I was aiming to post this around the end of August, but mid-to-late September should be fine too. The Gundam Base Pop-Up has been having their World Tour for 2026, and fortunately for us, Manila is part of the itinerary. The pop-up store ran for two months from July to August, with people particularly excited of the potential to get exclusive kits without needing to fly to Japan.
Ahead of its opening, they have announced the exclusive kits coming to the store. And while all those exclusive recolors and variations are good purchases, I’m specifically gunning for one kit. That would be the HGUC Xi Gundam and Penelope Funnel Missile Effect Set. Previously an exclusive when you get the HGUC two-pack of both mobile suits, the set was recently made as a standalone Gundam Base exclusive release.
Unfortunately for me, this set was apparently sold out in the first couple of days. And as much as I had hoped of any restocks, not another batch arrived. It seems that the allocation for the exclusive items are very limited and once it’s gone, it’s gone.
After returning for three consecutive weekends hoping for the effect set to return, I eventually gave up. I was able to make another purchase though, the RG Wing Gundam Zero.
I already bought the RG Gundam Epyon previously and this kit would be the perfect companion piece. But I wouldn’t want to just build the Wing Zero in its vanilla configuration, since the HGAC kit would fit that purpose. I am looking at painting the kit based on the color scheme from Junya Ishigaki’s illustration from B-Club Magazine Vol. 118.
I also got the Osaka Expo 2025 version of the RX-78F00/E Gundam. Except that it’s now in a slightly revised packaging where all the Osaka Expo 2025 branding has been removed and replaced with the Gundam Next Universal Century logo. Otherwise, it’s the same kit, and I’ll keep my Osaka Expo 2025-packaged version sealed.
Overall, as much as I appreciate bringing The Gundam Base Pop-Up here in Manila, the selection and stock of the exclusive kits were very limited. It did bring abundant stocks of regular retail releases so those waiting for reissues of certain kits, this was a great opportunity to get those. I won’t know how the pop-up store fared overall, but it looks like we are getting a more permanent store in the future based on this signage revealed just a week after.
