HG 1/144 OZ-06MS Leo - Mobile Suit Gundam Wing [Custom Painted Build Completed; Photos + Video]

 Painted, panel-lined, and assembled. Slowly but surely I am moving more model kits from the 'box-gathering-dust-on-shelf' to the 'completed-for-display' category. While it great to have that complicated standout piece on display, I will always have a soft spot for the grunts. If possible, I intend to include a grunt mobile suit from any Gundam Universe that's represented on my display shelf. In this case, the finished Bandai High Grade (HG) 1/144 scale OZ-06MS Leo comes from the Mobile Suit Gundam Wing anime series. Below are some thoughts on my full-painted build of the grunt suit.

High Grade (HG) 1/144 scale OZ-06MS Leo: Custom Painted Build Completed

 In terms of color accuracy, I can never seem to mix the exact same paint color as the plastic mold despite using the suggested paint ratios in the color guide. So the paint job hues you see here slightly vary from the plastic mold color. Moreover, most of the grey and dark brown parts have been custom painted using metallic lacquer paints. So in a sense the Leo has been custom painted to a degree. All the colors used were from the Mr.Hobby Mr.Color lacquer paint line.

OZ-06MS Leo custom painted build (front view sans weapons)

In Gundam Wing lore, the Leo is a grunt suit designed for ground combat ...

... hence its predominantly dull green and brown color scheme.

 As color schemes go, the Leo has a pretty basic one comprising largely of dull green and brown for its body with a dash of red and yellow on its head. And I don't quite get why a grunt suit would have vivid reds on its head, which would stand out in a battlefield. I'm assuming grunts would generally wish to stay inconspicuous during war. Granted you would've the occasional oddball with too much bravado, but the majority would want to stay camouflaged. But from an artist's point of view, the reds do make the color scheme more attractive. Since it's all make-believe, aesthetics win over realism.

One thing that's aesthetically pleasing but is perhaps a tad illogical is the fact that ...

... the Leo grunt suit has a generous splash of rather vivid red on both sides of its head ...

... which in my opinion makes it that much more visible to enemy units in the battlefield.

 Apart from painting and panel-lining, the only other thing of note I did was to place a shiny foil behind the mono-eye. No decals were included with this model kit so applying markings on the Leo was a non-starter. I'm sure there are some good third party decals you could use for the Leo but Ï didn't have any at hand so I just left the Leo alone without any decal markings whatsoever.

In terms of its general silhouette, the Leo grunt suit has a profile that is largely unspectacular ...

... but I'm fond of this design because its similar to one of my favourites i.e. the OZ-00MS Tallgeese 

 As you can probably tell from the first and last photos on this post, the Leo also come with weapon and shield accessories. While the gun and shield has been repainted, the beam saber is in its original molded plastic state with some panel lining only on the handle. Because the Leo has a simple design, it actually looks better when it's wielding its weapons and shield. So if my custom painted Leo is to have its own space on the display shelf, it will be one in which it's striking a pose with either the gun or the shield and saber. In the future, I might even paint another one so I can have both.

OZ-06MS Leo custom painted build (front view with saber and shield)

 Below is a YouTube video on my custom painted build of the OZ-06MS Leo showcasing its details in a 360 degree view. In this video I'll also put together the Leo's accessories, do a final short review, and display the grunt suit in various poses. If you like the video, and would like to see more of the same kind of videos, please do subscribe to my YouTube Channel FourEyedMonster Miniatures.

 So that's one more kit completed and off my ever growing storage pile. It's a small win but a sorely needed one. Next I'll be moving on to some figurine plastic model kits based on the Demon Slayer (鬼滅の刃, Kimetsu no Yaiba) anime series. Recently I watched all three seasons of the series, and was inspired to do figurines of two main characters from the show. More on that in the next post. For now I'll take the personal win, and end this post with my usual wishes. Be well, be useful, and be happy. 

HG 144 OZ-06MS Leo - Mobile Suit Gundam Wing [WIP: A look at painted and panel-lined parts/sub-assemblies & Video of the assembly process]

 Before the final assembly process begins, I'll usually upload some closeup shots of the painted parts and sub-assemblies. It's no different for the Bandai High Grade (HG) 1/144 scale OZ-06MS Leo mass produced mobile suit from the Mobile Suit Gundam Wing anime series.

