Kusakusa Gunpla

If you’re a Gundam fanboy, you probably have already heard about or seen pics of the giant 1:1 scale RX-78-2 in Shiokaze Park, Odaiba. Well I just had to go there and take a look at it with my own eyes. Finding my way to the park from the station was easy enough, just follow the arrows with the words “Gundam” on em. I reached there around high noon and it was a really hot, yet fortunately clear day. As expected, the park was abuzz with people & activity; a bazaar-like atmosphere. Different variations of the 0079 Gundam theme song, ‘Tobe Gandamu‘, can be heard over the loudspeakers. Around the park there were food stalls, picnic tables, a platform where you can be photographed with the Gundam in the background (for a fee, of course) and a booth selling official merchandise.

As for the Gundam itself, it was, well… huge. The surrounding area around the Gundam was already crowded with people taking photos with various cameras, ranging from cellphone cams to huge DSLRs on tripods. I was able to get a good zoom from my humble 40-150mm Zuiko lens. The Gundam was very well detailed and the design seems to be a mixture of the first MG and the OYW version of the RX-78-2.

If you’ve ever wondered what the warning decals on your model kits actually say, well now you know. I was quite disappointed that they didn’t use engrish

After having enough of taking pics under the hot sun, I decided to take a break and I left the Shiokaze park for the Makuhari Messe which was less than an hour train ride away. What’s going on there, you may ask? Why it’s just the Wonder Festival of Summer 2009. I’ll post pics from that event later. In short, I spent a few hours there, mostly taking photos and enjoying the view. Then I returned to Odaiba for a second viewing of the Gundam.

As I was waiting for the sunset, I decided to join the queue to buy some souvenirs at the official bandai shop/booth. Yes, you have to queue up because the shop was very small and can only accommodate a few people at a time.

As it grew darker, the number of people there didn’t let up. I guess they had the same ideas as me: to watch the Gundam light up. Actually at certain time intervals, the Gundam can turn its head left and right, and then look up while being accompanied by the cheesy sound effects you hear from the original anime. At the same time, smoke would appear from the chest, shoulder, booster and calf areas.

And as night fell, it was time for me to go home, having taken my fill of photographs.

It was a fulfilling journey and experience, one that I would be glad to say ‘I’ve been there’. As a memento, I bought a HGUC model of the the life-sized gundam. Its actually identical to the HGUC Gundam Ver.G 30th, except for the box art and the addition of a scale-model of the platform seen at the park. I also bought a fan (hey, I’m a Gundam fan!) and some postcards. I hope you enjoyed the pics and this post. Cheers!