All About Bootlegs

• Article contributed by inga

If you are looking to buy Pinky:st figures, it is quite likely that you will come accross a bootleg sooner or later. Don't be fooled by sellers, who knowingly (and sometimes unknowingly) sell you a bootleg for the price of a true Pinky:st figure. Bootlegs are cheap knock-off products and they are cheap for a reason, because the bootleg makers have saved money on their production. You will find that the colours may be dull, the skin colour greenish, the paint work is sloppy, fine lines which should be sharp, look blurry. The figure itself tends to lean excessively and may not balance properly making it difficult to stand it upright, be it for display or taking photos. Don't think that you'll be able to easily switch parts with true Pinky:st figures - bootlegs are shorter and overall smaller, so sometimes, without certain modifications, the parts might not fit.



This photo is of a real Pinky:st figure (right) and a bootleg version (left). Notice the differences:

1. in height (take my word for it, they were both standing on an even, flat surface).
2. perhaps not very well visible on the photo, but the bootleg's hair is flat colour all over with a glossy finish, where the Pinky has shading giving it a more "real", semi-matte look.
3. look carefully at the bootleg's face, the paint work on the eyes is terrible! Also visible, is the unevenly painted black buttons on the coat.
4. the skin colour of the bootlegs is usually greenish, where a real Pinky has a more natural "skin" shade.

How will you know what is a bootleg and what isn't, though? I didn't when I bought one. Back then, there wasn't much information about bootlegs and how to spot one, so I decided to write this article to help you know the difference. Luckily, it's quite simple, and with a bit of research, you'll spot one a mile away! If you are able to see the figure in real life (at a shop, a convention, etc), the differences are easy to spot.



This photo shows the front of the packing card from a Pinky bootleg packaging (left) and a real Pinky packaging (right). Notice the differences:

1. Look at the bottom of the card, the bootleg has nothing, but the real Pinky:st card shows: "The Pinky:st Tribe", Vance Project logo and Baby Sue logo.
2. Not visible in the photo, but the large Pinky:st logo at the top has a (R) registered mark after it, the bootleg doesn't.
3. There is also a difference in colour of the printing ink, real Pinky:st card is more pink, bootleg more red, also the print work is much more blurry on the bootleg card.

Now turn the packaging over and look a the back of it:



Photo of the bootleg card on the left, and real Pinky:st card on the right. See the differences:

1. At the bottom of the card, the bootleg is missing Vance Project and Baby Sue logos.
2. Each Pinky figure has assigned a number, this could be PK007 or PC2006:1200 or PKA001, etc, those numbers will be missing of bootleg packaging.
3. The Pinky:st logo also should have a (R) registered mark after it, but the bootleg won't.

If the packaging is missing or you're buying a second hand pinky look at the figure itself:



This photo shows the bottoms of the feet of a bootleg (left) and a real Pinky:st figure (right).

1. Bootleg has the copyright marks missing, but a real Pinky has a (c) Baby Sue/Vance stamped on it.

If you are buying online, however, especially from eBay, it's a bit more difficult to spot a bootleg, because all you have to rely upon is a photo. Still, the first thing you should do, is to check if the logos on the packaging are present. A lot of the time, the packaging is photographed and you should be able to see the logos. Again, if they are missing, it it a bootleg. Next, look at the figure, the outfit and accessories it comes with. Bootleg makers often (but not always) package together figures, outfits and accessories from different packs, so you may see figure from one pack, with an accessory from another pack and an outfit from yet another pack put together and sold as one.

Forgive the bad photo, but I don't own one of these bootlegs, so I shamelessly stole the image from a bootleg seller (using their own weapon against them and all that ;-) )

The figure on the left is a true Pinky:st PK007, the figure on the right, is the bootleg version. Here, we have the bootleg packaged with accessories belonging to other Pinky:st figures.

1. Notice how the bootleg does not come with an extra outfit, her own outfit is from a different pack - the white and pink top and the long blue skirt belong to PK009, the accessories belong to Captain Animate, Evangelion Rei and Asuka, and others.

If you are unsure about what the figure should come with, see an article in Pinky Uni, titled "All Releases of Pinky:st", which lists all the figures released so far, with photos of their outfits and accessories. You can also browse the Pinky:st galleries for photos of the stock figures.

Now, compare that with the photo in the auction, if it's different, you can be sure it's a bootleg. Now that you are armed with all the bootleg knowledge you might possibly need or want, if you do see one and it is priced very cheaply (what they are really worth), you might pick one up, especially if you are planning on turning it into a complete custom figure, one that won't be swapping parts with Pinky:st figures. They are also great for practicing on and trying out new things that you'd be too afraid to try on a real Pinky.