Saber, Saber, Saber — even eight years after she was introduced to the world, the figure-collecting community is still driven by a never-ending hunger for anything with a big blonde hair bun. I would know, since this is the sixth Saber figure I’ve reviewed here on Hobby Hovel. However, this is not quite the guilt-burdened King of the Britons that we all know, but rather a curious look-alike from the PSP game Fate/Extra.
I didn’t like Fate/Extra — in fact, I think it has the worst combat system of any video game I’ve ever played. It’s literally rock-paper-scissors, and one’s success in fighting monsters boils down to memorizing the order in which the opposing monster will throw their selection of the three attacks. It’s completely dull, unintuitive, and should you take a break from the game like I did, have fun re-memorizing all of the patterns, because going in blind will get you thrown back to a distant save point.
It’s a shame, really, because Fate/Extra has a great cast of characters. With servants like Robin Hood, Sir Francis Drake (who apparently has a pair of great tits), and Vlad the Impaler, The backstories of the servants alone were  almost compelling enough to keep me going…almost.
As for Saber in Fate/Extra, she’s is in no ways related to the Saber in Fate/Stay Night, despite what her appearance might suggest. Her identity is the Roman Emperor Nero, thus there is no reason for her to look almost identical to vanilla Saber, and the game can be fairly accused of tastelessly mooching off of the original game’s imagery.
But appearances aside, Saber Extra comfortably sets herself apart. Confident, arrogant, frivolous and hot-tempered, this red Saber’s personality seems to have taken a page from Gilgamesh. Yet even though she sometimes looks down upon her Master, she has a great sense of loyalty and would lash back at those who would insult her Master.
Since I never finished the game, I don’t actually know Saber Extra’s character all that well. Looking back, this figure was a blatant impulse buy. Wave’s Beach Queens have been around for quite a while, and even though Ashlotte has warned me of what is to be expected out of their 1/10 scale figures, I thought I would give it a try anyway.
…I should have listened to him.
Beach Queen figures are small — I knew that, but it’s hard for me to appreciate how small Saber Extra before actually having her in my hand. Measuring in at only 15cm tall from the bottom of her feet to the bottom end of her ahoge, she is small. It’s not like I don’t know how big of a difference size scales can make (I’ve seen it first-hand), but the 1/10 scale is so small that it doesn’t even feel like it belongs to the same category as other scaled PVC figures. It’s small like an action figure that I’d pick up at the local toy store, and it just doesn’t feel right with the rest of my fixed-pose collection.
Saber extra has an interesting face. Her big toothy smile really suits her overbearing personality, but her eyes are also a little…unsettling. Ashlotte has more than once commented on the sheer terror her “yandere eyes” inspire, and I can completely see where he’s coming from. Yet that intense look in her eyes is still my favourite part of the figure. Nero is known in popular history to have played the fiddle as Rome burned, so there definitely may be a few screws loose in her head. Maybe that’s what gets me off — women laughing manically while burning my house down.
Like all Beach Queens figures, Saber’s head sits on a ball joint is able to rotate to a degree, though her hair gets in a way a little bit. More interestingly, her ahoge also able to move around to a significant degree. It’s also rather easy to fall off should you try to stuff her into a bag like I did for these outdoor shots, but that certainly beats having it broken off permanently.
Saber Extra’s fashion sense is as loud as her personality. Her breasts looks as if they’re inflated with hot air — appropriate for her character, actually. Both her expression and body language seem to imply she’s got the goods and she’s proud to show them off, and when I take into consideration how toned her midriff looks, I’m inclined to agree.
Sadly, things don’t look as great up close. I’ve done a pretty bad job at showing them on camera, but she’s got very noticeable mold lines running all the way down her sides. There’s also a mysterious scar across one of her breasts, as well as a couple of over-painted spots on her bikini. Furthermore, the backside of her hair has no shading whatsoever. Most of these flaws wouldn’t be too big of an issue on a larger figure, but because the Beach Queens Saber Extra is so small, even the smallest flaws show up in a big way.
Final Say
At the end of this, I still don’t really know what makes Beach Queens popular. In fact, the only thing I’ve come to realise is how much fun figmas are when I shot that size comparison photo with Rin. Seriously, for the cost of less than a Beach Queens figure, I could have something that’s almost as big, is articulated, has more accessories, Â and has more elaborate outfits than bikinis.
Just as prize figures dip below a quality standard that I can’t accept, Beach Queens are just too small. As nice as the sculpt might be, it just doesn’t’ feel substantive enough, and the quality control errors are a lot worse on such a puny scale.
The frustrating truth is that Saber Extra makes an excellent swimsuit figure. The sculpt is very sexy, and the flashy bikini and confident body language really suits a frivolous personality like hers. Without a doubt, I would have loved this figure if it were 1/8 scale or large, even if it had some quality control issues.
I had a lot of fun shooting her (even if I had to go through a couple of failed ideas), so I’m beyond regretting the purchase. But to those of you on the fence about her, I would advise think twice, as I just don’t see the bang in the buck for shelling Â¥3,800 on a Beach Queens, even though Saber Extra seems like one of the better entries to the line.
What’s Good
- Sexy body sculpt
- Energetic face
What’s Bad
- Dimunitive size
- Dubious quality control
For another look, check out Hamstercorp’s review.
