Kit Review

Straight build + Panel lining + Seals

Size comparison with a cigarette pack

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - Various angles (1/6)

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - Various angles (2/6)

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - Various angles (3/6)

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - Various angles (4/6)

Various angles

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - Detail shots (1/4)

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - Detail shots (2/4)

Detail shots

Even tiny details like the red line under the eyes have precise color separation.

Outer armor removed

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - Inner frame shots (1/2)

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - Inner frame shots (2/2)

Internal frame

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - Frame detail shots. It's more of a simple skeletal frame structure rather than anything particularly

Frame detail shots.
It's more of a simple skeletal frame structure rather than anything particularly mechanical.

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - The hip joint assembly method is pretty unique. You assemble the hip joint articulation piece separat

The hip joint assembly method is pretty unique.
You assemble the hip joint articulation piece separately, then insert it into the lower body socket and twist it to lock it in place.
The problem is that this rotating section holds less securely than the hip pin itself,
so when you move the thighs to work the hip joints, the pin stays put
while the entire rotating section just spins and pops right out — leaving the lower body flopping around all over the place. -_-

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - For weapons, you get a large-caliber 209mm rifle and a Progressive Knife for close combat, each provi

For weapons, you get a large-caliber 209mm rifle and
a Progressive Knife for close combat, provided in both stowed and deployed versions.

At least the rifle interior has a nicely detailed inner frame.

The gimmick of storing the folded Progressive Knife on the shoulder is also reproduced.

Entry Plug

The feature of opening the back hatch and inserting the Entry Plug is also reproduced.

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - For the horn, you get two options: a system-insert part with yellow-green and purple molded t

For the horn, you get two options: a system-insert part with yellow-green and purple molded together in one piece,
and a standard antenna where you apply seals instead.

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - There's a jaw-opening gimmick, but this part is a bit loose, so even a slight bump can cause the mout

There's a jaw-opening gimmick, but this part is a bit loose, so even a slight bump can cause the mouth to drop open.

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - An umbilical cable is also included, and it can connect to the transport carrier included in the sepa

An umbilical cable is also included, and it can connect to the transport carrier included in the separately sold DX set.
The cable itself is in the form of a thick lead wire — it doesn't flop around at all and bends with a very stiff feel.

A total of 6 hand types are included, and the proportions look quite natural.

If you look closely, there's a peg on the wrist and a groove cut into the wrist socket.

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - When you push the hand in all the way, the position locks, and rotating the wrist in this state cause

When you push the hand in all the way, the position locks, and rotating the wrist in this state causes the forearm armor to rotate along with it.
However, in this locked state the wrist rotation range is actually quite limited, making it more inconvenient than helpful.

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - To move the wrist freely, you end up having to pull it out slightly and then rotate it as shown above

To move the wrist freely, you end up having to pull it out slightly and then rotate it as shown above —
and if you keep popping it in and out like this, the peg on the wrist wears down and gets stripped.
Makes you wonder if this wrist gimmick was really necessary at all..

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - The elbow armor connection is weak and falls off easily — you might want to just glue it in place. St

The elbow armor connection is weak and falls off easily — you might want to just glue it in place.
Structurally, when you rotate the elbow, the forearm armor pushes against it and it automatically pops off.

True to Evangelion, it delivers top-class limb articulation.

Horizontal shoulder articulation

Pulling the torso apart vertically extends the joint and maximizes the range of motion even further.

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - Comparison of waist articulation before extending (left) and after extending (right). (1/4)

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - Comparison of waist articulation before extending (left) and after extending (right). (2/4)

Waist articulation comparison before extending the waist (left) and after extending the waist (right).

With the waist extended, it also rotates horizontally in smooth, multi-stage movements.

There's a gimmick where rotating the wrist causes the entire forearm armor to rotate along with it.

The wrist also bends inward quite far.

When spreading the legs, the parts that look like inner thigh muscles move in a linked motion.

Ground contact when splitting the legs front and back.
The toes fold down one more time.

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - It's not linked to the knee joint, but even the small knee armor has a gimmick that lets it bend one

It's not linked to the knee joint, but even the small knee armor has a gimmick that lets it bend one more time.

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - A classic pose that shows off the impressive articulation — though getting it to look natural actuall

A classic pose that shows off the impressive articulation.
Though getting it to look natural actually takes quite a bit of time. (You'll know what I mean when you try it.)

Shows off a remarkably natural kneeling pose.

Charging pose.

Progressive Knife action.

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - Various other action poses. (1/6)

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - Various other action poses. (2/6)

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - Various other action poses. (3/6)

RG Evangelion Unit-01 - Various other action poses. (4/6)

Various other action poses.

Alongside the RG First Gundam.
Size-wise, it's on par with an MG.

Straight build

< Dalong Blog > A note before starting the Eva review.

In March 2020, the Evangelion series was added to the RG lineup, which had previously only covered Gunpla. The first release was naturally Evangelion Unit-01. True to the RG concept of pursuing MG-level or higher quality at HG scale, it came out as a high-quality plastic model. That said, while existing RG Gunpla were in 1/144 scale, the RG Eva came out closer to MG size rather than HG. Sure, the slim body makes it look less bulky than an MG, but height-wise it's noticeably taller than HG-scale Gunpla.

