Gunpla for the Dad Who Grew Up on Gundam: A Fan's Picks, From Char's Zaku to Wing Zero

Ask which Gundam he started with, and give that one. If he grew up on the original, give Char’s Zaku or the RX-78-2. If he came in through SEED, Strike Freedom. If he watched Gundam Wing on Toonami, Wing Zero. If you can’t find out, give the RX-78-2 — it’s where all of them began.

That’s the whole guide in one paragraph. The rest is which kit, at which grade, and why.

Who’s choosing

I’m a designer in Japan, and I love Gundam.

I came to it late. My first series was Gundam SEED, when I was at university. It hooked me hard enough that I went back to the beginning, the 1979 Mobile Suit Gundam, and watched my way forward through all of it. Of everything I watched, the Universal Century is the part I love most, and Char Aznable is the reason.

I should be honest about one thing. I haven’t built Gunpla in a long time, and even when I was buying Gundam things most often, I bought finished figures more than kits. So this isn’t a guide from an expert builder. It’s from someone in the same place as the dad you’re buying for: a fan who’d like to build again, slowly, as something to look forward to. These are the kits I’d want to be given.

The grades, in one minute

Every kit carries a grade on the box. The ones in this guide:

• EG — Entry Grade. 1/144 scale. Made for a first build: the parts come off the runner by hand, and the colors are molded in, so it looks right without paint.
• HG — High Grade. 1/144 scale. The standard kit; the widest range of mobile suits.
• MG — Master Grade. 1/100 scale, noticeably bigger. An inner frame (a skeleton) with armor built over it. More parts, more time, more satisfaction.
• MGEX. The high-end Master Grade line, with special finishes. A statement gift.

There are others (RG, the detailed 1/144 Real Grade; PG, the huge 1/60 Perfect Grade), but for a dad coming back to it, I’d start at MG, or at EG if you want to test the water first.

If he’s a Universal Century man

The one I’d build first: Char’s Zaku II, MG Ver.2.0

This is my own first pick, and the reason is a feeling rather than a spec. When I watched Gundam THE ORIGIN, the retelling of Char’s early years, the Red Comet’s speed hit me all over again: the red Zaku that moves faster than anything around it. It sent me back to where it started, and that’s this machine, the MS-06S.

What the shop’s listing says. A 1/100 Master Grade built on a skeleton designed around the Zaku’s development lineage, with normal and stubby antennas, twisting joints and movable links for action poses.

As a gift. For the dad who was always on Char’s side. The Master Grade is big enough to feel like an event on the shelf, and it’s the kit I’d give someone who’s looking for an unhurried hobby, not a quick build.

When you don’t know his favorite: the RX-78-2

If I had to give a Gundam fan a kit without knowing a thing about him, I’d give the RX-78-2. It’s the original: every series since traces back to it.

MG RX-78-2 Gundam Ver.2.0. The shop’s listing describes an exterior shaped to the TV animation’s proportions, a full inner frame, and a Core Fighter that sits inside the body, with a stand to display the Core Fighter on its own. Give it together with the Zaku and you’ve given the first fight of the whole saga: Amuro and Char, side by side on the shelf.

Or try one first: EG RX-78-2, ukiyo-e package. The same Entry Grade kit, in a limited package printed in the style of a Japanese woodblock print, with Japanese-style stickers. The shop’s listing says the parts come off by hand without nippers and the colors are separated just by assembling. It’s the gentle way in, and the box alone says “from Japan”.

His rival: ν Gundam, EG

If Char’s Zaku is on the shelf, it wants an opponent. The ν Gundam is Amuro’s machine from Char’s Counterattack, the final fight between the two. On the Federation side, it’s my favorite. The Entry Grade is inexpensive and, per the shop’s listing, built by hand without nippers — an easy second kit to put next to the Zaku.

If he came in through SEED: Strike Freedom

This is my own generation. If SEED was his first Gundam, the answer is Strike Freedom, Kira Yamato’s machine from SEED DESTINY. For a SEED fan, it’s the one.

