Dalong's epic Gundam collection
I'm sure almost everybody in the gunpla community knows about Dalong.net. Dalong's webite is one of the best sources for plamo reviews and pictures, mostly because he has reviews on EVERY single MG, HGUC, Seed, and 00 model kit that has ever come out. If you want to know about a gundam model, you can be sure that Dalong has it. Mainly, I like this site because of the plethora of pictures he provides for each model.
Though, one thing I have noticed is that he isn't really what you would call a hardcore model maker. I think he merely aims to provide reviews and pictures of each model kit released. I say this because his models definitely don't look that great. Usually, he doesn't paint or top coat any of his models. He does panel line, but this is something I would consider a weakness. His panel lining is excessive, thick, and relatively messy. Honestly, it's too much, and it really doesn't look that great.
Lines too thick? Messy? Excessive?
What do you think about his technique? Are we meant to simply appreciate that he provides endless reviews? I'm usually guessing that he doesn't really care about how his techniques look. Regardless, I just wanted to say that I love his site. It's completely in Korean (which I can read, thankfully), so many people will not be able to read his reviews. It's really more about the in-depth pictures though.
I actually find Dalong's technique very effective as a review, as it shows shows how the kit will look like out-of-box, and also indicates where every possible panel lines is.
ReplyDeleteIt's kind of a shame that he doesn't panel line his Kotobukiya kits.
I agree with hiroy_raind that Dalong's reviews are simple to understand (even pictorially), and that even though how he makes his models are simple, it's consistent most of the time and that it gives the people an impression of how it is like straight out of the box.
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty casual on making Gunpla models too, and even though they may be frowned upon by those who are fussy about quality, I'm happy with what I make out of mine.
I think both of you are right, and I do agree that his reviews are basically perfect for seeing how a model is right out of the box. I also don't go crazy with modeling, and I only just started top coating. I guess my only concern was his messy panel lining, though I guess that has its reasons too.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with you, C.Jin. I know there are different types of PlaMo people but for me, to make a model your own requires much more than just adding black messy ink in the panel lines. I believe it's a waste of model kit if you don't atleast paint it or to even make your kit stand out, clean them up via sanding all the nub marks and then paint them. Because if you don't, why not just don't buy one and just visit a local shop where there are displays of kits and look at them, it's cheaper that way. Painting is a basic skill for scale modeling. It's a tedious process but it's fun and you get to put your own personal touches to every kit and you can enter contests to show off your kits and skills.
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