I’m back home from LA Dolpa 3! Of course I still have lots of photos to process and a few things to unpack. Then there’s the matter of a fedex package with assorted doll goods that wouldn’t fit in my overstuffed luggage.
As you can see, I did end up with a doll after this trip- Volks SD17 Williams Romantic Glance version. One of the big perks Volks offered their US fans was a chance to pre-order and pick up some pretty limited fullset dolls from their pirate-themed Oath of the Silver Coin storyline. I’ve always been a Williams fan, and even though this much-loved sculpt got several releases I never could snag one for a fair price. I held off on getting a yellowed head in hopes of a new release, and patience paid off this time.
I’m not clear on how this Williams fits into the story, exactly- he looks like some sort of reflection or ghost or dream in the promo images. The white skintone does give him an ethereal effect, and his faded wine-colored wig just adds to it. Like my other Volks SD Lorina and SDC Mina, the faceup on Williams is gorgeous and flawless.
The costume is nice too, though not as detailed as the Commodore Williams release. He did come with a musket and special hand to accomodate it, which I haven’t tested out yet.
One small setback- a couple stray stitches have sewn his sleeve shut. I’m in touch with Volks about a fix. He’s never shown wearing his coat in the photos, it’s always slung on his shoulders, so at first I wasn’t sure if this was intentional or not ^_^;
Still pretty without a coat! And look at those manly SD17 hands! The SD17 body is nicely sculpted and poses decently, though I’m totally spoiled by DD posing so it’s hard to compare. I don’t expect I’ll get more SD17 boys, but I’m pretty happy with him and the overall quality (aside from sleeve issues) is very good. Kudos to Volks for making these exclusives available to US fans, this is a small but significant step toward business model that’s got more transparency and appeal for the US market.
And of course, more Dolpa photos to come! I’ll share what pictures I was able to get for the newest doll line in development, the Dollfie Icon.