HGCE Strike Freedom Gundam. A 1/144 High Grade. The shop’s listing notes the wings are shaped to look right both spread and folded, and it comes with two beam rifles, two beam sabers and a beam shield. At this price, it’s the easiest yes in the guide.

If you want it to be an event: MGEX Strike Freedom. The top of the Master Grade range. The shop’s listing describes its theme as the highest level of metal expression in Gunpla, with special processing on the frame. It’s a very different price and a very different gift — the one for a milestone birthday.

If he watched Gundam Wing on Toonami: Wing Zero

For a lot of American dads, Gundam started with Gundam Wing on Cartoon Network’s Toonami, in 2000. I watched it too. The wings are what I remember — and the five pilots, each with a completely different machine. That’s worth using: ask him which of the five was his.

MG Wing Gundam Zero Custom (Endless Waltz Ver.). The Wing Zero with angel’s wings, from Endless Waltz. The shop’s listing notes wide-range joints, shoulder machine cannons that open and close, and a display stand for the buster rifle pose. One thing to know: this is the Endless Waltz design, with feathered wings. The Wing Zero on TV had mechanical wings. Most fans love both; if he’s particular, check.

If he came in through Gundam 00: Exia

Gundam 00 was many people’s first Gundam, and Exia, Setsuna F. Seiei’s machine, is one of my favorites from outside the Universal Century.

MG Gundam Exia. A 1/100 Master Grade. The shop’s listing notes it comes with a GN Drive maintenance frame. It’s the same scale as the Zaku, the RX-78-2 and Wing Zero, so if he ends up with more than one, they stand together.

Put this in the box too: nippers

Master Grade and High Grade parts are cut from plastic runners, and a proper pair of plastic-model nippers makes clean cuts that a kitchen knife or scissors won’t. Bandai Spirits makes its own. The Entry Nipper is their pair for beginners, and I’d pick the red one, because it goes with Char.

If he won’t build: a finished figure

Not everyone wants to build, and that’s fine: I bought finished figures more often than kits myself. If your dad would rather display than assemble, give him a figure that’s done.

GUNDAM FIX FIGURATION METAL COMPOSITE Char’s Zaku I (THE ORIGIN). The Zaku I that Char flies in Gundam THE ORIGIN, about 180mm tall, pre-painted, no building. The shop’s listing says it includes a machine gun and replacement hands. It’s the one in this guide I’d give a Char fan who wants the figure on the shelf tonight.

How to give it

Two things matter more than which grade you pick.

Remember his favorite. If I were given a kit, what would make me happiest isn’t the kit. It’s that someone remembered which machine I love. If he’s ever told you, give that one.

Offer to build it with him. A kit is a few evenings of someone’s time. Write “I’ll help you build it” on the card and mean it. That turns a box on a shelf into an evening together.

Before you buy

• Ask which series. Universal Century, SEED, Wing, 00 — the answer picks the kit. If you can’t ask, give the RX-78-2.
• Scale. The MG kits here are all 1/100 and stand together; the EG and HG kits are 1/144, smaller.
• Wing Zero’s version. This one is Endless Waltz, not the TV design.
• Tools. EG kits need none. For MG, HG and MGEX, add the nippers.
• Age. These are hobby kits with small parts; the HGCE listing gives 8 and up.
• Availability. Gunpla is sold worldwide, and this guide doesn’t claim these kits are Japan-only. It points to what the Japanese shop has in stock.

How to buy from Japan

Okurimono Japan doesn’t sell anything. “Check Price” takes you to the product page on Discovery Japan Mall, an independent Japanese retailer (not Bandai’s own shop) that ships internationally and shows prices in your currency. You pay them directly by card or PayPal. The shop states orders usually ship within 5 business days with tracking and insurance; customs duties, where charged, are collected on delivery. Returns are for damaged, defective or incorrect items only, reported within 7 days with photos. Prices on this page are the shop’s yen prices on 27 September 2026, converted approximately, before shipping and duty. Full details on How to Buy, duties in ordering from Japan to the US, and more in the Toys & Hobby category.

One more thing

Gundam fans remember where they came in. Give him that one — and an evening to build it.