SD Gundam Full Color Stage 26

Almost twenty years ago, in September 2001, Mobile Suit Gundam: Zeonic Front was released in Japan for the Playstation 2. It lets the player manage the elite Midnight Fenrir Corps and fight for the cause of the Principality of Zeon during the One Year War. Since I was never a console player I haven't had the fortune of trying it out but with an international release in 2002 I bet there are a number of you out there who tried it out. For me though I have to make do with the themed SD Full Color set which released in the summer of 2001 to cross-promote the game I guess.

 

Stage 26 is devoted completely to U.C. mobile suits from the game's era and is as such a perfectly themed release. I guess if I wanted to moan about something it would be that some of the suits in the set could have been replaced to spread some more light on important machines like the Dom and the Dom Fünf rather than the millionth Gundam or Char's Zaku II version but that's how the story always goes.

 

You rarely see complete sets of Full Color figures but some of the figures from this set to show up fairly often in used lots and shops, specifically the Zaku I (which is a nice thing since it is so thematic for Zeonic Front). I did pick up a set earlier in 2020 though and paid ¥1200 for all seven. This puts it in the mid-tier of used Full Color figures that normally range between ¥600 and ¥2000.

 

 

141 : MS-06J Zaku II Ground Type (Ver 3.0)

 

I find it amusing that the Zaku II has the honours of being the front page figure for the booklet. The Gundam comes in as number two and Char as number three. Refreshing!

 

This is the third and final appearance of the Zaku II Ground Type in the series, and as such the premier version. The earlier two incarnations happened way back in 1998 and are armed with a Magella Attack cannon or Missile Pods and a Kracker Grenade. You can of course blend this right into your army of generic Zaku II machines where it will fit like glue. The Midnight Fenrir Corps machines feature a nice white emblem on the shoulder but there isn't really any room on an SD figure to display it. Check out the Gundam Collection 1:400 series for Zaku I's and II's with nice emblems on them, the only two figures ever to carry the insignia to my knowledge.

 

The Zaku II has had many appearances and different colour palettes over the years, this version goes very well with many of the later ones. You can see the earlier Ground Type machine armed with a Magella Cannon next to it.

 

 

142 : RX-78-2 Gundam (Ver.9.0)

Of couse the set comes with at least one RX-78-2 variant. Other options from the game could have been a Guncannon or perhaps the Mudrock Gundam which could have been a cool inclusion. You can scavenge Guncannons, Guntanks, various GM types and even the Mudrock from other stages in the figure series however.

 

This ninth iteration is a really classic looking RX-78 armed with a Beam Rifle and a shield held out in front. Together with Char's Zaku II this seems like the least interesting figure in the set.

 

 

143 : MS-06S Zaku II (Char's Custom) (Ver.4.0)

I don't know how much Char Aznable is featured in the game but I'd hazard a guess that you meet him on the battlefield here and there. As I mentioned earlier, wouldn't it have been cool if he would have given up his slot for say the MS-09F Dom Fünf instead? It is not like sourcing a random Zaku II in Char's colours is going to be a hassle.

 

Char's machine comes armed with a Zaku Machine Gun and a Knuckle Shield (notice the detail Zeon emblem sculpted on the shield on these two figures). This figure is clearly a repurposed MS-06J figure with an added commander antenna so if you are feeling crafty you could easily repaint it into army green for a line commander suit. The figure is a novelty in that it is equipped with a Knuckle Shield, I'm not sure if this is even canon but I believe this is the only Char colour figure ever made with one.

 

Here the two Zaku II figures from this set switching weapons with each other. Notice that the mass production figure's arm sculpt is different to allow for the larger bazooka weapon to fit in front of the shoulder. This poses no issues for the machine gun but Char will have some difficulty equipping the bazooka.

 

While Char's machines are typically more to the pink than the red in earlier versions and media this machine sits somewhere in the middle of the red spectrum.

 

 

144 : RGM-79[G] GM Ground Type

The second Federation mobile suit to grace this set is one of my favourite GM types, a Ground Type GM armed with a machine gun and a portable missile carrier. If you are feeling crafty you can steal the head and put it on a Ground Type Gundam from another set to create that abomination.

 

I have a couple of these figures and I have encountered no issues with them standing up without toppling even when the missile launcher is held out in front. Having said that, the margin is pretty slim so it is possible you could run into trouble there. I suspect this is why we didn't get a forward facing machine gun (that would have been nice to create some different action poses however).

