Prof. Layton here! My first official post in GMK! Yay!
As Erlangshen might have mentioned, the design of this kit is clearly based on Hajime Katoki sensei’s redesign of Gundam Wing, instead of the original design by Kunio Okawara sensei. Let’s give a brief info on Katoki sensei, if you are not already aware. Born in 1963, Katoki sensei has not various mecha design. His first fame is for the Gundam Sentinel photonovel series. For Gundam W, he redesigned the first 5 mecha, which gain so much popularity that the design were used as a basis for the OVA version of the mecha, Endless Waltz. As far as I know, a new manga is coming soon that will feature Katoki sensei’s original redesign, which is why Bandai also use this opportunity to relaunch the product, including this SD kit.
Over-all Look
The original Gundam W SD kit were launched as part of the GGeneration plamo and those plamo did not have knees nor elbow joint. In comparison, this kit kit looks much nicer and Katoki sensei’s redesign certainly add more style as well.
As usual, Bandai Super Deformed kit often had hollowed out pats and this kit is no exception. The hollowed section includes: behind the ears, the inner side of the upper arm and the bottom part of the magazine holder thingy.
Of all the 3, the magazine holder is the trickiest if you want to create a nice, smooth surface.
Articulations
This kit has elbow joint! Yay! And it’s pretty good. From what I hear, all upcoming kit will have elbow joint. I would assume a lot of hobbyist would prefer elbow joint. Even Kotobukiya D-Style kit has elbow joint! The main body is actually pretty articulate, but I seem to encounter some problem with teh wing joint as it is not as articulate as I wanted it to be.
Gimmicks
Weapons & Accessories
Bandai provided the weapons that were used in the OVA, which is not a lot. What’s interesting is that the weapons can cmbine into a huge saber-like weapon. It remind me somewhat of Astray Blue Frame Second L.
Bandai also supplied a clear blue stand for the kit (which seems to be the standard and has been included in SD Sinanju as well).
Summary
Over-all, this kit was a simple, well-articulated kit with awesome design. It doesn’t require too much paiting, but to make it more awesome, you may need to invest on some decal and RuGos.
