Kit Review

Straight build + Panel lining + Seals

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

Upper body

The face. Only the mask section has been replaced with new parts.

Arms and shoulders.
You can see the Aile Strike's vernier parts being used on the shoulders.

1/100 Gale Strike Gundam - The backpack section. Interestingly, the shield is mounted nearly perpendicular to the back. That

The backpack section.
Interestingly, the shield is mounted nearly perpendicular to the back.
That does shift the center of gravity a bit further back though..

Backpack center detail

Two large blades called Wing Saws are mounted in the side skirt positions.

The original side skirts have been moved to behind the elbows.

Leg section

The massive knee armor and seals.

1/100 Gale Strike Gundam - There's an extra part above the knee that extends the thigh. The armor on the knee is a reuse of t

There's an extra part above the knee that extends the thigh.
The armor on the knee is a reuse of the parts that originally went on the Strike's shoulders.

1/100 Gale Strike Gundam - Since only a few seals are actually used, you end up with a lot of leftovers. Might be worth savin

Since only a few seals are actually used, you end up with a lot of leftovers.
Might be worth saving them for other kits later on.

1/100 Gale Strike Gundam - The articulation is an honest 90 degrees, as you'd expect from a kit of this age. The added thigh

The articulation is an honest 90 degrees, as you'd expect from a kit of this age.
The added thigh extension gimmick means it bends a little less than the original Strike.

The shield mounted on the back moves around quite freely.

1/100 Gale Strike Gundam - Beam rifle firing pose. Take a good look at the shield angle ^^ (1/4)

1/100 Gale Strike Gundam - Beam rifle firing pose. Take a good look at the shield angle ^^ (2/4)

Beam rifle firing pose.
Take a good look at the shield angle ^^

1/100 Gale Strike Gundam - Drawing the beam saber from the front of the shoulder. The shoulder armor is so massive it makes f

Drawing the beam saber from the front of the shoulder.
The shoulder armor is so massive it makes for a pretty awkward pose.

1/100 Gale Strike Gundam - Beam saber action (1/3)

Beam saber action

1/100 Gale Strike Gundam - Armor Schneider action. With the side skirt armor relocated to the elbow, the Armor Schneider is n

Armor Schneider action.
With the side skirt armor relocated to the elbow, the Armor Schneider is now drawn from the elbow.

Wing Saw drawing pose.
Again, the massive shoulder armor makes it a bit of a struggle to pull off.

1/100 Gale Strike Gundam - Striking a cool pose first.. (1/3)

Striking a cool pose first..

1/100 Gale Strike Gundam - Wing Saw action (1/3)

Wing Saw action

Double Wing Saw action

1/100 Gale Strike Gundam - Some more dynamic poses (1/4)

1/100 Gale Strike Gundam - Some more dynamic poses (2/4)

Some more dynamic poses

1/100 Gale Strike Gundam - You can also attach the back weapon set from the Hail Buster Gundam, which was released at the sam

You can also attach the back weapon set from the Hail Buster Gundam, which was released at the same time,
but it feels like the combination doesn't quite match.

1/100 Gale Strike Gundam - Alongside the original 1/100 Aile Strike Gundam. The thigh extension parts and massive shoulder ar

Alongside the original 1/100 Aile Strike Gundam.
The thigh extension parts and massive shoulder armor make the Gale Strike look considerably taller.

Straight build

Out of nowhere, a whole wave of Gundam SEED 1/100 variation kits started rolling out. The lineup is based on the Gundams from the first SEED series, but the numbering follows the SEED Destiny numbering system. These are variation kits that make the most of existing parts while completely changing up the molded colors.

Overall, it reuses almost all the parts from the existing 1/100 Aile Strike, but with the molded colors swapped out to things like light blue and orange, plus one new runner containing various joints, additional armor, and weapons. Just these changes alone are enough to create a kit with a completely different look and feel from the original Aile Strike — it honestly looks like an entirely different kit. (Clearly intentional!)

New parts like the face mask, shoulder armor, knee guards, and new backpack are all placed right where they need to be, and the thigh extension parts in particular add nearly 2cm to the overall height. As you can see in the photos above, compared to the original 1/100 Strike, it's got a noticeably sleeker, more elongated silhouette.

The shoulder armor, backpack, Wing Saw, and other weapons cleverly reuse parts from the original Aile pack — Bandai's cost-cutting design policy is pretty obvious here. It feels a little cheap, but at the end of the day the end result is a completely different-looking mobile suit, so I guess it worked out fine..

The basic joint strength is decent enough, but having the shield mounted vertically on the side of the backpack shifts the center of gravity quite a bit toward the back. You'll need to lean the pose slightly forward to compensate, though it's nothing too serious.

The 1/100 Strike is a kit that came out in 2002 — seven years before this kit's release — but it was a reasonably clean and solid kit for its time, so it doesn't feel all that out of place compared to more recent releases. The newly added parts give it a pretty fresh feel, and the color combination in the straight build looks good too. On top of that, Bandai must have felt a little guilty, because they threw in a clean set of seals as well — making the ¥2,500 price tag feel totally worth it. It may not have the deepest roots as a mobile suit, but this is a great value kit that I'd recommend to everyone from Gunpla beginners to veterans alike. :-)

1/100 Gale Strike Gundam | 2009. 8 | ¥2,500

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.