Mobile Suit Gundam

Despite losing the Battle of Endymion Crater due to the Atlantic Federation's Cyclops System, ZAFT was undeterred and continued to engage the Earth Alliance's space forces, to further reduce the Alliance's military presence in space. The Republic of East Asia's resource asteroid Nova in Lagrange Point 4 soon became the newest target for ZAFT.

On June 14th C.E. 70, ZAFT forces advanced to L4 and laid siege to Nova. While the initial fighting between ZAFT and the Republic broke out around the asteroid base, the fighting continued over several weeks, and many civilian space colonies in Lagrange Point 4 became devastated or destroyed as a result of collateral damage. Eventually the entire civilian population of the colonies had to be evacuated.

Can't believe this was 25 years ago.

Crummy pic. Hand painted over rattlecan primer. The doors no longer move because 20 year old me had no idea what he was doing and didn't sand before laying on layers of paint.

I still have this packed away somewhere. Maybe one day I'll dig the old stuff back out and see if I can get some decent photos.

Kidou Senshi Gundam GQuuuuuuX, episode 10

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Done many moons ago by my spouse and I, just after she got into Gundam. The Tri-Star kit was where I first fell in love with Molotow chrome. Unfortunately, I've found that they do not store well. At ~$10 a pen, that's a bummer.

I'm what you might call a G3 simp. I cannot express how annoying it is that Bandai changes the color scheme with every release. And lately the main color has been basically white... which goes against G3 being "the gray one." The original MG comes closest to the canon color scheme IMO.

And yes, I know I can paint. I would love to have a cohesive, consistent lineup of gray/purple Amuro alt suits (G3, Zeta III, Hi Nu, maybe Unicorn because it would look rad). It's just not on my radar any time soon.

Straight built with some minor touch up work and bog-standard panel lining. Old, old kit that I completed a few years ago. Really took me back.

I have no idea what old builds I've posted where. Apologies if this is a repeat.

Kidou Senshi Gundam GQuuuuuuX, episode 9

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MG RB-79 Mobile Pod Ball Ver. Ka

Ball! :blobcataww:

No decals yet, and I'm considering painting the internal cage structure gunmetal (although I don't plan to display its inner frame). The 3(!) pilot figures that came with it have to be painted, too. Long term, it'll probably live on my desk at home or at work.

(Quick detour; I'll get started on Epyon next)

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#MasterGrade #gundam #gunpla #modelkits #mecha #mg_ver_ka

cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/11621155

Random older build. Jesta > GM > Nemo > Jegan. IMO, of course.

My FLHS hasn't gotten any of the Exceed heads in years. Here's two of my favorites.

I just finished a re-read of the original Gundam novels (Awakening, Escalation, Confrontation) by Tomino himself. In the light of GQX's "what if" timeline, I think now is as good a time as any for any and all UC fans to give them a go.

Up front, the events in the novels are not canon. Tomino wrote the books while the anime was still in production, and wanted to go in a more mature direction with the story, unconstrained by sponsors and toy sales. There are many parallels to the anime, but right from the get-go things are framed differently: Amuro, Kai, Hayato, and Ryu are already enlisted pilot cadets in the Federation. The concept of newtypes is also introduced early on.

Events, and some characters, diverge further from canon as the story moves along. The beats remain mostly the same but the details vary. One of the most relevant differences, in terms of present-day, is that Challia Bull takes on a much more important role in the novels. In the anime, he was just one of many forgettable doomed mobile armor pilots. In the books, he becomes Char's trusted confidante and a major player. I got chills while watching GQX Beginning in the theater - the vibe was totally lifted from the novels.

By the final showdown, events have diverged almost unrecognizably from the anime, and are incompatible with anything else from the franchise. Tomino has said that had he known how the anime was going to end, and that there would be sequel(s), he would not have written the books as he did. But as they are, they give insight into the directions Tomino wanted to go, some of which were realized in Zeta especially.

And I think that is really where the novels shine. While the events are not canon, there is thematic depth that absolutely still resonates in Gundam to this day. Officially, bits and pieces have been taken from the books over the years for various media: Zeon PM Darcia made it into the movie adaptation of the anime; G3 Gundam has become a staple color variant; Sasro was fleshed out in Origin; and now Challia is getting some of the spotlight in GQX.

All that said, there are some rough edges. First and foremost, Tomino is notoriously bad at writing nuance for women's characters. The novels are no exception. Though there is a bit of saving grace in that he verbalizes some of his complex through the thoughts of the male characters, which makes it a bit easier to relate to IMO. Instead of being squarely incel-level "woman does something incomprehensible," it's more "I have no idea what she was thinking, but I wish I did so I could have not been such an ass." It's not much of an improvement, but I'll take what I can get in this category. Also, the English translation itself is kind of rough. It's not bad, and I can't speak on accuracy, but there's an awkwardness that's hard for me to describe.

