not-so-cheap

**UPDATE - 12 June 2019**

**UPDATE - 14 June 2019**

much better

Well MFC... all good runs must come to an end! :DBefore my message is misconstrued let me clarify. I have been loving ZenMarket shopping on Amazon JP and Yahoo JP. I have purchased FAR too much goodness from these sites utilizing ZenMarkets super easy shopping and wonderfully priced proxy service.Every item I've received so far has been pretty much just as described, legit, and just as expected basically. But, as indicated before, I guess all good runs must end at some point, because well....my luck finally ended, and on a fairlypurchase.I found this BEAUTIFUL guy that I've been trying to keep an eye out for at a decent price for some time now, used on Amazon JP for around $165 USD (before shipping or 17,980 JPY).Just looking at him gives me the feels all over! Such a wonderful piece! This little gem is kind of rare, so can fetch quite a price at times, though he has been re-released a few times which gave me hope that if I was diligent enough I could find him for a decent price. I found him on AmiAmi, but he was back-ordered, so when seeing him on Amazon JP for that price, I was thinking OMG I MUST HAVE HIM! So I pulled the trigger. Now, keep in mind this is a polystone (not PVC) 1/6 scale figure of Joe. Sounds weighty and NICE right?! :DWell BEHOLD...the gem that I received today when I rushed home and ripped open my box from Zenmarket! Well, let me slow down..don't behold yet. First let me explain I'm addicted to finding deals and nabbing them up, then when I get like 3-4 items shipping them out. So, this box of course had 4 items in it, so initially no red flags when I carried it back to my little sanctuary to open it up and bask in all it's glory!So...I opened the box and dug around amidst the plethora of bubble wrap, because ZenMarket does a really good job of packaging everything up. He was the largest box of my 4 items, so it was easy to spot which one he should be (the other three were Medicom RAH's - so all had a similar slender, tall box). The INSTANT I picked it up, my heart sank. I was thinking, OMG they forgot to put him in the box!! This is soooo light?!! I knew...something was amiss.I proceed to unwrap the bubble wrap that was obscuring the appearance of the actual box. That's when my heart sank again (why I'm not sure, at this point I already knew...NO WAY..he's in this box, it's WAYYY too light), but as if some miracle could happen and I open it then all of a sudden a MUCH weightier magic Joe pops out, I keep unwrapping. That's when I see the logo "Toy's Dream Project":What the flying hells is "Toy's Dream Project" I thought... Sure is hell isn't Orca Toys now is it?! My now sunken-to-the-bottom-of-the-deepest-abyss-heart, has started to turn to anger. WTF is this shit?!! I then quickly ripped away the rest of the bubble wrap, as I suppose seeing that bull@#$% logo on the front has snapped me back to reality...So, allow me to share more glowing images of the super awesome box, which definitely screamed "THIS HAS AN AWESOME POLYSTONE STATUE INSIDE"! I'd also like to note that I was still thinking WTF is this shit, since all I could read is the crap logo on the front...Ok, so by now I see through the little clear window in the box.......and well let's just say that foot peeking out does not appear promising. So, I move on and open the package. He weighs less than a single child's building block as I pull him, the bubble wrap around him, and 1/2 a blister pack (one side was just missing) out of the box. DEFINITELY a polystone figure. And you know, saying it weighs less than a child's building block is likely a stretch, as that could be wooden, so let's just say if I wasn't staring at myself holding this shit, I'd think I failed to grab him and remove him from the box. The weight was ..non-existent. Talk about featherweight....not even! (see what I did there? :D)Ok, so without further ado, let's show this beauty...So you can truly see the glory of this piece, I have included some comparison shots as well. So, stay your hearts and don't let this mind-blowing piece of ART just blow you away and make you want to sell your very soul so you too can own a piece of this figure mastery:I know, I know...why would I consider this as a "you got me"?!! He is STUNNING right?!! Just look at those little sausage rolls posing as fingers! :DHere, I know your itching for more, so please....enjoy even more of his beauty and eloquent craftsmanship:That did-you-just-get-out-of-the-shower-because-you're-super-shiny-look!! The arm and neck seams! The complete lack of sculpting in the hair and well...everywhere! The base, that they just completely gave up on trying to imitate the real thing and so just put a miniature butcher block in instead (which is without a doubt the most expensive thing in the whole box and by far the weightiest - the real base is supposed to look like a part of the boxing ring maybe..LOL, how did they get to this?!). JUST THE SHEER MAGNIFICENCE!!!