Mobile Suit Ensemble : F91 Expansion Set

The F91 Expansion Set is the second MS Ensemble parts expansion set for an existing figure. We first saw the Fin Funnel set for the Nu Gundam in February last year and now Bandai have turned their eyes to the recently released Gundam F91. The base figure was released as a standard retail item in Ensemble Part 08 in December and it was followed by both this expansion set and a Gundam F90D/H variant figure this March. Bandai put the price of this item at ¥2700 but it has already climbed to ¥4000 on Mandarake and appears to be quite popular.

While technically not a parts-only set, the fact that it contains a fully translucent yellow F91 figure feels a bit of a gimmick more than anything. I wasn't really sure what to expect from this set but after having studied it in some more detail I have warmed up to it a bit.

This box is absolutely jam-packed with gear but unless you are an F91 fan you probably won't see the potential of all the detail crammed in here by the designers.

I ended up having to read up a bit on the F91 to figure out just what I was supposed to be doing with all the parts. The included assembly leaflet is clear about it for the most part although there were a couple question marks that it didn't really straighten out for me. Basically, the expansion set includes the following:
   

• MEPE Afterimage Color representation of the F91 mobile suit itself
• Afterimage Color versions of the parts for the F91 from the MS Ensemble 08 equipment set
• Brand new Beam Buzz Saw effect parts for the F91's Beam Sabers.
• New Beam Shield accessory
• New Heat Radiation Fin and leg vent effect parts.
• New Twin VSBR backpack
• New Action base with 5 bug mass destruction weapons

Before this expansion set was released I had already taken the opportunity to purchase a second base F91 figure (and now I think I could do with one or two more...) because I don't enjoy messing too much with parts replacement. If you enjoy the F91 and plan on getting this set you may want to do the same.

The figures that appear here have been slightly modified with simple paint applications to bring out more detail.

Above you can see the base Ensemble Part 08 Gundam F91 figure next to one decked out with most of the new features found in this box. I must apologize for not having covered Ensemble Part 08 earlier as it would make it more clear exactly what the new features are. The reason is those damned Gundam TR-6 figures causing the delay. I built both the F91 and the Heavygun a long time ago but continue to dread the day I have to sit down and learn all the gimmicks of the RX-124 Hyzenthlay II and its Fiver II sidekick. I'm not even sure how many of each figure I should stock up on for purposes of review... :)

Let's do a quick walk around the Twin VSBR upgraded figure and I'll point out the new components:

On the shoulders and lower legs you can see the new Heat Radiation Fins deployed as an extra means to vent heat from the increased output caused whenever a Newtype pilot begins to strain the machine to its full potential. These are made available both as regular colour components and in their yellow afterimage versions (you also get the regular leg components for the yellow figure so you can choose to skip these on that figure).

On the right elbow we see the Beam Shield in activated mode. The shield is present on the standard figure but not deployed which makes it rather unspectacular. This is one of my favourite components in this box set and should in my opinion have made it into the equipment set of part 08 but I realize it was a simple cost consideration. There is only one beam shield in standard colours available.

The most important accessory is of course the new backpack which has attachment points for four Variable Speed Beam Rifles instead of two. This is the premier accessory of the set in my opinion and everything else is more or less filler. If you love the F91 you'll probably want this set for that gear option alone. The backpack is again only available in standard colours (this explains why you see it on the back of the yellow figure on the box art which in my opinion looks rather horrible).

There is also a new accessory component for the hands not present in these pictures; you'll see it once the figure is up on its new stand later. It is two new optional hand components and massive green effect parts for the beam sabers. The beam sabers used by the F91 have enhanced functionalities including its beam blade generation being alterable to a certain extent. When the hand holding the beam saber is rotated 360 degrees rapidly, a makeshift Beam Buzz Saw is created. I think this is a pretty ludicrous accessory. A pair of translucent beam sabers would have been much nicer and useful across your entire Ensemble collection.

Multiple Construction Armor (MCA) Metal Peel-off Effect (MEPE)

If you are not familiar with the F91 I'll just quote the GundamWiki here rather than trying to explain why the mobile suit is suddenly yellow. Hint: It actually isn't...

This special feature of the Gundam F91 is a byproduct of its MCA. In addition to its radiators and cooling ducts, the F91 can also dissipate excess heat by shedding the outer layers of its armor. This process creates afterimages of the mobile suit made up of metallic particles, which can deceive not only the eyes of enemy pilots, but also radar and other sensors. This feature is activated when the suit is in the full operating mode, and only present in the prototype version of the Gundam F91.