In all, I see the novels as an integral, though complimentary, piece of UC lore. They open a window into Tomino's thought process while the original anime was still taking form, giving us more depth to some key characters even if the events are an alternate timeline.

I do not believe this is currently in print. Once fairly rare, there have been at least two modern compilations so it shouldn't be too difficult to locate. Of note, the downloadable epub version on archive.org is from the original 1990 translation. This was long before official romanizations of names were available, so we get some phonetic transliterations like Sha, Brite, Zak, and Zavi. It also seems to have stripped out line breaks, along with the occasional < Line of newtype telepathic dialog > , though this may have just been my reader borking things. The PDFs look fine though.

Okay, gushfest over. If anyone else has read these (or is curious about anything), I would love to hear your thoughts.

MG GTO RX-78-2 (Complete)

I finally finished all the weapons for the #MasterGrade #GundamTheOrigin #RX_78_2. This thing has so many extras. I didn't even show off any of the effect pieces in this photoshoot. The shoulder cannon is a neat addition to the design (compared to MSG), and I really like the new beam rifle. Overall, a fantastic kit.

I do still need to paint the pilot figures, but at this point I have a handful that I'll paint all at once.

@gundam

#mecha #modelkits #gunpla #gundam

After successfully taking the Strait of Gibraltar, ZAFT continued their push into the Mediterranean Sea and Africa. In order to take control of the Mediterranean Sea, and deny the Earth Alliance of vital strategic sea routes, ZAFT began pressing toward the Suez Canal. To counter this ZAFT offensive, the Eurasian Federation sent its massive Armored corps to stop the enemy's advance. Among the men of the armored corps was the tank commander Morgan Chevalier.

On the evening of May 30th, ZAFT forces approaching from the Mediterranean Sea made landing and clashed with the Eurasian Armored Corps at El Alamein, near the Suez Canal. Despite ZAFT forces displaying incredible tactical maneuvers, the battle was not in their favor. The Eurasian forces had came prepared; with vast minefields, endless missiles and artillery barragess, and an overwhelming number of tanks. ZAFT's landing forces, particularly the Zuoots, suffered many losses despite their superior firepower.

As the battle progressed, ZAFT reinforcements entered the battle from the Qattara Depression, a place that was considered impassable by most military vehicles due to the difficult terrain. But ZAFT's land battleships, equipped with the unique "scale motor" propulsion, managed to traverse the Qattara Depression. These ZAFT reinforcements led by Andrew Waltfeld caught the Eurasian Federation completely off guard, as Eurasians never considered the enemy to attack from that direction due to the terrain. Once on the battlefield, the ZAFT land battleships deployed the new BuCUEs, which tore into the Eurasian rank and decimated the Eurasian forces. Thanks to the surprise attack from an unexpected direction and the impressive performance of BuCUE, ZAFT managed to defeat the Eurasian armored corps, and even Morgan Chevalier had to admit the future of warfare is in mobile suits. With the massive loss of its massive Armored corps, Eurasian Federation could not hope to stem the tide of ZAFT heavy assault, and ZAFT took over the Suez Canal with ease.

After the defeat of the Eurasian Federation at El Alamein, ZAFT successfully took control of Suez. With both the Suez Canal and the Strait of Gibraltar under ZAFT control, Earth Alliance lost all sea routes to the Mediterranean Sea from outside. The control of Suez also meant that ZAFT could now travel straight to the Red Sea and the Suez Canal to reach North Africa and the Mediterranean. By securing the Mediterranean, ZAFT forces in North Africa could begin to push south toward the Habilis mass driver complex.

Kidou Senshi Gundam GQuuuuuuX, episode 7

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MG GTO RX-78-2

No full photoshoot yet, since I haven't finished all its weapons, but here's a brief look at #MasterGrade #GundamTheOrigin #rx_78_2. The LED looks really good in decent light, and it's super bright in the dark (maybe a bit too bright; might paint the inside of the top of its head to keep the light from bleeding through).

I won't complain too much about the hands (again), but I do wish they had included some fixed pose holding hands.

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#Gundam #gunpla #modelkits

With the Southern Pacific and Indian Ocean secured, ZAFT can proceed with their strategy to capture or destroy all mass drivers controlled by Earth Alliance. As part of this Earth-side offensive, a ZAFT task force left Carpentaria base heading for Mediterranean sea.

In May 25th C.E. 70, the ZAFT Task Force was intercepted by the Eurasian Federation’s Mediterranean fleet near Casablanca. However, the Eurasia Federation’s Mediterranean fleet was devastated by ZAFT’s aquatic mobile suits, including the newly developed Goohn.

