I’ve never been a big fan of Rin. Or Ren for that matter. They seem like really lame sidekick characters to a strong main character. Not to mention with there being two of them, it doesn’t add anything. Less is more sometimes.
So imagine my surprise when I was taken by this Nuclear Fusion Rin. I quite enjoy seeing paradoxical re-imaginings of certain characters, from shocking gender-bender to a completely different style. I think Nuclear Fusion Rin takes it to a level that not even Love Is War Miku can match. While Love Is War does re-imagine Miku to a different level as well, Rin’s is a complete 180. The only thing that Rin keeps intact is her signature hair.
Overall, Nuclear Fusion Rin has become one of my favorite vocaloid figures at this time. More so than BRS. World Is Mine comes pretty darn close though.
[pro-player]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TK7XK2QV6pw[/pro-player]
So here’s my Photoshop. Took an hour to do. It’s mostly grabbing random but somewhat related elements to compose this sort of surreal environment. I’ve sort of stopped doing realistic photoshops nowadays because it brings a form of monotony with realism. Making these surreal settings is so much more fun.
I absolutely love the detail on this figure. I was hesitant at first to preorder her, and was even going to cancel her at one point, but I held on out of curiosity.
When she finally arrived, I noticed how small she actually is. She’s supposed to be 1:8 scale, but she’s pretty small for that size, just like VN02 Miku. So you’re seeing quite a bit of detail packed in a small frame here.
The guitar looks pretty wicked. Interestingly, it looks a lot like something you’d see in Bayonetta. Like one of the angel’s weapons or halo.
One thing I don’t like is how she kinda looks cross-eyed a bit depending on the angle you see her at.
This was the original image used for the photoshop image. One thing that I didn’t realize was I forgot to put the wire from Rin’s headphones in. I didn’t even realize that there was supposed to be a wire until after I looked up a review on her. I decided that I didn’t like the way most people and stock photos were doing it. So I decided to wrap the wire around her.
I think it looks better. Don’t you?
Overall, great figure, and I love how different lighting affects her appearance so drastically. If you haven’t bought yours yet, I suggest you do. e2046 (where I got mine) is having a sale on her.“
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Yeah I don’t think Ren or Rin impressed me either, but I too was taken with this figure. Thanks for reviewing it. ^_^
np! ^_^
Neat looking figure, and the amount of detail is amazing. I didn’t like Rin’s face so I ended up passing on this one. The 9800 yen price tag didn’t help, though in this case I think the price is justified…unlike some of MaxFac/GSC’s other 9800 yen offerings.
I’m also kinda burned out on all the Vocaloid stuff I’ve been seeing everywhere. Every figure site I go to is usually raving about Vocaloid and/or Black Rock Shooter merchandise…
At first, I was a little =< about the face too, but now that I have it, I have to say that I like it. It's different from the usual =D faces.
I'm tired of BRS, but not vocaloid. Seems to me there isn't as much marketing push with vocaloid as there is with the incessant promo of BRS. It could be a double standard though, since Miku has become more of a cultural phenomenon/icon like Ronald McDonald.
awesome edit 😀 i havent been a big fan of the twins either but i do have to say this along with VN02 looks amazinggg!! the way you wrapped the headphone wire looks very cool, works well with the halos around her ^^
are they going to release a Luka ver? although im trying to limit my PVC purchasing, depending on which art piece they base it on it would get my attention :3
Thanks! 😀
It took me an 1.5hrs to do this photoshop from scratch.
I’ve been looking at VN02, and I must say, I’m STILL not all that impressed with her. I dunno, something about her just isn’t quite attracting me. I’m thinking of selling her. Though I probably should have made that decision earlier. 😐
I would LOVE to see a Luka version. If it’s sweet, I’d probably buy it.
I also did thought of selling VN02 as i felt VN02’s face is too small…and she leans slightly to the side (for my VN02) perhaps due to insufficient support from the extrusion from her right knee…
but the details on her body / clothes is amazing as well as her hair :p
that’s why i am holding on to her!
