MGCosmic Era

MVF-X08 Eclipse Gundam

A 20th-anniversary SEED tribute that transforms, connects to half your backpack shelf, and asks a little patience in return.

MechaGrade Score

3.7/5

Eclipse Gundam · 1/100 · 2021

GradeMG

Scale1/100

Released2021

Runnersn/a

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The verdict

This is a genuinely ambitious MG that mostly earns its price tag.

I like it for what it is: a stealth suit built on Freedom-derived tech, with a real flight-mode transformation and Striker Pack compatibility that plugs straight into the wider SEED lineup. It is not the tightest-engineered MG Bandai has ever put out, but the parts quality and gimmick density make up for the rough edges.

Best for: SEED collectors who already own Striker Pack kits and want a transforming ORB suit to plug into that shelf

The full review

What it is

The Eclipse is a 2021 MSV release built to mark 20 years of Gundam SEED, and it shows in how much Bandai crammed into it. This is a customized M1 Astray running on borrowed Freedom architecture with a Mirage Colloid stealth system, and the kit reflects that layered design story with moving shafts at the neck, a sliding cockpit cover, and shin panels that shift when you deep-bend the knee. Building it feels less like snapping together a suit and more like solving a small transformation puzzle, and I found that genuinely fun rather than tedious. The bright blue accent runner alone makes the unboxing a good moment.

The catch

The transformation gimmick is the whole appeal and also the source of every real complaint. Builders consistently flag that the joints supporting the flight-mode conversion trade firmness for range, so the arms in particular do not rotate the way a normal MG shoulder would, and you have to be gentle or you risk stressing the linkage. The overall fit leans toward loose in a few of the transformation-critical joints rather than the locked-in feel MG fans expect. It is also a busy build with parts doing double duty for two modes, so it runs longer and fiddlier than a standard MG of similar size.

Who it's for

Buy this if you already like the SEED aesthetic, want a transforming kit that is not just a gimmick for its own sake, and own or plan to own other MG SEED backpacks to swap onto that Striker connector. Skip it if you want a suit you can pose hard and worry-free straight out of the box, since the arm and joint compromises mean you build with a lighter touch than usual. It also is not the kit I would hand a first-time MG builder given how many of the steps are transformation-specific rather than standard frame assembly.

The build story

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

Assembly moves at a steady clip through a fairly standard frame-first sequence before it turns into something closer to a transformation toy, with a movable shaft at the base of the neck, a shaft on top of the head that raises and rotates the helmet, and a cockpit cover that slides forward to open. None of it is hard to clip together, but it demands attention because parts you build early get repurposed once you start folding the suit into flight mode.

The standout engineering is the shin panel that slides in conjunction with a deep knee bend, which is a small touch that pays off every time you pose the legs. Weapon loadout covers the Jinrai beam rifle, a beam saber with a movable grip, and a PS-02 beam shield with its own expanding gimmick, so there is more to do with this kit at the display stage than the box art suggests. The Striker Pack compatibility is the real value driver here if you are already invested in the MG SEED ecosystem.

Lore & trivia

01The Eclipse Gundam first appeared in the manga Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Eclipse, piloted by Tatsumi Hori of the Orb Disaster Relief Team.
02It was built as a customized M1 Astray incorporating frame technology and the Mirage Colloid stealth system derived from the GAT-X105 Freedom Gundam.
03The suit's design was later mass-produced into the MVF-M11C Murasame seen in Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny.
04This MG release came out in 2021 as part of Bandai's lineup marking the 20th anniversary of the Gundam SEED franchise.