 

The Ground Type GM scales well with most of the other later era GM's although the basic RGM-79 GM figures themselves tend to be quite large in comparison.

 

 

145 : MS-05B Zaku I (Ver 2.0)

The Zaku I is one of the other signature machines of the Midnight Fenrir Corps. Its clean lines could perhaps have facilitated a unit marking on the left shoulder but I will hope for Bandai and FusionWorks to perhaps do an outrageously expensive Converge CORE box with machines with Fenrir style insignias; what a fantastic release that could be. Here's hoping that the sales for the Shrike Team CORE box have been encouraging. They are certainly hard to find on the secondary market but that might be attributed to supply issues during the pandemic rather than popularity. I am still trying to source a box by the way, I actually ordered one earlier today, let'shope it isn't already sold out again... :)

 

The Midnight Fenrir Corps version Zaku I is armed with a very nicely sculpted and painted Heat Hawk for close combat. It still sucks that Bandai haven't made a figure carrying the old Zaku Machine Gun and Shield combo, too many Zaku I figures are released into the void unarmed just because of that one scene in Mobile Suit Gundam... Again the 1:400 scale collection has you covered here with many good gear choices (props also to FusionWorks for a properly geared up 1:220 Zaku I in the FW Ultimate Operation figure line).

 

As this line-up painfully illustrates, three of the five Zaku I figures released are fist fighters which is ridiculous. The fifth figure from the more recent and modular SD Gundam Full Color Custom line is armed with a menacing Poison Gas Launcher for subduing unruly civilian populations. You could always swap weapons with another Zaku II to get a machine gun or bazooka into its hand.

 

 

146 : MS-07B Gouf (Ver 3.0)

Next up we have a classic Gouf in its third iteration of around half a dozen different ones seen among the SD Full Color and SD Full Color Custom ranges. And there is a whole lot to appreciate about it.

 

Just like the Zakus in this set this is a very clean looking figure with beautiful colour choices, moving towards a brighter blue colour compared to early appearances which tend to be very dark in style. It comes armed with a menacing whip-style Heat Rod and the shield carrying-arm also has the iconic five finger 75mm battery.

 

Here are some of the many Goufs (and Gouf Customs) released in the range (they appear to be quite popular since they can be hard to source compared to say the Zaku II).  The version 1.0 figure from 1998 on the right is considerably larger and more cartoony in its appearance and the same goes for the Heat Sword brandishing 2.0 figure on the left.

 

 

147 : DODAI YS

The last figure in this lot is of course one of my favourites. I was drawn into the SD figure range for its (relative) multitude of vehicles and mobile armors and the DODAI YS ground attack craft here is one of my top picks from the One Year War era. I was hoping we would eventually get to see one in the MicroWars range but that line seems to have curled up into a ball and died as I haven't seen any announcements for months now. The last set is proving really hard to source as well, while the early sets are currently being dumped on the secondary market. I assume the series didn't perform as well as initially hoped.

 

The DODAI YS comes on one of the generic action bases common to the Full Color line-up, treat these carefully as I see many such damaged bases on the second hand market. Nowadays I tend to buy duplicate figures such as Gundams when I encounter them to build up a little supply, especially for figures that are compatible with them but do not come with a stand in the capsule. Notice by the way the nice separation of colour on the engine exhausts but the curious omission of paint on the missile battery up front, usually it tends to be the obvious around.

 

The DODAI figures of course allows your mobile suits to ride on them which - although defying all sorts of gravity theory - is a cool way to display them. Notice how the rudders have been purposely flattened on the sculpt to enhance playability before aesthetics. By the way, does the DODAI YS feature n the game? Its name is not listed in the tech section for the game on the Gundam Wiki.

 

 

Conclusion

 

Wow, I am really in love with this set. Allthe figures look great and have beautiful vibrant colours and there is a heavy focus on army building. This set seems a given for an U.C. 0079 collector although you will probably have to scour used mixed lots on e.g. eBay or in local shops to find them.

 

Gundam Converge : Narrative Blu-Ray Deluxe Edition

As if chasing the reglar retail and premium items wasn't hard enough, the dedicated Converge collector also has to deal with some more troublesome categories. We have items sold exclusively in e.g. 7-Eleven stores, items released and sold exclusively at certain fairs or exhibitions for example. Some of these were even "overseas" items released by Bandai's Asia Division in Hong Kong, which served up a bit of poetic justice to Japanese collectors who hade to chase after stuff abroad for once. Then we have the most frustrating category of items, the promotional "not for sale" items. These are items bundled with preorders of cinema tickets as part of a premium package which might also include promotional printed material for example.

