If I could afford to buy all of these skins, I probably would, but as it stands I cannot. Since I don't really play bruisers too often I was stuck between Jade Fang Cass' and Panda Annie. In the end I chose the Annie skin.
Therefore, this blog will be a review of the Panda Annie skin.
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Images:
Panda Annie Splash Art
Annie with Tibbers
Annie's W:
Annie's E
Recall Animation
My first impressions from the Splash-Art:
I was grabbed immediately by the artwork for this skin and I knew it was something I would purchase at some point in my League future as soon as I saw it. Riot once again went with the high finish we've become accustomed to for the art and the finished product shows Annie in motion with some background detail giving the impression of a battle scene. I love this addition and the encorporation of fireworks onto Tibbers' back; it really makes them feel like a weapon and sets the scene. The art is fiery, eye catching and really impressive to me. Annie looks like a totally adorable and bad ass. I love the finish, the style, the colour palette... everything. All the elements work incredibly well, the only reservation I have is Annie's face, particularly around the eye area. It looks slightly too mature and adult, especially with the thick, long lashes and it isn't quite as perfect as the rest of the skin. This doesn't really bother me, though and the many positive aspects to the art more than make up for it in my opinion.
In-game appearance:
As for the skin in-game, it was very true to the splash art and equally adorable to boot. The only difference is that her hair appears very blue in-game, but I like this change. It's clear that the light produced from the fire in the art-work somewhat muted the shade, but it's great that it's translated to the in-game environment so well - the colour even matches her little trousers! Her dance animation and voice over hasn't been altered for the skin, but there have been changes to the spell animations, the appearance of Tibbers and recall animation.
Spells:
Firstly, all fire produced from Annie in this skin features curling tendrils of flame, which is characteristic of the stereotypical Chinese fire depicted in drawings. Her W spell is particularly impressive and ornate for the graphics and really quite lovely (but also deadly and all-consuming, which I love). I couldn't catch a shot of her Q, but when cast Annie hurls a large fireball at her enemy. Even her E is more elaborate and decorative and I love the thought and finish that has gone into this skin, even down to the knap-sack of fireworks on Tibbers' back. All together, this skin is rather explosive when played in-game.
Recall Animation:
This is what I love the most about this skin. In her recall animation, Annie enlarges her (Panda) teddy bear to the size seen in the last image on this blog and promptly begins to cuddle it until she reaches base. Here it disappears and she falls to the ground, bumping her small behind before standing. It's beyond adorable and a wonderful finishing touch for this skin. Quite frankly it makes me want to take her home and give her cookies and milk.
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Overall, I adore this skin. It's a perfect addition to her collection and very in-keeping with her visual overhaul. There has clearly been a high attention to detail paid in the construction and concept of this skin and it's maybe my favourite Annie skin to date. I was looking forward to this addition to my collection, but was worried that the actual skin may not live up to the hopes I'd developed after the release of the splash art. However, Riot certainly didn't disappoint me and I couldn't be happier with the final product.
This was definitely 975RP well spent!
Thank you for reading,
Garnet.
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