HGUniversal Century

Emergency Escape Pod [Primrose]

An expansion box that turns one Hazel kit into five different machines.

MechaGrade Score

3.7/5

Emergency Escape Pod [Primrose] · 1/144 · 2019

GradeHG

Scale1/144

Released2019

Runnersn/a

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The verdict

I love this kit for what it is honest about being, an add on, not a standalone mobile suit.

Buy it expecting a parts explosion for your existing HG TR-1 Hazel Custom and you will have a great time. Buy it expecting a complete robot in the box and you will be annoyed. Once I understood the assignment, the build itself was genuinely satisfying and the kitbash options are the real draw.

Best for: Hazel Custom owners who already have the base kit and want to build Owsla, Hrududu combos, or the escape pod configuration

The full review

What it is

This is the Primrose expansion set for the HG Gundam TR-1 Hazel Custom, built around the idea that the Hazel's main body can convert into an autonomous escape pod for the pilot. Bandai remolded the shape with completely new tooling rather than just reusing Hazel Custom runners, and the molded plastic actually carries the color scheme instead of leaning on the Hazel's existing backpack alone. Snapping this together and then swapping it onto my Hazel to build Owsla felt like getting a second kit's worth of design for one box. The engineering behind the pod conversion, cockpit block tilting forward while the side sections lift out, is clever enough that I kept fiddling with it after the build was done.

The catch

This box does not include the HG Gundam TR-1 Hazel Custom itself, you need that kit already or this is useless to you, and P-Bandai exclusives run pricier than a retail HG for what amounts to an accessory set. The manual lists five kitbash configurations but getting the best ones, like the high performance variant with G-Parts Hrududu, means buying a second Primrose or hunting down another separate kit. Stickers still show up for some of the finer color separation even with the new molded colors doing most of the work, which feels like a mismatch for a premium priced release.

Who it's for

If you already own or plan to own the HG Hazel Custom and you like the idea of one plastic investment paying off five different silhouettes, this is a smart buy and honestly kind of a steal on value once you count the display options. If you were hoping for a self contained kit you can build straight out of the box with no prerequisites, skip it, there is nothing here for you without the Hazel already on your shelf. Advance of Zeta completionists and TR-1 kitbashers are the exact audience Bandai built this for.

The build story

What the build is actually like, and the engineering worth knowing about.

The build itself is short and clean since this is an expansion rather than a full mobile suit, gate placement is tidy on the new tooling and the parts fit onto the existing Hazel frame without fighting you. Nothing here felt fiddly the way small RG inner frame parts can, it is closer to a satisfying accessory build than a marathon.

The standout engineering is the pod transformation itself, the cockpit block swings forward and the side sections lift horizontally to reshape the Hazel's torso into a standalone escape pod, and that hinge work holds its position well. Combined with the Hrududu G-Parts or a second Primrose, you get access to the Owsla and next generation mass production configurations, which is where the part count really earns its price for anyone chasing the full kitbash set.

Lore & trivia

01In-universe, the Primrose was developed by the Confeito Technical Headquarters for the Gundam TR-1 Hazel after Hazel Unit 1 was destroyed fighting Zeon remnants in Advance of Zeta: The Flag of Titans.
02Unlike standard mobile suit escape pods of its era, the Primrose can navigate autonomously and carries the Hazel's main thrusters, giving it mobility closer to a space fighter than a typical pod.
03The kit's manual documents five kitbash configurations, including Gundam TR-1 [Hazel Owsla], reached by combining the Primrose with the HG Hazel Custom and other compatible parts.