Review - Daibadi Polynian Yume
I've got a confession to make. I'm a sucker for cool and unique robot designs. I know, it's a shocker right? Robots? Me? It's not just Transformers, I dig most humanoid robots, androids, or cyborgs, and for some reason robot girl designs like Aigis and Labrys from Persona really pique my interest. I've had a passing interest in the Polynian line from Daibadi for a while but their first couple entries; Clover and Shamrock, didn't quite interest me enough to drop the cash on them. Enter Polynian Yume. Classic Japanese schoolgirl/Sailor scout aesthetic? Check! Futuristic robo katana? Check! I was hooked and I put in a pre-order almost immediately. The design really makes me think of a sort of robotic Yoko from Gurren Lagann crossed with Sailor Moon. Let's get to it!
Beautiful packaging with some nice photos showing off Yume's articulation.
Yume's design is very well executed with sharp lines, and just enough technical detail, along with her snow white “skin” that you know instantly this isn't a normal human character. The paintwork is sharp, the face tampographs are applied perfectly and there are next to no significant flaws in the paint on my copy. Even tiny details like the little heart pattern on her tie are sharp and well applied.
Cute... but possibly deadly?
Her body style would be best described as curvy. She's got thick thighs, a tight waist and a very appealing overall shape. The school uniform that is molded on Yume, including the seemingly always necessary pair of pink underwear, adds another dimension to her design that isn't present on Clover. While I really do like the shapely presentation of Clover, I found her less appealing as a purchase since she's basically a naked robot girl and I felt that might restrict my display and photography options.
Hot damn!
Yume's anime heroine aesthetics and her feminine shape are a combo that I just couldn't resist! She looks great displayed next to Aigis and Labrys or even standing around with some of my Autobots.
Yume's aesthetic; Call me kawaii and you're going to die!
Yume's accessories are fairly basic but effective. She comes with a briefcase/book bag that can be pegged in to her back, or slid into either of the left or right hands that she ships with. She also comes with a cool futuristic looking katana that likewise can be stored on her back or in either of her hands. If you remove the thruster packs from her skirt, you can also tab the katana or book bag in to the side of her waist. She comes with a total of 6 hands; 2 fists, 2 fists with a peg hole, and 2 splayed hands. 3 total faces; Smiling with her eyes open, Smiling with her eyes closed, and a shouting combat face. She also comes with a very cool looking stand with a hexagonal pattern. The stand has a simple peg that plugs in to the bottom of either of Yume's feet.
Ready for school! I'm sure I'll blend in without any trouble!
Her articulation is fairly impressive, if a little basic. As far as I know this line is based on garage kits that have been turned into completed production figures. The joints in the figure are similar in function to Revoltech joints but without any sort of ratcheting. All of her joints are bi directional, and can take some getting used to. For example, her hip joints by default out of the box will only allow her legs to swing forward or backwards. If you want to move her legs out to the side you have to rotate the joint at it's connection to the body to adjust the axis of the joint.
You don't want to know how long this pose took, her arm joints might be at risk of self destructing!
This means Yume is capable of most of the poses you would expect out of a modern action figure she just requires a little more patience to get there. Don't try to force her joints in the wrong direction or you may split the joint and cause irreparable damage to your figure! Her knee joints unfortunately are incredibly loose, which seems to be a common issue with most copies of this figure, so I will have to figure out a way to tighten those up. Depending on her center of gravity she has a tendency to fold backwards at the knees which can be a bit frustrating when posing her. The rest of the joints are much tighter so I don't think it has anything to do with the joint style, but perhaps the size of joint used in the knee and the weight of the figure from the knees up.
Just missing that trademark piece of toast!
Aesthetically I am incredibly satisfied with this figure, however the finished build quality of the toy leaves a bit to be desired. Yume is incredibly fragile and prone to falling apart particularly the mid torso connection. I can't count the number of times she came apart while I was attempting to pose her. It was physically frustrating and actually caused me to walk away from my shooting area for a few minutes.
She literally fell apart while posing her. Strangely the end result reminded me of Zero from Megaman X5 when he is mostly destroyed while fighting Sigma.
Depending on your preference you could glue this connection without losing any articulation but you would loose the ability to remove the skirt from the figure. Not a huge loss but if you have other figures from this line you loose a potentially cross compatible accessory. This left me feeling like I was dealing with a model kit, similar to the Kotobukiya articulated kits, more than a finished figure at this price point. Not a deal breaker for me but definitely could be an issue for some collectors.
All in all I am very satisfied with Yume and she makes a great addition to my collection. I'm glad I took a lot of photos though as I don't see myself taking her down and messing with her very often. I can't say I would recommend this figure to anyone who plays with their toys more often or want's a robust and durable articulated figure. Despite it's production nature it does still feel a bit like a Garage Kit. I might look into some other figures in this line to play around with the cross compatibility and interchangeability of some of the accessories, clothing. and heads/hair. Yume is a bit of a niche pick for your collection as she is not based on any established character as far as I know, but if you are into the aesthetic of the Polynian line I personally think she's the best design currently available. There are a couple more “clothed” Polynian girls coming out this year that interest me as well, particularly the beach themed Mel. I might add a few more figures to this collection over time and I look forward to seeing what's in store for the future of Daibadi's Polynian figures.
Check out the hi-res gallery below for more pics of Polynian Yume and let me know what you think in the comments section! Also this is the first time I've made a teaser/intro video, let me know what you think about it! Should I make it a permanent feature going forward?
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