Synopsis: The Gundam Wing and Endless waltz MSiA line is usually regarded as a flaw riddled line, however both lines have their share of bright spotsand misses. Wing Zero Custom has endured its share of mixed reviews ranging from the highest accolades to the most damning of criticisms. Surprisingly both views are understandable for a variety of reasons and hopefully I can address these views justly.

The Figure: The Endless Waltz line took a 180 degree attitude of figure design from the main Gundam Wing line in terms of streamlining the figure to look less bulky and more fluid to allow an accurate representation of their animated counterparts.

The head features a decent sculpt job while possessing a somewhat satisfactory paintjob. Like many MSiAs, the Wing Zero Custom can rotate freely with the only problem laying in the elevation or tilting of the head.

The arms are well detailed and painted however the designing that went into these arms in terms of proportion seems a little off. The arms look shorter then they should be and though the arm is as long as any other MSiA's arm the bulky forearm armor is probably to blame for this visual illusion. The shoulder is relatively free to move and the shoulder armor does not interfere much unless the forearm armor is touching it. The elbow can bend 180 degrees and can rotate freely. The hands rotate without forearm armor interference and although no additional hands are supplied, these hands can grip the accessories well although posing with the twin buster rifle can pop off the arm at times and the closeness of the handles can be a problem.

The Legs are well done and unhindered for movement except for the most rigid rear skirt Armor I have seen on a MSiA. The knee bends 90 degrees and the lower leg hinders the ankle rotation despite a movable piece of ankle armor. The ankle doesn't rotate due to this flaw however the movable piece of ankle armor allows elevating of the foot though nothing on the scale of a 2.0 version figure.

The torso is well painted and well detailed. I would have liked the shoulder gatling guns to be able to be visible in a similar fashion as the Burning Gundam from the more recent G-Fighter line. The torso can not twist due to the rigid rear armor and the Wing binders can pose problems. The forward binders are snug and can achieve most poses however the rear binders pose the most problems. Unless the rear binders are FASTENED TIGHTLY the binders will not be able to pose well and will be prone to falling off. When tightened the posing pretty nice despite the fact that the wings are solid pieces of plastic.

Twin Buster Rifle: The main weapon of the figure, it is loaded with details as well as flaws. The rifle does not just split into the two rifles like the anime, but in fact splits in four pieces. As much as I like the detachable clips on other beam rifles this weapon's removable clips serve more as a hindrance then plus. Combining all four pieces is done by several pegs however they are prone to popping off at times making the rifle more of a hassle to mess with. Given the small handles holding the twin buster rifle is difficult for the figure.

Beam Saber: While now we are accustomed to beam sabers with removable hilts for some reason Bandai missed that with a few of the figures in the Gundam Wing line. Fortunately the Endless Waltz line corrected this error and this figure is the only of the Wing Gundam unit 01 and Wing Zero lineage to carry this feature.

Play Value: This is a decent articulated figure however the arms can pop off especially when using the twin buster rifle. The somewhat loose wing binders also serve to screw up the play value of this figure.

Display Value: When the wing binders are fastened properly the displayable qualities of this figure are excellent. The only down side is some of the posing flaws centered around the twin buster rifle.

Dollar Value: Sold as a deluxe figure about 2 or 3 years ago(though a battle scarred Variant is on the way) the lack of accessories makes one feel a little cheated. The Battle Scarred version with the battle scared parts may indeed be worth it but that is a review for another time.

Conclusion: This figure is a nice try at capturing the look of the figure however its flaws may make you think twice before buying it.