chii dollfie dream chobits

so i just found out that volks made a dollfie dream of chii from chobits in 2003 i believe and i cant believe it lol, the chii doll is so old and rare now, it would be a dream to actually own one from volks. what im doing is i have a semi white dd3 body and im getting a ddh-03 head to custom for chii. I will post pics when she arrives. 

The doll you're referencing was actually a resin Super Dollfie, not a Dollfie Dream.  She did have a more 'anime-style' head, however, which looks very similar to DD heads.

She has a MFC page you can see here: https://myfigurecollection.net/item/18247
You can view a snapshot of her original page, though none of the images load anymore, here: https://web.archive.org/web/20040620192717/http://www.volks.co.jp/jp/superdollfie/sd/chi/index_chi.aspx

Sounds like a lovely plan. :3

It's been so long since I've read the Chobits manga.

1 minute ago, OccultBeast said:

The doll you're referencing was actually a resin Super Dollfie, not a Dollfie Dream.

Huh, was that before Dollfie Dreams were a thing? Or was there another reason for them using a Super Dollfie instead?

2 minutes ago, OccultBeast said:

The doll you're referencing was actually a resin Super Dollfie, not a Dollfie Dream.  She did have a more 'anime-style' head, however, which looks very similar to DD heads.

She has a MFC page you can see here: https://myfigurecollection.net/item/18247
You can view a snapshot of her original page, though none of the images load anymore, here: https://web.archive.org/web/20040620192717/http://www.volks.co.jp/jp/superdollfie/sd/chi/index_chi.aspx

oh i didnt know she was a super dollfie, i didnt think there was a different between super dollfie and dd bpdy 

Just now, ChrisFhey said:

Sounds like a lovely plan. :3

It's been so long since I've read the Chobits manga.

Huh, was that before Dollfie Dreams were a thing? Or was there another reason for them using a Super Dollfie instead?

same here, im currently watching the anime atm. 

Dollfie Dream is the name for Volks' vinyl doll line; Super Dollfie is the name for their resin doll line!  Super Dollfie came first, and then Dollfie Dreams were basically made as a 'spinoff' line to focus on more anime-style dolls.

3 minutes ago, Kalio said:

oh i didnt know she was a super dollfie, i didnt think there was a different between super dollfie and dd bpdy 

Quite a difference actually. Super Dollfie are made out of resin whereas a Dollfie Dream is a Vinyl doll.
And, as far as I know, Super Dollfie don't use an internal frame but are strung like most traditional dolls. Dollfie Dream on the other hand have a full skeleton on the inside.

1 minute ago, ChrisFhey said:

Quite a difference actually. Super Dollfie are made out of resin whereas a Dollfie Dream is a Vinyl doll.
And, as far as I know, Super Dollfie don't use an internal frame but are strung like most traditional dolls. Dollfie Dream on the other hand have a full skeleton on the inside.

oh i see

 

I've read somewhere that she used the same headmold as DDH01 (it seems like they used existing molds for collaborations at the beginning), but like OccultBeast said, she was resin.

59 minutes ago, Irulazuli said:

I've read somewhere that she used the same headmold as DDH01 (it seems like they used existing molds for collaborations at the beginning), but like OccultBeast said, she was resin.

She did essentially have an 01 head, but iirc I believe they made the sculpt for her and then afterwards cast it in vinyl for the Dollfie Dream line. I believe that I've heard the the vinyl 01 is a bit smaller than Chii's head, which would happen if they had directly recasted their own mold.

Chii was released in May 2003, and Candy and Mirai, early DDs, were released in August 2003.

I love Chii~ Chobits was the first manga I ever collected and read (I don't think my parents realized what it was about when they bought me the volumes as they came out  it came out before I started working). Is the one in your pfp your own custom make?

Yep, Chii's head was indeed the base for the 01 heads when they did the original DD vinyl bodies.  I have pics to prove it!

 

Here we see my Manami next to @asianed 's Chii.  It's the same head for sure and as Jezrah mentioned, the vinyl one is smaller due to the process for the molds.

I need to make a custom Chii one of these days.  I've always loved that manga and anime a lot.   

 

 

Billy

As we looked at them side by side, the similarities between Chili's mold and the 01 mold are hard to ignore!

The SD Chii was available at a DollPa many years ago, and to my knowledge only 200 were made. They crop up from time to time on the secondary market and command quite a hefty price tag when they do! I've seen her head list for $1500 by itself, with full set dolls in good condition crossing the $2000 mark. 

Since Chii is resin (and what is referred to as "old skin"), many examples have yellowed over time due to exposure or have been modified. It's fun to note that she did not have casted human ears, as her persocom ears are built directly into the head. I have pictures of that somewhere, in case people want to see the inside. 

Also as an older resin, she is incredibly floppy as the body lacks many of the locking joints found on modern resin bodies. Her legs and arms will spin round and round in the sockets. XD

Here are a couple of pictures of my Chii (I managed to find her a few years ago on Mandarake) on a trip to Japan back in 2017. They were taken at Volks Kyoto and Volks Yokohama. I also took her to DollPa in LA! 

She has one of the longest wigs I've ever seen on a doll, and is a massive pain in the butt to care for. 

Edited June 14, 2021 by asianed

I always hoped Volks would make an actual DD Chii for one of the Chobits anniversaries. With no disrespect meant to fans of the SD version... I never felt she actually looked like Chii, and I don’t find her all that cute. (Tbh I don’t like unmodded ddh01 much anyway, especially on an ‘adult’ body, and was surprised to learn it was originally intended for a 1/3 body at all!) I can still appreciate  her as a piece of Volks history, of course!

