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Name: Shuichi Shindou |
I first got into this hobby in March of 2008 after I saw some Asian Ball-Jointed Doll pictures on LiveJournal. I thought that the dolls were beautiful, and I was really intrigued by how much they resembled characters in anime. I have always loved dolls, and I have been a huge fan of anime and manga for awhile now, and this hobby seemed like the perfect blend of those two hobbies. I started looking around online for more information about them, but I was initially very intimidated about getting one because of the prices of the dolls and the amount of customization that went into the hobby. The dolls usually come naked and bald so that the owner can customize the doll to be whatever they want it to be. The face-up (makeup and eyebrows) are usually not even included in the price of the doll because many people like to do it themselves. As someone very new to the world of BJD's, the task of buying everything separately and hoping it would come together in the end was a very daunting thought. And that's not even mentioning the fact that I have never been very good at coming up with my own characters.
After giving it some serious thought and doing a lot of research, I decided I was going to get a doll and that I was going to model it after one of my favorite characters, Shuichi from Gravitation. One of the first things I decided was that I wanted to get a 60 cm doll, because that size just seemed to appeal to me the most. I searched around online and after looking at countless doll molds, I decided that I wanted to get an Abio Angel. I thought that their dolls were really cute, and even though it was one of the first sites I came across, I kept going back to it. I also really liked that their dolls came with a face-up and eyes included in the price, and that the price itself was not too high. I was initially drawn to the Er mold as listed on the Divinity Doll site, but after reading on the Den of Angels forum, I read that there was some confusion about the Er and Ling photos and that they were switched on the website. Since I was nervous about ordering my first doll anyway, I decided to get Yi instead, so that there would not be any confusion with my order. After looking through owners photos on the forum, I ended up liking him the best anyway. I also decided on a pink wig that I really liked from Dream of Doll, and I ordered some clothes for him from Sunny's Wonderful World on eBay and some shoes from Mimiwoo's eBay store. After ordering everything, then I got to start playing the waiting game!
Shuichi's clothes, shoes, and wig all arrived a few weeks before he did, and I just really hoped that I had ordered everything in the right size. I was really shocked when I saw the size of his clothes, his pants especially. I had of course seen pictures online, but having never seen a BJD in real life, I couldn't believe how tall he was going to be, and how long his pant legs were! I checked the order status on Divinity Doll daily for updates on when Shuichi was going to be shipped, but my order never changed from 'processing' to 'shipped', so imagine my surprise when he arrived without warning on May 6th! I was so excited when he arrived, and after opening the box, I was really happy that I had chosen to get the doll that I did, because he was just what I wanted. He was just so adorable and I was really happy that his wig and clothes fit. I was very nervous with him at first since I wasn't really sure how to handle a BJD and I didn't want to break him. However, I eventually got comfortable with handling and posing him and he has been a lot of fun to have around. Shuichi is a great doll, and I am so happy that he was my first one.
Shuichi is based on the lead character from the manga and anime series, "Gravitation". Shuichi is a singer/songwriter and musician, and the series revolves around his struggles to get his band, Bad Luck, off the ground. Along the way, he meets writer Eiri Yuki, who he finds himself falling hopelessly in love with. Shuichi is a very over the top and emotional character who never wavers in the things he believes in. At the start of the series he is 18 years old, by he is probably around 20 by the last volume of the original manga series. "Gravitation" follows Bad Luck's rise to superstardom, from playing at their high school graduation to competing head to head in a singles battle with Shuichi's longtime idols, the top selling group Nittle Grasper. At Shuichi's side through it all is his boyfriend, Yuki. And although their relationship had just as many downs as it did ups, one thing that never changed was Shuichi's never ending love for Yuki.