Let’s finish up this build so Wing Gundam can finally take to the skies.
Wings
I’m not at all surprised when I say that this was the hardest part of the build.
First off, look at how many parts are required to build a single wing:
It is a lot to keep track of, and they proved to be a huge challenge when it came to applying the decals. The instructions do a terrible job of helping you identify which specific pieces - and which side of each piece - you’re supposed to apply the decals to.
You can figure it out if you stare at it long enough, but it still feels a lot like defusing a bomb, where you are fearful that each move you make ends up being the wrong one.
By some miracle, I managed to get them right for both wings, which was a huge relief.
The wings are the only part of the entire model that uses any Advanced MS Joint parts. Back in the day, most of a Real Grade’s inner frame would be made of these prebuilt sections, but nowadays they instead use Master Grade-style frames that you put together yourself. The Advanced MS Joints are now limited to two, maybe four parts in the entire box, seemingly for no other reason than to allow Bandai to continue putting it as a bullet point in their marketing materials:
In this case, the two prebuilt parts are the hinges that attach the wings to the body. Of all the things to use a prebuilt joint for, this is probably the best choice. It isn’t strictly necessary - High Grade kits like the Gundam F91 and Wing Zero build similarly capable hinges out of individual parts - but it is certainly convenient
In order to show you just how the wings are assembled, I took photos of each individual step in the process, and created an animated GIF. Unfortunately, two of the frames became corrupted when I was trying to trim down the file size, so there’s a moment near the end where you’ll see some red and blue pieces appear out of nowhere. Regardless, this should still give you the gist of it:
It is important to note that while many of the pieces look the same, only a few of these pieces are interchangeable. The rest of them each go in a specific place, in a specific orientation, etc. If you’re like me, and you cut out and prep your parts before assembly, you have to be very careful to triple check that you’re using the right piece at any given step in the assembly process.
Now without further ado, I give you the fully assembled wings:
I have so much to say about these:
- The wings are the only section that really, truly feels like they're Real Grade calibre without exceptions or caveats. The amount of detail and decals, the amount of panel lines - there is no question that these wings demonstrate a level of intricacy that you simply will not find in a High Grade.
- Whereas the main body of Wing Gundam is dominated by blue, the wings are dominated by red and yellow. This has the potential to make the mobile suit look _too_ colorful - too busy, if you will - but it turns out to be extremely smart about its color placement (put a pin in that for now, as I want to get back to it once the model is complete).
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The wings stay locked in place via a series of very tiny, primitive locking mechanisms:
If you disconnect these "locks", you can pull out and unfurl the wings, and then lock them back into place when you're done. It doesn't work perfectly - there have been times where I've had to try multiple times to push everything together - but all in all it works well enough.
- There are lots of great panel lines across both wings, and they really help to bring them to life.
Backpack
The wings may be ready, but we still need some way to attach them to the body. For that, we get a tiny little backpack:
I’m a bit embarrassed to admit how long it took me to figure out how to assemble this. Turns out I had one of the pieces oriented incorrectly.
Anyway, I decided to do this one with a mix of gloss and matte clear coat, and the result was better than I expected. It adds a nice bit of contrast. but is small enough that it doesn’t distract.
In terms of gimmicks, the two square-shaped thrusters on the bottom can move up and down. Other than that, it mainly exists to keep the wings in place.
Head
The head goes together the same as any other Real Grade. Not much to say here:
I’ve never liked how Wing Gundam and Wing Zero have elf-like ears sticking out to the sides, but these ones don’t protrude quite that far, so I think I can live with them:
Visual Analysis
Normally I’d wrap this post up with a teaser image of the finished build, but this time I want to end with a bit of analysis of the visual design. But first, here it is - the fully assembled Real Grade Wing Gundam:
I said it before, but I’ll say it again - the colors on this model are phenomenal. They’re so bright, and the hint of orange in the yellow sections adds a much needed sense of warmth to a model that is so very dominated by blue.
Now, if you’re still not convinced that the colors make a difference, compare the Wing Gundam next to the High Grade Wing Zero:
Imagine if it used that dark of a shade of blue, alongside this extremely bright yellow:
I don’t think it would look nearly as good in those colors. The Real Grade Wing Gundam feels bright and cheery. For a design with such a strong Super Robot vibe, that’s exactly what it needs.
But it isn’t just the choice of colors that’s great, but also how they are used. Let’s take that pin out and talk about color placement. With the wings in place, there are very definite throughlines of color across the body of the model. I’ve highlighted them in the image below:
This is why, despite being so colorful, the model doesn’t look particularly busy. The colors are not placed arbitrarily, and while they aren’t strictly localized to specific body parts, they still feel localized across specific sectors.
Lastly, let’s briefly talk about the wings. They absolutely steal the show. They are much longer and much wider than in the original design, and this changes the look of the model on a fundamental level. To compare, here is how the wings look in the TV show, as well as on the High Grade model:
The wings are what separate and differentiate this mobile suit from its comrades (they’re literally in its name). But look at those screenshots above, and just try and tell me that those wings don’t look vestigial.
On the Real Grade, however, they’re dominant. You can tell that they aren’t just for show. No, this thing can fly. Even when on the ground, it looks like it can take off at a moment’s notice and rain hell on you from above. The Real Grade design feels like threat, above and beyond most of the mobile suits in Gundam Wing.
Conclusion
That’s it for now. In the next post, we’ll test out the articulation and try out some poses.