Yeah, I do like VN02’s details too. Quite nice, very clean. It’s almost Gundam-like.
My VN02 leans to one side slightly too. I think this is actually by design rather than weight. I say by design when maybe I mean “bad quality control”.
I’m not a big fan of the rebellious teen look, but I’m rather impressed at all the details. The guitar looks awesome, and I like those floaty yellow rings.
The rings really “make” this figure. It definitely looks like “something is missing” without the rings. I do like the original asymmetrical black and white clothing style. Quite cool.
In general I like the look of this figure,
she has a really cool outfit and the pose is very good,
but the face looks a bit sad to me.
I have nothing against a serious face expression, but the drooping corners of her mouth let her appear very unhappy
Your PS skills are nice 😉
Im not very good in erasing the background and always too lazy =D
=< sadface.
tbh, the sort of angsty face is unique among all my figures, so I like it.
Thanks! I got really lazy with erasing the BG on this one actually. I just used the magic wand tool a lot. It made for some really messy edges, but honestly, you can't really see it. I spend too much time on clean edges in the past. lol.
It’s the Tsundere look! I love it. She’s not unhappy, she’s just angsty.
I cast Magic Wand on the Background! *poof*
Speaking of teh lazies, I should get back to my blog… *prods it, as it lays there half dead*
when you like it it’s ok =D
Her face expression reminded me of one songstress from a certain grunge/rock band from the late 90’s
she’s definitely got a more visual kei flare to her!
I much, much, much prefer this incarnation of Rin than the regular figures/figma
This version is so much more adult looking? And i really love the face on this one too
You did an awesome job with the lighting trick as well, that last photo is amazing! c:
She’s very quickly becoming one of my favorite figures. Not because of the detail, but because of the style. 🙂
It’s just cool how she’s almost like a “main character” treatment with it. I’m not too fond of the dumb broken fence thing as the background pieces though. I would have much preferred those awesome speakers used in the music video. Probably wouldn’t have made that much difference in manufacturing costs either, considering the process and ease. (but what do I know).
I’m glad you like the photoshop! 😀
Despite common belief, BRS is not an alter ego of Miku. She’s supposed to be a completely separate character from her. BRS isn’t bad, but I agree that there’s been too much marketing campaign pushing for it. Oh well I just want a figma of it that’s all (quality is actually pretty good though). I hear a number of rants about GSC’s
Back to topic: As mascot characters, Rin and Len do feel kinda like sidekicks to Miku and even Luka. I haven’t been a fan of Vocaloids, especially not Rin or Len since I haven’t really listened to their songs much in the first place, but having an alternate look for a song is good since it freshens up a character. It gives new ideas and creations for fans too I suppose. You get to try out something leaning out away from realism (which reminds me of how video games tend to strife for realism and overlook other elements of gaming nowadays). Gets you a bigger horizon to explore I suppose.
Not a fan of the face this Rin has (the :-< look), but it's definitely different overall. Guitar's design is definitely a plus in my book, and I like the way you've posed the headphone wires – swirling around just like the rings Rin has around her.
Say, how tall is the figure itself in terms of measurement? It seems like that Vocaloid figures are quite short in comparison to other figures from other series etc.
Twin-tails fools everyone, I guess. 😛
I’m not really certain anymore whether it is over-marketing, or over exposure. When BRS came out, everyone and everyone was reviewing it on their blog. The BRS merchandise is coming in too soon though. Or at least that’s what it feels like. It seems like a case of capitalism + zombie consumerism at work.
I guess they really thought they had another Miku phenomenon on their hands, when really it turned out to just be initial hype. Miku is definitely much more marketable than BRS, that’s for sure.
For some reason, I think Luka stands out on her own, maybe not as iconic as Miku, but she holds her own fairly well. She’s just not talked about as much. She has a couple of unique features about her that sets her apart from Miku – she’s got her own Takoluka thing, and that Double Lariat expression is priceless. Definitely better than anything Rin and Ren have to offer. And have you noticed that ALL the Vocaloid nendoroids have EXACTLY the same face?
