Yesterday I had the great pleasure of introducing Ori-Toy Limited and reviewing the first figure in their Three Kingdoms series.  Today I’m going to take a detailed look at the design and articulation of the Ori-Fig while reviewing the second figure in the series, Zhang Liao.

I’m not as familiar with Zhang Liao as I am with Guan Yu.  In the Romance of the Three Kingdoms he’s portrayed as an incredibly noble General, originally he serving under Lü Bu.  But when Lü Bu was defeated in battle by Cao Cao’s forces, he and Zhang Liao were bound and brought before their enemy.  Lü Bu pleaded for Cao Cao’s mercy, which Zhang saw as cowardace.  Zhang was not afraid of death and he insulted his captors while stretching out his neck, taunting them to behead him.

Cao Cao was enraged at this action, and quickly drew his sword to do the deed personally.  But Guan Yu dropped to his knees and pleaded for Zhang’s life.  Cao Cao lowered his sword with a laugh, declaring he had only been testing Zhang Liao to see if the stories of his righteousness were true.  Then he personally unbound Zhang and offered him his best hospitality.  That was when Zhang finally accepted defeat and surrendered, eventually joining as a General in Cao Cao’s army.

In a later battle Zhang Liao would return Guan Yu’s favor by helping to convince him to surrender to Cao Cao’s forces also.  This was when Guan Yu joined Cao Cao’s army to save his sister-in-laws.  Serving under the same commander, Guan Yu and Zhang Liao eventually became close friends.  It was Zhang Liao who helped convince Cao Cao’s other Generals to allow Guan Yu to leave on his journey to reunite with Liu Bie.

Zhang served Cao Cao with loyalty for the rest of his days.  When his commander died, he served his son Cao Pi, just as faithfully also.  He was even hit by an arrow while saving Cao Pi’s life in battle.  Helped by Xu Huang, he escorted Cao Pi to away from the battle, only succumbing to his wounds when his commander had returned to the safety of the city.

Zhang Liao’s figure uses the standard Ori-Fig body design.  Like a vinyl figure, most of this toy’s clothing details are created through paint and tampo applications.  Most of the characters that have been produced so far have been painted with striking and vibrant colors.  Zhang really stands out from the pack with his dark maroons and two different colors of gray.  Even his skin tone seems a bit more muted than the rest.

Although the style and design of the Ori-Fig’s clothing is determined by paint, sculpted details are still added to the piece to make it unique.  The piece that stands out the most is probably Zhang’s helmet.  Crafted to resemble a traditional Chinese military design, the yellow plume at the top is a separate piece and can be easily swiveled to show action or even emotion.  Continue to page 2…