Robot Damashii MS-06 Zaku II ver. A.N.I.M.E. by Bandai – Available From HobbyLink Japan
By Cacophanus from Mecha Damashii
Following the unboxing, here is the review for the excellent MS-06 Zaku II from the original Mobile Suit Gundam as depicted in the new anime-focused Robot Damashii line. It’s an amazing figure and comes with a lot of fantastic accessories for a very reasonable price.
While this is by no means the first toy of the Zaku II, to my mind it is probably the best. Not only does it retain the wonderful original design work from Kunio Okawara but it is a surprisingly sophisticated figure with it, from very advanced and modern articulation to the extensive range of very nice accessories.
The truth about this toy is that in fact you get two versions of the classic Zaku II, the straight cannon fodder MS-06 and the commander type MS-06S. The latter is achieved with a swap out part that replaces the top of the head with the antenna fixed atop it.
You also have all the additional weapons, from the standard machine gun and heat hawk to the leg-mounted missile pods as well as the famous cracker grenades. The bazooka is also included and can be affixed at the rear when not being used.
The missile pods have a nice missile launch effect and the rest of the figure is covered in fixtures that allow you to use the other effects from previous toy releases in the same range.
The only minor piece of advice is that rear of the machine gun is a bit fragile and can bend if you are not careful. It’s a small point, but should be noted.
The articulation is the same as the prior Char Zaku II release and as such is very impressive. The chest is inwardly hinged and allows for dual wielding of weapons and the base joints for the limbs are very complex, allowing for a very wide range of poses. The mono-eye in the head can also be swivelled and the right arm shield is also separately articulated.
Considering that all of this is including out of the box for a very affordable figure such as this is really quite remarkable. Bandai has come a long way with its Robot Damashii range of figures and while the sculpts of these new anime focused toys look somewhat simple, the execution is far more advanced than that.
Like with other Robot Damashii figures, this too can use the Tamashii Stand (sold separately) and is recommended if you want to get the full range of poses out of it.
As the Zaku II is the mainstay cannon fodder unit of the Zeon forces, having just one of these toys feels somewhat limiting. With such a reasonable price point and with all the accessories included, you should seriously consider getting dozens of these to build your own little army.
It’s taken a long time but fans of the classic Mobile Suit Gundam now have an array of toys that finally represent the original designs and the Zaku II is arguably one of the most important of these mobile suits released yet. As toys go, all of this anime-focused Robot Damashii figures are essential purchases and enormous fun to play with. The great news is that now, finally, we can start to build our very own Zeonic army!
