Front and rear views of ReGZ
A bit of background information on ReGZ: appeared in Char’s Counterattack, ReGZ is short for ‘Refined Gundam Zeta’, and as the name depicts, it’s a further developed variation of the renowned Zeta Gundam used by the forces of AEUG in their campaign against the Titans in UC0087, some 6 years before the event Char’s Counterattack took place in the Earth Sphere.
The ‘refinement’ done on ReGZ can be summarized as adding of more firepower to both its MS and ‘Waverider’ mode. ReGZ is also being developed with the consideration of mass producing the MS. As a result, the ‘Waverider’ feature is built as a separate unit from the main body of ReGZ, called BWS (Backpack Weapon System). So, ReGZ is not a fully transformable MS like its predecessor. Instead, it can only dock with the BWS for higher mobility, and will have to eject it to convert to its MS mode. I guess the only benefit for not incorporating the full transformation feature is to allow separate units of the MS and ReGZ to be constructed at the same time. As a result, the BWS seems more like a sophisticated Base Jabber in my opinion.
Even an unmanned BWS can get upset on his own :-D
In Char’s Counterattack, ReGZ was initially Londo Bell ace pilot Amuro Ray’s unit. In a failed mission to stop the drop of asteroid ‘Fifth’ onto Earth, ReGZ saw action against Char’s Sazabi, and managed to shoot off a leg of Gyunei Guss’s Jadg Doga as well. Realizing ReGZ’s abilities was still insufficient against the forces of Neo Zeon, Amuro upgraded to his final MS, Nu Gundam, and ReGZ was passed to the golden-haired squadron leader Kayra Su, and sadly, it became her final MS as well. The story of ReGZ did not end after Kayra Su’s death, as Anaheim Electronic’s engineer Chan Agi would pilot a badly damaged ReGZ close to the end of war and managed to destroy Quess Paraya’s massive MA Alpha Azieru before going down herself.
As for the MG model, it’s the third installment after Sazabi and Nu Gundam. I have to admit that when I bought this model three or four years back, Char’s Counterattack was not on my list of watched Gundam anime yet. The main reason for the purchase was of course the docking feature with the BWS. Also, as with the other two models from Char’s Counterattack, ReGZ’s is taller and bigger than other models of the same scale, so the proportion of the model is another attraction.
The division of colors for the model is also brilliant. The interior of all the thrusters are molded in yellow, so painting can pretty much be omitted. Even if you’re keen on painting your models, the color division of the parts can help you to save a lot of masking tapes.
The joints of the ReGZ are very sturdy, and since this is a 2001 model, screws are still used for its knee joints. Speaking of screws, they seem to be quite nostalgic now, eh? Since it’s very much a standard for Gunpla nowadays not to have any more screws. In terms of details, the legs of ReGZ reveal a nicely detailed inner frame (again, no more surprise given the standard of present MGs). I personally like the details on the back of the shield very much. They made the simple shield looks more sophisticated, but you’ll need to paint the details for it to look nice.
The inner frame of the leg
The specialties of ReGZ include a removable visor, which reveals bits of the interior in its head.
But I wonder what the real purpose of that feature anyway?
Also, the design of the hip grenade launchers, which takes down Alpha Azieru is also quite cool.
Panel lining each of the tiny grenades are not cool though +_+
The backpack mounting the beam saber is another cool stuff, since it features a link mechanism, which allows the beam saber to pop out when you open the caps of the backpack. Like how I’m very excited with how the eye of MG Zaku II Ver. 2.0 will move when its head turns, the backpack of ReGZ is quite a fun thing to play with.
Just make sure you don’t play with it too much and break them instead
And now let’s talk about the BWS: It’s quite big actually, even without the docking of ReGZ. The best thing about it is that the parts meant to cover ReGZ’s shoulders in Waverider mode are molded as single pieces, almost like two nutshells without any ugly parting line. Then again, the BWS has very little use when it’s idle, except sitting on a little display stand, which comes along with the model. The same display stand is also used for the MA mode as well.
Side views of the BWS, I don't see much connection with Zeta Gundam in it at all
Size comparison of the BWS with ReGZ
Speaking of the MA mode, the docking process is relatively simple, considering that it’s not a full transformation as seen in Zeta Gundam. Personally, I think the MA is quite ugly :( as the entire head of ReGZ is revealed within the shield. Also, another downside, and a serious one as well: parts of the BWS covering ReGZ shoulders can easily scratch off the decals during the docking process, and you’ll have to face the same risk when converting it back to the MS mode. Ouch! Be careful of that. For my model, I’ll need Char’s Counterattack’s waterslide decal to salvage ReGZ shoulder decal now *_*;; which is why you won’t see any of the docked BWS in this review. Sorry to disappoint you, I’m just provide image link to Dalong.net to show you his ReGZ instead.
- BWS Pic 1
- BWS Pic 2
- BWS Pic 3
- BWS Pic 4
- BWS Pic 5
- BWS Pic 6
- BWS Pic 7
So, continuing from above, I’m onto the negative review of the kit ^^; Apart from the interior of the shield which needs painting, the twin grenade packs in the forearms of ReGZ also need painting, since they are molded in grey. Without Gundam marker, painting red on grey did make me went crazy for a while back in those days.
And onto the armaments, if you’re an ammo maniac, or if you’re looking for the massive array of weapons as seen in MG Kampfer, then ReGZ is definitely not for you. The hand held weapons for ReGZ include the shield, a beam rifle, a shield, and… no more. Haha!
Can't blame the kit though, these are all the weapons ReGZ used in story
Personally, I’m not sure what’s wrong with the mecha design of ReGZ, but the armaments are really small. The beam saber seems to disappear into ReGZ’s hand when he is holding it. I was complaining that the beam sabers of MG Aile Strike Gundam are small, but the ones for ReGZ are much smaller. And the beam rifle, it’s a real featherweight for a MG!
The beam rifle's so small, it looks much better on my HGUC Rick Dias!
OK, since he’s not very happy anymore, I’ll wrap up with him in a few action poses.
Standing with the 'dai-kor' (big brothers) from Char’s Counterattack.
Interested? MG ReGZ is priced at 4,000 Yen (around RM 140). Get it to complete the MG Char’s Counterattack series.
