HGBuild Divers

RX-零 RX-Zeromaru

A ninja SD Gunpla with a bird sidekick that turns into a real-proportion suit, more gimmick than grade.

MechaGrade Score

3.1/5

RX-零 RX-Zeromaru · 1/144 · 2018

GradeHG

Scale1/144

Released2018

Runnersn/a

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The verdict

This kit is a genuinely clever toy trapped in an HG price tag.

The SD-to-real-proportion conversion using the Armed Armor Hattori bird unit is a great idea on paper, and it does work, but the execution leaves the finished suit top heavy and the weapon combo loose. I like what Bandai was going for here more than I like the final result sitting on the shelf.

Best for: Build Divers fans and gimmick collectors who want the SD-to-real transformation, not builders chasing HG-level finish for the price

The full review

What it is

RX-Zeromaru is Ayame's kunoichi-themed SD Gunpla from Gundam Build Divers, built around the SD Gundam Cross Silhouette frame and paired with Armed Armor Hattori, a small robotic eagle that clips onto the SD body to stretch it into taller, more realistic real mode proportions. Building it is genuinely fun in the early stages, the white plastic is soft and easy to clean up, and swapping between the chibi ninja and the real-mode form feels like getting two kits in one box. The katana, rifle, dual bazookas, and shield give you a real pile of accessories to pose with.

The catch

The metallic green armor plastic is stiff, closer to clear runner plastic than the soft white PS, and it fights back during gate cleanup. Color separation is thin for what an HG-priced kit should deliver, so a lot of the trim relies on stickers, including wraparound decals that need patience to seat cleanly and can start peeling with handling. The rifle-plus-bazooka combo weapon locks together loosely rather than clicking home, and the SD head stowed on the back in real mode makes the whole figure top heavy and less stable in dynamic poses.

Who it's for

Grab this if you are following the Build Divers story and want Ayame's signature kit, or if the two-mode transformation gimmick itself is the draw for you, because that part genuinely delivers. Skip it if you are shopping by price point and expecting standard HG color separation and sturdiness, since the sticker reliance and stiff green parts mean you are paying HG money for SD-level finishing. Builders comfortable doing some panel lining or light paint work will get the most out of it.

The build story

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

Assembly starts easy since most of the SD body runners are that soft, forgiving white PS that Bandai uses across a lot of their SD lines, nubs shave off clean and mold lines are light. The metallic green armor pieces are the outlier, they feel almost as stiff as clear runner plastic and take more care with your nippers to avoid stress marks. The wraparound stickers for the trim detailing take real patience to align, and once applied they are not the most durable if you handle the kit a lot.

The SD-to-real conversion is the reason to own this kit. Clipping the Armed Armor Hattori bird unit onto the compact SD frame stretches the proportions into something closer to a normal-scale Gunpla silhouette, and in that mode you get a proper 360 degree waist rotation plus an added knee joint that the base SD body does not have. It is a smart use of a small parts swap to functionally give you a second kit. The accessory loadout backs it up well, with a katana, flintlock-style rifle, dual bazookas that dock into that rifle, a shield, and multiple hand parts for posing, even if the rifle-bazooka union itself does not lock together with much confidence.

Lore & trivia

01RX-Zeromaru is piloted by Ayame, the kunoichi-styled diver in Gundam Build Divers who is later revealed to be high schooler Aya Fujisawa.
02The kit uses Bandai's SD Gundam Cross Silhouette frame, the same building block system introduced for other SD Build Divers releases.
03Armed Armor Hattori, the eagle-shaped support unit, is both a stand-alone flying drone and the transformation piece that pushes RX-Zeromaru from SD proportions into its taller real mode.
04An upgraded version of this kit, Zeromaru Shinkikessho, later appeared with a full white recolor and metal-look joint parts representing Ayame's in-story upgrade.