1/100 HG Gundam X Divider Review

Ah Gundam X, known as one of the most underrated shows in Gundam until that knowledge gave it the recognition it deserves, I love the Gundam X and a lot of the suits from it. The Gundam X had three incarnations, the original X when the show just began, the Double X that accompanied us at the final stretch of the show, and finally the X Divider, the one that stayed with us throughout the middle of the show, and the one that was the most used of the three Gundam X's. Despite the fact it was the most prominently used one, the Divider is the least popular of the three variants, to the point where at the time of writing this review, it is the only one that has yet to receive an MG kit. The lack of popularity could be due to people preferring giant cannons with lunar panels as opposed to what the Divider uses, but in any case, it doesn't have an MG. Despite this, I still like this MS, and while I admit it is my least favorite as well, I do think it deserves more love. I saw this 1/100 HG in a store for a while and hesitated to pick it up. But after a few months of debating, my increasing love for older kits, and my curiosity for the kit, I ended up biting the bullet.

Box:

The box is your standard 1/100 HG boxart. Its got a green background with the Harmonica System on display, as well as art of the Gundam X on front with all the details of the kit. You can also see some information of the MS on the bottom bit.

Parts:

Here there are 2 white runners, a grey runner...

...another white runner, a pale blue-ish runner, and a small purple runner.

If you actually look carefully at the purple runner, there are actually sparkles and glitter injected into it, possibly due to symbolise the glowing energy of the X in those areas.

There's also a multicolored runner, as well as a black mekki plated runner with a purple base. This is not undergated, so prepare for gaudy purple nubs. It's also worthy to note the black coloring is only on one side, and the underside just has the raw silver underplate.

Finally we have a sheet of polycaps and a bunch of metallic-finished stickers.

Manual:

The manual is your standard stuff for the most part. Inside you'll find parts count, instructions, info on the MS...

...and the almighty color guide.

Interestingly enough, the manual is half a book-type, half a flip out type. I didn't know this at first and I assumed it was a flipout, so this was actually the most confusing manual experience I ever had. Nice job me.

Completed Product:

When all's said and done, with the kit built, it certainly screams 90's HG. The numerous panel lines, seamlines, joints and proportions all instantly give the impression that this is a kit of the past. Obviously due to this age, it's not without flaws. The metallic stickers simply look awful and stand out like sore thumbs, and large wraparound stickers don't look great either. Engineering was also not as well done as it is today, as if you look up at the forehead, you can actually see into the head of the kit, it's not covered by anything. However, the kit itself still looks really nice, especially with the sparkly purple plastic, and the 90's type panel line overdose isn't usually favoured by some, I find it to be a really cool and unique aesthetic. It should be to note though that some of these panel lines aren't very deep, so lining markers fade much easier in them.

Articulation:

The head is on a simple ball joint that poses around well.

The shoulder swings up okay, not great but enough. You also have to pull the arm joint out a bit for full potential range.

Like other 1/100 HG's, the elbows are two a dual jointed polycaps connected together, and while it has potential for good poseability, in reality you're only getting about 110˚, although you can pull the polycaps out a bit for more range.

They also allow the elbow to swivel which is...quite disturbing.

Similar to other 1/100 HG's, the fingers are on a hinge joint with a trigger finger three finger split, and a static thumb.

Waist can swivel a bit, but only a bit.

Spread and ankle pivot is decent for its time, does the job but nothing impressive.

Lets are double jointed but only go 90˚, looks really round too.

Ankles move a bit to and forth, but the armor blocks its full potential for movement.

Accessories:

It comes with a nice amount of stuff, all which are fun.

First off though are the pair of X-Grenadiers that are equipped on the left side skirt.

You can simply pull them of and display them in hand if wanted, they are in a bit tight though.

Or if they aren't to your fancy, you can replace that X-Grenadier holding skirt with a normal side skirt.

Second you have the pair of beam sabers stored on the backpack.

With those, you can use the power of this massive beam saber blade, which actually consists of two parts in the form of an + to kind of have a "3D" effect.

While it looks kinda corny, I also think it looks really nice.

You then get its double barrelled Beam Machine Gun, its main weapon.

Simply slides into the hand and it can hold it surprisingly well! Although it does have some weight issues and it occasionally falls out of the hand.

Finally we have what's really the main part of the X Divider, the Beam Harmonica Divider Shield, aaand it's kinda disappointing. On the bright side, it does transform and does it well, and the mekki black parts look excellent from the front. But on the other hand, half of it is metallic stickers which peel off often and look horrible. Not only that, but it's silver from the back, which doesn't look great. 

To make matters worse, the kit can't hold it, it's just too heavy. This image has the shield being supported by the leg to even have it at this weird angle, let alone hold it for itself. Not only this but the poseable fingers always give in. It will require blutack and joint strengthening for it to hold the shield, no question.

To open it for the harmonica system, you simply untab the side parts...

...open up the sides of the shield...

...swing them back and close sandwich the part in.

At least it looks great, the black mekki and metallic appearance looks really, really good, but I just wish it could hold it.

Finally, if you open up the back thrusters...

...and plug the opened harmonica shield in...

...you get the hovering mode! This is the only secure way to display the kit with the shield well, and it actually stands up excellently too! This on the other hand was a huge surprise, and how I'll ultimately be displaying my X Divider.

You also get all the parts to assemble the gatling gun addon for the original X, and if you so wish, you can disassemble the shoulder parts and add this thing instead of one of the beam saber bits if you so choose.

Size Comparison:

As expected, it's a little small for a 1/100, but this is correct as the X is slightly smaller than your average MS.

Verdict:

I always have a thing for kits of the past, and this one is no exception. However that does not change the fact this kit has serious problems. It's alright for the time, but there are definitely better options for kits out there. It shows it's age a bit with bad stickers, dated joints, and of course, the fact it can't hold it's shield, which is the real breaker IMO. But all things considered this thing is a decent kit for the older age it comes from. It's got gimmicks to offer and can execute them well, and it's accessories are really nice. It has the 90's panel lining detail which might be hit or miss, but gives the kit a unique look. The flakes injected into the purple plastic look really nice under inspection, and the mekki harmonica system looks really good when facing the right way. In the end, while it does have problems, this is a fine kit to collect if you know what those problems are and are willing to face them. It makes for a nice novelty item, and a unique kit for the age.

Pros:

- Lots of gimmicks for an HG, basically does all you'd want the X Divider to do.
- Purple injected plastic has metallic flakes in them that look really nice.
- Black mekki plated pieces for the Harmonica Divider shield, not undergated though.

Cons:

- Cannot hold up the Harmonica Divider Shield without extra support. (!)
- Joints are a little loose.
- Seamlines are atrocious.
- Lots of bad sticker use, most are metallic too so they really stand out.

Neutral:

- Lots of 90's panel lines and detailing, actual grooves aren't very deep either.