OZ-06MS Leo Work-in-Progress: Parts/sub-assemblies painted and panel-lined with lacquer and enamel paints respectively

 As for the assembly itself I'll put up a link to a video of the process below, so scroll all the way down if that's what you prefer. Meanwhile, below are closeups of the myriad of tiny parts as well as larger sub-assemblies that had been painted and panel-lined using lacquer and enamel paints respectively.

OZ-06MS Leo Work-in-Progress: Painted parts and sub-assemblies of the Right Arm/Hand

OZ-06MS Leo Work-in-Progress: Painted parts and sub-assemblies of the Head & Upper Torso

OZ-06MS Leo Work-in-Progress: Painted parts and sub-assemblies of the Left Arm/Hand

 To recap: the Leo's primary color was painted using semigloss Mr.Color #320 Dark Green. For its secondary color a mixture of semigloss Mr.Color #43 Wood Brown, semigloss #15 IJN Green, and glossy #1 White was used to create a brownish olive green hue. The primary color covers almost all the Leo's armor pieces, while the secondary color is focused on sections of its feet, knees, shoulders, and wrists. One other non-metallic color i.e. reds on the sides of the Leo's head, used a combination of glossy Mr.Color lacquer paints like #79 Shine Red, #3 Red, and GX4 Chiara Yellow to achieve a vermilion-like hue. Lastly, the metallic sections were airbrushed with Mr.Color SM203 Super Iron 2.

OZ-06MS Leo Work-in-Progress: Painted parts and sub-assemblies of the Right Leg/Foot

OZ-06MS Leo Work-in-Progress: Painted parts and sub-assemblies of the Lower Torso & Waist

OZ-06MS Leo Work-in-Progress: Painted parts and sub-assemblies of the Left Leg/Foot

 Apart from the mobile suit itself, other parts were also painted and panel-lined, specifically the Leo's shield and weapons (see below). The only thing unpainted are the clear red beam saber blades, both of which remain in their original colors. Even the beam saber handles had panel-lining done on them.

OZ-06MS Leo Work-in-Progress: Painted parts and sub-assemblies of the Shield and Weapons

 As promised earlier in this blog post, below is the YouTube video in which I had recorded the entire assembly process for the HG 1/144 scale OZ-06MS Leo. If you liked the video, please do subscribe to my YouTube Channel i.e. FourEyedMonster Miniatures for similar content. 

 By the next update, I should be able to post photos of a completed grunt mobile suit from the Gundam Wing universe. Well, that's all for now regarding my latest High Grade Gunpla project. Hope to see you soon in my next blog update, but until then ... be well and be happy.

Bandai Hello Kitty in Zaku II Armor [Completed]

 In a scale model kit that keeps on giving, the Hello Kitty in Zaku II Armor figurine being featured in this post is the third possible configuration that can be assembled from the Bandai Hello Kitty/Zaku II Super-Deformed-Gundam-Cross-Silhouette (SDCS) Gunpla kit. Please read on for a short review as well as some photos of the completed figurine.

Bandai Hello Kitty in Zaku II Armor [Completed]

 Apart from parts specific to it, this third figurine also uses parts from the earlier two builds. Unique to the Hello Kitty in Zaku II Armor is the oversized green helmet and tinted visor, a neck extension, and lastly a pair of shoulder extensions. Everything else comes from the previous two figurines e.g. the head and ribbon bow comes from the Hello Kitty in Green Overalls figurine while the body and limbs come from the Super Deformed Zaku II figurine. So of the three build variations, this last one was the easiest and quickest to complete because most of the assembly was already done.

Apart from using the body and limbs of the Super Deformed Zaku II figurine ...

... as well as the head and ribbon bow of the Hello Kitty in Green Overalls figurine ...

... this Hello Kitty in Zaku II Armor also utilizes new parts in the form of an oversized helmet/visor.

 Because the quality of the molded plastic finish was so good, I didn't have to paint the shoulder/neck extensions or the oversized helmet. I did, however, panel-line the whisker-like grooves on either side of the front section of the said helmet. And although some stickers were provided for this third build, I chose not to use them because I felt the stickers would have made the final build look tacky. 

Bandai Hello Kitty in Zaku II Armor (back view)

Due to her peace-loving nature, the Hello Kitty in Zaku II Armor ...

... does not wield any form of weapons whatsoever.

