HGUniversal Century

RX-78(G)E Gundam EX (Requiem for Vengeance)

A ground-pounding federation demon that builds nothing like a normal RX-78.

MechaGrade Score

3.8/5

(G)E Gundam EX (Requiem for Vengeance) · 1/144 · 2024

GradeHG

Scale1/144

Released2024

Runnersn/a

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The verdict

I like this kit a lot more than I expected to going in.

The Gundam EX ditches the clean primary-color RX-78-2 look for a scarred, monochromatic ground unit, and Bandai backed that design shift with real hardware, a soft-material feed belt for the shoulder gatling and three separate beam saber grips built into the backpack so you can actually recreate the draw. It is not a flawless kit, the backpack hardware is looser than I want it to be, but the detail-per-dollar here is some of the best I have seen in a recent HG.

Best for: Requiem for Vengeance fans and HG builders who want unusual gimmicks (feed belt, multi-saber backpack) without an MG price tag

The full review

What it is

This is the Earth Federation's answer to a Zeon-heavy European front, a ground-use RX-78 variant built for recon and deep-strike work rather than open combat, and the kit leans hard into that identity. Instead of the familiar red-blue-yellow RX-78-2 palette you get a matte, weathered monochrome scheme with visible panel breaks and a genuinely different silhouette, wider shoulders, a boxier torso, gatling-fed weaponry instead of a beam rifle alone. Snapping it together felt less like assembling a hero robot and more like building a piece of ground armor, and I mean that as a compliment. The V-fin flag pieces are still fussy in the usual HG way, but everything around them surprised me.

The catch

The backpack is where the kit shows its price point. The three beam saber grips and the shoulder-mounted minigun both sit a little loose on their mounting points, and the rubberized ammo feed belt for the gatling can be genuinely fiddly to get to hold its shape and stay seated during posing. Nothing falls apart, but you will find yourself re-seating those backpack pieces more than once during a photo session. Like most HG kits it also leans on the usual small nub cleanup and a couple of sticker-reliant accents rather than molded color throughout, so do not expect MG-level color separation out of the box.

Who it's for

Grab this one if you watched Requiem for Vengeance and want the Gundam EX on your shelf, or if you are an HG builder who wants a kit that tries something different with gimmicks instead of just being another RX-78 repaint. The feed-belt gatling and the multi-saber backpack are legitimately fun engineering for the grade and the price. If backpack rigidity is a dealbreaker for you, or you only want kits with rock-solid accessory mounts, temper your expectations on that one point, everything else about the build holds up fine.

The build story

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

The build moves at a brisk HG pace with the usual nub cleanup, and the trickiest moment is still the V-fin flag pieces, a familiar HG headache rather than anything new. Panel breaks on the torso and legs are cut cleanly enough that the weathered, ground-unit look reads well straight off the runners before you even reach for a panel liner. Fit across the main frame is solid, it is specifically the backpack hardware where things loosen up.

Where this kit earns its keep is the gimmick set. The shoulder-mounted gatling uses a soft, semi-flexible ammo belt so the joint keeps moving instead of freezing up like a rigid feed would, and the backpack carries three individual beam saber grips designed so you can pose the actual draw rather than just plugging a saber into a static hardpoint. Add the interchangeable beam rifle hand and shield and you get an accessory loadout that punches well above typical HG expectations, even with the backpack looseness working against it.

Lore & trivia

01The RX-78(G)E Gundam EX debuted in Mobile Suit Gundam: Requiem for Vengeance, a six-episode Netflix ONA set during the closing stages of the One Year War on the European front.
02Requiem for Vengeance was produced by Bandai Namco Filmworks and animated by Safehouse, and it was the first Gundam television production animated entirely in Unreal Engine 5.
03In the show, the Gundam EX is piloted by an unnamed Newtype boy serving in the Earth Federation forces, and it is built specifically for maneuverability and extended operating time in reconnaissance and deep-strike missions rather than frontline combat.
04The suit's design breaks from the classic RX-78-2 tricolor scheme in favor of a ground-use monochromatic finish, reflecting its role as a stealth-leaning recon and disruption unit rather than a standard combat Gundam.