Gunpla? What is that?

Perhaps many people things that "What is this robot?", "What is this?", or "What is Gunpla?". Well in this post I will give an explanation that will answer those Questioin.. Enjoy.

RG 1/1 R-78-2 Gundam at Odaiba, Japan.

Gundam models are model kits depicting the vehicles and characters of the fictional Gundam universe by Bandai. These kits have become popular among mecha anime fans and model enthusiasts in Japan and in other nearby Asian countries since the 1980s. Gundam modeling spread in the 1990s with North America and Europe being exposed to Gundam through television, video and manga. Gundam models, as well as the hobby of assembling and painting them, is known in Japan as Gunpla (ガンプラ Ganpura), a portmanteau of "Gundam plastic model", plastic being the most common material for the retail kits.

History

Now we are entering the longest part of this Post, the history of Gunpla. Read along.. ^__^

Late 1970s–1980s

Mobile Suit Gundam debuted in 1979 and the first Gunpla kits came in 1980, following the show's cancellation. Nearly every mecha in the series was made into a model kit, from mobile suits to support aircraft and space battleships. Parts came in up to three different colored sprues. These kits lacked articulation and detail, and required glue and paint to build and finish.

Following the completion of the TV series line, Bandai introduced the MSV (Mobile Suit Variation) line, featuring alternate variants of the series' mobile suits. One of the highlights of the line was the PF-78-1 Perfect Gundam, which introduced System Injection (a process where one sprue—sometimes even one part—was molded in multiple colors), which minimized the need to paint the model.

Mid 1980s–1990s

Following a line of kits from the Round Vernian Vifam series, the 1985 Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam kit line incorporated the use of polycaps (soft plastic, typically Polyethylene) as connectors for better articulation of joints. The 1987 Gundam Sentinel model line introduced the concept of snap-fit models, reducing the need to use glue. And starting from the 1988 Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack line, all Gunpla kits feature snap-fit assembly.

In 1990, Bandai introduced the High Grade (HG) line, which featured newer 1:144 scale versions of the RX-78-2 Gundam, the RX-178 Gundam Mk. II, the MSZ-006 Zeta Gundam and the MSZ-010 ZZ Gundam. Each kit boasted exceptional detail and articulation, as well as features normally found in their larger-scale versions such as the Gundam's Core Block System and the Zeta's transformation feature.

Beginning with Mobile Suit Victory Gundam in 1993, a unified set of polycap joints was created for smaller scale models that allowed easy mass production of models that all shared the same basic skeletal frame. This standardization allowed Bandai to release more models over a shorter period. As a result, the Gundam shows of the 1990s usually received sizable 1:144 model lines. These were all of similar quality, with some attention to colors molded in the right area, a reasonable level of detail for their price point, and mobility as such that all major joints had at least some degree of mobility.

In 1995, the 1:100 Master Grade (MG) line was introduced. This line features more parts, better detail and improved articulation than past kits of the same scale.

Following the release of the Perfect Grade Evangelion, Bandai introduced the 1:60 Perfect Grade (PG) line to the Gundam series in 1998. This line features extensive detail and articulation, as well as working skeletal systems and light-up features. The PG line is the most expensive among all Gunpla kits, and only a select few mobile suits have been released in this line.

To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the franchise in 1999, Bandai released 1:144 First Grade (FG) kits of mobile suits from the original series. Marketed as budget models, these snap-fit kits featured the simplicity of the original kits, but with more modern designs based upon the corresponding Perfect Grade kits.

2000s

Mobile Suit Gundam SEED introduced a new type of non-graded (NG) 1:144 model, with a completely different design plan. While these still feature snap-fit and color molding, they omit major joints, opting instead to only allow critical pieces to move—typically the neck, hips, shoulders, and feet. These are budget models, usually retailing much lower than other models; and this line was extensive, covering nearly every machine to be featured in the TV series. Gundam SEED also featured non graded 1:100 models, identical in quality to Bandai's High Grade offerings. It was also during this decade that the term "Gunpla" was coined by Bandai.

