I’ve been meaning to make this post in December when pre-orders opened, but I guess today’s also a good day to make it as the VSMS 1/100 Die KAISERIN model kit from Hana no Utame Gothicmade will be released at the end of February. But first things first since Gothicmade is a pretty obscure property within Mamoru Nagano’s Five Star Stories universe.
I won’t pretend to know anything about Gothicmade, other than its connections to Five Star Stories. They were separate works previously, but Mamoru Nagano decided to do significant retcons to connect both works together. As of this post, the only way you can watch Gothicmade is via theater screenings as there are no home or streaming releases for this film. I’m not even sure if it’s still being shown in theaters so good luck to anyone wanting to see the film.
The titular Gothicmades are also the names of the mecha in this world, with the main protagonist unit being the Die KAISERIN, which translates to “The Empress” from German. If you think the Mortar Headds from Five Star Stories are complicated designs, wait until you see the Gothicmades as being lanky is the primary design language.
Which is probably the reason why it took so much time before more accessible model kits of Gothicmades (or GTMs) became available with the introduction of Volks’ VSMS (or Volks Super Modeling Series) line. The line is primarily 1/100 scale, which outside of what I collect for humanoid mecha. However, with Volks’ other line, the Injection Assembly Mortar Headd Series (IMS) also starting at 1/100 scale and eventually made into 1/144, the optimist in me is saying that getting 1/144 scale GTM kits is still a possibility. Though I am not holding my breath until that becomes a reality.
Die KAISERIN is actually the third GTM to be made to a kit, but given that it is the main GTM from the film, I’m giving it more attention. With such proportions, Kaiserin stands at a total height of 309mm, much taller than your average 1/100 scale Gunpla. As an injection assembly kit, it comes molded in white, silver, clear black, and clear plastic. It doesn’t mention that adhesives would be required, but don’t expect to finish building this thing in a couple of hours.
A primary consideration during the design of this kit is the “Twin Swing Auto Drive System,” where its articulation doesn’t completely line up with the usual ball and axis joints seen in humanoid model kits. The articulation scheme is more of swings and slides, which is unconventional from the usual injection molding techniques. The VSMS line aims to replicate the same or almost equivalent articulation seen in the much expensive ABSOMEC Die KAISERIN. I’ve included a playlist of videos from Volks below for context.
Going back to the VSMS Die KAISERIN, you can check out the solicitations for the complete explanation of its features. Though I do want to mention, as far as accessories go, the inclusion of the Gut Blow in both its holstered and extended states.
As mentioned, this kit is mainly a curiosity piece for me as I don’t collect mecha in such size ranges. But if it does open the possibility of VSMS 1/144 scale, then I’ll gladly wait. Or at least by that time, I should’ve built the IMS 1/144 Five Star Stories kits currently in my backlog.
VSMS 1/100 GTM HOLDA17 Die KAISERIN
February 2026 / ¥9,500
Order from Volks Hobby Paradise Online Store
