Hello everyone! Hope you are all keeping well, I have a massive haul to talk about today as last week I received 9 months worth of my Nihon Box subscriptions all of a sudden on my doorstep!
As you guys are aware, I normally review the SoKawaii box each month. However that isn’t the only subscription service I’m with. Back in March 2020 I did a review of my very first Nihon Box, sadly when the pandemic started my boxes were stuck in their warehouse in Japan due to limited postal options. Almost a year has passed since my last box, when all of a sudden I came home one day to find two big FedEx boxes in my sitting room. The lovely people over at Nihon Box must have decided to rebox everyone’s orders that they had been waiting on for so long and send them first class! So that way their warehouse would be empty of all back orders from 2020. To make it even more amazing, they had replaced any out of date food items with replacement ones. Such attention to detail and top class warehouse operatives too, as everything was packed with care. Not a single item was damaged, and there were a number of breakable items inside! I have to say, that team deserves more than just a round of applause!
I’ve known about this service for quite some time now, as I’ve seen several unboxing videos from Doug D’Marco on YouTube. Check out his channel if you can, he reviews several different subscription boxes and gives good, honest reviews. (https://www.youtube.com/user/Angelraider78)
Much like SoKawaii, Nihon Box is a Japanese monthly subscription service that handpicks at least 6 items each month that are almost exclusive to Japan and ships them straight to your door. Their items are a mixture of Otaku Anime related merchandise and figures, as well as traditional Japanese items, from sweets to tableware. All of this is available to subscribe to for what I find a very affordable price each month.
Like SoKawaii, the more months you pay upfront the cheaper the price for individual boxes will be. https://www.nihonbox.com/en
Monthly is €29.99 plus shipping costs
3 Months is a single payment of €86.97, making each box €28.99, plus shipping costs.
6 Months is a single payment of €170.94, making each box €28.49, plus shipping costs.
This image is just a collection of a number of the traditional Japanese items that are included amongst every Nihon Box. From what I would deem as soba cups or green tea cups, which most often are not made with any handles. A Daruma, which I have just painted in the right eye of. I advise reading up on the history of this item as its actually quite sweet and interesting.
We also have items which you would more than likely see at summer festivals in Japan, from a kitsune mask to a small paper balloon in the shape of a fish known as a Kingyo Kamifúsen. There is also a traditional wind chime included, in the shape of a fish. Which would be lovely to have in front of a door or window when the summer breeze comes through. There is also a small cat figurine, known as a Maneki Neko Mokiji, decorated in maple leaves to celebrate the Autumn season. And a Washi Ningyó, which is a cute little figurine doll that was handmade from Japanese washi and kimono fabric. This beautiful little figure comes in her own display case and is just so precious to look upon. Alongside the two Ukiyo-e Sakura postcards, that are just another item that best represent the old Japanese historic art style.
These next few items include a decorative plate and insulated lunch bag from The Promised Neverland. A show that has been well represented this year in Nihon Box, as we also received a plushie of Emma. We also have a decorative Spirited Away hand fan known as a Uchiwa, which will come in very handy during the hot weather. Another authentic Made in Japan item is this Usagi tray, which can be used to hold your meal or sweets. Much like you were being served in authentic Japanese restaurant or ryokan.
Oooh now we are on to the high quality stuff here! Time for the figures, the best selling point about this service for me. Now not every month had a figure included, as they were sometimes switched out for a large plush – such as Ryuk in October and Rimuru in August. The rest of the months you are almost guaranteed a figure no matter what! So my new pride and joy on my shelf is the Asuka Langley figure from Evangelion from last July’s box. That month gave you the chance of getting one of the four figures available in the Evangelion Shin Gekijouban figure range that was being released to mark what was the upcoming release of the fourth and final film – Rebuild of Evangelion. You could have gotten either Asuka, Rei, Kaworu or Evangelion Unit 13!
We also have a Pokémon ReMent figure from the Terrarium Volume 4 series, which had 6 to collect including Gengar, Totodile, Moltres, Slowpoke, Umbreon, as well as Pikachu sleeping on a Mareep.
Last April’s box included the 2020 Sakura Miku figure, which was brand new at the time. We also received a Kirby figure from the Solar Swing Collection, which was also featured in a SoKawaii box last year. Thankfully I received the other version that was available in this box, so my collection is now complete. Very cute item to have, which swings side to side when sunlight hits the small solar panel on the front of the figure base.
We are finally onto our last three items! December’s box included the Yami Yugi figurine from the Noodle Stopper collection. Although they are small scale statues, their poses allow them to sit freely on shelf corners – or indeed on the lid of your cup ramen as intended. For the size of the figure itself, its actually really well detailed and I adore it! From the same Noodle Stopper collection, comes the InuYasha figure from September’s box. This was done for promotion of the latest InuYasha anime that was released last year – Yashahime: Princess Half-Demon.
And last but not least, we have the Cardcaptor Sakura: Special Rocket Beat Figure! Which was only recently released at the time this box was filled, so I am super lucky that this figure was included in the box at all!
Nihon Box always does their best to follow the latest anime trends as well as finding items from fan favorite shows in order to always appeal to their customer base. With items from classic shows such as InuYasha, GTO and Cardcaptor Sakura, to the newer franchises including The Promised Neverland and Demon Slayer. They not only source out some decent quality figures, but also to make sure that each month their box represents another unique aspect of Japan – from its food, to its culture, art, history and beliefs. It’s a well rounded box, for both anime fans and cultural fans. For me, they are just a step above the likes of SoKawaii box just for their variety in products and value for money in the items you receive. Although SoKawaii are currently more reliable when it comes to shipping, it’s simply only the side effects of the pandemic that has put them both on an even playing field. End of the day, I highly enjoy both of these subscriptions and don’t see myself cancelling either of them anything soon.
For more information on how you can order your own box, look to the top of this review and head over to the link below so you can sign up today!
