OLD First Gundam 1/100 GM

Release 1982.8

Price ¥700

BANDAI BANDAI Japan product info

Note that some runners are not individually bagged in plastic.

Parts diagram

Manual

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

OLD 1/100 GM - Unlike the 1/100 RX-78, there's a separate stored beam saber part, so you won't have the beam saber poking thr

Unlike the 1/100 RX-78, there's a separate stored beam saber part, so you won't have the beam saber poking through the backpack when stowed. ^^;

Cross-section of the arms and legs.

Like the previous 1/100 Old Zaku, it uses a cross-shaped joint connecting the neck and both shoulders.

Thanks to that, the shoulders can swing forward and backward to a decent degree.

OLD 1/100 GM - Given that the upper and lower body are structurally separate, it looks like they originally intended to inclu

Given that the upper and lower body are structurally separate, it looks like they originally intended to include a Core Fighter gimmick. However, since no Core Fighter is included in this kit, you just have to glue the upper and lower body together.

A total of 5 hands are included, and just like the 1/100 Old Zaku, there's even an open hand option.

Articulation isn't great overall, but unlike the 1/100 RX-78, the hip joints do move.

Open hand action pose

Beam spray gun firing pose

Beam saber action pose

Together with the 1/144 GM.

OLD 1/100 GM - Together with the 1/100 RX-78 Gundam. In-universe they use similar shields, but the two kits handle the color

Together with the 1/100 RX-78 Gundam. In-universe they use similar shields, but the two kits handle the color separation completely differently. The RX-78 separates the white border, while the GM separates the visor opening area — it would've been so much better if both approaches were combined. What a shame. ^^;

Together with the MG GM v1.0 released in 1999.

Together with the MG GM v2.0 released in 2009.

The evolution of the 1/100 GM.

It's the Federation's pride and joy — the old-style 1/100 GM. At a glance it shares a lot with the RX-78 Gundam, so you might think of it as a variation, but the kit itself is a completely new mold. That said, many of the upgrades that came with the transition from the Char's Zaku to the Old Zaku were carried over to the GM as well.

The 1/100 GM also has a hollow interior and a separable upper/lower body, seemingly designed to accommodate a Core Block — but no Core Fighter is included in this kit. So the upper and lower body are just glued together rather than being detachable. Thanks to that, though, the hip joints are reproduced as a normal movable joint, unlike the 1/100 RX-78 where the thighs were fixed to the lower body.

With the Core Block removed, the connection point between the upper and lower body is cleanly reproduced as a proper circular shape, unlike the 1/100 RX-78. On top of that, the upper and lower body have separate color separation, and even the soles of the feet are color-separated, so the straight build already gets you pretty close to the official colors. The shoulder joint, which on the 1/100 RX-78 required a fiddly ring-and-loop glue method, has been changed to the cross-shaped joint used on the 1/100 Old Zaku — making assembly much cleaner and adding the bonus of forward/backward shoulder movement.

The backpack's beam saber storage is also an improvement over the 1/100 RX-78 — the beam saber no longer awkwardly pokes through the backpack. A separate, shorter stored beam saber part is included, so you can neatly recreate the stowed look. On top of that, open hand parts not found on the 1/100 RX-78 are now included, and overall the kit feels like it's been upgraded in much the same way the 1/100 Old Zaku was over its predecessor.

As for the shield, which is similar in shape to the RX-78's, the color separation approach has been changed in a rather odd way. While the 1/100 RX-78 separated the white border trim, the 1/100 GM instead separates the visor opening at the top. Both are halfway measures that leave something to be desired, and it's a shame they couldn't combine both approaches — that would've been so much better.

The biggest letdown with this kit is the joint strength. The internal joints holding the shoulders in place are particularly weak, so both shoulders droop down like they've given up, which makes the proportions look a bit sad. T_T The shoulders aren't the only loose parts either — the lower body is generally floppy all around, so if you pick the kit up by the torso, the arms and legs just dangle around like an octopus. The articulation is overall an improvement over the 1/100 RX-78, but it seems like controlling joint tightness was still a challenge at the time. You'll probably want to do some work on the joints while building to firm things up a bit.

Anyway, true to the rule that "newer is better," even though the star of the show is the RX-78, the later-released 1/100 GM is a pretty significant structural upgrade over the 1/100 RX-78. If you're curious to feel the difference between this and the old 1/100 RX-78 with your own hands, or if you're a fan of mass-production mobile suits, this is definitely a vintage kit worth recommending. :-)
[ Updated at 2016.4.10 ]

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.