Review (Written): Master Grade XN Raiser

***This kit was kindly provided by Canadian Gundam

Appearing for the first time in the side story “Mobile Suit Gundam 00V”, the XN Raiser is the latest installment in the Master Grade Line. Forget about the O Raiser or the Seven Sword, the XN Raiser is truly a destroyer of worlds, so go grab a drink and let’s see if this kit is worth your time and money.

Box Art: 9/10

First, let’s start with the box. I am not really too much into talking about box art in reviews but lately Bandai has been doing an awesome job and the XN Raiser box art is a real work of art… FRAME IT!!!

Building Process: 7/10

So if you have built any of master grade versions of the 00 Gundam you are in familiar territory here. In the box you will have two building manuals. The first one is for the standard 00 Raiser and the other one is for the 4 extra runners for the XN Raiser, toss that away for now since you need to build the 00 Gundam and the 0 raiser first.

Now you have to keep in mind it’s the third time that I am building the 00. I have built the MG 00 Raiser and 2 Seven Sword kits. Like always the build is solid, like a lot of kits from the 00 line, you do not have any fitting issues. My only problem with that line, is the clear green parts: I hate them. I lost 2 of them when I built my first Master Grade Exia… they were claimed by the void. They do not really snap in place. You have to squeeze them and insert an extra part to stabilize them. In extreme cases, you’ll squeeze it really hard until it snaps! I mean if you have to use a desk to push a part in a Gunpla kit, I assume its bad engineering. Aside from that, it’s a solid kit. Not much stickers and it is LEDs lights compatible. Bear in mind that once the 0 Raiser is in place do not even think about that chest LED… it’s a pain to put in or remove, we still have the gap space issue at the waist but that was expected.

Once you are done with the main unit, you can start building the 0 Raiser. This thing looks awesome! It's one of the best attachments in the Gundam universe. This is what it will look like if a Naboo Starfighter had sex with a Gundam. Star Wars + Gundam = always a win in my book. This is nothing new however. It’s the regular 0 raiser with solid, cool weapons. But we’re not here for the 0 raiser unit am I right?

Because if you are looking for the GN 00 XN Raiser it is for the XN Raiser Unit, so once you are done with the main build you can start attacking that beast. The XN Raiser is compose of 4 brand new runners, (T1,T2,U1,U2). First let me thank Bandai for decentralizing the hobby and now making the instruction also in english, they deserve credits for that. Once more here, solid build nothing out of the ordinary, the xn raiser can aslo be display as a single unit but let’s admit it, you want that guy on the back of your 00 raiser because POWEEEEER.

Overall Look: 8.5/10

So originally, I had to postpone this review. When I was done building the XN Raiser, I hated the overall look of it. I thought it was too busy. I mean that backpack is crazy, its more backpack than Gundam. It almost looks like a Decepticon from one of those bad Transformers movies. So I put it in my display case and waited a couple of days and then the Gundam magic started doing its thing. Every time I was looking at it, I noticed a new detail, how everything was well put together and finally how different it was from the other 00 kits.

So as today I really like that design. I still prefer the 0 Raiser design over it ( ***while editing this review and taking pictures of theses 2 kits together, I can now say I prefer the XN Raiser over the 00 Raiser***) but I can honestly say I am happy to have these 2 kits together side by side. The color injection is perfect. As expected from any kit from the MG 00 line, this thing just looks sharp! All these edges and angles make it look like it came from outer space and which is pretty much the concept behind mobile suit Gundam 00. So yeah, big win here. With the LEDs it looks even better! But like I said above, you need a lot of courage to put in and/or remove these finicky LEDs.

Articulation: 7/10

I could go deep into the articulation but at that point the Master Grade 00 Line has been around for 10 years and it’s still considered as one of the best ones out there. It’s not at good as the new Seed 2.0 Frame or the Age Line, but it’s somewhere in the top. The only issue here is, if you are going to pose it with the backpack (and that’s what you are going to do let’s just be honest about it), you don’t have a lot of choices for poses. That thing is so heavy that Bandai included a small support for it in the box.

Just moving it around a little bit is super scary. You do not want that thing to fall on the floor. My man cave is made of concrete… so yeah, that’s even worse for me. Don’t even think about putting it on action base! I mean I’m not your dad and if you want to do it, do so. But some people are starting to report that their action base was not able to hold the weight of this thing. It just snaps or the whole thing just falls to the floor. I read somewhere that someone suggested to use boiling water to re-shape the action base connector for a stronger grip. But man I am a political and international economics major, do I look like a scientist to you? I seriously don’t want to take that risk .

Accessories: 10/10

And I thought the Master Grade Seven Sword was weapon heavy, this thing is a Deathstar all on its own. First, you’ve got the regular 00 Raiser weapons, accessories and effect beams (yeah SUPER HUGE GN BEAM SABER!).

But you also get these 2 super good looking swords. You can combine them to make that one huge Cloud Strife Buster sword (RIP Zack)! Individually, they look great. Together, they look great. But the connector… once they are together, SUCKS! I was not able to make my kit hold that sword. I tried and it never happened, so I gave up on it. Too bad because the Cloud Strife buster sword looks gorgeous! Looks like I will go full dual wielder instead.

As an accessory, the XN RAISER looks great! You can use it by itself or do it like I did and attach it over on the 0 Raiser unit. Just go all in, you are going to drop a pretty big sum on that kit so don’t cheap out… just go all in.

You also get a lot of dry decals, water slide and stickers to make your kit even better. I am an avid fan of decals. So if you are like me, you will have a LOT of fun (well, maybe not really a LOT, because applying decals sucks too… but trust me, it will look really good after). Finally, go watch our panel line tutorial and get ready because that monster will be a chore to panel line. Give it some love, it deserves it.

Fun Factor: 8/10

Like I said above, it was my fourth Master Grade 00 Gundam. And at that point, I am done with it. So I may not be the best reference for it. I remember the first time I built the 00 Raiser. I was a young and naïve builder, putting marker over nubmarks instead of sanding them down. I really liked the building process of the MG 00 Raiser, so there is that. The XN Raiser is not a game changer build, but it’s a fun and easy one. So overall, it’s a fun experience to build and I am ready to put the Master Grade 00 Line behind me… THAT IS IF THEY RELEASE A MASTER GRADE DYNAMES!!! I WANT ME SOME HUGE SNIPER!

Verdict: 8/10 - Buy It

So who’s the target market for this kit? Short answer: definitely not a newcomer to the Master Grade line. You have so many details, so many small parts and so many runners, that it is an intimidating kit. However, if you are a bad ass… well GO for it! I think this kit is for a select group of Master Grade builders: the ones that like heavy armed and over the top designs similar to the Master Grade Thunderbolt Ver Ka ot the Strike Freedom Full Burst Mode It‘s the kind of kit that you build slowly with love with a nice cup of coffee (or tea, if you are that type of person). Even If you are a fan of the MG 00 Line, it’s NOT a must-have, but it will look good with all the versions of the 00 Gundams. It looks different enough to not be confusing, and at the same time you know they are all twins.

So if you are reading this review, already dig the design, a fan of the whole 00 universe concept and looking to complete your set… go buy it! You will love it in the end. I was pleasantly surprised by this kit. I am not a fan of over the top suits and the older I get, the more I am into UC suits (RX93BESTGUNDAM!!!). But this one, after a few days, struck me at all the right places. Now I need to kitbash it with a seven sword and the world will finally be mine.

Once more, thank you to Canadian Gundam for providing us this kit to review and show around, if you are a good Canadian kid like me go check their online store, 10$ flat shipping rate from coast to Canadian Coast. Just click right here: