Review 031: MG 1/100 Aegis (Daban Model)

Introduction:

Now retuning to the 1/100 line and starting it off here with Aegis of Daban Model. I also planned of getting this kit, but it seems my personal problems won’t let me get one. But I am still glad that my friend and client asked me to build this, and that’s an opportunity on my side to review the kit. This one is already an old kit and I think it was released a year ago and in the early quarters of 2016. It was a hit back then because there were several builders trying to complete the “GAT Boys” or the GAT series mobile suits like Blitz and Buster. This was one the awesome kits that also features a transformation gimmick.

Anyways, Same with Nu, I want to be quick with the review because I have a lot of kits to finish. Building the kits may seem easy, but the hard part is compiling all the notes, transferring them to my drive, editing the size of the pictures, placing the watermarks, and then organizing them here in my blog. So I would like to take this moment again and thank you all for waiting various articles here. I also want to apologize if you saw me got a kit but it took more than a month before I release the review. I hope your patience and support continues so I can add that up as part of my inspiration to do this (even though I did created the blog as part of a hobby).

Again, you already know about the typos you may have notice from several articles – just ignore them. But as for the wrong use of terms or words or phrases related to the gundam universe, please do correct me.



Unboxing:

The kit was light but I am expecting a lot of parts for the inner frame because of the transformation gimmick. After opening the box, it was a huge surprise of pink and awesomeness. Some of the pieces were small but I forgot that the side skirts are huge so you get large pieces for that.

There are only 4 plastic bags here but the total number of sprues is 16. Yes, they have packed at least 4 sprues per plastic bag which is still bad in my opinion. 8 of these sprues are large in size and the rest are small.

The construction manual is the same with the other GAT kits they [Daban Model] have released. The main elements have been changed as always like the word Gundam.

The back or last page of the manual features the model in its front and rear view along with some small guide for the colors used.

I am not sure what page is this but the mid section features 2-page info about the Aegis.

Here’s the list of the sprues inside the kit. I will try to take pictures of the list and include them in the article for extra information. The next images will be the sprues and other contents of the kit.



Sprues:

Sprue A (4-color runners, x1)

Sprue B (x1)

Sprue C (x2)

Sprue D (x1)

Sprue E (x2)

Sprue F (x1)

Sprue G (x1)

Sprue H (x2)

Sprue I (x2)

Sprue J (x2)

PC-130B (x1)

Again, you have 16 sprues here including the polycaps. The parts feature nice detailing credits to Bandai. But Daban Model still can’t perfect those sharp edges, semi vents, etc., so they are not that good for minor detailing if I am going to use my pens.

The blue and gray parts are so-so and the quality is not as good as the pink. The blue seems to be probe with visible nub or stress marks, so I will advise some sanding treatment here. And if you also noticed the list, there were lots of parts marked with “X” because the Aegis uses a different inner frame structure compared to the other 4 models.

You get the usual dry transfer, clear stickers, and foil sticker here.

I am thinking what pen to use to add detailing. I could go for Blue+Silver, Green +Silver, or all of them. I took a test on the runner and asked for suggestions. I got more votes for the Metallic Blue so I will use that even though green looks fine. I actually thought of using the blue because of the forehead sensors.



Body Unit:

Very nice parts separation here in the body and that is because of the backpack unit. Unlike your other GAT boys, Aegis’ backpack will be built together with the body and you can no longer remove it.


The shape of the body is odd but unique. The good news is that there are no snap fitting issues and everything was smooth.

So here’s the Blue+Silver I asked from the groups and it looks great. I will add a few more blue on the other parts for extra detailing and coolor.

The articulation here is great thanks to the transformation gimmick. The backpack fins can be moved to a certain degree.

Keep in mind that there’s a small raise flat part here (encircled). This is your lock for the dark blue parts where you just simply clamp or insert it on top. So do not in some point trim or sand them.

The Aegis may have a very unique inner frame, but Bandai has never forgotten to add the cockpit gimmick. Sorry for the blurry shot though.

Overall, it was a smooth build with very few tight parts. :D

Please take consideration that I will not post or feature the model in MA (Mobile Armor) Cruise Mode.



Head Unit:

There are a lot of parts here for the head and the v-fin separated in two. The inner frame is also different and you have this sliding mechanism that will pull or push the crest during transformation.

Building the head wasn’t easy because there were tight parts here same with the TTH Nu Gundam I have reviewed. After a long struggle of pressing the head with both thumbs, I managed to remove the seam.

In the side view, you will notice this round nub which is a real eyesore. It was kind of same with the TTH PG Wing Zero Custom. Best option is to sand this part smooth and clean.

