MIKUDAYO Figure Reviews on Amazon

The comprehensive VOCALOID blog website HatsuneMikuMiku recently noticed that there have been some very interesting reviews about the 1/8 scale MIKUDAYO figure on Amazon. Reviews extolled the extraordinary benefits to be had by buying this figure, including the ability to ward off evil or bring luck to the buyer. We’d like to take the chance to translate some of the more popular and interesting reviews.

Before we begin, however, we’d like to recap what exactly is MIKUDAYO. Originally, Good Smile Company had launched a line of super-deformed figures called Nendoroids, and of course several Hatsune Miku Nendoroids were released. These Nendoroids were so popular that SEGA had decided to make a game featuring models based off Nendoroids, and they had a booth at Tokyo Game Show 2011 to promote the game. As part of the promotion, they created a gigantic human-sized costume modeled after the Hatsune Miku Nendoroid. However, something about the design wasn’t quite right, from the puffed-up cheeks to the blank eyes. She also made various appearances around Akihabara as well. Soon, this Miku became a whole new meme, invoking feelings of horror and fear and earning the monicker “MIKUDAYO” (ﾐｸﾀﾞﾖー). Technically, it means “I’m Miku”, but the way it is written indicates a creepy voice saying it. Fast forward to 2012, and you have people at SEGA learning about it and leveraging MIKUDAYO’s marketing prowess, as well as Good Smile Company releasing figures.

Now, the 1/8 scale figure of MIKUDAYO recently came out in Japan at the end of May. As with many products in Japan, this was registered on Amazon, and thus some reviews started showing up. Let us now take a look at some of these. First, the most popular review on Amazon is written by T.H.A.H on May 31:

Lured by the cheap rent, I rented out a room in this apartment, but to my terrible surprise, in my room lived a ghost who couldn’t accept that he was dead. I was continuously tormented by the ghastly cries each night as well as episodes of sleep paralysis where I couldn’t move my arms and legs even though I was fully awake. Completely in a bind, I asked for help from my friend who happened to be attuned to spirits, and I was told that I should buy this product and adorn the highest part of my room with it.

Taking the advice with a grain of salt and thinking “what a creepy looking doll”, I placed it in my room. To my surprise, these paranormal phenomena immediately stopped the very next day… Unbelievable! Thanks to that, I was able to have my first good night’s sleep in such a long time, and things at the office were also moving nicely along, making every day quite fulfilling. I owe it all to my friend and to MIKUDAYO. Thank you very much!

Although, from time to time it would wander away from where I put it, so it’s kind of annoying to fix that each time.

Next, let us look at Blanching a Cat in a Pot’s experience from a review written on June 2:

This 1/8 scale figure sure is one of a kind. You can feel some sort of power emanating from this, or rather some kind of overwhelming presence. This figure… or rather divine vessel isn’t as heavy as it looks. Rather, when it arrived from Amazon in its box, it was unexpectedly light, making me think it was something else I had ordered.

The coloring of this figure… or rather divine vessel and the box design is faithful(?) to the dark imagery (in a world where all of the Miku have been turned into MIKUDAYO). I placed it in my room, and although I wasn’t able to place it in some cool manner, but if I were to stare for a bit at it, various things start cycling around inside me, making me feel that this figure is something to be treasured and loved. How strange…

The hair isn’t made out of resin, but rather some sort of kinda hairy material; touching it made me feel relaxed and nostalgic as if I had held a ball in the past that felt just like it…

For those who would like to purchase this Nendoroid divine vessel… or rather MIKUDAYO, I heartily recommend this particular one!

Not only is this MIKUDAYO figure nostalgic as the previous reviewer noted, this figure can also give blessings, according to a review from Pakaguchi written on June 11:

I was busy with work and I had left the goods I ordered from Amazon just lying around. One day at work, I injured my legs and came back home to rest and sleep. And in my dreams, MIKUDAYO proclaimed to me, “if anything troubles you, set me in your room.” I then groveled on the ground as I opened the cardboard box. Having done so, my injury mysteriously healed itself completely the next day! My box had a little dent on it, but no problems because it was MIKUDAYO. The figure is quite cute in well-lit areas, and if you are a maniac, you can enjoy yourself more fully by lighting MIKUDAYO up from below the pedestal in a darkened room.

Meanwhile, user Yuu wrote in on June 2 to report the effect of buying multiple MIKUDAYO:

I bought a total of five figures, one as a good-luck charm at the entrance, one as a supervisor next to the work desk to make sure no one was slacking off, one next to the pillow to ward off nightmares, one as an undercover agent and one as a divine vessel. As expected, MIKUDAYO quickly appeared in my dreams with an overwhelming presence! Thanks to MIKUDAYO, I’m healthy every day and am doing well at work. Long live MIKUDAYO! There’s also this saying that if you were serious in your worship, then one day MIKUDAYO would quietly collect some money for you, and thus this product is truly a bargain at this price. Those of you who haven’t bought it yet, it’s still not too late. Let’s find happiness together with the power of MIKUDAYO!

And here’s a review by Name Withheld from June 2 as well:

Although I’ve placed this with some other figures, this figure certainly has a presence that stands out and would make you think it’d answer your prayers. The material the hair is made out of also feels nice to the touch, making you feel as if rubbing it would increase your luck. (Results may vary)

I’ve set up MIKUDAYO with the original Miku Nendoroid under the left hand and the 2.0 Miku Nendoroid sitting under the right hand (due to the lower right hand) making it look like MIKUDAYO is patting and rubbing the two figures’ heads. It makes MIKUDAYO look so motherly or like the master of the forest, and it has a mysterious presence that can make it appear as different things to different people…

Before I bought it, I really was wondering whether it was worth it, but MIKUDAYO was able to wipe those fears away cleanly.

UPDATE (June 7): In terms of where it stands as a character, it should have been something like a fake mimicking the real thing, but if you really get into it, feelings of attachment would gush forth and you’d find it strangely cute. If I end up having no place to put figures, I’d quickly sell them, but it feels like I’d hold onto this one till the very last. (heh)

Of course, not all reviews were fully glowing. Last but not least, here’s the most recent review, from Monday Junk Late-night Absurd Strength on June 13:

This is pretty nice, unrivaled in its presence, and the transplanted hair is also pretty good. The packaging was also nice, looking like something for horror dolls. What I didn’t quite like was that the right arm couldn’t be raised up as high as I wanted to because of where the headset was. I wasn’t able to fulfill my wishes of posing it like a zombie with both arms raised up. Another thing is that the stand is too small for the body, and the parts that rub against the body (it doesn’t plug into it) don’t feel very reliable. For me, who don’t put figures in cases, there’s a fear of it having an accident falling over. Anyhow, with the hair like that, if it got a scratch, it would be pretty difficult to hide it.