Gundam Converge CORE : RX-78/C.A Casval's Gundam

Converge saw a couple of red boxes ship during the late summer and here is the first of them to fall under scrutiny. Incidentially this is also the smallest package and so it was the quickest to get ready for review. We are looking at one of the Converge Redefinition figures which has been assigned number 023 on the Shokugan website (although the number is nowhere to be found on the packaging itself).

 

Casval's Gundam shipped as a P-Bandai exclusive in August 2020 and had a price tag of ¥1650. To no-one's surprise this appears to be rather popular and I had to pay ¥2800 for my figure just a month later on the secondary market.

 

Casval's Gundam comes in a box of the exact same size as a regular Converge #Sharp figure. The box however does not feature the typical perforated edge and <<open>> tab so if I had been a bit more observant I didn't have had to ruin the box when I took a knife to it in the same fashion I always do with the small boxes. :)

 

 

RX-78/C.A Casval's Gundam

Casval's Gundam is one of those what if-type scenario designs that are scattered throughout Gundam lore. While I am not familiar with the exact details from the Gihren's Greed game it is supposedly built by an alternate history Neo Zeon and used in a civil war against the Principality of Zeon, yet at the same time has supposedly also seen combat against the RX-78-2 itself, so the story seems a bit convoluted. Suffice it to say however that this is the RX-78 in red an piloted by Char Aznable under his real name Casval Rem Deikun.

 

The figure we find in the box is the exact same figure that was used for the RX-78-2 Gundam as well as the recent Real Type Color version. It has both the white Principality of Zeon crest as well as what I presume to be a Neo Zeon yellow bird design painted on its shoulders and you can see that the words Neo Zeon have been engraved into the side of the hyper bazooka. I don't quite understand why Neo Zeon would use the Principality of Zeon insignia if the two are at war but I suppose it makes some kind of sense if you are familiar with the game's storylines...

 

Just like on the other Gundam figures the Hyper Bazooka can be equipped in the right hand or stored on the mobile suit's backskirt. No additional gear options have been included here unlike the nice new gear choices we saw for the mobile suits in the related CORE 022 Char Aznable red Comet History box set.

 

Casval posing with two of the E.F.S.F. Gundams released thus far. We are still waiting for the G-3 Gundam to appear in Converge #Sharp. I assume that Bandai and FusionWorks are keeping it in reserve for another EX or CORE set, presumably together with Char's Rick Dom.

 

 

 

FF-X7 Core Fighter (Casval's Custom)

 

The highlight for me in this set is the appearance of a new Core Fighter. The Neo Zeon Gundam is making use of the same Core Block system as the regular Gundam so the Core Fighter is a given. Whether this means that Neo Zeon also developed the full G-P.A.R.T.S. system with G-Sky and G-Bull I have no idea but I have certainly never seen any of those vehicles in red colours.

 

The Core Fighter is small enough to fit together with the Gundam inside a regular Converge figure box, with stand and all. I would have gladly paid ¥550 for the basic Core Fighter to appear as a common retail figure but so far Bandai have only hid it away in the rare White Base figure accessory set which is a crying shame.

 

You can notice some slight bending in the fuselage of Casval's Core Fighter. This is the regular experience of dealing with Converge figures, sometimes you are lucky - sometimes you are not. Paying premium prices does not protect against the common afflictions of a basic candy toy. :)

All in all I think this is an excellent little set and a welcome pause from the many oversize figures we have seen lately. I imagine that this set will be quite popular and although fairly easy to source right now it will most likely become scarce and pricy before long so don't sleep on this figure if you are still planning to purchase one.

Mobile Suit Ensemble Part 00

The Mobile Suit Ensemble line was jump-started with a two-piece introductory promo set that seemed to be everywhere at the time but which has grown a bit scarce since then. Released in the end of 2016 it is basically an appetizer of what was to come in the first retail volume which also featured an RX-78 and a Zaku II, albeit in the regular UC 0079 colours. The figures in this set are also of considerably higher standard as far as colouring and markings go.

 

I have never seen a cardboard box version of this set and so cannot confirm if one ever existed. The Ensemble capsule editions are normally colour coded and so the Gundam should come in a yellow capsule while the Zaku II came in one that was red. Both figures were priced at ¥500 same as regular retail figures. Expect to pay around ¥2000 to ¥3000 for them these days. Per figure, that is...

