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.

MegaHouse Excellent Model RAHDX Gundam Archives NEO - Sayla Mass (1:8) (2015 Edition)

MegaHouse is a primary source for up-market Gundam figures and it has quite the decent backlog of characters to choose from. Today we are looking at a really classic example from the RAH Excellent Model series. As far as this series goes, this one is a bit of an evergreen because it has been reissued no less than three times; in 2019, 2021 and as late as January 2025 respectively. These resales unfortunately also offer a good but discouraging example of the surging figure prices in recent years.


The edition we are looking at here is the original 2015 release in the easily identifiable "blue-trimmed" box. I've had this thing in the collection since 2018 and according to the notes it cost ¥10000 back then. You should be able to find figures on the secondary market for roughly the same price, perhaps a little higher, due to the many reprints that are currently in circulation.


All the three re-sale editions are using a box design similar to the one you see above here. The easiest way to differentiate behind them is to look for the release year in the bottom left corner on the front, or (obviously) the barcode on the back of the box. The first and second re-sales are stamped with 2019 and 2021 respectively while the third re-sale from 2025 omits the release year on the front. The chart below also shows the steep increase in MegaHouse's asking prices (stated with or without domestic VAT).

[4 535123 715006] (2015-07) : Original release - ¥9000/9900
[4 535123 826993] (2019-03) : First resale - ¥9250/10175
[4 535123 832147] (2021-12) : Second resale - ¥11000/12100
[4 535123 841781] (2025-01) : Third resale - ¥16000/17600


Sayla is safely sandwiched in generously sized blister packaging which of course means figures of this type eat up your storage space real fast. While the large see-through areas of the outer box give you a good opportunity to enjoy the figure without taking it out of the packaging it also makes the cardboard quite fragile and it is easy to tear in the thinner areas.


Good things come in pairs it would seem. You get two optional heads, two different right arms and two different handguns. You can see the different peg designs used for the heads and arms while the handgun has to be attached without any support.


Tell me this is not a phenomenal sculpt. Style, poise and great paintwork grounded by a simple flat base (with the EFSF logo on, no less). You don't have to mess around with a lot of small components that will fall off as soon as you look in that general direction, no supernatural transparent effect parts or unnatural poses designed simply to curve the body in as many strange ways as possible. The figure also has no ungainly supports to clip around the body or to prop up arms or hair, the right foot has two pegs that go into the base and that's it. You have probably noticed that I didn't push the foot all the way down into the base, this was simply to make it easy to dismantle and store inside the box. It is not uncommon for figures to have very tight fitting pegs and I didn't want to put any stress on the material.


While the figure does come with two different heads the two are really, really similar. There was so much potential here; a shocked face, a suspicious side-eye, turning to another side, instead we get pretty much the same thing twice with a slight change of the eyebrows. Compare this for example to the MegaHouse Gihren Zabi figure which has two very different sculpts of him smirking or holding a firebrand speech.


Besides the two different arms you can also choose which sidearm to equip. On offer is an Earth Federation standard issue firearm (whatever the designation is) and the Zeon Type 62 handgun that used to belong to Ramba Ral.

If you are interested in these larger character figures (standing around 20 centimetres tall) this is a no-brainer as far as I am concerned. There seems to be no upper limited to MegaHouse figure prices with new releases currently sitting around ¥20000 and in that light this figure seems like a very affordable option. As usual, it pays to shop around.

Bandai Namco Gasha Portraits Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX Machu & Nyaan Set

I think it is fair to say that the Gasha Portraits figure line is the closest thing we have today to the various Mobile Suit Gundam-themed Gashapon figure series from the early 2000s. However, Bandai Namco doesn't do "simple" retail Gacha figures anymore and this is exclusively a Premium Bandai product like the other Gundam-sets released through the brand. I have noticed that the prices of Gundam-character figurines have gone up a bit on the secondary market in the last couple of years but overall they are still fairly good value.


Today we are examining the latest Gundam-themed Gasha Portraits set which - of course - focuses on GQuuuuuuX, much like the focus was exclusively on SEED Freedom earlier. It gets a little tiresome that all brands are featuring the same figures in parallel but that is often what the market is like today. The Gasha Portraits brand has been subtly changed to "GQuuuuuuX Portraits" on the box. Actually, I'm not sure what the status of the retail Gasha Portraits figure line is these days - for some reason I only seem to come across these figures when these premium products drop... The GQuuuuuuX Machu and Nyaan set opened for pre-order earlier in the year and was delivered to customers in October 2025.


There are multiple different product identification numbers on these boxes. Beside the barcode I can spot two additional identification numbers and I'm curious why this is.


If you are familiar with the Pokemon Scale World figure series this packaging will feel very familiar (ironic perhaps since the GQuuuuuuX character designs really look like modern Pokemon trainers...). The figures are safely sandwiched between two layers of plastic and wrapped in a plastic bag to prevent paint scratching. The box is quite airy which will give additional protection but as a result the boxes themselves are sometimes a bit compressed as can be seen on this second-hand item. I picked it up from Mandrake for ¥5000 and they are currently selling for around ¥6000 there.


Here we have the duo in what I believe their smallest figure form as of yet (not counting chibi plushies or similar) atop a school bench. The first impression is very good. The material is mainly hard and not prone to bending (even though there is some softer PVC mixes in places) and of course is devoid of any articulation. Think of each figure as a statue.


If we zoom in a little closer you can see the careful attention to detail, the beautiful comic book-style rounded shapes and the overall impressive paint applications. I think these look insanely good.


