One thing to note before we start, is that as the Akatsuki is not a traditional event suit, the EX Skills and Traits will most likely not be maxed out by anyone short of whales, so I will treat them as if their level 1 Skill/Trait is the maximum for the purposes of this review.

Head - D

Average defenses, Average Melee ATK, low Shot ATK, Gundam Type and For Base word tags, and a Vulcan EX Skill pretending to be something different by not using the word Vulcans. It's a shame this part is bad, because it is a very nice looking head.

Torso - B

High Armor, average stats otherwise, Gundam Type and For Base word tags and an Awakening EX Skill that raises Beam Resist by 100% and makes your suit resist flinching. This Torso is very nice for Defenders, boasting very high Armor, a word tag that boosts Armor, and a strong defensive Awakening. Keep in mind, however, that despite the flavor text of "repel beams" and boosting Beam Resist by 100%, you don't actually become immune to Beam weapons. It doubles the numerical value of your Beam Resist stat on your suit. This is a huge boost and likely will make Beams not do much damage if at all, but it is possible to be hit by Beam attacks that still overwhelm your Resist regardless.

Arms - D

Above average defenses, low ATK stats, Gundam Type and For Base word tags, and a trait that boosts Sp Shot Power by 17% when attacking with Beam. This trait is awful, as are these arms.

Legs - C

Above average Armor, average everything else, Gundam Type and For Tundra word tags, and another Melee Leg EX Skill. Just like I wrote for the Blue Destiny Legs, the skill is likely not very good. Still, these legs could be decent on a Defender, with high Armor and Gundam Type.

Back - C

Essentially the same stats as the legs, trading some Shot DEF for Melee DEF. Gundam Type and For Tundra word tags, and a Pierce based Shot Skill that looks amazing but isn't actually very good. This is a fantastic piece aesthetically but it's pretty meh otherwise. Like the Legs, good for Defenders, otherwise not much to see here.

Experimental Twin Beam Saber (Single) - C

Why is it a Twin Beam Saber if they only give us half of it? Who knows. Anyways, high Armor and defenses, low Melee ATK, Gundam Type and High Mobility word tags, and a trait that boosts Middle-Shooter's Job Gauge by 6%. Low value trait, and not good for Melee units, but Defenders and Shooters might like this for the defenses.

Hyakurai - B+

High Armor and defenses, low Shot ATK, Gundam Type and For Base word tags, and an amazing trait of boosting Initial EX Skill Charge by 6%, unconditionally. This is very nice for Defenders, and good for Melee units too who want the CD reduction more than the word tags in this slot. This part would be S rating if it was a normal event part and could be easily maxed out, but since it can't and likely will be stuck at 6% CD for a long time, it only gets a B+.

Type 71 Experimental Defensive Shield - B

High Armor, low Melee DEF and Physical RES, high Shot DEF and Beam RES, Gundam Type and High Mobility word tags, and a trait that reduces enemy shooting power by 17% when you have a Rifle equipped. This is a solid Shield for Defenders, and anyone who wants to really be protected from ranged attacks, while not minding being very soft to melee attacks.

Neo Roanoke - B

Neo is a Middle Shooter pilot with solid ATK stats, average defenses, Commander and For Space word tags, and a trait that gives you a 5% chance to survive a fatal blow when using a Speed suit. The trait is low value, being something nice to have but not really anything good. Having high dual ATK stats is nice but hindered a bit by the Middle-Shooter job. Outfighter is the job for dual attacking suits, given AI behaviour. That being said, a middle shooter with 1181 Shot ATK is still good, not the best, but serviceable.

Well, the Akatsuki isn't amazing, but man does it look good. Still, there are some decent parts here, and unlike the F91, you are guaranteed to get parts instead of getting nippers, so that's a thing. Depending on what happens for Part 2 of the event, I might not have an article next week, but we'll see what happens. Until then, see you next time!