In 2019 and 2020, I built a number of model kits without finishing my writeups on them, and without doing any photo shoots. I got a whole bunch of new kits for the holidays, and one of my short term New’s Years resolutions was to go back and revisit these older kits before building anything new. I decided to tackle them in the order I built them. Here then is my followup on the Real Grade Tallgeese, which I built way back in Feb/March of 2020.
I really didn’t have any fun with the Tallgeese build. Even though I never took photos of the finished model, and even though I never properly reviewed it, I actually did write a final post for it, where I flat out stated that I was too demoralized to do any of that. There was a lot about the model (and the build) that I was frustrated with, most especially the fact that I broke a key part.
But hey, it’s been almost a year since then. Let’s see if time healed old wounds. Just wait here while I pull the Tallgeese off the shelf shoot some poses:
Okay, I’m back. Now let’s talk.
My final take on the Real Grade Tallgeese is that it feels less like a model kit and more like an anime figurine, like a Nenodroid or a Bandai Spirits figure.
These kinds of figures sacrifice articulation for high detail and great colors. They usually come with enough accessories (props, hands, swappable faces) and just enough articulation to recreate a handful of iconic poses.
They may not be as responsive as a Gunpla, but that’s not the point of them. You’re meant to pick a pose, leave it be, and let it look fantastic.
This, I decided, is how I have to treat my Real Grade Tallgeese. In attempting to pose it, I discovered/remembered that its joints are unbelievably stiff and unresponsive.
Generally speaking, Gunpla are so precisely engineered that there is no middle ground between “you can do that” and “you can’t do that”. The joints will let you know very quickly what they are capable of.
With the Tallgeese, however, even simple, basic bends and rotations require me to apply an unreasonable amount of torque. Sometimes it actually causes the pieces to creak and moan under the pressure.
Here is what I think happened - the joints on this model are designed to be extremely tight. I then topcoated all of the frame parts, which always adds a little bit of additional resistance. Normally this is a good thing - on the average kit, it tends to tighten up otherwise loose joints. However, on the Tallgeese, this caused its already tight joints to get too tight.
Or I assembled some of the parts while the topcoat was still wet, and it caused them to stick together as they dried. OR I sprayed them down after they were already assembled, and caused the individual pieces to fuse together. I know I did that at least once, and it caused a part to break. I just can’t remember if I did it at any other point. This is what I get for waiting ten months after the build …
Whatever the cause, the Tallgeese is now like a figurine. I can get it (sometimes barley) into a handful of classic poses, and that’s it. Anything more than that and I run the risk of breaking something else.
So here you go folks - enjoy some collages of I made out of the handful of poses I managed:
Back in March, I did not like the Tallgeese’s glossy white plastic, or the model’s odd proportions, but since then I’ve come around on both. I like how you get an effortlessly shiny finish, and the wide hips and tiny waist gives it a delightfully robotic silhouette. I also remain impressed with the verniers, which are a marvel of engineering. They manage to cram so much into such a small space - I’m still delighted to see just how much they explode out when opened wide.
This model came with a few clear beam saber blades, and I used some paint to give them some custom color. They still look good months later:
Here is a pose I’ve always wanted to do. It took me until now to have a painted miniature pilot figurine to do it with:
And with that, I’ve run out of things to show you. Tallgeese looks pretty great, but I play around with it at my own risk. I’m putting this back on the shelf, in a decent pose, and leaving it there. That may be the only way to keep it intact.
