Jakks Jiaou Combo

My Jakks Pacific G.i.r.l. Force Body Art Lola has been in my collection for a number of years. Having obtained her prior to blogging and prior to documenting my dolls through photography, I'd never taken a photo of her box until now. Well, I have now reached the point where I need to throw away many of my doll boxes. So, since I have now taken photos of the front and back of the box, this box is going in the trash.

These Jakks dolls were the precursors to today's seamless bodies. They have rubber skin over a metal armature. There's detailing in the torso area. Lola has ribs, and a squishy tummy. Her fingers are independent of one another. She wears the molded on thong panties shown below. She has realistic proportions.

My problem with Lola is that she doesn't have much in the way of articulation. Her arms and legs bend by two clicks. Lola is unable to sit down. Below, Lola is posed with her arms and legs bent as far as they will go. Her wire armature also allows her to bend at the neck and torso.

Recently I saw the image below online, showing that the Jiaou Dolls seamless figures now come in 7 different colors. I stared at this photo and others, wondering if any of those colors would work for my dolls and action figures. At the time, I hadn't seen any in-hand photos of the "Brown" or "Black" bodies. So, I took the plunge and ordered the "Brown".

My doll arrived in quite an attractive box.

Then I opened the box, and I saw that the "Brown" body is not the least bit brown. I've seen some in-hand photos of the "Black" body now also, and it is not the least bit black. In my opinion, they should have called these colors "7 Shades of White".

The doll comes with 4 extra sets of hands, 3 extra neck connectors, a doll stand, and a bikini. This doll has a combination plastic and stainless steel skeleton. From what I can tell, the joints are stainless steel, and the rest is plastic. These are less expensive than the Phicen action figures with the full metal skeletons. Upon removing the figure from the box, I noticed that it weighs less than my Phicen dolls. It also has a pleasant fragrance (like a light perfume). The "skin" is even softer than the skin of the Phicen dolls.

I can easily maneuver this doll into various poses, and it holds the poses very well and looks quite natural. The fingernails on all of the hands are painted (the toenails are not). There is some shading on the body. There is genital detailing. 

At first glance, I thought that this body would be a good match for my Phicen "Jinx" doll, but this body is a little too light. Other than Jinx, Lola is the doll that most closely matched the color of this doll. so Lola wins the new body. Lola's head and the Jiaou body differ enough in color that it bothers me, but it doesn't bother me enough to want to try purchasing another head and hoping that it will match this body better. Maybe once I see others online with this color and the heads that they've been able to match with this body, I'll feel more comfortable with taking that step.

In the meantime, I had issues with Lola's head (other than the color difference). Lola's head sat way too far down on the Jiaou neck. Not a good look. Lola's neck hole is somewhat deep within her head.

So I tried to think of ways to make this head fit better on the body, and I tried various things that did not work.

Then I remembered a technique used by someone on one of the message boards that I frequent. I switched out the neck connector on the Jiaou doll to the cone shaped connector, cut a piece of oxygen tubing, and placed one end on the neck connector. I cut the tubing to the appropriate size to fit inside Lola's head. I used double sided tape on the oxygen tubing at the place where the tubing is held in place by the neck hole.

Now Lola's head rests at the top of the Jiaou neck where it should, and she has full mobility.

Here is Lola with my Phicen ladies. She is thinner than the others. Lola's head looks slightly oversized on this body.

And here they are from the back. I really had to stretch Lola's bikini in order to get it to cover as much as it's covering.

Unlike my Phicens with stainless steel skeletons, the Jiaou body is able to stand on it's own. Her feet adjust to both flat and heeled shoes.

The Jiaou doll's posability is comparable to the SS Phicen dolls.

As for Lola's old Jakks Pacific body, Daniela will hold onto it unless and until another head becomes available.

I've damaged the Jiaou body already. I was handling her too roughly when I was trying various ways to attach Lola's head. The Jiaou doll's softer skin appears to be more susceptible to damage. There's now a worn spot on the Jiaou doll's rear. I'll have to find some shorts or something for her to wear.

Overall, I'm impressed with the Jiaou doll's posability. It's a good cheaper alternative to the Phicen stainless steel dolls. However, cheaper cost typically means lower quality and I'm concerned, especially since there's already damage to the doll's skin. I don't plan on buying any more of these (unless they come out with colors that are TRULY "Brown" or "Black".

Edited to add: apparently, others who have purchased the Jiaou doll have experienced the same issues with the skin blistering and peeling with minimal handling. Buyer be aware.