 Based on the oversized head vs small body proportions, this Hello Kitty in Zaku II Armor is the build that most resembles a chibi-style character. And in keeping with Hello Kitty's peace-loving persona, the weapons have been removed from this third build. Having this cute feline wield weapons would make her look out of place in any pose. As such, this final configuration exists sans any weapons.

Of the three builds from this kit, this is the one that'll be on display

 Of all three configurations that I had built from this Bandai scale model kit, I prefer the one you see here the most. As such it is the build that will be put up on the display shelf. Unfortunately, if you want all three to be displayed at the same time, then you will have to purchase two sets of this kit.

 However, if you are not a fan of the Hello Kitty in Zaku II Armor configuration, then just one kit will do because the Hello Kitty in Green Overalls and the Super Deformed Zaku II figurines do not share any parts. Not being a fan of either Hello Kitty or the Super Deformed mobile suits, I am fine with having just the Hello Kitty in Zaku II Armor on display. Well that's enough kawaii for now. It's back to more 'serious' builds for me in the coming weeks. Thank you for taking the time to follow my journey with Hello Kitty. Until we meet again in my next post ... be well and happy.

Bandai Super Deformed Gundam Cross Silhouette Gunpla Kit - Zaku II [Completed]

 Second in the type of scale model kits or figurines that can be created from the Bandai Hello Kitty/Zaku II Super-Deformed-Gundam-Cross-Silhouette (SDCS) Gunpla kit is the SDCS Zaku II. This model kit could not be more different from the first one that I completed earlier i.e. the Hello Kitty figurine from Sanrio's supercute universe. The Zaku II, meanwhile, is a mecha mobile suit from the Gundam universe that deals with war in the future. However, the SDCS product line from Bandai takes this more serious subject matter and turns them into smaller deformed versions of their usual form. And the SDCS Zaku II is the scale model kit being featured here.

Bandai Super-Deformed-Gundam-Cross-Silhouette (SDCS) Zaku II [Completed]

 Unlike the Hello Kitty figurine before it, the SDCS Zaku II had at least some panel-lining work done on it despite being a straight out-of-the-box build. But that was all I did. Because this super deformed mobile suit's molded plastic finish was of high quality, I felt it didn't need a coat of paint to make it look better and less plasticky. On the other hand, the weapons does look a tad plasticky. So much so that I very nearly painted the machine gun, heat sabre, bazooka, and leg missile pods.

SDCS Zaku II is fitted with a lot of weapons starting with the machine gun on his right hand, ...

... the heat sabre in his left hand, missile pods attached to both ankles, and ...

... the biggest weapon of all, a bazooka, which is secured onto its back.

 So I guess you could say that the one key drawback to doing a straight out-of-the-box build, at least for the SDCS Zaku II, was that its weapons would've looked much better painted in a dark metallic gun metal hue. But tempted as I was to paint the weapons, I had decided against it seeing that realism wouldn't be the main takeaway from a kit designed to look cute rather than menacing. So with that in mind I left the weapons unpainted and in its original glossy black finish.

Bandai Super-Deformed-Gundam-Cross-Silhouette (SDCS) Zaku II (back view)

Both the SDCS Zaku II's armor and weapons are molded in a glossy plastic finish ...

... and look good sans any paint save for some panel-lining on the grooves.

 In addition to panel-lining, I also applied foil stickers onto the SDCS Zaku II's mono-eye as well as on the lenses of its machine gun and bazooka. For the mono-eye, a reflective chrome-like sticker was first applied onto its surface. Following that a piece of clear pink plastic was then placed on top of the reflective foil sticker. What this does is to allow the mono-eye to better reflect any light that falls on it thus making the mono-eye look like it's shining. Meanwhile, the other two foil stickers comprised shiny/reflective pink stickers that acted like pseudo-lenses for the machine gun and the bazooka. 

The SDCS Zaku II is the second of three figurines to be built from this scale model kit

 With the two main figurines of this scale model kit - the Hello Kitty and SDCS Zaku II - now completed, there is only one option left to be build from this scale model kit. This last option uses not only new parts but also parts from both the existing Hello Kitty and SDCS Zaku II figurines. This Hello Kitty Zaku II combo should be finished in time for next week's blog post upload. Until then, I hope you're having a good week so far, and as always ... do be well and happy!

