1/8 Caster Fate/EXTRA Review

Not exactly the cloaked Caster that people have been accustomed to (both in Fate/Zero and Fate/Stay Night), but nonetheless just as interesting as her ‘canonical” counterparts are.

After being delayed for two months, and then waiting for another month to get her, I’ve finally obtained the Caster figure! I’ve been eyeing this figure since I saw it’s unpainted version in Wonfes, and I’m glad that the painted version came out well also XD

Phat! Company is the manufacturer responsible for this figure. Really love the packaging here. The dark blue accentuates her pink hair and fluffy tail. I also love the digitized looking cut outs on the packaging.

Nothing fancy here, just a simple accessory and a stand.

I really love how bouncy and cheerful the figure looks. Each element, from the most obvious facial expression and pose to the small details such as the hands really create an atmosphere filled with energy.

Her real identity is “Tamamo no Mae” you can check up on her historical identity here and her identity as seen in the game. On a side note, using a monitor as a backdrop really helps bring some life to a figure when taking pictures of it ^^.

The illustrations for Fate/Extra were done by Arco Wada and the perkiness we see in the game is captured by the figure as well. Also like how the wave flows away from her face to reveal her cheerful face even more (not to mention we usually see ‘genki’ faces with the hair flowing outwards).

The ‘fluff’ on the ear looks a bit stiff, then again how can one make it look ‘fluffy and soft’ enough? I also love the use of semi-transparent blue plastic for the lower portion of the ribbon here.

Caster’s ears are totally receptive to the smallest details in conversations. Aside from having fox ears, she also have two regular ears. Quality and quantity I guess ^^.

I have no idea what that thing around her neck is called, but it looks like a modified collar of a kimono.

I won’t put the blame on the white paintjob on Phat! Company since the figure was made around December 2011 to January 2012. The temperature in Japan at this time is vastly different from that in the Philippines, and once the magic (or curse) of temperature kicks in, paint starts to chip. Still love the figure though, besides you’d only see these things up close ^^

Nothing much here, just a bare back and shoulder blades.

I don’t know how Caster keeps her clothes up. Even if the whites on her kimono tube top aren’t as awesome as they are, I’m glad the paint on her skin was unblemished by paint removal ^^

The hands, believe it or not, were the deal sealer to me in getting this figure. It totally added a lot of points to the cuteness index in this figure. Really tempted to shine a flashlight there since it really looked like she was trying to create this shadow figure of a fox using her hand.

The folds didn’t look like it was drooping or anything like that. The way the folds had some sense of volume made it look (at least to me) like Caster was in the middle or had finally decided on what pose to take.

Those packed mammies. How much cloth is stuffed inside her arm warmers/detached sleeves anyway? ^^

Same comment, as the sleeves on her “fox hand”. This time you can see some of the minor detailing found on her sleeves like that ribbon that ties the two pieces together.

Dainty looking fingers here.

These “flame looking” print on Caster’s garments are actually representation of her tails, four each, bringing it to a total of nine (including her own tail) tails.

I don’t understand what the inner print represents though ^^

Her weapon in the entire game is a mirror called Suiten Nikkou Amaterasu Yanoshisu Ishi, which is also known as the Yata no Kagami from Japanese folklore. Caster after all isn’t an epic spirit of a hero or a vengeful spirit but a facet of a divine being, in her case the goddess Amaterasu.

I relish the fact that the surface is reflective like a mirror instead of just some white paint applied there. It would be a total bummer if it was. ^^

Her tail reminds me of Mozilla Firefox. Despite the rigid look of the white part of her tail, I love how tense the tail comes across.

I think these are called ‘tassels’, the clump of strings near the slit of her dress. Thank God they’re not just dropped there or something, these kind of details really liven up the figure or illustration. One of my supervisors in the advertising agency I used to work for once told us that “Details won’t turn a bad ad into a good ad, but it can turn a good ad into a great ad”. True facts in a lot of things in life.

Wait do I spot stripes here?

Wow, this is probably the first figure I’ve ever seen that has a shimapan (striped panties). I dunno whether to be more surprised at this fact or Caster’s taste in undergarments.

Caster must be really conscious about her height to implement this footwear. Again, I love how the slipper + foot appear here. These details really do lend to the success of a figure’s pose.

The base is nothing special, but at least it’s a bit transparent. This allows you to actually place any image underneath it (like Asura’s angry face there).

You can check her other fellow Fate/EXTRA servant, Saber, at the link below:

Saber Fate/EXTRA

take a look here as well for the most recet Saber review as well

I’ll probably write less about figure reviews now since I did promise to myself to buy less figures this year (oh noes). I also just resigned from work recently and I’ll talk more about that later. Right now I still have to take care of the usual anime-gaming booth business and other stuff ^^

Also I have to ask, are any of you guys interested in learning about or going to the Philippines?

11 replies
  1. akashingou
    akashingou says:

    wow plenty of details there, really interesting. However the uneven white is really glaring for me and I can spy some gold trim on her right sleeve spilling a tiny bit..small issues though, as the figure looks really awesome overall! =3

    Reply
  2. Miette-chan
    Miette-chan says:

    At last someone reviews this figure. I would have thought she would be more popular being as everyone is all Fate/ crazy all the time. Perhaps it was because she is from a spin off game? Speaking of which I considered choosing her as my servant in Fate/Extra but ended up going for Saber in the end. Both of them have quite fun personalities than their counterparts in other media.

    As for the figure, I really like it, so energetic so dynamic. I agree with you about the details, always so nice to see in figures. This figure ended having some surprises I never noticed before like the shimapan. I guess it’s because they are a staple of Japanese culture?

    Reply
    • Duqs
      Duqs says:

      I was pretty surprised with the shimapan myself! It’s the details that make everything more awesome 😀

      Gah played through every character. I have to say Garcher is the most difficult to beat Ryougi Shiki with because you have to properly allot the stats.

      Reply
  3. ruoani
    ruoani says:

    Thought Caster’s timeline was from feudal Japan or something, they actually have shimapan during those times?! No wonder Japan is Japan right now 😀

    I also wish for this figure, I’m happy you have her, please do take good care of her, most specially since the Holy Grail War is next month. (referring to Fate/Zero Season 2)

    Reply
  4. wieselhead
    wieselhead says:

    This Caster appears extremely cheerful and full of spirit. The face is pretty and her hand sign is a very cool detail 😀

    first moeblob Saber and now a fancy Fox Spirit, Fate/Extra must be a lot of fun XD

    The figure has so much going on with all the details of her outfit and she’s so colorful.
    Personally I’d like to see a bit of shading at her furry parts, but aside from that she’s quite nice.

    Reply
  5. fabricerequin
    fabricerequin says:

    Caster is one of the most cutest figure out there, It makes me want to shoot myself for missing out on her. By the time I came back from Holiday’s she was soldout >.<

    The POSE is what makes it so good in my opinion. along with the fangs and her hand gesture of a wolf?

    The only negative I can get out even though I dont want to is the Base, Why oh why cant they just leave the base transparent? The colors makes it look Kiddish.. and lol shimapan! how unexpected!

    Reply

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