Man, I have the worst luck when it comes to picking kits these days, don’t I? I love kits with removable armor and just “full armor” variants in general. The gimmick is just really cool and adds extra dimensions of display and such. But unfortunately, I have to be one of those crazy painter types who wants all of her kits looking awesome, and Bandai seems to have it out for us. And really, if I weren’t doing this review, I’d probably just keep the armor on all the time since it’s the superior form, so you guys better appreciate this review because I did it for you guys!
But before I get to the Assault Shroud, I’ll talk about the standard weapons this kit has.
The main beam rifle is pretty simple, but a cool unique shape. It actually has a scope cover, but not one mounted on a hinge. At least that prevents it from breaking, I suppose.
The shield is really cool, but I have some issues with it. I love this shield design, but it cannot sit in its hand worth anything. This could just be a painter problem, but the handle just won’t fit. Thankfully, it can still stay on its arm via the post in the back. This is how it fits on the forearm with the Assault Shroud equipped.
It has two standard Gundam beam sabers that peg into the hands. I like the hand pegs here. They’re hard to get in, but they’re incredibly stable.
My favorite weapon of all of them on the kit is the bazooka, which the Duel Gundam doesn’t exactly use. In canon, it’s used by the Astray Gold Frame to escape one of the colonies, and since the weapon is too powerful for it, it blows its arm off. That’s why all of the Gold Frame’s forms have Blitz Gundam’s arm. It’s a shame there’s no proper Astray MG because I’d love to give this gun a proper home.
But on to the Assault Shroud…
Really, it looks AWESOME. But it shares the problem every other swapping parts kit I’ve had, and it might be because I lack a proper paint sealant. All sorts of scratches end up on the armor underneath, but whatever, I can leave it on. It works pretty well when it’s all on, and I love the missile box on the left shoulder. My biggest issue is the front skirt armor, which has the hardest time staying on. It ended up with the most scratches, too.
In an awesome twist, the mounted cannon on the right shoulder is removable, and can be used as a handheld weapon. I love this idea, and I can just imagine Yzak wasting all of his ammo then pulling this off to use for more efficient firing.
It also has a little mount for Action Bases on the bottom. Very nice.
This is another one of those “if you’re a painter, you might have a bad time” kits, but it’s still a good kit. I’d recommend displaying it in one mode and not changing it if you build it. I still suggest this kit, and I definitely welcome it to my collection. If you’re after it, make sure to check FPNYC!