Bandai Super Deformed Gundam Cross Silhouette - Zaku II [Work-in-Progress: Assembly & Panel-lining]

 After completing the cute Hello Kitty figurine from the Bandai Hello Kitty/Zaku II Super-Deformed-Gundam-Cross-Silhouette (SDCS) Gunpla kit, next up on this scale model kit's to-do-list is the SDCS Zaku II. The second of three possible figurine variations that can be created from this kit is a chibi-style take on the Zaku II Zeon Mobile Suit. It's a stand-alone figurine that uses parts unique to itself that is it does not share any parts with the Hello Kitty figurine. Below are the main sub-assemblies of the SDCS Zaku II that have been put together as a straight-out-of-the-box build with some minor work done to bring out the details of the kit sans painting.

SDCS Zaku II work-in-progress: Straight out-of-the-box build of the main sub-assemblies; with foil stickers and some panel-lining for added detail 

 So at this point of the build, the main sub-assemblies such as the head, upper torso, waist, limbs, and weapons have been put together and are only awaiting the final assembly process. These sub-assemblies have not been painted. Apart from having to clean and prep the parts prior to assembly, the only work I did on the parts are to panel-line them with Mr. Weathering Color as well as apply foil stickers on the mono-eye and on the lenses of weapons like the machine gun and bazooka.

Mr.Hobby's Mr.Weathering Color was used to panel-line the main sub-assemblies of the SDCS Zaku II

 While photos alone cannot really do justice to the SDCS Zaku II parts, you can still get a general idea of the quality of its plastic finish from the photos shown here. As someone who hates the plasticky look of most scale model kits, I tend to spend an inordinate amount of time painting the parts to prevent this issue from being an eyesore. But as was the case for the Hello Kitty figurine, I didn't do any painting for the SDCS Zaku II sub-assemblies because they look like glossy painted pieces already without having to actually paint them. Is it perfect? Well, no. The black parts, especially the weapons, can look better with a proper paint job. But because the kit is a chibi-style piece, the glossy black weapons don't look as out of place as they would be with a standard Zaku II mobile suit.

SDCS Zaku II sub-assembly: Head with poseable mono-eye

SDCS Zaku II sub-assembly: Hands and arms with shield armor on right shoulder and spike armor on left shoulder (bottom up view from hands)

SDCS Zaku II sub-assembly: Hands and arms with shield armor on right shoulder and spike armor on left shoulder (top down view from shoulders)

SDCS Zaku II sub-assembly: Upper torso (isometric view from the front)

SDCS Zaku II sub-assembly: Upper torso (isometric view from the back)

 Color separation for a kit this small is surprisingly good. Neither stickers nor paint were required to make the SDCS Zaku II itself reasonably color accurate. The dark and light greens as well as the blacks and dark greys were adequately separated from each other. That being said, the weapons especially the missile pods on the legs could have done with better color separation between the missiles and the pod they were housed in. But it's something most hobbyist and scale modellers can live with seeing that the SDCS Zaku II is a chibi-style figurine. Moreover, I believe molding the weapons in dark metallic grey would've been a much better option than having it in glossy black. But that's just my own personal preference. Most would be satisfied with the glossy black.

SDCS Zaku II sub-assembly: Waist (isometric view from the front)

SDCS Zaku II sub-assembly: Waist (isometric view from the back)

SDCS Zaku II sub-assembly: Legs and feet (isometric view from the front)

SDCS Zaku II sub-assembly: Legs and feet (isometric view from the back)

 My color preference for the weapons meant they would have benefited most from a coat of paint. Painting the weapons in metallic gun metal would've been a step towards making them look better than just plain glossy black. Yet in the end, I didn't paint the weapons because I felt the end result wouldn't be worth the effort. This largely had to do with the fact that the SDCS Zaku II was a chibi-style figurine. The style's cute cartoon effect meant the SDCS Zaku II could still pull off having to wield plain glossy black weapons. After all, realism isn't a key requirement for chibi-style figurines.

SDCS Zaku II sub-assembly: Weapons comprising heat sabre, ankle missile pods, machine gun, and bazooka

 With the main sub-assemblies completed, all that is left to do is to put the SDCS Zaku II together in the final assembly process. I usually do posts like the one you see here in order to appreciate the details of the sub-assemblies in isolation. In the coming post, I will upload photos of a fully-assembled SDCS Zaku II and talk a bit about the completed figurine. For now I'll take my leave, and end what is technically the 650th post of my hobby-related blog. Until my next post, please be well and happy!