Banpresto Figure Key Holder Gundam-W Endless Waltz 2

We are continuing on directly from the first instalment of this series and part 2 promises more of the same. While I don't know the exact release date it wouldn't surprise me if the two Endless Waltz keyring sets were actually released in parallel all those years ago back in 1998.


The count has been upped in wave two from six to seven different figures for a total unlucky set of thirteen keyring mascots to collect. This seems like an odd number to settle on and so perhaps this was not a dual release after all? The set includes the remaining Gundam Pilots including a special appearance by Zechs Marquise - oh I'm sorry Preventer Wind - and an extra Wing Gundam figure returning from the first set, presumably to boost the visibility of the set.


After you untie the plastic string that attaches the figure to the product cardboard sheet you can unfold it to display its two sides like so. The main Banpresto identifier number of the set is 75559 which is also part of the entire barcode.



XXXG-00W0 Gundam Wing Zero (EW) (clear wings ver.)


We'll start with the odd one out, which is of course the Wing Zero figure which is the only one to not include a matching pilot in the set. This is basically a rehash of the Wing Zero from wave one, repainted in metallic grey rather than white and the wings are entirely sculpted in clear plastic. As with the other keyring figures they are primarily not intended to stand on a surface but dangle from your bag of choice, and as such its feet are not flat and the wings extend underneath the body. The material used is soft PVC and so you will see the occasional bent components varying from figure to figure. below you can see both the standard white Wing Zero as well as the Heero Yuy pilot figure from wave one.





XXXG-01D2 Gundam Deathscythe Hell (EW)


Banpresto saved the Deathscythe for wave two to be used as the main eyecatcher on the mini-sheet and for good reason. Not only is this one of the evergreen figures that people seem to enjoy but it also has a really good and striking paintjob. Some will be put off by the cartoon-type eyes used on the figures in this set (and like I mentioned in the part one review, it is strange to combine this style with actual pilot figures) but it is otherwise a really solid design that also benefits from being able to stand upright without issue.




XXXG-01S2 Altron Gundam


Altron comes in here as the last of the five OG mobile suits doing its peculiar Dragon Fang attack. The pose is a bit wild but the detail is really on point both in sculpt and paintjob. Altron has a very interesting colour scheme but its weapons are a bit too goofy for my taste, I would have preferred seeing a more traditionally equipped figure with gear suitable for long-range combat. It is another well-made figure however, and it also stands firmly on solid ground.




OZ-00MS2B Tallgeese III


Banpresto decided to toss in the third version of the Tallgeese into the set, I guess Zechs is an ally now. The TIII is a very white design and so the figure comes off looking a bit plain compared to the others with more elaborate paint schemes but the areas where blue and red are present look more interesting. Notice the ugly hole drilled through the side of the head. The other figures will have the hole for the keyring drilled top down but the thin ridge on the figure's head required another solution. It is amazing how Bandai has produced millions of cool figures only to drill holes in them and attach them to a stupid keyring. Someone should have come up with a better solution that doesn't damage the figures itself.




Duo Maxwell


Right, that's all the mobile suits included in wave two. We also get three pilots for the newcomers, that is everyone except the Wing Zero. Duo here has a fairly good likeness to him (or your average record shop clerk) and has a simple but clean paintjob. The keyring figures are proportioned in Chibi-fashion and so their balance suffers from large heads and small feet. It is generally possible to have the pilot figures stand unaided but the smallest vibration tends to topple them. I've glued my pilot figures to small clear bases for additional support.





Chang Wufei


Just like Trowa Barton from wave one, Wufei appears in the atrocious Mariemaia Army boyscout uniform. The designers decided to give him a large saber to make him more interesting (that is his only memorable character trait after all) but the choice is strange given that none of the other figures are carrying any weapons.





Preventer Wind


I was overjoyed to get a little figure of Zechs even if only as his Preventer Wind alias. Again I think it is strange that he is depicted in a flight suit unlike the other characters but at least it looks very cool. In general, I wish there were more figures of Gundam characters in their combat gear available (from all series and in all scales).





Gundam-W Endless Waltz 1 + 2


So, here are all the mobile suits and pilots from the two sets combined. In spite of minor niggles that I mentioned earlier everyone fits together really nicely and make for a really good display. You would of course want to address the holes in their heads, filling them up with something like green stuff and painting it over to make it less distracting but I still think you can show off the figures as is, especially if you reserve a space higher up on the shelf.





Conclusion

Due to the general issues with drilling holes into perfectly good models keyring figures are a bit of an acquired taste. However, there are many interesting mobile suits and characters that are simply not possible to find as regular Gashapon or Shokugan and it can be an interesting way to boost the range of your collection. The main problem with keyring figures is that they are typically really hard to find on the secondary market, regardless of set, although prices tend to be quite reasonable.

As for these sets in particular, I really wish that Banpresto had made a companion set of OG New Mobile Report Gundam Wing characters and suits. Miniatures of Treize, Zechs, Relena and Lady Une together with the earlier Tallgeese, Epyon and maybe an Aries or Leo would have been so much fun.