You guys already know I don’t like using the foil stickers for the eye sensors. I used my metallic green here. I also used the metallic blue on the forehead sensors. But if you noticed the clear piece on the back, I didn’t applied the blue on top of it because it was too shallow. If I had put some ink there, I might accidentally touch it and spread it on the pink surface. Instead I spread the ink inside and let the color pass through making it look like a transparent blue jewel.



Arm Unit:

I have included the parts for the Upper Body Unit or shoulder armor so you get a lot of pieces here which is cool and challenging.

It was stupid of me again to miss these two parts and forgot to add them in the exploded view. >_>

Anyways, the arms were a smooth build and I didn’t encounter and bothersome issues. The design looks really cool because of those white blades sticking out on the back of the arms.

The articulation is also superb. The range of movement is really outstanding thanks to the transformation gimmick. Of course, this was not possible if not for the careful planning and designing from Bandai.

Even with the bulky feature, you can bend the arms like so and stretch it to your regular 90 degrees, or upward to 180 degrees. The range is reduced when attached to the body though.

Other movable parts are the vents on the upper shoulders. This is shown when you build the MA Cruise mode. But it might look cool if you lift this up even in MS form.

Also, these parts of the arms are articulated and can be rotated to a certain degree. It is divided into two parts (A & B) and you won't notice them unless you transform the model into MA mode.

The flaps under the shoulder armor can be moved as well.




Waist Unit:

I realized I was wrong again in my exploded view so I cropped the parts only for the waist. I will feature the side skirts after this.

“Ooops..”. I forgot to add this part in the exploded view. :v


So here’s the waist unit. It has decent amount of parts and most of the colored parts are placed on the front skirts. The model doesn’t have any back skirts and I think that is just right considering what you can do in the MA Cruise mode.

There’s also a problem here during building. I experienced that the part B14 is really tight when I try to attach it to B12.

The articulation here is also great and the front skirts can be lifted this high up (A). You can also tilt it sideways up to this point (B).



Side Skirts:

You get a lot of parts for a single side skirt and they are larger than the usual side skirts from other models.

There were only few tight sections here during building so I am counting this as a smooth build. Once attached on the waist, you can move it sideways. You can also rotate it so that the legs can move better. The side skirts kind of looked like manta rays. :v



Leg Unit:

The amount of parts here for the legs are above average. Yes, it’s pretty obvious they have the same design with the arms. When you transform the model to MA Cruise mode, these parts will look like claws.

And the good news here is that it was another smooth build. I am glad there were no snap fitting issues I need to take care of.

The articulation here is just as great the arms. The legs can bend that much in mobile suit form. The feet can be folded as well or you could say that it has the same feature with Proto Zero.

There are also flaps on the lower side of the legs and can be lifted up that much as seen in the picture.

There’s a sliding mechanism inside the leg that you will adjust during transformation to MA. There’s a lock behind the leg and you can lift it up.

Here’s what it looks like when you slide or push the feet upward. The left side is the MS mode and the joint of the feet is still visible (A). But if you remove the lock, push or slide the feet upward, the joints inside are no longer visible (B). This also affects the range of movement from MS to MA.

Same with the arms, you can move these blade parts down.



Weapons:

Energy Beam Rifle:

There are no other parts for the rifle to make it look colorful like the shield.

It was kind of plain looking but the detailing looks great.

You can also slide the rear portion of the rifle. This would look great if you can paint that hidden side.

The clear part here isn’t deep or protected by any covers, so I can’t apply the metallic blue on the surface. Instead, I follow the same idea I did on the head where I applied the ink inside. I covered all possible spots and hoped that the color would pass through. The result wasn’t that bad and I like it, making it look like a bluish jewel.

Sorry again for the blurry image. Anyways you have a small piece you can slide or attach here. This will enable the rifle to be mounted on the side skirts.You can also do various tricks here and attach the rifle on top of the shield or under it.



Shield:

The shield features very few parts but the detailing and color makes up for it.

There were no issues here same with the Energy Beam Rifle. The shield was kind of plain without the markings so I also applied some metallic blue on those hollow sections.

It doesn’t feature any cool gimmicks and you can just attach the rifle here.



Beam Sabers:

The Aegis does have Beam Sabers and they are the white blades on the arms and legs.



Decals:

I’m supposed to avoid using the clear stickers but that would lessen the detail this model deserves. It was good news that the quality on both dry transfers and clear stickers are great. I didn’t have any trouble with the dry transfers compared to the experiences I have with Proto Zero. The clear stickers’ looks great and the cut on their edges are enough to fit the surface.

The markings for the shoulder were a bit long so I had to trim them a bit.

Extras:

You get other fixed hands or manipulators here and the beam effects. The kit doesn’t have any pedestal or action base and that sucks. :/



Completed Model:

Close Up View:

Articulation Test:

The range of movement was indeed reduced after the final assembly, but the reduction was just minor. The model still features cool angles. It was kind of hard to make Aegis stand with just one leg. xD

You can lift the legs this high up even if the front skirt is in the way.

