Kit Review

Straight build

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

Upper body and head

Back section

Legs

Two types of hands are included.

Articulation.
The arms are pretty standard, but the legs fold up really nicely.

Thanks to the transformation gimmick, the shoulders swing forward quite a bit.

HG Gafran - Action pose firing the palm beam vulcans (1/4)

HG Gafran - Action pose firing the palm beam vulcans (2/4)

Action pose firing the palm beam vulcans

The beam rifle mounted on the back can be swung forward.

HG Gafran - Beam rifle action poses using Action Base 2 (1/5)

HG Gafran - Beam rifle action poses using Action Base 2 (2/5)

HG Gafran - Beam rifle action poses using Action Base 2 (3/5)

Beam rifle action poses using Action Base 2

Transformation

Unfolding the wings that were tucked in like side skirts..

Extending the beam rifle section and folding it into a tail shape.

Spreading the top of the foot out into claws and bending the knees backward twice.

Spreading the panels on the sides of the head wide open..

Bending the shoulders twice and bringing them forward and down.

Opening the face cover and tilting the head up as far as it'll go.

HG Gafran - The wingtips can be spread out even further. (1/3)

The wingtips can be spread out even further.

Transformation to flight mode complete!

HG Gafran - Views from various angles. It's got a definite four-legged flying beast vibe.. (1/5)

HG Gafran - Views from various angles. It's got a definite four-legged flying beast vibe.. (2/5)

HG Gafran - Views from various angles. It's got a definite four-legged flying beast vibe.. (3/5)

Views from various angles.
It's got a definite four-legged flying beast vibe..

HG Gafran - Flight mode action poses (1/6)

HG Gafran - Flight mode action poses (2/6)

HG Gafran - Flight mode action poses (3/6)

HG Gafran - Flight mode action poses (4/6)

Flight mode action poses

Together with the HG Age-1 Normal.
The Gafran is a bit bulkier.

Together with the AG Gafran.
They look similar but differ in quite a few ways.

HG Gafran - In the HG, a beam rifle has been added to the back, and the wings/side skirts are actually articulated, so it's g

In the HG, a beam rifle has been added to the back,
and the wings/side skirts are actually articulated, so it's got a much bigger overall footprint.

The difference in side skirt size is massive.

The second kit in the HG Gundam AGE lineup is the Gafran, just like with the AG grade. It's not exactly a typical Gundam-style design, so it might put some people off at first glance — but in some ways it does feel kind of fresh and different.

First off, compared to the AG grade, it naturally supports a wider range of articulation gimmicks as you'd expect from an HG kit, and most importantly it includes the Gafran's signature transformation into flight mode. The massive side skirts open up to serve as wings, and the head, neck, shoulders, legs, and feet all transform individually to create a four-legged flying beast-like flight form. The transformation gimmick itself is pretty convincing, though opinions on how the final transformed shape looks will probably be pretty divided.

The polycap work is solid overall, and even being a transforming kit, the joints are nice and tight with no looseness anywhere — very impressive. The leg articulation is also excellent, making it easy to get good poses. It also comes with a tail/beam rifle that wasn't included in the AG grade, allowing for some cool action scene recreations. All in all, this is a kit that really nails the fundamentals with no real complaints — solid HG quality through and through. :-)

HG Gafran | 2011.10 | ¥1,200

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.