MG XXXG-01D Gundam Deathscythe EW (Dragon Momoko)

Hi folks :) Here's my 1st review of October, the MG Deathscythe by Dragon Momoko... yes, the bootleg company from Taiwan. The 1st batch of this kit comes cheaper as the company is giving introductory discount but subsequent batches should be priced higher.

Manufacturer: Dragon Momoko
Scale: 1/100
Grade: MG
Origin: Gundam W Endless Waltz 败者たちの栄光
Price: RM65 - RM85

Just so you are wondering... here's the link to my TT Hongli Deathscythe EW ;)


Part 1: Runners

The runners are almost exactly like the original, except the is no pilot figure(s)! Yup! No pilot figures for whatever reason!?

The detailing are pretty nice on the parts, and the plastics looks fine at first until I applied paint remover onto 1 part and it breaks into 2 :( Be extra caution if you are into painting.









Part 2: Decals

Yup... a separate section for the decals as I felt it is necessary.

At first, it seems that the decals is pretty nice, and I don't really mind Dragon Momoko make the sticker into dry transfer but was a bit skeptical for the placement, as stickers normally side-by-side with one another without the need for gap but dry transfer would need the additional gap...

I mostly do straight build with partial painting when necessary, so I am also applying decals during work in progress. Sad to say that Dragon Momoko did a very bad job with the dry transfer... normally, we need to apply pressure and scratch on the decals for the transfer to take place, but for Dragon Momoko's dry decals, it immediately comes off and stick on any surface with just slight placement!

I won't say I'm expert, but having built quite a number of MG, I would say that I am pretty experienced but after 2 screw-up with this decals and had a taste of the actual quality, I gave up with the decals!

For those of you who would like to decorate this kit, do wait for Bandai's official water decals. Dragon Momoko dry transfer decals SUCKS, and I am very very disappointed.

Part 3: Skeleton Build

The Legs

Pretty nice articulations for the hip and knee. Ankle is a bit ordinary tho :)

The Waist

Pretty straight-forward skeleton ;)

The Chest

The pull-out mechanism would allow the shoulder joints to be pulled out for more dynamic posing. The neck employed a dual-joints so the head could slightly tilt upward and downward ;)

The Arms

Great articulations for the arms :) And as you can see, this kit does not comes with hand with moveable fingers but instead with 4 sets of fixed fingers/fists for posing... I am fine with this but some of you would not like it since you cannot do the middle-fingaaaa pose :p

Completed Skeleton

Pretty nice, and can do very dynamic posing! Love it ;)

Part 4: The Legs

There is no pictures for the legs... why? I forgot to take because I was pissed with the decals... Will add in later but we have to do without for the time being ;)

As expected, the legs are very nice (you can see from other pictures below) with great articulations. I would not do the kneeling pose for this kit due to the blade thingy at the knee and toe :p


Part 5: Waist

Pretty nice. Parts separations are very well done too but a bit plain without decals :(

Part 6: Chest

Once again I would say, parts separations are very nicely done (credit to Bandai). This just make me more upset for the crappy decals!!!

To compensate for not having pictures for the legs, here's the chest+waist+legs for your viewing pleasure :p

Part 7: Arms

The elbow articulations are slightly hindered by the external armor but not an issue :)

Part 8: Head

Parts separations are done nicely but since the parts are relatively small and thin, they are very fragile so handle with care, especially fixing the vent (yellow parts) at the side... try not to force it in as it might break the thin white parts.

Part 9: Backpack

Nothing much to mention by the backpack is very nicely designed and produced ;)

Part 10: Completed Deathscythe

By putting together all the parts, here's Deathscythe ;) It seem very plain without decals but I enjoyed building this kit ;)

Part 11: Posing with Weapons

Well, I'm sure Gundam W fans would know that the Gundams in this series does not come equip with crazy lot of weapons :p

For this Deathscythe, it only have the beam scythe and a multipurpose shield in the weaponry department. Nevertheless, the beam scythe is pretty ordinary but the multipurpose shield is very nice :)

Part 12: More Posing

Right, enjoy yourself ;)

Quick Review

Plastic quality

At the 1st glance, I thought that the plastics quality is very nice until I applied paint remover to one of the parts and it breaks into 2 after a while! The plastics is very brittle and break easily. Detailing are pretty nicely replicated from the original tho.

If you do not want to have unwanted surprises, I would recommend the original from Bandai, or the same from TT Hongli instead.


Articulations

Articulations are near-excellent for the new XXXG-01 inner frame by Bandai!

• Head/Neck: Excellent!
  
• Shoulder: Fantastic! Very highly pose-able with the pull-out mechanism.
  
• Arm/Elbow: Excellent in skeleton form, still very good when external armor applied.
  
• Wrist: Normal+.
• Hand: Normal.
• Waist: Good.
  
• Skirt Armour: Good.
  
• Hip/Tight: Excellent!
  
• Knee: Excellent, but not much application of the good articulation due to the blade thingy sticking out from the knee :p
• Ankle: Normal+
  

Looks and Feels

The look is very good but plain without decals... although the decals is not a major issue for a gunpla kit, it still makes me very upset, not to mention the brittle plastics... if you do not want to pay a premium for the ori and do not want to wait for TT Hongli version of this, the decision is yours... if you have the extra money, get Bandai, otherwise, TT Hongli.


Fin ;)