MGAnno Domini

GN-001REIII Gundam Exia Repair III

A P-Bandai reskin of a proven frame, dressed up with new armor and a rifle that folds like it means it.

MechaGrade Score

3.6/5

Exia · 1/100 · 2021

GradeMG

Scale1/100

Released2021

Runnersn/a

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The verdict

This is a good kit riding on a genuinely great chassis, and I think that combination is worth knowing going in.

The Exia lineage inner frame still moves the way it did when it first impressed people years ago, and the new shoulder, knee, back, and waist thruster tooling gives Repair III its own silhouette instead of feeling like a recolor. Where it loses points is in how much of that silhouette depends on you picking up a paint marker to finish the job.

Best for: Gundam 00 fans and returning builders who already like the Exia frame and don't mind supplementing the kit with panel lining and paint

The full review

What it is

Repair III is Celestial Being's late-game upgrade to Setsuna's Exia, and Bandai built the kit on the same bones as the earlier MG Exia releases while retooling the shoulder armor, knees, back unit with the GN particle storage tanks, and the outer waist thruster housings. The signature piece is the GN Long Rifle, which folds between a compact standby form and a full attack rifle, with a hinged body and a grip and sensor that pivot to match how you're holding it. Handling the rifle transition the first time is the moment this kit sells itself, it is a small mechanical flourish that makes the accessory feel considered rather than bolted on.

The catch

The kit leans on an older MG mold, and it shows in color separation. A fair amount of the detail that should read as panel lines or paneling contrast is molded flat, so builders consistently note you need Gundam markers or panel-line accent paint to get the finish this suit deserves out of the box. There is also a specific, repeated warning around the head: the neck uses a translucent plastic ball joint, and posing or removing the head with any real force risks snapping it. Being a P-Bandai exclusive also means it comes and goes off secondary market at a premium once the original run sells out.

Who it's for

I'd point this at builders who already have some MG experience and don't mind a kit that rewards a little extra finishing work, panel liner and a marker pass turn this from a solid shelf piece into a genuinely sharp one. If you want a Gundam 00 Exia and you're fine treating the paint step as mandatory rather than optional, this is a satisfying build with a real hero-weapon gimmick. If you want something that looks fully finished straight off the runners with zero extra effort, or you're newer to handling delicate joints, this isn't the friendliest entry point.

The build story

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

The build itself moves fast because so much of the frame is proven Exia engineering, joints go together cleanly and the double-jointed elbows and knees give you a wide, confident pose range without feeling loose. The new outer armor pieces for the shoulders, knees, and back clip on over that frame without a fight. The one build moment to slow down for is the head and neck assembly, the ball joint there is translucent plastic and multiple builders flag it as the part most likely to crack if you force a pose.

The GN Long Rifle is the standout piece of engineering here, its folding mechanism reproduces both the compact standby carry state and the full extended attack state, with a grip and sensor that rotate to match how Setsuna would actually hold it. Articulation carries over the 360 degree waist rotation and single ball-joint neck from the Exia line, which lets the finished kit hold dynamic rifle poses well. Where the kit asks more of you is paint, several builders note the flat-molded sections need Gundam markers or panel-line accent color before the new GN Condenser knee and shoulder detailing actually reads at a glance.

Lore & trivia

01Repair III is piloted by Setsuna F. Seiei and is Celestial Being's further upgrade of the Exia Repair II, equipped with a GN Condenser power source and new GN Thrusters for better particle efficiency.
02The enlarged shoulder and knee armor on Repair III house GN Condensers internally, which is the in-universe reason for the retooled outer parts on this kit.
03The kit was a Premium Bandai (P-Bandai) exclusive release in June 2021, priced at 4,950 yen in Japan.