Toady we are taking a look at a set of special releases under the Banpresto brand name. The title gives us no particular clue about the actual figure series involved here, but we are dealing with a Banpresto line called the Mini Figure Collection which ran between 1997 and 2000. The original figures are sometimes referred to using the "Convenience Store Love" moniker, which appears to be a broader concept also including different figures branching out into other intellecual properites such as SDF Macross for example. The particular releases under scrutiny here appear to be specials released to commermorate a special event. We have seen specials such as Art of Gundam before and I am going to assume that Gundam Illustrations World was something similar, probably held for a couple of months in one or more cities. We don't even have a year on the packaging to guide us.
I have managed to find three different figure sets and they all have the same packaging down to the inividual barcode. The short code [79252] is the easiest way to identify them.
The first package to examine contains the classic White Base trio of mobile suits and armor. We have a RX-77-2 Guncannon wit unit number 109, the RX-78-2 Gundam armed with a beam rifle and the RX-75 Guntank. Each figure is rather primitive and features pegs underneath its feet which are to be inserted into a rectangular black base. I have decided not to open the packaging for the time being so the review will have to make do with these less than perfect images for now.
The figures in these sets are not just repackaged versions of the Banpresto Mini Figure Collection but also feature minor tweaks, most notably some printed designations on the hull. The original Guncannon for example comes without the "RX-77" and "109" markings, the Gundam lacks the "RX-78-2" designation on its chest and the story is the same with the "RX-75" on the Guntank. The colours used however are pretty much the same, there might be the slight variation here and there. The photos of the original figures are going to be even worse I'm afraid, since they come on bendy cardboard cards with wrapped in very creased plastic bags. You can barely make out the black bases packaged behind each figure...
the next set features three Zeonic mass-production type suits, no prize for figuring it out that it is the one I like the most. It features a MS-14A Gelgoog with a beam rifle, the MS-06F Zaku II armed with a Zaku bazooka and a MS-07B Gouf with empty hands (although the left hand sports the five finger gun). You can see the attention to relative scale here, while not exact the Zaku II is dwarved by the Gouf and the Gelgoog.
Comparing to the old releases the most obvious change is the re-coloring of the Zaku II. other than that we again see additional markings on the special release figures. The Gelgoog sports a Zeon crest on the chest and "MS-14A" on left shoulder, the Zaku II has a Zeonic logo on the chest and the Gouf features the same chest emblem and the "MS-07" designation on the left skirt armor.
The last set I have on hand features three of Char Aznable's classic steeds. We have the prototype YMS-14 Gelgoog Commander Type, a Commander Type MS-06S Zaku II and a humbled MSN-02 Zeong which has to be content with sitting on the floor - other brands usually include some type of extra stand to prop it up into the air where it looks a bit more menacing.
No surprises here. Our special edition Gelgoog comes with a Zeonic logo on the chest and "YMS-14" on left shoulder. The Zaku II is perhaps a slightly darker tint of red and sports the Zeon emblem on the chest. The Zeong wears its "MSN-02" designation on the chest and the shakes things up with the Zeon emblem on the left shoulder.
So, are there any additional premium sets fromthis series? Well, not that I know of but I wouldn't rule it out. Here you can see some of the other possible candidates that could have been involved. Eventually these original figures may find their way to a proper review but for now we are leaving them here.
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