Gundam Converge SP06 : PMX-003 The-O vs. MSZ-006 Zeta Gundam

Gundam Converge in 2015 has been all about special packaging. With only two regular waves of figures out thus far (and the third just released) we've seen no less than eleven special releases such as EX, SP and CORE, and there are three more on the way before the closing of the year. Granted, some of these have been country specific limited editions, but the pattern is clear to see.

We're seeing similar trends in both STANDart and Assault Kingdom. Although STANDart hasn't had any news in 2015, two of the five releases in 2014 were expensive figures in special packaging. Assault Kingdom, which had four regular waves in 2014 has only produced two in 2015, but there were also two special packaging figures as well as a third scheduled for December, and the only announcements for 2016 so far are two EX figures.

Similarly, if we look at the price development of the Converge SP sets, we can see the same bothersome trend. The first SP-set, the Sazabi and the Nu Gundam, originally sold at ¥1100 when they were released in 2011. SP02, featuring the Sinanju and the Unicorn saw the price upped to ¥1500, a level which plateaued with both SP03 and SP04 which were both priced at ¥1400. The triple pack SP Qubeley went up to ¥1800 and last year's SP05 (Gundam GP01 and GP02) remained suspiciously at this level with a price of ¥1700. Enter SP06 in 2015, and the suggested price tag is now ¥2200.

Although SP06 is the first SP-set to offer a transformable figure, the basic concept of two figures in a box remains unchanged. So while I can appreciate that this set was probably more expensive to design and manufacture, the current trend suggests that Bandai is trying to convert its Shokugan figure lines into premium products rather than candy toys. First we got the pricy EX figures, and now the SP sets are racing to reach that level. If I was to guess a reason, I would suggest poor sales and a decline in profits at the core of this transformation.

Well, that was me moaning a bit about the current state of affairs in the Gundam Shokugan sector. 2015 has been a clear indicator that the Converge hobby is getting pricy, perhaps a bit too pricy for its own good.

Anyway, how about we get this review on track again? We are looking at Converge SP06, the first twin pack featuring combatants from the Zeta Gundam timeline, which just happens to be my favourite episode in Gundam history, with all its awesome transformable mobile suits.

PMX-003 The-O

With a few exceptions, the Titans have been sorely absent from the Converge line-up. Converge volume 20 will feature the Hi-Zack and here we finally get one of the five massive PMX prototype mobile suits developed by Paptimus Scirocco himself. Although the (hopelessly named) The-O is not my favourite of these by far, it is such an iconic Titans mobile suit that its inclusion in the figure line seems mandatory.

The-O is a massive and bulky suit, something which is conveyed well in the Converge figure. It feels suitably heavy in the hand, and its giant feet means Fusion Works didn't bother with developing a leg support for it. Due to its enormous bulk compacted into Converge proportions, the articulation points are severely restricted by its own hulking size. While it is possible to rotate the arms and head in typical Converge fashion, large chest and shoulder components quickly stop the motion after a few degrees spin. What you can do is remove the part and place it at the preferred angle, but you may find that the component won't come all the way down on the peg, which will look funny from some other angles.

The-O comes armed with a large beam rifle and a pair of extendable sub-arms which can wield nicely transparent beam sabers. These sub-arm hands aren't very good at actually holding the sabers though, so you'll need to fiddle a bit with them to stay in place. The arms are attached into circular holes on the underside of the mobile suit's front skirt, which means you can rotate them slightly, but what is really disappointing is that the hands cannot rotate within their sockets. This means that you can't create any cool beam saber swinging poses, The-O is condemned to swing them at knee-cap level only.

This lack of beam saber articulation meant that I just decided to take them off and put them in a ziplock bag. It is also disappointing that The-O only gets the main beam rifle as its base armament. The whole point of the sub-arms was that the mobile suit could swing four beam sabers at the same time, something this figure will not be able to recreate. If Bandai had given this figure replaceable hands with beam sabers in them it would have been a serious contender for Converge top of the line, now it just falls somewhere into the less impressive range.

My last gripe with The-O is the aesthetics of the Converge figure. The head is big... really big... and pointy. Sure, exaggerated head designs are not unusual for the Converge line, but I feel that FW have been very heavy-handed when it comes to the Titans. In my opinion they messed up both the Asshimar and the Barzam in this regard, placing huge heads with oversized fins on them. This came at the expense of the overall height of the mobile suit body, and as a result these figures are shorter and diminutive than almost all the others. While The-O is not as bad as these, it could do with being a bit taller.

MSZ-006 Zeta Gundam

It seems that most of the energy spent on this set was directed at the Zeta Gundam. The figure has cropped up several times in Converge before, but this is the first time we get the chance to see it in its mobile armor Waverider mode. And as a transformable figure at that. Apparently Bandai and FW were pleased with the transformable Hummingbird model which also came out earlier this year; although this time the figure is not as complicated to build.

The above image shows the parts as they come out of the plastic bags. Looks can be deceiving though, there are far more components involved than we are led to believe here.

Mobile Suit mode

In its traditional MS form, the Zeta Gundam is highly reminiscent of the previous figures we've seen in Converge. It features the classic large beam rifle although the wing binders on its back are larger than what we have seen before. It also features the typical Converge articulation points at the shoulders and neck. It is a nice Zeta figure but frankly speaking, nothing special.

Leftover parts with the Zeta Gundam assembled in Mobile Suit mode.

What you do notice when you hold the figure in your hand though, is that it feels very unstable and ready to come apart if you are not careful. These joints will probably degrade over time, so I would recommend against too much playing around with the figure conversion. Time will tell if we will end up super gluing our Converge figures down the line...

Waverider Mode

Being a child of the Zeta generation, the Zeta Gundam, like many other designs from this period, can also transform into a high-mobility form.

The Zeta takes on a very different look in its mobile armor mode, more resembling an aerodynamic craft for atmospheric flight than anything. It's usually slender look gets a bit compacted in the Converge version but it doesn't detract from the appearance too much. As with all other Converge fliers we have seen to date, there are no articulation points or gear choices to fiddle with, once it is built it will sit on its stand with no display optionals.

To build the Waverider you actually pick apart the mobile suit body and strip out most of it. You will find that several tiny pieces from the body are instead reassembled using the Waverider specific parts. Once construction is completed you will end up with a lot of Zeta Gundam limbs. Just like the mobile suit, the Waverider mobile armor is rather fragile, you don't want to mess around with it too much or pieces may want to start falling off.

Leftover parts with the Zeta Gundam assembled in Waverider mode.

As much as I enjoyed putting the Waverider figure together (with the odd moments of frustration, the manual was very handy but not 100% easy to follow at all times), I decided to revert the figure back to mobile suit mode. I did toy with the idea of getting a second SP06 set just to be able to display both modes, perhaps if I come across a cheap one in the future I will.

Zeta Gundam evolution, from left to right: Zeta from Converge volume 2 (released January 2011) which was also reissued in the Revive Overseas edition box set (not pictured) in August 2015, the Hyper Mega Launcher-equipped Zeta from Converge vol. 11 (released in June 2013) and the two modes of the new transformable Zeta from SP06.

As cool as the transformability is, I honestly would have preferred if FW and Bandai dumbed down the designs and just gave us two prebuilt figures, one for each mode instead. It would be interesting to see what the price difference would be in two pre-built versus one transformable kit. Something tells me it wouldn't have been that much different, considering a regular Converge figure sells at only ¥400.

Overall, the SP06 set is great, if a bit pricy, and if it paves the wave for more Zeta era-designs I will be very excited indeed.