LMHGNeon Genesis Evangelion

Evangelion EVA-03 Production Model

The clean, unpossessed EVA-03 base kit that its own Bardiel variant tells you the most about.

MechaGrade Score

2.9/5

EVA-03 · non-scale · 1996

GradeLMHG

Scalenon-scale

Released1996

Runnersn/a

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The verdict

This is the plain, TV-accurate EVA-03 before it gets taken over by an Angel, and it is honestly the harder of the two EVA-03 kits to write about because HLJ never wrote it a real product description.

What I can confirm comes mostly from cross-referencing the Bardiel variant's own listing, which explains that the standard EVA-03 uses posable arm parts with soft-rubber-encased elbows, the same feature the rest of the LM-HG Eva line shares, plus figures of Touji and Kaoru. It is a solid, unremarkable entry in the line rather than a standout.

Best for: Evangelion collectors filling out the full LM-HG Eva unit roster who want the plain, unpossessed EVA-03

The full review

What it is

This is Bandai's original 1996 LM-HG kit for EVA-03 in its standard, unpossessed state, built with the same posable rubber-encased elbow arms used across the early LM-HG Eva line and finished with figures of Touji Suzuhara and Kaoru Nagisa, confirmed by cross-reference against the kit's own Bardiel variant listing. The box contents pair a waterslide decal sheet with a sticker sheet for the finer markings, and the whole thing snaps together with no cement needed.

The catch

Retailer documentation on this specific release is thinner than on some of its LM-HG siblings, neither of my two sources carries a real product blurb for it, so I am leaning on box-content facts and the cross-reference from the Bardiel variant rather than a dedicated writeup. Like the rest of the line it depends on stickers and waterslide decals for some of its markings and offers 1996-era articulation, nothing close to a modern inner frame.

Who it's for

If you are building out the complete roster of TV-series Eva units and want EVA-03 in its clean, pre-possession state to sit alongside the Bardiel variant, this is the correct pickup. If you only want one EVA-03 on the shelf and the possession storyline appeals to you, the Bardiel version is the more specific and better-documented choice.

The build story

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

It follows the standard LM-HG assembly pattern: snap-together body panels, no cement, with the posable rubber-encased elbow arms as the one real engineering feature carried over from the rest of the early line. Decal work covers both a waterslide sheet and a sticker sheet, which takes longer than the sticker-only variants elsewhere in the range.

Beyond the shared arm engineering there is not much documented that sets this kit apart mechanically from its LM-HG siblings; its real distinguishing value is being the clean, pre-possession EVA-03 that its own Bardiel variant is built to contrast against.

Lore & trivia

01EVA-03 is the unit piloted by Touji Suzuhara in the TV series, before it is taken over by the Angel Bardiel in episode 18.
02The kit shares its posable rubber-encased elbow-arm engineering with the rest of Bandai's early LM-HG Eva releases.
03Bandai later reused this same EVA-03 body for the Bardiel variant kit, swapping in bendable PVC arms and different pilot figures.