 

Do you remember Mobile Suit Gundam Narrative? This film premiered in late 2018 and was a sort of sequel to Unicorn. There was quite a buzz around it back then and we saw a number of nice figures released in the Converge line during 2019. Since then, things have been dead quiet, and there I was hoping for a Gustav Karl release which never came...

 

The original Converge RX-9/B figure was released in Converge #14 in February 2019 and this pearl metal colour figure followed in May with the Narrative Blu-Ray Disc release. I don't know if any other promo stuff was also included at the time, since I picked up this figure as seen here on the secondary market. It was a pricy sucker too. I've seen it for sale maybe three or four times in the one and a half years it took me to find it and I to shell out ¥10000 for the pleasure of owning one. The Blu-Ray package itself cost ¥12800 so people who collect film and don't care about figures stand to get a good discount if they are willing to part with them.

 

As you can see the components in the pack are the exact same ones that you will fnd with the retail figure, here it is all about bling. Notice also the printed logo on the base of course.

 

Besides from being gifted a really boring name the Narrative Gundam is a good looking machine with more than a few likenesses to the classic RX-0 Unicorn. The painting of this figure is also great with a lot of fancy detail going on. I especially like the red colour apps on the lower half of the torso, something that Bandai could easily have skipped to save themselves a bit of trouble. The B-Packs equipment isn't the most exciting loadout but it at least helps to give the machine a unique looking profile.

 

This side-by-side with the retail figure from Converge #14 shows clearly the overall pearl colour finish which also helps to bring out the sculpting detail. Is it worth throwing away a crazy amount of money to obtain? Of course not. The basic retail figures are always excellent and usually also more colour accurate than fancy reissues. Continue building your base Converge collection instead of going after pointless items like these. This also reminds me of the metallic colour version of the RX-104FF Penelope which was shipped to customers in November; that is going to be a nightmare all by itself...

 

SD Gundam Full Color Stage 15

Stage 15 is the first of two sets dedicated solely to U.C. 0093 and Char's Counterattack. It seems to date from a slightly more customer friendly era where the marketing people thought "hey, let's just focus on this show in these two releases and then we shift focus to something else" instead of "how about we just mix everything up and spread it out evenly to encourage people to buy everything for fear of missing out?" Aaah, memories.

 

Joking aside, this set was released in March of 2000 back when Gashapons were sold at ¥100 per capsule and had I lived in Japan I would probably have spent a considerable time in the Gashapon Arcades trying to determine where to spend my pocket money. Apart from lose figures I have picked up over the years the most recent purchase is a complete set from Mandarake last year which cost ¥1200 so these figures shouldn't be terribly hard to find.

 

As usual, here is a shot of how the figures come out of their bags, not much assembly required. Normally figures from this era will feature one or two movable arms and at times maybe a removable head.

 

As a little bonus, here is the cardback from the Gashapon vending machine from when the figures were kicking around in the shops. The things I drag home...

 

 

080 : RX-93 Nu Gundam (Ver.1.0)

To no one's surprise the first figure is the Nu Gundam, one of the true evergreen designs with so many things going on around it. It also has a rather spectacular range of accessories which makes it suitable for toy production.

 

This is a very clean looking sculpt with beautiful attention to detail. As usual the colour applications are very limited outside of the head and torso, that's just how things usually go with these figures. Personally I think most of the figures in this set could have benefitted from some colour particularly in their shields, which often feature two-tone colour schemes. Amuro's logo for example was painted on the shoulder so it would have been nice to find on the shield as well. The bazooka carried on the back is not intended as optional gear since the hand is molded directly onto the beam rifle.

 

Here you can see a pair of fellow Nu Gundams from the same figure series. To the right is the version 2.0 figure with a Beam Saber and a set of Funnels from Stage 16. The figure on the left is another beam rifle holding figure (notice the painted Amuro logo on the shield) and is either the Version 3.0 figure from Stage 37 or the Nu from the enigmatic Stage 61 which looks very similar to the Version 3.0 figure on the microscopic pictures of it that I have seen. Also not shown here is the 2.5 version from Stage 50 (which is a reissue of the 2.0 figure with a special stand).

 

 

081 : RGM-89 Jegan

Next up we have one of the two mass-production type suits in this set, the other being a Geara Doga for the Neo Zeon opposition. I always look for more of these when I am browsing the used toy shops (with the recent plague going about that seems like forever ago...) because who could possibly resist this cute little green guy?

