Gundam is a long-running Japanese anime franchise featuring large combat walkers (Mecha). The hobby of building plastic model kits of these Mecha is known as Gunpla, and to my knowledge the most popular form of plastic kit in Japan, with many new models being released each year. Availability in Europe is quite good, too. There are specialist online stores, but you can also find them in some model kit/model railroad stores or stores carrying Pokemon and other anime merchandise. 

Grades

Gunpla kits come in various grades:

• SD (Super Deformed): These are smaller Chibi-style kits that are easy to assemble and affordable. These are a good starting point and make for funny looking display pieces.
• HG (High Grade): This are the entry-level kits at 1/144 scale, with a huge variety of models available.
• RG (Real Grade): These are also 1/144 scale kits, but feature a fully detailed internal skeleton. This is a relatively recent range and hence offers very nice models that are still quite affordable and won’t take up a lot of room.
• Master Grade (MG): These are 1/100 scale kits. They feature fully detailed internal skeletons. Lots of models available, too, but a bit more expensive, depending upon the model.
• Perfect Grade (PG): Coming in at 1/60 scale, this range has the largest regular production models and reasonable variety. These are generally quite expensive models.

There are also a few other ranges, such as Mega Scale (1/48) and Entry-Grade, but the ones mentioned above offer the most variety. The RG and MG Grades are the most interesting to me due to their combination of internal skeleton, number of available models, and relative affordability. 

Building Gunpla

The Bandai Gunpla kits are all snap-fit/press-fit, so there’s no need for glue. I recommend a good set of sprue clippers, a hobby knife, and sanding sticks for cleaning up parts. For someone with a bit of model building experience, building a Gunpla kit should not be a problem. Yes the instructions are in Japanese, but they have clear step-by-step visual instructions. The sprues come in different colors, so there’s technically no need for painting, but the models will benefit from panel lining (special pens to make this easier are available) and possibly a bit of weathering.

Gunpla models are true marvels of plastic injection molding. The resulting models are fully posable. Bandai uses advanced molding techniques with multiple colors for a single sprue and even parts that can rotate. Adam Savage has a video that shows some of these features. After building a €30 RG Gunpla kit, one starts wondering why Revell, Italeri and other dare sell kits that are molded almost completely in a single color, sometimes out of decades-old molds, that require glue for assembly.

So if you’re into Mecha and model building, and I can highly recommend trying a Gunpla kit. The building experience has also made me interested in Bandai’s Star Wars kits.