-- Series Overview ---------------------------------
The Gundam SEED Destiny 1/144 No Grade series followed up on the original SEED 1/144 line, with a total of 14 kits released between 2004 and 2005, priced in the ¥300–¥600 entry-level range. The basic build style is similar to the SEED 1/144 series, but you can definitely feel a step up in terms of detail. They also introduced an evolved dumbbell-shaped ball joint polycap, where both sides of each joint move independently, which does improve the overall feel of articulation — though since the elbows and knees are still fixed, the range of poses you can pull off remains limited.
That said, the proportions are solid and on par with HG, and while color separation is limited, the molded colors themselves look pretty decent. Each kit also recreates its own transformation gimmick or key feature. The parts count is more complex than the SEED 1/144 kits, which pushed the average price up to ¥500, but the overall quality has gone up along with it. True to the No Grade label, these are great entry-level kits for anyone who wants to enjoy building at a relatively low price, or just wants something to practice painting on.
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<Individual Kit Notes>
This kit is the third entry in the series — the 1/144 Chaos Gundam. The color scheme is partially recreated using 5-color molding and stickers, but the color separation on the arms and legs has been left out, so it does look noticeably simpler compared to the HG version.
On the flip side, the complex design is translated into 3D pretty well, so even just a basic paint job should make it look quite impressive — and the weapon pod detachment gimmick is included too. All in all, it's a kit that holds up well in terms of three-dimensionality, coming close to HG quality, and it's at least a step above the 1/144 Force Impulse Gundam :-)
AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.
