MGUniversal Century

RX-121-1 Gundam TR-1 [Hazel Custom]

A Mk-II frame wearing a stranger, better silhouette, with a sub arm gimmick that steals the show.

MechaGrade Score

3.9/5

Gundam TR-1 [Hazel Custom] · 1/100 · 2017

GradeMG

Scale1/100

Released2017

Runnersn/a

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The verdict

This is a Mk-II in a trench coat, and I mean that as a compliment.

Bandai reused the MG RX-178 Mk-II inner frame for this kit, so the bones are proven and the fit is confident, but the new Hazel Custom armor and the fold out sub arm unit give it a personality the Mk-II never had. It is not the most complex MG on my shelf, but it is one of the more inventive ones for what it does with a recycled skeleton.

Best for: UC frame nerds and Zeta-era completionists who want a Mk-II build with a genuinely new trick up its sleeve

The full review

What it is

Underneath the new armor this is the MG Mk-II chassis, so the assembly feels immediately familiar if you have built that kit or its Zeta-era siblings. What sets it apart is the sub arm unit tucked into the extra skirt armor: a folded secondary limb that swings out and can grip a beam rifle or beam saber on its own, so the Hazel can stay armed even with both main arms busy or posed elsewhere. Snapping that mechanism open for the first time was the moment this kit won me over. It turns a fairly standard silhouette into something that reads as genuinely different on a shelf full of Mk-II variants.

The catch

Because the frame is a straight reuse of the RX-178 Mk-II, there is nothing new happening in the joints themselves, and if you already own a Mk-II or a Zeta Gundam MG the core building experience will feel repetitive rather than fresh. The kit leans on a water slide decal sheet for a lot of its Titans markings rather than stickers or dry transfers, which looks great once applied but adds a slower, fussier step that some builders skip or half-do. The sub arm unit, while the highlight, is also the part most likely to feel loose or need extra care at the joint if you pose it aggressively, since it is thinner than the main limbs it is designed to substitute for.

Who it's for

If you are chasing the Universal Century TR-1 project or just like Titans-era prototype designs, this is a satisfying pick up, and the sub arm gimmick alone makes it worth building even if you already have a Mk-II on the shelf. If you are newer to MG kits and want your first build to feel fresh from the frame up, this is not that kit, since the engineering underneath is a straight carryover rather than anything purpose built. Builders who enjoy decal work will get the most polish out of it; if you hate water slides, budget extra patience or be ready to live with a plainer finish.

The build story

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

Runner gates on the Mk-II derived frame parts are where you would expect from that mold, clean and well placed, and since the frame is a known quantity the assembly moves quickly if you have built any of its siblings before. The new Hazel Custom armor pieces clip on over that frame without any surprises, and the overall part fit is snug in the way MG kits from this era generally are.

The standout engineering is entirely in the extras: the sub arm unit folded into the skirt armor, and the multi purpose weapon latch built into the center skirt that lets the Hazel mount rifles, sabers, or other option parts in more than one spot. Articulation inherits everything good about the Mk-II frame, wide shoulder and hip movement, working knees and ankles, so poses hold well even with the sub arm extended and carrying a weapon.

Lore & trivia

01The RX-121-1 Gundam TR-1 [Hazel Custom] is the upgraded form of the original RX-121 Hazel, introduced in the UC side story Advance of Zeta: The Flag of Titans.
02The MG 1/100 kit released in September 2017 at 4,500 yen and reused the MG RX-178 Gundam Mk-II frame system rather than tooling an entirely new inner frame.
03The kit's sub arm unit stores folded inside the extra skirt armor and can extend to hold a beam weapon, letting the Hazel Custom stay armed even when its main arms are occupied.
04A dedicated water slide decal set is included specifically to reproduce the Titans faction markings on the finished kit.