Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Fragile and Fabulous Figure Comparisons

They are not all fragile.  Some are dainty but sturdy.  Some are hefty but breakable.  Some I talked myself out of posing, but then talked myself back into it.  Here are more ladies ready for another round of figure comparisons.

From left to right:  Triad Otaku Tan, Phicen "Hindu", CY Girl Ebony, AA Nutcracker Barbie, Fashion Royalty Adele, and Alvin Ailey Barbie.

I must tell you that 3 of these figures have issues.  The Otaku has a broken left arm which no longer rotates (because I glued it back in place).  The Phicen has a broken left hip.  The Nutcracker Barbie was my first doll that is jointed at both the elbows and knees, and she was my only jointed doll for years, so she has been posed A LOT over the years.  As a result, her knees are very floppy.  But these ladies are all troopers and they are ready to pose.  Just keep in mind that these 3 would pose a lot better if they were not damaged.

The Otaku, Phicen, and Ebony can all stand on their own.  Perhaps I could get Nutcracker Barbie to stand on her own if her knees weren't so loose.

Here they are showing their elbow articulation.  The Otaku has double-joined elbows, and therefore has the best range of motion here.  I have to tell you, I was sweating bullets when posing the Otaku.  Before posing her, I got out my hairdryer and heated her joints for about 60 seconds to loosen them.  I have had her for years, but after breaking her and reading about the breakage problems that others have had, I have had her sitting on a shelf most of the time.  At this point, she moves really well at the elbows and knees, but her shoulders and hips are still a little stiff, and I hesitate to do much posing that would put these areas at risk for breakage.

The Otaku and Phicen figures have standard size action figure feet.  Ebony has boot feet.  I would have to unscrew her boots at the bottom in order to get them off, and I think that I would be left with these big white things at the end of her legs that have little resemblance to actual feet.  I probably have some other action figure feet around here somewhere that would be a close enough skin tone match for her, but that's a project for another day.  For now, she keeps her boots.  The Nutcracker Barbie has molded-on ballet slippers, but I sometimes put other shoes on her.  Adele has standard size doll feet for Fashion Royalty and Barbie dolls.  The Alvin Ailey Barbie has hyper extended pointy feet and can not wear all Barbie shoes.  She crosses her arms the best.

 Here they are doing a side stretch.  The Otaku has no torso articulation, but the others all do.  Nutcracker Barbie has the best range of motion here, but the Phicen looks the best.

Here they are walking like an Egyptian.  Nutcracker Barbie has no wrist articulation, and can not support her own weight with bended knees at this point.

  Here they are doing kneeling back bends.  The Barbies do this the best.

Here they are showing off their hands. The Otaku, Phicen, and Ebony are all shown with relaxed hands, but they all came with extra hands that are able to grip objects.

Here they are attempting to sit cross-legged on the floor.  Alvin Ailey Barbie comes the closest.

Here they are attempting to do middle splits.  Alvin Ailey Barbie does this the best.  Click here to see the Phicen doll attempting this pose before I broke her hip.

Here they are attempting to do front splits.  Nutcracker Barbie does this the best.

 Here they are doing a leg lift.  Nutcracker Barbie does this the best.

 Here they are sitting down.  I think that Alvin Ailey Barbie looks the best in a seated position.  Click here to see the Phicen doll in a seated position prior to me breaking her hip.

Do you have a favorite among these dolls?  Which dolls pose the best?  Which dolls look the best?  Which dolls are the most realistic?

10 comments:

  1. The barbies do it the best. I like that they can do most poses without worrying about breakage. I have the Otaku and Phicen and I will be careful with them. Thanks

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    1. Thanks MDW. I do prefer the Barbies in this group. It takes the fun out of posing a doll if you have to constantly worry that you'll break it every time you move it.

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  2. For Barbie's wobbly knees, you might want to try super glue--you put super glue on the joint and then keep moving the joint (I'm talking continuously) until the glue is completely dry. The dried super glue will give the joint more "grab" so it will hold a pose. I've done this with floppy knees with good success. But you have to keep moving the joint or it will do what super glue does:)

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    1. Thanks for the tip Miss_Lola_77! I will give this a try.

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  3. The Alvin Ailey Barbie is just beautiful 0_0

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  4. The Otaku has this scary look, IMHO. My opinion gets really humble around her, lol.

    Adele looks scary in another way. Super haughty that one. I bet she gave you a lot of trouble posing with the others ;-)

    It's interesting to me that the Barbies can outdo some of the others in some poses.

    My favorite is the Alvin Ailey Barbie, but I appreciate how the ladies all did their bests. Thanks to them and to you ;-)

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    1. Thanks D7ana! The Alvin Ailey Barbie is my favorite out of this group, also. Easy to pose, not easily breakable, and beautiful. If only she could stand on her own...

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  5. My favorite is the Nutcracker and Alvin Ailey dolls.

    You have a nice collection of dolls. Some I have never seen. Thanks for another informative post.

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