The best worst Evangelion model kit ever made: Kotobukiya EVA-00 TV Ver. REVIEW

linktr.ee/citrusjuicebox | I tried to make a quick video, but it still ended up being a whole thing
0:00 Introduction
1:26 Construction
3:12 Overview & Gimmicks
6:41 Articulation
8:54 HANDS
11:05 Accessories
15:19 Price & Conclusion
18:13 Bnuuy
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[@TsundereSupreme]

The arm decals only show up once or twice in the anime, but they're on some model sheets from the show's production, and appear in a lot of official artwork and merch for the series. The mechanical designer for the series, Ikuto Yamashita, almost always includes them in his artwork of the Evas, so I assume it's a situation where the markings are "supposed" to be there on the design, but are omitted from the animation to create a simpler, easier to produce picture - and this simpler design became the primary one due to it actually being what you see in the anime. Also, I definitely recommend feeding some kind of wire through the umbilical cable - allows you to adjust it and get it bent and curled however you please.

[@citrusjuicebox]

Thanks for the info, very interesting! And the wire idea is very good for dynamic posing

[@_Seileach]

As someone who has gotten used to buying non-Bandai kits, I've became numb to the prices. I've came to realize Bandai is the oddity in the industry with the low prices and never ending stock that people are familiar with.

[@citrusjuicebox]

Perks only afforded by the biggest player in the game, for better or worse

[@miragebangbravern2024]

Because Bandai kits are made purposely cheap for the most part to be accessible towards everyone. Other model kit companies meanwhile aim towards more experienced modelers.

[@HaohmaruHL]

Which is bizarre considering that they are the only Made in Japan model kit company. Very few factories in Japan All the others like Kotobukiya have their production in China, hence the Made in China label. Much more availability so prices should be lower, not double the Bandai prices for the same amount of plastic and size, like now.

[@_Seileach]

@@HaohmaruHL Chinese labor cost isn't as cheap as it has been, stated desingers Toriyama and Apsy during one of their Megami Device talks. Prices of figures and plamo made in China will only increase as time goes on if they don't move operation out. Not to mention the pandemic completely crippled the shipping industry for 1+ years and is still having ripple effect (surrace parcel still not available for many). Fun fact, Kotobukiya has started producing a few M.S.G sets in Japan as of now, and Good Smile Company is building their own factory in Japan. Still, their production and market won't be as much as Bandai so prices will remain to off-set the initial investment.

[@santiagocamacho1077]

I also purchased all 3 and immediately thought “this is going to require ALOT of diligence to look good”.

[@valentetellezperez6538]

That rant about the hands really made my day lol But yeah, it's sad when you buy a kit and you're unaware that it has some terrible hands (looking at you HG Asshimar)

[@X1rcon]

We're so back glad you're still posting dude

[@topik5900]

I recently got the Eva 01, and I love it. The joints on the arms should definitely be loosened, but other than that I love it. Always love to hear from you Citrus!

[@davinstefanus3805]

Man, I’ve missed listening to your voice! 🥹 welcome back! Always love your reviews 👍

[@cheesemoon6319]

Happy to see you upload again :D Might not be fun to build, but they looks amazing, not sure why Bandai is not releasing the TV design of the EVA kits

[@Sardunka]

I've been trying forever to get the Unit 01 Kit. I have Unit 00 and 02 and love them both. Great review! The kits do need a little extra love for 100% accuracy, but I think they are worth it.

[@Mercury_Cosmos]

I was not expecting a new video so fast. Great looking kits though.

[@citrusjuicebox]

I want to get back to doing as close to one a month as I can

[@hotwheelsmark]

New Citrus video , within 1 month? Must be early Christmas

[@zerozerothree]

LFGGGG NEW CITRUS!!!

[@tristanribeiro7903]

perfect representation of EVA unit 00. The only thing missing for me is the sniper.

[@laxiden1595]

Yo christmas comes early, 2 Citrus Video in less than a month lol.

[@goforitpainting]

So cool

[@Joseph-cr8wg]

These were good pre Bandai EVA RG. I remember you couldn't get a decent EVA kit and the old LMHG kits kinda blew. Now? Now they're just expensive 2nd tier to Bandai's RG line. About the cost - I heard it had something to do with the molding/injection tech from Bandai that made Koto take the longer and more expensive route. Not sure how true that is. But At least it gives some explanation to Koto's cost + preprints.

[@SETO-HUTO]

the RG evas are fun to build the first time but after that there very repetitive and a easily forgettable build

[@citrusjuicebox]

That's interesting, Kotobukiya licensed Bandai's techniques? I wonder what they could be, since the runners and parts didn't seem particularly special

[@blipblip]

@@SETO-HUTO I really dislike how Bandai did the tricep areas and the forearms of the RG Eva. Otherwise I think they are a decent modern take of the Eva design.

[@jakesantiago3740]

Are you gonna review other Kotobukiya kits such as the Megaman or the Muv-Luv TSF ones?

[@citrusjuicebox]

I have some ZOE and AC4 kits that I'll cover eventually lol

[@lazergator1016]

Wasn't expecting you to do Evangelion now, Now you gotta take a look at Bandai's RG Evangelion line and their old LMHG line and they're only PG Evangelion.

[@citrusjuicebox]

I built an LM-HG kit years ago, but I don't have it anymore. I do have a bunch of the Eva RGs though.

[@randoooooooooooo4676]

Always found it sad that these are the ONLY decent figure representation of these TV designs because I much prefer them over the rebuilds. The prices were fucking nuts before they started reprinting them too.

[@randoooooooooooo4676]

i completely forgot they made those early revoltechs while writing WHOOPS

[@citrusjuicebox]

@@randoooooooooooo4676 lol do you want mine? I'm planning on selling my set. I had a Revoltech MP Eva. It was pretty fun to mess with, but the proportions were definitely something.

