Gundam AGE-1 Normal

Mobile Suit Gundam AGE is the currently running iteration of the long-standing Gundam franchise, and it is awesome.  AGE takes place in its own continuity, and is aimed towards a younger audience, but still manages to be really well-written and a ton of fun even for older viewers.  In AGE, Flit Asuno is the descendent of the Asuno family of Mobile Suit designers.  When the mysterious Unknown Enemy attacks, Flit vows to destroy them, and designs the AGE System and his own Gundam to fight the UE.

Flit thinks about Gundams a lot.

The Robot Spirits Gundam AGE-1 Normal stands five inches tall, and is made from hard, sharply molded PVC and POM.  The figure separates at the waist for pants-swapping action with the other two AGE-1 variants, Titus and Spallow, sold separately.

Included in the box are:

• Gundam AGE-1 Normal
• Hands (2x fists, 2x gripping, 2x open)
• Shield
• DODS Rifle
• Stand adaptor
• Beam saber blades (2x long, 2x short)
• Rear booster effect part

The AGE-1 Normal might be the most posable figure I have ever gotten.  Everything moves, and the figure is sculpted for maximum mobility.  It is a bit of an odd figure, with a slightly stretched out and gangly look to allow for such movement.  Many of the other Robot Spirits Gundam figures are very true to the line-art, or a bit chunkier, like the UC Zeon mobile suits, but this figure goes the other direction and is very slender and mobile.  In action poses it looks great, but standing at ease, it can look weird in some angles.  My two biggest complaints are the length of the torso, and the small feet, but neither is a deal breaker by any means. 

Compare with this shot of from the anime, where the AGE-1 Normal is drawn a bit chunkier.

The legs have a cool feature that allows for extra movement at the knee.  The knee armor and the back of the thigh move to allow for a tighter knee bend for extreme poses.

The torso is super articulated.  It can move very far forwards and backwards…

…and side to side.  The torso is made of multiple overlapping parts, for a clean look regardless of pose.

The hands are swappable, but they are a little different from most Robot Spirits figures.  Instead of swapping via the ball joint, the AGE-1’s hands actually swap via the wrist swivel, which also makes for an additional point of wrist articulation.  It is a little bit awkward to swap the hands this way because of the angular cuff around the wrists, but they fit securely and work great.

The AGE-1 Normal features removable beam saber hilts in its side skirt armor.  They fit snugly so they do not fall out, and feature a groove on the sides for you to pull them out easily.

In the show, the beam sabers usually act like daggers with short blades, but long beam blades are also included.

Even with just the swords, this figure is a blast to mess around with.  Everything moves smoothly, and the whole package looks dynamic and fun.

The DODS Rifle and shield fit into slots on the forearms, and are very secure.  The shield can swivel, and the mounting arm for the rifle is hinged to allow for some movement.

Fully armed, the AGE-1 Normal looks ready for action.  Most of the action in the first arc of Gundam Age takes place in space, so one-handed badass rifle poses are the order of the day.

One minor thing I noticed is that, because of the mounting arm, the AGE-1 Normal cannot hold its rifle perfectly straight out.  It always has a slight angle at the wrist, which is not a huge deal, but can throw off the look of some poses.

[

The front of the rifle swivels and a grab handle folds out for two-handed gun poses.  Because of the slightly lanky and elongated proportions of the figure, I found two-handed gun poses to be a bit awkward.  It can be done, but I don’t think they are the figure’s strength.

The booster effect part is molded in softer clear blue PVC and looks great.  It is slightly flexible and wraps around the three engine nozzles on the backpack.  It is not too hard to knock it off by accident when posing, but it stays on pretty securely in general.  The end closest to the body is slightly frosted, and the whole thing looks great.

Gundam AGE-1 Normal can kneel thanks to its double-jointed front skirts.

This figure looks great doing just about anything.  It’s a bit gawky when compared to some other Robot Spirits figures, and other renditions of the design, but it’s also lithe and dynamic.  Most of the action in Gundam AGE happens very fast and very dramatically, so the stylization of the sculpt on this figure makes sense.  It’s a simple, fun figure that feels great and looks good.