Seems like Rin’s face is a deal breaker for some. Any reason why it’s a deal breaker for you?
In terms of height, she’s TINY. Just the figure itself is about 16cm. Most 1:8 scales are 5 or so cm taller. This does make me wonder about Vocaloids’ actual height. Good Smile Miku is only about 17cm tall as well.
Those twin tails surely do fool a lot of people. I only knew when someone exclaimed that BRS is not Miku and I had to look it up on Japanese Wiki (how it’s originally just an illustration by huke then supercell artist ryo did a Miku music video about it and it became a hit, later gets commercialised and merchandise into what we see today).
Looks like I somehow lost a small chunk of first paragraph on my comment there. Oh well it’s mainly about how GSC took the hype and overmarketing things, with some people speaking up against how people fall blindly for it, as you said the ‘zombie consumerism’ – people just buy whatever big hobby companies throw at them. In one way I can understand the problem (hence there were a few ripples that stirred up against some numbers of hobbyists), but sometimes I also wonder to myself: does it really matter so much? Isn’t hobby about one enjoying what one does? I don’t know I tend to try to keep things simple rather than complicating things.
I’ve tried covering up various parts of Nuclear Fusion Rin and see what I don’t like about the appearance. It turns out that it’s the mouth that did not attract me. Maybe it’s the downward “frown-like” expression that got me disinterested, or that it’s artist Nagimiso’s style of drawing lips on ACG characters that I have failed to appreciate. A pity because the lips are actually well drawn but somehow doesn’t work for me when put together, but I guess we all have different tastes.
16cm for a 1/8 figure sure is tiny – that corresponds to a mere 128cm in real life! Official profile shows that Rin is supposed to be 152cm, so she should have been around 19cm! Such interesting size differences there 😮
That’s an interesting trivia about BRS. At the same time, I can see the silliness of human nature to like something simply by association. What a world we live in – most believe that our government is forcing the rich to be richer, and the poor to be poorer, when in reality, it’s just human nature. Us normal folk are willing to give so much to famous celebrities because they are celebrities. Just like how many of us accept and are willing to pay for BRS because it was somewhat associated to Miku. I mean sure that’s since changed to BRS being its own separate identity, but it definitely lends itself to how we are trapping ourselves in our own designs.
You’re right, a hobby is something that one enjoys. Why does it matter to you if someone else likes something that you don’t? I think it’s because people like to share their hobby, and find people that like it just as much as they do. And when there is an opposing force that doesn’t have the same belief about the hobby as you do, you are quick to lash out at that person. OEG comes to mind in that regard.
To each their own about Rin, I guess. It doesn’t seem like there’s any base of explanation why you dislike her frown. It is just a matter of taste differences then. 🙂
I had no idea that Rin is 152cm tall! But I suppose you have to keep in mind that her legs are slightly apart, which lowers her height a little. Then again, the 16cm includes the top of her hair, so it’s still off. *shakes head* Max Factory… I cannot believe you’d make such a glaring mistake…
Kimi no kubi wo shimeru yume wo mita…
I’ll tell ya, that line made me shudder the first time I heard it. Beautifully chaotic song. Well, it was, until listening to it a thousand times made it all too stale. But that’s not a fault on its part.
Rebellious tween as an image is really hit or miss for me, but Meltdown’s Rin was a tremendously effective strike in a really soft spot. The guitar design, the nuclear motif, the duality between black and white – not to mention the potential for some wicked compositions as a figure, like what you’ve done here. It just all works out in a delightful blend.
Q nails the matter right between the eyes – really, I never trusted that claim of 1/8 scale. Lying swindlers.
She definitely deserves more praise. Probably one of the most overlooked figures of the year, I’d say. Everyone was jumping all over VN02 and leaving Rin in the dust, but frankly, I think this Rin > VN02. In fact, I’m considering selling my VN02.
Rin’s definitely a unique figure in my collection, that’s for certain. 🙂
Damn liars! I feel ripped off of my PVC!