In celebration of the release of the highly anticipated Master Grade (MG) RX-78-2 Gundam Ver. 3.0, Bandai is currently ranking its best Master Grades with its “Best of My Master Grade” campaign. From the very first MG RX-78-2 to the latest releases like the RX-78-2 3.0 are all ranked within this campaign.
(Read more Gundam stories here on SGCafe)
The ranking is decided based on votes from users – and it’s still on-going!
Here are the mid-term results for the rankings as of July 10 and August 6, respectively. The final rankings will be decided on September 1.
As you can see, the original RX-79-2, RX-78-2 ver. 2.0, Strike Freedom, Full Armor Unicorn, Nu Gundam Ver. Ka, Turn A Gundam, Dom, Ex-S, Zaku II ver. 2.0 and the Zeta Ver. 2.0 have taken the top 10 spots for the mid-term results dated July 10. Their exact placements however have not been announced – the lists were made in the order of release date.
So far, there have been very few changes between the results of the July 10 and August 6 with the Zaku II ver. 2.0 falling into the top 20 and was replaced by another popular Zeon grunt, the Acguy. A new face has also made it to the list in the mid-term results for August 6 with the yet-to-be-released RX-78-2 Gundam making its debut in the top 20.
Here are the 50 best Master Grades at the moment :
Top 10:
RX-78-2 Gundam Ver. 1.0
RX-78-2 Gundam Ver. 2.0
Full-Armor Unicorn Gundam
Dom
Nu Gundam Ver. Ka
Acguy
Strike Freedom Gundam
Ex-S Gundam
Turn A Gundam
Gundam Zeta Ver. 2.0
The Turn A Gundam may have been viewed as ugly by some but it has become quite a fan favorite for its unique design. It has a high level of articulation and has this certain kind of beauty in its form. The Full-Armor Unicorn on the other hand gives you that feeling of Weapon Over-Kill. I have one of them myself and the Master Grade is just that intimidating. Forget the glowing green Psycho-Frame, this model kit is surely imposing. The Acguy on the other hand dethroned the Zaku II Ver. 2.0 for a reason and that reason is that it’s cute. Come on, admit it, it’s cute. I mean, I have one and I did not buy one for the coolness factor but how many strange and funny poses I can do with it.
The Dom has very articulated hands and is quite posable compared to the other kits of its time. I have the it’s space version, the Rick Dom and what impressed me about the kit is how many poses I can make it do despite the fact that its legs are quite wide. The original Zeta Master Grade posed a lot of problems especially on the transformation side but some of those problems were solved the 2.0 upgrade. The Strike Freedom, another one of the model kits I personally have is on the top 10. It’s highly articulated and over-all, it is just beautiful.
The Ex-S may not be as movable as much as the others on this list, in fact, the model can’t stand at all without it’s base, but just the sheer mass of the thing is enough to win it a spot. The Nu Gundam Ver. Ka solved a lot of the problems the previous Master Grade had like the articulation and over-all balance so making it to the top 10 is not that surprising.
And finally, let’s discuss the two RX-78-2′s, shall we? The first MG started it all waaaay back in 1995 and started a revolution. Sure, it may not be as articulate or as detailed as the others, but just the fact that this very kit started it all was enough to make people vote for it. The 2.0 version on the other hand is quite popular. Not only can it combine with the G-Falcon, but you can make it kneel and do all sorts of poses which was previously thought impossible.
Top 20:
Wing Gundam Zero Endless Waltz Ver.
Ball Ver. Ka
Gundam MK-II ver. 2.0 (AEUG)
MS-06J Zaku II ver. 2.0
Unicorn Gundam ver. Ka
Sinanju Ver. Ka
Gundam Exia
V Gundam Ver. Ka
Aile Strike Gundam Remastered version
RX-78-2 Gundam Ver. 3.0
Top 50
Gundam Zeta Ver. 1.0
Sazabi
Nu Gundam
Kampfer
Hyakku Shiki
Qubeley
G Gundam
S Gundam
RX-78-2 Gundam Ver. Ka
Perfect Gundam
Wing Gundam Ver. Ka
Freedom Gundam
RX-78-2 Gundam One Year War ver.
Gundam F-91
Crossbone Gundam Full-Cloth
Hi-Nu Gundam
Char’s Zaku II Ver. 2.0
Destiny Gundam
Force Impulse Gundam
Zaku II Johnny Ridden Custom Ver. 2.0
Gouf Ver. 2.0
Guntank
Gundam Astray Red Frame
V-Dash Gundam
The O
Gundam 00 Raiser
Marasai
Tallgeese I Endless Waltz Ver.
Sinanju Stein Ver. Ka
Just like the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One are the latest generation of consoles, the ver. 3.0 represents the latest generation of Master Grades models. It has a higher degree of articulation compared to the previous 2.0 versions and it also comes with LED parts to make the plastic model even more appealing. The RX-78-2 Gundam Ver. 3.0 is set for release on August 10.
Sure, many people are complaining that Bandai is recycling the RX-78-2 design over and over and over again (including me), but hey, the Gundam has staying power. It has proven its popularity time and time again, even if it has been somewhat reused over and over. Who knows? Maybe the new Master Grades will benefit from this new technology implemented in the 3.0.
There have been so many MGs already Bandai has surely made a lot of awesome ones. People are still demanding more new stuff and stop recycling the RX-78-2 and the Zakus, sure, but who knows? Maybe other new Master Grades from other mobile suits are up on the horizon (*ahem* MG Gundam Double X please*ahem*).
Read more Gundam stories here on SGCafe! Also join in on the community’s discussions at http://forums.sgcafe.com
Via Bandai Hobby, Water Round and Fire Round
Bandai ranks the 50 best Master Grades (mid-term results for August 6)
No comments:
Post a Comment