So there, my pistol's going to remain holstered, likely forever. This being the result of a meaningless kitbash of accessories from a toy design that was previously released. I see it being done for the 10-finger gang and it kinda irks me (the only saving grace is their fingers are articulated, so holding the various weapons shouldn't be a problem). To me, that pistol belongs to the AP Ascended, whom it was designed for, and whom it can hold properly, and definitely not to a TQ. If a TQ is designed to hold a pistol, that pistol will surely look different from an AP Popbot's. And, food for thought, wouldn't it be weird when a 1/6 Lolli meets a 1/6 Popbot (and rightly so, since they're from the same universe), and the former's pistol is an exact duplicate, albeit miniature version of the latter's? It's how 1/6 Wasabi would feel when he meets a 1/6 RPG Bramble, cause their rocket would be exactly half / double of each other's. However, I give credit for the effort in modifying Wasabi's hand so that he can hold the rocket properly, something that is clearly lacking here for Lolli.
And now, let the comparison begin...
Standing side by side, it is apparent that the upgraded body (or V2, for the purpose of this review) is taller than its predecessor (V1). The curves are more pronounced. Just looking at the legs, you can tell that the calves to ankle difference is more significant for the V2. The thigh cut on the V1 is removed as well, so you won't be able to twist Lolli's leg a full turn like in V1. The length of the arms are somewhat similar, but the shape of the arm section of V2 is much more ovalular than that of V1, which is more circular. While these accentuate the curves on Lolli's limbs, the problem occurs when you twist the arm along the bicep cut right above her elbows, as illustrated in the photo below:
There's nothing natural about the twist in V2, as the ovular section means a drastic 2mm difference front and back of the arm at its worst case scenario. It's fine with robot joints (as WWRp Bromwich is happy to demonstrate) but for a human figure, I think that a more circular section like that of the V1 is more appropriate. Evidently, the function of the bicep cut has lost its importance to the form of the overall figure when viewed with the arms not twisted at all. This brings us to whether the bicep cut is that imporant. Well, it is to me... and I hope the photograph below, with the arms twisted and turned to its maximum for both figures, shows clearly how the V1 is somewhat more natural looking than V2, which looks like an anorexic contortionist at work.
Below, the knee joints turned to their maximum for the right leg on both figures. Articulation-wise, the V2 with its double hinge beats the V1 hands down. But take a look at the aesthetics of both legs, and tell me if you think the V2 looks better. It is the nature of the joint to have exposed hinges when turned to its maximum, and evidently, works better on robots than human figures. Personally, I feel that the V1 knee joint is a good balance between form and function, and if the frontal view does not convince you, I'm pretty sure the rear view of the ladies will.
Let's analyze what is seen on the legs of the ladies from the back, top down. Near to the skirt rim of V1, a working cut line is seen. A similar joint line is also seen above the hinges of the V2, however, they are not functioning (ie. the cut is visible, but it does not twist). Between the skirt line and this joint line on the V2 are 2 screw patches / plugs, as indicated in the following picture. Screw plugs are not new to ThreeA figures, but new to the TQ, and two in quick successions of one another, albeit concealed by the skirt for the case of Lolli, just kinda brings on a frown to say the least. The rear view of the double hinge joint is quite hideous to me, especially compared to that of the V1. What's more, the screw plugs are hard plastic (as compared to the TKs, which are soft rubber plugs) and not able to flush completely with the thigh surface, ie. the plug protrudes out slightly, making itself ever more pronounced.
Lines are inevitable where joints are present, but workmanship can help to mitigate this issue. The photographs above show that at the same angle, viewed from the same distance, V1 legs are more seamless than V2's. I'm not talking about the quantity of lines here, but rather, the quality. Both legs have been straightened to the max, and still, the gap of the joint line in the V2 is larger than that of the V1.
If you recall, Princess and Vanilla were released with QC issues that caused a medium-sized fiasco (medium, ie. not as big as 3AA 2011), due to its peeling finish coating on its limbs. Lolli didn't have this problem. Well, simply because the plastic presented is unfinished. I believe the finishing coat on Princess and Vanilla was an attempt by 3A to give the figures a matt finish. The absense of a final coat gives Lolli a plasticky-toyish look that the two photographs below hope to illustrate. I might sound like a difficult collector who, on one hand, complains about the peeling matt finish coat, and on the other hand, complains about the glossy sheen on the unfinished body. But let's face it, the problem of the glossy sheen remains. While in Princess and Vanilla, we see a failed attempt to address the issue, we don't see any effort to do so in Lolli... I really do hope that in future, clean bodies come with a matt coat to omit the glossy sheen. At least Queeny looks like she's gonna be weathered (think Yumiko) so there shouldn't be an issue with the gloss...
So... All in all, if you've read every single word of my lengthy rant above, it goes without saying that I prefer the V2 more than the V1... GOTCHA~! Seriously, V1 is the winner for me. New is not always better, though I do agree that with the limbs all out straightened, V2 sports better proportions. And, quite importantly, the V2 stands much firmer than the V1. However, I think the proportions on the V2 can be adequately achieved with the V1 articulation. Now on out, I'll look forward to a V3, which, hopefully, is a work already in progress and a blend between its two predecessors, merging the best of both worlds. I will, however, see all future releases of V2 with a tint of regret, of what could have been better...
Care to share your thoughts on Lolli...?
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