 

 

001 : RX-78-2 Gundam (Rollout Color)

 

The first ever Ensemble figure credit goes to the RX-78, no major surprise there perhaps. More interestingly Bandai decided to use the less often seen Rollout Colour version colour scheme for the figure and sticking some nonsense markings on it like they enjoy doing for the Ensemble Marking Plus version figures these days.

 

This figure is currently unique in Mobile Suit Ensemble history by having really shiny metallic color coating on some of its bodyparts, no doubt trying to seduce collectors into the line. Once the basic RX-78 figure appeared in Ensemble Part 01 it was back to the basic white plastic again. Notice the "L" and "R" markings on the thighs, these type of helpful markings are covered up much better on later figures.

 

The figure comes with same gear as the other retail Gundam figures, a beam saber and a shield (although a lot more effort was spent on the paintjob and markings here of course). Notice the additional components at the far right of the picture, this kind of bonus parts were common in the early sets and are thrown in to encourage you to customize your figures by swapping and adding components to them. Dead weight as far as I am concerned, a shiny hyper bazooka would have been a better accessory. :)

 

The Rollout Color version Gundam next to its mass production retail version from Ensemble Part 01 (also December 2016) and the much later G-3 Gundam which was part of the Part 1.5 revised colour set released in May 2019.

 

 

 

002 : MS-06S Zaku II (Char's Custom) (Battle of Loum Version)

Going up against the Gundam is Char's Zaku II with markings that are supposedly harking back to The Origin territory. I cannot really comment on the accuracy of the unit markings but it wouldn't surprise me if they are added as an afterthought. The figure itself though is a basic Zaku II figure as used for the regular UC 0079 mass production type Zaku II. Notice also the absence of a commander antenna on this figure, maybe that is why the decided to make this an "Origin version" figure? I don't know enough about the Origin lore.

 

Whatever the reasoning behind the special markings on this figure it is very attractive and it is a bit odd for Bandai to make place a notable mobile suit in what is basically a promo-set.

 

The Zaku II figure comes armed with a Zaku Machine Gun as its only accessory. Once again we have a couple of spare connector parts of the type you would find in early Ensemble equipment sets, space that would have been better dedicated to a Heat Hawk or a Zaku Bazooka. With all the juice spent on fancy markings you would have thought Bandai could also have emphasized that the figures would feature different gear choices as well.

 

The Zaku II family has expanded nicely over time in Ensemble but the early figures remain very hard to find and are quite pricey. It is the curse of spending a number of the iconic suit choices early in a figure line only for them to be difficult to pick up for fans that joined in later.

 

Ensemble Part 00 is a remarkably beautiful preview set that could perhaps be accused of driving up expectations as far as markings and overall finish goes, since the basic retail Ensemble figures are a bit simpler. It is still worth hunting down these figures but be prepared that they are not that easy to find. Do not confuse the Rollout Color version Gundam with the recently released Gundam Café Tokyo limited colour version which in my opinion is not as impressive as this one.

 

Banpresto All Gundam Key Holder Turn-A Gundam

The autumn is here and dark clouds hang like a thick blanket across the sky making daylight a precious commodity. The useless session for figure reviews is here in full effect. While I am waiting for workable daylight to complete the shots for a couple of more recent items I dug out a set that I documented back when the summer was still warm and pleasant and most impotantly full of sunlight.

 

What we have here is a set of soft plastic keyring figures manufactured by Banpresto. While these types of items are normally not the focus of the blog they are definitely worth investigating closer if you have a taste for prepainted and super-deformed figures like the various Bandai SD Gundam series. Keyring figure sets are noteworthy for containing some really rare mobile suit options that do not exist in similarly sized figure ranges and can be a great complement to those.

 

This particular set covers figures from the Turn-A Gundam television series. It was manufactured way back in 1999 and carries the Banpresto short code 75773. We can also see a small "Toru Toru Mascot" logo on the card which is presumably an overarching series of figures for which this set was made. I grabbed these from Mandarake (where else?) and it cost a respectable ¥2000 for a full set of six figures. I always remove the keychains from the figures and junk those components. This leaves an ugly hole at the top of the head of the figures which honestly doesn't bother me that much but if you are a serious figure collector you may want to fill it up with some green stuff and a drop of paint or similar.

 

 

1. System A99 Turn-A Gundam

We of course open up with the one and only mustachio-Gundam. Why use a V-fin resembling bushy eyebrows when you can instead model your gear based on some interesting facial hair in its place?

