MG The O - A Review

It's show time, The O!
Click to Enlarge | On Flickr

The MG O has long been awaited by many since Bandai first showcased it years ago. Shortly after its announcement, for reasons unknown to me, it disappeared and Bandai never followed through with its release. Now, following a 2nd place victory in Bandai's MG Wishlist survey they have reconsidered that decision. When the release of the MG O was announced I was excited. I love large, imposing kits like this one and I have the perfect spot on my shelf for it. After some shipping issues delayed progress I was shocked to find such a huge box waiting for me. It's ame size as a PG kit and smaller than the 1/48 Gundam. Despite it's size the number of pieces is pretty standard for a MG kit and the whole thing is a pretty easy build.
Click to Enlarge | On Flickr

Over all the kit is smaller than I thought it would be. In terms of height it's not much taller than your average MG and over all takes up less space than the largest (?) MG, the Ex-S.
Click to Enlarge | On Flickr

There's barely enough room on my set for the O, the PG MK II, the 1/48 Gundam, and the dinky MG Victory.
Click to Enlarge | On Flickr

I have a very conflicted opinion on the design of this mobile suit. The substantial ability for badassedness (play along and pretend that's a word) is countered by the horrible color scheme, pollen yellow and sea green thrusters. Nearly every component of this suit, when viewed individually, such as the head, looks incredibly stupid. Luckily it looks considerably better as a single unit. One thing I never noticed though is that from the rear The O looks like a some sort of beetle with it's fat huge abdomen, ridiculous wings, and horn.
Click to Enlarge | On Flickr

Early concerns about the kit questions how poseable Bandai would make it. I never expected much considering the size of the kit and how it was never designed for a huge range of motion. However, in the end, I was pleasantly surprised with the articulation in the legs and arms. It's better than the MG Unicorn.
Click to Enlarge | On Flickr


Click to Enlarge | On Flickr

Even with the armor attached there's little impact to its range of motion. However you won't get the full extent once you attach its massive ass…
Click to Enlarge | On Flickr


Click to Enlarge | On Flickr

The shoulder has quite a bit of forward swing but nothing to the rear. The torso can spin around maybe 25 degrees and tilt around maybe 8. (Guesstimaton from someone who hasn't seen a protractor in ages) Despite all of this articulation posing this behemoth can be a nuisance. Bandai beefed up the joints with larger polycaps but it really doesn't do enough for the shear size bulk of the kit. More on that later.
Click to Enlarge | On Flickr

It's good to see he can actually reach down far enough to grab ejecting beam sabers, if just barely. One mustn't forget about the O's most memorable feature, the claws hidden underneath the front skirt. There have a decent range of motion and one of the claws has a little notch to help hold a beam saber.
Click to Enlarge | On Flickr

Unfortunately Bandai only included two yellow sabers with this kit so if you're interested in a full display you'll have to dig into your extra parts box.
Click to Enlarge | On Flickr

As for the kit markings, besides the standard stickers and dry rub decals...
Click to Enlarge | On Flickr


Click to Enlarge | On Flickr

...they also included these...
Click to Enlarge | On Flickr

They're hard, semi transparent plastic stickers made to go along the top and bottom of the rifle. Before…
Click to Enlarge | On Flickr

After...
Click to Enlarge | On Flickr

It's a change, though subtle, for the better. Even so it comes off more like an attempt to hide the seam lines and nub marks. A bit of sanding will remove and marks, right? Nope! The internal frame and gun are all made from the same quasi metallic gray plastic Bandai has been pumping out recently. Unlike the regular gray used on nearly every other kit this plastic shows black spots where they were attached to the runner that are near impossible to hide without paint.
Click to Enlarge | On Flickr

For god's sake Bandai, stop with that shitty plastic! Unfortunately this kit has some glaring issues. The root to these, I believe, are a result of the kit having been largely designed back in the day with only minor upgrades for it's public release. Many connections are just too lose for the weight they support. Others are just poorly designed.
Click to Enlarge | On Flickr

Take the picture above, with some obvious seam lines. The shoulder armor is made from large pieces that are just loose enough that they stay snug together. The heavy backpack weighs down on the back armor piece, creating a gap where it meets the front armor piece. Two other issues in the same area are with how the arm and shoulder joints are engineered. The upper arm part, which plugs into the shoulder joint, lacks a polycap. After a few posings it starts to lag down and loosen visibility.
Click to Enlarge | On Flickr

I also, quite angerly, have to note that the small clip on the hand meant to help hold the rifle isn't nearly big enough to actually hold on to the rifle properly. It's too small it just slips out. In fact, it's so effective, it might as not be there at all. On many kits the shoulder armor actually fits over the shoulder joint. On the O it actually fits between the the two pieces. This means that if the pieces aren't pressed firmly together the shoulder becomes lose and flops. Which, of course, tends to happen considering the size and weight of the arm. It's little things like these that really annoy me. Did no one at Bandai bother to actually mess around with these guys after initial construction? Little issues aside, this one takes the cake...
Click to Enlarge | On Flickr

On this kit the hip joints swing forward and back to help create a more dynamic pose when up on an action base (gigantic clip to fit the action base, mercifully included). At one point the legs were flopping around and I thought the piece had become loose. When I went to check on it, I found that the whole waist joint started to split down the middle. With all the pieces going on down there the only way was to get it all back together was some disassembly and reassembly. As I pulled them apart I forgot that that the bead tubes (there's another name for them, I'm sure, but I sure as hell can't think of it) connects at the front of the waist and the rear. All of a sudden they popped off and little red beads went flying everywhere. Thankfully Bandai was kind enough to include extras with the kit. No, not five or ten of the pieces, but ninety. Holy shit that's a lot left over. Keep in mind that kit only uses about forty of them. Perhaps they were originally meant to be used on the other beaded tubes, now molded as a single piece. Why they didn't just mold the waist tubes the same way is beyond me. It's also worth pointing out that the pre-molded tubes and the ones on the waist are actually different shades of red. All of my issues with this kit boil down to one point, the design of this kit was outright lazy. The O could have been an amazing kit, a wonder of design and detail. But at ¥12,000 (not including international shipping on a box this huge) I feel like I've been royally ripped off. The MG Ex-S, which costs a third less, can't pose for shit but looks fucking amazing, can transform, and even comes with a base! For fuck's sake, why only include two beam sabers? At least include a pink sticker for the monocle!