Review 02: MG 1/100 ZZ Gundam [Evolve] (BTF Brand)

I forgot that before the Sazabi ver Ka, I had a kit that made me thought of creating reviews about them. I browsed the old folder and saw the pictures of ZZ Gundam [Evolve]. Prime92 mentioned it as "Evolve" version so I'm sticking with the same term used.


I bought this kit back January 2015, way before I got the Sazabi (August 2015). I'm not much of a fan of the Zeta line but I got "poisoned" because of its new slim design. I called a friend to help me fetch one kit for myself. I only got a few shots and I would like to apologize the lack of detail about this kit. But if you have any info, I will surely add it on this post and give credits.

Just re-correct me but I think this is a 3rd company kit. The box says it's from Japan though.(I will find that picture and update this part some other time).

Again, I would like to apologize that there will be visible nub marks on the featured kit. If there are any errors (spelling, grammar), please do mention them on the comments section. If there are also any errors on the terminologies used, please do correct me.
Some pictures/images are a bit out of focus and I apologize for that.


Runners:

Testing white panel lines

And here too

Building outside my room

There are 16 runners inside this kit with a nice blue manual. The runners are very few in my opinion. I watched Prime92's review as to help what to do on some of the issues she encountered. This would be the Polycaps I'm referring too. Many said that its quality is bad and the bootleg brand TTH can do better >_>
Since there are few runners, difficulty for building this one would be low to moderate. Not sure if it's good for beginners though (those who haven't tried 1/100 kits with inner frames). Plastic quality seems to be soft or chewy. Reminds me of Dragon Momoko and Model Comprehend.

Take note of this; ZZ Evolve can't transform into Waverider Mode.
Yeah, it's a bummer.:v

As you noticed, I tried experimenting my pens and one of them is Uniball Signo's White ballpoint pen. I like the outcome because the ink dries quickly compare to the metallic ones.

Body Unit:

Because of its new slim design, it kinda resembles Zeta's body if you look at it. As I recall, ZZ's original body is a bit bulky.
Also, there are no cockpits, pilots, or whatsoever as extra gimmick to ZZ Evolve. The red piece on the abdomen can't be be pulled up either. So this is same with MC Brand's Xi Gundoom. More like a HG 1/100

Since I'm a straight builder, the only option I have with quicker access in replace to custom painting is using pens. So I did used that white pen again for adding details on this part. I also used Sharpie Metallic Silver and Metallic Bronze

What I don't like is the pre-colored parts of the kit. They are noticeably dull.
The good news is that there are no snap fitting issues. The plastic quality is good and there were no flushes whatsoever.


Head Unit:

Sorry for the quality of my camera. T_T
And my hands were shaky too so the shots were blurry.

Anyways, as you can notice, I added foil stickers for ZZ's eyes.
Take note, there are no foil stickers included in the kit. This came from Wing Zero Custom and I trimmed it a bit to fit in. :P

It looks cool in front, but you when you positioned it sideways, it's really weird and funny >_<
Kinda looks like an alien's head. But at least this one have more decent edges compared to Throne Drei's head design with a rounded feature.
The V-Fin is really fragile and mine already got a dent before I cut it out from the runner.


Arm Unit:

For the arms, the inner frame has a very straightforward and simple structure. As mentioned on some blogs, the overall design was actually made from Strike Freedom's inner frame. (not sure either if this is true)

Sorry for the visible nub marks :/

My 0.05 point pen can't go through those lines :v
They are quite narrow so I had to use mechanical pencil because I can trim down the lead
I had to take back what I said before that finding a 0.03 is rare. It as actually common and the brand name was Marvy Uchida. Although I got to use this pen after several kits.

Finally done on the arms. Articulation is "so-so" because of the outer armor. I wanted the manipulators or hands are same that of Strike Freedom, Infinite Justice, etc., where the thumb can be moved and the rest of the fingers are fixed together.

But on the bright side, the detailing overall is really cool and features lots of panel lines.

Shoulder Armor/Upper Body Unit:

I thought most of the panel lines I worked on would be seen. I'm referring on the white panel lines I did. And only a partial part will be visible.
Anyways, regarding the shoulder armor, it was a straightforward build with no other gimmicks. No snap fitting issues too.

