Thanks! The kit is airbrushed, and the shading technique I used is the highlight method, where you paint a darker shade of the color you want then paint the desired color over top of it in the center of pieces, panels, etc. It's surprisingly easy, imo, especially compared to preshading for smaller kits like HG and RG, and can give you very strong shading effects.
I hope I can make my way into airbrushing some day. I just went from snap builds to only panel lining with Gundam pour markers. And just trying to get the nerve to top coat and try water slides.
They are! Newer RGs like this have much better engineering (though this one does have a couple notable flaws, like the upper arms). This kit comes with a few really cool multicolor parts, too, like one version of the horn, the eyes, and the upper arm. Never seen that anywhere else.
I bought the DX kit with the extra base and found it to be a really nice addition. Someone with the skill could engineer some kind of disconnection effect between the EVA and the hose.