The Doll that Saved the Collection

The fate of many dolls ended up in this boy's hands.

I'm sure it's no secret to anyone I was more than devastated about the catastrophically badly handled debacle that was the Smoky Quartz Shiwoo. (Luts claims "technical failure". We have a similar line in my railways, where I work. We call it an "Incident". Basically it's a customer fob off cover all for anything from serious accident to a staff screw up)

I was so devastated- betrayed and furious, in fact, I quite seriously considered selling my Shiwoos off. The sight of them was a constant reminder of how dismally Luts failed its customers, and the fact my collection will now never be complete.

There are a few I couldn't get rid of if I tried, most notably my scar Shiwoo, who still doesn't have a body, but has the personality to make up for it. But... could I give up the rest?

It seemed fate then decided to take that decision out of my hands. The very day after the monumental disappointment that was the release, a Tanned Delf I had bought from the DoA marketplace arrived....

Meet Faustus.

His arrival and subsequent, rather pointedly clear personality saved my Shiwoos. He may not have a wig, a faceup, body blush, the eyes i intend or some other bits and pieces I have planned, but that didn't matter. He was so perfectly- well, Shiwoo that all reservations about them fell away.

He was typically demanding though patient enough to wait for as long as it takes to get his finishing pieces, (Has anyone else noticed that about Shiwoos?) and was quite smug about the fact that HE saved the others...

They can thank him later.

The bitter pang of failure, a big congratulations... and HUGE disappointment in Luts.

Firstly, CONGRATULATIONS HEIDIPLAY AND DEVIL'S TRILL!

Two DoA users that managed to snag the Smoky Quartz Shiwoo when he came up an hour and forty minutes late.

You both have fingers of lighting and well deserve the prize! Hopefully, with permission, we'll post more about your elusive little rare guys as they go!

But yeah... as for me? I had one in the cart but my computer connection was too slow. I may have lovely scenery and wildlife, but I paid for it with my chance of snagging one of these little guys. He was in the cart, he was ready to go but.... click on make payment... a little too long to load and poof, gone.
Ah well.
Thoughts go out to Forbidden who similarly has her fingers around the slippery little fella, but lost him in a similarly tragic way.

Luts must be severely reproached for this. I wouldn't have mind missing out on him if the game had been fair, but the devotion of Heidiplay helped untangle the mystery of the missing Shiwoos when she announced through proxy after an hour long wait that they had been released on the Chinese site. Anger was pretty thick in the air as he STILL didn't come up on the English site and the rough translation of the message on the Chinese site suggested he was exclusive.
A whopping half an hour later he came on sale on the English site, woefully late.

WHY didn't Luts do a global release? Why was he released on the Chinese site and WHY did they release a highly anticipated doll an hour and forty minutes after their announced time when many potential collectors had given up?

Luts has a lot to answer for still. It has been an utter debacle.

NEVER tease a Collector...

Beware Luts.... You just made a lot of rabid doll collectors very upset....

.... and so, at 12pm Korean time, when the Smoky Quartz Shiwoo was listed for sale, Shiwoo Collectors, Doll Lovers and Scalpers (but we don't care about them!) alike decended onto the Luts site to try their luck at getting the ultra rare, beautiful, iresistable Shiwoo.

At 12pm on the dot everyone pressed refresh, held their breath and....

Nothing happened.

Not a peep. Nothing on the site changed, nothing came up. No "Out of stock" notice, no apology note for an issue or a delay.

A quarter of an hour later, people are turning to each other and looking questioningly. Had there been a misunderstanding? perhpas they meant 12am not 12pm? Perhaps they're a bit behind. Could they have sold out in the blink of an eye and no one realized?

Half an hour sails by and the Shiwoo Collectors, the Doll Lovers and the Scalpers (of whom no one really cares about) are going from confused to angry. Conspricy theories abound from people buying direct from the Luts base to Luts teasing us into reloading the page for more page hits- the latter of which prooves none of us are immune when we're desperately refreshing for a Shiwoo... it was MY theory!

At quarter to one, resignation sets in. Wolfie Pie sings the Luts Song, summing up everyone's feelings in poetic verse:
*sings* Ooooh Luts! You make me sooo maaaad! *sings* You're leaving the Shiwoo-lovers hangingggg! Nooot cooool! *end song*
And because it's late in some countries, people are giving up and going to bed. No blaming them, it looks like the game is lost. Perhaps they sold out on the Japanese site before they even had a chance to appear, even breifly on the US site?

Then it hits one pm. the game is now truly lost. Any hope of there being some horrible, hilarious mistake and the dolls being released an hour late evaporates.  It's over and no one really knows who won.