The colors are really plain or dull but the parts separation makes up for it. Not simple but not that complicated either.

Waist Unit:

Waist is pretty much kinda like the same from Geminas, don't you think? >_<

Okay the inner frame is simple but there's a PC below so you can use a regular base stand.
It also uses ball joint pegs for the legs, which I don't really like in my opinion, because the articulation given with this kind of structure is limited.

Leg Unit:

The feet is really slim or you could say narrow.

The main inner frame of the leg is the only one with a complex structure. I love the result of the white panel lines using uniball Signo.

Articulation is a bit limited due to the design. Cant be bent much for extreme posing due because of the armor/thrusters on the sides.
I like the details made on this kit. The only gimmick which I can add would be that piston on the back of the leg. No movable parts or fins either.
Good news is that there were no flushes or issues during assembly. Snap fitting is okay.

Backpack Unit:

It was night time when I started the backpack unit and continued finishing that section the following day.

So far so good but it was a shame there were no other gimmicks for the backpack. The wings can't be moved because they are already fixed. The saber handle attached can't be rotated. Besides, there aren't any beam effects included for them nor slots that you can use for the manipulators to hold on to.
I love things when they are simple but this kit is way too simple. But I think there maybe some hidden factors I have overlooked to make this model really great.

But I have to admit that it would have been awesome if at least several parts were movable to give it more features.

-Size Comparison-

I did planned on making size comparisons but I was in a hurry and I don't want to mess with the kits I had on the shelf. Heavy Arms was the one available.

Side Info: Sinanju ver ka is at least 2cm taller than ZZ Evolve. O_O

-Without Decals-

Putting them all together without decals. I'm sorry if the first image isn't big.

It really looks slim alright but I love it.
It's not quite heavy just because it looks tall or big. The whole model including the weapons weigh 200 grams.

Side Info: MG 1/100 Ex-S weights 620 grams I think including the stand/pedestal. 

Decals:

It's time for decals! There were lots of seals to use but the bad side is that some were blurry. I want them to be clearer. I guess the manufacturer used low ppi for their decals.

I want to duplicate the design but the white seals were not very visible after scanning it..But I think me and my partner can still reproduce this one.

The design and placing of the seals pretty much resembles that of Rx-78-2 3.0. Reminds me of the RG line to put it exactly.

Instead of using cotton buds, I use tissue paper like I always do to take out the excess water of the seals, And I used my laptop's heat sink as dryer :v
Worked well and there were no traces of watery residue left though. :D

Another thing I noticed is the manual for the decal section. It's separate from the instruction manual. They didn't took effort for this part >_>
Second, they didn't even placed sample images on what the kit looks like.
I mean, the decal guide is no help at all to give you preview on it poses, features, etc.
MC's Xi Gundoom has that "WOW" factor on their construction manual including the box itself.

Completed Model:

Again I apologize for the blurry or out of focus shots.

Overall:

Posing is limited and I can only bend the leg to certain degree. As mentioned above, I don't like the ball joint system used for the legs.
The armor also hinders the movement for the arms so I can't make that perfect charging pose. >_>

Plastic Quality: 6.5/10
The plastic itself doesn't bother me. The bad side is the dull color of the kit. If you're planning to get this one, I suggest you paint it. And I'm reminding again that the V-Fin is fragile.

Snap Fitting: 8/10
Well there were no issues during assembly. It was fun and easy to build.

Articulation: 6/10
Because of the bad quality of the polycaps, the arms can't handle the weight of the rifle. Posing is also limited because of the design.

Gimmicks: 6/10
The only feature that is really cool is the twin rifle (I don't know what it's called LOL). In Bandai's version, the rifle can't be split into two. But in this kit, you can split them or use the same old fashion double-barrel look.

Extras: 5/10
No action base/stand that you can use. There are no other weapons either.

Overall Rating: 7/10

There may be a lot of ups and downs for this kit, but the detailing and slim design stands out against those negative issues. You just need to tweak this kit to enhance those features. I'd say the kit is "beginner-friendly', but precautions are still needed to avoid errors.

I hope my client would get this one so I can add exploded view of the parts and do the things I discovered lately.
I have scheduled to add the Try Burning Gundam [Gangdum] by Hobby Star probably next week.