Wednesday, November 18, 2015

HG 1/144 Gundam Barbatos Part 1

New Gunpla from a new TV series to be reviewed with a slightly new method

Cutting into the current review of S.I.C. Vol. 16 Kamen Rider Black RX & Kamen Rider Black to feature the work on a brand new Gunpla I got recently. ^^


This is High Grade 1/144 scale Gundam Barbatos from "MS Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans" that is currently airing in Japan. In terms of my reviews, this kit is definitely the fastest to be featured from the series it originates from. ^^ Given that I usually review a particular collectible 20 years after getting it (XD), this HG kit is a very unique case for my blog. ^^

And since it's a very special experience for me, I will put in something new to the review to make it (hopefully) more interesting. ^^


HG 1/144 Gundam Barbatos
Production company: Bandai Hobby Division
Release date: October 2015
Price: 1,000 Yen (exclusive of tax).
Official link

Then again, you have probably seen that already if you follow me on Twitter. ^^


Back to Gundam Barbatos, I still remember the slow reveal of its design on the series' official site and was very excited about it. ^^


Even though it was understandable that the Gundam's true proportion would not be accurately represented in that angled view, the large v-fin, huge shoulder armors and protruding chest armor made it seem rather knight-like, and the design emphasis would be on bulk and heavy armor. For that (perceived) medieval look, I was really looking forward to Gundam Barbatos's eventual announcement. ^^



(Left) Image of the pilot, Mikazuki Augus (三日月・オーガス) on the box art.
(Right) New High Grade emblem and merchandising seal of "MS Gundam Iron-Blooded Orphans".

When the Gundam was eventually revealed in its entirety, the two melee weapons of a giant mace and a Samurai sword do give it a knight-like impression, but I was rather surprised at just how thin the design is. ^^ The waist, forearms and calves look like they could really use some armor reinforcement. ^^; Then again, having those mecha components exposed does give the Gundam a very agile and human-like image, and that image was very clearly illustrated by its combat action in Episode 3. ^^




Introduction of the kit on the sides of box.


Comparison of Gundam Barbatos's box with that of an HG kit from "MG Gundam AGE", in this case G-Xiphos.
The large white area on the left side of the box art for product name and other labels is a similarity between the designs from both series so far it seems. ^^



While I do like the look of exposed mechanical components on Gundam Barbatos, the main appeal of the Gundam to me is still its fierce look. ^^ The large V-fin, pointy chin, protruding chest, claw-like fingers, the aforementioned giant mace and Samurai sword - a very sharp silhouette overall makes it stand out easily among all the Gundam designs throughout the three decades of the franchise's history. ^^

Don't forget the spikes as its toes. Can you imagine getting kicked in the face by those toes? XD


Box open.


Content.

In terms of the Gunpla line, realizing an inner frame even on kits from the High Grade series and weapon options are the main emphasis I guess. The former is not exactly too surprising for Gundam Barbatos for the reason already mentioned earlier on, and the show constantly refers to it being a "Gundam Frame"-type MS anyway. I was pleasantly surprised at the inner frame implementation on kits of grunt units such as Graze as well, especially the 1/100 scale version. ^^

I'll probably pick up the 1/100 scale version of Gundam Barbatos when it reaches Malaysia, but the entire series in general looks interesting and promising. ^^

A look at the runners' design:



Runner A1 - Contains dark gray parts mainly for the limbs' frame and joints.


Runner label: IBO Gundam Frame 1.



Delicate molded details for the arm and leg frames' pipes.


Interesting one-piece part design for the ankle joint pieces.


Runner A2 - Contains dark gray parts mainly for the weapons and body frame.


(Left) One-piece part design for the body frame with intricate molded details.
(Right) Long protruding backpack thruster part.


(Left) Long and large parts for the giant mace.
(Right) One-piece Samurai sword.


Runner separation hints on A2. The weapons, frame parts for Form 1 (第1形態)'s left arm and backpack connectors are obvious parts to be swapped out if the kit gets a new variation in the future, ...


... but it's interesting to see that the two helmet parts are included as well. ^^ So a new kit of this Gundam in the future is going to have a modified head as well? ^^


Runners A1 and A2 can be fitted together to form a much larger runner. They were split to accommodate the box side I believe.


Runner B - Contains white parts for the entire model.


Runner label: Gundam Barbatos.



Large protruding parts for various armors.


Almost all the parts on this runner have very intricate design and details. ^^


Runner C (yellow), Runner D (red) and Runner E (blue).
Their runner label is the same as that on Runner B - Gundam Barbatos.


Delicate molded details for the chest vents and V-fin on Runner C.


The protruding sole panels on the foot parts are to be left in red according to the instruction manual.


Polycap set PC-002.


Foil sticker sheet.


Instruction manual and a promotional pamphlet for the SD Gundam EX-Standard series.








The instruction manual.



Promo pamphlet for the SD Gundam EX-Standard series.


Four upcoming releases: Unicorn Gundam (this month), Strike Freedom Gundam (December), Gundam Astray Red Frame (January) and 00 Gundam (February).


All removed parts are organized and stored in individual paper containers.

Will start working on this kit in the next posting. ^^
Posted by at 8:58 PM
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