HGUC GM II Semi Striker Review (P-Bandai)

The GM II Semi Striker was always a design I liked, even just seeing it's short fight in Unicorn, I liked it. As a fan of the original GM Striker kit, this one easily caught my eye after I discovered it. Sadly like many great heroes, it was relegated to a P-Bandai release, and is thus not very easy to obtain for a fair price in modern day. However, on a day of late night shopping I managed to stumble upon one in a place known for it's toy wares. Excited, I quickly bought it and left the store happy with the knowledge I finally had the Semi Striker in my hands, earlier than the GM Striker itself ironically considering that kit is retail.

Box:

As per standard P-Bandai boxart, the box is monochrome, this time in a reddish brown color. You get a neutral shot of the GM II Semi Striker standing with it's twin beam spear in hand. In the background, you can see the Semi Striker dashing in a rocky environment in combat with the same weapon.

Parts:

For parts, you can see it comes with a multicolored runner from the GM II, as well as 2 smaller dark blue runners for the Semi Striker.

You also get 5 sand brown runners, 2 which are new for the kit...

...and 2 grey runners for all the frame parts.

Unfortunately due to corrupted images, the image of the large dark blue runner from the kit was unuseable. Credits go to Gundariumsmith for the image, check out his own review here.

Funnily enough, due to reusing that runner from the GM Striker, you get two A runners for this kit. Confusing enough?

You also get a large polycap sheet and two small beam saber effect parts.

You also get the sticker sheet, which overall isn't too bad since most are small, but there is one extremely large one that is not very fun.

Manual:

Due to it's P-Bandai status, this kit does not really get a proper manual with art and stuff. You get the parts count right on the front page with instructions inside.

You also get the color guide, but it's completely in text with no color reference.

Completed Product:

The completed kit looks really good, all stickers are easy to apply and look natural asides from the large sticker that wraps around the torso. The visor has molded in eyes behind it that are very easy to see, and the lower left arm has different parts to give it a nice touch of asymmetry. The left arm also has a knuckle shield on the arm, although it's hollow from behind and doesn't look great.  There are also some increased areas of detail for the Semi Striker parts, like the reactive armor on the shoulders, and extra details in the calves. The kit itself is a bit on the hollow side, but while it might feel light, it's very solid. You might want to watch out for the antenna though, it's thin and could break easily. One weird thing is the colorscheme, the shade of tan is paler and lighter than how the MS looked in the show and lineart, but is darker than the promotional painted images of the kit. This is more of an in between, which honestly I think fits the best, still it's strange that this shade was chosen.

Articulation:

The head is on a ball joint and moves as you'd expect it to, however looking up isn't super easy.

Shoulders go out slightly past parallel to the body.

They also swing out more than decently due to the polycap.

Arm is on a swivel joint and bends about 165˚ smoothly, and the hand is also on a standard ball joint.

Waist mobility is only limited to a swivel, and it might get a bit hindered.

The there is a swivel at the thigh which also kicks up pretty well, and the knee bends about a 160˚ bend.

Ankle movement is great, they are on both a polycap and a hinge joint forwards, so both backward movement and forward movement is good. Pivoting is also more than satisfactory.

Accessories:

The kit comes with a decent amount of weapons, most which belong to the other kits that this kit is based off though.

You first get the GM II's beam rifle which can be held in the included trigger finger hand.

It has a moveable handle for holding with the other hand.

You also get most of the GM Striker's machine gun. It doesn't have all the parts, but it's enough to be considered a gun.

It can also be held in the right trigger finger hand.

If the Semi Striker's knuckle shield isn't enough defense for you, you also get a standard shield and an adaptor which allows you to equip it under or at the side of the arm.

Due to the knuckle shield of the Semi Striker though, you can only equip it on the right arm.

You can also use the beam saber effect part with the beam saber in the backpack, and it goes well with the shield.

But lets be real, you'll be using his twin beam spear in the end, which itself holds two beamsabers, so you could use those to dual wield beam sabers if you really want.

The whole assembly is on a track, and when you flip one beam saber down, the other will also go down. It's very simple, but it's really satisfying to see this gimmick on an HG.

Of course, this is a weapon you want to use with two hands.

It's really the highlight of the accessories to be honest.

Although it's worth mentioning you get all the parts for the GM II and a few backpack parts from the GM Striker. You could make a GM II in Semi Striker colors, mix the parts, or use these to make a mod for other kits if you want to, a very neat bonus for a P-Bandai retool like this one. 

Size Comparison:

As you can see, the kit is standard 1/144 Gunpla size, not a lot of surprise though since it's just a retooled GM II.

Verdict:

The HGUC GM II Semi Striker is a solid HGUC kit, it does not necessarily exceed the expectations of what you would want from an HG kit, but it does nothing to disappoint either, which is good for a P-Bandai retool. Articulation is overall great, the only real thing you can complain about is the below 180˚ knee bend, but even that is hard to complain about. The real star of the poseability are the ankles, they are solid and allow this kit to get into some nice poses. The weapons are neat, and the twin beam spear has a nice swinging gimmick which is very impressive for how simply it's done. The kit itself also looks fantastic, although the color of the tan is still off from the lineart. The stickers are pretty easy to apply save for the giant wraparound on the torso, and the molded detail is quite well done for an HG retool. In the end, if you can find this kit for a decent price, definitely pick it up, it's a great kit of the GM II Semi Striker and really doesn't disappoint.

Pros:

- Articulation is great, not a lot to complain about and posing is fluid. (!)
- Quite detailed in areas for an HG, specifically the original Semi Striker parts like the radiocative armor.
- Comes with a lot of extras from reused runners, can make a GM II in Semi Striker colors, bash them, or use the extra parts in customs.
- Sturdy kit that feels good in hand, joints are smooth and it's not a hassle.
- Twin Beam Spear's blade swinging gimmick is simple but very well done for an HG kit.

Cons:

- Torso stickers are really annoying to apply right.