Yadda, yadda, yadda, this was bought in the same Forbidden Planet visit as the last build diary, something-something, not sponsored, etc, etc.
RE/100. As you probably picked up from the Gundam Double X entry from last time, this isn't a grade I have any experience with whatsoever. I have, however, picked up the general gist of it from word of mouth - fundamentally, it's a way for Bandai to give the 1/100 scale treatment to kits that are too obscure to be worth making into a Master Grade. So it's the size of a Master Grade, with the level of detail of a High Grade.
Generally, I haven't heard all that many bad things about the RE/100 line that don't involve the Nightingale, but even then, that one was more a case of trying and failing to translate something that works better as a drawing than as a model kit. I did also see Mecha Gaikotsu's review of the kit I'm about to build ("Worst of 2019"? Considering my experience with the Real Grade Crossbone Gundam, I'll be the judge of that.), but I'm not gonna let that colour my opinion going into this kit for now, particularly given the last time I've seen a review of his that I disagree with. Let's save that kind of conclusion for when the kit is done.
Had to separate the runners into two groups because of how many there are - there's a reason the box is as deep as it is. Hell, the polycap runner is probably the biggest one I've ever seen.
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| There's more number 1's than a Lazy Town edit! |
And according to the manual, most of these polycaps aren't even used in this kit. WELP.
Chest Unit
We have our first sticker, to add colour variety to the black part on the front of the torso.
Not that chest units usually take long at this level of detail, but yeah, this didn't take long at all. Only two thirds of a page worth of instructions. Although if you thought that was short...
Head Unit
...you haven't yet noticed how the head unit instructions only take up one third of a page before moving on to the arms!
Kind of odd that the rear camera on the head is done with a sticker, but the front camera just relies on the clear blue part being exposed. This leaves the blue of the front camera barely visible among the Vigna-Ghina II's primary red. Perhaps it'll be better if the gundam was photographed with a flash turned on, but it's still a weird omission.
Eeeewwwww. EEEEEEEWWWW. The yellow border sticker behind the horns is a complete pain to attach and it honest to god would've looked ugly as hell even if I had the patience to attach it accurately. To hell with this adhesive spaghetti-looking abomination!
sigh
I can at least imagine it'll look alright from a distance, especially with the emblem sticker attached to the middle of the horns for a bit of colour variety.
Arm Units
When it comes to the fins, the straight sticker on the bottom goes on after the bent stickers on both sides of the top, and it works by lining it up and folding it to both sides. It's awkward as hell and I don't like it. And I've got another two to do for the other arm. Yaaaaaay.
I mean, they look better than the head border from earlier, but still.
The notch on the connection between the shoulder and the torso means that you have to insert them with the arms upwards before moving them down.
It's actually looking a little plain on the detail front, I feel like throwing some of the stickers on.
At least they're easier to work with than the previously-mentioned head-spaghetti, so it's got that going for it.
Waist Unit
Well, that was easy. It's around here that I can really appreciate how much the lines stand out more after some brown panel lining on this red. It's a much more saturated red than the RG Sazabi.
Leg Units
And with that, that's the fundamentals of the gundam itself done. And I was right, the stuff I wasn't so keen on looks fine in context, so I'm not too fussed. Time to do the...
Backpack
The thrusters are more secure than they felt. There's no click or any kind of resistance when slotting them into the backpack, yet they stay in perfectly fine. Not the most secure way of keeping them in, but better than it feels.
I quite like the way the differently coloured parts fit together, though the hinge that makes the black part move is a little stiff at first, so be gentle when breaking it in.
Again, doesn't feel like the most secure connection, but it works about as well as you'd expect from what is essentially a larger High Grade.
Weapons
Shot Lancer
This one's the intriguing weapon for me - a sci-fi interpretation of a knight's lance that apparently only this iteration of the Vigna-Ghina uses.
The two side barrels have tiny black parts that go on the end. Be sure not to lose those when clipping them out!
Quite a cool-looking weapon, if rather lengthy. Up there with the Master Grade Barbatos' mace.
Beam Rifle
Yeah...not much I can say about this one. It's a beam rifle. It has a hinged front part. There was enough black for the nub marks to get camouflaged good with my black panel lining pen. Uhh...
Beam Sabers
At least there's a place to store the beam sabers on this one.
At first I wasn't so keen on the piss-yellow of the effect parts, but contrasted against the bold red, it kind of works. And yes, I found out later that I was supposed to use the pink ones, but the yellow ones fit fine enough too. Especially considering the colour of the shield. Speaking of which, let's get these sabers into storage...
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| ...by removing the part on the back and awkwardly slotting the sabers in behind it... |
...and see what the shield effect looks like.
Ok, not gonna lie, regardless of the leverage required to remove the bit in the middle to fit the effect part, that looks really cool. Just gonna finish off with the lower body stickers, and we'll be done.
And that concludes my first experience with a RE/100 kit. Yep, it's exactly what I expected from something pitched as a 1/100 scale figure with the detail of a High Grade. But as a visual piece itself, I don't mind it. The colour variety could be better from the crotch below, but the colours that are present in the kit go together quite nicely. If you're in the market for a 1/100 scale kit, but you're too hesitant to go for a Master Grade, this one's not a terrible choice even if there are generally better kits out there at a smaller scale. All in all, an average C-tier kit in my eyes.
Stay safe and keep clipping, folks!
The Good
+ I like the shade of red
+ The shield effect part is nice, if a bit piss-yellow
+ The Shot Lancer is a cool weapon
The Bad
- It has the detail of a really basic High Grade, and at 1/100 scale, that basic nature really stands out
- The colour scheme feels rather samey on the whole because of this relative lack of detail
- Yellow border sticker on the head is fiddly to attach
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