HG ZGMF-X13A

Providence Gundam

Kit Review

Straight build

HG Providence Gundam - Size comparison with a cigarette pack

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

HG Providence Gundam (1/2) HG Providence Gundam (2/2)

HG Providence Gundam - Detail shots (1/4) HG Providence Gundam - Detail shots (2/4) HG Providence Gundam - Detail shots (3/4) HG Providence Gundam - Detail shots (4/4)

Detail shots

HG Providence Gundam - With the DRAGOON system detached

With the DRAGOON system detached

HG Providence Gundam - Body unit only (1/2) HG Providence Gundam - Body unit only (2/2)

Body only

HG Providence Gundam - Articulation. Surprisingly, the knee articulation is pretty good.

Articulation. Surprisingly, the knee articulation is pretty good.

HG Providence Gundam - Beam saber action poses (1/3) HG Providence Gundam - Beam saber action poses (2/3) HG Providence Gundam - Beam saber action poses (3/3)

Beam saber action pose

HG Providence Gundam - Shooting poses (1/2) HG Providence Gundam - Shooting poses (2/2)

Firing pose

HG Providence Gundam - DRAGOON action pose (1/2) HG Providence Gundam - DRAGOON action pose (2/2)

DRAGOON action pose

HG Providence Gundam - Together with the 1/100 Providence Gundam.

Together with the 1/100 Providence Gundam.

HG Providence Gundam - Together with the HG Freedom Gundam.

Together with the HG Freedom Gundam.

The boss Gundam of Gundam SEED, the Providence Gundam, has now been released in HG form. It's got that massive DRAGOON system riding on its back, which gives it one of the most impressive builds among HG kits — and the proportions come out looking tight and well-done for its size. The color separation on the body is also nicely done, making this one of the higher out-of-box straight builds among HG kits.

The DRAGOON system can all be detached and reattached just like in the show, and you can even mount a beam saber on the tip of the shield on the left arm — so the weapon loadout recreation is pretty faithful overall. One thing that stands out compared to other HG SEED kits is that the knee joints bend nearly 180 degrees, which is impressive. Unfortunately, the ankles aren't quite as flexible, so the range of poses you can pull off is a bit limited — which is a slight letdown.

With the 1/100 Providence Gundam, the sheer size of the kit meant the joint strength had to work hard to hold up that big backpack — and it managed reasonably well. The HG Providence is smaller and lighter, so it actually holds together even more solidly. Loose joints would be a real problem on a kit like this, so it's good to see that Bandai seems to have paid attention to that across all scales.

It's a kit that offers real value in terms of out-of-box snap-fit quality and size for the price — the HG Providence Gundam has its own charm that's quite different from the big 1/100 version. :-)

HG Providence Gundam | 2004. 3 | ¥1,500

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.