Kit Review

Straight build + Seals

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

Exploring Lab. ISS Space Suit - Detail shots (1/4)

Exploring Lab. ISS Space Suit - Detail shots (2/4)

Detail shots

APFR foot restraint with clear stand

Lift the gold-plated visor and the face is revealed.

You can apply various eye and eyebrow shapes using seals.

You can actually remove the helmet itself, but the unpainted head looks a bit off..

LEDs can be installed on both sides of the helmet.

The battery/switch unit goes inside the backpack, with the wires tucked in.

Included as accessories are a pistol-type power tool and one dedicated right hand.

Standing on the ground

Limb articulation

Spacewalk pose

Work pose

Exploring Lab. ISS Space Suit - Shooting (?) pose standing on the ground (1/3)

Shooting (?) pose standing on the ground

LEDs on the sides of the helmet lit up

Pose with LEDs on

This kit is the 1/10 ISS Space Suit released in 2011 as the first entry in Bandai's Exploring Lab series. The series turns scientific exploration equipment into plastic model kits, and this one recreates the EVA suit used aboard the International Space Station ISS.

It's similar to the Figure-rise series in that it's a human-scale articulated figure model kit, but because of the bulky nature of a space suit, the articulation is quite limited. The waist is basically fixed, and the elbows and knees only bend about 90 degrees. That said, the joint strength is solid, so it holds poses well.

The helmet features a gold-coated visor that opens on a hinge, and inside is a head sculpted in a flat skin tone. You can apply various eye sticker options to the face, though without any paint work it doesn't look all that great visually. On the plus side, an LED unit with a built-in battery is included so you can light up the lights on both sides of the helmet — the battery pack stores in the backpack and can be switched ON/OFF.

The included clear display stand even features a sculpted APFR (Articulating Portable Foot Restraint) work platform, which really adds to the realism. The downside is that it makes the overall display height quite tall, making it tricky to fit in a display cabinet. The only other accessory is a pistol-type power tool that can be held in the right hand.

All in all, this is a pretty interesting kit for Gunpla fans who are into sci-fi, and it delivers that clean, quality build experience you'd expect from Bandai. At ¥6,000 it's on the pricey side given the premium LED unit included, but it's a unique plastic model that's well worth the price. :-)

Exploring Lab. ISS Space Suit | 2011. 9 | ¥6,000

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.