Turn-A Gundam is not only a difficult title for a Gundam but also the name of a one-off television series that aired in Japan between 1999-2000. It produced a fairly limited range of kits and figures before disappearing back into obscurity. On the Gashapon scene, Bandai supported it in 1999 with a SD figure set containing six different mobile suits as well as this HG Mobile Suit Selection set. Interestingly, both of these sets were released as Turn-A themed figures only, and both were released as volume 11 in the respective series.
This is probably one of the weirdest HG Selection sets you will ever open and it has a lot of bizarre components in it. The PVC plastic is of a softer and rubbery variety and you may come across pegs that prefer to flatten and expand sideways rather than inserting as expected. Just take things slow and methodical to avoid damaging components.
FLAT-L06D FLAT
Alright, let's begin. You know you are in for a weird experience when you start by assembling the FLAT. This figure actually looks better in disassembled form because the pose here is incredibly awkward. What is even going on here? One arm is stretched forward and the whole body is listing to one side and leaning forward in a rather unbalanced fashion. I think this is the first time I have seen a Gundam figure with a more interesting paintjob on the back than on the front too. If you are a fan of the show you can purchase a second figure and paint it red to join in with the Inglessa Militia.
WD-M01 System-A99 Turn A Gundam
Easily the best known design from Turn, the "moustached" Turn-A Gundam figure is also the most conventional looking of this lot. It even has a paintjob vaguely reminiscent of the average white Gundam you see across most franchises. Not a bad figure I think even if the colour scheme is a bit bland and that doesn't do it any favours as a figure.
JMA-0530 Wadom
I'm not sure which design is the weirdest to come out of Turn but the Walking Dome is a strong contender. This beast stands 40 meters tall, more than twice the height of the average mobile suit. While the lower part of the figure leaves a bit to be desired I am really enjoying the head and the look of its menacing monoeye. In fact, the head can probably be kitbashed onto a completely different body where it would look truly dangerous. As it stands now, the pose of the figure is really hapless but I am still glad it was included in the set.
Socie Heim
Bandai have shaken things up with this set and earmarked the last three slots for miniatures of some of the main characters of the show. While it is not a bad idea I would prefer it that the series stayed true to its roots as a mobile suit figure collection. I guess if you are a real Turn-A fan however these might be really appreciated. First up i Socie Heim in a pose very similar to the official character artwork down to the silly pose and all. Without having seen a single frame of animation I can immediately guess the character of this person. Notice the large circular bases used for all three characters, one of many unique designs used for figures across the years.
Loran Cehack
Next up is Loran/Rolan, our Turn-A Gundam pilot. One amusing controversy surrounding this character is if his name is actually Loran or Rolan. The Gundam Wiki has some lines about this in the trivia section and seems to have concluded that the proper spelling is Loran, however you will still come across "Rolan" in a lot of Japanese sources, such as this booklet for example. :)
Kihel Heim
The last person is Kihel Heim who appears to be some kind of Lacus Clyne-type character. Notice the cylindrical peg on the edge of the base plate. I guess the idea is that it is to provide additional support for the figure by letting the dress lean on to it but the two did not connect at least on my figure.
I must say while I have never felt any specific desire to seek out this television series due to its quirky style there are nice artwork pieces like below that do intrigue me. Perhaps I'll get around to watching it one day.
Conclusion
There is not a whole lot to say about this set; if you like Turn-A Gundam you will be happy to find a cool little set of figures neatly contained here 8except the Turn-X Gundam which is also available in the larger boxed Mecha Selection figure series. Conversely, if you could care less about Turn-A you can easily step past HGMS volume 11 and you will be all good. As for me personally I think they could have at least produced a second set to flesh out the line a bit; I wouldn't mind seeing the cool little Armadillo/Walking Dumpling micro-suit and why not the Silver Sumo and Gold Sumo for example?
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