To commemorate the 30th anniversary of Mobile Suit Gundam, Bandai released the MG RX-78-2 Gundam ver. 2.0. While this model is closely designed after the anime art, it features radical improvements over the previous Gundam kits in terms of engineering and build quality.

2010s

In 2010, Bandai released the 1:48 Mega Size Model RX-78-2 Gundam kit as part of the franchise's 30th anniversary campaign. This kit features many innovations that make it easy to assemble for first-time Gunpla collectors. For example, the parts are attached to sprue gates thin enough to break without the need to use of plastic cutters, and excess gate plastic can be removed from the parts without using a hobby knife. Some sprues have been designed to snap together for easy and quick removal of assembled parts. Also in the same year, Bandai introduced the 1:144 Real Grade (RG) line, which takes design elements from the MG line such as an inner skeletal frame. Both Mega Size Model and RG variants of the RX-78-2 Gundam were patterned after the 1/1 scale Gundam statue on display in Odaiba. Bandai also released Ecopla, a series of HGUC and SD kits molded in black and made entirely out of recycled sprues.

In 2011, Bandai released the Entry Grade (EG) line, a low-cost model series similar to the 1:144 NG and FG lines and is sold only in parts of Asia. Unlike other kits of the same scale, all EG kits are made in China. The series was discontinued after its first run. Back in Japan, Bandai introduced the Advanced Grade (AG) line for Mobile Suit Gundam AGE, a budget line that focuses more on the arrangement of colored parts; thus sacrificing more articulation than the previous budget lines. The AG line incorporates a microchip that enables collectors to use the kit in the Gage-ing arcade game.

In 2014, as part of the 35th anniversary celebration of Gundam, Bandai released the MG RX-78-2 Gundam ver. 3.0, which incorporates the engineering techniques used in the MG 2.0 and RG kits. Bandai introduced a sub-line of the HG line in mid-2015 called "HG Revive", which consists of re-engineered 1:144 scale kits of the RX-78-2 Gundam and other classic mobile suit designs.

Scale and Grades

Gunpla Grade and Scale

Now we will enter the explanation of the Grades. (I think the picture can explain pretty much about the level so I just explain about what are this grade).

HG 1/144

RG 1/144

 The very first kits have been running for 30 years (starting with RX-78-2 Gundam) and are routinely re-released by Bandai. As these kits are limited in articulation and require glue (for the early kits) and paint to assemble, these have retroactively been categorized as No Grade (NG), to differentiate them from First Grade (FG).

During the mid- to late-1980s, the quality of molding improved and High Grade (HG) level kits were introduced in 1990, starting from the titular mobile suits of the first four TV series. These limited-run kits featured full snap-fit assembly, an "internal frame" (for the first two kits, which provides better range of motion and were more poseable), and utilized the molding technique known as System Injection, wherein multiple colors would be cast on the same part. Since 1999, the High Grade series uses various names to separate them from line to line.

In 2010, Real Grade (RG) surpassed High Grade as the top-end series of the 1:144 Gunpla line. These kits feature extensive detail and articulation, as well as a poseable skeletal frame comparable to the 1:100 Master Grade kits. The first RG kit was the 1:144 RX-78-2 Gundam, followed by the 1:144 MS-06S Char's Zaku II, GAT-X105 Aile Strike, MS-06F Zaku II (Green), ZGMF-X10A Freedom. In 2011, Bandai released the Entry Grade (EG) line in Southeast Asia. Manufactured in China, the EG line contained fewer parts than the FG kits, thus having very limited articulation. Only four Gundams were released in the line.

Non-Grade 1/100

MG 1/100

Just like the 1:144 scale model kits, these 1:100 scale kits started about the same time, again starting from RX-78-2 Gundam. "Generic" 1:100 kits may also be called No-Grade (NG 1:100) to differentiate from other specific 1:100 kits. Later kits (from Gundam SEED onwards) are clearly inspired from the post-HG 1:100 kits and feature a similar or greater level of quality and detail. This line was discontinued in 2009 until the announcement of the 1:100 Gundam Barbatos in 2015.

