Robot Damashii Gundam Barbatos by Bandai – Available From HobbyLink Japan
By Cacophanus from Mecha Damashii
Following the unboxing for the Robot Damashii Gundam Barbatos here is the review for this excellent little figure. From Gundam Iron-Blooded Orphans, this is the fourth or “original” version of the design and Bandai has really done a great job here.
To explain on the numbering of the Gundam Barbatos, over the course of the first season of Iron-Blooded Orphans the Barbatos undergoes numerous changes. This is because it was previously used to power a military base and was left to fall into disrepair.
This means that the mobile suit is upgraded a fair few times based on whatever resources the characters can find. However as this is a relic of a 300 year old war, it’s not long until the Barbatos is finally restored to its original form. At this point in the series though, this is the fourth time it has been upgraded. Hence why this is the fourth, or “original,” form.
With that aside, I really love this design. It has elements of the various mortar headds from the amazing The Five Star Stories by Mamoru Nagano, as it is a very slender design and you can see all the various pistons that help with the joints.
Designed by Naohiro Washio, who also worked on Gundam 00, the Barbatos looks unlike any other Gundam to date and not only captures the mystery of the forgotten history in the series but also looks entirely alien with it.
While it’s obviously very clearly mechanical, it’s done so on a scale and with a degree of sophistication that newer mobile suits seem to lack (despite the fact the newer mobile suits are meant to be much more potent).
Technically this is the first real action figure of the Barbatos, but Bandai has also released an amazing High Resolution Model of the design. That is effectively half a kit crossed with the endo-skeleton of a modern chogokin type toy. The results are incredible and come thoroughly recommended.
However, this Robot Damashii figure is more focused as it’s definitely something you can play with a lot more and has the toy lines signature articulation in full effect.
The toy itself is very simple in terms of gimmicks but the most important thing about this figure is its articulation and joints. The arms, legs, ankles, hips and chest all have a very wide degree of movement.
This is entirely necessary as the Barbatos is a very kinetic mobile suit in the series and recreating that requires this level of articulation.
This toy also comes with the mace and longsword. The mac also has an additional and longer handle so it can be dual wielded and also retains the spike at its tip, that can also be retracted.
Compared to other Robot Damashii figures the detailing feels a bit fuzzier than normal but for me that’s a minor point as the joints on this are something else.
Considering the very reasonable price point, this is a great figure of the Gundam Barbatos and comes recommended to fans of the show as well as those that just like to have fun playing with mecha.
