Massive thank you to Gundam Mad for selling me this kit and the LED unit, as well as for being so helpful when I got in touch about the weird payment issue I had. No joke, I'm so happy about this customer service, I started this article and began writing this preface on the 1st of April right as the order went through - that's before the Yamato kit they sold me earlier arrived. That's what I call fantastic customer service! The free Figure Rise Son Goku kit is just the cherry on the sundae as well.
This one's a special one. Not only is this yet another dip into the treacherous-but-rewarding realm of Perfect Grades, not only is this a Perfect Grade that's been at the top of my wishlist for what feels like an eternity, but it's a Perfect Grade of the protagonist Gundam from the very first Gundam anime that I ever watched.
Way back in 2011, when a fresh-faced young Artemy Musha was just entering the first year of study for his Bachelor's degree, he liked to pass the time by taking the bus into town and buying up anime from HMV to catch up with whatever anime he'd been missing out on. And one of the first he got his hands on was a unique mecha anime called...The Big O.
But then after that, he grew excited for the release of another mecha anime, one which would stick in his memory for years to come, the first anime he ever binged huge chunks of. And that anime was...Gurren Lagann.
But after that...eh, screw it, I bought Gundam 00 on DVD as well. I eventually grew desperate for money amidst student loan nonsense and sold it off just before the company who licensed it shut down, and I wouldn't think much of Gundam again until that fateful day in 2019 when after watching a certain YouTube tutorial out of curiosity, I got my older, wiser mitts on an SDBB Unicorn Gundam and a HG Gundam Zerachiel in Forbidden Planet. The rest, as they say, is history.
And now, I get to repay my newfound enthusiasm for the franchise and pay my respects to the signature mobile suit of Satsuma S. Satan- I mean Setsuna F. Seiei! DAMMIT!
Ok, we're already at a bit of a snag. While it's nice that the manual actually has a decent amount of English in there this time (hell, even the backstory part has an English section!), it doesn't do what the Perfect Grade Unicorn did by having box-outs in the manual for people who've bought the lighting unit separately from the Gundam. However, the manual for the LED unit does have headers in each section for which part of the main Gundam's manual it's replacing. So for example, the start of the LED unit's manual says, "Use the steps in this manual instead of the 'BASE' instructions in the manual for the main kit". Would've preferred the way the Unicorn did it (particularly since this kit came out around three years after the Perfect Grade Unicorn), but I'll take what I can get.
Base
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| Four AAs, which I thankfully did have on hand for such an occasion as this. |
I'm honestly quite surprised by how simple this is so far. I mean, yeah, you're still threading wires into tight spaces, but none of the shallow awkwardness I saw with the Unicorn. This is quite satisfying to wire up.
It's not quite the same one as the Unicorn, but what complex wiring there is is still not too tricky to wire up. Certainly not if you have the tweezers handy.
Chest Frame
So it seems this goes the old-school Perfect Grade route of building an inner frame in its entirety first (minus all the business with screws), then building the armour on top of it. Interestingly, there's a separate set of stickers that comes with the lighting kit for showing text through the transparent parts, but these seem identical to the ones that come with the Gundam itself. Looking at the second half of the LED kit's manual, I'm certain that this is for those who have the kit already assembled and got the lighting kit after the fact.
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| This is one of the semi-transparent stickers that goes on the back of the clear parts, designed to show up more easily once illuminated from the back. Exciting! |
I'm intrigued by this. There's a lot more mechanical intricacy on display like the ab crunch and side-skirt mechanisms than when building the Unicorn's torso. And what I said earlier about the wiring being so much easier has still held true thus far. I quite like the transparent light blue rubbery parts on the C runner, I'm looking forward to seeing how the LEDs catch them. It's also quite cool that the black sticker showing through the transparent chest part isn't visible at the moment, presumably to only appear when the LED is on.
Leg Frames
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| The transparent stickers are really easy to get air bubbles into when applied hastily. I did eventually get rid of the ones in this image by reapplying the sticker, but it's still annoying. |
The upper legs are the only part where the lighting kit comes in, the lower legs are the first part that requires the main manual.
It's simple stuff, it's basically the "x2" section at the start of the leg section of the main manual, and both of them slot neatly into the upper legs. I'm not sure how the lighting carries down into the clear blue parts on these parts, particularly since there aren't any wires in them. But then again, it's not long to go before the LED unit's manual says to test the lighting for the first time. But before we get to that...
GN Drive
Yeah, we won't be able to light this up without the GN Drive. An interesting feature is that the circuit is only completed with the GN drive plugged in (either into the Gundam or in the arm on the stand).
Now it's time to light the kit up for the first time. Plugging it into the base isn't a hassle, you just connect one wire on the back of the Gundam, then slot the whole thing onto a single tab on the stand. None of that faffing about with the backpack like on the Unicorn. And two presses of the button later...