With the defeat of the Eurasian Federation fleet, ZAFT task force entered into the Mediterranean sea. Soon they took control of the strategically vital Strait of Gibraltar, and began construction of Gibraltar Base.

HG Gundam Aerial and Mirasoul

While I waited on the results from my previous poll, I built the HG Gundam Aerial to go with my previously built HG Mirasoul. This was a very satisfying build, and a result I'm very happy with. No varnish was used on Aerial, but I had to topcoat the Mirasoul due to all the curved surface stickers.

I think this one will replace HG Grimgerde as my live-at-work kit.

(sorry for the upside down heels)

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#HighGrade #GWitch #hgtwfm #gunpla #gundam #modelkits

Kidou Senshi Gundam GQuuuuuuX, episode 7

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Today, the DINN was officially introduced into service by ZAFT. Developed by the Heinlein Design Bureau based on its earlier ZGMF-515 CGUE, the DINN was the first aerial combat mobile suit, designed to achieve air superiority. To that end, it was more than 40 tons lighter than the CGUE and equipped with six large wings on its high-thrust backpack, granting it atmospheric flight capabilities.

For high-speed flight, the DINN switches to flight mode, where the six wings are unfolded and its head is covered by an aeroshell, a feature inherited from the experimental ZGMF/TAR-X1 GINN Tactical Air Reconnaissance Type, and served to reduce air resistance, thereby increasing flight speed and suppressing fuel consumption. This also had the effect of extending the DINN's flight range. While the DINN's head was largely the same as the CGUE's, the latter's head-mounted sensor array was omitted to facilitate the deployment of the aeroshell.

Weapons-wise, the DINN was equipped with the same M7S heavy assault machine gun as the CGUE, a new M100 190mm anti-air shotgun, and four 6-tube missile launchers on its chest. The guns are mounted on holsters during flight to reduce drag.

The success of the DINN also prompted Heinlein Design Bureau to create variant of the unit; the AME-WAC01 DINN Special Electronic Installation Type, and the AMF-103A DINN RAVEN:

The DINN Special Electronic Installation Type is a non-combat variation created for early warning and to command battle from the air. Compared to the standard DINN, the DINN Special Electronic Installation Type focused more on flight capabilities than aerial combat performance. One such modification to achieve this is the installation of huge high lift devices on the redesigned main wings, and these devices are completely retractable so as to reduced drag during high-speed flight. Additionally, a jet engine is mounted on the rotatable pivot on each wing's underside to maintain a constant thrust vector regardless of the wing's angle, and the aeroshell on the mobile suit's back also has an added retractable vertical stabilizer to improve stability.

The DINN Special Electronic Installation Type's primary equipment is a large radome, which is carried in its hands. The multipurpose launchers of the standard DINN are replaced with compound sensors for surveying ground activities at high altitude, and are covered by transparent super-hard resin. The gun racks on the hips of the standard DINN have also been converted into multi-functional storage pods, which usually contain electronic equipment such as additional sensors and ECM pods. Depending on situations, they can also carry flares and N-Jammers dispenser. Unlike normal mobile suit, the DINN Special Electronic Installation Type is operated by a crew of 3, 1 pilot and 2 operators. As such, its cockpit is enlarged resulting in a protruding chest. To reduce the possibility of being detected, the machine is coated with a low visibility, EM-wave absorbing paint containing ferrite powder.

The AMF-103A DINN RAVEN (Reconnaissance Attack AdVanced Electronic iNstallation) is equipped with Mirage Colloid Stealth System, which is referenced to in the "electronic installation" part of its the name. It is also equipped with redesigned thrusters, enhanced sensors and has improved mobility. Additionally, the design of its wings, front skirts, calf thrusters, backpack, etc., are revised.

The "A" at the end of its model number suggests that like the ZGMF-X10A Freedom and ZGMF-X09A Justice, the DINN RAVEN is equipped with nuclear reactor and Neutron Jammer Canceller, giving it practically unlimited operation time and an incredible 8826KW output, 4 times higher than even the powerful GAT-X105 Strike.

Situated on northern Australia, ZAFT’s Carpentaria base is its biggest and most important installation on Earth. ZAFT finished construction the base in May 20th, less than 2 months after the start of the construction. This is partly achieved by dropping prefabricated modules from orbit to expedite the construction process. Carpentaria base is instrumental to ZAFT’s military campaigns to take Alliance mass drivers on Earth.

With the base completed, ZAFT can project its presence further on Earth, sending out expeditionary fleets to other regions of the planet hostile to them. A few days after the completion of the base, a ZAFT fleet set off toward the Atlantic ocean...