For a few years now, action figures made by many Asian companies have been going out of their way to have the ugliest upper-leg articulation imaginable. What's confusing about this trend is that, rather than being some radical innovation, it's mostly just a regression back to the ugly spherical thigh swivel of old ToyBiz, Marvel Select, or early Marvel Legends figures. Putting articulation aside, from a sculpting standpoint, I find these designs hideous. It looks like the characters are sticking their legs inside a larger pair of legs. What's even dumber is that it makes no visual sense for the upper legs to go inside the lower legs. If anything, it should be reversed - large segments descending into smaller segments. If you want to see a proper implementation of this concept, check out the Nottaa NT-04 female body figures.The really unfortunate part for me personally is that Storm Collectibles switched to this hideous articulation scheme midway through their awesome Storm Arena toyline, even though they never used it before. While it can look okay with certain baggy fabrics, like Nash's or Gouki's (I still prefer the straight cut from the Ryu/Ken/Dan figures), it looks terrible on everything else. I've been waiting years for a company to make really nice and affordable 1:12 scale Darkstalkers and SNK figures. But that damn monkey's paw had to curse them with the worst legs I've ever seen. Even some domestic companies have been flirting with this articulation scheme (see the MOTU Chronicles Evil-Lyn above). Thankfully, Mattel wisely eschewed this scheme with their new DC collector's line. Hopefully it stays that way.What are your thoughts? Do you find this articulation scheme as off-putting as I do? What is your ideal leg articulation scheme?
Yeah I agree, it’s especially bad with skin colored legs. The worst leg designs have to be the McFarlane knees. Holy hell, these look terrible in any pose that isn’t just standing straight up.
>>11923776Canadians are asian now (indian)
>>11923770I geniunely do not care
>>11923776Todd outsources his sculpting to Asian sculptors last time I heard
>>11923770>What are your thoughts? Do you find this articulation scheme as off-putting as I do? What is your ideal leg articulation scheme?I find it less egregious than straight cuts through sculpted muscles etc. that Hasbro and Mattel use. I prefer The Mafex and McFarlane hip in theory, but sometimes it's implemented poorly.
>>11923786I find this opinion fascinating. To me, a straight cut can look weird in certain poses, but it's basically invisible when properly aligned. However, a legs wearing legs articulation scheme always looks weird in any configuration.
>>11923770the whale figure is probably the best action figure the made, i been messing with the male one and its still tight and solid joint resistance
>>11923791It's only aligned in A-poses or basic bitch action poses.
>>11923821It depends on the sculpt. The key difference is a straight cut can be made to look natural, but a cupped articulation cannot.
>>11923770Thigh swivels are hard to get right. Straight cuts look awful if you actually use them unless the leg has a perfectly circular cross-section, the partial-encapsulation designs in your pic are more natural in more poses but always have that weird seam, and Figma style hidden thigh swivels look the best, but often have very poor range.
top right looks fucking retared wtf
>>11923829I prefer any articulation scheme (even no thigh swivel) so long as the legs can look natural and not like deformed abominations.However, the best method I've seen that looks organic while still being highly functional makes each booty cheek a separate piece between the crotch and the legs. You can see it in the Nottaa NT-04 female body figures.I'm not saying this implementation is perfect (the booty cheeks are a bit oddly shaped), but the concept looks sound. The articulation follows the natural line of the booty and runs parallel to the v-line. It goes down into the thighs, rather than the thighs going up into a smaller segment. It's a much more elegant solution than just jamming the upper legs into even larger legs and calling it a day.
So Storm Collectables announces stuff like two years before it is ready?
>>11923955no retard
>>11923770i think this type of cut works fine on legs that aren't spandex or bare flesh, which is most characters, but yes it looks pretty rough on ones like these, though i don't like straight cuts either as they just look bad in different ways too
>>11923971Cool, give preorders for that Cammy
>>11923770Once again we have loud mouths like bobby vala forcing everyone to follow a standard thats ugly and the same shit every company does to fit an ugly aesthetic.
>>11923776Furry.
>>11924014I'm confused. What does this have to do with Bobby Vala?
>>11923770I got a wind toys male blank recently that looks like that bottom right figure and the flap straight up gets in the way of articulation.Maybe it's hiding a gap, I'll have to check when I'm home.
