SD Gundam Full Color Stage 24

We haven't done one of the legacy SD Gundam Full Color sets in a while so here's one that has been sitting around awaiting some love for a couple of months. While I did have some of the figures already I just couldn't resist picking up the full set when it popped up at Mandarake for ¥1200. The set originally appeared in Gashapon machines back in April 2001 and the figures sold for a nice round coin worth ¥100.

As with many early Full Color figures there isn't much in the way of assembly, the figures come pretty much good to go out of their bags so let's just dive straight into it.
   

116 : RGC-83 GM Cannon II

First of all, I don't know what is going on with the numbering in this set. SD Gundam Full Color Stage 21 which features War in the Pocket mobile suits runs through numbers 110-115 and Stage 22 which contains the first Stardust Memory batch is numbered 117 to 122. Somehow the poor GM Cannon II got overlooked and completely ignored in Stage 23 only to be brought back in Stage 24 and keeping what is probably its original number. Ok, enough with the trainspotting, what about the actual figure?

Well, as you can see it looks pretty nice. I really like the oddball colour scheme of the RGC-83 but the all green body should really contain a lot of cyan coloured detail on arms, torso legs and feet so it seems to have got a bit of tough luck in that department. Still, I love this figure and I am apparently not alone because it is a rare find compared to all the other GMs that frequent the various SD figure sets.

The GM Cannon II as seen in SD Gundam Full Color, Gashapon HG MS (Vol. 22, released March 2002) and the 1:220 Unifive Stardust Memory action figure from 1999.

The Gashapon HG figure gives an idea of where corners were cut in the painting department for the SD figure and the colours seem quite a bit off as well. I sure wouldn't mind seeing an updated super deformed figure, not to mention an appearance in Gundam Converge where it is long overdue.
   

129 : RX-78GP03S Gundam GP03 "Dendrobium Stamen"

The real starter for this set is of course the Dendrobium Stamen, a figure that I might easily mistake for the GP-01, Alex or even RX-78 unless I pay it some more attention. It would have been easier to quickly identify it it was equipped with its iconic shield. The detail of these tiny figures is excellent as always although a wash would help bring it out, especially in a near all-white figure such as a traditional Gundam.

I always felt that the GP03S is a bit derivative in its design. Unlike the GP01Fb which pushes the basic GP01 with large boosters and more colour this figure has a very basic look and feel to it. Its signature feature is the set of variable booster fins attached at the hips but they almost disappear in a super deformed figure such as this one. The best version of this mobile suit is in my opinion the 1:220 figure from FW Ultimate Operation where someone at FusionWorks probably also felt it was a really bland thing to look at and decided to paint it grey which I think looks much more interesting.

The G-project machine range now encompasses the GP-01, the GP-01Fb, two versions of the GP-02A as well as the GP03 and GP03S which come from this set. The GP04 Gerbera has never been released in SD format.
   

130 : RX-78GP03 Dendrobium

One reason why the GP03S is such a bland design is of course because it is supposed to sit holed up inside the massive Dendrobium mobile armor. This MA also shows up in this set but it has been scaled down considerably, and the Gundam's head is still gigantic compared to the rest of the body. Still, it makes good sense from a SD Gashapon stylistic point of view I guess.

The colour palette used here isn't exactly thrilling. Beyond the GP03S' head the rest is almost entirely white. I wouldn't have minded if one of the arms had opened up to display a bright red beam saber but it still looks okay. The fact that it doesn't come with an action base to allow it to fly is less pleasing. None of the Stardust Memory mobile armors in this figure series are prepared with peg holes to even make them compatible with the standard SD Gundam Full Color bases which borders on unbelievable as it would have made all of them more imposing on display.

The Dendrobium Mobile Armor is quite a bit smaller in "scale" than the mobile suit itself. If you are looking for a bigger figure to display with your SD figures there is also a somewhat larger super deformed figure released in the SD Full Color DX2 set (good luck finding one and paying for it) and an even bigger one in the Gashapon Warrior NEXT Premier boxset. The normally proportioned figure from the Gashapon HG Mobile Armor Selection series is also a good choice since it is made from similar plastic and has a similar basic artistic style.

Dendrobium figures from Gashapon Warrior NEXT Premier 01 (December 2012), SD Gundam Full Color and Gashapon HG Mobile Armor Selection 2 (2000). I do not own the SD Gundam Full Color DX variant.
   

