MGAnno Domini

GN-005 GUNDAM VIRTUE

A tank wearing a Gundam's face, with a whole second suit hiding underneath.

MechaGrade Score

3.9/5

GUNDAM VIRTUE · 1/100 · 2025

GradeMG

Scale1/100

Released2025

Runnersn/a

Check price on Amazon

Affiliate link. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.

The verdict

This is the rare MG where the gimmick is actually the best part, not a marketing bullet point.

You build the GN-004 Gundam Nadleeh in full first, a lean little suit in its own right, and then armor it up into the hulking Virtue on top. That two-suits-in-one structure alone makes this feel like better value than most kits at this price point. The engineering under the armor is genuinely tight, and the signature GN Bazooka fire-everything pose holds on its own with no stand required.

Best for: Gundam 00 fans who want the cast-off Nadleeh to Virtue transformation done properly, not fans chasing a display-shelf beauty piece

The full review

What it is

I went in expecting a straightforward heavy-armor MG and came out having built two mobile suits. The Nadleeh frame assembles as a complete, poseable suit before a single armor plate goes on, so the cast-off gimmick is not a token feature, it is the entire structure of the build. Once armored, the Virtue holds its GN Bazooka in both hands and the joints simply do not sag under the weight, which surprised me given how top-heavy this thing looks on the shelf. The GN Cannons have sliding panels that deploy for different modes, and popping the armor off to reveal Nadleeh underneath never stopped being satisfying even after a few run-throughs.

The catch

The swappable finger parts are the real weak point here, they do not grip the GN Bazooka, GN Shield, or beam saber handles with any confidence, and I had pieces slip loose more than once mid-pose. Some of the larger leg armor panels read a bit flat and underdetailed next to how busy the rest of the kit is, so the silhouette is stronger than the close-up surface work. There is also a foil sticker sheet and marking stickers doing some of the color and panel-line work rather than molded color or decals, so careful application matters if you want a clean finish.

Who it's for

If you are a Gundam 00 fan who wants Tieria's Virtue and the option to strip it back to Nadleeh without owning two separate kits, this earns its spot on the shelf and then some. Builders who value tight joint tension and a real transformation mechanic over glassy surface detail will come away happy. I would steer people away if you specifically want a weapon-in-hand statue piece, the finger grip issues will frustrate you every time you try to lock in a held pose. If loose grip fingers are a dealbreaker for you, budget for aftermarket hands or be ready to live with occasional dropped weapons.

The build story

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

You effectively build two kits back to back. The Nadleeh frame goes together first as a lean, fully articulated suit on its own, and only after that do the heavy armor shells clip over it to become the Virtue. That sequencing makes the runners easier to parse than they look at first glance, since you are never juggling both suits' parts at once.

The standout engineering is how the frame holds up under the Virtue's bulk. The arms do not budge even hoisting the oversized GN Bazooka into its signature two-handed firing pose, and the sliding GN Cannon panels give you burst and deployed configurations without extra parts swaps. Color separation across the armor plates is strong for the era, though the finger swap system is the one piece of hardware that undercuts an otherwise confident build.

Lore & trivia

01The kit's cast-off armor system is not just a display trick, you build the GN-004 Gundam Nadleeh as a complete standalone suit before adding the Virtue's heavy armor plating on top.
02GN-005 Gundam Virtue is piloted by Tieria Erde, a Celestial Being Gundam Meister who is an Innovade, an artificially created humanoid, in Mobile Suit Gundam 00.
03The Virtue's GN Bazooka can open into a burst mode for a devastating single attack, the basis for its signature two-handed fire-everything pose.
04Among the three second-generation Gundams Celestial Being deployed in AD 2307, the Virtue carries the highest offensive and defensive power thanks to its artillery-focused GN Cannons and GN Bazooka loadout.