Kit Review

Straight build + Stickers

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

Various angles

Detail shots

Academy Galient - In robot mode, you need to pull the forearm out to expose the round elbow like shown above, but this part i

In robot mode, you need to pull the forearm out to expose the round elbow like shown above, but this part isn't very clean.
You basically have to fully pull out the forearm and elbow and reattach them.
Exposing the elbow like shown above improves both arm articulation and proportions.

It has an internal frame throughout the whole body, just like an MG. Wow..

The cockpit hatch opens too.

For weapons, the Galient Sword and the Saber Sword are included as swappable options.

Academy Galient - The handle can fold, but the connection is so loose it keeps falling off. Probably better for your sanity t

The handle can fold, but the connection is so loose it keeps falling off.
Probably better for your sanity to just glue it in place.

Academy Galient - Three sets of nicely sculpted hands are included, but the C-shaped joint connecting to the hand side pops o

Three sets of nicely sculpted hands are included,
The C-shaped joint connecting to the hand side pops off more easily than the ball joint at the wrist.
So it's probably better to just leave the wrist joint plugged into the arm and swap only the hands.

Two hand back parts are left over as leftover parts.

Pilot Jordy Vorder figure.

The elbows only bend about 90 degrees, but the legs feel very flexible.

Forward/backward shoulder articulation

Waist articulation

The arms spread out quite a bit to the sides, but the hip joints don't spread very wide.

Wrist articulation joint

A kneeling pose is possible too.

Academy Galient - Galient Sword action (1/3)

Galient Sword action

Academy Galient - Two-handed Galient Sword poses (1/4)

Academy Galient - Two-handed Galient Sword poses (2/4)

Two-handed Galient Sword poses

Saber Sword pose.
Since the Saber Sword isn't a soft plastic part, it probably won't flex much.

TRANSFORMATION

Rotate the head 180 degrees and raise the nose section upward.

Press the upper and lower arm together so the elbow is hidden from view.

Tilt the upper body forward, and raise the wings stored in the side skirts upward.

Academy Galient - Position the legs in a reverse-joint configuration, then extend the ankle joints as far forward as possible

Position the legs in a reverse-joint configuration, then extend the ankle joints as far forward as possible.
If you don't push the ankle joints forward like this, it's really hard to balance the center of gravity.

Academy Galient - Transformed into Big Falcon mode. Calling it a "transformation" feels a bit generous — it's more like those

Transformed into Big Falcon mode
Calling it a "transformation" feels a bit generous — it's more like those big-shouldered guys in hoodies bowing at a 90-degree angle..

Academy Galient - The gimmick where bending the joint between the hip and thigh exposes the verniers inside is actually prett

The gimmick where bending the joint between the hip and thigh exposes the verniers inside is actually pretty convincing.

Compared to an MG Gundam, it's roughly about the same size.

This kit is the Galient released as part of Academy's stationery store series. It was the top vote-getter in a survey Academy ran a few years back asking fans which kits they most wanted to see rereleased. And as if in answer to that, they delivered a completely new Galient kit with up-to-date quality.

The Galient series was one of those legendary lineups that any old-school fan who frequented stationery stores back in the 20th century would absolutely know. I built every kit in the Galient series multiple times myself, and I remember it fondly as a masterpiece mecha model of its era that built up a passionate fanbase right alongside Gunpla.

First off, this new Galient model kit comes in at 18cm, putting it in MG-class size territory. The overall concept also seems to have MG in mind — it uses an internal frame running throughout the whole body with armor layered on top. Sure, the frame detail isn't incredibly refined, but just the fact that a Galient with an actual internal frame exists is pretty amazing and fun in itself.

The color separation is also aiming for that MG-level straight build look, and they've even done a perfect job splitting out the yellow bands on the arms as separate parts. The gem on the head uses a separately painted part, and just from assembly alone, the colors feel pretty close to the official design. The red molded color does feel a bit cheap though — better than your average candy toy or gashapon, but not quite up to Bandai Gunpla standards.

The articulation is better than expected, especially the hip and leg range of motion, which is top-notch. The arms are limited by the design — the elbows only bend about 90 degrees — but the hips make use of the transformation joints in the middle to deliver an extreme range of motion. Thanks to that, getting into a kneeling pose is a breeze, and the large feet give it great ground contact for stable posing.

The downsides are joint strength and stability. It's not like the polycap joints are floppy like an octopus or anything, but the whole body just feels a bit loose overall. Every joint has a fair amount of play, so there's no sense of everything being tight and locked in. That said, when you actually strike a pose, it's surprisingly not as bad as you'd expect when it comes to holding position (-_-a??) The shoulder joints, though, look like they'd struggle to hold the arms out horizontally for any length of time. On top of that, some parts have weak snap-fit connections and pop off easily, so for your own sanity, you might want to just glue those down.

The transformation into Big Falcon is well executed, though to be fair, it's a pretty simple transformation to begin with — basically just bowing 90 degrees with a hat on. Still, if it's your first time doing it, getting the center of gravity right can be trickier than you'd think. The key to the transformation is the ankle joints — they rotate forward and backward and shift quite a bit front to back. After bending the legs into the reverse-joint position, pull the ankle joints forward so the feet end up as far forward as possible, and the balance falls into place nicely. The waist and shoulder joints being a bit flimsy does make it hard to get that crisp 90-degree bend, though.

For weapons, you get the Galient Sword and the Saber Sword, but the Saber Sword isn't made of soft material, so you have to be careful about bending it. It does flex a little, but it feels like the kind of material that'll snap if you push it even slightly too far. It would've been nice if they'd gone with a soft material instead. As for the Galient Sword, the hand guard can be folded and unfolded, but the hold is so poor that you're probably better off just gluing it in place.

So overall, this kit impresses in quite a few areas — internal frame, color separation, articulation, and more. On the flip side, as you'd expect from Academy, who still doesn't have much experience with mecha plastic models, the joint durability and stability leave something to be desired. It kind of reminds me of early Kotobukiya kits, though it's noticeably better than those early Koto kits in terms of overall refinement and material feel. You can definitely tell that Academy has years of know-how from their scale model background.

Anyway, despite a few shortcomings, I think this is more than enough to bring back those nostalgic memories and get you all emotional. When you consider it's their first full-on robot plastic model, the quality is pretty respectable (Academy coming through as expected!) It's domestically made, so the price is reasonable for what you get and it's easy to find — making it a great, low-pressure build for old-school fans and new fans who dig the style alike. :-)

Galient | 2023.3 | ₩42,000

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.