MG Sinanju Ver. Ka Part 35 [Final]

Quite similar, quite different
The last posting in this very long review series on MG Sinanju Ver. Ka already. ^^

Not discounting the two separate long breaks between the painting and detailing process, this review, which started back in late September 2011, has spanned to very close to three years now. It's the longest-running review series ever on this blog, even longer than the Keropla God Keron series. ^^ Hopefully, no other review in the future will break that "glorious" record held by this Master Grade kit. XD

As previewed in the previous posting, a comparison with its "indirect" successor unit, Unicorn Gundam in Master Grade Ver. Ka format: ^^




I used "indirect" to describe the two MSs' development history, as the addition of Sinanju Stein into the universe of Gundam Unicorn as the actual prototype of Sinanju, also implies that Unicorn Gundam was developed based off Sinanju Stein, instead of a Sinanju that features none of the emblems and stripes added by The Sleeves after it was stolen from Anaheim Electronics, as indicated in Episode 2 of the OVA series. That predecessor-successor relationship is much more direct, but in reverse in terms of these two Master Grade Ver. Ka releases. Unicorn Gundam came out in December 2007 as the first release of this series, followed by Sinanju exactly one year later. ^^






With their rifles and shield removed:





Sinanju is just slightly taller than Unicorn Gundam, but is definitely bulkier, and heavier. ^^
While they are very different in design - the transformation feature of Unicorn Gundam is a huge variable thrown in that makes a direct comparison between the two almost meaningless. ^^; There are a couple of similarities that I spotted, perhaps not intentionally designed to be so just to shoehorn their fictitious development history into the actual MSs, but they are quite interesting to observe. ^^


[Calf thruster, heel armor]


[Beam tonfas] With different deployment methods though.



[Psychoframe cockpit modules] Realized via clear parts on the kits.
Other elements for comparison:




[Standing figures] Does his Normal Suit and helmet help Banagher Links to stand just as tall as Full Frontal? ^^



[Shields]




[Beam rifles]




[Bazookas]



[Bazooka magazines]



[Bazookas in storage mode]



[Beam sabers]
Comparison between Sinanju and its "spiritual" predecessor, Sazabi. ^^


This is the very first Master Grade design of Sazabi, which came out more than eight years prior to Sinanju, and six years before the first chapter of "Gundam UC" novel was published. ^^










Minor similarity between their backpacks, with the design of having a main pack, two bendable blocks on top of it, and two propellant tanks.


While they can't be combined without the shield, Sinanju's beam swords do bear a resemblance to the same weapon used by Sazabi when they are placed next to one another. ^^



The combined area of Sinanju's beam parts is much bigger than of Sazabi's. ^^
Interestingly, Sazabi eventually "inherited" Sinanju's large beam sword parts, for its own Master Grade Ver. Ka release. ^^



To me, their shields bear the closest resemblance in terms of overall design. ^^ Sinanju's might be smaller, but the widened flanks, protruding chiefs and bases are pretty much the same between the two. ^^


Rear view


Side view
Comparison with MG Char's Customized Zaku II Ver. 2.0:



No comparison at all. XD
There's actually one Zaku II that can indeed be compared to Sinanju, in more ways than just the color scheme: ^^




With MG Johnny Ridden's Customized High Mobility Type Zaku II Ver. 2.0. ^^




All things considered, the Giant Baz assigned to MG Johnny Ridden's Customized High Mobility Type Zaku II Ver. 2.0 is of the same size as Sinanju's rocket bazooka. ^^
If its own bazooka is considered fairly large-sized to be wielded by Sinanju, Giant Baz should be considered an oversized weapon for Zaku II, given the size discrepancy between the two MSs. For that matter, having Giant Baz as its default weapon really helps to strengthen the awesomeness of this MSV Zaku II. ^^


Giant Baz is about 2.5cm shorter than the rocket bazooka.
All in all, a really awesome Master Grade kit this is. ^^ I spent a long time painting and detailing all of its parts, because it's a very fun kit to work on. ^^ The assembly was indeed very enjoyable, as Sinanju is designed with tons of gimmicks, and very flexible articulation capabilities. It was a lot of fun playing with the different components as I was going through the whole kit, but the final completed model is just as impressive. For its size, color scheme, and pretty much just the fact that it's Sinanju gives all of its display poses a sense of authority. There are not many model kits out there that can give you that impression. ^^

Speaking of display, with a set of Soul Stage Act 3 Action Support Clear Type, MG Sinanju Ver. Ka can be arranged like this to show off all of its weapons and option parts: ^^









I tried similar arrangement with MG Unicorn Gundam Ver. Ka, when I was reviewing Soul Stage Act 3 Action Support Clear Type, and its standby pose was pretty good-looking. With Sinanju however, it deserves center spot display on any display shelf. ^^ Ideally, this would be how I display my Sinanju, but I want the display stand set back for it to be used by other model kits and action figures in the future, and the model kit itself would be stored in its box to save space. ^^; The image set above is great for one to get an idea of how awesome Sinanju can look like with just a simple standing pose. I think it's also a fitting send off to this entire review. ^^

All reviews on MG Sinanju Ver. Ka:
Part 1: Red, black and gold combo, exactly what I like the most
Part 2: Surfacer day
Part 3: All black simplicity
Part 4: Unsteady hands
Part 5: Harder ones OK, supposedly simpler ones not OK
Part 6: See you all another time
Part 7: General Ten Cent to the rescue
Part 8: Project Reboot
Part 9: Gold and silver day
Part 10: Black and red day
Part 11: Completely random, completely purposeless added details
Part 12: Correction for prevention
Part 13: Filling in the blanks
Part 14: Finally, additional parts with relatable purpose
Part 15: Confirmation of a pattern
Part 16: More, and more minus molds
Part 17: Miscellaneous detailing and painting
Part 18: Full sets of added fake hydraulic pipes
Part 19: I changed my mind, I want the bling-bling effect back
Part 20: 3 times the bazooka
Part 21: Red paint and red base
Part 22: Rifle and bazooka combo fun
Part 23: Glorious golden goodness
Part 24: Multi-purpose palm tab
Part 25: Weapon gimmick Part 2
Part 26: Even more, subtler linked movement gimmicks
Part 27: Looking good is good enough
Part 28: A skeletal preview of amazing poseability for a large-sized MG
Part 29: When red meets gray
Part 30: Forgotten paint here, missing paint there
Part 31: Red hot Sinanju
Part 32: Sinanju's customized coin
Part 33: Awesomeness in so many weapon combos
Part 34: Awesomeness stalls for no scale
Part 35 [Final]: Quite similar, quite different

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MG Sinanju Ver. Ka