HGUniversal Century

FA-78 Full Armor Gundam (Gundam Thunderbolt ONA Ver.)

An HG that carries more gun and more plastic than it has any business carrying, and holds together anyway.

MechaGrade Score

4.1/5

Full Armor Gundam (Gundam Thunderbolt ONA Ver.) · 1/144 · 2016

GradeHG

Scale1/144

Released2016

Runnersn/a

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The verdict

This is one of the best value HG kits Bandai has put out, and the ONA colorway is the version I would tell someone to track down first.

You get a beam rifle, a mega beam cannon, a missile launcher, four shields, sub arms, and beam sabers in one box at HG price, and the kit still finds a way to pose confidently under all of it. It is not a fast build and it is not a forgiving one in a few spots, but the payoff on the shelf is real.

Best for: HG builders who want MG-level loadout and detail for HG money and don't mind extra time at the nippers

The full review

What it is

This kit reimagines the original RX-78-2 frame buried under a full weapons platform: twin beam rifle, backpack-mounted mega beam cannon, a missile launcher, four interchangeable shields, and folding sub arms that let the Gundam wield weapons the regular arms are busy holding. The ONA colorway shifts the palette toward the slightly bluish white, darker blue, and black seen in the Thunderbolt anime rather than the flatter tones of the original manga-based release, and it reads noticeably better under normal light. Building it feels like assembling a small MG. There are a lot of small parts, real color separation without leaning on the sticker sheet for the big surfaces, and a rubbery joint-cover treatment on the exposed frame that sells the industrial, scavenged look the Thunderbolt suits are known for.

The catch

Part count is high for an HG and the parts run smaller than typical HG scale, so nub cleanup takes real patience, a few spots remove a visible chunk of the part along with the nub if you are not careful with your cutters. The backpack is heavy enough that the kit tips backward without its display stand, so plan on using it rather than treating it as optional. The waist ball joint exists but an armor piece over it limits how far it actually swings, and the wrists are the joint most likely to loosen after repeated weapon swaps. None of this is a dealbreaker, but this is not a quick weeknight build.

Who it's for

Buy this if you already have a few HG kits under your belt and want to feel what an inner-frame, high-part-count build is like before jumping to MG scale, or if you specifically want the Thunderbolt anime colors over the manga tones of the original release. Skip it if you want a fast, low-fuss build or if loose wrist joints after heavy posing would bother you more than the accessory loadout would delight you. For most Thunderbolt fans and HG collectors chasing value, this is an easy recommend.

The build story

What the build is actually like, and the engineering worth knowing about.

The runners feel closer to an MG in scale of ambition than a typical HG. Parts are smaller and more numerous than most kits at this grade, gate placement is mostly considerate but there are a handful of tight spots where a sharp single-edge cutter matters more than usual. Assembly order rewards patience, especially around the sub arm mounts and the shield swap points, which are designed to be changed on the fly like they are in the source anime.

The elbows and knees each get two points of articulation, and the frame genuinely tries to give you a proper pose range under all that armor, even if the armor itself caps some of it. The four interchangeable shields and folding sub arms are the standout engineering touch, they let you recreate specific anime shots rather than just striking a generic combat pose. For the price band, the sheer part and accessory count makes this one of the strongest value plays in the HGUC-adjacent lineup.

Lore & trivia

01The FA-78 Full Armor Gundam first appeared in the Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt manga by Yasuo Ohtagaki before the anime adaptation gave it the ONA colorway this kit uses.
02The ONA version was released in 2016 to line up with the anime's continued run, using a slightly bluish white, darker blue, and black in place of the flatter tones of the original 2013 manga-based release.
03The kit's twin beam rifle mold was refined for this later release compared to the earlier Thunderbolt version of the same kit.