SD Gashapon Warrior NEXT Forever-Enemy Series

It is time for another Gashapon Warrior NEXT figure set and this time it is one of the novelties. The Forever-Enemy Series is a special set outside of the regular figure waves and bands together four pairs of rivals from the Universal Century timeline. All the mobile suits in this set recycles earlier releases from the Gashapon NEXT figure line.

I am not completely sure about it, but I have a feeling that this might be an "Overseas Only"-type release out of the Bandai Asia division in Hong Kong. The set supposedly released in February 2015 but I do not have any information about the (then) sales price.

These figures were bought as a complete set from a secondhand shop and so they already came assembled. I didn't feel like taking them apart just for purposes of this review, but to give unfamiliar readers a general idea of the Gashapon Warrior NEXT anatomy I have lifted in this component shot of the Z Gundam from NEXT 02. Mobile suits in this line typically have articulation in their necks, waists, hips, shoulders and elbows.

Before we move on let's just also take a quick look at the comparative size of the Gashapon Warrior NEXT figures (far left and center left) as they compare to Gashapon Senshi Forte (center), FW SD Gundam NEO (center right) and Gundam Converge (far right).


1 : RX-78-2 Gundam

First out is the RX-78 out of the original Mobile Suit Gundam television show. Incidentally this figure was also the very first Gashapon Warrior NEXT figure to be released, back in December 2010 some five years earlier. Now that I think about it, I am little bit amazed that NEXT held out for five years before being replaced by DASH which only lasted for a little bit more than one year.

Notice the simple but still rather sharp paintwork that goes into select parts of the figure. The eyes have a crisp black border and the vents on the chest even come with detail that puts larger and more expensive figures to shame. Even the backside has some nice colour separation going on. Even the shield has a fully functional viewport, something often omitted on smaller figures.

This version of the RX-78 appears to be a simple reissue of the original release from NEXT Volume 01, at least as far as I can tell without owning the original. I will be revisiting older reviews and putting in comparison shots in the event that I successfully manage to expand the collection. The RX-78 was also released with a bazooka and shield in NEXT volume 11 and with a beam rifle and shield in NEXT volume 16.


2 : MS-06S Zaku II (Char's Custom)

To little surprise, the Gundam dancing partner is Char's old Commander Type Zaku II. This figure was also originally released in NEXT volume 01 and so was paired up with the Gundam already back then. Again, this appears to be a simple reissue of the original figure. For some reason, early NEXT volumes are pretty hard to come by these days and I have found secondhand shops to be a much better source than going online.

Char's Zaku II comes armed with a nice heat hawk although it feels a little cheap that it couldn't get a yellow blade effect when they managed to get so much other detail in place. Still it should be a pretty simple customization job for those so inclined.

The head has a fully functional monoeye which you can easily reposition. It is a neat gimmick even if I rarely think repositioning the eye looks very good compared to just leaving it staring directly ahead.

There is also a third version of this figure released as a colour variation in the "NEXT 35th Real Type" set. This version comes with the same heat hawk but the colour scheme is a bit toned down for a more realistic effect. You can also seek out the green mass production type Zaku II to find a Zaku machine gun.


3 : RX-93 Nu Gundam

The set continues chronologically to Universal Century 0093 and the dreadful movie Char's Counterattack. Still, CCA produced some really neat mobile suit designs and the RX-93 used to be a real staple although these days it doesn't seem to be just as popular.

Amuro Ray traded in his RX-78 for this monster which comes decked out with a curved beam saber and shield, as well as a complete pair of fin funnel packs. We are used to seeing the Nu Gundam coming with only the left Fin Funnel assembly but here we get both from the get go. They look a bit drab in all white, the effort was spent on getting Amuro's red markings on the shoulder and shield right instead and the result is nice as long as you view the figure from the front.

The Nu Gundam first showed up in Gashapon Warrior NEXT 03 back in July 2011. It appears to feature the exact same gear loadout as well. No other versions of the Nu Gundam exist in the NEXT series although both the Hi-Nu and the mass production type RX-94 are also available.


