Kit Review

Straight build
+ panel lining

The universal standard for size comparison — the cigarette pack. For a 1/144, this thing has some serious bulk~

Front close-up shot. The front and back look identical, so skipping the rear shot;;

Top of the head

HGUC Zock - What's interesting is that the mono-eye track is made of clear plastic. And finally, the mono-eye itself is a cle

What's interesting is that the mono-eye track is made of clear plastic.
And finally, the mono-eye itself is a clear yellow part!
No stickers needed, no clear painting required. Should've done this from the start.. T_T

HGUC Zock - That clear panel doesn't need any glue — it just slots into the groove on the inside of the body and holds firm.

That clear panel doesn't need any glue — it just slots into the groove on the inside of the body and holds firm.
There's something printed on it that looks like a ruler scale, but it's hard to tell what purpose it actually serves in-universe..?
Probably just thrown in as a detail. ^^

Shoulder pads

Very, very simple legs.

Underside

Detail on the sole and inside of the leg armor

HGUC Zock - Outer armor removed.. Even though it's HGUC, there's a pretty decent inner frame inside the body. Probably felt t

Outer armor removed.. Even though it's HGUC, there's a pretty decent inner frame inside the body.
Probably felt too embarrassing to release something this big with such plain detail, so they threw in a frame...

The detail on the upper body frame has crisp, well-defined molding — looks really nice.

There's also frame detail inside the chest structure.

Pull off the chest structure and it looks like this..
Kind of like a mouth shape. Like it's going "Bleeeh~" ^^;

HGUC Zock - Mono-eye movement along its track. These days, full-range mono-eye articulation is the standard. (1/4)

HGUC Zock - Mono-eye movement along its track. These days, full-range mono-eye articulation is the standard. (2/4)

Mono-eye movement along its track.
These days, full-range mono-eye articulation is the standard.

Th-this is... an articulation check shot OTL
Apart from the arms bending 90 degrees, it barely moves at all..

That's the full range of front-to-back leg movement. Given the design, what can you do..;

HGUC Zock - The shoulders raise about this much. The mid-shoulder cover does slide slightly (you have to look closely) as wel

The shoulders raise about this much.
The mid-shoulder cover does slide slightly (you have to look closely) as well.

The waist moves just a little bit forward and back..

HGUC Zock - At least the claw fingers are fully articulated at every joint — small comfort. Interestingly, they use polycaps

At least the claw fingers are fully articulated at every joint — small comfort.
Interestingly, they use polycaps that are packed solid, like crab meat.

HGUC Zock - The claw fingers move through quite a wide range (1/4)

HGUC Zock - The claw fingers move through quite a wide range (2/4)

The claw fingers move through quite a wide range

Action pose~

HGUC Zock - Ah.. since only the arms and claws move, there aren't really many poses you can pull off;; I guess it's more of a

Ah.. since only the arms and claws move, there aren't really many poses you can pull off;; I guess it's more of a display kit.

Well, this kind of pose does seem to suit it.. ;

HGUC Zock - As usual, you can remove the crotch cover to connect a stand.. and there's also a stand connection point at the b

As usual, you can remove the crotch cover to connect a stand..
There's also a stand connection point at the belly area for recreating navigation mode. (It's on both front and back, of course;)

HGUC Zock - Stand connected.. This is the newly released Action Base 2 for 1/144, but it looks way too small to hold the mass

Stand connected.. This is the newly released Action Base 2 for 1/144, but
it looks way too small to hold the massive Zock ;;;

Navigation mode.. but all it really is, is just lying flat in a neutral pose.

HGUC Zock - For the larger Action Base 1, you need to insert the separate fixing pin included with this kit. Putting it on th

For the larger Action Base 1, you need to insert the separate fixing pin included with this kit.
Putting it on the 1/100 Action Base 1 though.. the stand looks way too big this time.
The size gap between Action Base 1 and 2 is just too extreme — that's the real problem.