We're all pretty shattered. I personally have been waiting since I heard about it for this moment. I didn't mind who won it (as long as it wasn't one of those aformentioned Scalpers that no one cares about) as long as someone did, but I don't even know IF anyone did. There's absolutely no sign whatsoever on the Luts site explaining what went on.

MagicBunny of DoA expresses it well:
"It would be great if Luts had posted something. There are people all over the world waiting up because they're rabid fans (props to the rabid Shiwoo legions, btw!). It would be great if Luts would be aware of their global reach and let their sleepless fans down easy"

Questions have been asked of Luts regarding the non event. when Luts answers, we'll put them up here for everyone.

But for me? well I'll stay at it for a little while longer... and hour... or two...

I'm gunna hunt me some Shiwoo!

So the final details are up. The Smoky Quarts MiniFee Shiwoo Art doll will be on sale at 1pm Korean time, this coming Monday for $620. And there are only five of them worldwide.

Sharpen your hunting skills, recruit help, find the fastest net connection you can because blink, and he's gone...

Smoky Quartz Shiwoo Revealed!

He's been revealled! We have a date, a vauge number and some stunning, tempting pictures!

I asked the Q&A for more info on this lovvie, and i finally have an answer.... He's going to be severely limited, under ten released in total and he'll be open for sale on the 23rd of August 2010... So it looks like I will be spending a huge part of my day refreshing the Luts page in hopes of nabbing one.

Good luck to all you Shiwoo hunters. If I don't get one and you do, please spam on DoA! I'd love to do a featurette of him when he arrives to his lucky new owners' houses!

Here's a few more tantalizing teaser pics- his sleeping head his revealled AND his fullset outfit!

  

Luts releasing Smoky Quartz Shiwoo... MiniFee???

To the surprise and confusion of everyone in the BJD community, this little cutie has recently popped up on the Luts website frontpage!

There has been much speculation, much arguing and even more mudslinging about this one little guy then there has been in quite some time. Old anti-Luts sentiments have been dragged up, the pro-Luts people are on the defence and the Shiwoo collectors are waiting with sweaty palms for any kind of info...

A topic on Den of Angels has been the hotbed of this heated debate, as usual, and tempers are getting high. it's well known Luts and Ceberus Project* went their seperate ways, well known that the split, though amicable in some ways, has also been a little bit tense. it's also well known Luts haven't sold, and haven't been allowed to sell MiniFee since the split.

The solution to at least part of the puzzle was provided by the forward thinking Forbidden:
"Okay guys, no more speculating. I got an answer from Fairyland and it is a legitimate release. They said that they have not collaborated with or supplied new releases to Luts and this is more than likely a release from stock that they already had and have decided to sale...."

So how do we get this cutie in our collections? No news from Luts yet, I'm afraid, and we might be waiting awhile, they have a bit of a rep for announcing Art Doll details at the last minute!

Keep an eye on this blog... hopefuly more info will be up soon!



*For a bit more on Luts and Cerberus Project and their role in the world of Shiwoo, please chck out the glossary

A long, embarassing absence....

Don't you hate it when you lose a blog? I don't mean lose as in lose interest, or lose control, lose focus, no I mean that humiliating moment where you actually forget what your log in is.

I had to forgo the net for around a month due to personal issues... but after that couldn't remember what the login for this account was for the life of me! So in frustration, I left it go.
But work is boring and I wanted to start my blogging up again. So I tried again. I racked my brains for the email I had made for this account... because surely I made one? Right... right huh?

...

No, apparently not. I attempted my basic emails just on an off chance and... well yeah.

So I'm back, embarassed, but back!

Gender bending....

Are Shiwoo's sweet... or not so sweet transvestites?

I just added to my incoming collection by picking up a LittleFee Shiwoo from the marketplace on a girl's body...

It brought to mind the question- WHY are there so many female Shiwoos? Its marketed as a male sculpt, its always sold on male bodies (aside al la carte), so why the popularity of the gender bend?

I have no issues with people who do, don't get me wrong, this isn't an ultra biased "OMG, I'm right you're wrong!" rant or anything it's simply voicing a curiosity of mine... I tend to prefer male incarnations myself, but that's my preference for my own dolls, I've seen a lot of lovely girl versions too!

Male or female, what's your preference and why? What are your opinions? Love them as girls, hate them as boys? Love the boys and hate the girl? Or just toally indifferent?

Be vewy, vewy quiet... I'm Hunting Shiwoos!

Image from: www.tutorgig.com/ed/birdwatching

So, the hunt begins for my collection.

