OLD Gundam ZZ 1/100 ZZ-Gundam

Release 1986.7

Price ¥2,200

BANDAI BANDAI Japan product info

OLD 1/100 ZZ-Gundam - Box side view (1/3)

Box side view

Runners

Die-cast parts are used for the shoulders and hip joints.

Clear runners and soft plastic runners

A large number of dedicated polycaps are used.

OLD 1/100 ZZ-Gundam - Parts diagram (1/7)

OLD 1/100 ZZ-Gundam - Parts diagram (2/7)

OLD 1/100 ZZ-Gundam - Parts diagram (3/7)

OLD 1/100 ZZ-Gundam - Parts diagram (4/7)

OLD 1/100 ZZ-Gundam - Parts diagram (5/7)

Parts diagram

Manual

Straight build

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

Comes with a double beam rifle and two oversized beam sabers.

OLD 1/100 ZZ-Gundam - True to its 1/100 scale, all five fingers are articulated and the joint strength isn't bad either — but

True to its 1/100 scale, all five fingers are articulated and the joint strength isn't bad either — but the movable grip on the double beam rifle doesn't hold its position well, so it's really hard to keep it pointing straight. T_T In my case, I ended up using double-sided tape between the forearm and the back of the beam rifle to keep it in place.

The shoulder and hip joint pins are die-cast, so they're nice and durable.

The cockpit interior and even the pilot are reproduced. Pretty groundbreaking stuff by 1980s standards.

Articulation is roughly at this level..

OLD 1/100 ZZ-Gundam - Double beam rifle firing pose (1/3)

Double beam rifle firing pose

OLD 1/100 ZZ-Gundam - Beam saber action pose — ZZ-Gundam has always been famous for its oversized beam sabers.. (1/3)

Beam saber action pose — ZZ-Gundam has always been famous for its oversized beam sabers..

Transformation

Lower the head antenna and flip the chest plate up 180 degrees.

Fold the double beam rifle as shown above, then..

Slot it into the underside of the upper body armor, then position the shoulder armor as shown.

Pull the legs downward and rotate them.

OLD 1/100 ZZ-Gundam - There's a sliding gimmick inside the legs — fold the feet in and push them inward, and large verniers a

There's a sliding gimmick inside the legs — fold the feet in and push them inward, and large verniers are exposed on the opposite side.

OLD 1/100 ZZ-Gundam - Rotate the legs 180 degrees like this to expose the verniers, press them flush, then swing them 180 deg

Rotate the legs 180 degrees like this to expose the verniers, press them flush, then swing them 180 degrees relative to the body.

Rotate the wrists 180 degrees to stow the hands and expose the small verniers.

Swing the backpack to the rear, then spread the front and rear wings — transformation complete.

Transformed into G-Fortress mode. It's a kit from '86, but it looks surprisingly convincing.

Side and bottom views

Core Top with only the front section detached

Core Top underside

For the lower body, open up the Core Fighter cockpit and spread the wings to complete the Core Base.

Core Base

Core Base underside

The separation into Core Top and Core Base is perfectly recreated here.

Core Block on its own

The Core Fighter has better color separation than expected. Though it's a bit chunkier than I thought..^^;

Core Fighter underside

The canopy opens too.

Alongside the MG ZZ Gundam released in 1999.

OLD 1/100 ZZ-Gundam - G-Fortress, Core Top, Core Base, Core Fighter - comparison shots with the MG. (1/4)

OLD 1/100 ZZ-Gundam - G-Fortress, Core Top, Core Base, Core Fighter - comparison shots with the MG. (2/4)

G-Fortress, Core Top, Core Base, Core Fighter - comparison shots with the MG.

Comparison with the 1/100 Zeta.

The 1/100 original Gundam quartet.

Alongside the 1/144 ZZ Gundam.

The last of the legendary 1/100 Gunpla quartet from the '80s TV series — the 1/100 ZZ Gundam. Back in the day it was released domestically as the Academy version, and along with the 1/100 Zeta Gundam it was a nostalgic kit that tugged at the heartstrings of old-school fans. Building it again in 2017 — nearly 30 years later — with the original Bandai release, I was genuinely moved.

First off, this is clearly a kit where the developer's passion for perfectly recreating the complex transformation gimmick really shines through. The transformation gimmick is so well executed that it honestly doesn't feel far behind the MG ZZ Gundam released over a decade later. (Which is probably why the 1999 MG ZZ Gundam got so much flak...) The rotating transformation gimmick on the forearms and legs, as well as the sliding vernier repositioning gimmick, are all cleanly reproduced, and the Core Block and Core Fighter transformations lock together solidly — the G-Fortress holds its shape nicely after transformation.

Despite its large size, the polycap layout is well thought out and delivers excellent joint strength. Joints that take a lot of stress — like the shoulder pins and hip joints — even use die-cast parts. The fully articulated fingers don't have bad grip strength, but the problem is that the Double Beam Rifle's movable handle is too loose, making it hard to actually hold the rifle properly. In my case, I ended up using double-sided tape to attach the rifle to the forearm for the photos.

As for the shoulder joints, they're designed to combine die-cast parts with polycaps internally, but the joint is so stiff it's actually hard to assemble. I ended up leaving the polycap out entirely, and even then it still felt tight — the die-cast parts and shoulder parts grip each other that firmly. So when building, it's worth taking a good look and deciding whether or not to include the polycap.

Comparing it to the old Academy version, the runner layout is identical, but the original Bandai release has a wider variety of molded colors and better color quality overall, so the straight build looks much better. The polycaps also feel like they grip the joints more securely. Sure, the Bandai 1/100 may have been revised here and there over the years, but either way, the quality of the original release feels noticeably cleaner than the nostalgic Academy version from back in the day.

All in all, this is a top-tier old-school 1/100 kit that rivals the MG — something you can still be impressed by even building it today. Of course, if you were born after this kit came out, you're probably better off just going with the MG. But for old-school fans who built this kit way back when, it's like a gift that lets you relive the romance of '80s Gunpla all over again. :-)
[ Updated at 2017.7.29 ]

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.