Way back when, I wrote my first review of a Gundam Universe action figure. Suffice to say that I wasn’t super keen on it. While it definitely had some pros (good surface details, good articulation), it also had some serious cons (rubbery feeling, “action figure” plastic, and a price point that I considered too high). All in all, I didn’t think it was worth the cost.
Since then I’ve come to learn that $25 for a decent quality 6-inch action figure is actually a pretty good price. That still doesn’t feel “right” to me, especially compared to the cost of a High Grade model kit, but I’ve seen the claim so many times that I have no choice but defer to the experts (so to speak).
I bring all of this up because Mrs. Wolfe recently found another Gundam Universe figure at Target. This one was even more expensive then the last one, at a whopping $40 MSRP, but it was also on clearance for half price. That made this particular figure ever so slightly cheaper than its equivalent High Grade kit, so I figured I’d give it a shot:
Yes, it’s the Sazabi, from the 1988 film Char’s Counterattack.
About the Sazabi
It’s basically Char Aznable’s “final” mobile suit. It’s big, it’s powerful, and it’s fully custom. It has a psycommu system, a massive beam tomahawk, a beam shotgun, and six remote controlled funnels. In the early scenes of Char’s Counterattack, it is by far the most powerful mobile suit on the battlefield. That all changes with the arrival of the Nu Gundam, which is roughly its equal. However, due to some disparities in their respective pilot’s skills, the Nu ultimately runs wild over the Sazabi.
Regardless of its success on the battlefield, the Sazabi is by far one of the most popular mobile suit designs in all of the Universal Century. I have no doubt that this is largely due to its connection to Char, but it’s also a pretty great design in its own right. In some ways it feels like the epitome of Zeonic mobile suit design. Within it you can see hints of the Gelgoog and the Gerbera Tetra, though everything is jacked up and made to look bigger, badder, and more grandiose.
Unboxing
I will say one thing about Gundam Universe figures - they all have killer artwork on the front of the box:
Meanwhile, the back of the box is less impressive:
That’s a pretty lame shot of the Sazabi fighting the Nu. It almost looks like a throwback to the way toy packaging looked when I was a kid, but that’s not enough to save it in my mind.
One thing that’s immediately clear is that you can see why Sazabi has a higher MSRP than standard Gundam Universe figures. The box is significantly larger than usual, which implies a much bigger figure. As a refresher, here is a standard size box:
This makes perfect sense, as the Sazabi is a very large mobile suit. Now let’s open it up and see what’s inside:
A few observations:
- The six bits are separate pieces, which I should be happy about. But I'm not sure if they're compatible with the Jet Effect Parts, and even if they are, I'm not sure I'd pose them alongside the figure. Sazabi's bits just aren't as cool as Nu Gundam's fin funnels. I'll probably just leave them holstered on the mobile suit.
- The beam tomahawk uses glossy gold paint for its beam section, which is a really nice touch (even if it isn't color accurate).
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As impressive as this spread may look, it is missing one crucial accessory: this Sazabi figure has no shield. I'm (mostly) okay with this. Unlike most EFSF mobile suits, I don't think most Zeon designs look particularly "naked" without a shield (it helps that a lot Zeon mobile suits don't even have a shield to begin with). Not to mention that the Sazabi itself is frequently seen fighting without one:
That being said, I certainly wouldn't have said no to having one. After all, it is a cool looking shield:
Anyway, let’s put all these pieces together and see what we’ve got …
Out of the Box
I think this looks and feels much better than that old Strike Gundam figure.
It uses at least two tones of red, it has a ton of surface detail, and it even has a the logo printed onto the skirt armor.
In general, I also think the plastic feels better than on the Strike Gundam figure. There’s still a bit of that rubbery stuff, particularly in the hands and the feet, but the rest of it feels high quality.
It’s also a surprisingly heavy figure. You can tell that most of this plastic isn’t hollow.
For the sake of comparison, here’s a shot of a (well built) HGUC Sazabi:
And here’s the Real Grade version:
I think the figure definitely looks better than the former, and while it isn’t quite as nice as the latter, it compares more favorably than I would have expected.
For those curious, here are a few close up shots of some of the detailing:
Color Accuracy
As impressive as all this detail might be, it does lose some of its impact due to the figure’s lack of panel lining and other minor color corrections.
My initial plan was to give this figure the works. Panel lines, metallic paints, and even a top coat. Over time I pared back those plans.
First, I sprayed the bottom side of the rear skirt amor with topcoat to see how it would look. It’s not bad, but it’s not quite the dramatic improvement you usually see with model kits:
Second, I found it to be a lot harder to do detailing on a fully assembled figure, espeically one that isn’t nearly as easy to disassemble as a model kit. Ultimately I did a fairly thorough round of panel lining, but no other color correction. That means the thrusters, the shoulder cannons, etc are all not-quite-color-accurate.
Once I was done with the detailing, I threw the “finished” figure into the lightbox for some photos. Once again, I forgot that I still haven’t quite figured out how to use the black background without all the photos looking blurry, so I eventually switched to the white BG (which led to much crisper photos).
I haven’t said anything yet about the articulation. In a word, aside from the ankle joints, it’s not great. The ankles have a lot of lateral movement, allowing the figure to get into all sorts of great stances. But once you move above that, you’ll find that the other joints are very limited in range. I suppose that’s understandable for an action figure, as they’re usually not meant to be that articulated. But yeah, there’s a reason I stuck with such simple standing poses.
Action Base Support
As it turns out, you can put this sucker on an Action Base. However, since it’s so large and heavy, it tends to wobble a bit when it’s up there.
Also, it wouldn’t fit in my lightbox while on the Base, so I had to take it out:
The lack of articulation meant I didn’t keep it up there for very long, but still. There is your proof that it works.
Gunpla Comparison
I’m not going to call this a size comparison per se, since Gundam Universe figures are not at a strict 1⁄144 scale. I really just want it to stand it up next to some Gunpla for the fun of it.
First, here it is next to the Gouf Crimson Custom, which at the time of this photo was my most recent build (and which just as richly red):
Now here it is next to its arch nemesis:
Conclusion
At $20, I think this kit was/is a no brainer. It looks nicer than any other Sazabi I could get at that price.
But at its original $40 price point? In that case I’d rather pony up a little more to get the Real Grade model. It’d look that much nicer, it would probably have better articulation, and it would have all the accessories.
Which brings me back to my original point - I don’t quite understand who these Gundam Universe figures are for. I mean, ostensibly they are meant to compete with the (identically sized and identically priced) Marvel Legends figures and the like. But based on what I’ve seen of those, they have pretty great surface detail and color accuracy (though their faces look pretty rough in some cases).
I don’t think the Gundam Universe figures quite compare in terms of detail. Not enough to convince Marvel Legends or Star Wars Black collectors to spring for them. If anything, I’d imagine those folks would be more willing to plunk down more coin to get a Robot Damashii (or something of similar quality).
Nor do I think this line is necessarily for kids. If you’re young enough that you won’t (or more likely can’t) build a model kit, you probably don’t know what a Sazabi even is!
I’m happy to have this particular figure. From the top of my bookshelf, it certainly looks “good enough”:
But overall, I don’t think these figures are really for me. Or anyone really.
But maybe I’m wrong! Maybe there’s someone out there who really likes them. If so, I hope you continue to enjoy them, and ignore everything my dumb ass says.