Gashapon DODAI YS Special

A question came up on the 1:400 page regarding the DODAI YS figure and its compatibility with Mobile Suit Ensemble. I figured it might be a good idea to dig a bit deeper into this topic so today we are looking at the various Gashapon DODAI YS that are out there.


So far we have yet to see a Shokugan DODAI YS figure but we have a couple of options in the Gashapon pool. The DODAI Kai from Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam on the other hand is available in Converge already and scheduled for release in Mobile Suit Ensemble Part 22 this summer. Seen here from smaller to larger we have the super deformed SD figure (released July 2001 in SD Gundam Full Color Stage 26), the 1:400 scale figure from Gundam Collection Vol. 2 (released 2002), the slightly larger 1:350 scale figure from Gsight Part IV (2003) available in two colour options and finally the Gashapon HG DX4 entry from 2006 which is roughly in 1:285 scale. If you venture into model kit or action figures the models will quickly rise in size and become unsuitable for display with Ensemble or Converge figures.







Here we see the units with some different Gouf riders from the respective figure series, next we'll see how they scale with the modern Gundam Converge and Mobile Suit Ensemble figures.







Let's add an old Converge Gouf and the Mobile Suit Ensemble counterpart into the mix. I think this picture gives you all the information you need to make an informed choice but just for fun we'll see how the different figures work together.







In my opinion the Gashapon HG DX figure is obviously the way to go. It also has the advantage of being in hard plastic giving the figure a large stable platform but on the flip side it is the only figure that lacks an action base or even a peg for combining it with one. Here I have simply made a little pedestal for it using the ubiquitous Assault Kingdom action base components.


The bad news is that the Gashapon HG figures are tricky to source but here you can see what the blind box type it comes in will look like. Mandarake will have full Gashapon HG box-sets for sale every now and then, other than that I think second hand market places are the best bet to find one. The prices are not high in Japan, but you will most likely have to be prepared to keep your eyes peeled for one for quite some time.