 

Another fantastic sculpt here. The super deformed proportions of the head gives the figure something of an Ancient Greek helmet look which just oozes confidence and menace. Surprising that we haven't seen that aesthetic used more in overall Gundam design. My main complaint would be the large area of the shield that should have been painted dark gray, it would have made the figure even more appealing.

 

There is only one Jegan sculpt available in this figure series but at least it is a good one. You had to wait 14 years for it to come back in Gashapon Warrior NEXT form in 2014 (together with two great ECOAS variants). Lately it has also appeared in Senshi Forte 09 in 2019 and MicroWars 04 in 2020.

 

 

082 : RGZ-91 Re-GZ

The first half of this set belongs to Londo Bell and it is rounded of by the fine Re-GZ which feels like something that should have been mass-produced. I usually try to army build these guys since it offers some variation to the very GM and Jegan-centric line-ups of the E.F.S.F.

 

Another clean design and nice looking figure here. You can of course guess at this point that I am going to whine a bit about the lack of colour application on the shield but have you ever seen Bandai skimp it on the RX-78? Exactly; all the RX-78-2 Gundams in this figure series have shields painted in red and white with a yellow cross. Surely some love could have been given to the many other half-painted figures - this is the Full Color series after all, it says so right on the booklet... :)

 

The Re-GZ returns in Stage 16 with its Back Weapon System deployed. That figure could perhaps have been a little bit larger but they still display nicely together and the colour matching between the two is near perfect.

 

 

083 : AMS-119 Geara Doga

Halfway through the set and we are switching to the Neo Zeon side. You may have been forgotten to have expected to see the Sazabi leading the charge but come on, Bandai has to keep something up the sleeve to help sales for Stage 16 (a set that the Nu Gundam got to lead as well anyway because that's how Bandai rolls).

 

A beautiful if a bit stumpy looking Geara Doga here. Notice how the paint apps on the shoulder and the spiked shield add some nice flair to the figure, this is how the Jegan and the Re-GZ could have been enhanced as well. Looking at the back side of the figure we have a very clean display of the factory stampings often found on these Gashapon figurines. We have a copyright in traditional characters followed by an S, a Made in China stamp and at the skirt the letter B followed by the typical four dot stamping. If someone has any insight into these various markings I'd be curious to learn more.

 

Rezyn Schnyder joins the fun with her custom Geara Doga in Stage 16 and these were the only variants of the Geara Doga made in the series. Of particular note also is a stumpy figure from the short lived SD Gundam Bind series from 2009 (that I should have been foreseeing enough to include here) that can also work as a decent team member, I'll see if I can remember to update this image later on. :)

 

 

084 : MSN-03 Jagd Doga (Gyunei Guss Custom)

Next up we have one of the two prototype Jagd Doga newtype mobile suits. Fitting with the general strategy here, you can find the second figure in Stage 16. Then it was quiet on the Jagd Doga front until 2016 when the pair once again made an appearance as P-Bandai figures in Gashapon Warrior DASH Premier 02. Interestingly enough they haven't made it to neither Senshi Forte nor MicroWars, figure series that have spent quite some effort on Char's Counterattack. They appear to be slated for an appearance in Mobile Suit Ensemble in the near future however and if handled correctly ( = don't go cheap on the painting) that should be great.

 

I am not entirely convinced by this figure to be honest. The sculpting is great and while the painting is quite good it is hard to spot the dark gray areas which make it a bit plain looking (especially when compared to its red sibling). Still, here two colours have been carefully applied to the shield which is a huge plus.

 

Neo Zeon's misfit newtype squadron line up for a shot. Both of Quess' machines - the Alpha Azieru and the red Jagd Doga - were released in the following Stage 16.

 

 

085 : RMS-116H Hobby Hizack

Hold on, what is this? The last slot in the set is actually not Zeon at all, but civilian. Yep, thrown in here almost a bit like a meme, is the Hobby Hizack for recreational use. It is great to see it here, especially since it has such a distinct colour scheme.

 

There is not a whole lot to say about this figure. Being a civilian machine it of course has no weaponry but instead an interesting pose with a lifted foot and held out arm. It kind of resembles a grandma doing early morning tai chi in the park. It is cute but I would have preferred if the budget would have been spent on getting the other suits' shields painted.

 

 

Conclusion

 

Overall this is of course a great themed set. If you are into Char's Counterattack this lot together with Stage 16 will set you up with everything you need. It helps that the figures are on the cheaper end of the scale but as usual, availability outside of Japan and a few other Asian countries will be limited still.