Shiwoo are both bold, and yet, elusive creatures. Some kinds are found bolding standing out in the Fairyland or Delf landscapes, while others, rare, tend to hide only in the woodlands of the BJD Marketplace hotspots on the net. Others still are quite endangered.

So far my compilation of the elusive Shiwoo seems quite complete- though this is pending perhaps the discovery of a very endangered and thusd unnoticed species, or the release of a new one.

I will share my notes with you, in hope that someone may also join in this engaging passtime, perhaps even go ont heir own hunt for their own breed, say a Chiwoo or a Shushu.

PUKIFEE SHIWOO are commonly found in the PukiFee areas of Fairyland, still widely available, one also spots them in the BJD marketplace woodlands. This species seems quite plentiful and does not appear to be dwindling. I have caught myself a specimin already in McKinnon, who resides sadly as only a faceplate for the time being.

LITTLEFEE SHIWOO is quite like its PukiFee counterpart- still widely found int he wide, open spaces of the LittleFee areas of Fairyland and the BJD Marketplace woodlands. They roam free and have dominated the area for quite some time. There is no suggestiont ehy will become an endangered species any time soon.

LITTLEFEE ELF SHIWOO a dwindling breed. Appearing first in 2008, they've been on the decline ever since. Find them only in the marketplace Woodlands, turn more to murky depths of the Den of Angels Marketplace woodlands to find the few stragglers not snapped up by collectors. They still circulate around, so don't panic buy.
MINIFEE SHIWOO roams healthy and free in Fairyland- in fact, it used to be so prevelant it was even spotted in the wild plains of Luts. Found readily and freely still.

MINIFEE ELF SHIWOO are scant and rare indeed. Perhaps boardering on endangered. Found only in the now destroyed Luts MiniFee area, they vanished into the BJD Marketplace woodlands where they hide well. Snag this creature as soon as you see one, as they're close to extinct!

MINIFEE ELF VAMPIRE SHIWOO is like its close cousin the MiniFee Elf shiwoo in that it now only resides in the BJD Marketplace wilderness after the destruction of the Luts MiniFee wildlands. Also rare as rare can be. Grab them as soon as you see one of their pointy eared, fanged faces appear.

MINIFEE SCAR SHIWOO appeared during an event last year. They migrated from their breif stay in Fairlyland intot he BJD Marketplace woodlands, where they are plentiful, for now. I suggest getting them now while theyre cheap, because like so many migratory kinds that appear for events, they start to dwindle after time, then vanish.
Gallagher is my specimin, caught when he was still in Fairyland.

DELF SHIWOO The very first, and the quite prevelant. You can find him happily living in the BJD Marketplace woodlands and quite freely on the wildreness of Luts. This one is a very easy catch!

DELF DREAMING SHIWOO Though not rare at all, you can't find him in the main part of the Luts Wilderness. This sneaky fellow hides in the scrubby area of the "Delf Parts" section! There's no sign of thinning in the herd, and there are, as usual, a few int he BJD Marketplace Woodlands.

DELF DREAMING VAMPIRE SHIWOO living merrily alongside the Delf Shiwoo in the Luts Wilderness, there has beena remarkable amount of them roaming the Marketplace wildreness lately!
That's where I caught Septimus.

DELF ELF SHIWOO the rarest of all. These highly elusive specimin were very very very limited in number to begin with and now are spotted only very occasionally on the BJD Martketplace Woodlands. Grab him when you see him, though it may cost you an arm and a leg....


So, that's my map of availability. I admit, I have a number of these fine fellows targeted as we speak... Will updare with further developments as they occur!

Wooed by the Shiwoo...

Hello. I'm here for your soul.

Where did it start? This obsession with Shiwoo?

I can tell you straight it was never my intention, I always said I only wanted one of each sculpt, no matter the size, yet somehow the Shiwoo has not only defied that rule, its torn it up, chewed it up and spat it back out again.

So how? When did I weaken and why?

I always intended to get a LittleFee Shiwoo. That was going to be my one Shiwoo sculpt... but then the PukiFee came along...

It was this little fellow that started the downfall. I was so enamoured with him... But I couldn't decide, LittleFee? PukiFee?
In the end, PukiFee won over and I bought McKinnon's faceplate from the marketplace. But my fate was sealed only weeks later, when I bought Genevieve, my LittleFee Rachel. It came with an event head. A scar Shiwoo.
I was doomed when he arrived. He was so wonderful, I wanted a MiniFee Shiwoo now... and then... perhaps a Delf and...

And my fate was set, I became a Shiwoo collector!