So basically, the majority of this set is spent on recreating an illusion caused by the F91's armor, not really sure how to feel about it. Oh well, it adds one more "calamari" translucent figure into the collection. For me personally I just tucked it back into the box after the review.

Notice that the MEPE Afterimage Color figure above has a lot of bells and whistles just for the heck of it. I have placed the two VSBR:s of the original figure in forward deployed mode and attached the Beam Launcher weapon to the mobile suit's back skirt. The Beam Launcher is also available in regular black colour (which is a shame since it should have a lot of white in it) in the equipment set for MS Ensemble Part 08.

The new display base included with the figure allows you to put the F91 (or any other standard MS Ensemble figure) in the center of attention of a quartet of Bug mass destruction weapons. There are actually five Bugs included with the figure, presumably because there was one in included in the MS Ensemble Part 08 Equipment Set. While it is nice to have a large number of bugs to play around with (this was a complaint I had regarding the option parts set for the Converge Rafflesia figure which only included one) they look pretty dull in that black/gray plastic. It would have been nice if they were molded in purple as it would have been a lesser effort to put some black detail on them than attempting to convert them into purple.

Birgit Pirjo's last sortie...

The pegs on the action base have a couple of optional peg holes so you can reposition the figure a bit but chances are you wouldn't really use this set unless you wanted to recreate the bug attack scene.


Conclusion

Overall the F91 Expansion Set is a bit of a mixed bag. You have to be really in to the F91, translucent colour figures or just suffering from some type of OCD to spend this much money on a figure set which really doesn't add a whole lot. Modders might find a lot of nice parts to play around with here but the retail equipment sets will also serve you well unless you are looking for something specific. While I certainly enjoy the accessories that go on the base F91 figure I couldn't really recommend anyone to spend ¥2700 on this set or much less the ¥4000 which it is currently selling for right now.

The latest MS Ensemble news...

The preordering has opened for the latest MS Ensemble figure pair so if you like After War Gundam X get ready to give your wallet a nice airing. Ensemble EX12 will be a set of the previously announced Virsago Chest Break together with the Astharon Hermit Crab. The pair will come with some team-up gimmicks making it possible to create a number of interesting poses. EX12 is released through the Premium Bandai program and is scheduled for delivery in September. It will cost 6000 yen plus tax.

The previously also hinted at Gundam X itself has also been confirmed to be appearing in Ensemble Part 11. This is the only mobile suit announced for Part 11 thus far and it remains to see if the X will lead the set or if there is perhaps another Gundam to be featured as well. Bandai typically releases three mobile suits in a set, the fourth figure is a support unit for one of them and the fifth box will be an equipment set. The X-Divider accessory for the Gundam X for example will possibly be part of this equipment set.

Mobile Suit Gundam MicroWars 1

Ahhh... finally! Ever since I first laid eyes on Bandai's announcement regarding its upcoming Shokugan candy toy series "MicroWars" I have been waiting with baited breath. Visiting Bangkok in March I finally found a shop that was going to import the series and ordered two boxes off the bat, deciding to go all in on this one.

MicroWars is a new and really gimmicky figure series which emphasizes on the word toy in candy toy. All the figures released or announced thus far come with tiny articulated pilot minis that can be inserted into the mobile suits and vehicles. I have been lamenting the lack of Gundam-related soldier figurines for a long time and I guess this is as close as we will get.

The first volume (of what I expected to be a short-lived experiment) of MicroWars was released in February and the figures come with the same recommended price point as Gundam Converge figures, that is ¥500 per unit. The 10-boxes I picked up in Thailand were priced at 1600 baht each, so as usual it hurts for a bit to buy candy toys but you kind of forget it quickly, kind of like a visit to the dentist...

The figure distribution has been shaken up a little in this set. While you would expect to get two of each in a 10-box this only holds true for the Gundam and the two tanks. The mass production Zaku II is upped to three per box at the expense of Char's Zaku II of which there is only one per box, making it significantly rarer than the others. Personally I don't mind this and I wouldn't have had any issue with the Gundam being reduced to one as well, bumping up the room for more tanks or Zakus.

