Kit Review: Moderoid – Tetsujin-28-Go [Taiyou no Shisha ver]
Kibou wa Afureru Taiyou no Shisha
Tetsujin Tetsujin nijuhachi-gō
Tetsujin Tetsujin nijuhachi-gō
The grandfather of all mecha – Tetsujin-28-Go – received a massive redesign and reboot in 1980 – Taiyou no Shisha (Messenger of the Sun); also known in the US as The New Adventure of Gigantor. The general plot is very similar to the original manga and anime, where young boy Shotaro Kaneda inherited a controller that can activate the giant robot Tetsujin-28. Should it fall into the wrong hands, the world might be plunged into chaos. Shotaro – along with his comrades – protect the world by controlling the giant metallic hero. GSC has delivered on all versions of mecha’s respected grandpa by making the original Tetsujin, the Tetsujin-28 FX version, and today we’re looking at the Taiyou no Shisha – the slimmest brother in the family.
– Info:
Moderoid Tetsujin-28-Go
Series: Taiyou no Shisha Tetsujin-28-Go
Price: 3,968 yen
Release date: 3 May 2023
Moderoid Tetsujin-28-Go
Series: Taiyou no Shisha Tetsujin-28-Go
Price: 3,968 yen
Release date: 3 May 2023
– Design: The Taiyou no Shisha version is the sleekest design of all Tetsujins. This one has a classic Mazinger Z feel to it with pipe-like arms and legs and a pretty humanoid body proportion. The head still retain the original design but with no pupils this time. The metallic navy blue color is quite nice and the red belt and yellow accents really make the details pop. The number 28 on both arms look very nice since they are pre-painted. The kit is very anime-accurate and the overall design looks very heroic while keeping the classic look.
– Build quality: Well it’s Moderoid so you know what to expect…not. The build was actually quite solid and enjoyable provided that you’re just a bit careful. The gate placement isn’t the best but they aren’t “in your face” kinda thing. For my copy, the silver elbow ring was very loose and wouldn’t stay on, but nothing a bit of cement cannot fix. And everything else was extremely solid. If you want tighter joints, you can thicken it with some napkins, but it’s not required. Compared to other Moderoids, this one is quite a pleasant experience.
– Articulation: Thanks to the simple design, the Messenger of the Sun can move around quite well. The arms are pretty much on full rotation, the chest and hips are also 360-degree swivel-able. The only tricky parts are the thighs and the feet pivot. But it’s basically a peg joint that you can swivel around with limited range. You can quickly figure out the range after fiddling with it for a few minutes, and for me, it can pull off a lot of poses very well. We don’t need it to go full aerobic, just to emulate the feel of a massive robot moving at the command of a controller, and the model kit pull it off quite well.
– Accessories & Gimmicks: In terms of accessories, the kit comes with some very basic parts
x 2 pairs of hands
x 1 replacement head
x 1 backpack with deployable wings
x 1 Shotaro figure
x 1 Clipper
The kit include many parts to recreate scenes from the anime, most notably Tetsujin’s flying pose, activation pose and Shotaro himself. The hands are very easy to to change out, as well as the replacement head.
x 2 pairs of hands
x 1 replacement head
x 1 backpack with deployable wings
x 1 Shotaro figure
x 1 Clipper
The kit include many parts to recreate scenes from the anime, most notably Tetsujin’s flying pose, activation pose and Shotaro himself. The hands are very easy to to change out, as well as the replacement head.
–> Overall: This model kit is a prime example of K.I.S.S – Keep It Simple, Shotaro! This Tetsujin is a simplistic kit with minimal “engineering”. Basic construction that deliver the best results. The kit is anime accurate with good articulation and enough parts to recreate all the iconic scenes from the anime. If GSC keep this up, the other Tetsujins will also be good. And this kit will look amazing next to the original chunky gramps and the all decked-out FX.
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