Oh this is BEAUTIFUL.
I imagine the two button presses makes more sense once the head and arms are attached, but this thing already looks amazing! The way the lights in the GN drive swirl to simulate it revving up is beautiful, and my remarks about the text on the chest being invisible unless lit from behind stays true. The fact they worked different coloured LEDs into the system is also really charming, particularly when you remember these are colour-changing LEDs for the purpose of incorporating the Exia's Trans-Am mode. So far, still amazing!
But alas, there's still more to do. The LED unit's manual says to take the Gundam off the stand and work on the arms. So we shall do that.
Arm Frames
Alright, we've finally come to a part of the kit that frustrated me. The cover that goes on over the back of the middle LED unit in the arms is dreadful. The wire keeps twisting in a way that makes it pop out, and that's after having to really squeeze both sides of the upper arm to get the holes and pegs lined up properly. I almost reached for the plastic glue to secure it in place, it was that bad. My only hope is that either the join needs to break in, or the outer armour secures it. Either way, the manual doesn't explain this part well at all. Not as bad as the Unicorn's head, but still not good.
Head Frame
Yep, one last thing to do before the whole inner frame is in place. Here's hoping it isn't anywhere near as borderline-impossible as the Unicorn. Eh, it shouldn't be - they aren't trying to cram a transformation gimmick in there this time round.
Ok, phew, my worries are unfounded. I'm actually having a ton of fun seeing this head unit come together. And it was around attaching these circular side parts that I noticed how well the transparent green eye piece catches the light and really makes it glow. Not a lot of kits I've worked with manage that.
There's another section in the manual which deals with the mechanism that holds the GN drive in, and another one after that which tells you to put it back on the stand. Personally though, I'm gonna hold off of putting it back on the stand until the Gundam is all armoured up. But hey, let's polish off that drive slot.
Alright. Now we can move over to those reds, whites, blues and yellows.
Armour
I like the shade of blue they went for with this kit, reminds me of the same matte blue used on the
High Grade Moon Gundam.
Now onto the arms. I realize that the LED Unit's manual tells you to skip the hands if you haven't already built the kit, so I'll need to get around to those at some point. Might use the articulated hands, since that's the one you apparently need to hold the GN Sword.
I also put together the fixed-pose hands for the sake of clearing the runner more. The trigger finger hand is to come later for the same reason.
One past part to go before the whole thing comes together!
Couldn't find a way to get it to show up on camera, but it's interesting how the tiny part that fits into the top head arch has "Gundam" etched on it. Weird little detail.
Now onto the weapons.
If you've noticed at some point in this assembly that the tip of the GN Long Blade looks a little wonky, you're right. The tab on the end that fits the tip together feels really unaligned, so I had to trim it like with the undergates to give it even the slightest chance of fitting decently, and it still didn't work. The only upside is that I'm not displaying this one on the Gundam. No, that weapon is coming later!
It was after finishing the GN Short Blade that I decided to store away the spares, which thankfully can be done with the slots on the bottom of the base. I've no idea how the blades fit in so securely, but they do.
It was around this time that I decided to start attaching the stickers.
I didn't do all of them, some of them are obnoxiously small after all. But I did the essentials that everyone will notice. Celestial Being emblems and all. It's a bit annoying that the battery cover sticker scheme assumes that you aren't using the LED kit, and would therefore be reversed from how it would be when you are, so that's that one out as well. It's a shame, it would've given the base some personality on top of being handy to store all the spares.
Anyway, just a bit more of the shield and the GN Sword to go.
I'll set the beam sabers up in wherever they're meant to be before fitting the GN Sword on and calling it a day.
The manual suggests to attach the tabs on the hand and the rifle before attaching the shield bracket into the Gundam's arm, but I opted to do it the other way round since the join in the arm was stronger.
But yes, that's the Perfect Grade Exia. Not without some frustrating moments, I'll admit. But after the sheer nightmare that was the Perfect Grade Unicorn, this was a breath of fresh air and a phenomenal example of what Bandai eventually managed with their lighting tech. For all the kit's shortcomings, I still feel confident in saying that if you want the right balance between an accessible Perfect Grade and an impressive-looking kit in its own right, definitely go for this one. Lighting kit or not, I don't care - this is the Perfect Grade you're after.
Stay safe and keep clipping, folks!
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| Oh alright, here's a shot of it in Trans-Am mode for good measure. |
The Good
+ It's massive
+ Lots of detail
+ Tons of accessories, all of which can be stored in the bottom of the base
+ It lights up in different configurations, and installing the lighting kit is a cakewalk
The Bad
- Some of the wiring pushes a few of the inner frame pieces out a bit too much during the inner frame assembly
- The join between the legs and the torso is weak
- The GN Sword is a bit fiddly to attach
Build Experience: A
Completed Kit Rating: S
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