MGUniversal Century

RGZ-91 Re-GZ (Char's Counterattack Ver.)

A 2001 kit dragged into the modern era, and it mostly works.

MechaGrade Score

3.7/5

Re-GZ (Char's Counterattack Ver.) · 1/100 · 2024

GradeMG

Scale1/100

Released2024

Runnersn/a

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The verdict

This is the old MG Re-GZ wearing new joints, and the transplant is a success.

I like this kit more than its age on paper suggests, because Bandai actually reworked the parts that mattered (head, forearms, thighs) instead of just repackaging a 20 year old mold with a new box. It is not a clean modern MG start to finish, but the frame underneath now moves like one.

Best for: UC completionists and Re-GZ fans who want the definitive version of this suit without hunting the old 2001 kit or the pricier Re-GZ Custom

The full review

What it is

The Re-GZ was always an odd, likable footnote suit, Amuro's stopgap ride before the Nu Gundam in Char's Counterattack, and this Char's Counterattack Ver. is Bandai's attempt to fix the original 2001 MG's biggest problems. It borrows the reworked joints from the MG Re-GZ Custom, then adds freshly molded parts for the head, upper forearms, and upper thigh panels. The head in particular is a real upgrade, smaller and better proportioned than the old bobblehead look. Building it feels like assembling two kits at once, because a lot of the old Re-GZ Custom hardware and leftover 2001-era parts ride along in the box even though you will not use all of them.

The catch

The box is genuinely oversized for what ends up on your shelf, because it carries extra unused parts left over from both the original MG Re-GZ and the MG Re-GZ Custom. That means more sorting and more double-checking the instructions to confirm which runner piece you actually need, which slows the build down in a way that has nothing to do with difficulty. Color separation still leans on foil stickers for the camera eyes and some water slide decals rather than being fully molded, and a few surfaces (skirt undersides, some frame joints) still read as slightly dated next to a 2024 MG designed from scratch.

Who it's for

Buy this if you already love the Re-GZ design or want the cleanest version of it without tracking down the harder to find Re-GZ Custom or restoring an out of print 2001 kit. The improved head sculpt and Custom-derived joints make it worth the premium over the original release. Skip it if you want your MG budget going toward a suit designed as one clean kit from the start, or if sorting through a box full of leftover unused sprues sounds more annoying than charming. This is a kit for people buying the mobile suit, not people buying the newest engineering on the shelf.

The build story

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

The runners are a mixed bag because you are working from a kit that is carrying its own history. Expect to spend real time cross referencing the instructions against the parts trees to figure out which pieces from the old Re-GZ Custom carryover you actually need versus the ones left unused in the box. Once you are past that sorting, the actual clipping and assembly is straightforward MG-standard work, nothing unusually fiddly or gate-scarred.

The payoff is in the joints. The double jointed elbows and knees, borrowed from the Re-GZ Custom's more modern frame, give the suit a pose range that the 2001 original never had, and the front and side skirt armor lift out of the way instead of blocking leg movement. The smaller, better proportioned head and reworked forearm and thigh panels do a lot of quiet work making the whole silhouette look less dated. Weapon loadout and accessories track with what the anime suit actually carried, nothing invented for the kit.

Lore & trivia

01The Re-GZ was Amuro Ray's mobile suit at the start of Char's Counterattack before he moved up to the Nu Gundam.
02It reaches Waverider mode through a back weapons system with separate wing and fuselage parts that have to be ejected to transform, and cannot be reattached without retrieving them.
03This Char's Counterattack Ver. released in 2024 as a Gundam Side-F exclusive before later becoming available through Premium Bandai, priced at 6,600 yen.
04It reuses the improved joint engineering from the MG Re-GZ Custom rather than being an all-new frame design.