Kit Review

Straight build

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

HG Dreadnought Gundam - Detail shots (1/4)

HG Dreadnought Gundam - Detail shots (2/4)

Detail shots

With the back Dragoons removed

The four Dragoons can be detached separately.

Dragoon and shoulder seals.

Articulation is a standard 90 degrees.

HG Dreadnought Gundam - The cable from the Prestis weapon mounted on the side skirts connects to the back, which means the wa

The cable from the Prestis weapon mounted on the side skirts connects to the back,
which means the waist can barely rotate at all — that's a bit of a bummer.

You can swap out the cable parts to recreate the Prestis in its launch state.

HG Dreadnought Gundam - Prestis launch action (1/4)

HG Dreadnought Gundam - Prestis launch action (2/4)

Prestis launch action

HG Dreadnought Gundam - Two-handed shooting pose (1/3)

HG Dreadnought Gundam - Two-handed shooting pose (2/3)

HG Dreadnought Gundam - Two-handed shooting pose (3/3)

Two-handed firing pose

One-handed shooting pose

Together with the HG Providence Gundam.

The 7th entry in the SEED MSV HG lineup is the Dreadnought Gundam — like the Providence Gundam, it's a unit equipped with a large Dragoon system on its back. The difference is that it only has four large red Dragoons, so at first glance it looks like a completely different type of machine altogether.

As you'd expect from an HG kit, the color separation and stickers get it pretty close to the official colors, and since clear seals are included too, the straight build looks quite decent overall. The Prestis weapon that mounts on the side skirts lets you recreate a launch scene by swapping out the connecting cable — but when stowed, you have to plug a small cable into the back to secure it, which means the waist can barely turn at all, which is a shame. On top of that, the two white Prestis parts tend to pop off the side skirts pretty easily and don't stay put very well.

Articulation is an honest 90 degrees, so the range of poses is somewhat limited — but thankfully, even with those big Dragoons on its back, the kit is light enough and the joint strength is solid enough that standing it upright isn't really a problem.

MSV units by nature don't have a whole lot of canonical backing, so they really have to win you over on style alone... The Dreadnought Gundam's design being completely different from other SEED units is both a strength and a weakness. It might feel a bit off-putting because it's unfamiliar, or it might feel refreshingly original precisely because it's so different — depends on the person.

Anyway, aside from the Prestis parts not staying on the side skirts very well, there aren't really any major drawbacks to this kit. If the style appeals to you, it's a pretty enjoyable and somewhat unique HG kit. :-)

HG Dreadnought Gundam | 2004. 8 | ¥1,500

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.