Latest news with #WonderFestival
SoraNews24
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- SoraNews24
Crazy expensive Evangelion statue, pre-production idols, and more from Japan's Wonder Festival
Japan's biggest figure and garage kit show returns for its summer iteration. There's that old song that tells us that Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year, but that adjective can also get applied to midsummer, when Wonder Festival, Japan's largest figure and garage kit exhibition, rolls into the Makuhari Messe convention center in Chiba Prefecture, about a half-hour east of downtown Tokyo by train. Part of what makes Wonder Festival so cool is that it's an opportunity to see not only brand-new figures of popular characters from anime, manga, and video game worlds but also a chance to get a sneak-peek at the next few months of the hobby, as mid-production preview models are shown off as well. So while July 27 was the latest in a string of scorchers, we braved the heat and headed to Wonder Festival 2025 Summer to snap some photos of our favorite figures on display. This year marks the 30th anniversary of Evangelion, and a series with such a lasting legacy deserves an equally sturdy salute. This gigantic bronze statue of Evangelion Unit-01 looks like it'll do the trick, although with an asking price of 4,18 million yen (roughly US$28,900), you'll need quite a bit of space in your home and your budget. But hey, if you're a regular Otaku D. Rockefeller, maybe with your own statuary garden, you could also opt for this bronze statue of Ultraman, specifically his Shin Ultraman form, for 9.35 million yen. Wonder Festival didn't forget about fans of more modest means, though, as there were plenty of figures to see that you could fit on a normal desk or shelf, like Arcknights' W, who's the muse for this piece from maker Prime 1 Studio. Given their focus on creating a large cast of characters with memorable appearances, mobile games with anime adaptations, such as Arcknights , continue to be a very big thing in the figure sphere. We also saw a whole bunch of figures for Goddess of Victory: Nikke, with multiple manufacturers showing up with detailed figures of special alternate versions of the cast. ▼ Noicse: Classic Diva (Hatsu Welkin) ▼ Rapi: Red Hood (Hobby Sakura) ▼ Anis: Sparkling Summer (Kotobukiya) Likewise, presenters were ready to serve fans of the various branches of the expansive Idolmaster franchise family tree. Union Creative brought a pre-production quintet of idols from The Idolmaster Shiny Colors: Riamu Yumemi… …Kogane Tsukioka… …Amana Osaki… …a similarly angel-winged version of her twin sister Tenka Osaki… …and Chiyuki Kuwayama. Meanwhile, for fans whose personal tastes lean more towards Gakuen Idolmaster, Design Coco is at work on figures of Temari Tsukimura and Misuzu Hataya from sub-unit Re;IRIS. When it comes to the Gakuen Idolmaster girls, though, it's Hiro Shinosawa who really stole the spotlight, with pieces from Spiritale… …Wave… …and even doll manufacturer Dolk at the show. Moving from mobile games to console hits, Ryza, who revitalized Koei Tecmo's Atelier series, has a new figure of her Atelier Ryza 3 design, showing off both her proficiency in the alchemic arts and, of course, her thighs. With Konami getting set to release its lavish-looking remake of Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater , Revoltech has whipped up Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater versions of protagonist Snake… …and mentor-turned adversary The Boss. Revoltech was also showing some love to One-Punch Man, with a pre-production Puri-Puri Prisoner… …and a Garou that's closer to what its finished version will look like. We also spotted another character who's shown she can handle herself in a fight, Guilty Gear Strive's Elphelt Valentine (Spiritale). Rounding out the selection of figures that most caught our eye, we come to Lycoris Recoil's leading ladies, Chisato Nishikigi and Takina Inoue (Aniplex)… …Too Many Losing Heroines' Anna Yanami (Aniplex)… …Bocchi the Rock's Ikuyo Kita (Aniplex)… …and, finally, Date A Live's Kurumi Tokisaki (Prisma Wing). Be advised, though, that the Kurumi figure is a life-size, 1:1-scale statue, so you'll want to think about whether you want to display it in the same part of your home as the Evangelion and Ultraman bronze statues, or whether you want to give each of them their own domain. Photos ©SoraNews24 ● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter! [ Read in Japanese ]
Forbes
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Wonder Festival Spotlights ‘Evangelion' Amidst Blazing Summer Heat
The Japanese summer heat was no joke. Ollie Barder Following the winter edition of Wonder Festival earlier this year, the summer version focused on promoting Evangelion , while we all melted from the heat. As always, Wonder Festival is split into two main parts: commercial and fan-based. The former had very noticeable absences, with the likes of Kotobukiya, Good Smile Company, Bandai, and Takara Tomy lacking their typically large stalls. While Bandai and Takara Tomy did have some small showings, it was more the new Chinese manufacturers that were showing off their impressive wares. Specifically, the likes of CCS Toys and POSE+, with the former's upcoming Ultimate Dancouga from Super Robot Wars 30 looking incredible up close (shown below). The upcoming Ultimate Dancouga from CCS Toys is very impressive in the flesh. Ollie Barder However, the main focus this year on the commercial side was Evangelion , with a large area dedicated to new and upcoming merchandise as well as more esoteric elements. One highlight was seeing the original artwork used in Newtype magazine back in the 90s to originally promote the TV series (shown below). Following the commercial side of things, the fan-based offerings were enormous as usual, with a still steady stream of fan-made Armored Trooper VOTOMS kits, as well as some Layzner and Galient kits thrown in for good measure. There was also more Armored Core stuff this year, although not so much for Armored Core VI , but more for the older games that have seen a recent resurgence in popularity online. Not least due to the digital re-releases of the first three Armored Core games on PlayStation. Seeing the original cels to make the promotional art for 'Evangelion' was fascinating. Ollie Barder In addition, there was an awful lot of Virtual On kits on show, with one stall offering enormous papercraft versions of things like the mid-game boss Jaguarandi from Virtual On Force . Talking of Virtual On Force , one stall had every variant from the game, which made for a rather marvellous sight. One notable point on the fan side was that there was almost nothing from Gundam GQuuuuuuX or Requiem for Vengeance , which is definitely curious, as there were other Gundam offerings, albeit sparse As with all things Wonder Festival, it's always more interesting to see what the fans are up to, as that tends to influence the commercial side of things a few years down the road. In any case, it was another great Wonder Festival and reinforced my love for this event, which never fails to impress and intrigue. Although I much prefer the winter event, the current Japanese summer is pretty brutal. Wonder Festival 2025 Summer Ollie Barder Wonder Festival 2025 Summer Gallery Date: 27th July 2025 Entry: 3,500 yen Follow me on X , Facebook and YouTube . I also manage Mecha Damashii and am currently featured in the Giant Robots exhibition currently touring Japan.
