Kit Review

Straight build + panel lining + decals

The universal standard for size comparison — next to a cigarette pack

Aile pack wings folded

Upper body close-up

Outer armor removed

Internal frame. The torso frame has virtually no detail to speak of, so I'll skip it—

Having a frame and this level of articulation is practically PG-grade~

Articulation is top-notch, just as you'd expect from the MG Strike.

Kneeling action pose

Beam saber action pose

Armor Schneider action. Since this is Cagalli's unit, could that be... a silver dagger??

The stand is included just the same.

Sortie action pose

MG Strike Rouge - Together with the existing MG Aile Strike Gundam. Basically just a version with different molded colors and

Together with the existing MG Aile Strike Gundam. Basically just a version with different molded colors and decals.

The decals on the shield and wing sections are quite different.

MG Strike Rouge - The one blemish on the MG Strike Rouge. The part that should've been molded in yellow — like on the Aile St

The one blemish on the MG Strike Rouge. The part that should've been molded in yellow, just like on the Aile Strike on the left—
just came out plain red. -.-; Skipping the partial paint job—

MG Strike Rouge - The ankle armor — which was one of the biggest complaints about the old MG Aile — I thought it had been fix

The ankle armor — which was one of the biggest complaints about the old MG Aile — I thought it had been fixed, but it's exactly the same. T_T

The Cagalli figure included as a bonus with the MG Rouge. And this is what the extra ¥200 gets you~?

Together with the MG Aile & Freedom — the SEED MG trio.

Straight build state before panel lining/decal work

After the MG Aile Strike, I figured the Sword or Launcher packs would come out next, but instead we got the Strike Rouge as a variation first — which was a bit of a surprise. The Strike Rouge is the unit that Cagalli, Kira's twin sister, briefly pilots near the end of the anime. Beyond rescuing Athrun, I honestly can't remember what else she did in it... -_-a

The backstory is that it was basically cobbled together from spare Strike parts that were loaded up during an escape, then just given a prettier color scheme. So structurally, there's absolutely no difference from the existing Aile Strike Gundam. The molded colors and decals/seals have been changed, and a Cagalli figure was added — that's what accounts for the ¥200 price bump. So the pros and cons are exactly the same.

Since it shares the same structure as the previous MG Aile Strike, the excellent articulation, frame, and gimmicks are all still great. The pink-toned molded colors in particular came out really nicely — subtle but well done. If anything, it might actually look better than the plain white Strike. ^^

The loose ankle armor — which was one of the most commonly criticized flaws of the previous MG Aile — is still there unchanged. When I first did the straight build, it felt stiff for some reason, and I thought, "Oh nice, they fixed it!" But after moving it around a few times, it was popping off just as easily as before.
-_-;; Still, in a way it did seem a little stiffer than before... so I actually broke out a vernier caliper to do a precise comparison measurement, and sure enough — nothing had changed at all. It seems like it was just a bit stiff that very first time I put it together and moved it.

On the runners, the shield's molded color changed, and while the design itself stayed the same, the runner containing the shield parts was moved. But in the process, a rather awkward issue crept into the MG Rouge — the yellow parts of the Aile pack ended up being molded on the same runner as the red shield parts, so they came out "red" just like that. In the original Aile, yellow parts were used on the shield side, but since those changed to red for the Rouge, the Aile pack parts got caught up in the change and turned red along with them.

This is a classic problem with variation kits rearing its ugly head — the molded colors end up off from the spec. Honestly, since they already had the system injection runner separation set up, a little more attention could've gotten the colors right... It's a disappointing detail that'll definitely catch the eye of anyone doing a straight build.

Also, the HG Strike Rouge came with the IWSP pack, but the MG just gives you the same Aile pack (with the wrong spec colors on top of that), which is a bit of a letdown. If they were going to recycle parts anyway, swapping in a different weapon pack would've made it feel a lot fresher... oh well.

It's the same kit as the MG Aile, but the difference in color gives it quite a different feel. Personally, I think the Rouge's color scheme looks better... but since it's a variation kit either way, it's really one to recommend for SEED fans or Cagalli fans (^^;). Or if you're picking up the MG Aile for the first time, it might be worth taking a good look at both color schemes before deciding.

MG MBF-02 Strike Rouge
Category	Rating	Analysis
Seam Lines	★★★★★	Almost no seam lines to deal with. The rifle, maybe?
Molding Color / Color Separation	★★★★☆	The pink molded color looks great. But why is the backpack duct red??
Proportions	★★★★☆	Just like the MG Aile, it's a bit on the skinny side...
Articulation	★★★★★	Still absolutely excellent.
Joint Strength	★★★★☆	Wish it were a bit tighter. The ankle armor that keeps popping off is the one blemish.
Internal Frame	★★★★☆	It can feel a little plain overall, but it's fine at this level.
Detail	★★★★★	Still restrained yet refined detailing.
Weapons / Accessories	★★★★★	Same as MG Aile + Cagalli figure.
Parts Count / Price	★★★☆	265 parts total. Parts per ¥1,000: 66.3. The figure is just thrown in for free, right?
Uniqueness	★★★★	Nothing surprising for a variation, but the pink molded color is pretty and distinctive enough to stand out.
Dalong's Point : 91 pts.

MG Strike Rouge | 2004. 9 | ¥4,000

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.