Gundam Converge EX 15 : NZ-999 Neo Zeong

Gundam Converge's BIG thing going this spring is of course the latest oversized Zeonic-style Mobile Armor - this time the triple nine from MSG Unicorn. We've seen a couple of larger EX figures before, but nothing that compares to this latest excess on part of the designers. Considering that Converge is not a scaled figure series you are excused for wondering what the designers have been smoking when they came up with this figure.

What's up with that dreadful font? And will the designers finally choose one font and stick with it?

The Converge Neo Zeong is a standard retail figure, released on March 28 and with a recommended asking price of ¥3500. The release coincided more or less with two other Unicorn-themed Converge releases; a Unicorn in its green Psycho Frame mode as well as a parts-set which expands on the Neo Zeong. The latter two were released as Premium Bandai figures only, and all three were also offered as a premium bundle for ¥7100.

The Converge NZ-999 comes in a pretty large box but it contains a surprisingly small amount of components. The body and extremities are satisfyingly large and chunky, whereas the body of the Sinanju mobile suit at the heart of the Neo Zeong is actually the most complex assembly you will find here.

Before we rush on and assemble this monster let's just pause for a second and enjoy the nice detailing and paintwork on the massive skirt armor of the figure. Considering a lot of this detail will be hidden from view once the figure is assembled, you have to admire the detailed work which went into the creation of this piece in particular:

Assembly instructions are included for one variant of the Neo Zeong only. Looking at the recent release of the Neo Zeong in Assault Kingdom that figure featured a couple of different poses but here all the pieces will be put to use for a single pose only.

All the pieces fit together easily with the exception of the Sinanju mobile suit. While the figure rests inside the armor fairly well the way it attaches could have been better. The torso is attached to a peg on the inside of the MA chest area, so it is not too difficult to accidentally push the figure out of its socket. I wish the torso would have attached vertically instead. The little backpack and shield on my figure are also very easily falling off when touched and I have considered glueing them in place.

I had no less than three major surprises when first examining this figure. The first was that the entire body of the mobile armor is made out of the same type of hard rigid plastic you normally find in various model kits (including Universal Unit). I don't know the exact materials involved here as the Bandai Asia H.K. sticker has been glued over the product data on the box itself (duuuh) but standard Converge figures are made of a softer PVC / ABS combination while Universal Unit figures are mainly made from ABS. The Neo Zeong differs here from the other large mobile armor we had in Converge - the Neue Ziel - which featured traditional softish plastic which I like better. The details on the Neo Zeong are sharper, but the figure is also more fragile.

The second major surprise was that the pale dark red colour of the Neo Zeong's body does not match the vibrant bright red of the MSN-06S Sinanju mobile suit contained within. This bugged me at first but I must say it does give the figure an interesting and not unattractive colour twist. The Neo Zeong is overall really attractive with lots of well separated colour applications.

The third and last major discovery was that the Sinanju part of the Neo Zeong figure is a partially repurposed mobile suit; but we only get its upper body. The legs are missing completely and I am surprised we weren't given optional parts to put together a complete Sinanju standalone figure. This is after all something we got with the Dendrobium mobile armor as well as the older EX kits like the Hummingbird and the Deep Striker. Not to mention that almost five years have passed since the last Converge Sinanju figure, it is definitely time for it to make its comeback by now.

Articulation wise there is not a whole lot going on with this figure. Basically it boils down two its two arms. Each arm can swivel a bit to the left and right and the underarms can also bend forward. Each hand also rotates a full 360 in its socket. It is not much to work with but at least offers up a little bit of customization. Still, the Neo Zeong, being such a large figure, does feel kind of static with this limited articulation. I am more willing to forgive it in a tiny candy toy than a behemoth plastic kit.

Converge Sinanju history: Standard MSN-06S Sinanju (Converge vol. 4, released September 2011), Bazooka version (from Converge SP02 double pack, released August 2012) and the torso stuck inside the Neo Zeong.

And speaking of size, the Sinanju is really outrageously large. With a height of roughly 17 centimeters it is about three times as tall as your average Converge figure. While its size is both imposing and attractive I still think it would have benefitted from a more manageable candy toy size. A height of ten centimeters would have been more than enough in my book. The Zakrello mobile armor for example was released as a standard Converge figure and it didn't hurt its presentation in any way.

"Never tell me the odds..."

Size comparison of the Neo Zeong next to the Neue Ziel (EX 12) and the Nightingale (EX 14).

I think ultimately your appreciation of the Neo Zeong will depend a great deal of how you feel about supersize figures in the Converge range. After all, the reason I fell for the Converge figures was their petite charm and the simplicity in building a sizable collection without running into major storage problems. A few larger figures here and there can be a fun thing but the recent turn Converge is taking seems to be going against this philosophy. And while I really do like the Neo Zeong it doesn't give me that same fuzzy feeling as I get from playing around with the Neue Ziel, a part of its Converge soul has been lost in the change of material.

The lack of accessories and display options also hurts the Neo Zeong a bit. In part this is remedied by the Option Parts Set, which will be covered in a separate review, but I can spoil that conclusion a bit by saying that you should definitely consider getting the option kit if you intend to go for the Neo Zeong. It breathes some more life into the figure.

With another supersize Converge figure just around the corner (the Shamblo Mobile Armor is scheduled for release in July) I do wonder if that figure will also be made of hard plastic. i certainly hope not. The soft plastic figures (traditionally associated with Gashapon) are currently being overtaken by hard plastic successors in the Shokugan 1/220-scale, and I sincerely hope we won't see a similar trend in Converge. I wonder what material the recently released Converge-look-alike MS Ensemble figures are made of. Do we have any readers out there in the know?