>>11923955Sometimes the line gets cancelled before the figure is released, yes I'm looking at you Gears of War.
>>11923770I don't know why the hip and thigh can't be flush. A lot of these figures don't even get past 90 degrees bend even with their weird cut while figures that have flush thigh swivel also get the same 90 degree range. So it doesn't help just looks ugly. Is Revoltech the one that started doing this and everyone copied them? It's dumb how it's basically standard now.
>>11923773hasbro has been producing equally garbage knees and elbows for a few years now too. what happened? it's a scourge across the industry
>>11923770Why come no one's doing Ass on Legs anymore? That's like the only thing that works
>>11925917Xesray is still doing it
>>11923770Let's be real: Hasbro is the only company to have hit a balance between fantastic articulation and great sculpts for a good price joint. Imports just can't compete to figures from the country that created the action figure industry
>>11923770you don’t like cuplegs?
>>11929187That doesn't look any better.
>>11929308They're obviously trolling. Most straight thigh cuts don't look that bad, especially when they're properly aligned.
>>11923773There's worse knees out there.
>>11929187>>11929308>>11929371those thigh cuts are fucking ugly holy shit americans have serious brain damage and always throw a shit fit whenever an action figure doesnt have gappy thighs that show a swivel, anthony does it, laserpants does it, shartimus does it, they all freak out about thigh cuts whenever they cannot see a visible gap in the legs
>>11929434Most (newer) figures with straight thigh cuts don't have visible gaps like the one in the photo. Also, I don't understand how you consider a straight thigh cut to be ugly compared to a cupped thigh cut where there’s a much more obvious and unnatural line between the upper and lower thigh.
>>11929452because I buy model kits and the thighs dont have obvious cuts because it looks nice and is up to how the owner assembles them, also capeslop is ugly
>>11929459>capeslop is ugly>greeblespam gachaslop is heckin kawaii kino thoAh, weebs...
>>11929459The figure you posted is pretty much the ideal candidate for a cupped thigh cut. She has thin tights that transition into bulkier leg armor in the middle of the thigh. I don't think anyone would argue against that articulation scheme since it's completely invisible. The issue is, that's not what we're discussing. The examples given in the OP show cupped thigh cuts on smooth legs that are highly visible, ugly, and unnatural looking. You have every right to prefer that articulation scheme, but comparing bad examples of straight thigh cuts to flawless examples of cupped thigh cuts is highly disingenuous.
>>11929539>MUH CUPPED THIGHS MUH CUPPED THIGHSwhat the fuck are you even talking about jesus christ this nerd linguo made up from fucking tiktok or something? speak normal instead of this retard language about cups>>11929536enjoy your ugly fucking capeslop made for retards with gappy thighs and poorly applied face paint. doe sit even come with a stand?
>>11929547You seem exactly like how I'd imagine a dude who collects figures of horse girls.
>>11929558and you're a capeslopper pissing and shitting yourself about cups on dolls instead of enjoying what you like lmao, stupid fucking incel cuck
>>11929559Are you okay? Do you need help? There are free resources available for people in your condition.
>>11929547>>11929559>swinging at shadowslol, weeb babyrage
>>11929559>>11929547>/toy/ - Batshit Insane
>>11929187I know you're being sarcastic, but unironically I think that crotch style and thigh cut combo looks definitely better than any of the setups in the OP pic. The bottom left figure in the OP is especially insane because they could've hid cuts with the thigh high boots by putting them lower but chose not to.
>>11929867That's an interesting case because it was made by Mattel for their new MOTU Chronicles toyline. Evil Lynn’s counterpart Teela has the same articulation scheme. I imagine the Evil Lynn figure wasn't given a thigh swivel at the top of her boots because the designers wanted the articulation scheme standardized, even at the expense of aesthetics, which I greatly disagree with. Strangely, the male figures have a totally different articulation scheme with some kind of inner thigh swivel at the crotch. The previous Masterverse figures, male and female, all had a straight thigh cut.Stranger still, and to my relief, the new DC Legacy figures appear to have their own Marvel Legends-inspired articulation scheme that's totally different from what MOTU Chronicles is doing. Which is both good and bad, because I like some aspects of MOTU Chronicles figures a lot - especially the way they do their ball jointed wrists and ankles. Which raises the question of why two brand new collector toylines from Mattel each have very different articulation schemes.There are many potential answers: The MOTU team had to pump out an insane amount of product to support the new MOTU film. They were designing a new toyline from the ground up and wanted to experiment a little. Also, from listening to interviews with some of the MOTU designers, it seems like they are constantly looking abroad (i.e. China) for inspiration. I bet they noticed the trend for ugly, cupped thigh articulation, assumed "that's where the future is," and replicated it reflexively without stopping to consider, "Hey, is this actually ugly and dumb?"Part of the reason I started this topic is to argue that cupped thigh articulation is not new, it's not innovative, and it's not the future unless action figure designers give up on making elegant articulation that blends seamlessly into the sculpt of the figure. Hopefully, that never happens.