Banpresto Figure Key Holder Gundam-W Endless Waltz 1

With all the recent 30th Anniversary shenanigans going on related to Gundam Wing I had a dig into my own archive and figured this little keyring set should be a suitable tip of the hat to the series. Like many in the west, Wing was indeed my introduction to the Mobile Suit Gundam phenomenon but I don't feel any reason to ever revisit it. I remember being impressed by the nuanced take on Zechs's personality and its many interesting suit designs but it quickly started to grate on me - endless legions of Leos or Aries gunned down with little effort in most every episode, having to listen to a whole troop of emo-kids, weird plot devices like Lady Une becoming a saint. Anyhow...


This being typical Banpresto keyring figures you are looking at figures sold from pegs in stores that tend to have a multitude of different characters and intellectual properties to choose from. Not every set of figures is wrapped in plastic but these ones are. Each figure is attached by screw - typically through the head - to a keyring which is in turn tied down to the product card using plastic wire. This particular set of figures was released all the way back in 1998. While Endless Waltz originally aired in the first half of 1997 a compilation movie premiered in Japan on August 1, 1998. I think it is safe to assume that these figures were released quite close to the cinema premiere as well.


The folded card is typical for a Banpresto keyring figure, you see the front- and back sides on display there. Other sets feature larger sheets that are folded in two places. There is normally also a little folded up paper inside which you could send in to the company to give away your personal data and sign up for some spam. Notice the five-digit product code which is part of the barcode and the easiest way to quickly identify Banpresto figure sets.



XXXG-00W0 Gundam Wing Zero (EW)


This set consists of figures of three mobile suits and their respective pilots. We'll start with the suits and in this case the angelic-style Wing Zero. All the figures in this set have the cartoon style eyes you normally see the various SD Knight Gundam universes. This strikes me as a bit of an odd choice when considering the inclusion of pilot figurines; it would have made much more sense to it for a strict mobile suit figurine range. Anyway, there is not a whole lot to say about these figures; they are usually well painted and sturdy, made from soft PVC so there tends to be slight bending of parts here and there.

Since this figure is intended to dangle from a bag the buster rifles the designers have allowed both the wings and the two buster rifles to dangle down a bit below the feet which means the figure will not be able to stand properly on a flat surface. You could remedy this by attaching it to a small base of some kind if you like me don't want to keep it on the ring.

Below you can see a size comparison with the Heero figure from this set as well as a comparison with the alternate colour version figure from the companion Endless Waltz 2 keyring set.





XXXG-01H2 Heavyarms Kai (EW)


Next up we have everyone's favourite green Heavyarms which is very nicely painted both front and back. It does have the toon-eyes but at least not a clown mask like on the Converge figure. Again the cannon barrels are extending below the feet and so you will have to prop him up on something or place the figure very close to the ledge to let the Gatlings dangle freely. If you squint a bit you can see the Banpresto markings on the back of its head.

Below we have a comparison with the similarly sized Heavyarms EW from SD Gundam Full Color Stage 22 which was released a couple of years later in January 2021. The SD figure has the classic machine-type face and also has its various missile battery ports opened up. While I prefer the design of the SD figure the keyring figure has it squarely beat in the painting department.





XXXG-01SR2 Sandrock Kai (EW)


The last mobile suit in this set is the Sandrock Kai wrapped up in its anti-beam cloak and sporting a pair of heat shotels which would be pretty useless in a firefight. I have mentioned it already but the paintjob on these keyring figures is really vibrant, you even have colour separation of grey and black on the feet that you can barely make out. Unlike the other figures in this set it is the only one of the lot that will be standing on a flat surface without any issue, both feet firmly planted on the ground.

The comparison photo below shows the Sandrock Kai without its cloak as seen in SD Gundam Full Color Stage 24 which was released in April 2001. There is no corresponding SD-figure wearing the anti-beam cloak so this will be your only option if you want one.





Heero Yuy


We'll continue to look at the pilot figures next. There are a couple of sets where Banpresto made keyring pilot figures to go with the mobile suits but they are few and far between. Characters also follow the SD character philosophy with a large head and a small body. This works well for mobile suits with big feet but pretty bad for characters since the feet will usually be very small. All three characters in this set can stand up unaided if the surface is not leaning but the smallest disturbance will cause them to topple. I bet there are some figures out there where the legs might not be entirely strait which would have a much harder time to stand up at all.

As you can see from this image next to a 1/220 Wing from STANDart I've chosen to glue my pilot figures onto clear bases. This makes handling them a breeze and doesn't detract that much. One thing you will see more clearly from above are of course the holes drilled into their heads where they keyring was attached by means of screw. If I was really bothered about it I'd consider filling up such holes with green stuff and painting it over.





Trowa Barton


Barton is up next and he is wearing probably the worst uniform to ever graze the entire Gundam franchise; the boy scout-style Mariemaia Army shirt and shorts. The hairstyle gave the designers a bit of a headache and it had to be molded into two different parts with a really jarring gap on the side there. Also notice the clown mask in his right hand. It is not exactly a winner this figure, let's move on...




