"Real face" Smart doll Wip.

So what do you guys think of this new head

 

For me I think it's suspicious that it looks like Major Kusanagi (from Ghost in the shell) is in the background there. with the movie coming out I would think if he had gotten that licence that it would be a huge money spinner and would definitely be the go to thing to sell.

 

"Real Face" Smartdoll by Danny Choo, on Flickr

Judging by the face shape and beauty mark, in addition to the covered eyes... I'm pretty sure that it's supposed to be 2B.

Internally screaming bc squad and I have been talking about it for a bit but honestly feels like it's gonna be 2B, especially given the amazingly good reception Automata had since it came out.

 

I'm DEFINITELY keeping an eye on this definitely. I'm very weak to sculpts that have some more realism to it, and depending on how this sculpt looks like I might actually bite on a choo doll finally (even if I've been saying that since forever l o l )

Well, I do like those lips! But it's usually the cheeks where Smart Dolls get weird, so we'll see how that goes.

 

I think Aile is onto something re: the license, but. . . I don't know beans about Automata, so it'll be all about the sculpt to see if I'm interested or not.

Judging by the face shape and beauty mark, in addition to the covered eyes... I'm pretty sure that it's supposed to be 2B.

Danny has also been talking about it a LOT, including remarking how long the girls legs were, like a smartdoll.

I don't know much about the game either though.

Yeah, I agree with you guys that it looks like 2B. Which makes sense given how much he's been hinting about doing stuff with Neir.

 

If it is her, I hope he makes a 9S doll as well so I can get both and have her bridal carry him like in that piece of official art

You know... I didn't even think of nier automata till I read this thread... u may b on to something... my sister and I just thought that there's suddenly a lot of interest in soft vinyl bjds that look realistic like the Udell from Granada. We both kinda are guessing that it might just b a whole new wave about to happen.

Yes this is 2B from Nier, there is even the beauty spot! As mentioned before, Danny has tease a lot about this recently

 

I'm so glad, I have high expectations on this!! ♡

I'm pretty sure that it's 2B, given that Danny has been talking about her a LOT on social media lately.

ERMAGAAHD!!!!! Please say it's 2B!!!

She looks very nice so far. Since it looks like she's still a 3D print (not cast in vinyl yet) I wonder if she's a prototype that Danny made to show to the Nier license holders (Square Enix?). I recall that at one point he wrote that while they make grey 3D prints for internal purposes, they make skin-toned ones to paint and show to license holders for approval.

 

my sister and I just thought that there's suddenly a lot of interest in soft vinyl bjds that look realistic like the Udell from Granada. We both kinda are guessing that it might just b a whole new wave about to happen.

 

In this case it seems more like it's analogous to why Volks made Rise (who is also a realistic-faced doll): there was a game property that appealed to the anime-doll-purchasing demographic which just happened to have more realistic faces, and therefore, the company made an exception to its usual style of doll sculpts.

In these cases, the majority of the people buying the doll do so because they like the character as opposed to because they have a particular liking for realistic sculpts in general.

 

A more telling sign that realistic vinyls are taking off as a thing in and of themselves would be the production of original characters with realistic sculpts (like Udell) from SmD or Volks, or more resin companies entering the vinyl market. I wouldn't be surprised if this happened eventually, but I suspect that companies are waiting to see how well Udell does and how much demand there is before they make a move themselves.

I think you hit the nail on the head, Ie-Aster. 2B is more a case of a particular realistic sculpt primarily appealing to the anime aesthetic market rather than a sign of the general vinyl doll market becoming more open to realistic dolls.

 

Also, as a fairly new member of the doll community, could someone explain the weird divide between anime vinyl dolls and more realistic resin dolls? I never quite got why one material is so closely associated with one aesthetic

Also, as a fairly new member of the doll community, could someone explain the weird divide between anime vinyl dolls and more realistic resin dolls? I never quite got why one material is so closely associated with one aesthetic

 

Vinyl dolls require a metal mold to cast from the production costs for that are very high. They also need a well engineered plastic frame. The start up costs are high, but then the company can produce large quantities of the dolls.

