Monday, June 14, 2010

Another Tale of Gunpla Piracy - Normal Scale Sangokuden Gunplas

More pirated Gunpla manufacturers are trying to "break away" from the potential lawsuit by Bandai by releasing "alternate" Gundam model kits that are not directly in violation of Bandai's copyright (or so they believe) it seems. ^^;

After "BB Senshi Water Margin" mentioned yesterday, another pirated Gunpla manufacturer in China has come up with a new model kit line, with designs based on Sangokuden characters in normal scale (exact scale not mentioned) and with the word "Gundam" omitted.

This new series is called "Sangokuden Mecha Warriors" (三国机甲战士). ^^



Ryubi




Sousou


Chouhi


Kan-U


Sonken


Shuuyu


Chouun


Illustration on the side of the box showing box art of other characters to be released in the series.






All runners for Ryubi.



Runners for Sousou.



Runners for Chouhi.



The generic polycap set, display stand, option hand unit and screws for each kit.



A straight assembled Ryubi.


A straight assembled Kan-U.


A straight assembled Sousou.


Size comparison with HGUC Jagd Doga.


The display stand included.

Not really the best in terms of details and articulation when it comes to model kits of brand new characters it seems. ^^; I suppose that's well expected when a company didn't spend enough years and effort in R&D on model kit development in the first place but opted to copy the original manufacturer's mold for recast. Now they are forced to adapt, and the quality is, seemingly around the standard of the early years when Bandai implemented polycap system for their Gunplas? ^^;

The company's effort is noteworthy of course, as they have started designing their own characters to be released as model kits and their own molds as well. From what I read, many fans on Chinese hobby forums are supporting the series, both verbally and through actual action of purchasing them, as you can see from the images above.

But still, disappointingly, the display base is another recast of Tamashii Nation's Soul Stage display base. >_<

Images are from Nintendo World BBS: Link 1, Link 2, Link 3.