RX-78-02 Gundam

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RX-78-02 Gundam
RX-78-02 Gundam (RX-78-02 ガンダム)
Unit Type
E.F.S.F. Prototype Mobile Suit
Profile
Other Names	RX78-02 Gundam
Developed from	RX-78-01 Prototype Gundam
Developed Into	RGM-79 GM
Manufacturer	Anaheim Electronics
Operator	White Base Corps
Developed by	Tem Ray
Known Pilots	Amuro Ray William Kemp Leos Alloy Sthesia Awar
General Characteristics
Head Height	18.0 meters59.055 ft <br />708.661 in <br />
Power-plant	Minovsky Ultracompact Fusion Reactor
Pilot Accommodations	Pilot only (in standard cockpit in torso， later refitted with Core Block System using Core Pod)
Armor	Luna Titanium
Equipment
Standard	Core Block System (refit) Magnet Coating (field upgrade)
Standard Armaments
Fixed	2 × Vulcan Gun 1-2 × Beam Saber 2 × Shoulder Magnum 1-2 × Gatling Gun Arm Vulcan
Handheld	Beam Rifle Shield
Optional Armaments
Fixed	Shoulder Cannon
Handheld	Hyper Bazooka
Real World
Mechanical Designer	Kunio Okawara (Manga) Hajime Katoki (Anime)
Appearances*
Movie	Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan's Island
Manga	MSGTO EX A EXA VS
Novel	Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan's Island
Variation	Mobile Suit Discovery

The RX-78-02 Gundam (RX-78-02 ガンダム, RX-78-02 Gundam^?) is the titular mobile suit of the Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin manga. It also appears briefly in the Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin OVA and the Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin Advent of the Red Comet television series, and again in the Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan's Island movie. It was piloted by Amuro Ray during the One Year War.

Technology & Combat Characteristics

Its estimate generator output was from 1000 kW to 1400 kW, its target output was to be at least 150% of the RCX-76 .

The operation tests of the RX-78-02, a prototype MS of the Earth Federation, were carried out in secret, but civilian Amuro Ray coincidentally became its pilot when Zeon Forces assaulted Side 7.

The RX-78-02 utilizes its wide array of portable weapons such as its beam rifle and hyper bazooka. It also has fixed weaponry such as two shoulder magnums on the left shoulder, a gatling gun on the right shoulder, and a forearm gatling gun on its left arm. It's also possible to swap a beam saber with an optional armament known as the shoulder cannon.

Furthermore its unable to transform its Beam Sabers to Beam Javelins, its Gundam Hammer doesn't exist, nor does it use the Core Block System until it was upgraded to have one at Jaburo.

As the war progressed to its latter stages, the RX-78-02 was reconfigured into its Late Type/Middle Type form. When the fighting was moved into space a majority of its fixed weapons were removed and swapped with extra thrusters for better mobility and gate shaped armor on the shoulders. Several fixed weapons were removed such as the arm vulcan, the two shoulder magnums, shoulder Gatling gun, and the shoulder cannon not being used more often.

Armaments

• Vulcan Gun

A pair of shell-firing weapon built into the head. Though not powerful, its high rate of fire meant it was employed as a point-defense system to intercept incoming missiles and such and could also be used as a distraction when fighting other mobile suits up close.

• Beam Saber

A combat armament mounted on the backpack. Its blade-shaped beam can instantaneously cut through the armor of the mobile suit.

• Shoulder Cannon

A medium range, solid shell firearm with a magazine mounted in the rear. It's set on the left side of the backpack after swapping out the beam saber and has a moveable base.

• Arm Vulcan

Installed on the left forearm, attached to the gate-shaped parts on the cuffs.

• Shoulder Magnum

Equipped with two on the left shoulder. It was replaced with a second gatling gun for renovation to the Middle Type.

• Gatling Gun

Equipped with one on the right shoulder in the Early Type and one on both shoulders in the Middle Type. They were changed to sensors for renovation to the Late Type.

• Beam Rifle

The beam rifle is the primary weapon used by the Gundam. This weapon has also been confirmed to be utilized by the RX-78-01 Prototype Gundam and the GM, hence its similar appearance and equipment. A new form of the beam rifle called the Beam Rifle (Middle Type) was utilized during the later times of the war.

• Hyper Bazooka

A general purpose fire support rocket launcher. It is used by carrying it over the shoulder and is frequently used by Amuro in tandem with the shoulder cannon for extra power.

• Shield

An armament with extremely high defensive capabilities obtained by adopting a multi-layer structure made of multiple materials.

Special Equipment & Features

• Core Block System

• Magnet Coating

History

U.C. 0078

The project was proposed by Tem Ray in the year U.C. 0078 after he watched the footage of a MS-04 operating in the A Bao A Qu region. He immediately realized that, had the Federation gone ahead with mass-producing the Guncannon, geared toward ship combat at the time, the mobile suits would fare poorly against these Zakus. While the Federation at first believed the RCX-76 Guncannon would suffice, Tem's theory was proven true during the Battle of Mare Smythii, in which 4 MS-05 Zakus, alongside the MS-04 Bugu, wiped out the 12 Guncannons of the Iron Cavalry Squadron, and thus illustrated to the Federation the need of a mobile suit geared toward mobile suit combat, leading to the approval of the RX-78 Gundam development project. Amuro Ray later discovered that his father was not just working on colony construction as he discovered the suit's blueprints and a scaled-down RX-78-02 arm in his father's room .

