Kit Review

Straight build
+ panel lining

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

Upper body close-up

HGUC Rick Dom II ~ Colony Color - The head. The combination of stickers and clear parts gives it a surprisingly nice sense of

The head. The combination of stickers and clear parts gives it a surprisingly nice sense of depth for a 1/144 scale.

Rear view and backpack.

Arms

Leg section

Vernier details on the inside of the skirt/armor

Interestingly, only the index finger is articulated.

Articulation. An honest 90 degrees.

Action poses~

HGUC Rick Dom II ~ Colony Color - It's a bit of a struggle to have the opposite hand (the one not holding the machine gun) gr

It's a bit of a struggle to have the opposite hand (the one not holding the machine gun) grip the magazine.

HGUC Rick Dom II ~ Colony Color - So even the manual suggests just supporting the machine gun from underneath rather than act

So even the manual suggests just supporting the machine gun from underneath rather than actually gripping the magazine..

Holding a Sturm Faust~

Sturm Faust fun (a.k.a. club gymnastics)

Bazooka action

Heat saber action

HGUC Rick Dom II ~ Colony Color - This kit is a color variant of the purple Rick Dom II released in 2004, with only the molde

This kit is a color variant of the purple Rick Dom II released in 2004, with only the molded color changed.

HGUC Rick Dom II ~ Colony Color - Together with the HGUC Kämpfer released at the same time. It was a decent enough kit even w

Together with the HGUC Kämpfer released at the same time.
It was a decent enough kit even with a 4-year gap, but the Kämpfer's quality is just so good that it ends up looking a bit outclassed by comparison..

The HGUC Rick Dom II (Zwei) Colony Color version, released alongside the HGUC Kämpfer — the pinnacle of 1/144 quality. This kit is simply a color variant of the Rick Dom II kit that was already released back in 2004, with only the molded color changed.

Back when it was originally released in 2004, the HGUC Dom hadn't even come out yet, and I remember it being a pretty solid kit for its time. Sturdy joints, articulation that's not bad at all for its size, the quirky index finger movement, great backpack presence, and so on.. Of course, recent HGUC kits have been on a steep upward quality curve that's starting to rival MG, so compared to today's releases it does feel a little lacking.

In the end, what changed is the color, and I think the green molded color came out quite clean and nice. If this goes wrong, you can end up with something that looks like murky wastewater, but being a new release — well, sort of new — the molded color at least looks fresh and crisp.

But ultimately there's nothing new here beyond the changed molded color, and it's a bit odd why they'd suddenly put out such a half-hearted color variant.. It doesn't seem like a kit anyone was really waiting for.. I can't help but wonder.. could this have been a scheme to make the HGUC Kämpfer look even better by comparison? (lol)

My guess is that with the release of the HGUC Kämpfer, all the old 0080 Gunpla finally got their HGUC updates, so this was brought along as a supporting act to round out the 0080 series lineup. Well, setting that aside, the kit itself is a perfectly decent build. If you've never built the original Rick Dom II, it's worth recommending :-)

* Due to a mis-assembly of the leg parts, the photos have been updated with retaken shots from 2022.

HGUC Rick Dom II ~ Colony Color | 2008. 8 | ¥1,500

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.