I’m a simple man. I like boats, I like yandere girls, and I like anime girl figures. So it should come as no surprise that I preordered Kotobukiya’s 1/7 figure of Akagi, the iconic yandere aircraft carrier from popular mobile game Azur Lane, the moment she went on sale. Akagi arrived just in time for New Year’s and I’m eager to show her off.
Akagi’s pose and outfit depict her appearance in her classic CG, looking just as she does when you first encounter her cackling her overbearing love for Shikikan-sama in the game.
To support her crane-legged pose and fiery flight deck, Akagi comes with a clear water spout piece that attaches the flight deck to the base. That’s one of five pieces that were actually kind of tricky to assemble and I’m not confident I got everything fitting as tight as it should. Her fluffy fox tails even fell off while I was posing her for review pictures.
Kotobukiya is known for their high level of detail and quality on their bishoujo figure line, and Akagi is a solid example. Her open robe flutters in the sea breeze with all its embroidery, ceremonial gold tassels and red cords wrapping around to her nine tails perked up behind her.
The same breeze has also blown up her skirt a bit and although Kotobukiya’s promotional photography doesn’t show it off, I’m happy to confirm that Akagi’s thong and butt are as lovingly sculpted and detailed as the rest of her clothes and body.
The most challenging area for anime figures is the face. What looks great and cute as a 2D face sometimes ends up looking like a turtle, or just otherwise awkward when translated to 3D. In this case, Kotobukiya did a fine job on the shape of Akagi’s face, but they could have put some more detail into painting her eyes to give her that “enraptured yandere desperate for Shikikan-sama” look I’m craving.
At 28.5 cm or 11.2 inches, Akagi is a big girl on my shelf, making my 1/8 Yumeko Jabami, also by Kotobukiya, look pretty dainty. But it’s only fair. She is an aircraft carrier, after all.
Akagi is the first of my Azur Lane figures to come in and I’m happy enough with her that I’m excited for the Eldridge and Ayanami I have coming. I haven’t decided yet if I will buy Kaga. Wouldn’t a second kitsune aircraft carrier make Akagi less special?
