Kit Review

Straight build + Panel lining + Seals

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

Body

Head

Back section

RG Justice Gundam - Arms and weapons (1/3)

Arms and weapons

Legs

Rear view with backpack removed

Outer armor removal shot

RG Justice Gundam - Inner frame shots (1/2)

RG Justice Gundam - Inner frame shots (2/2)

Internal frame

RG Justice Gundam - Frame detail shots (1/6)

RG Justice Gundam - Frame detail shots (2/6)

RG Justice Gundam - Frame detail shots (3/6)

RG Justice Gundam - Frame detail shots (4/6)

Frame detail shots

Articulation in frame state

The hip joint articulation is naturally the same as the RG Freedom Gundam.

RG Justice Gundam - Natural kneeling pose (1/4)

RG Justice Gundam - Natural kneeling pose (2/4)

Natural kneeling pose

Skirt interior detail

The cockpit hatch opens slightly too.

The flight unit known as Fatum-00.

The color separation is an art form.

The wing position can be slid and also spread out to the sides.

Both wings can be spread apart via a sliding mechanism.

When fully spread, the wings are quite large.

RG Justice Gundam - Partial detail shots with wings fully spread (1/3)

Partial detail shots with wings fully spread

The full set of standard weapons is included.

Despite the small scale, the purple section in the middle is separately color-separated.

A small but solidly detailed shield

The beam boomerangs plugged into the shoulders have a gimmick where the handle section unfolds.

You can also connect the tips of the two beam sabers together.

RG Justice Gundam - The beam sabers can be stored in the top of the side skirts — you open the cover, insert the pin in the m

The beam sabers can be stored in the top of the side skirts,
you open the cover, insert the pin in the middle of the beam saber into the inside, then close it.
Thanks to this, once inserted, the beam sabers are cleverly designed so they won't easily fall out.

A total of 6 hands are included.

A surprisingly detailed 1/144 scale Athrun figure

The articulation is great, as expected.

Sliding armor gimmick on the thighs and forearms

The front shin armor also slides in sync with the ankle movement.

The shoulder's up/down and forward/backward range of motion is also quite wide.

Various articulation gimmicks of the Fatum-00

The mounting pin that connects to the body also moves in various angles.

All three flaps attached above and below the nozzles at the rear of the Fatum-00 can each move slightly.

RG Justice Gundam - Beam rifle firing pose on Action Base 2 (1/5)

RG Justice Gundam - Beam rifle firing pose on Action Base 2 (2/5)

RG Justice Gundam - Beam rifle firing pose on Action Base 2 (3/5)

Beam rifle firing pose on Action Base 2

A separate stand joint can be connected underneath the Fatum-00..

RG Justice Gundam - On top of that, you can rotate the body connection gimmick 90 degrees upright and add a separate support

On top of that, you can rotate the body connection gimmick 90 degrees upright and add a separate support gimmick underneath.

And there's also a separately included odd-looking stand...

It's used to support the heavy Fatum-00 from the ground.

RG Justice Gundam - Action poses taken from the ground with the Fatum-00 rotated 90 degrees upright (1/5)

RG Justice Gundam - Action poses taken from the ground with the Fatum-00 rotated 90 degrees upright (2/5)

RG Justice Gundam - Action poses taken from the ground with the Fatum-00 rotated 90 degrees upright (3/5)

Action pose taken from ground level with Fatum-00 stood upright at 90 degrees

RG Justice Gundam - Aerial flight + beam saber action pose with Action Base 2 connected to Fatum-00 (1/4)

RG Justice Gundam - Aerial flight + beam saber action pose with Action Base 2 connected to Fatum-00 (2/4)

Aerial flight + beam saber action pose with Action Base 2 connected to Fatum-00

RG Justice Gundam - Aerial shooting pose (1/5)

RG Justice Gundam - Aerial shooting pose (2/5)

RG Justice Gundam - Aerial shooting pose (3/5)

RG Justice Gundam - Aerial shooting pose (4/5)

RG Justice Gundam - Aerial shooting pose (5/5)

Aerial firing pose

RG Justice Gundam - You can fold out the footrest on the top of Fatum-00 and plug the fixing pin into the hole on the sole of

Fold out the footrest on the top of Fatum-00,
and plug the fixing pin into the hole on the sole of the foot.

RG Justice Gundam - Thanks to this supplementary gimmick, the riding-on-top pose can be recreated nice and securely. (1/4)

RG Justice Gundam - Thanks to this supplementary gimmick, the riding-on-top pose can be recreated nice and securely. (2/4)

Thanks to this supplementary gimmick, the riding-on-top pose can be recreated nice and securely.

