Gundam Model Kits

The head on this kit is a nice fare, it comes with and inner plate and a shiny sticker that goes on it which is underneath some transparent green plastic, which is then attached separately to a faceplate before it goes inside the head. This part is then surrounded by a front and rear half of the head with separate circular parts that go onto the sides, a separate cap and separate little yellow pieces for the vulcans, which is most nice indeed. The command antennae are made out of polycap-like plastic to prevent them being broken as well. The head has a great range of movement even when restricted by the shoulder cannons. This is becausea special joint that enables the cow pose, which gives the ability to look almost directly upwards.

Torso

This torso is quite nice indeed, it is made with a hollow inside the chest to accommodate the Core Fighter, which slots in almost perfectly. The backpack is nicely molded and has some mock power cables that go into the back of the body (which you don't really see but know are there). The shoulder cannons have a lovely range of movement and can go completely vertical with no trouble, although they have a tendency to slip off the polycap if you move them in the wrong way. The skirt armor is good too with all of the parts save the back skirt being able to have a full 90 degrees of motion. Although this stops the kit just short of being able to kneel properly, it can kneel in an awkward falling back manner, so fairly good proportions.

Arms

No complaints here, the shoulder construction is made with a series of shells that slot within each other to produce the desired effect, and the joints are completely solid without the need for any screws. All the seam lines are very well hidden, which is great because arms are normally where seam lines show most. The hands are nice and sturdy and can move freely in the joint, but because of a cover piece put in between the polycap and the hand, it can pop out if you move it to too large an angle. Their grip is rock solid and the kit has no problem whatsoever with holding the beam rifle like some other MG kits.

Legs

These are quite delightful as well, lots of nice little detail on them including something resembling a joint guard that comes up and down with the opening and closing of the knee. The knee is double-jointed, allowing a great range of poseability along with the good range of movement at the hips. The feet are also great and can lay flat-footed in a variety of poses that you put the kit in. There is also a small compartment on the outside of each leg that holds a grenade for storage.

Weapons and Accessories

The grenades are just three simple snap together pieces in a cylindrical shape, which is duplicated for each grenade. The beam rifle is very nice with parts to cover the seams on the ends and the camera mount is able to move in a 90 degree range of motion about the barrel on one side. The Core Fighter is the real beauty in this kit because it's all self enclosed with the Core Fighter being transformable (with, of course, the exception of the removal of the wheels). There is of course a separate Core Block to place inside the torso so you can display you Core Fighter in it's transforming glory.

Conclusion

Overall this kit is amazing. There's some nifty little gadgets in there which make it well worth buying. A great selling point is that fully transformable Core Fighter, which even fits inside the torso for the Core Block system. (Overall Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars)

Contributor: Elliott "Hiddenpower" Solomon

General and Technical Data
Series: Master Grade (MG) 1/100 Release Date: 12/2001
Price: ¥ 3000