10 replies on “Review: 1/10 Beach Queens Saber Extra”
I always imagine that nero Saber doesn’t really have bigger bust than regular saber but she uses pushup bras and padding to make it appear so.
Ah it’s too bad about the defects. I’ve only seen two beach queen’s in person and they were a lot better than this. I think my biggest disappointment with the line is that I always imagine what could have been with a bigger scale and better manufacturing process. I tend to like the poses and expressions of many of the recent beach queen’s releases, so it’s underwhelming to see them so small and lack-luster, especially since they seem to have some good sculptors in house.
Ancient rome — known for its achievements in art, culture, and women’s undergarments!
Wave has some great talent on its payroll. For ever derpy BQ (LOOKING AT YOU, MADOKA), there are 2 great ones. But meh, what can you do — during economically tight times, I suppose there’s greater demand for these “diet figures”. Personally I’d rather get a non-scrawny figure than 2 or 3 beach queens, but to each his own!
The first day I saw this figure I got turned off as that is not the Saber I used to know and like. The only thing I am impress was the her swimsuit design texture.
Honestly, your reaction is probably a good thing. She’s a different character, and I’m glad they gave her own distinctive look. Even without looking at her name, no one would confuse her with the original.
Nero Saber is the best Saber, she is the primary reason why I kept playing Fate/Extra. She is more fun, more likeable, more interesting, has a better body and personality than the original Saber. Plus, the premise of some mana transfer with my female protagonist after she revealed she is totally into both girls and boys seemed very appealing. Kinda sad that while some mana transfer happened it did not involve my protagonist and Saber bu Saber and Rin. Still, that awful battle system, by the end my grinding and l33t gaming memorization skills made it a walk in the park but it sure was tedious. Fun game though, interesting story with interesting characters. Someone should make an anime out of it.
My first impression when I saw a BQ in person for the first time was how tiny they were. Did not expect 1/10th to be so small compared to 1/8th figures. Couple that with characters that are already short and you really do get something quite small. Such a shame to hear about the defects on your Nero. I only own one BQ, even if she is a second hand woman I did not find any noticeable flaws in mine so I can’t really attest to their quality.
God, that swimsuit is so darn gaudy, that swimsuit and pose sure fits Nero’s personality. This is the only Nero figure I seen that really showcases that, which is why I like this Saber so much over others. When I kept seeing figures like Gift’s Nero which merely looked like regular Saber in a new fancy dress I was disappointed. If GSC is to keep making Saber figures I would like one of Nero, preferably showing her haughtiness.
Two years ago, I would have challenged you to the death for bad-mouthing mai waifu like that, but ever since Fate/Zero, I’m not as crazy about the King of the Britons as I once was.
Wait what, there’s lesbian mana transfers?? ARGH, WHY MUST YOU BE SO BAD, GAME? But yeah, Nero’s great. There’s a great little segment in Carnival Phantasm that explains why she wears a see-through skirt. Such a generous Emperor — I’m totally okay with her hobby of seeing CITIES BURN.
If GSC does a figure of her, I’d love to see a smirk on her face. I don’t think I’ve seen her smirk in the game, but that’s more because of shitty graphics. I can totally see her smirk in a fight. Whatever GSC does, just make sure she makes a face that the rest of the Saber Sentai wouldn’t make, then I’ll be happy.
“it just doesn’t feel right with the rest of my fixed-pose collection” Exactly these figures look quite good on their own, but next to a bunch of 1/8 or bigger scaled figure it doesn’t work and looks weird.
I always got good clean samples of Beach Queens figures, they were really nice, but I sold all 3 three again, the 1/10 doesn’t make a big impression on me to keep them forever, nevertheless shooting them was fun ^^
This Saber also looks nice, the colors are vivid and her body looks great, een though your version has a scar. I also love the overconfident face expression of hers, thes eyes are magic 😀
I think BQs are kinda like Nendos in that regard — the more you have, the better they feel. They might look shrimpy on their own, but when displayed en mass, they are a force to be reckoned with!
…Except BQs don’t have the appeal of being able to swap accessories. OH WELL.
That’s a thing about photographing figures — it can make a mediocre figure special to you. If I hadn’t shot the garden shots, I probably would have tried to pawn it off, but now I can look at it on my desk and immediately think of pretty flowers.
…Still not putting her in the display case, though — she looks silly there.
I’m the proud owner of a whopping two Beach Queens, and to be honest…I like them both an awful lot. Mine are even tinier than usual since both characters are short, rail-thin waifs (Zero no Tsukaima’s Louise, Denpa Onna’s Erio)…but it seems to oddly work for them since they’re supposed to be small ladies anyway. I guess.
I can see why BQ has the fanbase it does, though their gravy train may be over now that AlphaMax has jumped into the game with their own line of 1/8-1/6 scaled swimsuit figures. The sculpts on those things are beyond delicious.
As for Fate/Extra, I’m with you. I had fun with it, and Caster is totally my waifu 4ever & ever <3 <3 <3 but holy cow is the combat frustrating. I also stopped taking the game remotely seriously when it through a gothic lolita child and a cannibalistic clown at me. Fate/Extra CCC seems to be going even further off the deep end with the new "Sakura" designs…
If the Fate/Extra is hard to take seriously, then CCC must be downright impossible. Between Saber’s biker-bride look, archer’s missing shirt, and Sakura’s TIT HARNESS…yeah, impossible. Also, what kind of special edition name is “virgin white box”? Even I get a little creeped out.