>>11930076Probably Chronicles just gets more money to play with in their standard piece count due to no license overhead, while DC and WWE get screwed and have less piece counts. Different design team as well of course.
>>11930091That's true, but it's not really a piece count issue. As far as I know, the way you articulate the thigh doesn't change the number of pieces, it just changes how those pieces fit together.As you mentioned, I think it comes down to different design teams and (potentially) different audiences. Maybe the MOTU team wants Chronicles to "feel" like an import line, and copying that articulation scheme is part of that strategy. Either way, I hope they reconsider, cause I love everything else about the Chronicles line.
>>11930076I don't mind the look of the Chronicles legs at all, I think they're implemented with a good middle ground between import and domestic styles. It is interesting/weird that some figures in the line have a thigh swivel (is it just the two girls?) and otherwise they don't seem to. Just for sheer functionality, I'd rather they have it, unless they start implementing that rotating joint inside the thigh.If we're looking at OP I think Cyclops looks the worst just because of how weirdly segmented it is. What I think is the Fury Toys doesn't bother me too much, though I do question the need for the chunk of meat sticking up. I feel like when messing with my AY that chunk sometimes actually hinders what I want to do. I've gotten pretty used to it so i'm not offended by it. The Cammy there looks weirdly smooth, but she's a proto so I won't hold it against her just yet, and Lyn looks fine, I think.
>>11930139You can see in this video where a MOTU Chronicles He-Man is deconstructed that the upper leg is one piece. Several reviewers have commented that the male figures do have a thigh swivel, albeit a limited one, therefore they must swivel around the ball joint connection in the crotch. Even though there are better ways to do a thigh swivel, I still wish they'd do the female figures that way. I much prefer a figure look good standing up, even if it means they can't hit some crazy Spider-man pose.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ar2TDDwIfQI&t=445sAs for prototypes, every single Storm Arena figure after Wave 1 has that articulation scheme. Even figures that had a straight thigh cut were retooled to have a cupped thigh cut, like their Gouki figure. They are not going to retool every single prototype to switch it back. That is what the Cammy figure will look like when it releases. End of story.
>>11930169>Even though there are better ways to do a thigh swivel, I still wish they'd do the female figures that way. I much prefer a figure look good standing up, even if it means they can't hit some crazy Spider-man pose.That's fair, but I'm of the opinion that articulated figures must as well be as articulated as possible, which tends to be why I don't mind sacrificing some aesthetics. That said, sounds like your ideal hip design would probably be like the old MOTUC hips, which I was referencing above, but a more refined version where the sculpt is better retained. And ya, the male Chronicles do just move via the ball, and if they want to stick with just that, that too can be refined a bit. Kind of hard to tell what the upcoming waves have since MOTU and loin cloths go hand in hand. The non movie Teela looked like she dropped the thigh rotation, at least at the point of her prototype.Regarding Cammy I more meant the lack of muscle definition. Also they have previously reworked their lil ab crunch, so they're not incapable of making changes along the way.
>>11929547>>11929559aye this nigga mad mad
>>11930169I will not be buying that Cammy figure due to the choices they made on it. It looks horrendous. There is only one way to do articulation of Cammy's outfit correctly, and no company wants to, so I bought the cheapest Cammy on the market (Jada) which is also done wrong but at least it's cheap, and that'll be it.
does anyone have any idea how to fix these thighs? boiling water and hot air doesnt do anything and i have no idea what to pull to get them out
>>11931444You're gonna have to lube up his man-thighs with some oil, son.
