The Chasm

Hello, MantaChasm! Whether you’re an old or new fan of the games or anime or even you’ve never really taken an interest, there’s no doubt in my mind you’ve at least heard of the Pokémon franchise. I personally began my Pokémon Trainer career in 1999 with the Special Edition Pokémon Yellow bundle (the game cart, strategy guide and yellow-colored GameBoy Color), and was an avid Pokémon fanboy for the next 18 years digging deep into the games, the anime, the films and the expanded lore. Now I’m sure you’re thinking “But MantaRei, 18 years only takes us to 2017: it’s 2019!” And you’d be correct! Pokémon and I had a “falling out” as it were over the direction Nintendo decided to take it, but that is neither here nor there because this post has a very specific focus: the “ARTFX J ‘Pokemon’ Series Leaf with Squirtle 1/8 Complete Figure” recently released by Kotobukiya!

A lesser-known character of the franchise, Leaf was originally planned to be the female playable character for the first Pokémon games but due to data size limitations was never implemented, and most of what we know of her origin comes from early promotional marketing images from the Pokémon Company. Luckily, her image was noticed by the creators of the “Pokémon Special” manga where she took on the name “Blue” and a role as a leading lady. Fast-forward to 2004 and the release of Generation 3’s Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen Versions saw Leaf return to glory as the female playable character alongside Red; even her “Pokémon Special” counterpart was updated in the manga series with her new character outfit. 2018 saw her arrive in the “Super Smash” franchise as an alternate for Red as the playable character “Pokémon Trainer”, granting her a fully 3D-rendered model.

Kotobukiya–a well-known name in the anime-figure market–began a series of ARTFX J figures in 2018 based on the main characters from the Pokémon series, starting with Red and currently awaiting Dawn’s release in May of 2020. It is from this series of figures that Leaf received her first (and only) figure. My copy was purchased from the eCommerce store amiami (amiami.com) for ¥8610 and I encourage you to visit the site if you haven’t already. They have a VERY comprehensive offering of anime merchandise and is my go-to for anime figures both pre-ordered and pre-owned.

Now, on to the review! As it’s name suggests, the figure is actually two: the main figure is of Leaf and attached to the base with the standard pegs, the other is of her Squirtle which simply rests on the base and is removable. Leaf stands in a dynamic style, hand on her hip as she poses with a PokéBall that is finished in a nice gloss to give the ball its metallic sheen. Her trademark hat and bag are well-sculpted–the “VS Seeker” on her strap gets the same glossy finish as the PokéBall–and her outfit is accurate to the manga and game depictions with excellent colors. As expected from Kotobukiya for a figure at this price-point, the overall quality of the sculpting is smooth and the paint looks good, no “painting outside the lines” or bleed from the painting process.

Squirtle is equally well-done with smooth curves and eye-popping color. The “Tiny Turtle” Pokémon is gliding forward on a translucent wave as if using the “Hidden Move” Surf, successfully giving the little figure a sturdy, free-standing base to balance on at the foot of his Trainer. The ability to remove the Pokémon without leaving mounting holes exposed on the base is a nice touch, and Leaf is centered enough that displaying her without her partner wouldn’t look odd or leave something lacking for the figure overall. I will probably display them together, but as I said I appreciate the option.

Amiami shows the figure as “Sold Out” which is no surprise with a pre-order from a franchise so popular, but if you keep an eye out on the pre-owned section or other storefronts you may be able to pick one up in NIB condition. So soon after release, there’s a good chance you’ll be able to find one under ¥10000; not too bad for a collector of Pokémon paraphernalia. Personally, this figure will have a prominent place on my desk; Leaf holds a special place in my heart and I told myself many years ago that if a figure was ever crafted of her I would purchase it, no question. I’m happy to say that I’m very pleased with the result: this will probably be her first–and last–figure, and it makes me proud to be able to say I own it.

I want to thank you all for stopping by! This was my first figure review, but hopefully not my last! I’m always thinking up new things I’d like to do here on the site, but don’t forget to also visit my YouTube channel if you get a chance: we’re running a Space Engineers survival series currently and will be having a few guest players in the near future. And, as always, thank you so much for your reading, liking, and subscribing, it keeps me motivated to make more content for all of you to consume. So until next time, this has been MantaRei: I’ll see you around!