Kit Review

Straight build + Stickers

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

HG Gundam L.O. Booster - Detail shots (1/4)

HG Gundam L.O. Booster - Detail shots (2/4)

Detail shots

Weapons loadout

The lightweight accelerate submachine gun can slide forward.

A beam sword is stored inside the reactive shield, too.

Two types of hands are included.

Same stand joint parts as before.

The reactor unit deploys in two stages.

A PET material effect part representing the Thrust Beam Cannon's firing state is inserted.

Leftover parts

Limb articulation is no different from the original kit.

Beam sword action

Lightweight accelerate submachine gun action pose

HG Gundam L.O. Booster - Thrust Beam Cannon attack pose with reactor unit deployed (1/4)

HG Gundam L.O. Booster - Thrust Beam Cannon attack pose with reactor unit deployed (2/4)

Thrust Beam Cannon attack pose with reactor unit deployed

TRANSFORMATION

After folding the backpack binders forward

Deploy and rotate the shins, then bring the feet together to form the Expand Claws...

Bend the Expand Claws to point forward.

Rotate the shield mounted on the forearm 180 degrees and the transformation is complete.

HG Gundam L.O. Booster - High-speed flight mode (1/4)

HG Gundam L.O. Booster - High-speed flight mode (2/4)

High-speed flight mode

Underside

Together with the HG Gundam Geminass 01 released through Club G.

Together with the old 1/144 Gundam L.O. Booster released in 1997.

This kit is the HG Gundam L.O. Booster, released as a Club G (Premium Bandai) online exclusive. After the old 1/144 old 1/144 came out in 1997, it took a whopping 25 years to finally get an HG version. Using the Club G release HG Gundam Geminass 01 as a base, it comes packed with a large number of newly sculpted parts.

Since the basic frame is the same as the HG Gundam Geminass 01, the fundamental articulation and joint characteristics are identical. It's still a kit with average articulation and decent joint strength. The increased bulk does make the joints feel a bit less secure, but they're basically on the tighter side, so standing it up and holding poses isn't bad at all.

The signature shoulder reactive armor can open in two stages, and PET material effect parts are included to recreate the Thrust Beam Cannon's firing state. Thankfully, the open gimmick on the large reactive armor is sturdy, so it holds firmly no matter what angle you position and open it at. As for new weapons, the lightweight accelerate submachine gun and reactive shield have been added, and the beam sword is stored inside the reactive shield.

The transformation into high-speed flight mode now includes an Expand Claw gimmick that wasn't in the original design. Originally it was just a matter of straightening the legs and folding the backpack forward, but now there's an added step where you deploy and rotate the calves to form the Expand Claws and then bend them downward.

Overall it's a clean-looking HG kit, but with so much more hanging off it compared to before, it's also a kit that's oddly a bit fiddly to handle. There are so many moving parts that getting it into a pose takes quite a bit of fussing, and some parts pop off easily and need to be reattached — the side leg wings in particular. In short, it's not the most structurally solid kit out there, so if you prefer something sturdy, that could be a point of frustration.

So while it does have that fiddly, slightly unstable feel, the overall sculpt and features are well done. The price is a bit of a surprise though — it came out at ¥3,800, which is MG-level pricing. The contents are about what you'd expect from a parts-heavy HG kit, something that would've felt right in the mid-to-upper ¥2,000 range. It's a puzzling pricing decision — I guess there are behind-the-scenes reasons we're not privy to...

Anyway, if you're a fan of the Gundam Wing Dual Story G-Unit series, this should be a welcome addition. It's a unit that many people won't be familiar with since it's not all that well known, but if the design appeals to you, it's definitely worth giving it a shot. :-)

HG Gundam L.O. Booster | 2022.10 | ¥3,800

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.