 

While the Turn-A is a really white figure you can see that the attention to detail is still really good. We have detail here that even a bog-standard Converge figure can only dream of unless it is part of the CORE-program. And unlike the Bandai SD figurines Banpresto's keyring figures get detail on all sides and not just the front. Presumably because they are intended to dangle on the back of a school bag or something to that effect.

 

Size and detail comparison with the basic System A99 Turn-A Gundam from Bandai's SD Full Color series. All of the Bandai comparisons you will see here belong to the only Turn-A Gundam centered set, Full Color Stage 11 which was released in October 1999.

 

 

2. FLAT-L06D FLAT

 

The weird looking FLAT has a design that is completely unmistakable compared to any other mobile suit. Supposedly named for its Flexible Ladder Actuator Technology it also has less impressive nick names like High Heel.

 

The paint detail on this figure is simply outstanding, look at all those tiny areas where colours have been carefully separated. Now, I haven't seen the Turn-A show myself but most official artwork suggests the FLAT is typically black with red detail rather than navy blue and orange. I am not sure if there is perhaps a unit or pilot that operates the FLAT in this particular paint scheme. The Inglessa Militia has a unit painted bright red all over however.

 

The SD Gundam figure has colours more in line with the common artwork but man, the Banpresto figure has it outclassed in every other aspect. Notice especially the namesake heels on the Banpresto figure that just disappear into the overall feet of the Bandai mini.

 

 

3. MRC-F20 SUMO

 

Next up we have an iconic mass production type figure. I don't know why the SUMO hasn't made it into Converge, it practically screams compatibility with that figure line as far as complexity and rounded parts go. "SUMO", by the way, is one of those pointless acronyms that Mobile Suit Gundam SEED is so fond of and translates to "Strike Unit for Maneuver Operations" which makes absolutely zero sense.

 

The mass-production type SUMO is sometimes referred to as the Silver Type and the Banpresto figure certainly lives up to this name. It comes armed with a Heat Fan, which is supposed to be a combination melee weapon as well as a shield. It mostly resembles some kind of seafood eating utensil.

 

The Bandai SD figure has to make do with white instead of silver but it does have a better weapon choice as far as I am concerned; the more traditional looking Hand Beam Gun.

 

 

4. MRC-F20 SUMO (Harry Ord Custom)

 

Ace Pilot Harry Ord crews his own custom painted version of the SUMO, sometimes referred to as the Gold Type. This particular figure looks more like it would be a Bronze Type however as it is really dark but still very pretty.

 

The Gold Type figure is a simple colour swap of the Silver Type figure. I would really have liked it if the two figures had equipped different types of weapons (to be honest I would have been fine with Beam Guns for both of them...).

 

Bandai's SD figure goes for yellow instead of Gold and features the same Heat Fan weapon as the two Banpresto figures. Points awarded to the SD Full Color series for having different sculpts for the two SUMO type mobile suits.

 

 

5. Loran Cehack

 

The last two slots in this set contain a pair of pilot figures. It is not unusual to see keyring figure sets come with mixed types of figurines such as these in the very same sets. Sadly character figure sizes aren't very consistent between sets so they rarely pose that well together.

 

The first figure is the main protagonist from Turn-A, Loran a.k.a. Rolan (I'm not going to step into that debate...) who amusingly has received the most detail paint work on his suspenders. While the figure can stand up on its own I suspect there could be variations from figure to figure as even a small bend in a leg would make it impossible. I usually superglue these figures to small transparent bases to rid myself of such headaches.

 

 

6. Sochie Heim

 

The second pilot is Sochie Heim who is one of the supporting cast of the show. I don't know why we have to get figures in civilian clothes as pilot suits would have been way cooler, especially when the alternative here is some kind of pink princess thing. There are two more Sochie Heim figures in much larger scales and these too feature this ridiculous dress. Maybe the MegaHouse Gundam Girls Generation figure series dares to do something different in the future.

 

The sculpt and paintjob is excellent also on this figure, but the smaller feet and larger head means even more trouble to get this figure to stand up unaided. This particular one is just barely managing.

 

The Turn-X, WaDOM and Kapool sadly do not appear to have made it into the Banpresto range.

I don't know if Banpresto ever made another Turn-A Gundam inspired set in this range but I have never seen any evidence thereof. We saw the same thing happen also in Bandai's SD Gundam and Gashapon HG figure lines; the show got one set and that was all she wrote. Gundam Converge even gave the Turn-X the celebrated 100th figure slot but apart from the Turn-A and the Turn-X Converge only produced a Kapool as a colour variant of the Neo Zeon Capule as well as the MS-05 Borjarnon which was a half-baked conversion of the Zaku I figure (I bet people buy it second hand thinking they have scored a Black Tri-Star Custom Zaku I...)