As I opened up the first figure box and saw the plastic runners and sticker sheets I had a very strong flashback to the Universal Unit figure series and lots some of my enthusiasm like a fizzling balloon. Fortunately though, the parts count and assembly isn't really something to fuss about here, you will have no trouble putting the figures together. As you can see from the above schematic, the articulation is limited to crude ball joints which offer a little bit of turning and wiggling room, but you will get no bending knees or elbows which is a little bit disappointing.
   

01 : RX-78-2 Gundam

First figure out is of course the ol' RX-78. It is a decent looking chap but you will have to get used to a new form of deformation, as the dimensions of MicroWars figures look unlike anything else. As is often common with Shokugan and Gashapon figures of this type it has a decent paintjob on the front of its torso but it quickly becomes very bland once you start moving out to the limbs. Even worse, when you turn it around you will notice that plastic hasn't even been spared to cover up its hollow legs; it is the Universal Unit G-Bit figure all over again... dreadful!

The second Universal Unit feature that I was happy not having to deal with for quite some time is the reliance on stickers. While the shield is (surprisingly) painted in decorative red and yellow, the feet are completely white and so you get wrap around stickers for them instead. If I were you I wouldn't bother with those and get to work with a marker pen instead, which is what I did. You also get a V-fin sticker for the torso and a tiny pinkish read square sticker for the head camera which is a real pain to apply inside its deep socket. Surprisingly, no sticker is supplied for the beam rifle sight; I may end up putting some acrylic paint there eventually. Other than that I took a small black marker pen to bring out some more detail on the head, but I didn't feel like messing with panel lining.

The Gundam comes with two accessories only; the beam rifle and the see through-shield. I think it would have been nice to get at the very least a toothpick style beam saber as well. Notice also that no pilot figure is not included with the Gundam figure - you will need to get the Type 61 MBT for that.

Here we see the gimmick which is what MicroWars is really all about. With the figures having very limited articulation, they do open up nicely and the hinge is firm and stays in place when opened without any trouble. The cockpit actually has a little bit of detail inside it and the instrument panel can be tilted outward to make it easier to place a pilot figure inside. This is so cheesy and entertaining at the same time, I just love it! I may end up painting the inside of the torso in a matte gray or so to make it stand out better.

Here you can see the size of the MicroWars Gundam figure together with a traditional super deformed Gundam from Gashapon Warrior DASH as well as a 1:220 scale RX-78 from Universal Unit. I haven't yet decided what to do with the three spare RX-78s that I ended up with from the boxes, perhaps I will have them converted to Realtype, G3 or Casval paintjobs in the future; we shall see how the MicroWars collection goes forward first.
   

02 : Type 61 MBT

The Earth Federation line-up is bound to expand with three new units in volume two but for now the only company for the Gundam is the Type 61 main battle tank. Hopelessly outdated in a fight against mobile suits it is nevertheless a really cool looking miniature and it also comes bundled with three pilot figures, one white and two orange so a 10-box of this series will net you with six pilots and four vehicles.

The Type 61 tank is a much smaller figure than the Gundam but makes up for it with a lot of playable features. The paintjob is also rather limited. Everything is a flat gray except for the tracks and wheels which are instead molded in a silvery metallic colour.

While the wheels and tracks are completely static the articulation allows you to rotate the turret 360 degrees and raise and lower each gun barrel separately. The commander cupola hatch opens and closes neatly and the top-mounted machine gun can also rotate around as needed. I ended up putting some colour on the driver's viewports and on the machine gun.

The tanks are easily my favourite feature of MicroWars and a big reason for me deciding to pick up two boxes. I can't wait to see the hover trucks promised us in volume two.
   

03 : MS-06S Zaku II (Char's Custom)

Switching sides now, the rest of the set in this box is dedicated to the Principality of Zeon. The Spacers can enjoy four mobile suits out of which one belongs to Commander Char himself. Again the torso comes in an attractive three colour paint scheme and the monoeye is not a sticker but prepainted with a nice metallic pink. Stickers are however included for you to put some black colour on the feet and knees. Again I say ditch the stickers and get to work with a black marker pen. Do the elbows and the mouth filter while you are at it.

The backside of the Zaku II looks just as horrible as that of the Gundam. I'm afraid you won't get it to look nice unless you are up to filling out the legs with green stuff or something to that effect.

Char's Zaku II comes with three accessories. You have two weapon options which can go into either hand; a 280mm Zaku Bazooka or the infamous Heat Hawk axe-type weapon. Notice how the handlebar on the bazooka is not painted. You will want to paint the tip of the handle black which will improve the look of the weapon when held in the hand. You also want to paint the blade of the Heat Hawk either a dark black or warm yellow depending on if you want to see it activated or not.

