The build "variants" are the main characters in its own universe so can't really treat them like the others. Speaking of variant, Gundam GP02 variant is simply awesome! Same old articulation but look way more impressive than most of Gundam bosses in past few years.
I'm still going back and forth about whether I want to get this one. Looking real good though! Anyways...about the Build stuff...it's important to remember that the "variants" are inseparable from their characters. They're practically character kits as much as they are gunpla. As such I get why they get a lot of focus.
Having built mine, I honestly don't know why they didn't give those rear leg bits as blue armor parts given how damn tiny they made some of the yellow parts. And that is why I will never knowingly buy any version of 00 Diver / 00 Sky. Anyway, here's my detailed up G04 with the surprise arrival of my long awaited G06 from Gentei (paid $5 at the top of the month for fast shipping just to get him in and not worry about it). Bring on G05!
Assuming people give a damn about the characters they are attached to, and not just getting them because the designs are cool or interesting... so yeah, that analogy falls flat on me.
Well... sort of. I'm mixed on P-Bandai exclusive (Especially when they're new molds), but if it's the only way that releasing something like the MG F90 or the MG AGE-FX (Designs that didn't have much of a following due to their obscure or poorly received source material) would be financially viable then I'll taking it rather than those kits never existed at all. Also, I find it kinda hypocritical for you guys to say that while implying that it's perfectly fine with things the Tertium Gundam, Eldora Windam, Eldora Daughtress or any of the PLANETS system armor parts (That do make an appearance in the anime) been P-Bandai instead. If people are fine with designs from series they didn't like been relegated to P-Bandai, there won't be anything stopping even main MS designs like an MG AGE-FX or the MG G-Self been P-Bandai due to their source material been poorly received by fans.
Typical HG shortcut, don't forget those vents on the back of the shoulders. Large sized, demands paint. I was going to say the Pale Rider is another reason why most of the kit's inherent shortcuts are the way they are. Shield first and foremost, and weapons. Speaking of a 'Build' series, a likable character with a very unique custom design and their P.Bandai offerings.. Since my last progress post, I wanted to finish some things I've left by the wayside for a while. I'm back to work on the MG Fenice Rinascita and the Alba. Matching details where they're alike, and compensating their differences. Though as the shoulders are concerned, details that will mostly be lost unless you really go looking. I mounted the mantles on the Rinascita's shoulders since it would make sorting the armor easier. There is still some work I need to do on the Alba's shoulder armor before I can attach anything for those.
To be honest, a lot of the animosity with P-Bandai up until this year had been how much of a pain in the goddamn ass it was to actually get the kits. Middlemen services were literally the only way to avoid super expensive markups on the secondary market. But the P-Bandai site being available for western users changes everything. The kits can be more more on the pricy side than comparable normal releases, but now pretty much anything is within reach. So long as it isn't something super rare and popular like the Varguil or the current record holder for P-Bandai sell out time; the Todesritter. To that end, all the wing kits that went up last week are still there, including the Vayate/Mercutius 2-pack which I was absolutely certain was going to sell out - and the pre-order close date is in four months. Quite honestly the only reason to use middlemen services at this point is to get things that are closed order on the P-Bandai site or you live somewhere that P-Bandai will not mail to. Like Canada, as our good friend SPLIT can attest.
Meant to attach this in my previous post, but I got some soon to be discontinued paint in the mail today that I want to use on the RGs Nu Gundam and Zeta. I bought a bottle of the Pearl Red paint months ago for finishing my Figure-Rise Ultraman. Even though this is 'made to be airbrushed' it still went on with a brush very smoothly. I was impressed with a metallic red that doesn't turn out pink, so I decided to find the primary metallics and picked up a copper I didn't know existed!
I think you answered you own question, though. Would I prefer no P-Bandai kits at all, and everything is available at retail? Hell yeah 100%. But the fact is that P-Bandai kits do exist. With that in mind, what would I think makes the most sense? I think that the most well-liked suits/series should be the easiest to obtain. It would make logical and financial sense to make the kits that are likely to be less-selling and less-popular to be P-Bandai. With your example of AGE: While I personally thought much of the AGE series fell very short, I do think we got some AMAZING suit designs from it. I'd really like it if they could give use an MG AGE-3 or AGE-FX at retail, but I'm not keeping my hopes up. At this point, if the choice is between "never getting the kit at all" or "the kit is only available at P-Bandai", I think the choice is pretty obvious. The problem now is that Bandai is all over the place in deciding which kits get mass retail and which ones get P-Bandai. Fellow Canadian here, and yes, it does suck for us. I have to get all my P-Bandai kits through a middleman.
I still don't understand what's going on with the Canadian mail service. Did it somehow offend every single other mail service in the world?
It probably has little to do with the mail service, and more to do with language limitations/requirements. Quebec requires packaging on things to be at least bilingual, so that basically turns away a ton of companies/retailers; they don't consider it to be worth their effort to translate it to French. Which in turn ruins it for the rest of the country. Just what I think, anyways.
Pretty much. Really at what point did I imply it was okay that those kits ended up as exclusives? I may not give a damn about Build Dorkers kits but I never said they should be exempt from the ruling. While I don't exactly agree about the western availability thing, this right here is quite the sore spot right now. I mean i can get SOME of the justification for side story and AU stuff, but going back to one the above examples, I just don't understand why both the Eldora and regular Daughtress are BOTH exclusives.
I just checked out the p-bandai website. It gives me 4 locations to choose from, 3 of which are close together in Asia and the 4th is the USA. When on the USA page, it says they only ship to the USA. I'm from the Netherlands so the stuff's not available to me, despite being a western user. For Premium kits i'm pretty much limited to what i can find on Mandarake.
I can see where both of you are coming from; Despite P-Bandai releases been best suited for incredibly obscure designs that, Bandai's track-record on what should be retail or P-Bandai are...... not the best, I'll admit.
I can tell you what's wrong with the US Postal Service, and it starts with the words F*** Dejoy. My nephew's Gundam FINALLY!!! got delivered to him last night. AFTER sitting at an Atlanta Post Office for three whole days. It was slated for delivery Saturday of last week, then Monday, and was almost put off until this coming Saturday.
Watching paint dry on those vents for the shoulders before I hit them with a little panel accent to fill in the details. When I fit the shoulder assemblies onto their posts, I noticed stress cracks starting to form. Oy...
fellow dutchman here, we DO have a few options like TF Robots and Hobby Frontline.... that said, I should work on some of my kits...
Vents installed, and the shoulders are complete. Beginning the arms means starting on the elbows and setting myself up for .... the knuckle grind. **Blah blah something "times like these I miss the articulated hand parts, but at least these will be able to grip and hold the rifles" blah blah** Kind of hard to tell in this picture, but the gapped seams of the elbow and the bicep joint are painted in Frame Gray. But wait! I can use this to finish another overdue project demanding to be completed that got held up by its hand parts as well.
