Zeong - Lacus Custom

For the past 10 years, my hobby has revolved around Gundam. Whether it was collecting figures or building model kits, I tried to get my hands on it. Over the past 3 years or so though, I've become a bit more demanding of hobby, gradually going from just snapping pieces together to now my first custom, Lacus' Custom Zeong. Ultimately, I'd like to make a Master Grade of either the Gundam Heavyarms Custom or Victory 2 Assault-Buster, but I'll just have to be content with the HG 1/100 releases for now.

Background

I first got the idea for this kit after seeing a fanart of Lacus in front of a Zeong, ala the opening visual. Given how Gundam SEED Destiny was bringing back, Zakus, Goufs, Doms and Gelgoogs, a Zeong was not too far-fetched of an idea. Given that each of the remakes had acronyms to explain their names, I decided to give one to the Zeong as well, Zenith of Evolutionary Overguard of New Guardians, or Z.E.O.N.G. Given the role that Lacus and crew had in the series, the name fits. With the vision in place, I went to work in making the HGUC MSN-02 Zeong into Lacus' Z.E.O.N.G.

Construction

Being that I live in Miami, Florida, painting is a bit difficult. Since I use Tamiya spray cans, it's difficult to get flat coats as the weather just does not cooperate. It's been an especially warm and humid fall this October, so I ran into some difficulties while painting, namely the paint not staying on the kit or the paint would bubble up. In the end though, the project came out well.

Builder's Comments

I really liked how everything came out with this project. It was unfortunate that I had to destroy a trading figure to get Lacus' hair and trademark hair pin, but luckily I had two of them. I also used my decal sheet from the original SEED series, so I was able to add in a Haro decal on the front chest as well as a Phase Shift decal for the rear skirt. I wanted to use the Eternal decal from the MG Freedom kit, but I could not find my original decal sheet, so I'll have to leave that out for now.

Final Thoughts

I can't say enough how pleased I am with how this came out. I never thought that I would be able to finish it in time, but here it is all done. My favorite shot in the set has to be attack against Meer's customized Z.A.K.U. Warrior. I'd imagine that this should have been how the series ended.

I hope that you guys enjoyed this comedic piece of Gunpla. To think that the once mighty Zeong could be converted into the personal toy of a genetic songstress overlord is quite amusing to me. For now, just enjoy the additional pictures below.