RG Justice Gundam - Alongside the HG Justice Gundam. The quality gap is massive.. (1/2)

RG Justice Gundam - Alongside the HG Justice Gundam. The quality gap is massive.. (2/2)

Together with the HG Justice Gundam.
The quality gap is massive..

Alongside the RG Aile Strike / Freedom Gundam.

Straight build

The ninth RG release is Justice Gundam from the SEED series. Infinite Justice did come out as an MG, but this is the first time Justice Gundam itself has appeared in a high-quality lineup like this.

First off, the RG's signature multi-color injection frame runner is reused straight from the RG Freedom — making this the first new RG kit to reuse a frame that isn't just a color variation like the Zaku or Marasai. Honestly, back in the early RG days I expected the multi-color injection runners to be shared to some degree, given how expensive they are to develop and produce, so it was actually pretty surprising each time a new kit came with a brand-new frame. I suppose since this isn't exactly a top-tier kit, it makes sense that Bandai wouldn't want to pour heavy development costs into SEED suits outside of the fan favorites — Strike and Freedom.

Anyway, it does carry the slightly awkward title of being the first new RG to reuse a frame, but since the Freedom's frame fits the Justice so well, there are no structural issues whatsoever. ^^; It still delivers excellent gimmicks, articulation, and joint strength, and it's great that the articulation doesn't drop off much even with the armor on.

That said, as you might guess from the frame reuse, this kit does give off a vibe that Bandai was trying to keep development costs in check overall. Compared to some of the heavy-hitter RG kits that came before it, the detail feels a little plain across the board. Normally when you look at an RG runner you go "wow~", but with the RG Justice I found myself going "hmm... well, hmm..." as I looked it over. Aside from a few spots, it doesn't quite have that same craftsman-level attention to detail and molding as its predecessors. But it's still an RG at the end of the day, and thanks to the incredibly precise parts breakdown and color separation that surpasses even MG kits, the finished result doesn't actually feel inferior to other RGs at all.

There's also a sense that things have been quietly simplified, and the build feels a little easier than usual. It's hard to put my finger on it just looking at the parts, but compared to other RGs there's less stress from tiny fiddly bits, and the whole process just feels more manageable — which is actually a plus in its own way.

In terms of gimmicks and structure, it faithfully recreates all the design specs just as you'd expect from an RG. The standout is the massive flight unit on its back, the Fatum-00, which is absolutely superb in quality. The color separation is excellent, and the folding/unfolding wing gimmick along with the extending inner mechanism are just stunning to see reproduced at 1/144 scale. On top of that, a lot of thought has gone into keeping the Fatum-00 locked in place — various supplementary parts let you hold it steady in the horizontal position, and it connects solidly to a display stand as well.

One common issue with kits like Justice that store beam sabers in the side skirts has always been poor retention, but the RG Justice tackles this by having you open the side skirt cover, slot in the fixing pin on the beam saber, and close it back up — so it absolutely won't fall out. It looks like a solution born from endless feedback from Gunpla fans, and while it's a small thing, it genuinely made me happy. ^^

When recreating the scene of Justice riding on the Fatum-00, there's a footrest opening gimmick along with a fixing pin that locks the feet securely to the top of the Fatum-00. This was another totally unexpected bonus feature, so double the joy.

On the downside, there are a few spots where the fit is a bit iffy. The yellow head antennae and the yellow parts at the wingtips tend to fall off, but a dab of glue fixes that easily enough, so it's not a big deal. In my case though, the movable footrest on top of the Fatum-00 wouldn't stay put and kept coming loose or popping open. Also, given the design's naturally off-center weight distribution, you do need to find the right angle to get it standing straight. That said, you can pull the folded rear wings down slightly to use them as a makeshift stand.

To sum it up — before building it, I was a bit disappointed knowing it reused the frame and that the detail didn't look as refined as expected. But once it was done, it turned out to have quite a lot going for it. The various retention solutions that other kits never bothered with are genuinely satisfying, the complex color separation is pulled off with impressive precision, and the Fatum-00 unit in particular is exceptionally well done.

Either way, I have to tip my hat to the Bandai developers for squeezing out such a polished kit while investing less than they did in previous releases. And honestly, if they can do it like this, I'd love for them to just go ahead and release every suit from every series as an RG — major or not. For fans of Justice Gundam, this is a real treat, and even if you weren't particularly interested in the suit, if you're into small, precise kits like RGs, this is absolutely worth recommending — a true RG kit that lives up to its name. :-)

RG Justice Gundam | 2012. 7 | ¥2,800

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.