EX Figure Review: BOME’s Kasumi (Black Costume) has a Few Tricks Up Her…

I have never played Dead or Alive. But of course everyone would’ve seen the famous Kasumi and her titties around, so when I was asked to review this Limited Edition Black Costume Version of the recently released Monsieur Bome Collection Kasumi, I gladly accepted the task. I wouldn’t have ever bought a Kasumi, that’s why.

First up, l’ll post some information found on the back of the box.

BOME, the sculptor said, "When I first tried to make a garage kit of Kasumi from DOA, I remember not having access to any detailed references and taking many photos of the TV screen to complete the work. Now, for this fully-painted PVC version, I was able to improve on many parts that I wasn’t satisfied with in the original model. As an additional challenge, I even attempted to recreate Kasumi’s hairstyles and costume changes, which, it can be said, are some of the strongest selling points of the DoA series. I chose costumes and hairstyles that I considered to be Kasumi’s staples, which I hope you will enjoy. I myself am quit excited to see how they turn out."

Vitals
Name: Kasumi
Fighting Style: Mugen Tenshin Clan Ninujutsu Tenjin Mon
Nationality: Japanese
Birthday: 23 Feb
Blood Type: A
Height: 158 cm
Weight: 48 kg
Sizes: 89-54-85
Occupation: Exiled Ninja
Favourite Foods: Strawberry Millefeuille
Hobbies: Fortune Telling

Released in September this year, produced by Kaiyodo and sculpted by the famed BOME dude, this 4500 yen figurine actually comes in three colours: Blue, White and Black. Unlike most cheapo coloured variants by companies such as Ateliar Sai which just change one or two colours, each of these three Kasumis actually have different poses, different designs and different hairstyles. So hardcore fans of the kunoichi would surely want to get their hands on all three.

Note that white and blue are normal versions while this Black version can only be obtained through Tecmo’s Online Shop and is a rare Limited Edition version. You can get it at Urban Attic (located at Funan the IT Mall), and if I’m not wrong, it’s the only place where this is currently obtainable in Singapore. The price is S$159 if I recall correctly. There’s only one last piece, the last time I checked. Oh yeah, if you tell the store owner that you discovered this figure through my review, you can get it for 145 bucks. I’ll be doing a proper coupon in the future though.

A quick comparison. The white version has Kasumi’s hair let down and her ninjatou sheathed. Her whole costume in white with red trimmings and the motifs on her front and rear are of sakura petals. The blue version has tied up pony tail, the common blue costume with a dragon printed on and her ninjatou is posed ready to strike. The black version is all black with metallic gold edges and a flowerish design. Black has Kasumi’s knife held at her side in a more open pose. Her hair is tied up in a long plait.

I would say this is probably the best mass-produced sculpt of Kasumi I’ve seen on the market. The biggest reason would be her tits – most other figurines made her wayyyy too big for my liking. Perhaps they are faithful to the game designs, but too big just looks fat.

As usual, I’ll pick a few pictures for comment.
The background is a random wall with creepers. I used my trusty styrofoam reflector board, the time was 4 pm on a cloudy hazy day with no direct sunlight at all.

This figure has a much better backview, so most of my nicer shots tend to be from rear angles. The upper body gets more attention too (not because of boobies) but because it’s more dynamic than her legs. It’s a bit disjointed, the upper and lower halves.

Any comment?

This figure already looks pretty good at first glance, but upon closer examination, I saw several features that really add a lot to its aesthetics. Kasumi’s hair is a translucent orange, layered with pearlescent shades of more orange and red. It’s refreshing to see a neat plait on a figurine, since most others have long and untied hair.

Her face is great too, it has the sharpness a fighter should possessand actual lips. Yes, most figures don’t actually have lips. I like the narrow sculpt of the face cos it makes her look sleek and cool.

For skintone, it’s pretty well done, with a tad too much pink on her body though. There are almost no seamlines visible or feelable, besides the one on her head, which is quite standard.

Her clothes are made of a mixture of materials. This is probably the most interesting part of the figure. Her ninja garb is stuck onto her and isn’t part of the sculpt, hence a different type of PVC is used. This type is very very soft PVC, that is very flexible just like rubber. If you’ve touched the clothes of a Playarts figure, that would be the same material. So her clothes feel a lot softer than her body. And this design allows for a MOVIE!! The strings on her hips are yet another material. This time, it’s very brittle and stiff PVC, to fix the ribbons in their desired state. The printed designs on her clothes are very beautiful, not to mention perfectly crisp and clean. Note that the designs are printed on BOTH sides, and all four sides have the exact same design. This is probably to save on production costs, for it is cheaper to just make an identical piece and stick it on both sides. Gold on black makes for a rather oriental and classy appearance. Her sash and neck ribbon are the same pearlescent red.

WATCH VIDEO OF GOOD STUFF HERE

Kasumi is wearing thigh-high leggings and watchacall it "armings", along with gauntlets and ninja sandals with shin armour.

The ninjatou is a two piece, with the hilt and blade attaching to her hand on either side. It beats me why a weapon should have such elaborate tassles on the end, but they do look good. Oh yeah, it’s sharp. I just pricked my thigh. Gah. And yes, regular sized katana are not cool anymore. You either have short or long or unique bends like Saya’s.

Her pose is pretty nice actually. BOME’s style is to use not-too-outstanding poses (maybe so that his sculpts can fit into the tiny packs) and Kasumi’s naturally isn’t as dynamic as it could be. It looks like a victory pose, with the "I’ve won, you can’t beat me" vibes generated.

The base is a good one. It’s stimulated stone brick, the sort you see on Japanese castle grounds. One issue I have is the attachment to the base. There are only two plugs keeping Kasumi on and both are on her standing left foot. Her right is on tiptoes so all the weight is on the left. While there has not been a history of BOME figures leaning, because of their solid material used and safe pose, this could be a concern. I do note, however, that Kasumi’s ankles are very sturdy and stiff, plus reinforced by the shin armour.

So overall, this is actually quite a great figure. It may be expensive, but only because the black version is LE. For poor paupers, I recommend the white version. Blue is too original, too plain.