In a curious move, Bandai Spirits has announced a new upcoming Char Aznable action figure from Mobile Suit Gundam.
The reason why this is curious is that while shows like Kamen Rider and Ultraman get loads of action figures, characters from mecha anime tend not to get the same treatment.
I learned years ago from a representative at Bandai Spirits that when it came to mecha shows, people didn’t tend to want figures of characters but more of the mecha themselves.
The reason for this is that the mecha in these shows act as cyphers for the characters, so buying a toy of the mecha they pilot is the equivalent of also buying an action figure of the character.
However, the big change now is that series like Mobile Suit Gundam have a much larger international market share compared to a decade ago.
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My guess is that this Char Aznable figure is meant more for the international market to see if character action figures from mecha anime can have more traction abroad.
Naturally, this Char Aznable action figure also ties neatly into the currently airing Gundam GQuuuuuuX anime, where he is featured as part of the backstory for the series.
Char Aznable is also arguably one of the most iconic characters from the Gundam saga, so it makes sense that Bandai Spirits would start here.
Admittedly, this is by no means the first mecha anime-related character action figure, but they are a rarity due to the reasons specified above, so this does stand out as a more strategic release from an international standpoint.
As with other S.H.Figuarts releases, the figure comes with all manner of gimmicks, from different facial expressions to the Newtype “flash” effect.
This S.H.Figuarts Char Aznable action figure will be released this October and cost 9,900 yen (or around $71 at the current exchange rate).
As for the whole Char meme, admittedly, that is from Zeta Gundam, when Char called himself Quattro, but it still feels appropriate considering how snarky Char can be across the Gundam franchise.
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