Review: 1/144 NG Zoloat

General/Technical Data

Series: No Grade 1/144

Title: ZM-S06S Zoloat

Release Date: 05/1993

Suggested Price: ¥500 ($7)

No. of Parts: 50 + Polycaps + Foil Stickers

Plastic Colors: Red, Yellow, Transluscent Purple

Gimmicks: Beam Rifle, Beam Sabers (2), Beam Shield, Display Base

Intro

I'm taking my sweet time, but I'm making good on my promise to churn out a few blogs on a regular basis.  And my latest attempt to return to Gunpla building has begun with yet another blast from the past.  Inspired by Mobile Suit Victory Gundam, the Zoloat offers a unique, albeit faster, method to building by molding the runners in the same shape and simply pressing them together, assembling several parts at once.  Other than that and Bandai's attempt at an inner frame composed of polycaps, it's your run-of-the-mill, generic 1/144 scale model.

Head

Basically 2 halves molded in red.  Stickers are provided for the forehead, eyes and cheek vents.

Torso

Composed of 7 parts, including a large polycap with joints placed inside the chest, the torso also sports a backpack with 2 thrusters.  4 stickers are available for the chest.

Much like the 1/144 NG G Gundam, 2 more polycaps hold all the skirt armor together, giving articulation to each individual piece (except the front and back skirt).  One sticker is available for this section.

Arms

Each made up of 9 parts--including polycap hands of which you can't tell the back from the palm--both arms can rotate 360 degrees at the elbow and bend at a 180-degree angle.  What's more . . .

The left shoulder armor has a built-in sidearm while the right one can hold up the beam shield (though not very well; more on this one later).

Legs

Each made up of 7 parts, the legs can move at about 45 degrees at the knees and ankle.  The oddity here are two tiny pieces, each with 2 thrusters, that slide onto the back of the legs.  Apart from not being hollowed out, the thrusters just stick out too much when viewed from the back.

Weapons & Accessories

The beam rifle comes in a single piece and needs painting.  Fixed onto a runner of brittle clear-purple plastic are a straight and curved saber, the shield and a display base able to support both the model and an included postcard from the battlefield (back).  If the card was a little wider or set up sideways, perhaps it would've worked.  As for the shield (right), it goes through a peg under the shoulder armor and held in place (albeit, not very well) with a separate piece.

Conclusion

I reiterate, the Zoloat is your run-of-the-mill, generic Gunpla kit with sub-par articulation and a few interesting gimmicks, but nothing special.  You gotta like how they threw in a free display stand, though.

Overall Rating: 3 Out of 5.