#hyakuri

Iron-Blooded Orphans is one of my favorite Gundam series, and the Hyakuri was one of my favorite designs. I've been wanting to build this kit ever since I first saw that suit on-screen. But, as I've mentioned before, I discovered Iron-Blooded Orphans long after it stopped airing and the kits were out of print. I didn't want to pay $60+ for a standard-release High Grade so I was stuck.

Thankfully, with the recent HGIBO reprints, I've finally got the chance to build this kit.

Unsurprisingly, there's a sheet of color-correcting foil stickers. They're not really horrible though. No big, obvious inaccuracies to correct. Just some little details here and there.

The kit also includes a runnerless stand. These aren't great... But it's always nice to have a stand included with a kit like this that can't really stand on its own two feet.

I was a little surprised that there was absolutely nothing for the eyes. No red plastic bit. No stickers. They were just going to be left white. So I got out my DSPIAE Super-Metallic red paint marker and fixed that. I think they turned out pretty well.

The bulk of the build is about what I'd expect from an HGIBO kit. Some polycaps for the joints... An almost-full inner-frame... Lots of exposed mechanical detail like pistons or hoses... Decent articulation...

The arms are surprisingly complicated. Lots of tiny little bits and pieces.

The backpack is absolutely massive. Just plain huge. It's the biggest part of the entire kit. And it's mostly just two big pieces that sandwich together.

It's a fairly simple build. Not a lot of accessories - just the two guns. No extra hands or melee weapons or anything like that.

It's a damn good thing they included the runnerless stand because this thing just cannot stand on its own two feet.

I mean, I could probably get it upright without the stand... Unlike some HGIBO kits the joints feel very strong. But those feet are just tiny and the backpack is so heavy it'd have to be a really weird-looking pose.

The articulation is pretty decent. The limbs move basically where I expect them to. And, like I said, everything feels pretty solid. I'm not having any trouble holding any poses.

There's a neat gimmick where you can use a couple panels off the backpack as shields. And the guns look pretty cool.

And, of course, there's the transformation gimmick.

I dunno, calling it a "transformation" seems a little generous. It felt a lot more dramatic in the show... But, basically, the arms fold away in the backpack and the toes go pointy. It still looks pretty neat... But it's a little simple.