Retrospective of Gundam UC - Part 3 (FINAL)

<< Part 1: The Boy who Grasped the Reins of Possibility                              << Part 2: The Power to Transcend the Now

 

 Most everything has its themes that the story revolves around. It’s essential to any interesting plot. Gundam UC is no exception to this. However, unlike many traditional stories, Unicorn has as many as 4 themes: The blessings and curses of blood, the power of possibility, “To my only desire,” and the words “Even so."

Retrospective of Gundam UC - Part 2

<< Part 1: The Boy who Grasped the Reins of Possibility                              Part 3 (FINAL): À mon seul désir >>

Throughout the Universal Century era, we’ve heard about how Newtypes, as proposed by Zeon Zum Deikun, are meant to be the next step in human evolution. Brought about through our transition to living in outer space, our senses would adapt to the void and perception and even precognition would open to us, allowing mankind to understand each other without misconceptions. However, all that had been seen of Newtypes since their first mention is the ability to see ahead in battle, allowing one to read moves and step accordingly. As Cardeas Vist put it, it made “Newtype” synonymous with “Ace Pilot.” Gundam UC not only lampshades this grim truth, but does a magnificent job at showing what Newtypes were supposed to have been, what Newtypes have been, and what Newtypes can be.

Retrospective of Gundam UC - Part 1

“Mankind possesses a god.                      

             The inner god called Possibility.”

                                           - Cardeas Vist

Already a stark contrast line from the thematic “Mankind’s souls are bound by gravity” used throughout the Universal Century prior to this. Mobile Suit Gundam UC (Unicorn) is the latest Gundam animated series entered into the Universal Century calender, placed in the untold era between the end of Char’s Counterattack and Gundam F91.

Just warning you now that this WILL be spoiler heavy, so please continue at your own risk.

For the last 35 years, the term “Universal Century” was synonymous with endless war and bloodshed, something that just seems expected after the One-Year War and all conflicts that had sparked from the embers of that war. However, Unicorn paints this picture as the result and not the cause, as previously thought for years, thanks to an untold incident that happened almost 100 years before - A terrorist attack on the Earth Federation’s Prime Minister’s satellite residence, Laplace, at the dawn of the Universal Century...

Laplace’s Box. A secret object said to be able to topple the Earth Federation or even destroy the world if used by the wrong men for the worst intentions. It’s an interesting plot device for a Gundam series, and very different from anything used before. What this item truly means to either side of the conflict, or the world itself, is revealed by the end of the series. And while, if you’ve seen Gundam F91 or V Gundam, you might be thinking why this is important at all. I will get into that toward the end of this.

This retrospective will follow 3 parts, the characters, the myths, and the themes.

Part 2: The Power to Transcend the Now >>                              Part 3 (FINAL): À mon seul désir >>

I HAVE RETUR-- Hey, where'd everyone go...?

Okay, everyone! Been a long time coming, but I can finally get everything back to speed (well, sorta, anyway ^_^;;) It's been a crazy last couple months, but the fact that it's all over and I can now sigh with relief that I am now a married man is all the reward I need... But, plastic crack can help, too. XD

Last I left you guys, I had a good lot done on my MG Full Armor Unicorn Gundam, and was finishing up the weapons. Well, that's long done, and is ready to intimidate the room with it's over-armed presence.

T'was a tedious and overwhelming project, but I love the final look of this thing, and even high atop a shelf, it's an eye-catcher!

The decal hell this provided was a great test for my patience and really enjoyed the whole process of the build.

Now that that's done, I've acquired a couple more kits and finished them in good time, too!

The second was a a prize I had won from Daisuki.net's Second Promotional Giveaway, from which I won the RG 1/144 Zeta Gundam!

Despite my gripes about the RG series (which still hold after this build), I did enjoy this one, because the engineering in this kit is absolutely amazing! I swear, if they do decide to MG 3.0 Zeta based on this design, I may not be able to say "no"...

The next obtainment came as a gift from a friend of mine, and was one I had been wanting since its announcement back in August: The HGAC 1/144 Wing Gundam!

Just from the build, you can sense the whole new feeling of "compatibility" they're aiming for with future HGUC releases. I still have yet to determine if this is a good  thing or a bad thing, but as the front-runner to All Gundam Project, it's stood its ground very well! Wing, being what brought me into the Gundam fold, always had a special place in my heart, so I look forward to the expansion of the HGAC line.

Moving right along, I also decided to pick up another new-release kit I saw at my local HobbyTown USA that was screaming "must have!" The HG-SEED 1/144 Gundam Astray Gold Frame Amatsu Mina.