Not a full 180 degree but the arms can be stretched up to this angle.



And here are the rest of the shots..

And for my ratings..

Plastic Quality: 8/10

For me, the stress marks just show up if you are rough or reckless in cutting the parts out of the runners. Even with a fresh blade, you can avoid the nub marks or stress marks. Daban Model continues to please us with good nice plastic quality. It’s not as good as Bandai, but it’s enough to say that this is a good kit.

The texture here is glossy and there were no badly molded parts and no flashes either. I gave it an 8 because this kit really deserves it.


Assembly: 7/10

Only the head got bumpy during my whole time building the kit. Overall, it was a very smooth build same with Proto Zero not to mention this kit was released way before Proto Zero. I hope Daban Model continue to release kits with minimal issues so builders can still enjoy the challenge of attaching the parts piece by piece, and NOT the challenge of curing or fixing the issues. Who would want to buy a kit and spends time fixing problems rather than enjoying the basics of a model kit like building it straight away, right?

If there were no problems on my end during the head part, I would give it an eight. Still, this kit gives you fewer issues so you may start thinking now if you will go for Bandai or Daban Model. :P


Detailing: 8/10

I was like “Wow!” when I saw the parts. They were not as sharp as Bandai but I am focusing on the amount of “semi vents” (engraved or notched?) and panel lines placed on the parts. It makes the model less plain and of course a shortcut for those who doesn’t want to try scribing. It also makes the model look good even without the application of markings. But adding the markings/seals is a must to add life on a model.

I didn’t apply any panel lines here using my mechanical pencil because it’s not that very visible. I don’t have any 0.05 tip pens that I can use too, so I relied on adding the markings and metallic blue.



Articulation: 9/10

I don’t think I went overboard with my rating here considering the factors this model can offer. You saw the range of movement for both the arms and legs, not to mention other notable pointers from the body. There were lots of movable parts and it makes this [Aegis] a cool model. I can add the MA Cruise Mode here into consideration as well letting you know how articulated the parts are.


Gimmicks: 8/10

The main feature in this kit is that you can transform Aegis to the MA Cruise mode. it looks like a octopus-like monster with sharp claws (LOL). It’s a single transformation and there are no other transformations are available for Aegis. But the point here is that the MA mode seems so complex, yet Bandai managed to pull it off and make it look easy. For me, the transformation of Aegis was far easier than Zeta 2.0’s waverider mode. This is just my personal opinion.

Based on my experience how smooth the snap fitting was here in Daban Model’s side, I don’t think transforming it to the MA mode would be a problem.


Weapons: 6/10

The beam sabers that are already attached on the legs and arms looks good when the beam effects are added. The shield features a lot of options as well where to attach the rifle. Overall, you do have a lot of weapons in the MS form. I just want to demand more for this kit. If the model features energy cannon in its MA form, then Bandai should have at least added a single beam effect piece for that mode or form. But it’s a good set already; I just want it to have something that can highlight its other features.


Extras: 4/10

You get the usual fixed manipulators here and the beam effects. They [Bandai] should have added a simple pedestal here for Aegis. The same design of pedestal like the one in for Proto Zero wouldn’t be bad. In Daban’s side, they should start replacing the dry transfers or clear stickers with waterslides. I’m sure the extra price wouldn’t hurt the buyers as long as they get a good deal in it.


Patience: 5/10

Looking at the issues and the number of parts, I think 5 is just a balanced rating here. You can finish the kit within days if you want to hurry up. Or you can take it easy and build it slowly because you don’t have any big issues to deal with here.



Overall Rating: 8/10

This kit is quite easy because of the minor problems. It was fun as well because the inner frame is different from the ones you might have experienced in the other GAT models. Articulation is really amazing and I love posing the model. Yeah, I will recommend this kit among beginners if they want to start in the MG line. Of course, that is if they want the SEED series as their stepping stone.

I am not sure if Bandai has the same problem with the tight parts in the head, but I will still suggest going for Bandai if you have the funds. Just for the sharper details and better plastic quality. If the funds are short and you just want to practice building the Aegis, then Daban is there for you. Besides, this is also a good model if you want to practice in painting. There are lots of separated parts so you get more options what parts to paint.

I hope I can get one too for my personal collection. This is the last kit I need to complete all the GAT mobile suits in my shelf. I also hope that Bandai would start making other SEED and 00 MGs in the near future. Some of them are stuck in the NG 1/100 and they are not that much popular. Even so, I think they deserve a Master grade treatment especially for other builders trying to complete the set of certain series with a specific grade.

So that’s all I have to say for the MG Aegis of Daban Model. A very good kit with few issues indeed. If you have any suggestions or comments, please do share them. :D

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