1/100 MG Char's Z'Gok Snapfit

Finished up the 1/100 Master Grade Char's Z'gok. The first Gundam kit I ever built was an SD Char's Z'Gok almost a decade ago so this was kind of a sentimental build.

The size of his upper body is formidable compared to my other models. His arms and legs are not as sturdy as I wish they were but the overall design is great, very unique.

The dark gray parts that show through the red armor look very nice, the bottom of Z'gok's boots has a similar look with large screws showing.

They did a great job making the MS appear to be amphibious, it's like a great big crustacean with Char's red.

The backpack is great, it has the same gray-through-red appearance as the rest of the kit and has great internal detailing as well. The very bottom of the cylinders have spinning blades that would presumably propel the suit through water. These are also found on the bottom of the Z'gok's feet.

The arms and legs can extend but don't bend much. The forearms and knees are where all the bendy action happens.

Very mean looking claws! The kit has a lot of rubber detailing, you can see some of it in the dark lines surrounding the waist armor so every time it leans the exposed innards are covered by ribbed sheets of rubber.

And a good look at the torso mechanics. Every fin of those vents is individual and had to be sanded one by one. Overall it's a very fun kit even though its arms and legs lack posability.

1/100 MG RGM-79C GM Kai Space Type (Snap Fit)

I began building this model over a month ago and finally finished it to my satisfaction after many intrusions from the real world stealing my time. My cat has undergone two of his six weeks of recovery after his knee surgery. He's doing well!

It really needs to be said that the Master Grade GM Kai is a fantastic kit, one I found shockingly underrated. The price is very low on these kits (~$30 - 35) since they're older but they definitely do not lack quality. The design of the MS is excellent, a perfectly convincing update to the original GM that is still aesthetically in line with classic suits. I have grown to love the clean, understated design which isn't afraid of leaving areas bare, especially on those curving shins. There's just the right amount of complexity and detail to make it not feel retro.

The only real criticism I can field is that its articulation is rather low in the ankles, making dynamic poses almost impossible. The ball joint that the shins pop into is just fine, it allows for a huge range of motion, but unfortunately it's handicapped by the large ankle guards. That said, it looks gorgeous just standing there, it's far more menacing than the 0079 GM ever was. 

There's a good composition in the look of the GM Kai. It's pleasantly asymmetrical with a single beam saber on its back as well as a delicate antenna on the head. It's quintessentially Gundam and serves as a great example for what I like so much about the design vocabulary of mobile suits. The colors are very bright but such a restricted palette (light green, dark green, red, gray) that they feel in harmony with each other. The light green of the body will most likely be toned down a bit when I paint it, in person it's very green.

Here you can really see the limitation of the ankle guards which make pulling the toe upwards rather difficult. The rest of the joints are solid and have good range, each leg has two screws and numerous sliding pistons which make for another feature I enjoy a lot - underneath all that simple armor is some mechanical and visual complexity. The back side of the shield, for example, has a great deal of embellishment including space for both beam sabers, a nice contrast to the calm and flat red face.

The arms have double elbows which give the hands great range. You can actually pose him pulling the saber off his back with ease. Again, get used to the upright pose!

The back has some nicely contrasting detail, I'm a big fan of the quad thrusters but unfortunately the two on the left side aren't as snug as they should be and they tend to droop, ruining the symmetry of the jets. Maybe when I'm done I'll glue them in place to avoid the issue. The rear part of the suit's waist opens up and accommodates a gun rack that can store the disassembled rifle. Also note that the rifle has a couple types of barrels and magazines so you can customize it. I happen to like the look of the extra-long rifle.

What makes this such a fantastic kit for the low price is the unusual detail like the fabric tubing behind the knees. You get a single tube of rigid fabric piping which you cut to 4 x 13mm and slide on to a plastic piece. They don't move at all so you don't have to worry about them getting messed up, however the process of cutting and placing them can be frustrating as they lose their tube shape a bit and flare out if you mess with them too much. It adds a really attractive detail that I appreciate for the price.

I've still got the Earth type in my storage which is almost identical save color, weapons, and a few minor details. I'm more excited to build it now than I was before, this is a kit I definitely recommend as a quality build (if you're okay with limited posability).

1/100 MG Zaku II 2.0 Snap Build

I've finally gotten around to finishing my Zaku II 2.0 MG! I had a really good time with this kit, Bandai did some smart design on this classic MS. The model has a fully detailed inner frame that is easily comparable to a Perfect Grade - the legs have numerous sliding pistons and layered pieces of internal mechanics, the mono eye swivels from side to side in the visor as the head shifts left and right, and the pilot's cockpit can be shifted internally with a switch underneath the backpack. By the time you slap the outer armor on it, the weight is noticeably heavy which is good because the final product feels very solid, not fragile at all.

The raw plastic that comes in the kit is gorgeous, it almost has a porcelain finish when you buff it making this a great candidate for anyone who doesn't want to paint. One of the biggest reliefs was how easily the tubing was constructed. It came mounted on a little rubber pipe so you snip each one off and can sand them all at once while they remain on the skewer. Then you slide them on to a hollow metal spring which gives a touch of realism that is much appreciated.

The mono eye was colored using a magenta Sharpie. It catches the light very well and I actually prefer the muted pink over the harsh magenta they show as an example in the instruction booklet. I should also mention that the hands on this kit are very impressive, each finger has one knuckle and one ball and socket joint so you can pose them almost any way you want. The palms have a very convenient ridge you can mount weapons in to so they are held tightly. Older kits like the Zaku I in the background lack this feature and tend to hold their weapons very loosely, limiting poses and making them look a little dumpy.

You can see really well in this photo that the head dome on the Zaku II has been rounded out significantly compared to the Gouf. It's not immediately obvious, but a lot of the proportions of this kit have changed to be a bit truer to the 70's design. I personally love it, this is the quintessential Gundam aesthetic. The panel lines are tastefully sparse, the MS has a robust, stocky anatomy that makes it look like it could take a beating (or dole one out!) and it really looks like a machine of war and not a robot superhero.

This is one of those rare model kits where there is literally nothing to critique. I love the attention to detail that's in this kit, easily the highest quality MG I've yet to build. Now if they'd only do a Zaku I 2.0...