I LOVED this design! Granted, I'm very partial to the Astrays, but can you really blame me!
(Fun fact: I picked this kit up on my wedding day XD)

Between these kits, I've also finished the 2 BB Senshi kits I had gotten back at ACEN earlier this year, the Unicorn Gundam and Sinanju.

Both of these provided interesting challenges, but nonetheless, were fun to do. My wife (at-the-time fiance) did the original build for these and I just did the painting, detailing and cleanup, but she still did an excellent job, and I'm getting her some newer SD kits down the line to fuel the burning fire of Gunpla!

And while that's all I've built, now, I've obtained two more larger projects.

The first came after some finally getting some excess money, and another MG that was almost obligatory when announced...

Ooooh, the ambitions I have for this one. I also have the Expansion Set on the way for it, but have hit some snags in it's delivery. :\

The final kit in my queue is one that no one expected, but was a pleasant and wanted sight. And my obtainment of it also reflected this.

Sent as a present from a circle of Gunpla friends I reside with elsewhere in the interwebz, the MG 1/100 Wing Gundam Proto Zero Ver.EW was acquired, and as you can see from her face, will be the downfall of my new marriage. XD (Not really, she was just as happy!)

That's all for my Gunpla catch-up post, and hopefully, I won't have to do one of these again. I do have some figures I've also gotten, but will post those separately later.
After the holidays pass, I have a few kits who's reviews are being written, but I'll probably roll all of them out in the new years, so I can have a clean slate of time to work with.

So, ja-ne! Until next time, kids!!

A WIP update!?!?!

Yes, it's been a while since I actually posted anything Gunpla related. And I apologize. What I'm even more sorry for, though, is how long this thing's been on the back burner...
 

Yes, I believe it was back in January when I last posted anything regarding this poor kit. What's even sadder is that it wasn't just the updates, but the actual progress itself actually halted right around then, as well...

So, what has become of our Psycho-framed decal-hell-laden kit...?

Fallen behind again, it seems...

Wow! Been a bit, again, hasn't it? ^__^;; Sadly, the lack of productivity hasn't been met much in way of getting more Gunpla (or even figures, for that matter).

However, I had obtained a few things during Anime Central 2013 in Chicago, which was back in May.
I had one thing in mind while there, and the con did not disappoint in my means of obtaining it...

The elusive D-Arts Mewtwo - which I missed the pre-orders for - was my priority, solely for the exclusive Mew that was only available for the first printing! For $50, this was almost a steal, seeing as it goes for $80, easily!!!

I also picked up a couple BB Senshi kits, Unicorn Gundam and Sinanju, courtesy of the Bluefin/Tamashii Nations booth. Great prices, but they could have planned their floor space better.
(Sidenote: I have social phobias in conjunction with claustrophobia, and large gatherings like conventions exploit those flaws @__@)

In actual building news, I did finally finish ONE of my MG's obtained this year.

My MG 1/100 Tallgeese II is finally complete!
I chose to go without decals for this, as I like the simple elegance of it's base look!

I have a couple pre-ordered items that will be releasing in the next couple months, so if nothing else, I guess expect updates on those when they arrive. Not sure when I'll get around to doing any further reviews, but when I do, you'll be the first know. ^__^;;

Some Catching Up to Do

Sorry about the inactivity here (and especially on my practically abandoned RPGags page), but things have really decided to get busy real sudden-like. I've opened up art commissions on my facebook page and got hit pretty hard, so a lot of my free time had been used on keeping up on those. I'm about to close them again, so if you want anything and you're on facebook, now's the time to message me!

Anyway, on the flipside, these commissions have been helping me with quite a few items to backlog my collections with.

I got another HGUC I'd been wanting to get since it was announced, even if it is an odd-duck-out MS.

Yes, I actually - and happily - picked up the HGUC Juaggu [Unicorn Ver.]. What can I say, I have an unconditional love for Zeon mobile suits. Though I greatly look forward to the future release of the HGUC Zogok...

Also, I ordered the new up-to-date Mobile Suit Illustrated 2013 [+Drawing] MS Encyclopedia. This way, I'll have almost all the references I'll need for future Gunpla purchases, as this covers everything up to all of AGE and through episode 5 of Unicorn (and the addition of the Jesta Cannon from 6).

The next item was a long-awaited release, for, me, being the hardcore Mega Man fan I am...

The D-Arts Mega Man was a must-have, seeing that not only is it classic Mega man in scale with the other D-Arts figures, but also includes Rush and the elusive Metall!? SOLD!

Of course, everyone should have expected this, since I'd been advertizing it on the side of my page since the pre-orders went up! Yes, Gundam Unicorn episode 6 is now in my hands, and was another beautiful entry to the series. Another year until the finale, but given the supurb quality of the series thus far, I have faith in the time they're putting into them.

