With all of its gear, Command Gundam has even more limited articulation and range than other (already limited) SD models. And yet that isn’t much of a hindrance. The sheer number of different weapons - and the number of different combinations in which it can wield them - means there are plenty of different shots we can stage.
You can go knife:
SMG:
SMG with knife as a bayonet:
Heavy machine gun:
Or two guns:
But we’re not done yet. Command Gundam comes with a pair of open palm hands, and it turns out that the right hand has a small peg in it, which allows it to hold one of its grenades:
Then there’s the matter of the tripod. It’s only piece of equipment that Command Gundam can’t carry on its back, and it allows us to create two different mounted gun configurations. The first one simply creates a mounted version of the heavy machine gun:
Detachable Handle
If you look closely at some of these photos, you may notice that the handle of the heavy machine gun is detachable, and can be positioned either vertically or horizontally. Each has its advantages and disadvantages. The vertical position is arguably better for holding it in one hand. You _can_ do a one handed horizontal grip, but only if the hand is positioned in a certain way, otherwise the weapon is liable to fall out. But if you want the gun to lay flat on the ground when using the tripod, the horizontal grip is necessary.The second configuration takes nearly every one of the Command Gundam’s weapons and straps them together into a monstrosity of firepower:
Where we have a cannon, a missile launcher, and two guns all mounted on a pair of wheels. I like this idea in theory, as it is the literal culmination of the model’s excessive firepower. But in practice, I think it looks a little goofy in action:
Battle Damage
I ended up breaking a piece of the tripod while disassembling it for this photo shoot. I managed to glue it together just long enough to get the last of the photos, but since I didn’t give the glue time to cure, it broke off again. After cleaning everything up, I re-glued it a second time, and even applied some Tamiya cement along the breakline. I have no idea if it will stay in one piece over the long run. On one hand, I’d like it to be just out of principle: I don’t like having models with lots of broken parts. But on the other hand, I don’t really see myself using the tripod ever again, so it’s not a huge loss if it doesn’t.Comparison to the Command Quan[T]
Now for a final comparison - how does the Command Quan[T] look compared to the Gundam that inspired it?
I wasn’t super keen on the Command Quan[T] when I built it. These comparison shots shift my opinion somewhat, though not necessarily in a positive (or negative) direction. I feel roughly as negative about it, but for slightly different reasons than before.
I see now that the Command Quan[T] does a pretty good job of replicating the overall look of the Command Gundam. They’re obviously not identical - what I mean is that it preserves the color palette and the militaristic look while removing some of the cartoonishness (which is a good thing in this case, since the cartoonishness of SD Gundams doesn’t tend to translate well into “normal” sized mobile suits).
But at the same time, it lacks the sheer firepower of the Command Gundam. That’s not to say I’d want it to preserve all of the original accessories - for example, there’s no need for the cannon or the tripod, or even the grenades.
But Command Quan[T]’s focus on melee weapons over firearms gives it a different vibe. If it had two guns, or some more body mounted weapon pods, I think it would capture the spirit of the original model without looking too absurd. As it stands, it feels like half of an homage, and that doesn’t work for me.
Final Thoughts
I reserve the right to change my opinion, but right now this is the best SD Gundam I’ve ever built.
On a high level, I think it takes great advantage of the inherent cutesiness and cartoonishness of the SD Gundam concept. You really couldn’t get away with making a full sized Gundam with quite this much firepower, but strap it onto an adorable SD and it works.
On a more practical level, this feels like the action figure I always wanted, but never got. I would have loved to take something like this and have it wage a one man war against everything else in my toybox.
On a financial level, this kit feels like a great value. It has so much more stuff - and so much better color separation - than any other SD I own, yet it’s still price competitive (for comparison, the SD Gundam World Heroes kits are about $4 cheaper, but most of them are lacking in accessories and/or color separation compared to this).
Command Gundam met all of my expectations and then some. I’m so happy to finally have it on my shelf.
RIP to my Dad
My dad loved watching the great (and not-so-great) action films of the 80’s and 90’s. Even when I was a kid, and was too young to watch them, I always asked him how the Good Guy ended up beating the Bad Guy in the final scene. The way my dad set the scene left such a vivid picture in my mind. All I wanted to do was see the film for myself.
When I went back to watch those films as an adult, some of those ending scenes ended up being lamer than I imagined, but I still had my dad’s descriptions in my mind. They ended up enhancing the gravitas of the moment, and making those scenes more enjoyable than they would have been otherwise.
And of course, eventually I got a chance to watch action movies with him. If they were good, we shared our excitement over which scenes we thought were the coolest. And if they were duds, we shared enjoyment from making fun of them.
Building this model brought a flood of these memories to the front of my mind. So dad - I’m dedicating this model to you. I love you, and I hope you are resting in peace.