131 : AMA-X2 Neue Ziel

The Neue Ziel with its AMA-X2 or AMA-002 designations is one of two Delaz Fleet representatives in this set. The figure has a very compact no-frills design but this also helps it so sit unaided without the need for a base.

The Neue Ziel might be a real powerhouse but this figure only shows off its two main arms with their huge claws. It is perhaps not the most exciting depiction of this mobile armor but the overall design of the body and head is still appealing and it retains that evil looking Zeon stare of doom.

The good news are that we actually have quite a few options for the Neue Ziel in Gashapon form, not to mention an exquisite looking Converge version which is huge (and bound to get a companion Neue Ziel II later this summer). The bad news are that all the Gashapon variants are sort of ranging from rare to really rare to very expensive. The hardest to find is without a doubt the SD Full Color DX figure (and its price varies greatly depending on if you luck out and find one in a lot of cheap stuff or if the seller is knowledgeable and tries to squeeze its worth out of it...) and the Premium NEXT figure is fairly easy to obtain but it comes in a premium boxset which currently goes for around ¥5000 in Japan. The cheapest and perhaps easiest to secure is the Mobile Armor Selection figure which could go for as cheap as a couple of hundred yen but then usually as part of a fully boxed set.

The Stardust Memory Mobile Armor team now encompasses three units together with the MA-06 Val-Walo from SD Full Color Stage 23. As I have pointed out before, all three of these mobile armors have been released as larger Gashapons in the HG Mobile Armor Selection line which are also good for posing with SD figures due to their similar level of level and choice of material.
   

132 : AGX-04 Gerbera Tetra

Here comes the last of the figures to grace the Stardust Memory line-up; the machine that originally started its life as Gundam GP04 Gerbera. Out of all the iconic red Zeon suits belonging to Char, Full Frontal and so on the Gerbera Tetra leads a bit of a quiet life. I personally think it is one of the more spectacular designs among the red team figures but it doesn't really get a whole lot of figure love.

The SD Gundam version of the Gerbera Tetra comes with a bit of a quirky pose. The gun points almost completely sideways so ideally you want the head to do the same but as we all know Zeonic heads tend to be quite large and easily get caught up on beefy shoulders and the like.

Here is the full gang of Stardust memory-related figures released between Stages 22, 23 and 24. Technically there are a couple of variants of these GP01 and the GP02A released in later sets and we can also find a Zaku II F-2 Type in Stage 51 (which I currently do not own). You can also find a really tiny Gelgoog in Anavel Gato's colours released in the short-lived SD Gundam Impact series in 2009.
   

133 : XXXG-01SR2 Gundam Sandrock Custom

Thrown in at the end of the set we find the Sandrock Kai from Gundam Wing. It follows the Wing Zero + Tallgeese + Leo in Stage 19, Deathscythe Hell Custom from Stage 21, the Heavyarms Custom in Stage 22 and the Altron + Serpent in Stage 23. Pffft... released even after the Altron, what a humiliation. The Sandrock always seems to get the sort end of the stick but I happen to think it is one of the better looking designs in the family.

The Sandrock Custom figure as a rather attractive three tone blue to white armor set with decorative black and red detail sprinkled in even on the backside. The pose is perhaps not the most exciting since it becomes very two-dimensional; there are Sandrock figures with more interesting poses out there.

The Sandrock Custom next to the original Sandrock from SD Gundam Full Color Stage 54 (January 2005) and the Sandrock Custom with Shawl which is a keyring figure manufactured by Banpresto (Endless Waltz Figure Key Holder 1) and released in 1998.

Here the Sandrock Custom poses with its predecessor, the XXXG-01SR Gundam Sandrock. The latter figure is number 350, released in SD Full Color Stage 54 in January 2005. These are the only two SD variants of the Sandrock ever released, so if you were hoping for a Custom covered in its shawl you are going to have to dig into the keyring figure genre to find one.

The Sandrock together with some of its friends that have also appeared sprinkled around through various Full Color sets.
   

Conclusion

Even if you are not a Stardust Memory fan you will find some really unusual and interesting figure choices in this volume which makes it worthwhile to both E.F.S.F. and Zeon army builders. Wing aficionados may want to try to find the Sandrock on the singles market to which I say good luck and be patient.