This is something I've been wanting to do for awhile. There aren't a lot of full reviews out there. None that I could find, anyway. Instead, information across the doll community seems to be scattered around somewhat haphazardly. I remember how difficult it was as a doll newbie to find information and even now I have trouble finding things I'm looking for. I think if a concept like this can expand, it could be beneficial to newbies and veterans alike!
If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions on how to make better reviews in the future, please post!
OVERVIEW
Name: Darkwind
Sculpt: Doll Family-A Wind
Size: MSD
Skin type: Normal Yellow
Ear type: Elf
Face-up: Doll Family-A
Clothes: Ringdoll
Age of doll at time of review: 1 year, 1 month.
Price paid without face-up: $180 (Frequently on sale)
Wait time: Roughly 30 days
URL: http://www.alicescollections.com/wind-p ... th=121_124
HEIGHT
DF-A advertises Wind's height as 45cm. My doll comes in at slightly below 44cm.
THE FACE
The Doll Family-A Wind head is generally fairly nice, with only a few quibbles. The shape is fairly standard, so most MSD-size wigs will fit without a problem. The forehead is a tad on the large side, but nothing that could be considered unrealistic. The nose and mouth are well-sculpted with no apparent faults.
This Wind is the first produced with the optional elf ears. DF-A seems to be more open to customization requests than other companies. When I was considering several MSD boys, I asked them if they'd be willing to put elf ears on a Wind and to my surprise, they said yes. After I received mine, elf ears became a standard option.
There are some faults to the face though. First, his eye openings not both shaped the same, making it difficult to get his eyes inserted in a natural way. Also hindering that is the fact that the resin inside the head is quite uneven, the result being that his eyes tend to move around, no matter how much blu-tak is holding them in place. He used to have eyelashes, but I pulled those out. They were inexplicably stuck on the inside of his head instead of the bottom of the eyelid, making his eyes look like they were being shielded by little furry caterpillar legs.
On a more personal note, I'm not wild about his factory face-up. Many elements of it are nice. His lips look detailed and natural and they eyebrows look quite nice. However, the attempt at a gothy look around the eyes only makes him look, to me, like he hasn't slept in four days.
An objective complaint about his face-up is it really doesn't resemble the pictures provided by DF-A in the slightest. I was expecting this: http://www.alicescollections.com/wind-p-2913.html?cPath=121_124 That is not what I received.
These photos here are the last taken of Darkwind before I sent him off to a mod artist to have him altered.
THE RESIN
The resin is very smooth and utterly seamless. For those who are in the habit of sanding seams off of dolls, you will have to do none of that with the DF-A MSD body. The resin quality has a bit more of a plasticky feel to it compared to others, but it's nothing that detracts from the quality of the doll. After one year of ownership and having spent absolutely zero time in a box during that period, there has been no noticeable change in his resin color.
The DF-A resin is prone to light scratching that's usually only noticeable upon close inspection under direct lighting. Long fingernails are not recommended for handling.
THE POSING
In some ways, the DF-A posing ability is absolutely first rate. As you can see, he has no problem standing on one foot, a feat aided greatly by his double jointed knees. When standing on two legs, he's exceptionally solid and stable. His range of movement on his legs is a bit limited by the fact that he has no joint in his upper legs, however.
His shoulders exhibit a full range of movement and generally stay where you put them. However, his elbows aren't quite so limber. You can expect to be able to bend his double-jointed arms about 30 degrees. Any more, and they will snap back. This may change over time as his strings loosen. For now, he's very tight in that area.
The standard hands have an extremely limited range of movement. You can expect that you will only be able to rotate those hands, but bending his wrists will result in them returning to the exact same position every single time. The Wind comes with a second right hand that has a much higher movement range than the standard hands.
THE BODY
The DF-A MSD boy body is has a nice shape, overall, though the hips are a bit unrealistically large for a boy. This is, however, par for the course in the BJD world. There is only a single joint in the mid-section, but this is enough for most movement ranges.
The DF-A MSD boy body is definitely more chunky than your usual MSD. As such, it can be very difficult to find pants that fit him. The Ringdoll shorts he's wearing in the first several pictures had to be modified to add an inch to the waistline before they would fit. Most shirts should fit okay, but expect them to be tight. On the other hand, one could accuse most MSD sculpts of being a bit on the anorexic side. The DF-A MSD boy is more realistically shaped.
A bonus is that his "goodies" are very substantive, unlike many other dolls, where they are tucked away as though the artists who made them were embarrassed to put them there.
His butt, on the other hand, is huge. Not that I'm complaining, nor is his boyfriend, but it is another contributing factor to the fact that it is very difficult to find pants that will fit him.
I give the DF-A Wind MSD boy a B-. Above average, but not without problems.
At $180, he's one of the less-expensive MSD boys and many of the negatives stated above are likely a result of the fact that DF-A is one of the smaller doll makers out there. As far as I know, Doll Family-A has no English website of their own and sell all their wares through dealers. I got mine through Alice's Collections and they were very helpful in making sure I got exactly what I wanted.
