This post took a lot longer to get around to than I expected.
Two things happened that got in the way. The first is I got a new gaming console. Since then I’ve spent my evening “me time” exclusively playing games, rather than working on Gunpla.
The second is that I broke both of the Fenice’s wings while trying to test their range of articulation. I was able to fix up one of them, but I ended up using too much super glue on the other. It can move some, but most of its joints are now frozen in place.
This really got me down in the dumps, and with a bunch of shiny new games calling to me, I lost all motivation to do a photo shoot for this kit. But I pushed through and got at least a handful of photos together. Let’s take a look.
All about the Wings
The Fenice is all about wings. Or rather, it’s all about angling it so that the wings are visible. When they’re behind the body, the mobile suit looks a little too slight. But when you can see them, they add some much needed bulk, while also upping the Fenice’s cool factor by looking like a cape.
As for the broken wings, it’s not as bad as I initially thought. They can’t unfurl as far as they should, but the one wing can still move farther and higher than is necessary, as seen in the photo below:
Suffice to say that they can move around enough for the kinds of poses I’d come up with.
Not Enough Hands
This kit only comes with a single pair of closed holding hands, which makes it very difficult to recreate this pose. Consider myself disappointed.Poses
This was not an easy model to pose. The handle of the Beam Rapier kept falling off, as did the yellow arm talons, and even the holding hands.
In retrospect, I could have glued the Beam Rapier handle together, but the other would have remained.
And to be honest, I just wasn’t in the mood for a crazy photoshoot. Maybe I’ll come back and do some more in the future, but for now I’ve got what I’ve got.
As you can see above, the extra large version of the Buster Rifle makes the Fenice look so much more intimidating than it would otherwise.
The two handed grip is possible, but as usual it’s not exactly easy to pull off.
This pose may be associated with the Wing Zero rather than the Wing Gundam, but the Fenice can pull it off thanks to its detachable secondary rifle.
I should have done more with the feet in this aerial pose. At least the beam cloak looks cool.
The easiest way to keep the beam rapier from falling apart is to keep it horizontal.
Or keep it vertical and hope for the best.
It’s not easy to come up with a firing pose for a shoulder mounted beam cannon.
Gimmicks
The Fenice has two main gimmicks. One is that you can store the rifle on its back:
This actually looks pretty cool, on account of its size. It makes the Fenice look strapped.
You can also store the hilt of the beam rapier on the left arm:
I know what you’re thinking - this is a model kit that can carry all of its accessories on its body at the same time, and that’s always worth bonus points in my book.
Comparison to RG Wing Gundam
We have to do this comparison. It’s the law!
In terms of sheer detail, the Fenice doesn’t do half bad. It’s less detailed in the legs and the wings, but the rest of its body is fairly comparable.
But yeah, those wings. It’s not really much of a comparison. The RG Wing Gundam’s are longer, and far, far more detailed. That’s not necessarily meant as a knock against the Fenice - it’s wings are really just decorative/ornamental, and in that regard they do their job well enough. I just want to gush a bit about how good the RG’s look.
Conclusion
You might not think it, what with the lack of photos, but I really do like this model. It’s yet another variation of Wing Gundam that I think looks better than the original, and I really do think it’s the epitome of the Build Fighters ethos. And as a model kit, it’s very well made and still feels pleasantly modern. Thumbs up.