One Year War (U.C. 0079)

The RX-78-02 was completed in its rollout colors of white and light gray. Its antennae was initially not V-shaped and instead more like the Guncannon Early Type. The staff at Anaheim Electronics later posed for a photo in front of their completed work .

Gundam Rising (September)

On the day Zakus infiltrated the Side 7 Noa colony, Amuro Ray was at his computer accessing top-secret Federation data. After coming across another security layer, he opened a file containing a diagram of the Gundam's head. He saw the name "RX-78 Gundam", more "weird numbers" and schematics. As Fraw entered his house, Amuro also saw a diagram of a Zaku and how it had a fusion engine within its torso, strengthening his beliefs that his father had more than just colony blueprints .

Gallery

Volume 1 inside cover

Gundam Rising

RX-78-02 Gundam - Mechanical Archives

RX-78-02 Gundam weaponry

Building a 3D model based on Katoki's minor redesign.

As seen on the game Gundam Diorama Front 3rd.

The RX-78-02 Gundam in Gundam EXA

In Gundam Rising ~ Gundam The Origin Target U.C. 0079

RX-78-02 Gundam and Amuro Ray

RX-78-02 Gundam in Repair

RX-78-02 Gundam Flying (Far View)

RX-78-02 Gundam Flying (Close View)

RX-78-02 Gundam attacking Char's Zaku II

RX-78-02 Gundam (Middle Type) standing

Gunpla

HGGTO 1/144 RX-78-02 Gundam (2020): box art

HGGTO 1/144 RX-78-02 Gundam Rollout Color (Gundam The Origin Ver.) (P-Bandai exclusive; 2021): box art

HGGTO 1/144 RX-78-02 Gundam (Gundam The Origin Ver.) [Clear Color] (The Gundam Base Tokyo exclusive; 2021): box art

HGGTO 1/144 RX-78-02 Gundam Yoshikazu Yasuhiko/MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM THE ORIGIN Exhibition Edition: box art

MG 1/100 RX-78-02 Gundam The Origin (2015): box art

MG 1/100 RX-78-02 Gundam The Origin Special Ver. (2017): box art

MG 1/100 RX-78-02 Gundam The Origin Mechanical Clear Ver. (The Gundam Product Art Exhibition exclusive; 2016): box art

MG 1/100 RX-78-02 Gundam The Origin [Solid Clear/Standard] (Banpresto exclusive; 2019): box art

MG 1/100 RX-78-02 Gundam The Origin [Solid Clear/Reverse] (Banpresto exclusive; 2019): box art

RX-78-02 Gundam (Late Type) Conversion of an MG 2.0 RX-78-2 Gundam by Yoshiyuki Takubo

MG RX-78-02 Gundam (Late Type) Conversion by Yoshiyuki Takubo

MG RX-78-02 Gundam (Late Type) Conversion by Yoshiyuki Takubo

MG RX-78-02 Gundam (Late Type) Conversion by Yoshiyuki Takubo

Action Figures

GFFMC RX-78-02 Gundam [40th Anniversary Ver.] (2019): sleeve front art by Hajime Katoki

GFFMC RX-78-02 Gundam [40th Anniversary Ver.] (2019): box front art

Notes & Trivia

• It has several key differences to the RX-78-2:
  • Its beam sabers cannot turn into the beam javelin.
  • It does not have the cooling film or the cooling field for atmospheric re-entry (but was still able to reenter the atmosphere without being burned out).
  • It didn't initially have the Core Block System.
• It was the first mobile weapon from Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin to be given a full Master Grade model.
• Curiously, the cover art drawn by Yasuhiko used by both the Japanese R2 and the R1 Anime Legends volume 1 DVD releases of Mobile Suit Gundam features the RX-78-02 Gundam. Another artpiece by Yasuhiko also features the RX-78-02 Gundam and it utilised on western releases of the movie trilogy since 2017, however the "02" is obscured by Char's helmet.
• The Gundam Rollout Type's appearance, with two antennae on the back of the head instead of the V-fin, was based on the RX-78 prototype artwork from Gundam Century.
• Two versions of the RX-78-02 Gundam can be obtained at Gundam Breaker Mobile:
  • The Early Type version can be obtained during the "The Original Gundam" event on March 2 to 9, 2022, where the parts can be obtained at the 3-star event coin shop.
  • The Middle Type version of the unit was made available for the regular and Premium Event Capsule banners starting from December 28, with a drop rate of 0.043% for the former and 0.217% for the latter.

External links

• Model Kits of the RX-78-02 Gundam on Gunplapedia
• Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan's Island mecha website page

This article is part of Project: The Origin

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Project Leader: User:FortressMaximus