Kit Review

Straight build + Stickers

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

Figurerise Standard Asuna - Detail shots (1/4)

Figurerise Standard Asuna - Detail shots (2/4)

Detail shots

Figurerise Standard Asuna - The dual-tone skin technique used in Figure-rise Labs has been implemented via injection molding

The dual-tone skin technique used in Figure-rise Labs has been implemented via injection molding on the thighs.
By placing an orange part inside a slightly translucent flesh-colored part, it does a great job of capturing that semi-transparent, natural skin tone look.

You can swap between 3 different facial expressions.

A total of 5 hands are included.

Figurerise Standard Asuna - The sword comes separately in both sheathed and unsheathed forms, but there's only one hand guard

The sword comes separately in both sheathed and unsheathed forms,
but there's only one hand guard, so you'll need to swap it over depending on which you're using.

Included stand

Leftover parts

Limb articulation.
The front skirt gets in the way, so you can't raise the thighs very high.

Figurerise Standard Asuna - Various poses with the sword (1/8)

Figurerise Standard Asuna - Various poses with the sword (2/8)

Figurerise Standard Asuna - Various poses with the sword (3/8)

Figurerise Standard Asuna - Various poses with the sword (4/8)

Figurerise Standard Asuna - Various poses with the sword (5/8)

Figurerise Standard Asuna - Various poses with the sword (6/8)

Various poses with the sword

Pouty expression poses

Together with Figure-rise Standard Diver Ayame.

Asuna, the heroine from the light novel "Sword Art Online" — which also got an anime adaptation — has been released as a Figure-rise Standard kit. The format is pretty similar to the previously released Diver Ayame, but it's been upgraded in terms of technical refinement across the board.

First off, the dual skin tone reproduction method from Figure-rise Labs has been implemented via injection molding on the thighs. By placing an orange part inside a semi-translucent flesh-colored part, it does a nice job of expressing that subtle skin tone. Compared to your typical plain flesh-colored molded parts, it definitely gives the skin more depth — though it's a bit of a shame it's only used on the thighs. Beyond that, the three-dimensional hair texture and finish come out looking quite premium, and combined with Bandai's smooth assembly feel, solid color separation, and seals, the straight build already looks pretty good.

That said, there are quite a lot of seals, though the same markings are also provided as waterslide decals, which gives you more options. The sheer number of seals does mean it takes a fair bit of time to apply, but they seem to be designed in a way that they don't stand out too badly once on. As for the downsides — the skirt structure limits how far the thighs can be raised, which puts a significant restriction on articulation, and the hair tends to get in the way when moving the arms, which is pretty annoying. Also, the sheath and sword are provided separately, but there's only one hand guard, so you'll have to swap it over depending on the situation. And setting aside the overall quality, it still doesn't quite have that moe girlpla feel — it reads more like a high-accuracy recreation of the original character.

There are a few shortcomings like that, but the quality of Bandai's girlplas keeps getting better and better. The dual skin tone reproduction in particular deserves real praise — it'd be great to see it applied to more areas in the future. Either way, if you're a Sword Art Online fan, this is a Bandai girlpla that's well worth enjoying. :-)

Figurerise Standard Asuna | 2019. 12 | ¥3,000

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.