The MicroWars Zaku II also has a moving monoeye, however the range of movement is for some unknown reason limited to a very narrow field of vision. Notice the tap on the front side of the black disc which holds the monoeye. It is designed to fit into a very limited slot inside the head, limiting the field of vision much more than on your average figure. If this bothers you, you can always get rid of the tap as it serves no particular purpose other than to restrict movement.

The Zaku II has the same type of hinged torso which opens up to allow for a pilot figure to climb inside. Again the instrument dashboard can be folded forward and down to make access easier. As with the Gundam, you need to get a Magella Attack tank to get your hands on the Commander Char minifigure to sit inside.
   

04 : MS-06F Zaku II

The MicroWars mass production type Zaku II is for all intents and purposes a simple colour swap of the Commander Type machine wielded by Char. Both machines come with two optional head pieces including the Commander Type fin or not. Only the weapons loadout differs slightly, as we shall see.

As evident from the pictures I have given my mass production Zakus the same type of black marker touch up as for the Commander Char machine. Considering that I picked up two 10-boxes I have ended up with six figures which really opens up for army building although the pilot figures do not really keep up in the same number.

As mentioned above there is a slight difference in the weapon loadout among the two Zaku figures. While Char's unit comes with the 280mm Zaku Bazooka the mass production type switches it out for a Zaku Machine Gun instead. Both feature the same Heat Hawk close range weapon. You can steal the Bazooka from Char if you want (and give him a Machine Gun in return), just paint that handlebar black first to avoid a bit of red colour poking out.

It is really fun to army build with the Zaku II and if MicroWars ever takes off and becomes popular these will be pretty sought after. Volume 2 will feature the E.F.F. GM mobile suit which I hope will be made available in the same number as the Zaku although I have my suspicions it won't since there will also be a Ground Type Gundam in that set.

To throw in some more comparisons for MicroWars you can here see the Zaku II next to its kindred from Gundam Converge (left) and Mobile Suit Ensemble (right).
   

05 : HT-01B Magella Attack

The last figure in this first and excellent line-up is a tank option also for the Zeonic forces, their bizarre and lovely Magella Attack Tank. This figure is the only one in the lot which comes with all the parts ready to snap together and like the E.F.F. tank it also holds all the Zeonic pilot crew; one red and two green pilot figures.

The tank is very green save for the wheels and tracks which are metallic silver and the driver's cupola which has a nice gradient pattern of shiny blue metallic coating.

The two tank figures are the ones with the best articulation in this set. The Magella Attack Tank can swivel its turret and elevate the barrel extensively. Even the Gatling canon turret at the front is allowed to swivel slightly.

While no stand is included with this figure you can easily separate the turret from the rest of the tank to mimic the odd survivability feature that sees the turret turn into a lousy fighter jet.

Let's do some more comparisons; here the MicroWars Magella Tank teams up with the ones from Converge (left) and Gashapon HG MS (center).

The army building aspect of this figure series is great and you can do so many cool displays and dioramas with the contents provided here. Once volume 2 hits the shops in July this will be even greater and I hope the series will be allowed to live on a bit longer.
   

Minifigures

I should throw in a couple of words about the pilot mini figures before we go. These are after all one of the absolute highlights to come out of the Gashapon and Shokugan toylines as far as I am concerned. As you can see below they are incredibly delicate but do a reasonable job of holding together. Pay close attention when you attach the head to the shoulders, the peg at the neck is so thin that you almost break it when snapping the head onto it.

Notice how the figures differ between the Earth Federation and the Principality of Zeon. In fact, even the head sculpts between Commander Char and the bog standard Zeonic pilot differs here. I may have some of these painted further down the line but I think they are pretty good just out of the box as well.

Unless you are a real stickler for scale you will find that the pilot minifigures go well with many different Gundam figure series. Here Kamille and Quattro hang out with Astonaige's engineering team aboard the Argama for example.
   

Conclusion

As you can tell I am really pleased with my first foray into the MicroWars figure series and I hope the series will be allowed to prosper but at the same time I realize that it will be a tough sell to many Gundam collectors out there. There are also only so many vehicles available to choose from in the Gundam Universe but I'll keep my fingers crossed for a good run before the series retires. Stay tuned for volume 2 later this summer.