2B is technically not mecha, but she’s an android. And the franchise does feature mechanical lifeforms and actual mecha, so go figure.
Prior to its initial premiere earlier this year, I had every intention of watching and keeping up with NieR:Automata ver 1.1a as episodes dropped. But thanks to production issues, episodes got delayed indefinitely, though it appears to have finally resumed broadcast. And it looks like I have more than one reason to catch up with this series as Tamashii Nations has recently announced S.H.Figuarts releases from the series, starting with 2B.
I previously purchased a similarly scaled 2B figure from Square Enix’ Bring Arts line. I’m not the biggest fan of the line thanks to my experience with their Iron Man figure (Gallery: #2005 / Variant Bring Arts / Iron Man) and besides, that one is based on the game design. Yes, I’m creating a justification for purchasing the S.H.Figuarts version.
Both 2B and 9S would be getting releases with a month in between.
I’m not the biggest fan of the franchise to identify differences between the game and anime versions, but I have to say that this figure looks really good. Just from these images, her expression is much better than those found on the Bring Arts version — which we’ll get back to later. She also comes with POD 042 that you can prop with a dedicated display stand.
One thing they highlighted in the solicitation is how the skirt is made of softer plastic, not soft goods, just softer plastic to allow such poses as you see above. It also shows the degrees of articulation 2B has as this is quite the split. Oh, and it also shows her wielding Virtuous Contract, or her sword.
I always saw 2B as an emotionless character, or at least has difficulty expressing emotion, so it’s quite a surprise that this figure comes with four replacement face parts. Each has a different expression that further reinforces the anime aesthetic as compared to the Bring Arts figure which is made to look like a CG rendered character. This is actually what sold me on getting this figure.
They also teased 9S which probably has the same nuances as 2B though I’m not likely to get one. Regardless, I am really looking forward to 2B over here, and I will resume watching the anime as soon as I can.
S.H.Figuarts 2B (NieR:Automata ver 1.1a)
January 2024 / ¥8,000