 

Overall, this is a set of high-quality Banpresto keyring miniatures and if you are a fan of the line as well as the series I think that you will enjoy them. For everyone else I guess this is really fringe figure territory. :)

 

SD Gashapon Senshi Forte 11

Today we are looking at a release that almost disappeared amid the noise of the pandemic. Senshi Forte Part 11 was supposed to be released in April but I am not sure exactly when it made it to market. I recall Bandai mentioning that the figures had completed manufacturing before the lockdowns and shipping disruptions began but I don't know exactly when they reached retail. I picked my own set in August from a seller in Hong Kong for about 30 USD. I would have loved to pick up extra GMs and Z'Gok's but these are difficult to source as singles so it is going to take some time to accomplish unfortunately.

 

Volume eleven is also a watershed moment in the Senshi Forte development history. It is the first set to feature a completely revised anatomy which is taking a lot of cues from Mobile Suit Ensemble. While the new format has the added feature of being significantly easier to build the primary reason for its introduction was to lower production costs by utilizing common parts.

   

 

F071 : ZGMF-X20A Strike Freedom Gundam

The first figure to take advantage of the new build is the Strike Freedom which is an interesting choice since we can compare it directly to the Freedom Gundam which is an older Senshi Forte figure.

 

Looking pretty good there, sir. While I did put some extra colour on the shoulders and arms the figure is really attractive straight out of the package. We can see some nice two-colour schemes on single parts like the feet and the hip-mounted railguns, not to mention the wings of course.

 

Here you can see the revised build strategy implemented with Senshi Forte 2.0. The torso is now made up of a front and a back panel where the back-panel is standardized. This mimics the Mobile Suit Ensemble figures to the letter and also means we don't have to punish our figures with the dumbbell-shaped double-ball joint pieces anymore. Those were a real pain to insert properly and would leave your figures really sore after having put together a few figures. The new figures snap together very easily in comparison. Note that the entire inner frame and base are molded in gold colour. This is because the hands are now part of the same sprue and so they got to decide the rest of the inner frame's colour.

 

The Strike Freedom has articulated wings so that you can choose to display it with wings folded or extended like above.

 

Size and style comparison of the Strike Freedom from Gashapon Warrior NEXT (Volume 17, released in December 2013), the base ZGMF-X10A Freedom from Gashapon Senshi Forte 08 (January 2019) and the new Strike Freedom from Senshi Forte 11. Notice the considerable size difference between the two Senshi Forte figures.

   

 

F072 : RGZ-91 Re-GZ

The next figure to take advantage of the Senshi Forte makeover is the Re-GZ. We saw its friends from Char's Counterattack in Senshi Forte Part 09 which I am ashamed to say I still haven't built but I will update this review with some comparison shots eventually... :)

 

The Re-GZ is one of those figures that tend to change colours between various ranges and in my opinion this one is a bit on the pale side. There is enough interesting detail on the front torso but the the rest of the figure is a bit bland so I went all over it with a black marker pen to make it stand out a bit more.

 

Unlike the Strike Freedom figure the rest of the figures in this set all utilize the standard black inner frame components and so all feature the exact same black hands. This is one of the most obvious downsides to the Senshi Forte 2.0 format since the old figure has mini-sprues for the hands only and so enjoyed custom hand sculpts and colours but from now on we are stuck with the same type across the board.

 

Comparison of the RGZ-91B Re-GZ Custom from Gashapon Warrior NEXT 15 (2013) and the base Re-GZ from Senshi Forte. Apart from these two we only have a pair of old Gashapon Full Color versions of the Re-GZ so it is nice to finally get a Re-GZ in the new NEXT/DASH/Forte scale.

   

 

F073 : RGM-79 GM

The classic GM has enjoyed recent appearances in both the Mobile Suit Ensemble and the MicroWars lines and so it is nice to see it pop up here as well. You can never have too many GM's, especially since the E.F.S.F. line-up from UC 0079 is pretty much the GM and the Ball next to the White Base crew.

 

I think the GM figure really benefits from the 2.0 format. The inner black frame adds some nice mechanic feel to the figure which would probably have looked decidedly blander if the entire torso was a single piece.

