Kit Review

Straight build + panel lining + partial painting + decals

The universal yardstick — size comparison with a cigarette pack.

The Aile Pack's wings can be folded downward.

MG Aile Strike Gundam - Cockpit hatch open. It's a fairly complex mechanism, but it's reproduced beautifully as you'd expect

Cockpit hatch open. It's a fairly complex mechanism, but it's reproduced beautifully as you'd expect from an MG.

Shoulder articulation. Looks like this is meant for attaching the future Sword and Launcher Packs..

MG Aile Strike Gundam - The inner skirt has pretty solid molding too. Basically most of the inner armor surfaces are like thi

The inner skirt has pretty solid molding too. Basically most of the inner armor surfaces are like this..

MG Aile Pack. The wings have gotten really long.

Strike Gundam body unit.

Outer armor removed.

Inner frame. You can strip all the armor off like this.

Upper body front and arm frame. The torso is a bit plain, but the arm detail is nice.

Yeah, the back of the torso doesn't have much going on either.

Leg frame. Clean and tidy.

Even stripped down, it still shows off that insane range of motion.

Articulation with armor on.
Both arms and legs can bend 180 degrees at the joints. Top-tier!

MG Aile Strike Gundam - When you bend the knee, the thigh armor slides out of the way, allowing an even greater bend angle —

When you bend the knee, the thigh armor slides out of the way, allowing an even greater bend angle — a really clever system..

The inner frame articulation that makes all this possible.. is just incredible..!

MG Aile Strike Gundam - The shoulders can swing nearly 90 degrees straight up — some seriously impressive vertical shoulder a

The shoulders can swing nearly 90 degrees straight up — some seriously impressive vertical shoulder articulation.

The shoulders can also swing forward quite a bit.

Crouching pose achieved. It's almost unbelievable how this kind of pose is even possible..!

Armor Schneider storage compartment on the side opens and closes.

The Armor Schneider can fold and unfold.

Armor Schneider action pose

Action po~se. The leg articulation is just the best!!!

Beam saber action pose

Mounted on the launch platform

There's a power cord that plugs into the rear end.

Flight pose using the display stand

Together with the MG RX-78 v1.5. The Strike is a bit smaller and slimmer-looking.

Less than a year after the Non Grade 1/100 came out, the Aile Strike got the MG treatment. The existing 1/100 was already above average in quality, so it was a bit surprising to see an MG version follow so soon after — but MG is MG, after all. Compared to the Non Grade 1/100, the proportions have changed quite a bit. It's much slimmer and leaner, the inner frame is fully realized, and it's been reborn as an MG several steps ahead of its predecessor, armed with top-tier detail and articulation.

First and foremost, the most striking thing about the MG Strike is its insane articulation. It's clearly the Gunpla with the widest range of motion up to this point. Even compared to the MG G Gundam series — which boasts its Action Frame — or the RX-78 v1.5, which is no slouch in the articulation department, this thing is several levels above.

As you can see in the photos above, both arms and legs achieve 180-degree joint bends, and the shoulders — which move dramatically up and down — offer the best shoulder articulation ever seen in Gunpla history. (The poses you can pull off are almost absurd.) The ankle bend is no joke either, though while it flexes a lot forward and backward, it's a bit more limited side to side.

The Aile Pack's detail is quite refined. The greatly enlarged upper wings articulate up and down and can fold completely flat, and the upper and lower sections of the Aile Pack can move independently. The included dry decals also look fantastic, and aside from the head, there are almost no seam lines that need fixing.

One flaw I really have to point out is that the ankles and feet are loose. For a kit with this level of articulation — and one carrying a big load on its back — the ankles are a bit too wobbly, which can make posing feel unstable.; If only the ankles had been made a bit tighter, this would've been a truly perfect kit.. On top of that, the ankle guards fall off way too easily during posing. T_T The slightest movement and they pop right off.. come on..

The included launch platform is way too big to just call a stand. ^^; It's got all kinds of detailed parts as a launch pad — feels more like a diorama set. It probably drove the price up quite a bit, but it's also what gives this kit such a luxurious feel.

Either way, this is clearly a massive kit that signals the arrival of unprecedented articulation in Gunpla. The inner frame is also very faithfully reproduced, and the kit itself has a more intricate, finely crafted feel compared to previous MGs. It does feel a little pricey relative to what you get.. but the quality is so good that it's hard to complain too much.

MG GAT-X105 Aile Strike Gundam
Category	Rating	Analysis
Seam Lines	★★★★★	Almost no seam lines to deal with. Maybe just the rifle?
Molding Color / Color Separation	★★★★★	Molded colors are excellent. Perfect match to the official color scheme.
Proportions	★★★★☆	Looks good, but feels like it went on a bit too aggressive a diet.
Articulation	★★★★★	What more could you ask for??
Joint Strength	★★★★☆	Wish the ankles were a bit tighter. The ankle guards that fall off too easily are a minor blemish.
Internal Frame	★★★★☆	The overall molding feels a bit plain in places, but it's fine at this level.
Detail	★★★★★	Restrained yet refined detail.
Weapons / Accessories	★★★★★	Pretty much has everything it should. Stand included!!
Parts Count / Price	★★★★	263 parts total. Parts per ¥1,000: 69.2. Volume is on the lower side, but the quality makes up for it.
Uniqueness	★★★★★	This level of articulation in an MG was nothing short of a revolution.
Dalong's Point : 95 pts.

MG Aile Strike Gundam | 2003.10 | ¥3,800

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.