april 7th is setsuna f. seiei's birthday because it's gundam's birthday and He Is Gundam. that's not me making a joke that's just a genuine truth about the show. and what better birthday present for him and for gundam in general than some photos of my very first real grade, the rg exia! this build took me forever because i was scared of it. i think i started on it in, like, february or even january 2023 and didn't finish it until late april of the same year. ah, how the times change...
given that this was my very first RG, my main issues that i had were the incredible number of really tiny, really detailed pieces that RGs are so (in)famous for. there was a point where i dropped exia's red chin part on the ground and if not for the fact that my floors were grey and that piece was bright red i would have lost it forever. some of these parts are smaller than their nubs!
absolutely worth it in the end, though - top to bottom, RGs truly are some gorgeous works of art. i said after i built this kit that i liked it but i was absolutely positively never building a real grade again, which was a vow that lasted me all of...maybe six months. i'm hooked on them now. i have tamed and accepted their intricate natures. i am One with the Real Grades.
bonus closeup on the birthday boy 🎉
i actually have no idea why the pilot figure in this kit was done in blue plastic when every single other pilot figure i've ever seen is white. it seems that even now, the RG exia holds strange mysteries...