 

The GM is equipped with a really tiny Beam Spray Gun and a very nicely painted and sculpted shield. You will find a bazooka in the equipment set as well, more on that later.

   

 

F074 : MSM-07S Z'Gok (Char's Custom)

The Z'Gok is another classic design that gets a lot of appearances in almost all figure lines. Strangely enough it hasn't yet found its way into Mobile Suit Ensemble but perhaps this figure will help opening the way.

 

The Senshi Forte Z'Gok looks excellent with a distinct and vibrant colour scheme. Because of its unorthodox headless build the figure actually has both a front and a back panel to completely encase the inner frame from view. The headpiece sits on a ball joint and is not a perfect fit with the rest of the body which will look a bit quirky and will probably bother some collectors.

 

Because of the nature of the 2.0 figure design you will get regular mobile suit hands on the sprue for this figure as well. Good for spare parts I suppose, I added them to the quickly growing pile of surplus components.

 

Poor GM, never gets to catch a break from the Z'Gok it seems...

   

 

F075 : MSM-07 Z'Gok

Next in line we have the colour variation for this set; the mass production type Z'Gok. Senshi Forte tends to have two figures of the same type in each volume, typically a colour or slight component variant. Bandai then typically packs the figures in A-sets and B-sets where the A-set will contain all the other figures in the set together with the first variant of the figure, and a B-set where only the colour variation is different. This creates an artificial rarity for these figures while the market becomes flooded with surplus units of the other figures (in this case the Strike Freedom, Re-GZ and the GM). So, building a squad of mass production type Z'Gok's is much harder work than building a squad of GM's. And this, as always, sucks royally.

 

Not a whole lot to say about this figure, it is the exact same as the red one save for the colour scheme. It has been a really long time since Bandai made the olive green version in use by the Zeon remnants in Unicorn; I sure would like to see it as some sort of colour variation down the line.

 

The Senshi Forte Z'Gok figures come with one open and one closed claw. If you are happy to own multiple figures you can create variants where both claws are opened or closed as well.

 

The Senshi Forte figure is just sooo much better looking than its predecessor from Gashapon Warrior NEXT (volume 16, released in 2013) both were anatomy and colour choices are concerned.

   

 

F076 : Equipment set for wave 11

The other major introduction with Senshi Forte 2.0 is of course the dreaded equipment set. Designed as yet another cost cutting technique it puts various accessories for the rest of the figures in the wave in a box of its own. This is of course also intended to make you want to buy the entire set rather than just the figures you happen to like.

 

The equipment set for volume eleven contains three additional weapons and the new standardized modular display stand.

 

As we have seen in the component photos the basic Senshi Forte figures come with simple stands of their own. These are much sturdier than the old stands which tend to topple over very easily. The new stands also feature connectors so that you can string them together horizontally which is a nice touch. Here the differently coloured stands look a bit out of place though.

 

The build instructions area rather limited so I am not exactly sure what Bandai intended we do with the stands that come in the equipment sets. Here I have utilized all the components from an equipment set plus the regular base from one of the figures on top. Then I have combined stands from three equipment sets to create this half-baked stand. I guess you are supposed to be able to build both horizontally and vertically to create some really impressive displays. The fact that you only get one these stands per full set of figures means you will never have enough of them. Bandai might want to consider selling them as accessories.

 

On the gear side of things we have the combined Long Range Beam Rifle for the Strike Freedom. This is a combination of two MA-M21KF rifles of which you only get one with the Strike Freedom itself. It seems to me Bandai could have included a second basic rifle either with the figure itself or the equipment pack. This accessory isn't as interesting as say a beam saber would have been either.

 

The Re-GZ is the clear winner of this set and receives a rare translucent beam saber made up of two different types of plastic. Absolutely zero complaints here - this is how you convince a collector that they need the equipment set. :)

 

The GM receives a Hyper Bazooka of the same type that the RX-78-2 Gundam uses. The same weapon also found its way into the equipment set for Senshi Forte 12 so with two of them you can create the Final Battle Specification for the RX-78. Shown here also is the Gundam's beam saber from Senshi Forte 12 which can be a useful accessory for the GM if you prefer to equip the RX-78 with a beam rifle.

   

 

Conclusion

 

Overall I am positively surprised by the Senshi Forte 2.0 concept. Initially I had some reservations about the mobile suits losing their unique hand sculpts but the simplified build process is a huge plus. The new bases are ok and I suppose can come in handy for other projects as well although I am not planning to make much use of them myself.