It’s time for another model from Build Metaverse. This time it’s the protagonist’s mobile suit, the Lah Gundam:
About the Mobile Suit
I’m not going to include the description from the instruction manual, since it’s kind of confusing and/or poorly translated. These are the main things you need to know
- It’s a heavily customized version of the Entry Grade Gundam, which is why the real life version is also an Entry Grade
- The main character lives in Hawaii, and so it seemingly has a bit of a Polynesian vibe.
- It has custom shield, a slightly customized beam rifle, and instead of beam sabers it has a naginata.
- Despite being the protagonist’s first custom build, it’s surprisingly powerful.
Tropical Vibes
It’s been a while since I last tried it, but I’m going to try once again to add some custom waterslides. This time, I want to use the Lah Gundam as a memorial to a very special place - and some very special people - for my family. We’ll see how it goes.
Runners
Since this is based on an existing kit, we have a point of comparison. Here are the runners for Lah Gundam:
And here are the ones for the original EG Gundam:
It looks like Runners A1-A3 are all the same, but Lah Gundam ditches part of the A4 runner. It also has a modified B Runner and a completely new D Runner. Suffice to say that there are some significant changes, though I don’t imagine the build itself will be all that different.
Also, just looking at these parts, I can already tell that this kit is going to need some color correction. At the very least I’ll need to:
- Paint the new camera lens for the Beam Rifle
- Paint the front and back camera lenses on the head
- Paint the yellow vents on the legs.
That’s … actually not that different than the standard Entry Grade Gundam. The front camera lens is the only extra bit of work.
Accessories
Here’s the shield:
I appreciate that they actually gave it a new shield, rather than just a recolored version of the original one.
Here is the Beam Rifle with its new custom sight:
I like how it’s red - it’s a nice bit of fun, extra color.
I don’t like that you have to paint the lens greenish-blue. It’s not exactly a color most people are going to have lying around. I was lucky that I had something that’s sort of close, but would it really killed them to toss in a sticker?
(I also don’t like that the back of the sight is hollow, but that’s the typical kind of corner cutting that defines the Entry Grade line, for better or worse)
Lastly, here is the Naginata:
The handle can break into two separate parts for storage on the backpack, kind of like they’re a pair of beam sabers.
Body Parts
The head is almost entirely new, including a new V-Fin:
As well as new detail in the back:
The backpack is also brand new:
And then of course we have all the new detail on the shoulders:
And the (front of the) skirts:
And the front of the legs:
(This came out okay-ish by using a yellow Gundam Marker).
How did the Waterslides Go?
Unlike the Tallgeese II, the waterslides actually worked this time. They don’t look perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but I’m sure I’ll get better with them over time. For now, I’m just happy I managed to pull it off.
Finished
Here now is the Lah Gundam:
There’s not much to say about it. It’s a fun color/parts variant of the Entry Grade Gundam, with a Polynesian/tropical vibe that I quite enjoy. And since it’s now a nice little memorial to family, I think it’s going to have a place in my heart for a long time.
Still, I have some complaints. I would like to see Bandai come out with more new Entry Grade kits, rather than keep making variants of the original Grandaddy Gundam model. It was a great first effort, but in my experience the later EG models (including the Nu Gundam and the Build Strike Exceed Galaxy, itself based on the Entry Grade Strike) are much improved. They have even higher levels of detail and color accuracy while doing a much nicer job of hiding whatever corner cutting they had to do to keep the costs down.
Speaking of which, at an MSRP of $14-$16, this thing costs at least as much, or possibly slightly more than the Exceed Galaxy, which I feel was a much better kit overall. In fact, I’m not actually sure if I would have gotten this one if I didn’t find it on sale.
So what we’re left with is a model that I like a lot at $10-$12, but not so much at $14-$16. If Bandai is going to continue the Entry Grade line - and especially if they’re going to keep raising the price - then they’re going to have to find new ways to use their engineering prowess to surprise and delight.
Otherwise they’re going to be left with a line that’s in the same price range as cheaper, older High Grades, and I don’t think that’s a great place to be. While there are some things Entry Grades do better than old HG’s, there are other things they do worse, and in my opinion a good builder can make even the lowliest High Grade shine with enough effort (whereas there is only so much one can do to mask some of the compromises made with EGs).
Let’s hope they can step up their game.