Kit Review

Straight build +
panel lining

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

1/100 Mcgillis's Schwalbe Graze - Detail shots (1/4)

1/100 Mcgillis's Schwalbe Graze - Detail shots (2/4)

Detail shots

1/100 Mcgillis's Schwalbe Graze - Outer armor removed (1/2)

1/100 Mcgillis's Schwalbe Graze - Outer armor removed (2/2)

Outer armor removal shot

1/100 Mcgillis's Schwalbe Graze - Frame shots. Identical to the normal Graze in every way. (1/2)

1/100 Mcgillis's Schwalbe Graze - Frame shots. Identical to the normal Graze in every way. (2/2)

Frame shots.
100% identical to the normal Graze.

Sphere sensor open gimmick on the head

The vernier open gimmick on the rear legs is the same as the existing normal Graze.

A wire claw has been added to the back of the left arm.

1/100 Mcgillis's Schwalbe Graze - You can recreate the claw launch scene using the wire parts, and it can also be spread

You can recreate the claw launch scene using the wire parts,
and it can also be spread open left and right.

1/100 Mcgillis's Schwalbe Graze - The shoulder armor and the armor on the front of the thighs fall off too easily, which

The shoulder armor and the armor on the front of the thighs fall off too easily,
which gets pretty annoying when posing..

The articulation feels slightly worse than the normal Graze.

The non-articulated front skirt has narrowed the range of hip joint movement.

Vernier articulation.

1/100 Mcgillis's Schwalbe Graze - Shooting pose (1/3)

1/100 Mcgillis's Schwalbe Graze - Shooting pose (2/3)

1/100 Mcgillis's Schwalbe Graze - Shooting pose (3/3)

Firing pose

1/100 Mcgillis's Schwalbe Graze - Battle axe action pose (1/3)

Battle axe action pose

1/100 Mcgillis's Schwalbe Graze - Sphere sensor open! (1/3)

Sphere sensor open!

1/100 Mcgillis's Schwalbe Graze - Wire claw launch pose (1/3)

Wire claw launch pose

Together with the HG Schwalbe Graze.

Together with the 1/100 Graze.

Together with the 1/100 Barbatos.

Straight build

Following the normal Graze, Mcgillis's Schwalbe Graze has now been released in 1/100 scale as well. As you'd expect from a Graze variation, the runner set called the Graze Frame is reused as-is, though about 40% of the runners consist of new parts since quite a few of the outer armor pieces have a different look from the original Graze.

First off, true to form for an Iron-Blooded Orphans kit, the full-body frame is faithfully reproduced — and naturally, it's 100% identical in structure to the existing Graze. Thanks to the more distinctive color scheme and design compared to the mass-production feel of the regular Graze, it really does give off the vibe of a unit piloted by a major character. The added shoulder and leg side binders also give it more volume, so it's got a great presence overall.

Maybe it's because there's more stuff hanging off it, but the joint strength feels a bit shakier compared to the normal Graze. Thankfully it doesn't go completely limp, so getting a pose to hold isn't too much of a struggle. That said, holding the rifle horizontally or shifting the center of gravity even slightly makes it hard to keep a pose, so you'll need to be a bit clever about how you set things up. More of an issue, though, is that the shoulder and front thigh armor parts have weak retention and keep popping off during posing — the front thigh armor in particular has such poor fitment that it's practically a design flaw. It's been happening more and more with recent Bandai releases, and it makes you wonder if a bunch of new developers have joined the team.

The newly added wire claw on the back of the left arm can recreate the launch scene using a separate wire part, and the sphere sensor gimmick on the head opens up and down with a satisfying range. The vernier open gimmick on the back of the legs is reproduced the same as the normal Graze, and the standard weapons — the rifle and battle axe — are included as well.

Anyway, since the 1/100 Graze was already near-MG quality, the Schwalbe Graze likewise delivers a level of quality that's in a completely different league from old-school 1/100 kits, making it a genuinely fun build. The visuals in particular feel a step more premium than the normal Graze, so if you're looking for a large Gunpla that's easy to build but looks impressive, this is definitely one I'd recommend. :-)

1/100 Mcgillis's Schwalbe Graze | 2016. 1 | ¥3,000

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.