 

Resin dolls on the other hand are cast from silicon, so the production costs are lower. BJD companies are very small, so they can't afford to make vinyl dolls and they usually can't afford to make a bunch of dolls in advance since they might not all sell (for example, Luts, a very well known company had a particular sculpt limited to 200 casts, and it took years before they sold out). Resin also yellows over time, so BJD companies usually only make a doll after an order is received for it. Right now a lot of BJD companies are suffering because of recasters stealing their work and selling it at a lower price. I don't really know that many BJD companies would branch out into vinyl, which is why Udell is rather surprising. That's my understanding on things.

I think you hit the nail on the head, Ie-Aster. 2B is more a case of a particular realistic sculpt primarily appealing to the anime aesthetic market rather than a sign of the general vinyl doll market becoming more open to realistic dolls.

 

Also, as a fairly new member of the doll community, could someone explain the weird divide between anime vinyl dolls and more realistic resin dolls? I never quite got why one material is so closely associated with one aesthetic

Obitsu, one of the oldest vinyl doll companies, has been making realistic head sculpts in vinyl, as well as anime sculpts for over 10 years.

 

As pointed out by Yukamina the molding process for making vinyl skins and plastic skeleton parts is expensive and requires special equipment, where as you can cast resin dolls on your kitchen table for a couple hundred dollars worth of materials, hence the abundance of illegal recasts.

 

When Volks discovered they could license popular anime characters and they sold really well, the DD line really took off. Why exactly they do most of these licensed anime characters in vinyl is hard to say. Vinyl/plastic lends itself to mass manufacturing much better than resin. Producing a large number of bodies would be easier and faster with vinyl. Many anime characters can be produced with a single common body type so being able to make a lot of bodies quickly would be beneficial. It could also be that the people who are buying their resin lines are not the same people buying their vinyl anime dolls.

 

It all started with just one body size and type. Over the last 10+ years Volks (and other vinyl manufacturers) have added more options, sizes, and styles but re-engineering of the skeleton aside, Volks' base DD body has essentially remained the same.

It looks like Volks win the bidding for the doll rights of 2B https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C-70FygXgAAB-Pf.jpg

It doesn't necessarily mean Danny can't go ahead, but it probably stings that they beat him to an official announcement and now he'll have to compete with them if he plans to go ahead.

You should read some of the responses people are saying about this... it's a little crazy.. still, knowing how both smart dolls and dollfie dreams look and move (since I own a DDS and my sister owns tan kizuna)... I would rather have a smart doll 2b.. like that person who posts on Danny's twitter... I think they made theirs out of a milk twilight.

I too don't think Danny will lose out on this completely either. I mean, he's been spazzing over the game since it's release if I remember right, it would suck if SE didn't give him a chance either. The good thing about anime products is that, you probably can sell your rights to more than one maker. Just like how the Fate/ series can have so many products throughout so many different companies.

 

It might sting a bit that he didn't get to them first indeed, but for all you know, VOLKS could have struck up a deal with SE very early on since 2B's design took fire even in it's planning stages. And, I am unsure if Danny would have made 9S too had he gotten the deal first.

 

I do hope though if in the future, he does get a deal with them, he would make a new face mold for her. I don't recall Danny Choo making new head molds for his female license characters yet. But my memory could be failing me, and the chance of him making a new head is super high considering his Lelouch release.

Honestly, I wouldn't mind if Danny made one. I would love to see his take on 2B. Who knows his might end up better than Volks. We just gotta wait and see if his "real face" is 2B

Interestingly, a lot of people seem to be saying that they would have preferred a Smart Doll version of 2B.

Interestingly, a lot of people seem to be saying that they would have preferred a Smart Doll version of 2B.

 

While I'm interested in seeing a smartdoll 2B I prefer DD bodies for 2B. I think the proportions fit a bit better especially around the thighs and shins. Honestly wasn't wowed by some of Danny's other character dolls. The Clamp style should suit Smartdoll very well so I think those work best. Also Volks have more experience doing realistic faces so I think they'd be more likely to capture 2B's face better.

 

Anyway I think there's probably a lot more people looking forward to the DD version especially in Japan. If Danny is interested in making a smartdoll version he should probably announce it. It'd be kinda weird for him to work on a doll he doesn't have rights to make so maybe he's just interested in making a custom for himself? Nier Automata is a super popular game in Japan right now and with that 2B Dollfie Dream in that music video and in the Square Enix cafe it was always a strong possibility Volks would make 2B.