And, with Episode 6, I had to order one of the suits introduced in it's scenes...

Even if it's appearance was brief, the RX-0[N] Unicorn Gundam 02 Banshee Norn's screentime was impressive. I just got this in today, and needless to say, my next order will be for the HGUC Full Armor Unicorn Gundam [Unicorn Mode]...

Well, that's all I got, for now, but I have some photos taken for a few items I plan to review once I get the time to sit down and really write them out.

Until then!

Full Armor Unicorn WIP and Other Updates

I knew this thing was gonna be a beast, but the effort I'm putting into it is far more than even I expected. I've built 3 other Ver.Ka kits in the past, so I'm familiar with the Katoki's "Decal Hell," but it's a whole different monster when you put the effort to trim them down...

2012 Christmas GET!!!

I guess I sort of jumped the gun with the end-of-year posting, since I tend to get at least a couple kits for Christmas.

And are they a doozie! So, a couple new MG's, and both are one's I've been fiending for since they've launched. The MG RX-0 Unicorn Gundam 02 Banshee -as well as the HGUC RGM-86R GM III- were gifts from my mother, who I can't believe managed to acquire the former without resorting to online measures. The Mobile Suit Gundam Complete Collection 1 was from my fiancee (Much needed since they're now out of production). And finally, the MG RX-0 Full Armor Unicorn Gundam was more of a present to myself, using Christmas money. ^__^;;  The Action Base 1 Clear was ordered specifically for the FAUG.

Thing's gonna be a beast.

I've got the Complete Collection 2 on order, finishing the original Gundam again, and I still have one more kit that will be on the way as soon as it's released...

Things I've Done Since Last Posted...

In between working on my MG Sandrock and actual working, mostly, I've repainted a couple pieces of mine.
One that's been reviewed, and one that is planned to be eventually.

My 1/48 scale RX-0 Unicorn Gundam and MSN-06S Sinanju Head Display Bases.

I decided, giving their size and crisp sculpt, they looked too plain just painting what needed painting. So I did a full paint job on these two.

And Then, There Were 5...

After a long wait - Over half a year, to be more accurate - and the absolutely HUGE scare that the rest may not see the light of day in the U.S., the next episode of Mobile Suit Gundam UC is finally released and available locally, solely through RightStuf (seemingly)...

And my delayed pre-order just came in today! I should have done it when I first read found out about it...

And now, with Episode 6: The Sky and the Stars being released next Spring, and a 7th episode in the works, I can officially say what I said back in December...

Two more to go!

LAST POST FROM OHIO

This will officially be my last post from our apartment in Ohio, as packing has begun, jobs have been notified, and we'll be out by the 1st of March.
As stated in my previous post, I had a backlog shipment of models in the works for any potential bored time (since we have to re-establish many things one at a time once over there).
And it delivered... in two shipments.

My first order actually came from Image Anime, since they were the first to get 2 of the 3 kits I ordered.

HGUC 1/144 RX-0 Unicorn Gundam 02 Banshee ([Unicorn Mode] & [Destroy Mode]) and the HGFC 1/144 GF13-001NHII Master Gundam & Fuunsaiki.

I told myself that the Master and Fuunsaiki would be a day-one purchase, and I let it slip. Now that I have it, I can cross that one off! The Banshees were kind of a "duh" choice.

My next order from Gundam Store and More just came in today. I knew it was large, but I wasn't expecting two boxes to be necessary!

HGUC 1/144's RMS-099 Quattro's Rick Dias, RX-93-v2 Hi-v Gundam, Extreme Gundam, RX-78GP01Fb Gundam GP01Fb, MRX-009 Psycho Gundam, MS-18E Kämpfer, MSN-001A1 Delta Plus and HGFC 1/144's GF13-017NJII G Gundam and 2(!) GF13-017NJ Shining Gundams

The reason for 2 Shining Gundams is to have one to switch between Normal and Battle modes and one to stay in Super mode, since the hidden parts change from grey to gold in Super Mode.

Needless to say, with 13 new kits (and 1 Master Grade still left), I should have alot to keep me busy until I get comfortable income again!

So that's it! Hopefully, my hiatus will be short lived, and the next time you all hear from me (aside from those who follow me on Twitter (@OZKai) and Facebook) will be for a review!

And please, wish us luck in this journey!

Goodbye! Until we meet again!

Year in Review: 2011

Being the first year in which I ran this blog (after my initial unfocused blog), everything that's here is from this year. But considering I wasn't able to get all the reviews I wanted up completed, I actually accomplished a lot more than I normally would have though.