Mobile Suit Ensemble EX 26 : MSN-04II Nightingale

Ok, so finally I was able to get my hands on it... Bandai released the Nightingale and the Hi-Nu Gundam in tandem back in March 2021 but while I was able to pick up the RX-93v2 at time of release it has taken over half a year of failed attempts to catch up with the Nightingale. Every time it popped up on the second hand market it would go out of stock almost immediately. I have actually had it being automatically removed from my basket at order checkout more than once even though I would pounce on it the minute I saw it. Red suits just seem to sell that much faster for some reason...


I really like the artwork for this Ensemble box and how the background wraps over onto the lid. Sometimes I think it would be cool if the box itself featured a static background that you could use as a backdrop that slotted on to the base (maybe then I would finally consider using those oversized things).


We have a large number of bags this time as well as a really easy-to-follow step-by-step assembly guide. As usual with these larger figures we find both bendy and rigid plastic components for the different sections of the figure.


The Nightingale figure is for the most part a straightforward Ensemble figure with a couple of twists here and there. It uses custom components for its Ensemble figure "inner frame" and comes with an enormous action base. Priced at ¥6600 through their Premium Bandai program puts it at the same tier as the Hazel Gigantic Arm Unit and the Virsago/Astharon pair.


The Nightingale design is really an acquired taste. The super-deformed format really doesn't do it any favours either. While the figure retains the normal Ensemble articulation you won't get much posing options for its chunky legs but the arms offer some more variety. The markings are clean and the shield especially looks great.


You get three types of accessories with the figure. Unlike the Sazabi the Nightingale sticks to one rifle, a 22 meter long Mega Beam Rifle (which can be a bit of a pain to pose due to the figure's large arms), a pair of standard looking translucent beam sabers and the signature Beam Tomahawk weapon which can be wielded as a dual-bladed Beam Sword. I do think Bandai could have included a pair of open expressive hands but chances are you already have some spares lying around if you have been keeping up with the Ensemble EX figures or the equipment packs.


The figure comes with a massive base to allow you to pose the suit in a flying pose with dangling legs. As with the common Ensemble figures the base plugs into the groin in a really finicky slot and it is more likely you will pull the figure apart than from the base once you want to remove it. There is a liberal sprinkling of optional peg holes on the base but you will have no particular use for them based on the contents in this box. I can see the possibility of placing the Hi-Nu Gundam figure's Funnels around it for example. Talking about the Sazabi's own Funnels they are removable but you get no sort of accessories to display them when deployed (this usually ends up looks pretty bad anyway...).


As you may know the MSN-04II features only in Tomino's draft for Char's Counterattack and was later replaced by the MSN-04 Sazabi in that film. The Nightingale and the Hi-Nu Gundam instead soldier on in an "alternate timeline"-type of book based on the original vision known as Char's Counterattack: Beltorchika's Children. I don't really know how come both it and the Hi-Nu Gundam feature version two designations (RX-93-v2 and MSN-04II) if they are not canonically co-existing with the RX-93 and MSN-04 but whatever... As seen here, the Sazabi design is much more restrained and proportioned even though this early Ensemble interpretation is a bit anemic for my taste.


The Nightingale must sell fairly well because we have expensive EX-figure versions if it Gundam Converge (left) and Gashapon Senshi Forte (right). Converge even has two versions, a standard colour variant (EX 14 from February 2017) and the metallic version seen here (a CORE release from March 2020). The Senshi Forte figure was released in May 2018 as EX 04.


As you can see the Converge and the Ensemble figures are rather similar in size and so the Converge figure could well function as a stand-in. Having said that, I am not sure which would be the more expensive figure these days.


The Nightingale was released in parallel with the EX 27 Hi-Nu Gundam figure. Both feature the same type of attractive box art concept but I think Bandai missed an opportunity when they chose not to line-up the two backgrounds with each other. On the plus-side, I was able to store the Hi-Nu box inside the Nightingale box together with the unused bases and that always helps.





Conclusion

The Nightingale figure is really well-designed and feels reasonably sturdy. While I think most collectors could find something to like about it we must also consider how the Ensemble figures keep getting more and more expensive to keep up with. You could certainly make a case for skipping it and sticking to the smaller Sazabi figure instead (the same can be said for the Hi-Nu which is even available in the basic retail line-up). I paid ¥7000 for this figure which I think is a bit much for what you are getting and that money might be better spent elsewhere.