It’s been almost a year since my last model kit build, and I’m ready to get back on the horse. Last time I promised myself I would try a Master Grade next. That …. didn’t pan out. Turns out I still can’t find one.
It is infuriating, really. Before I got into this hobby, it seemed like everyone I encountered who was into it was building Master Grades. For years I assumed it was kind of the standard. And lo, when I went to gundamplanet.com in search of a my next project, what did I encouter but the following description of Master Grades - “Gunpla mainstream. Very detailed …” If I was wrong in my assumption, I certainly wasn’t the only one.
But go to gundamplanet.com - or Hobby Link Japan, or Amazon, or any other online retailer - and you’ll find kit after kit listed as out of stock. It looks as if the only way I’m going to build a Master Grade is if I’m interested in one that came out in the last year. How can MG’s be mainstream if I can’t find any? I’ve yet to find a reasonable explanation, but in the meantime, I still need something to build.
But what, exactly? There aren’t any Real Grades I’m jonesing to try right now.
“Why not a High Grade?”, you might ask. “You really liked that Tryon 3 way more than you expected. Seems like you could be surprised again.”
Of course you would be right. And yet I still kept thinking that HG’s were somehow below me. It wasn’t until I got desperate that I changed my tune. It turns out that many of the mobile suits I love are available in High Grade form. I read the reviews, and was once again reminded that modern HG’s are highly poseable and surprisingly detailed. They’re smaller and cheaper, yes, but they still pack a punch. I’m ashamed that I had to be reminded of this. How could I forget how awesome the Tryon 3 turned out? Heck, how could I forget all the Gunpla fans on Youtube doing end-of-year top ten lists? Every single one was dominated by HG’s. They aren’t baby food.
So back to High Grades it is. And since they’re so cheap online, I was able to get two. I’m kind of ashamed to reveal them. They’re two favorites of mine, but they’re also two highly blatant cash grabs on the part of Bandai. Everyone knows that any given Gundam show is driven in part by a desire to sell models. That means you’ll always run into at least one mobile suit that serves no purpose other than to give Bandai an excuse to sell another box of plastic parts. The two mobile suits in question are very egregious examples of this practice. They both show up in short OVA’s, and both get very little screen time. But Bandai knows its fans, and they know that this tactic works, shame or not.
So without further ado, here’s what I got this time around. First is the RX79-G EZ-8, the late episode replacement for the protagonist’s mobile suit in Gundam: The 08th MS Team.
Technically, it’s the standard RX79-G that’s my true favorite, but I could only find the EZ-8, and it’s close enough.
The second is the Kampfer, from 0080: War in the Pocket.
This one is the most blatant cash grab of the two, as it is on screen for mere minutes before being destroyed. And yet in those few scenes it manages to be one of the most badass mobile suits in all of the Universal Century.
I also have a new supply to try out. I got some Gundam Markers, one of several products officially branded for use with model kits. I have no idea if they’ll be better than my current panel lining marker, but a two pack of these Gundam Markers cost the same as the single marker I get from the craft store. Plus it comes with a grey marker, which should be handy on dark plastic. Should be interesting.
