Kit Review

Straight build + panel lining + wet decals

Size comparison with a cigarette pack.

MG Rick Dom (Renewal) - Detail shots (1/4)

MG Rick Dom (Renewal) - Detail shots (2/4)

Detail shots

Outer armor removed

MG Rick Dom (Renewal) - Inner frame shots. (1/2)

MG Rick Dom (Renewal) - Inner frame shots. (2/2)

Internal frame.

MG Rick Dom (Renewal) - The inner frame is identical to the MG Dom Renewal Version. (1/4)

MG Rick Dom (Renewal) - The inner frame is identical to the MG Dom Renewal Version. (2/4)

The inner frame is identical to the MG Dom Renewal Version.

MG Rick Dom (Renewal) - Weapons loadout. Compared to the MG Dom Renewal Version, the Raketen Bazooka and machine gun have bee

Weapons loadout.
Compared to the MG Dom Renewal Version, the Raketen Bazooka and machine gun have been replaced with a beam bazooka.

The Rick Dom's signature beam bazooka.
The base sculpt is identical to the 1999 MG Rick Dom Ver.1.

That said, a minor mold revision was made — only the grip section has been changed.

The cockpit hatch open / mono-eye articulation gimmick is also the same as before.

MG Rick Dom (Renewal) - To mount it on an Action Base, you'll need to use the fork-type mounting pin, and for that you'll nee

To mount it on an Action Base, you'll need to use the fork-type mounting pin,
and for that you'll need to pull the hip joint pin out slightly to create some clearance.

MG Rick Dom (Renewal) - To fix the severely stiff shoulders (left) and hip joints (right), I'd strongly recommend sanding dow

To fix the severely stiff shoulders (left) and hip joints (right),
I'd strongly recommend sanding down the pins shown above or shaving them lightly with a knife before assembly.
The stiffness is so bad that there have been plenty of cases where the joint pins snapped, so please be extra careful.

Leftover parts

MG Rick Dom (Renewal) - The articulation characteristics are also identical to the MG Dom Renewal Version. (1/4)

MG Rick Dom (Renewal) - The articulation characteristics are also identical to the MG Dom Renewal Version. (2/4)

The articulation characteristics are also identical to the MG Dom Renewal Version.

MG Rick Dom (Renewal) - Beam bazooka firing pose on the ground. (1/3)

Beam bazooka firing pose on the ground.

MG Rick Dom (Renewal) - Beam bazooka firing pose on the Action Base. (1/3)

Beam bazooka firing pose on the Action Base.

MG Rick Dom (Renewal) - Giant Bazooka action pose. (1/3)

Giant Bazooka action pose.

Heat Saber action pose.

MG Rick Dom (Renewal) - Together with the MG Dom Renewal Version released a month earlier. The molded color is slightly darke

Together with the MG Dom Renewal Version released a month earlier. The molded color is slightly darker,
but viewed from the front, the only visible difference is the weapons.

From the back, the backpack verniers are larger, and the rear skirt is longer and more pointed.

The sole verniers have a different shape too,
though it's the same sculpt as the MG Rick Dom 1.0.

MG Rick Dom (Renewal) - Together with the MG Rick Dom v1.0 released in 1999. Again, aside from the arms, it's hard to tell th

Together with the MG Rick Dom v1.0 released in 1999.
Again, aside from the arms, it's hard to tell them apart at a glance.

Straight build

Following the MG Dom, the Rick Dom has also been renewed after 23 years. As expected, it's based on the MG Dom Renewal Version with Rick Dom-specific parts added, and most of those parts are reused from the MG Rick Dom v1.0 released back in 1999. Only the beam bazooka grip and the upper back parts received minor mold revisions.

So all the structural characteristics are identical to the MG Dom Renewal Version, including the excessively stiff joint strength. As shown in the photos above, sanding or trimming the shoulder and hip joint pins before fitting them in makes for much smoother articulation. More than just the inconvenience of stiff joints, there have been many reported cases of joint pins snapping because of it — so it's definitely something you'll want to pay attention to.

The body's molded color is slightly darker compared to the MG Dom Renewal Version, and as befitting a unit modified for space use, the verniers have been changed. The backpack verniers are larger, which also made the upper back parts bigger, the rear skirt is more pointed, and the sole vernier sculpt has been changed as well. Aside from the upper backpack parts, the Rick Dom-specific parts are straight reuses from the 1.0, and the beam bazooka is likewise the same 1.0 sculpt — though cleverly, only the grip section has been mold-revised to include a poseable locking pin. I was hoping the Rick Dom's signature beam bazooka would at least get a completely new mold, so that's a bit of a letdown.

Since this is a renewal done in the same fashion as the MG Dom, there isn't a whole lot of new ground to cover. It feels more like "a kit that needed to exist has finally arrived." It's still fair to say it falls a bit short for a 23-year upgrade, but if you take the time to work on those stiff joints, it's actually a pretty nice kit. :-)

MG MS-09 R Rick Dom (Renewal)
Category	Rating	Analysis
Seam Lines	★★★★★	Even the shoulder armor seam lines have been improved. Everything is perfect except the weapons.
Molding Color / Color Separation	★★★★★	Color separation isn't much different from v1.0 — but it was already clean to begin with.
Proportions	★★★★★	Same as the excellent v1.0. Hard to tell them apart visually.
Articulation	★★★★★	Best possible articulation given the body shape. Improved shoulders and hip joints.
Joint Strength	★★★★☆	Points docked for joints that are so tight they're actually uncomfortable to work with.
Internal Frame	★★★★☆	With the arm frame added, it's now nearly a full-body frame.
Detail	★★★★★	Same level as v1.0. Not super detailed, but clean and Dom-like.
Weapons / Accessories	★★★★★☆	The basic loadout is the same, but grip-assist gimmicks have been added.
Parts Count / Price	★★★★★	334 parts total. Parts per ¥1,000: 66.8. Feels like good value for the volume.
Uniqueness	★★★★★	Just like the MG Dom — feels lacking for a 23-year upgrade.
Dalong's Point : 99 pts.

* The scoring system used only for MG has been carried over from First 1.0 twenty years ago,
so applying it uniformly even to the latest kits — whose quality has leveled up across the board — is honestly a bit ambiguous.
Since it's just my personal take and can't clearly capture the differences in kit quality over the years,
please don't read too much into it and just use it as a loose reference.
(For kits scoring above 100, take it to mean the quality is much better than kits of the past.)

MG Rick Dom (Renewal) | 2022.3 | ¥5,000

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.