GunplaWorks: Review: HGBF 1/144 Wing Gundam Zero Honoo

Hello Builders,

I'm very excited to bring this next review to you all, because I am gushing at just how cool it looks, and how crazy it is! Today I have the Wing Gundam Zero Honoo from the Gundam Build Fighters Honoo Photo Novel. I know absolutely nothing about this Mobile Suit, nor the photo novel. All I know is that this kit is based off of the Wing Zero (duh) and looks like its freaking ON FIRE!

I literally only picked this kit up because of how cool it looked, and damn did Bandai get it right.

To make this obscure suit into a kit was the right choice, as I'm sure plenty of fans picked it up without even reading the photo novel, just because of how cool it is. And if you are a fan of the photo novel, and had to have this kit because you knew of it before, then even more so, Bandai got us.

Without further ado, lets just get to the review!

Parts

This kit comes with 10 total runners. Oddly enough, it does not have an A plate, but starts with the B plate, does not have a C plate, the E plate is that tiny green clear piece, F1 and F2 are the white pieces, G1 and G2 are the red pieces, H is the orange effect pieces, an I plate, and then the poly caps and the beam sabers.

Size Comparison

I put the Honoo up against the Fenice, as they are both variations of Wing kits. Both are fairly short, and roughly the same height. As we know, After Colony mobile suits are fairly short compared to other universes.

Weapons and Manipulators?

This kit only has its two hands, so I did not include them. The hands hold all the weapons.

Weapons include the shield, a beam saber with two effect pieces (but the manual only tells you to keep one) two buster rifles, and the two wing swords.

Articulation

This kit actually suffers a bit in articulation. As you can see, the elbow and knee joints don't give you much range of motion. Also, as you move things around, the shoulder armor bumps into the wings, and the shield also gets in the way of the shoulder armor.

The feet also get caught at the ankles where the armor hangs over, and can be a pain to fiddle around with.

It also has really good range of motion for the head, as you will see later on in the poses!

The shoulder armor does, however, come forward a good amount.

The wings deserve a little bit of talking about because of its range of motion. You can bring the wings to the sides so they're more of wing binders.

Or you can fold them up behind

Or spread them out

Color and Quality

As you can see, this kit is mostly red, orange, and white with some areas sticking out with green seals. I have to say, the areas that are accented with effect pieces looks just great. The knees, shield, head, shoulders, wings, rifles, and chest all have clear orange pieces that add a lot to its color separation, and they pop out over the red.

The white on this kit can be very bland without panel lining. The area that suffers the most from this is the legs. The solid white can be a turn off, though the orange on the knees really helps.

It is a little bit of a pain to have all those tiny green slivers that you need to insert in various areas to give it some accents, but otherwise, the color separation is very good for the upper body.

Pros and Cons

This kit is amazing to pose. The variety of wing movements you can do really give it a great aerial effect. You'll definitely want to put him on an action base to bring out the aerial poses to full effect. This kit also has a good amount of weapons. You'll have a wide range of play options with the weapons included, and those flaming wing swords are unique to this kit.

This kit does have some weight issues, and takes awhile to stand it up correctly to balance. Again, I believe an action base is essential, as the wings are very heavy, and since this kit transforms, the legs can be finicky. The feet are also kinda weird, as they look kind of like high heels.

But besides that, this kit just looks crazy cool, and the poses you can get it in look great. The range of colors on this kit is great, and offers plenty of panel lining opportunities.

Verdict

This kit really is a must have if you like the Wing Gundam. It is a unique add to your collection, and really stands out among the other kits you have. With the addition of those clear effect parts, it really pops out, and can take center stage on your display. Make sure you put some effort in its poses, because it can, and will look amazing when you get it just right.

BONUS: FLAME SWORDS

You didn't think I'd leave without showing you those badass flame swords did you??