| MG 1/100 RX-93-n-2 Hi-n Gundam
Series: Master Grade (MG) 1/100 Title: RX-93-n-2 Hi-n Gundam Release Date: 02/2007 Suggested Price: ¥ 7000 No. of Parts: 200+ Plastic colors: white, blue Gimmicks: fin funnel system, display stand, inner frame system
Contributor: Joe Olivo Date: September 27, 2009 For the first time ever, Bandai officially releases the Hi Nu Gundam as a model kit. Six ears after the original Nu Gundam came out, this has to be a very impressive model to top its predecessor.
The head is very easy, yet complicated to build. Consisting of about 10 parts, it probably is one of the most difficult I've had to build. The V fin is very tough to get on, almost required about 20 minutes or more for me to get it right. Despite that, it looks really good once completed, with little range to look up but complete 360 degree turn around.
Mimics the original Nu Gundam torso, so nothing too surprising. The joint's where the arms connect is very well crafted, allowing great movement. I'll cover that more in the arms, but the torso is nice and nothing too fancy or complex. Cockpit opens to reveal pilot inside, though the hatch has trouble closing. That could be either because of the armor around it, or a build mistake. Also, the sheer weight of the Binders and funnels make it a little top heavy but it still balances nicely.
I have a few favorite builds in this kit, and the arms are one of them. They have excellent articulation, can move very freely without hindrance from the Binders and funnels attached to the back. The left forearm houses the shield and a beam saber, which has a nice little opening that resembles the Gundam GP03 forearms. The right arm has a removable pack that feeds the beam gun in the forearm. The fingers bother me a little, they aren't locked into place completely, and have tendency to fall out of place. The joints on the arms are double jointed, which helps when holding the various weapons.
The joints connecting the wait and legs together are set on a movable joint, allowing the legs to be set forward and rear for balancing, poses and whatever else you want it to do. The skirt armor do not hinder any movement and are pretty much out of the way of the legs. They look great, you can tell when they developed this model they tried for great detail. The inner frame system works the best here, as the joints can allow for the legs to be able to be posed in all sorts of positions. From dashing to kneeling, flying or standing, the inner frame allows it all. The feet are built on two parts, the heels and toes. The toe area can bend from a flat foot pose, to nearly straight down. There are grappling hooks on both of the feet, presumably for sticking into a surface. The ankle joint is great, moves about 30 degrees or so.
So many to list. The beam rifle is pretty standard, nothing too great or dull. The Nu Bazooka has a removable cartridge, which is very cool and really not seen anywhere I can recall outside of the MG line. Three beam sabers, two are stored in the Binders and one in the forearm. The two in the binders have the blue saber effect parts for the blade and an extension from the hilt of the beam saber The forearm beam saber is the regular standard saber The six fin funnels are way more awesome here, than on the Nu Gundam. They are removable from the binders, and clip into a little holder which are on joints. The movable joints are great, giving the Gundam an awesome, angel-like presence (sorry Wing Zero). Sadly, the funnels aren't connected tightly and will come off the clips with ease. Each funnel comes with 6 little booster parts to display the verniers, and 6 bendable clear plastic rods to attach to the base. The rods are study, but not thick, which results in them becoming overwhelmed by the weight of the funnels and will sag a ton if left in position. They are easy to bend and can be bent any which way, giving the effect of flight.
Side Note: The inner frame system is based off of the same system that was used for the MG Shining, God, Master and Spiegel Gundams. The action pose was introduced at the tail end of 2001 which, if the Nu Gundam had the "Fighting Action" frame system, would have made for a better model. As of right now, there are maybe 7-10 model with the new system, but more are coming. The Zaku 2, Rx-78-2 Gundam, Char's Zaku and Char's Gelgoog get the Inner Frame treatment this year for their version 2. Some downfalls are the hands, complex but yet not complex head, and easily knocked off pieces, but that's not to say this model is bad. Compared to the old Nu Gundam, this is a step up in design and it looks fantastic. The estimated time for me to build was at least 10 hours plus over 4 days, which for me is a little overboard but the end product is worth it. A little paint, sanding and glue will make the Master Grade Hi Nu Gundam your favorite model, as it did for me. |
