A Brief Kit Review: 1/100 MG Heavyarms

I looked at my Heavyarms over on my entertainment center, then thought "you know, I'm really warming up to this".

It seems every time I build a kit nowadays, the work seems "ok", but then as it sits on my shelf, I begin to really appreciate it. In the old days I would love the result but later fall lackluster on my opinion. I love my Deathscythe Hell, my Wing Gundam and my Heavyams. By no means are they painted by a master, but they look pretty damn good.

I told my friend, who wants to get into model building, that I consider Heavyarms the easiest Master Grade I have ever built, and would actually recommend it to him as a beginner. The inner frame is great and the parts fit together perfectly. The assembly is so simple that I had it done in a matter of hours.

Bandai went out of there way on this kit's engineering. Like other G-Wing master grades, you get swappable hands that vary from open hand to extended fingers. The missiles are independent of the missile frame; meaning that anyone can go in and paint their missiles to make Heavyarms "pop". I went with a brass color, but apparently the correct color is silver.

There is a lot of manueverability in the joints, allowing you to pull off a plethora of poses. The color applications are just right and add a sense of uniqueness to the mobile suit. This kit also features an arm gimmick that allows you to pull out a beam saber. In the anime Gundam Wing, the pilot Trowa Barton installed a beam saber in the arm of Heavyarms for Heero Yuy to use in his duel against Zechs Merquise [Heero chose to pilot Heavyarms because he thought Zechs was too 'generous' rebuilding the destroyed Wing Gundam]. You have to disassemble the arm though to pull the pose off, and it isn't something I actually snipped off of the tree. STILL, it's nice that the option is there for folks who want to try it.

This is a retcon kit of the original TV show Heavyarms. The actual suit this model is meant to portray is Trowa Barton's Heavyarms from the manga Endless Waltz. Despite that fact, both are very, very close in appearance, and I actually prefer the retcon over the TV version, as I do with Sandrock.

The Negatives
There are a couple of downsides to this kit, however. It isn't perfect, but many of the downsides can be dealt with or fixed. First, the "beam gatling gun" (can we please just call it a BFG?) has a very hard time getting into the hand. I fixed the issue with Loctite blue sticky tack. Works like a charm and stays in there. My second complaint is about the blue striped parts in the chest. They are seperate, and they are a pain in the ass to pop in there. Once you get them in there though, they stay. Third, occasionally when you fiddle around with the legs, they tend to pop off. Just don't rotate the legs to far outward and this problem shouldn't occur. When put back on, they stay on, and I have heavyarms suspended in air. The chain that connects the ammo drum to the BFG also was a pain to get in there, but once you get it in there, it stays.


Overall Thoughts
I love this kit. Initially I wasn't happy with the way my job came out, but after a few weeks on my shelf I am very happy with it. The proportions are right and the mobile suit screams bad-assery. Just be careful with the head antannaes and a few other parts, and even unpainted, Heavyarms will look very impressive. At the time of the review the price point is excellent- you can pick this Master Grade up for $50 US (below MSRP) and Sandrock for about $45 USD (below MSRP). If you like the suit, the anime, or Gundams with BFGs or excessive weapons, Heavyarms cannot get a high enough recommendation in the build department. Two thumbs up- It doesn't get a higher rating than that.