Kit Review

Straight build

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

Straight build

SD Gundam Astray Red Frame - Photos after applying seals (1/4)

SD Gundam Astray Red Frame - Photos after applying seals (2/4)

SD Gundam Astray Red Frame - Photos after applying seals (3/4)

SD Gundam Astray Red Frame - Photos after applying seals (4/4)

After applying stickers

Hollow backs on the forearms, hands, and legs

Comes with the Gerbera Straight and shield — no beam rifle included.

SD Gundam Astray Red Frame - Probably thanks to the short skirt design, the leg articulation is a bit wider than other EX-Sta

Probably thanks to the short skirt design, the leg articulation is a bit wider than other EX-Standard kits.

Gerbera Straight action

Two-handed grip poses are possible too.

SD Gundam Astray Red Frame - Aerial pose (1/3)

Aerial pose

Original gimmick A.
The Gerbera Straight handle slots into the scabbard.

SD Gundam Astray Red Frame - Original gimmick B. Borrow beam parts from another HG-grade kit to put together a backpack + shi

Original gimmick B.
Borrow beam parts from another HG-grade kit to put together a backpack + shield + Gerbera Straight loadout like shown above.

Together with the BB Senshi Red Frame.
Looking at it now, the BB Senshi was way too chubby.

Together with the EX-Standard Aile Strike Gundam.

The 7th entry in the EX-Standard lineup is the Gundam Astray Red Frame, one of the most popular suits from Gundam SEED. It was released as a BB Senshi before, but I was a bit disappointed back then since the Gerbera Straight — the Red Frame's signature weapon — wasn't included. Well, this EX-Standard version does come with the Gerbera Straight ^^

On the flip side, the beam rifle that came with the BB Senshi is gone here, but since the Gerbera Straight is way more important, I think that's forgivable. (Still, it would've been nice to have both...) And compared to the BB Senshi, which felt a bit chubby and cramped, this one has a much slimmer and sleeker proportion — and thanks to that, the articulation is a little more generous than other SD kits in the lineup.

The Gerbera Straight has quite a few seals on both the blade and scabbard, and while they do give it a decent look, the seals feel pretty out of place. The EX-Standard lineup is built around the concept of using seals rather than color separation to recreate the color scheme, so it can't really be helped — but if you can manage even some partial painting, the finished result will look a whole lot better.

The hollow backs and simple parts construction are just par for the course with the EX-Standard series, but the slim, modern proportions are definitely what you'd expect from a newer kit. If you're a fan of the Astray, I'd definitely recommend giving this EX-Standard a shot — it's got a totally different feel compared to the BB Senshi Astray that came out back in 2003 :-)

SD Gundam Astray Red Frame | 2016.1 | ¥600

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.