Every year, at least once, I visit Perth, Australia to see my mum, sister, brother, and other friends and family. This year was a bonus as I was there across Christmas and New Years, something which has brought about the best conversations I had in 2017.
It also gave me a chance to revisit some of my earliest completed Gundam kits, the MG Nu special coating edition (not the v.ka, the original!) & the MG Strike Freedom (which is in the next post).
MG Nu Gundam Special Coating Version
I picked this one up around 2009 from TouchDIY, a store that I seem to remember was based in an attic in Cheras. I went to the store to buy the MG Extreme Blast Destiny (which had just been released) and the shop owner did a good job selling the metallic Nu.
Things that work:
- This kit has something special that I have yet to see in a modern kit: die-cast metal parts in the waist and ankles. These parts have great detail to them, and more importantly, move the kits centre of gravity lower, to help compensate for the weight of the fin funnels. They feel great sitting in the palm of your hand as you assemble the Nu and sell the illusion of building a real war machine.
- Much like newer iterations of the Nu Gundam, this guy is a head taller than most 1/100 kits, being shorter than only a few standout UC kits like The-O and Sazabi. Don’t stand him next to the Victory, it’s emasculating.
- In the back of the knees, Bandai provides us with a fibre sleeve to simulate piping, which looks great, and is strangely absent on the newer Nu v.ka. It’s a great detail which I was disappointed was omitted with the newer kit.
Things that don’t:
- This is my first special coating kit, and, the last. While the colour choices look great and there’s a good finish, the kit is not undergated so there are nub marks EVERYWHERE. Also, the rifle and bazooka are clamshells (two separate halves pushed together) so there is a massive seam down the middle. Fixing this on a regular kit is par for the course, but with a special coating you either ruin the coating or leave the seam. The metallic coating also seems to have a problem with Mr Mark Softer, used to set water slide decals in place, flaking off on contact. Better to get the normal version and paint it in metallic colours.
- This Nu Gundam came out before hands and weapons were pegged, before there were different fixed pose hands to firmly grip your beam rifle and saber. Instead the rifle is held in place by the ball jointed fingers…in other words, it’s not held in place, the Nu Gundam can’t hold its rifle for nuts. The bazooka works better as it has a flexible handle and the weight is supported on the shoulder, and the beam sabers are light enough that some poses work; but the rifle is a dud.
- I like the asymmetrical layout of the fin funnels, but they do make posing difficult as they (and the shield) pull the Nu heavily to the left. If you have them attached, Nu will lean, and chances are you will have them attached as your only other option is to leave them off. There is no stand to deploy these funnels sadly.
Who this kit is for:
The previous two items are the reasons I pose the Nu sans weapons and shield, but strangely enough, it works. The basic Nu Gundam has such a strong silhouette that it really shines without all the clutter, making it a great kit for naked power posing, it’s like a model of Schwarzeneger in his prime!
There is even greater value if you are the kind of modeler who wants a very basic exterior to detail up and hone your customizing skills.
I have both this original Nu and the modern Nu v.ka, and I’m glad I do. The modern one looks amazing, has great engineering and is a ton of fun to build and pose with all his weapons and stands, but this original Nu is majestic in a way the modern one isn’t.
My only caveat is if you have decided to get the original Nu and want a metallic finish, I really recommend getting the standard release and painting it in metallic colours.