Here is a closer look at the eyes. The shape of the eyes and the colour choices are indeed cartoony but I have no complaints here. Something I am not a fan of however is the weird colour choices for the hair, I don't think these green and violet highlights look good at all. I hade the same issue with several of the character designs from The Witch of Mercury, it appears to be a current design thing to throw in odd colours in the hair of Gundam characters recently and I'm not a fan. The choice of giving Machu a cellphone (which looks very 2020s era) is of course also a questionable idea when you are designing your alternate future universe but we can't fault the manufacturer for this, but rather the style of the show in general.


This cliché school bench is the only accessory included in the pack and you have to wonder if school furniture is doomed to remain in the late 20th century style forever. Jokes aside it is a nice prop that you can easily adopt into custom dioramas if you have other figures roughly the same size. I think it would have been fun if the designers included maybe a chair as well, especially if could have supported one seated figure as well.


These figures do not have any bases or connecting pegs and rely solely on gravity to stay where they are when placed on the desk. This opens up many possibilities for you to pose the figures however you see fit. The figures are completely flat underneath and so you can place them on any flat surface you fancy, if you are feeling particularly brave you can let Nyaan sit on the edge of your shelf and dangle her legs in the air for example.

Overall this is a really neat set and easily one of the better entries for Gundam-themed figures in the Gasha Portraits line (follow the Gasha Portraits tag in this review to see reviews of the previous sets). On the other hand, the high price and the rather specific artistic style of GQuuuuuuX characters in general can serve as drawbacks that will limit the appeal for some. If you are interested however I think now is a good time to get it since a fairly good number of sets are currently out on the secondary market but over time these might become harder to find.

B-Club Prepainted Polystone Collection - Emma Sheen 1/7

I've featured the Popy B-Club Polystone Collection on the blog a couple of times before; these are basically figures made from a mixture of plastic resin with a filler material that creates a stonelike feel. The first reaction I usually have to these would be similar to artifacts made out of ceramic or porcelain - "shit, don't break it!". I'd lie if I say I was a fan of the material but there are many rare Gundam character figures out there who haven't showed up in more durable materials like PVC so what are you to do? This figure is an excellent example; when was the last time you saw Emma Sheen in her Titans uniform? That's right - never! It is almost always that boring green and white outfit she wore onboard the Argama (and Bandai seems content with upping her chest size for each new release as the main improvement).


The figures in the Polystone series come in boxes with no clear window section for you to peek inside, but you will at least get a very clear illustration of what you should expect to find in there. Looking at the box it appears the figure had an original MSRP of 12800 yen which is quite pricy for a figure 20 years ago. Nowadays the price seems less impressive with MegaHouse pushing the upper limits for what a mass-produced Gundam character figure can cost all the time, we are somewhere in the 40000-range already). I picked this figure up second hand for ¥5000 back in 2021 which I thought was quite a lot back then, today I would consider it a steal. I am convinced the secondary market prices will have risen significantly since then too. As always though, the main problem is to actually find one for sale. There are many rare characters released in Polystone that I have only ever seen for sale once in a blue moon every ten years or so. There is no point trying to actively collect these but just count your blessings if you get the opportunity to pick one up at all.


The packaging is typical for the Polystone Collection figures I have seen. The product is packaged neatly in a styrofoam insert with a separate pocket for the base. An additional protective layer on the form of a bag helps to further avoid paint chipping damage. There are no loose parts or accessories.


Here we see the figure out and about. One foot has a long and sturdy peg that goes into a drilled hole in the base. The fit is quite loose and you can easily rotate the figure on the base and so special care must be taken when handling it, hold on to both base and figure or separate them when moving it around. The character designs of Zeta are overall exceedingly slim and the figure matches the show's art direction well, actually my first thought was "Oh Emma, why are your feet so big?". I guess there are reasons many uniforms don't have brightly coloured boots but what is a girl to do? I love all of the Titans uniform types but maybe the boots should have been dark with a red accent instead but Zeta is a child of the 1980s after all.


The shoulder patch isn't entirely straight on but it looks really good overall, lots of bright colouring and the uniform itself has some nice shading effects and creases too.


Alright, now to address the elephant in the room. This figure is not a portrait of Emma Sheen but creepy vampire with a strange nose trying to hypnotize you. The proportions of the face aren't even close to what is displayed on the box cover where the face is rounder and at least a little bit looking like the character is supposed to. This lady is a generic member of Paptimus Scirocco's entourage that he charmed away while visiting some Titans military base a year ago or so presumably. As a generic Titans office it looks great, but if you want an Emma Sheen figure this is unfortunately not your thing.


I'll close out with a comparison of two other related figures from the smaller PVC-ranges. First we have Sarah Zabiarov, also a member of Paptimus' fail-army dressed in a common Titans uniform (released around the same time in December 2005 as part of the Bandai EF Collection Zeta Gundam Heroines Vol. 2) and Emma in her best likeness in my opinion, in an A.E.U.G. flightsuit (released in April 2006 in the EF Emotive Figure Collection Z series).

I was hoping to do a headswap on a Zabiarov figure but the scales of the two are not close enough. I might have the A.E.U.G. flightsuit repainted into Titans colours though, that should prove fairly successful compromise I think. There are a maybe half-a-dozen or so other figures of Emma in her classic civilian green and white outfit but none of them stand out as superb likenesses in my opinion. I'm still waiting for someone out there to do the Titans crew justice in figure form, MegaHouse stop fawning over GQuuuuuuX already and do a sweet Zeta Gundam 40th Anniversary set instead...