MG MSN-06S Sinanju (Gao Gao)

Hi folks :) How ya doing?

I wasn't planned to do this Sinanju at first... hell I didn't even planned to buy this at all as I wanted to wait until the completion of the OVA series and see if Bandai would release any updated version of Sinanju before making my selection.

One day, my good reseller friend came to me with a few units of newly arrived TT Hongli MG Sinanju and before I come to senses, I've grabbed a unit from him :p

Manufacturer: Gao Gao / TT Hongli
Scale: 1/100
Grade: MG
Origin: Gundam 0079
Price: RM110 - RM150


Part 1: Instruction and Runners

The instruction manual is the exact duplicate, with Chinese+English in place of the Japanese descriptions ;) Runners are exactly same as the original, only with inferior plastic quality as expected from a bootleg.

If you pay close attention, there is no polycap used for this kit.

Part 2: Skeleton Build (Inner Frame)

I actually hooked on constructing the skeleton and take bunches of pictures for MG kits prior to fixing the exterior so in this review I would do a section on Skeleton build as well :p


The Legs

The articulation of the legs are fantastic! The dual-joint at the knee allow extreme bending, and the ankles also very flexible.




The Lower Body

Coupled with the hip and torso, the lower body is extremely flexible! I can do this high kneeling pose without any difficulty at all! See for yourself ;)






The Body

The body looks fragile but it is actually pretty tough. As the skeleton without the exterior armor, it can be bend at the mid section ;) The body would also consist of the shoulder joints, and they are the pull-out type which allows high posing flexibility as well.





The Head

Well, I should say the SKULL :p It does looks like a skull with mono-eye :p The neck joint allows a certain degree of upward posing ;)

The Arms

Highly flexible as seen in the following pictures ;)

The Shoulder

Well... not actually the shoulder but the frame of the shoulder armor. They are separated from the shoulder itself like most MG so it won't get in the way during posing ;)

Posing with the Skeleton

If I must say, this bootleg is 99% similar to the original at the skeleton ;) It does what the original can do.

So... let's come back to the regular build with the exterior armor and compare with the pose-ability of the skeleton next...

The quality of the plastics and the detailing is pretty good generally. If comparing to the original, I would rate it around 70% - 80% but for the price I paid, I am extremely satisfied.


Part 3: The Legs

After applying the exterior armor, the bending of the knee is slightly hindered but still at the excellent level :) I did partial coloring at the emblem/engraving and the thrusters with my gold and silver markers ;)

Part 4: The Torso

Does it looks like an Orge face or what? All the front, side and rear skirt armors are moveable thus they do not hinder the pose-ability of the lower body ;)

Part 5: Lower Body

Very macho lower body ;)

One thing I regret here is gotten too excited and did not do the dry-transfer decal before fixing up the exterior armor... It took me quite some effort applying those decals :p

My advise, when dry-transfer decals is in play, do them when they are still in individual pieces ;)


Lower Body, with Decals

As you can see, still can do a very nice kneeling pose with all exterior armor ;)

Part 6: Body & Shoulders

The most challenging part for the body is the hand painting of the emblem with my gold marker :p This kit comes with stickers as well as water decal for the emblem but I decided to paint it with marker instead. I also colored the pipe with silver marker ;)

After fixing up the exterior, the move-ability of the mid-section of the body became kinda limited :( The sideway twisting of the waist also seriously hindered by the pipes... (this is not bootleg issue... this is a flaw in the design itself).

Part 7: The Upper Body

I only realize now that I forgot to snap some pictures of the arms and head individually but I would just leave it that way since you could actually see the pose-ability of the arms in the pictures below ;)

Part 8: Completed Kit, without the Backpack

At this point, I got a bit tired and decided to play with the kit and snap some picture before proceeding with the backpack... some pictures for your viewing pleasure ;)

Part 9: Backpack

TT Hongli did the white parts are pretty rough, but overall the backpack is very nice :) I did my usual Tamiya silver on the thrusters ;)

Now left the fuel tanks and the final completion...


Part 10: Posing ;)

Completed with decals.


Kneeling Pose












Flying Pose












Part 11: Size Comparison

Sinanju is one big mecha... check it out from the following pictures ;)

Kneeling Pose vs MG Char's Zaku II




Standing Tall




Mono Eyes!






Quick Review

Plastic quality

Well, this is a bootleg kit so the plastics quality is nowhere if you are comparing with the original... the outer amour (red colored) is so so and it would only rate about 75% in comparison. The inner frame, however, would be rated 85%. The white colored parts, especially around the back thrusters, is very poorly done with uneven surface so 50%.

If you are very particular with the plastics quality and only plan to do a straight build & display, go for the original. If you have a budget constraint, don't complain ;)


Articulations

I know I have rated the Zaku II the best from TT Hongli, this kit is slightly above the Zaku II in terms of articulation but the Zaku II have better balancing, if you get what I mean :)

Nevertheless, these good rating is due to B**dai have made an EXCELLENT MG Sinanju and TT Hongli doing a fantastic job replicating it :p

• Head/Neck: Excellent!
  
• Shoulder: Fantastic! Very highly pose-able with the pull-out mechanism.
  
• Arm/Elbow: Excellent!
• Wrist: Normal+.
• Hand: Normal+.
• Mid-section: Excellent in skeleton form, but the outer armor got into the way and hinders the movement :(. Normal+
  
• Waist: Good in skeleton form, but the fuel pipes got into the way and hinders the movement :(. Normal.
  
• Skirt Armour: Very nicely done! It won't get in the way even with some challenging pose ;)
  
• Hip/Tight: Excellent!
  
• Knee: Excellent!
• Ankle: Very good ;)
  

Looks and Feels

This is a must get, Bandai or TT Hongli (depending on your budget) :p Even my straight build looks pretty nice, imaging if you are planning to touch-up and re-color. Excellent option for modding.


Fin ;)