Gundam Converge Selection [Limited Color]

From time to time Bandai likes to recycle their older sculpts. This is nothing that has stopped since the Converge reboot which is why we will still see generation one figures being sold shoulder to shoulder with the revised and generally more advanced figures following 2016's reboot (can't believe it has been two years already).

The somewhat awkwardly named Gundam Converge Selection [Limited Color] set is just one such release; five older figures brought back to life with some updated paint applications. It follows last year's Gundam Converge Selection [Realtype Color] set and kind of proves just how confused the marketing team must be themselves.

The Limited Color set contains five different figures with no alternate versions or secret items. The set was released on December 19 2017 and the figures had a recommended price of ¥500, like your standard Converge reboot figure.

XXXG-01W Wing Gundam (Limited Color)

The first figure in the unnumbered set is the XXXG-01W Wing Gundam as it appeared in the original television series. I don't know about you but I am starting to feel a bit of Wing Gundam fatigue by now. This mobile suit has now been released four times in the past nine months and the mobile suit has even been lucky enough to be part of the Converge reboot so why Bandai thinks a new generation one figure is needed is beyond me.

This "new old" Wing Gundam has had a colour upgrade but is otherwise similar to past releases. The yellow has been upgraded to gold, and the overall dark blue color of its torso and skirts has been brightened a bit.

There are no new accessories or major sculpt changes for this figure, you can clearly recognize this as a generation one figure from the transparent support piece that clips to the figure's heels, as well as the right hand being molded straight onto the weapon (although this does occur also in the new generation of figures).

XXXG-01W Wing Gundam as released in Converge vol. 15 (left) and the new Limited Color version (right).

As you can see there are not a whole lot of differences when compared to the original XXXG-01W Wing Gundam which was released in Converge volume 15 back in June 2014. Sure the new gold colour is nice but not necessarily an improvement and certainly not more accurate.

GX-9900 Gundam X (Limited Color)

Next up is a rather unusual face from the After War Gundam X television series. Gundam X never took off in Converge. We had a couple of UNE mobile suits in the late generation one but nothing has been heard from them since early 2015. Here the GX-9900 Gundam X makes its first come back after being first released in September 2014.

The new figure shares the same features as the Wing Gundam we just looked at. Yellow colour applications have been swapped out for gold and we have a brighter shade of blue on the body as well as some other minor differences.

Again nothing new in the accessory or parts department. Although I forgot to picture it here, the Beam Rifle and the Satellite Cannon are actually loose and interchangeable so that the Gundam can hold either one.

Gundam X as it appeared originally in Converge volume 16 (left), released in September 2014, and the new Limited Color version (right).

Overall the new Gundam X figure is not that different from the older version and is a convenient replacement if you missed out on the old one. The gold parts do stand out but it remains a matter of taste which figure is the better looking I suppose.

MS-07B-3 Gouf Custom (Limited Color)

This is the figure I was most interested in for the rather diverse crowd that makes up Converge Selection Limited Color. The Gouf Custom hasn't been around since its release in December 2012 so it was more than high time that new collectors get a chance to own this amazing figure.

Not only is it great to see this rare old figure brought back to life again, but this is actually the only figure that has been improved on from its predecessor. More specifically, the Gouf Custom was originally released in two different versions, the standard figure armed with a Heat Sword and a "secret item" variation armed with the Gatling Shield.

The new Converge Selection Gouf Custom actually sports all the accessories from both prior versions, which is something I would like to see more of if other older figures are considered for reissue. Not to mention that both the Gouf and the Gouf Custom ought to be due for a reboot upgrade soon, Bandai and FusionWorks have already done the Zaku II and the Gelgoog, so why not also the Gouf?

Another built in gimmick for the Gouf is the removable "helmet" which reveals the monoeye on a circular piece which can be rotated to give the impression of the mobile suit looking sideways.

The Converge Selection Color contains both unique accessories for the standard Gouf Custom release.

The full Converge Gouf family

Whether or not you like the new somewhat green-tinted colour of the Gouf Custom reissue it is still an awesome figure for any collection. Now I am hoping to see more One Year War mobile suits upgraded in the Converge reboot series.

G-P.A.R.T.S. G-Bull (Limited Color)

Somewhat surprising, FW and Bandai have chosen two vehicles for the last slots of the Limited Color set. This is something they did also in the Converge Selection V reissue set, which was a 7-Eleven exclusive released in October 2014.

I have never got the impression that the G-P.A.R.T.S. figures have been that popular with Converge collectors, as I tend to see them easily available on the secondary market quite often.

The G-Bull is a tank-like vehicle featuring both a forward and a backward facing cockpit. The larger cockpit is intended for the G-Armor combined figure.

G-Bull as it appears in Converge vol. 11 (left), Converge Selection V (center) and Selection Limited Color (right).

Although the G-Bull received a small but welcome facelift already in the Selection V set it is now getting a much improved paint job on its canopy and even some markings on the sides. The base red and white colours are toned down a bit towards orange and light grey. The new version is the only figure where I can clearly say it is superior to its predecessors.