4 : MSN-04 Sazabi

You can't say Nu Gundam without thinking Sazabi and sure enough, here it comes hot on the Nu's heels. It was originally reissued as a companion to the Nu in NEXT volume 03 and also retains the same gear choices. Specifically, the large sword-shaped beam saber and the marked shield.

The paint job on the Sazabi again looks neat from the front but a little bit bland from other directions. it is just the way things go with these figures. As a NEXT figure, the Sazabi was never released with its beam rifle which is kind of sad.


5 : RX-0 Full Armor Unicorn Gundam

The third fighting pair hails from U.C. 0096 and sees one of the many iterations of the Unicorn in one corner of the arena. This time around it appears to be the Full Armor Unicorn Gundam, at least based on what its counterpart in Gundam Converge would be labelled as... We get a figure decked out with two shields and sporting one of its cool bazookas with attached missile launchers.

The Full Armor Unicorn was first released in April 2014 as part of NEXT volume 19. That figure was pretty special though. Although it came with the same gear as this figure, volume 19 also included a separate Type 89 Base Jabber spacecraft. That figure came with a second bazooka, three beam gatling guns, a Unicorn Mode shield and the giant beam javelin weapon-thingy for the Unicorn to use. This is why the Forever-Enemy Unicorn has this oversized backpack with several hardpoints just screaming to be used.

It seems a bit strange that they didn't pick one of the traditional red psycho frame Unicorns for this set, of which there are several in Gashapon NEXT. You can also find it armed with a beam rifle (NEXT volume 01 and reissued in NEXT 12), with a beam gatling and beam saber (NEXT 03), in Unicorn Mode (NEXT 12) as well as in some colour variations.


6 : MSN-06S Sinanju

The Full Armor Unicorn gets to go up against a Sinanju featuring some really nice golden detail on its chest, sleeves and shield. The backside looks less impressive though, just bland red all across. Not even the fuel tanks are done in white. This feels rather poor but I guess the money was spent on those gold trimmings. Fair enough I guess...

This Sinanju figure has been lifted from NEXT volume 07 (where it was originally paired up agains the Banshee). There is also a version of the Sinanju that comes armed with its trademark rifle if you are lucky enough to find it in NEXT volume 03.


7 : MSZ-006 Z Gundam (clear blue version)

The Forever-Enemy Series also contains two "mystery figures", which aren't that mysterious at all as their silhouettes are given away in the booklet. The surprise instead comes in them being presented as transparent colour versions. We now travel back in time to the Zeta Gundam timeline where we first stumble on the Z Gundam itself, now in minty toothpaste blue

I guess there isn't a whole lot to say about this figure. It is a transparent makeover of the Z Gundam from NEXT volume 02. I guess either you like these creations or you don't. I always feel that the detail gets completely lost in figures like these but they seem to be popular as collector items.

Here is a side-by-side with the Z Gundam from NEXT volume 02 that this figure is based upon. I know which of the two I prefer...


8 : AMX-004 Qubeley (clear white version)

While the Z Gundam has a large number of rivals here it gets to go up against Haman Karn's Qubeley. I suppose they could have made this figure in transparent purple and red as well and we would have a little Qubeley family but thankfully Bandai Asia abstained.

If anything, the transparent white colour is even less successful at bringing out the detail than the blue colour was. The Qubeley's bulky shape doesn't help either; the figure mainly resembles a lump of goo.

The transparent Quebeley is also based on a figure from the NEXT volume 02 set, and boy does that Qubeley look like a masterpiece in comparison.

Overall the Forever-Enemy Series figure set contains a lot of well known faces and it reissued some out of production figures for a second chance. The NEXT series was pretty much dead already at its time of release, so I guess you can think of it as a nice send-off for the series. I'd say this set is mainly interesting to completists as all the basic figures are reissues however in this day and age you do not stumble on any of these NEXT series releases that easily. So, if you come across this set first, you may find it a good way to flesh out your collection.