HGCosmic Era

ZGMF-X10A-A Amazing Strike Freedom Gundam

Meijin Kawaguchi's tournament monster, dressed in metallic red and carrying more guns than it knows what to do with.

MechaGrade Score

3.7/5

Strike Freedom Gundam · 1/144 · 2017

GradeHG

Scale1/144

Released2017

Runnersn/a

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The verdict

This is one of the most fun HG kits I have put together purely for the sheer amount of stuff bolted onto it.

It takes the familiar HGCE Strike Freedom Revive frame and buries it under two extra runners of DRAGOON pods, rail guns, and beam weapons, then swaps the gold accents for a metallic red that actually looks premium out of the box. It is not a subtle kit, and it is not a balanced one either, but I had a genuinely good time building it.

Best for: Gundam Build Fighters fans and gimmick chasers who want maximum hardware on a Strike Freedom frame and do not mind reaching for a stand

The full review

What it is

This kit is Meijin Kawaguchi's custom build from Gundam Build Fighters Amazing Ready, and Bandai built it by taking the HGCE Strike Freedom Gundam Revive mold and loading it up. You get the Vrabe DRAGOON remote weapon system with a moveable firing mount, plus rail guns, beam sabers, and enough binders that the runners alone tell you this is going to be a project. The metallic red frame color is the first thing that grabs me, it reads far more expensive than an HG price tag suggests, and building around all that extra hardware without anything colliding was a pleasant surprise. It has real presence once it is together.

The catch

The backpack is the whole story here. All those DRAGOON pods and binders make the kit noticeably back heavy, and multiple builders flag that it wants to tip backward without a stand. I would not try to free stand this one for long term display, plan on a support arm from the start. Stickers also show up more than I would like for the foil and panel accents, which is standard for a Build Fighters HG but still means patience with tweezers if you want a clean finish. None of this ruins the kit, but it is not a kit you build expecting a perfectly balanced, sticker free experience.

Who it's for

If you like Gundam Build Fighters, or you just want the most heavily armed version of Strike Freedom you can get in 1/144 without stepping up to MG money, this one delivers. It rewards people who enjoy fiddly accessory management and pose experimentation with a DRAGOON system. If you want a clean, self standing display piece straight off the runners with minimal sticker work, this is not that kit, and the vanilla HGCE Strike Freedom Revive will serve you better. For builders who already own a display stand and want a conversation piece, I would point them here without hesitation.

The build story

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

The build starts familiar if you have put together the HGCE Strike Freedom Revive, since this shares that frame, but the two added weapon runners change the pace fast. Gate placement is fine and cleanup is manageable, the extra time sink here is just the sheer part count in the backpack assembly and getting every DRAGOON pod and rail gun mounted without anything binding. Nothing fought me during test fitting, which surprised me given how much is jammed onto this frame.

The DRAGOON pods detach from the backpack and can mount to the wrists as shields or to the rifle for a heavier firing configuration, and that swap is the best part of owning this kit. Articulation holds up well through the legs and torso, with a reasonable ab crunch built into the waist joint, though the arms lose some range fighting the backpack bulk. For an HG price point, the accessory count and the DRAGOON gimmick make this feel like real value even with the sticker sheet.

Lore & trivia

01The Amazing Strike Freedom Gundam is a custom Gunpla built and piloted by Meijin Kawaguchi in Gundam Build Fighters Amazing Ready, built for the 8th Gunpla Battle World Tournament.
02In story, the design combines ideas from three of Meijin's earlier machines: the Hi-Nu Gundam Vrabe's DRAGOON remote weapons, the Kampfer Amazing's interchangeable parts, and the Gundam Amazing Exia's varied weapon loadout.
03The kit released as HGBF #053 in March 2017 and reuses the HGCE Strike Freedom Gundam Revive frame with two additional runners of new parts.