G-P.A.R.T.S. G-Sky (Limited Color)

The second half of the G-P.A.R.T.S. set is the spacecraft-like G-Sky which can also come apart to create a tiny and not particularly good looking Core Fighter (especially not when you compare it to the just released Core Fighter that comes with the White Base set).

The G-Sky fighter does not come with any action base, this stand is borrowed from an Assault Kingdom figure.

Not a whole lot going on in this box as you can see. The optional part on the right is used as a fuselage centerpiece when constructing the G-Armor combined figure.

The updated G-Sky from Converge Selection Limited Color has toned down white and reds, and unlike the Wing Gundam and Gundam X, its blue colour has been darkened on the Core Fighter.

The G-Sky from Converge vol. 12 (left), Selection V (center) and Selection Limited Color (right).

As you can see in the above pictures the major difference between the figures can be seen in the rear. Unlike the G-Bull, the updated G-Sky doesn't differ a great deal from the Selection V figure.

G-P.A.R.T.S. G-Armor (Limited Color)

And to round things off here is a view of the G-Armor figure which is assembled from the G-Bull and the G-Sky.

I am always confused by the terms "G-Sky", "G-Fighter" and "G-Armor", and the terms seem to be used a bit loosely also for official figures. Normally, I would expect the G-Sky to feature the torso of the RX-78-2 Gundam figure rather than a Core Fighter for example.

Notice also how the Mobile Suit Ensemble representation of the G-Fighter compares to the Converge figures in both size and composition. I'll make a new comparison shot with the Build Model Gundam G-Fighter as well when I get around to finding it.

Conclusion

The Converge Selection (Limited Color) figures are quite nice and while not breaking any new ground they are a good way to pick up some old figures that you may have missed out on. Not really a great deal for veteran collectors here although I will personally be picking up a second set of G-P.A.R.T.S. figures to display all three vehicles in their updated colours.

The MS Ensemble is coming...

Another Gashapon figure series has made it onto the blog. This is the Mobile Suit Gundam MS Ensemble series of rather advanced articulated figures with a look confusingly similar to the Converge series. The occasional review might appear but for now though the figures are only covered in a check list of their own found above.

Gundam Converge : RX-0 Unicorn Gundam (Destroy Mode) (Gundam Café Metallic Ver.)

Yes, it is time for another exclusive. You know, the type of figure that begins to frustrate you already the moment you hear about it, because you know it will be a gigantic pain in the rear trying to locate one (unless you just happen to live in Tokyo and feel like nonchalantly waltzing into the Gundam Café and picking up this latest incarnation of everyone's favourite Unicorn Gundam).

If you are not familiar with the Gundam Café, it is a small chain of eateries with a flagship outlet located in Tokyo's busy Akihabara district. Besides grabbing a quick snack here you can also pick up some more or less serious souvenirs ranging from kitchen utensils to the occasional model or figure.

Releases come and go in limited waves which means you'll have to do several trips back and forth to stay on top of things (unless you prefer to pick stuff up down the street that is). Let's just say that if you are a Mobile Suit Gundam fan with limited time passing through Tokyo do not waste that precious time on searching out the Gundam Café.

Anyway, today's figure is indeed one such Gundam Café limited edition. The first exclusive to plagu.... I mean grace the Converge figure line. We are looking at a slightly modified version of the recent Unicorn Gundam that popped up in Converge #08 back in October 2017. This "metallic ver." edition of the figure was released at the Gundam Café two weeks later on October 24, priced at ¥1080.

If you are familiar with the recent resculpt of the Unicorn Gundam figure you will quickly realize this is a simple recoloration with the most significant change being a Gundam Café logo printed on the figure's base plate.

I must confess though, that this metallic version figure is looking rather spiffy. The standard resculpted figure was really nice in itself, and here it is upped one notch in the good looks department. Still, it feels pretty cheesy to get a new (and better) version of the figure only two weeks after it was released.

The main gimmick of the Unicorn is that it can alternate armament between its beam rifle and bazooka. When not in use the Bazooka can be pegged to the figure's back, something which is not possible to do with the rifle. You can again also see the hole on the figure's right arm, prepared as it is for multiple shield wiggling in its next inevitable release version (Awakening Mode or Full Armor Unicorn come to mind).

And here they are side by side; the standard Converge #08 figure and the metallic painted Gundam Café release. I think the images speak for themselves; the colour difference is quite striking.

Here the Destroy Mode Unicorn poses with an older Unicorn Mode Gundam with special pearl coating colour. That figure was released as a Gundam Ace magazine special edition (see review here). The two look quite good together although I am pretty sure we will soon get a resculpted Unicorn Mode figure as well because... because Bandai and FW love to reissue them.

And here we add the old sculpt of the Destroy Mode Unicorn (from Converge SP02 twin pack) to the line-up. The new figures look really badass and they will be even cooler once FusionWorks get around to supplying us with the inevitable Gatling Cannons (and pretty please, add the Beam Tonfas this time around as well).

Overall, the Gundam Café version of the Unicorn is a really nice figure but do not fret if you cannot locate it since the basic figure does the job just as well. This is completist stuff really, and I probably enjoy the box it came in just as much as the actual figure itself.