A more modern interpretation of a Chii DD would be great to see. (I was surprised it hasn’t happened yet - seeing as they remade Rei with her own sculpt later) Volks have gotten a lot better at recreating characters in sculpt and faceup and eyes since those early days, so I really hope it happens at some point.

1 hour ago, Monty said:

I always hoped Volks would make an actual DD Chii for one of the Chobits anniversaries. With no disrespect meant to fans of the SD version... I never felt she actually looked like Chii, and I don’t find her all that cute. (Tbh I don’t like unmodded ddh01 much anyway, especially on an ‘adult’ body, and was surprised to learn it was originally intended for a 1/3 body at all!) I can still appreciate  her as a piece of Volks history, of course!

A more modern interpretation of a Chii DD would be great to see. (I was surprised it hasn’t happened yet - seeing as they remade Rei with her own sculpt later) Volks have gotten a lot better at recreating characters in sculpt and faceup and eyes since those early days, so I really hope it happens at some point.

 

I totally agree with this and it is totally how I feel about it as well! Chii is one of my all-time favourite characters but I just don't feel like this one looks like her much, which is a shame. I definitely will forever keep hoping they'll make a DD of her someday!

4 hours ago, Roxanne said:

 

I totally agree with this and it is totally how I feel about it as well! Chii is one of my all-time favourite characters but I just don't feel like this one looks like her much, which is a shame. I definitely will forever keep hoping they'll make a DD of her someday!

I actually consider Chii to be one of the more faithful recreations of a manga character. It's always difficult to extrapolate how light will hit an object from 2D to 3D, especially when you start looking at different angles. Oftentimes, the chin or nose won't look right when you start moving off-axis.

The other Volks recreation that gets mixed reviews is Belldandy, from Aa! Megami-sama. Since she was made as a Super Dollfie, she was styled more realistically and is off-putting to some. 

I also suspect that Chii was modeled after her appearance in the manga, rather than the tweaks that were made for the anime. Here are a few side-by-sides... 

6 hours ago, asianed said:

I actually consider Chii to be one of the more faithful recreations of a manga character. It's always difficult to extrapolate how light will hit an object from 2D to 3D, especially when you start looking at different angles. Oftentimes, the chin or nose won't look right when you start moving off-axis.

Having only seen the anime, seeing her compared to the manga she’s closer than I thought for sure, but I think the key thing that may be throwing people off with anime characters is the eyes being too small. That said, you’re correct in saying that the transition from 2D drawing into a successful 3D interpretation of that drawing is going to involve some changes. It’s a question of expectation vs. reality IMO .

I’m with Monty in that I’m not a fan of DDH-01, but it was still fun to see all the Chi’s at the LA Dolpa. She’s one heck of a collectors item, and people who had her are pretty happy to have her.

 

6 hours ago, asianed said:

The other Volks recreation that gets mixed reviews is Belldandy, from Aa! Megami-sama. Since she was made as a Super Dollfie, she was styled more realistically and is off-putting to some. 

I have Bell, and I think she looks quite recognizable as Belldandy. She’s not exactly like the art, but she’s Belldandy for sure.

9 hours ago, Monty said:

I always hoped Volks would make an actual DD Chii for one of the Chobits anniversaries.

Oh gosh, me too. If I could replicate my favorite official art with official dolls one day I would die happy. This art is really nostalgic and special to me.

  

32 minutes ago, BeyondTime said:

I have Bell, and I think she looks quite recognizable as Belldandy. She’s not exactly like the art, but she’s Belldandy for sure.

I think Bell was much closer to the artwork used in the manga (once again). Though I absolutely agree with you, Volks did a great job embodying the spirit of the character in the sculpt. Even when she's not dressed in her default garb, you can totally tell.

Edited June 15, 2021 by asianed

17 minutes ago, Veravey said:

Oh gosh, me too. If I could replicate my favorite official art with official dolls one day I would die happy. This art is really nostalgic and special to me.

A few years back, I missed getting a second Chii from Mandarake by a few weeks. I totally would have made the second one Freya...

15 minutes ago, asianed said:

A few years back, I missed getting a second Chii from Mandarake by a few weeks. I totally would have made the second one Freya...

If I spot one I’ll message you. 
 

15 minutes ago, asianed said:

Even when she's not dressed in her default garb, you can totally tell.

Mine is never in her default, and yes, she always looks like Bell.

10 hours ago, asianed said:

I also suspect that Chii was modeled after her appearance in the manga, rather than the tweaks that were made for the anime. Here are a few side-by-sides... 

I was actually referring to manga Chii when I made my post. I think we will have to agree to disagree on whether she looks like Chii or not, because I personally can not see it, especially the eyes. I know it was the era and all, so it’s not fair to judge by today’s SD/DD standards (which I would align Belldandy closer to), but her face (especially her eyes and faceup) just do not capture the delicate look of CLAMP’s art to me, personally. 

Edit: forgot to mention...one thing I was always sad about was that YoSD came out when it did. If it had been earlier, we could have gotten a YoSD Sumomo, and she would have been life-size! (Although only to us and not to Chii...) I would love for that to happen if Volks ever decided to do an updated rerelease of SD Chii.

Edited June 15, 2021 by Monty

1 hour ago, Monty said:

but her face (especially her eyes and faceup) just do not capture the delicate look of CLAMP’s art to me

Clamp’s artwork is so soft and delicate it often seems like a watercolor painting. I’m not sure their style can ever really be fully recreated in a doll.

I’d like to see Volks do Magic Knights Rayearth DD though.

Apologies for necro-ing a thread, but she is my grail doll.

I'm pretty much only interested in vinyl dolls, except with her.

I know she's going to be practically impossible to get, but I'm okay with it, even if she has yellowed 😭

She indeed desperately needs a modern DD remake...