Character Doll Help (finished-ish)

[DollyKim]

Good idea, a Gung Fu Grip GI Joe might work too. They have broad shoulders and look muscular but the height is about right.

[MeltedCaramel]

Dollykim I don't have an issue with the naked-versus-clothed issue unless a doll is dressed in an outfit that intentionally reveals skin. If it does, yes, I'd rather have a nicer looking body than one where it's jointed oddly in order to make the poseability work. As for the Champloo boy, your Jimmy Page works so well because Jimmy Page really did have that lean, long body that many rockers seemed to have in that era. And yes, the outfit you have him in hides the anime-stylistic arms, but I don't see Mugen (the tan Champloo boy, your body belongs to Jin) being a good match for what for all appearances looks to be a somewhat compact Asian man. Even clothed the body is rather long and gangly in the limbs (you can see it in your picture despite the clothing, and while it works for Jimmy Page, I don't know how well Kato would sport the look ). It's just personal opinion, but the toys are somewhat rare now and the cheapest ones I could find was on Ebay(slim pickings regarding this doll) for $109.99, and no one was selling the bodies alone. I just don't know that it would work all that great for this particular character, and, in my opinion, the poseability is nothing new or fantastic to justify the pricetag unless someone has a body they could sell for cheaper. It's just a personal opinion of mine though. If Gift_in_Edge decides Mugen's body would be the perfect Kato body, well, that's their perogative! I was just pointing out that there is no getting around the anime-stylistic look of the doll. Even on the clothes parts of your Jimmy Page doll you can tell the limbs are long and gangly, so short of dressing Kato in a paper sack I don't know how to "hide" that aspect of the doll. ^^;;;

Gift_in_Edge First off, thank you for your opinion on the movie!! I'll definitely have to check it out now!

Also, have you thought of making Britt Reid taller by any chance? I know they make fashion dolls anywhere from 14'' to 17'', and you could have a much wider range of body-type choices for Kato if you made Britt the taller one. Just a thought! I was just pondering it because the actor from the radio drama seems so tall!! Unforunately I don't know what brands of fashion doll fall into what size category but I'm sure someone on here knows if you wanted to go down that route.

Do you already have a body in mind for Kato? And have you decided on his head? Or is it still a search for both? (The Obitsu might not be a bad choice of body since you mentioned you won't be disrobing him much. He could easily be blushed a couple shades darker to match a head of your choice, or the Ares head with the right faceup could actually do a realistic Asian male pretty easily.) It's such a pain when customs don't fall seamlessly into place like you want them to, isn't it? I feel like my own customs are in custom hell at the moment so I feel the pain.

[MeltedCaramel]

Oh, I found this while surfing:

Mattel Blaine and Fashion Royalty Homme Pierre <---I think FRH Pierre is around 14'' tall if I'm not mistaken. That would give an added height boost to Britt and Kato's body choices might open up a bit more? Just a thought, Imma leave this here now.

[maywong]

I have a FR male doll and a Blaine doll. The FR dolls are 13" and the Blaine /Ken doll is 12" .
The Moxie teen doll with a Ken's head on it is 14" .

[Gift_in_Edge]

Found some possible heads! And at $3 I could get a few to try. http://www.gijoeelite.com/f_figures.asp
Bigger list: http://www.gijoeelite.com/f_bodyParts1.asp?BodyPart=ALL

Studio 126 I just seen Big Jim on an episode of Toy Hunter. :)

Also my GH is shorter then his uncle The Lone Ranger. (Both claim to be 12 inches) So I could make GH a bit taller then use Jake for Kato. :D

[DollyKim]

Medicom RAH slender on the left, Monster High Jackson on the right.


They just released a new Frankie-Jackson 2 pack so he's easier to get a hold of now. Without the big head he works pretty well. The RAH's arms can fall off at the shoulder because of a design flaw bit they stick back on and he has great joints.

[MeltedCaramel]

Dollykim Great thinking with the Medicom slender build!! All of this chit chat about body types and trying to get it right and no one mentions that doll. Whoops. I like that idea, and Either the FR Homme or the Moxie Teen (providing they'll take the Britt Reid Head Gift_in_Edge has already unless they want to completely redo Britt Reid too...) would give a really nice height difference!!

There are a lot of new choices and combinations popping up in such a short time!

As for the GI. Joe heads, this is just my two cents ($3? ) but I like the "Masa" best. The other ones either seem to have too much of a fixed (angry) facial expression, or they don't really say "Make me over into Kato" to me. The Masa seems just generic enough to work but with the foundation of a good faceup there.

(Also, Maywong, arrghh, where did you get your FR:Homme boy? I've been looking for one that doesn't cost a million freaking dollars and having no success. Doesn't ANYONE rehome these guys!?)

[DollyKim]

I don't say much about my RAH because I can't use him much. He even went back to the factory to get his arms put back on and they still came off. It's the only figure I've ever bought that I'd tell most people not to get because he has a major structural flaw. He used to be my Spider-Man, his name is still Peter, but has been regulated to playing my 9th Doctor Who because the shirt covers the masking tape harness I made for his shoulders.

I have a Tobey Maguire head on a Barack Sergeant body for my Spidey now, Tobey will always be ~my~ Spider-Man.

[MeltedCaramel]

I don't say much about my RAH because I can't use him much. He even went back to the factory to get his arms put back on and they still came off. It's the only figure I've ever bought that I'd tell most people not to get because he has a major structural flaw. He used to be my Spider-Man, his name is still Peter, but has been regulated to playing my 9th Doctor Who because the shirt covers the masking tape harness I made for his shoulders.

I have a Tobey Maguire head on a Barack Sergeant body for my Spidey now, Tobey will always be ~my~ Spider-Man.

Woah, do you mind me asking what exactly the flaw is in the design that seems to make this doll such a pain in the behind to use? I don't blame you for not wanting to use him much with what sounds like a major defect. That's really strange because I've put my RAH (regular version) blank body (with the #$#%^ ugly blank head that won't. come. off) through some pretty rough handling due to sheer frustration. If all of my character dolls from Medicom are that sturdy than I have high hopes for their longevity because I did everything but beat the darn thing against a wall.

I totally hear where you're coming from with Tobey Maguire being the Spider-man.

[Gift_in_Edge]

Why, hello Sulu. We meet again.

Playmates Sulu next to a Ken.
Source: http://phillycollector.blogspot.com/201 ... s-and.html

P.S. Just the Cotswold heads are $3. The complete figures page was the only one that showed all the heads at once.