Sega Oshino Shinobu (Vignettum Cute Volume 2) Review

The title says it all. As much as I'm a fan of Monogatari, I'm still a newbie when it comes to figurines and their types. Full disclosure: The big boss, snwlprd, helped me with the photos and the title. He's understanding of my level of figurine and photography knowledge.

The above figurine, I received as a gift from fellow writer Lance when he visited Japan. I believe while it's difficult for me to locate a gift for anyone, it seems I'm pretty transparent in my interests. As you would know, Lance came back from Japan in January so this is a review long overdue.

As I am still an amateur when it comes to figurine types, I honestly can't review this figurine in any way other than the obvious. With a bit of series-based expertise thrown into the mix.

• Manufacturer: Sega
• Series: Monogatari
• Height: 70 mm
• Release Date: 07/2012
• Materials: ABS/PVC

This Shinobu is based off the Bakemonogatari version. To be exact, right before the final tale in the book. You can tell by the her stylized glazed eyes while still gripping ever so tightly on the donut. Shinobu's sitting posture is incredibly straight forward but very adorable, especially because of the lack of detail in the limbs. Or lack of joints rather. It gets the message across without wasting time on needless details. I like the simplicity.

Left angle

Right angle

As you can see, Shinobu's cuteness maintains throughout any angle. While the paint job itself can be said to be sub-par, I really can't expect anything more than this. Again, simplicity to get the point across. One of said points being cuteness. Which they got right.

Oh, Shinobu's helmet? It's detachable! A nice little thing they added. So now, we can enjoy Shinobu in any way we want her. Except in the way you're thinking off right now you pervert!

What big difference a helmet can make.

As you can see from the above picture, there still exists a joint line between the main forehead headpiece and the back-end. I don't know why figures haven't evolved past this but for the most part, it's usually easily overshadowed for other figurines. For this one however, you're definitely not going to miss it if you keep her helmet off. It's quite rough in the attachment so I'd recommend concealing with the helmet.

Other than the main girl herself, the figurine as a whole comes with a few extras in the background. For any fans of the series (snwlprd was a disappointment during trivia time), you'd know that Shinobu initially lived in the abandoned cram school with Oshino before finally settling with Araragi. The extras reflect this. The chairs propped up against one another reflects Shaft's stylized take on the anime, where objects readily ignore the laws of physics. Beside that is a giant, cracked wall. The representation isn't overly done and I like that. The extras shouldn't detract from Shinobu at all.

Finally, what's Monogatari without Shaft's own signature head tilt.

Is that another box of donuts behind you?

No donuts, no talk.

All in all, I really like it. It's small, simple and adorable. A really nice gift! It's a great addition to any Monogatari display.

P.S. Her panties are white. You're welcome.