OLD Dual Story G-unit Hydra Gundam

Release 1997.10

Price ¥1,000

BANDAI BANDAI Japan product info

OLD 1/144 Hydra Gundam - Box side view (1/3)

Box side view

Runners

Parts diagram

Manual

Snap-fit + Stickers

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

Beam saber and hand configuration

Rotate the head 180 degrees and there's a face on the back of the head too.

Arm and leg articulation. The legs barely move;;

Buster Cannon firing pose

Beam saber action. The Buster Cannon and shield can also be mounted on the tips of both shoulders.

OLD 1/144 Hydra Gundam - To transform, pull out the magic hands that were folded on the shoulders, then flip the rear skirt u

To transform, pull out the magic hands that were folded on the shoulders, then flip the rear skirt upward.

OLD 1/144 Hydra Gundam - Open the thigh covers, bring the legs together toward the front, and position them at the angle show

Open the thigh covers, bring the legs together toward the front, and position them at the angle shown above.

Rotate the side skirts around to cover the front and the transformation is complete.

High-mobility mobile armor form

Underside

Action pose in high-mobility mobile armor form

Together with the 1/144 Gundam Aesculapius.

This is the old 1/144 Hydra Gundam released as part of the New Mobile Report Gundam Wing Dual Story G-Unit series. Unlike its predecessors, this one doesn't reuse the existing Gundam Geminass body, and it's got a pretty grotesque design that really gives off villain vibes.

The face design is especially unique — it's got faces not just on the front and back, but on the sides too, giving it this grotesque look where you can see a face from every direction. Articulation-wise it's a bit grim — the arms are about average, but due to the armor structure the legs can barely move at all, which is partly down to the transformation gimmick into high-mobility mobile armor mode.

When transformed into high-mobility mobile armor mode, it ends up looking like a Zeong with no legs, which is a pretty unique transformation in its own way. The long, large magic hands that extend out from the back are the real highlight here, and thankfully they hold their position well no matter what angle you put them in.

Like its predecessors, this kit requires a lot of sticker work, and the adhesion isn't great. The stickers around the chest duct area in particular tend to peel up and not stick properly, so watch out for that.

Anyway, this kit's selling points are its grotesque design and transformation gimmick — the articulation in MS mode is pretty terrible, but the unique high-mobility mobile armor transformation kind of makes up for it. It's definitely a design that'll be very hit-or-miss depending on your taste, so make sure you know what you're getting into before picking this one up. :-)
[ Updated at 2018.6.25 ]