MGCosmic Era

MVF-X08+EW453R Eclipse Gundam+Raijin Striker

A manga-only ORB machine that got a striker pack big enough to fly on its own.

MechaGrade Score

3.9/5

+EW453R Eclipse Gundam+Raijin Striker · 1/100 · 2022

GradeMG

Scale1/100

Released2022

Runnersn/a

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The verdict

This one rewards patience with a genuinely clever transformation gimmick and a striker pack that steals the show.

I would not call it a beginner kit, the deformation mechanism has enough moving parts that you need to actually read the manual instead of skimming it, but once it clicks the payoff is real. The base Eclipse Gundam is solid on its own, then the Raijin Striker turns it into something that looks like a different mobile suit and a standalone fighter both.

Best for: Cosmic Era completionists and MG builders who want a transformation gimmick that actually locks down tight

The full review

What it is

The Eclipse Gundam is a manga-exclusive design from Gundam SEED Eclipse, a customized M1 Astray built on borrowed Freedom tech, piloted by Tatsumi Hori of the ORB Disaster Relief Team. The MG version uses some Freedom 2.0 internal parts as a base but the exterior and the deformation frame are new tooling. The Raijin Striker pack is the reason to seek this release out. It is a hefty backpack rig with its own head sensor unit, a big beam cannon, and an overdrive booster gimmick, and it locks onto the Eclipse Gundam's MA mode to turn the whole thing into a standalone fighter that can be displayed without the pilot suit at all.

The catch

The transformation mechanism is the best part of this kit and also the part that will slow you down. There are lock tabs and sliding joints in several places specifically so the silhouette does not rattle apart mid-pose, and that means careful assembly rather than snap-and-go. The Raijin Striker was sold as a P-Bandai exclusive and reissued later, so depending on which release you land you may be hunting for the base Eclipse Gundam and the striker pack as two separate purchases rather than one box. Multi-color runners cover most of the palette but you still get marking and foil stickers for the finer panel details rather than everything being molded.

Who it's for

Get this if you already like the Cosmic Era side of Gunpla and want a display piece that changes shape convincingly instead of just wearing a bigger backpack. The transformation gimmick and the standalone MA mode give you two display configurations out of one purchase, which is unusual value for the format. Skip it if you want a first MG or a fast weeknight build, the deformation frame asks for real attention during assembly. Skip it too if piecing together the base kit and the striker pack across separate P-Bandai releases sounds like more hunting than you want to do.

The build story

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

The manual walks you through the deformation frame in stages, from the inner joint work through the exterior armor, and it earns that careful pacing. Reviewers who built it describe smooth part fit through the process with no fight to get components seated, but the lock mechanisms scattered through the shoulders, knees, and neck exist for a reason: skip a step and the transformed silhouette gets loose instead of holding its shape.

Articulation holds up well for a kit built around a transformation gimmick, with knee sliders that extend through deep bends and an expandable shoulder wing setup that does not fight the arm's range. The Raijin Striker adds a second head unit with its own sensor gimmick and an overdrive booster that flips open, plus a large beam cannon and composite pod thrusters, so the accessory loadout on this thing punches well above a standard striker pack.

Lore & trivia

01The Eclipse Gundam originates from the manga Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Eclipse, serialized in Gundam Ace, and is piloted by Tatsumi Hori of the ORB Disaster Relief Team rather than a series lead character.
02It is built from a customized M1 Astray using stolen or borrowed technology from Kira Yamato's Freedom Gundam, and its design was later mass produced in-universe as the Murasame seen in Gundam SEED Destiny.
03The Raijin Striker's overdrive booster gimmick is meant to reproduce an instant thrust increase move from the source manga, and the pack can fly and display on its own as an unmanned fighter-form unit separate from the Gundam.
04The base MG Eclipse Gundam first released in Japan in August 2021, with the Raijin Striker pack arriving as a P-Bandai item that was later reissued, matching the November 2022 combined release window.