Master Grade (MG) models were first introduced in the summer of 1995, designed and made to higher standards than most other models. These kits take much longer to construct and are often much more expensive than their lower-grade counterparts. More recent Master Grade plastic models typically feature a movable inner frame system which enables extensive movement and bending of joints. As well including standing and seating miniature figures of the pilots of each gundam model. The popularity of this line was so great that a lot of old and new kits from non-graded series were cast as Master Grade models.

Though the name of "Master Grade" is widely known because of Gundam, but it is not Gundam exclusive as a few Master Grade offerings are coming from mechas in Patlabor and Dunbine. Bandai also released a line featured a series of character figures from Dragon Ball Z, Kamen Rider, and Tiger & Bunny under the name of MG Figurerise.

Reborn One Hundred, or RE/100, was introduced by Bandai in 2015 to cover mobile suit designs that are either too obscure or too costly to receive the MG treatment. Much like later NG 1:100 kits, the RE kits feature detail and articulation equal to or greater than 1:144 HG kits.

SD

Not based on any particular scale, the super-deformed style features comically proportioned models, the most noticeable features of which are their very large heads. Super Deformed Gundam kits are often very easy to construct but offer very limited articulation and require paint and detailing to truly "finish" the kit. The most famous line is the BB Senshi(or "SD GUNDAM BB Warriors" in English). There are also separate product lines: for instance, Superior Defender Gundam Force and Ganso SD Gundam (discontinued in the 1990s). Most kits of this line are from the Musha Gundam series and the Knight Gundam series.

Non-Grade 1/60

PG 1/60

Bandai released the 1:60 scale versions of the main mecha of major TV series. These are Non-Grade or TV-Grade models, and are the main line of the 1:60 scale kits. Early 1:60 kits, like other scales, were simply larger versions of the smaller scales. In the early to mid 1990s, three High Grade EX models of V2 Gundam, Shining Gundam and God Gundam were released, featuring more details and gimmicks than their smaller counterparts.

Bandai has also created a much more detailed series of figures called Perfect Grade (PG). These kits come in standard 1:60 scale but are superbly detailed in terms of color and its inner frame, as well as normally possessing more points of articulation, such as hands that articulate at the knuckles. Perfect Grade kits were mainly used for developing new plastic model technologies, a function currently taken over by the Master Grade series, and typically need a few years to develop each kit.

Megasize 1/48

Bandai released the 1:48 Mega Size Model (MSM) line in 2009 to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Mobile Suit Gundam. Available in four models - the RX-78-2 Gundam, the MS-06C Zaku II, the MS-06S Char's Zaku II, and the Gundam AGE-1 Normal, these kits are essentially larger versions of their 1:144 High Grade UC counterparts, but priced much lower than the 1:60 Perfect Grade line. Once assembled, these models stand 37.5 cm tall (about 15 inches).

Bandai developed these kits with ease of build in mind as they require no tools to build. The individual pieces are attached to the runner by a very thin piece of plastic so that they can be broken off by hand. The assembly process can be sped up even more as the runners have been developed in a way so that you can attach two together and break off the individual pieces that way. Bandai also include a 'Double Separator' tool to help with the new method of building.

Other/Mixed Scales

There are other less common scales such as the Speed Grade's 1:200.

A 1:400 scale model line is designed for large mobile armours and battle ships in the Gundam Collection line, which the line's ordinary mobile suits as figures, not models. Only extremely large units like Mobile Armours and Warships need assembly. These models are pre-coloured models, and the warships need minimal assembly. An earlier line of model, the High Grade Mechanics, with a scale of 1:550 held a similar function in introducing large mobile units, but the line only consist of 3 mobile units from 0083.

Another high-detail line is the EX model, in scales of 1:144 and 1:100 (non-humanoid units like aircraft) and 1:1600/1:1700 (spaceships), ranging from the Universal Century to Cosmic Era productions. This series is not Gundam-exclusive, having models from other series like some of the jet aircraft from Sentō Yōsei Yukikaze and at least one aircraft from Ace Combat 5.

Well thats all. pretty hard to get it? well its pretty hard for me to explain this too.. Thank you for reading.

ow and there is a video about how gunpla are made now..