Quatre Raberba Winner


If you found the Quatre figure in a random collection somewhere you might be hard pressed to guess which franchise it belongs to. I have to say the character likeness is pretty good though, probably the best of the three. Still, you could easily use this figure for a stand-in in your accounting department role-playing game.





Conclusion

Well, there you have it. I think the keyring figures are quite neat, it is always fun to have some pilots in miniature form and they pose well together. You will have to deal with the issues that come with most keyring sculpts - figures aren't designed to stand upright and so may have issues related to that. You will most likely want to do something about the holes drilled into their heads as well. If you can stomach these traits they are a fun and cheap little extension to your SD figure collection. Availability is of course secondary market only, and even there you should expect to go months or perhaps even years without spotting one. If you do manage to find them the prices should be quite affordable. I purchased these back in 2019 for about ¥300-¥400 each and prices shouldn't have climbed that much since then. A review of volume two will be coming up next.

Banpresto Evolve Gundam 45th Anniversary x Hatsune Miku Collaboration Figure

Lately, Bandai Namco has been running a number of brand cross-promotion or "collaborations" as they call it for Mobile Suit Gundam and Hatsune Miku, the world famous virtual idol and mascot for the Vocaloid software. We looked at the special Mobile Suit Ensemble figures a couple of months ago and I figured why not take a look at this somewhat kitschy idol figure as well? This particular Miku-figure was released under Bandai Namco's Banpresto label in December 2025 and is based on original artwork by Mai Okuma for a virtual concert in the "Gundam Metaverse" space (don't ask me about any details, I only review figures...).


I have to say, these are some really vibrant graphics and an explosion of colours, far from the dull single-colour boxes we see so often from Premium Bandai. There are also a gazillion of different logotypes clogging up all four corners of the front cover and on the backside we have the JAIA-logo of the Japan Amusement Industry Association betraying the figure's origin as a claw machine or UFO-catcher prize-item. I purchased mine from - you know it - Mandarake which has been flooded with this item as of late. Expect to see it at prizes somewhere around 1500-2000 yen but beware, this is a large box and so shipping will be at a premium.


The box interior is split up into two different zones, each containing plastic bags with components, the flatter sections being wrapped around a slab of cardboard for additional protection.


Most of the assembly has been done for you and you are left with attaching the hair, left arm and plug the microphone into the right hand. All pegs are shaped to only attach in one specific way but you may still need to exercise some caution as paint or excess plastic may have crept into the peg holes partially obstructing the process. I noticed this with both of the hair pieces and also chose not to plug them all the way in, to avoid any issues when disassembling the figure again. The left foot has a large support that wraps around the sole of her boot and you also get a couple of clear support parts to help prop up the hair and avoid the plastic bending if you plan to actually keep the figure up on display for a longer period of time.


Well, here she is... fully assembled. There are a lot of things going on here and the first impression really screams Macross more than anything else to me. As a low-range prize item this figure may be a low-end display piece compared to fancy figures with five-digit prices but it clearly sets out to do a number of things and also accomplishes it really well. She's a big star too, more than 20 centimetres tall and way out of the league of posing with the Miku-themed Ensemble figures I'm afraid... Let's continue the walk-around.


The colouring and details are looking quite crisp all-over, see those narrow golden trims on the jacket and skirt for example? How many percent of the P-Bandai Converge figures would you expect to uphold a similar standard? Not many, is my answer. I'm not sure I like the translucent rainbow effect of her hair though. While it is well executed Miku's turquoise hair is perhaps her strongest brand identifier and I think I would have preferred the same opaque hair-colour throughout.


Here we see the figure with the supporting stands for the wild twin-tails deployed. The support pieces do not attach to any specific point, you simply have to pick a spot where the two components will meet up and synergize. Will it protect the figure from deformation over prolonged display? I don't really know - what I do know is that the connecting pieces for the hair are quite small and I wouldn't want to display the figure without them unless it was for a quick photo shoot like this.


By the way, on the topic of details. The reason I was curious about this figure was all the interesting little Gundam-themed gimmicks in her outfit. Look at this adorable little beam saber slung over the shoulder. I don't know how it stays in place but this should definitely have been a holster for a cordless microphone although I have to admit that the jazz-diva mike on a tripod is pretty cool too. Below you can see other little Earth Federation insignias attached to her attire as well as a sphinx-type crest on her left shoulder. I don't know where this insignia hails from, perhaps it is related to the Sphinx-like appearance of the White Base carrier? (The style and colours first made me think about Gjallarhorn, come on Bandai, that would have been a really sick combo rather than the E.F.S.F.)


In conclusion, this is a neat and colourful figure full of attention to detail. Just compare its looks to the artist's rendition from another side of the box cover, the likeness is extremely close (now that I think about it, it would have been cool to have only the background Gundam on one side of the box so that you could pose the figure in front of it). Having said that, this is a really niche product and I wonder if there really is a lot of crossover appeal here. Also bear in mind that the figure is very large compared to most Gashapon and Shokugan figures and so doesn't really mix with those at all.