For anyone who grew up in Italy in the ’70s and ’80s, Great Mazinger isn’t a robot: it’s a piece of childhood. Afternoons in front of the TV, theme songs sung by heart, the Atomic Punches. Building it, decades later, is a sort of time travel with tweezers in hand.
The head
It starts with the head, because Mazinger’s head is everything. The crest, the horns, the mouth grille: the most recognisable face in Japanese robotics, assembled piece by piece with the tweezers.
The red wings
Then the torso with the red wings on the chest, the Breast Burn, and the purple arms. The kit is a modern version, much more detailed than the TV robot, but the proportions are right: you recognise it at first glance.
Finished
Two weeks after the box, Great Mazinger is on its stand, with the Mazinger Blades in hand and the wings on its back spread. Looking at it makes you want to hum the theme song. I do. Alone, in the workshop. Don’t tell anyone.
