What is "Super Dollfie 10 Year History ~Forever in Your Arms~" ?
The decade of Super Dollfie is days that we (VOLKS, VIRGINAL ART and ZOUKEI-MURA) have had with your support.
Doll Design Department show you the ten years history with photos and from various sides.
“The Ten Year History of Super Dollfie: 2003”
2003... it was the year that doll owners began to accept that Super Dollfie were not just dolls that simply existed, but were dolls that truly lived within stories and tales.
In this year, too, our angels brought forth countless stories, and countless fates.
In March, to commemorate the opening of our Lalaport Showroom, we released SD boy “Michael Prince of Darkness ver” and MSD boy “Akira”. These youthful boys, with their cool expressions, incited many a wistful sigh from female doll owners.
And then, on May 5th, we held “Dolls Party 9 - 2003 Spring”.
Our Limited girl dolls were “Anais”, “Ria”, “Nana Sweet Dreams ver”, and SD “Chi” from the popular comic “Chobits”.
And it was also the debut of SD13 boy “Shiro Tachibana”.
Shiro’s debut seemed almost like some kind of revolution.
A boy in the prime of his youth, living out his days in Tokyo.
Shiro, so similar to they themselves, crept almost unawares into the hearts of doll fans, and came to be just like a friend who had always been there for them.
“I wonder what he does in his everyday life...”
“What kind of friends do you think he has?”
And just like that, new stories that only existed for the owners themselves began to spring into life in the hearts and minds of doll owners everywhere.
A doll that could live out their owners’ ideals, at times cheering them on, at times sharing their happiness. A doll that was their friend, their family, themselves.
It seemed like proof that the ideal Super Dollfie world that Managing Director Shigeta wished for was little by little coming to reach the hearts of our customers.
At the same time, “Anais”, “Ria” and “Shiro Tachibana” were released with new bodies.
These had a more translucent pure skin and a more refined body line. They were the realization brought forth by the diligent work of our sculptors, wanting to live up to the wants and needs of our doll owners.
Around that time, Volks came to hear that amongst overseas doll fans, interest in Super Dollfie was beginning to build up.
In response to the enthusiastic appeals from Korean owners, on May 11th we were able to realize the “First Dolpa in Korea”.
So desired by owners, our Super Dollfie had begun to take their first step from Japan out into the rest of the world.
That first step out into a place we’d not yet even seen... for us, and surely also for our Super Dollfie, it was truly a moment filled with happiness.
For the opening of our Hiroshima Showroom in June, we released Limited SD13 boys “Lucas 3rd” and “Chris 3rd”.
I don’t think it would be too much of an exaggeration to say that their unflagging popularity was already something of a legend.
At around the same time, Super Dollfie were beginning to be taken up by all sorts of different media -- what with our displays at the Hobby Japan sponsored “Hobby Expo 2003” and the Takarajima sponsored “The Cave of Excentric Dolls Vol 2” events, and the release of our magazine-limited SD “Sasya” in “Dollybird” magazine. And the talk in the doll world was that Super Dollfie had become an existence that wasn’t going to fade away.
At our “First Home Town Dolpa in Tokyo”, held on August 11th, our adorable MSD “Mika” and “Ken” made their appearance before everyone in their grown-up, SD forms.
They seemed a little bit shy, and so you couldn’t help but break into smiles as you watched their dignified entrance.
On the 27th of the following month, to commemorate the opening of our Utsunomiya Showroom, we released SD “Nono Sweet Dreams ver” and MSD “Myu Sweet Dreams ver”, and these dreaming girls headed off on new journeys together with their fated owners.
On October 15th, we held the “Second Home Town Dolpa in Fukuoka”, and on October 19th, we held the “First Home Town Dolpa in Kyoto”. Our Limiteds were SD13 “Captain Cecile” and SD “Lady Sylvie”, and their overwhelming sense of presence caused a rush of excitement at the events. This grand tale set on the stage of the deep ocean has come to lure many an owner into an undiscovered world.
MSD “Marie” and “Mario” were also released, and were welcomed by their fated owners.
In addition, at the Kyoto Dolpa, we released “KyoTenshi”.
This angel that had flown down to land in Kyoto, the old capital of Japan, introduced the first asexual body. This angel that was neither male nor female took many doll fans captive with its celestial charm.
For this, the first event held in Kyoto (where Volks’ head office resides), the angel made its descent “only for Kyoto”. Of course KyoTenshi was happily welcomed into the lives of many owners, but perhaps it was the Volks staff more than anyone who eagerly awaited its arrival.
On the 18th of November we opened our Seoul Showroom. At the previous Korean event, it had been Volks’ feelings that we wanted to somehow give something in return to the many Korean owners whose feelings we’d received at that time.
As a result, we became able to welcome so many owners that we had to limit admission. From here on, Super Dollfie will be one of the bridges that links Japan and Korea together. SD13 boy “Kai” and MSD “Yuni”, released to commemorate the opening, looked truly happy at their chance to be welcomed home there in Korea.
Super Dollfie were beginning to spread out to reach the whole world, and yet in Japan the meaning of their existence was continuing to grow.
When December 7th rolled around, we held “Dolls Party 10”.
The Limiteds that everyone was anxious for were the elegant, dignified SD13 “Madoka”, Shiro’s friend, SD13 boy “Tsukasa Konoe”, SD13 boy “Lucas Sweet Dreams ver”, who had been fervently long awaited by many owners, and our little nice guy, MSD boy “Hewitt”. It was quite a splendid gathering of faces!
We also introduced the concept of the “Tokyo Boys Story”, that had started at our spring Dolpa with the release of “Shiro Tachibana”. And we found ourselves being seen more and more by owners as something that they had to keep their eyes on.
At the same time, we also released SD versions of “Yumi Fukazawa-chan” and “Sachiko Ogawara-sama” from “Maria-sama ga Miteru”, which had gained much popularity then. And to help the spreading of the Super Dollfie world pick up the pace, Standard SD13 “Mimi” was released, so that not only our Limited dolls but also our Standards were enriched.
To take note of the great number of angels that had made their descent, the “Perfect Catalogue” was compiled around that time, supporting the owners’ doll lives from the shadows.
2003 - a year in which many, many stories began to be told.
Was it only five years ago, had it already been five years ago... as time goes by, Super Dollfie continue to make us feel so many new things.
In the following year, the origin of our angels, “Tenshi no Sato”, was opened to the public.
2004, the year in which we came another step closer to the angels. Please look forward to next time!
* “Pure skin”
we’re very proud of its sense of translucency and its fresh feel like bare skin. It is made of a special material that we developed just for Super Dollfie.
* "Body line"
while refining the overall style, we also made the head, hand and feet parts detachable via the one-touch system, making life with one’s SD a lot more convenient.
* "The grand tale set on the stage of the deep ocean"
at that time we had not yet told the story in much detail, yet in spite of that “Cecile” and “Sylvie” led a great many owners into their world.
