The recent release of the RS Model Ki-100 Otsu and Kou kits has prompted Lifelike to release a new sheet of decals for these aircraft.

The instructions are typical for Lifelike, with two A4 single-sided sheets printed in full color. The exterior sheet has three-view drawings and the references used to determine the color schemes. The interior sheet has the left side profiles and the references used to determine the markings. The history of the pilot is discussed in brief, adding a nice dimension to the markings.

The best thing about Lifelike is that they are not afraid to say that they don’t know something if it isn’t known. I like this approach. They also have made good on new information on their website and, where appropriate, they have printed new decals and provide them for free or a small fee. What other decal company does that? None.

The decals themselves are first rate. Printed by Cartograf, they are in perfect register. They are thin and opaque enough to be placed over the Yellow-Green #7 on the upper surfaces. An added touch, especially for 1/72nd scale, is the inclusion of stencils. The Hinomarus are printed separately from the white background so you can properly position them.

There are five aircraft depicted on the sheet, three Ki-100 Otsu and two Ki-100 Kou. All the aircraft share the same basic coloring of Yellow-Green #7 upper surfaces and natural metal bottoms.

The first aircraft is an Otsu flown by Captain Totaro of the 5th Sentai in the summer of 1945. It contains the personal emblem of the nine-headed dragon on the rudder. It is unique on in that the right side emblem is slightly smaller.

The second aircraft, also an Otsu, was flown by Major Yohei Hinoki in July, 1945. This aircraft has some beautiful cobalt blue fuselage and wing bands surrounded in white, and a cobalt blue spinner. Major Hinoki lost his leg in 1943 but, like Douglas Bader, couldn’t be kept out of the cockpit and went on to fly in the defense of Japan and survived the war with 12 victories.

Aircraft three is a Kou with an elaborate single kill mark of a P-51, complete with national markings, that is pierced by an arrow. This marking may have been applied by US troops, however, since it was visible on the airplane in the references that are provided. The yellow spinner and tail band outlined in red make quite an attractive aircraft.

Aircraft four is another Kou flown by the Commander of 1st Daitai, 111th Sentai, in July, 1945. It is quite a colorful machine with white markings everywhere on the tail and fuselage. The fuselage sports four white stripes that are provided as decals. The white leads down the forward leading edge of the horizontal tail surfaces, making this a very unique-looking airplane.

The final airplane is an Otsu. This aircraft has 14 kill markings below the canopy. The Sentai markings on the tail are quite colorful. Much of this aircraft’s markings are based on speculation; however, it fits quite nicely here. As mentioned earlier, Lifelike does not shy away from making an educated decision on the markings.

Lifelike continues to produce some of the world’s best researched decals. The continued use of Cartograf-printed decals makes this sheet an absolute necessity for the Japanese airplane modeler. While designed for the RS Model kit, they can be used on the Fine Molds kit as well. So…excellent research, world class decal printing, and excellent subject choice makes these decals, and the rest of Lifelike’s line, a great value for the money.

Highly recommended

Thanks to Lifelike Decals for the review copy and IPMS-USA for the review opportunity.