*sigh*And well, there you have it. How my wondrous shopping spree of all legit and fantastic goods came to an end! I will of course continue to buy from Amazon JP and Yahoo JP, but to be serious, this is truly heartbreaking. I was sooo excited to get this guy, and well...he's sooooo bad, I almost can't help but laugh (but then like 2 seconds after want to then cry). Then $160+ USD for this paper-light piece of junk....WHAT THE FUCK?! *sigh* Anyway, I've sent the images to ZenMarket and reported the issue. I've never had a problem before so not sure if they can/will do anything, so we'll see. I certainly hope so though, as the thought of paying that before shipping for this disgrace (which I think calling it a bootleg is an insult to bootlegs, this is literally like a kid's toy, no joke...it's not even PVC, that would've been a much welcome improvement). :(Ok, well be wary MFC! Let me know if you've had a similar experience through your proxies and/or Amazon JP, curious if you had any luck resolving the issue or getting a refund (by the way I don't blame ZenMarket at all, they are great - just curious if your proxy service was able to help you get a refund if you've had a similar issue).Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed this beauty! :DOk guys, so just wanted to provide an update on this...ZenMarket reached back out and noted that Amazon (or the seller, not sure) had agreed to take the item back and give me a refund, which meant I of course had to mail this back. So I immediately box this shiny boy up, label it appropriately and then go to see where I should take it first thing in the morning to send it's oily ass back!And...here lies the issue. So the catch to all this is that Amazon is requiring they receive the item by June 24 or no refund. I can't send it directly to Amazon though, I have to send it to ZenMarket who then sends it to Amazon. So, I start doing some research on how to get this thing back to Japan as quickly as possible.First I look up info on UPS and FedEx, and let me just tell you... RUN THE HELL AWAY! These mo-fo's have lost their damn mind!! The shipping box I have is like 3 lbs and dimensions are something like 13 in x 12.5 in x 9.5 in. Well only options I have on either of those sites is at MINIMUM $150. So....jW#%#% that shit...not shipping it back that way.So I go research what sellers in the US use to ship overseas, and most recommend USPS, thought they note ... it's still not cheap. So there are 4 options there:Ok...so if we just do some quick and dirty math here. I need to have the statue back to Amazon JP by 6/24...that's 8 business days away. The CHEAPEST USPS option is $35 roughly but no tracking and no estimate of when it would even get there. Next up we have an option for $59...with an estimate of 6-10 business days. I was told it would take ZenMarket 2-3 days to do their part and ship to Amazon, so that means I likely have less than a 50% chance of getting him there in time. Next up we have an $82 option, which means he "should" get there in time, but that's assuming no customs snags and everything just goes wonderfully smooth. Hmm...why would I be concerned about that?! So I'm pondering these options thinking.....so $80 is really the only way to go to try to ensure this guy makes it on time, which means at best I get back $100 or so of the $185 I paid to get this guy. IF...they claim he didn't make it by 5/24 however, then I'm out this oil-infused Joe wannabe, plus $270 or so. So, do I want to take a chance on getting $100 dollars back after I pay this absurd shipping or possibly being out $270...and still no figure? Hmm, what to do what to do!So, I end up emailing ZenMarket and ask ...can I please just buy this toy figure outright. I'll even pay $50 for him (which is WAY more than what he's worth) and then you can refund me for the statue I never received. Or some sort of flavor of that which doesn't involve me paying way more than the toy figure is even worth to ship it back. Other option was please extend the deadline past the 24th so I can ship with confidence!So Zenmarket agreed to check on this for me! So now I wait to see....So ZenMarket got back with me and confirmed that Amazon said no to any option where I did not return this figure...BUT they did agree to remove the deadline as long as I went ahead and shipped it over.So today I went to USPS and paid $52 for the cheapest option (the one that should've been $35). My initial estimate for the box was about 3 lbs, well it was actually 3.34 lbs, so that additional fat 0.34 lbs cost me an exra $17 shipping!! NEXT TIME LAY OFF THE OIL GUYS, SHEESH!!!But, good news is the figure is in the mail and on the way to Japan as a return. I ended up paying $52 for shipping, which means that the $185 figure I purchased, got the wrong item for, and had to return it...I will be getting back roughly $133! Not ideal for me to have to take a $52 loss due to seller error, but taking a $52 loss isthan taking a $185 loss. Now to just keep my fingers crossed and pray nothing goes wonky during the shipping since I don't even get a tracking number for $52. Tsk! I will keep you guys posted if/when I actually get my refund though, but for now I am at least hopeful it's not a TOTAL loss!OH...also, the brand new Ami Ami Joe that was on backorder ( www.amiami.com/... )...well they found him for me, so I got the second one reordered today for 18170 JPY (or roughly $165 USD). Dang near the same price as the used one I ordered (or tried to order) which has caused me all these shenanigans. So he should be on his way home soon! Yay!!