[@desu5070]

Are the prices no longer nuts? They seem to be sold out everywhere

[@sipusofficial]

Blue Unit-00 😍 it's my first love

[@waranghira]

This is indeed way better than the original Bandai. Still sore that I failed to keep and take care of it.

[@Dagon_gojis_brother]

Fun fact- tv verssion of 00 actually had hidden thrusters in the pylons

[@zealotscout]

I had to buy the kotobukiya tv version of 02 , because the current 00 and 01 RG out there from bandai are the rebuild versions, and they honestly absolutely look awful (I hate the rebuild 00 and 02 designs). I happened to pick up 01 because its the only version that looks close to the OG version. Good review, title a little misleading, but I bought it thanks to this.

[@galaxyiguess9363]

Less go

[@obicross]

Hey guys its citrus!! 🎉

[@obicross]

The kit looks awesome tho!

[@Zeitgeist6]

Kotobukiya in general is more expensive than BANDAI I've noticed. I have a bunch of their kits, but they were all expensive. They tend to also be more rare and imho a bit more intricate than Bandai's stuff.

[@miragebangbravern2024]

Bandai purposely make their kits mostly cheap to make it easily accessible. Kotobukiya on the other hand make their kits for a specifically older audience in mind.

[@citrusjuicebox]

Absolutely. Kotobukiya will often do wild parts separation for detail, which gives their kits a unique feeling.

[@blipblip]

Also interesting is that Bandai plastic model kits are all made in Japan while Koto's are made in China. Consider the cost of living/labor I would say that Kotobukiya is upcharging way too much.

[@breakingbasha]

Dual parallel really didnt feel like an eva knock off. Especially with its being a part of another giant franchise

[@citrusjuicebox]

I get the Tenchi Muyo GXP connection, but I don't think the similarities in premise and character profiles are entirely a coincidence

[@h.p.lovecraftscat8476]

Will you do the armored core kit?

[@citrusjuicebox]

I do have a few, but not sure when I'll get to them

[@h.p.lovecraftscat8476]

@@citrusjuicebox oh ok looking forward to it.

[@clementhofferer4753]

hey yo , just a little thing about the scale , Eva's don't really have a proper height , Anno played a lot with size , and it pretty much depend on how effective it is in a shot , sometimes they are massively huge , sometimes they are the size of a gundam if you wanna have a go at it rewatching the show ,a good hint would be to look at their hands ... it's ridiculous but hey props to them cause it realy works haha so yeah when a kit gives an eva scale it's bogus

[@citrusjuicebox]

Good point. I think even in the very first establishing shot of Eva-01, it was quite small

[@rizqizen4528]

do the nemo, really want to know it is still great kit in 2023?

[@rickytoddbotelho9555]

What do you mean this isn't a good kit?! This looks like a great kit!!!!😂❤

[@citrusjuicebox]

Value for money, whether you like Evangelion or not, is pretty awful

[@waranghira]

The original revoltech though has that seemless elbow no visible joint. But i guess more would want articulation than looking seemless

[@citrusjuicebox]

When the material was new, it actually moved quite well. But it seems to harden with age, and the plastic joint inside of mine broke clean in half.

[@waranghira]

@@citrusjuicebox so might as well get the arm of Bandai Revoltech? :)) If only they were compatible

[@bandit7836]

i hate how hard to find and expensive these kits go for these days. only places i could find the unit 02 kit is ebay and amazon both of which go for around 200 euros. i really wish that bandai returns ton the original series once more and gives us a newer better version of them.

[@citrusjuicebox]

If you're interested, I've been considering selling mine. Send me a message on IG.

[@michaelcraig58]

Wish you were doing more content..seems like gunpla is super hot right now..😁😁

[@alexrivera2066]

Does this model require glue?

[@citrusjuicebox]

It shouldn't, but it's not uncommon for a few small parts on Kotobukiya kits to be loose enough to warrant glue

[@justandrew6431]

review nemo next??

[@citrusjuicebox]

I will get to it! But a bigger project is coming along first

[@justandrew6431]

@@citrusjuicebox pg astray looks so exciting, looking forward to both

[@thinhnguyenduy4099]

You forgot to mention the RG evas, they are slightly cheaper and more detailed.

[@citrusjuicebox]

Nope, I didn't, because the RGs are not based on the TV designs at all

[@thinhnguyenduy4099]

@@citrusjuicebox oh, okay, that makes sense.

[@Cazarace]

Absolutely horrendous kits these Kotobukiyas. I started assembling the pieces for my Eva 02, and the arm joints were too stiff and impossible to move that they broke the pins in half. Both arms broke. And that's it. 100usd down the drain, just like that. Apparently and I didn't know, the joints shouldn't be so hard to move around but what did I know it was my first model kit. Trash.

[@TheLVJ]

Reads like builder error, buddy.

[@randoooooooooooo4676]

Koto kits require a bit more finesse in my experience; the plastic quality is noticeably different which doesn't help with potential breaks. This doesn't mean their kits are TRASH or that I don't like them, just that I definitely wouldn't recommend them to first time builders.

[@nizalmuhammad9689]

Meng probably good for you

[@obicross]

I agree it looks pretty good and big af

[@citrusjuicebox]

Maybe, but they're still based on the Rebuild designs, so I'm not super interested

[@obicross]

​@@citrusjuiceboxah it does have that super skinny design. Maybe the perfect grade? I have that one. But not that good

[@citrusjuicebox]

@@obicross aside from the RGs, this is it. PG proportions just look way too off for me.

[@playeragex]

0:56 bro what is this 💀💀💀😭😭😭

[@kidrobot.]

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