HGBF 1/144 Gundam Schwarzritter Review

The Black Knight of doom with the Castlevania vibes.


Anyways, today we'll be taking a look at Denial Gundam's predecessor, Gundam Schwarzritter. I'm a hardcore Denial fan from when it's released until now, and when I heard that this kit is gonna be out, I'm most excited that I'm gonna see a Denial once again, now packed with more. For those of you who haven't seen my review on the Denial, click the link below. Dude, that review's been like a couple of years old!


https://illusionreaper66.blogspot.co.id/2015/06/hgbf-1144-denial-gundam-review.html

9 runners make up for the Schwarzritter. Only 2 of them were new, the rest of them were from Denial/Cathedral Gundam.


Front&Rear View

Much more parts than the ever so simple Denial. Although those new parts would hinder articulations...

And what can I say, for 2000 yen (IDR 260 as retail price on my region) you do get a LOT of parts and parts separation. Sticker use is pretty minimal as well, much like its successor.

And much like its successor, this kit had almost no seamlines at all. Even if there's any, the black paint will make it hard to see the seamlines. Not for the grey backpack tho...


New Stuff

The most unique feature of the Gundam will be its visor. If you wanted it to be accurate, you're gonna have to darken the visor, because it's too clear. And don't be fooled by my camera, that visor was purple!

What differs it from the Denial was also the tiny shoulder pieces, which makes this kit more elaborate-looking. And as you can see on its rear view, the rear skirt has gotten longer and also holds its weapons. The backpack is also new.

 Also, it's evident that Schwarzritter has no clear parts for the elbows, shoulders, and knees. Oh, one more thing. The shoes are slightly lengthened, so they won't look tiny.

And those black on the knees were stickers. I horribly messed them, then again its hard for me to align them correctly.

Here, we can see that it had a new front skirt, with the same loincloth style. But due to its design, it's movements are slightly hindered.


Articulations? I'll skip. This is basically a Denial, so it has the exact same articulations. If you wanna see how the articulation is, check its review.


Accessories&Gimmicks

Der Schwarzritter comes with a variety of hand parts, Winddolch handles, and another handle to make its second main event.

Firstly, here is the Winddolch, which is basically a solidified beam saber. The blades look neat, but it'll be nice if they're colored silver. Or something else.

The wings can be spread open like so, if you wish to. Doesn't serve any purpose other than being cool...

It can be moved around freely. Not gonna bother showing that.

Now, the wings have a gimmick where they can be used as large swords, named Flugel Messers. Now who would need the Winddolch when you can have these larger swords to slay much more enemies? Although now it looks bland without the wings.

And here's the third handle. Combines the two wings to form a buster sword.

And here we have the Flugel Schwert, the combined form of the Flugel Messers. I have to say its cool and intimidating, but in the same time it looks too short to be a buster sword because of the large hilts.

Well, not to mention the abundance of spare parts from the Denial's runners. One of them had been painted bronze for me to test how that color would look on the Schwarzritter when I repaint the kit.


3.... 2.... 1.... Action!!

Pros:

-Elaborate design
-Intimidating black and regal gold, a perfect color combo IMO
-This guy had a visor, which is unique and cool
-Cool new gimmicks
-Posing options with the swords

Cons:

-Some parts tend to be loose
-That gold is your usual cheap-ass injection gold (then again if its chrome gold, it will be damaged from possible parts collision)
-Flugel Schwert is too fatty short for some people, including me (in the same time it was cool tho, I've had mine displayed with that buster sword mode right now)



Verdict

I have to say, for its price, this kit is worth it. Really worth it! It has new cool gimmicks, and looks more elaborate than Denial Gundam's simplicity. And with the variety of hand parts, you can still do kenpo moves with this guy, too!

I remember a saying that goes, if you don't like the Denial then you won't like Schwarzritter either. That's wrong, in my opinion. If people never liked the Denial, they might change their mind after seeing this Castlevania of a Gundam.

If you wanna buy this kit, I'd say buy it! It'll be worth the price as I've said earlier. Although due to its slight complexity I won't recommend this for the beginners.


And I think that's pretty much it for this review. As always, I'll see you next time.

-FIN