I thought it was about time to post pictures of the crown jewel in my collection. This kit is probably the funnest kit I've ever built. At first you may realise the unusual ZAFT theme this is because I based this off the ending of the Special Edition Final Plus. In the credits Kira becomes a member of ZAFT to be reunited with Lacus.
This kit had many waiting for its release since Destiny finished...some were already waiting before that....myself! This kit I am glad to say is my last. It is a relief to see that your favourite Gundam has been given the PG treatment and my collection is finally complete. I waited for this kit as early as 2005! I already posted the box art previously so lets go straight to the model!
My kit was a complete spray job. I darkened the shades by a few notches, resprayed all the golds and had the model done in a matte finish to make it look as realistic as possible. Overall the details were amazing it eased some of my concerns that this kit will be an overglorified version of the previously released Lightning Edition!
The complete construction is about 30cm tall of the ground not including the base and is pretty weighty. The model comprises of multiple ratchet joints allowing stability and minimal sag. However there were areas which missed out in terms of attention to detail and quality. The first is that the golden nozzles at the knees and the backpack were not bordered with red and the peg that holds the wings is very flimsy! The stand is very annoying as well the cuffing which holds the model into place is open and strong movement would cause the cuff to come out of place and send the model crashing down.
However due to the stability of the overall construction posing is very versatile and the options are also extremely rich, my only gripe is the fingers they are not strong enough to hold the beam rifles properly the ends are actually blu tacked to the model. The actual rifle itself is pretty long and heavy nearly spanning the length of the entire leg. The rail cannons also featured in this shot realistically are not much different to the ones seen previously on the MG version they are pretty much and oversized version same has to be said with the beam shield design.
My biggest surprise was how well the wings held up in HiMat mode I have provided a variety of poses below. Trust me those things are heavy and also have lots of inbuilt mechanisms
The wings spread out
Classic Freedom style pwnage!
The springloaded mechanisms are actually very well built and they give a very sexy snap sound when the DRAGOON wing is deployed. I also mentioned previously that the Shoulders also have hidden mechanisms.
Overall the kit is worthy of the PG name in terms of detail and complexity and also for setting a new benchmark in sturdiness! Overall it did have its faults but I still like it best out of all my model kits I give this one a 90/100.