A few leftover parts from the mirrored runners..

Comparison with HGUC First. Quite a difference in bulk~

A Zock's true action pose isn't complete without a sacrifice..

Ah~ poor guy~

HGUC Zock - Comparison with the MG Gogg. No matter how much bulk the Zock has, there's no getting around the height differenc

Comparison with the MG Gogg. No matter how much bulk the Zock has,
there's no getting around the height difference that comes with scale.

HGUC Zock - Comparison with the Dio — a must when talking about HGUC bulk! In terms of sheer body size, the Zock wins hands d

Comparison with the Dio — a must when talking about HGUC bulk!
In terms of sheer body size, the Zock wins hands down.

The summer seafood trio is finally complete!
These three were actually released together as a set in SD form.

HGUC seafood collection, assembled!

If the mono-eye looks like a dual-eye to you, that's just your imagination..? ^^;

Straight build

Every summer without fail there's a seafood party.. but this summer brings an unexpected treat! It's the arrival of the HGUC Zock. Just looking at its design, it's such an old-school, brutish style that getting a re-release as a modern high-quality kit seemed pretty unlikely — but I guess enough time has passed that the old-school style itself has become a fresh kind of "character" all its own.

First of all, the Zock is canonically tall and bulky, so even at 1/144 it's a weighty, voluminous kit. The parts breakdown is surprisingly simple yet charming, making the build a lot of fun. In particular, since the front and back are canonically identical, the runners are split into front and back halves — meaning you get two copies of the same parts. It's so simple you almost wonder if Bandai was just phoning it in.

In the end, the only way to tell front from back is whether the mono-eye is facing forward or backward — but even that doesn't help, since you can move it from front to back or back to front freely. A mono-eye, as the name implies, is just one eye, so wherever the eye is pointing is the front — and you can argue that all you want. ^^; Anyway, because of the repeated runners, this kit comes with two mono-eye parts. And they're clear yellow parts at that — something you rarely see in HGUC. (Thanks, Bandai! Should've done this ages ago..)

So you can actually install both eyes and build it as a dual-eye configuration with eyes on both front and back. (Not canon, just for fun, of course..) I personally couldn't bring myself to throw away that extra clear eye, so I built mine as a dual-eye setup. ^^ Either way, the mono-eye being a clear part and being able to move across its full track range is genuinely impressive compared to the old vintage kit days.

The biggest highlight of the HGUC Zock has to be the upper body frame. Lately inner frames have been quietly showing up even in HGUC kits, and this one gets an inner frame with detail that's practically on par with MG level. The reason is probably that since it's such a big kit with a plain exterior, it would've been a bit embarrassing to just include the outer shell alone — so they went ahead and built out the frame too. It's only the upper body, but it's a frame I'm really happy with. ^^

As you can probably tell just by looking at it.. the biggest weakness of the HGUC Zock is its articulation. Below the waist, you can pretty much assume nothing moves. The arms only manage 90 degrees, but at least the yellow claw fingers are articulated at every joint — small mercies. Joint strength is generally at an appropriate level throughout, so nothing feels loose.

Overall conclusion.. it's a really unique and fun HGUC kit. Aside from the limited range of motion that comes with the design, it's a clean, satisfying, high-quality build with nothing to complain about. Above all, it's a kit that really appeals through just how genuinely "different" it is. It's such an old-school design, yet reborn as a modern kit — the simple charm really shines through. No matter who builds it, there's something strangely satisfying about it.

With the release of this Zock, it's also worth noting that every MS that appeared in the One Year War anime is now available in HGUC — which is a pretty significant milestone in its own right. And if Acguy and Zock can get kits, there's no reason the likes of the Zakrello, Agguguy, or Zogok couldn't get their own releases someday.

Anyway, if you're feeling tired of ordinary MS kits and need something different, you absolutely have to build this Zock....^^

HGUC Zock | 2007. 7 | ¥2,700

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.