OLD Z Gundam 1/144 Hyaku-Shiki

Release 1985.9

Price ¥600

BANDAI BANDAI Japan product info

OLD 1/144 Hyaku-Shiki - Box side view (1/3)

Box side view

Runners

Waterslide decals

Manual

Straight build + wet decals

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

Comes with a beam saber and one extra right hand.

The beam saber handle is stored in the rear skirt, but once assembled, you can't actually take it out.

Decent but pretty average limb articulation

Binder articulation

Shooting pose

Beam saber action pose

The Gryps trio assembled with 1/144 Mk-II and Zeta

Together with the HGUC Hyaku-Shiki released in 1999.

Together with the HGUC Hyaku-Shiki Revive version released in 2016.

The evolution of 1/144 Hyaku-Shiki (1985 - 1999 - 2016)

This kit is the Hyaku-Shiki released as part of the old 1/144 Zeta Gundam series. It's a popular unit since it's a protagonist-class MS piloted by "that guy," alongside the Mk-II and Zeta Gundam. For old-school fans, it's also a kit that hits the nostalgia button under the nickname "Captain of the Hundreds."

First off, it comes molded in two colors — yellow and dark blue — which gets the color scheme somewhat close to spec, but the torso is basically just a big yellow blob (..) so the straight build does have that old-kit feel to it. That said, the quality of the yellow molded color isn't too bad for an old kit.

The proportions feel a bit more angular compared to other 1/144 Zeta kits. The limb articulation itself is actually on the better end for an old kit, but when you actually try to pose it, it doesn't really cooperate. Everything ends up looking stiff — probably because the ankle articulation is especially limited. Also, the beam saber handle in the rear skirt is designed to be stored there, but the backpack takes up so much space that you can't actually remove it.

Still, the "百" kanji on the shoulder is provided as a wet decal so it goes on nicely, and the overall sculpt isn't bad — with a good paint job, the silhouette could look pretty solid. If you want to do it properly you'd probably want to rework the joints too, so this could make for a nice practice kit for painting and customizing. :-)
[ Updated at 2017.3.21 ]

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.