Full-body frame, impressive color separation, and best-in-class articulation.

First off, true to the RG style, it uses a build method where you layer armor over an inner frame piece by piece. There's almost no mechanical detail to speak of, but a skeletal frame runs through the entire body except for the forearms. On top of that, Evangelion's characteristically complex color scheme is pulled off with minimal seals, relying instead on precise color separation to nail the design colors. The fact that even the shoulder armor and the red lines around the eyes are carefully broken out into separate parts is genuinely impressive. The sculpt and proportions also stay faithful to the source material, so at least in terms of straight build visuals, I'd say it came out better than expected.

On top of that great look, it delivers best-in-class articulation — the waist in particular is on another level. Every segment moves individually, and you can extend the sections between them to get a disturbingly flexible range of up/down and side-to-side waist movement. Especially when you extend the waist and rotate the body horizontally, the way each segment turns in sequence feels incredibly natural. Beyond that, the hip joints swing up nice and wide, and the arms and legs achieve full bend, making this an A++ kit in terms of articulation across the board. Thanks to all that, you can recreate most of the dynamic poses from the show.

Joint strength that's a little worrying.

With articulation this good, joint strength is naturally the next concern. Generally speaking, there aren't any particularly loose spots and overall stability is solid. However, the balance of joint strength varies a bit from joint to joint, and rather than feeling smooth, the joints tend to feel slightly stiff overall. Because of that, posing is surprisingly tricky despite the excellent articulation, and I can't really say the feel of moving the joints is all that great. The stiffness also makes you worry about snapping a joint mid-pose, and some parts do pop off during movement. The elbow armor is especially bad — structurally, it seems almost by design that rotating the elbow horizontally will automatically lever the armor right off. (If that bothers you, you might just want to glue it down.)

Also, while the joint strength is fine right out of the box, there's a real risk of it loosening up after repeated posing over time. In my case, after putting Evangelion Unit-01 through all kinds of poses and then moving it over and over again to compare it with the later RG Eva releases, the joints became noticeably less secure than when I first built it. Comparing the RG Evangelion Unit-01 that I've posed countless times for the review against a freshly built later RG Eva, the difference in joint strength is clear. At this point my RG Evangelion Unit-01 is even a little shaky just standing upright, so I've just left it displayed in a sitting position. T_T

Anyway, the joints aren't floppy like a wet noodle, but just be aware that the initial tight feel can loosen up with repeated posing. Of course, since I moved the joints far more than the average person would for review purposes, the wear may have been worse in my case. Still, it's worth moving the joints slowly and carefully when posing to minimize this kind of issue. So you've got this best-in-class articulation that makes you want to strike all kinds of cool poses, yet it's a kit where you feel nervous about actually going all out — a bit of an irony.

To point out another frustration with the articulation: the unique twist-lock hip joint design can also undermine stability. As you can see in the review photos above, the hip joints are built separately and inserted into the torso, then rotated to lock into place. This external insert design was probably chosen because the crotch area is too narrow in the design to fit a hip joint mechanism internally. The problem is that the locking strength of this rotating section is weaker than the pin connecting the legs to the hip joint. So when you move the thighs, instead of the hip joint rotating, the entire round hip joint part often rotates as a whole — and when that happens, the hip joint part comes loose and the entire lower body ends up feeling wobbly.

If you've built an RG Eva yourself, you'll probably know exactly what I'm talking about. Because of this, you may find yourself repeatedly detaching the legs, re-securing the twist-lock hip section, and reattaching the legs. There is one trick to avoid this hassle: when posing one leg's hip joint, hold the opposite leg and the torso together with your other hand to keep them fixed — this helps prevent the entire hip joint from rotating. Also, the articulated mouth doesn't hold its position very well, so it tends to drift open on its own even when you've closed it, though that's a relatively minor issue by comparison.

Other gimmicks and overall verdict.

Finally, looking at the accessories: the standard weapons include a large-caliber 209mm rifle and a Progressive Knife for close combat. The Progressive Knife comes in both folded and deployed forms, with two of each included, and the gimmick of storing the folded version in the shoulder is also recreated. Inside the rifle there's a large frame block with far more intricate detail than the body frame itself. Beyond that, an umbilical cable for connecting to the transport unit included in the DX set is provided in the form of a thick, sturdy lead wire, and you can also recreate the scene of opening the back hatch and inserting the Entry Plug. Six different hand types are included in total, and they're done in a more human and natural shape than what you'd typically find on Gunpla.

To sum it up: this kit delivers the best straight build visuals thanks to its advanced color separation, and its standout strength is the flashy full-body-frame-based articulation. It's clearly the highest-quality Eva kit ever released. That said, despite the excellent articulation, it's a kit where you feel nervous about moving it freely, so I'd recommend handling it with care. Either way, it's clearly a fresh, high-quality plastic model worth trying at least once — even if you're not an Evangelion fan. :-)

RG Evangelion Unit-01 | 2020.3 | ¥4,800

AIThis page was translated by Claude Sonnet.