More on Gundam AGE Project

As mentioned in the previous post, the new Gundam animated series to be aired this October will be called Gundam AGE, which is aimed primarily for children. But this is going to be more than just an anime series; in fact a lot of things have been planned and announced already in the official announcement on Bandai Channel Live and Gundam Info yesterday.


The rough story below may not be fully accurate:

It was A.G. 101 (Advanced Generation), where mankind has colonised the space for hundreds of years, and the moments of peace after many years in the Earth Sphere has come to realisation, only to be shattered again by the arrival of an unknown force, conveniently named "Unknown Enemy" (UE).

7 years later, mankind is still fighting against the UE, and the protagonist's mother was killed in the midst of warfare. Her mother passed on the "AGE Device" and the blueprinst of the ancient mobile suit "Gundam" to her son Frit (?) shortly before her death.

In A.G. 115, the Gundam has finally been materialised and completed after many years of hard work and research by Frit in the peaceful colony of Nora. The Gundam is revolutionary for able to self-evolve with the AGE system that is implemented inside it. But it is soon that the peaceful colony would be attacked by the UE, and Frit would have to pilot the Gundam to fight against them.



HG 1/144 and Mega Size 1/48 of Gundam AGE-1 Normal. Now that I get to see it more clearly, I have to say that the back of the Gundam looks a bit like a car's spoiler ^^;

MG 1/100 model has also been announced, but no pictures are available at the moment.


A new line of Gunpla is also announced called AG (Advanced Grade), which is also 1/144 scale. Judging on the prices I would assume that they are simpler than the HG 1/144 models. There also is an emphasis of having bigger parts for beginners to handle with as a contrast to many small parts for the RG (Real Grade) line of the same scale.


Next are the GB (GAGE-ING Builder, ゲイジングビルダー) 1/100 pre-assembled figure series.


Part swapping is emphasised as a feature so you can customise your own Gundam.


The GB action figure and the AG Gunpla line will have "GAGE-ING Chip" on the Gundams themselves so you can connect them to "GAGE-ING Battle Base" (ゲイジング バトルベース) machines in shops and arcade centres (presumably) or the "GAGE-ING HARO" (ゲイジング ハロ). AG lines will have 1 chip on each model, whereas BG line will have 4 on each figure.


The "GAGE-ING HARO" will allow one to play simulation battle on LCD after scanning the chips of one of the Gundams from the AG or GB line.


Next is the activation equipment "Age Device" (エイジデバイス), which is the item the protagonist uses to start up the Gundam in the anime trailer I think. Apparently one can get to play up to 7 different games with this as a personal ID item I think, so you can save your game(s) progress and get unlocks etc. The "Gaging Haro" is one of the games that you can connect the "Age Device" with.


The other game that one can use the "Age Device" as well as the chips on the AG Gunpla or the GB Gundam figures will be the Gaging Battle Base. You get your Gundam scanned on a special scanning area (as seen in the picture above), sign on the game with your "Age Device" on the yellow slot at the right of the scanner, and play as the Gundam that you have scanned in the virtual battle.


Another arcade game that will be announced will be the Gundam Triage (?). It is a card battle game, which will have Gundam AGE featured there as well.


Whoa, that sure is a big and ambitious Gundam project there. With so much stuff having announced before the anime gets aired, and a lot of merchandise have been materialised already (and it's a lot more than, say, Gundam 00 too).

If you ask me, I am getting a slight information overload already, not to talk about the radical change of Gundam recently that is getting harder to swallow. I will probably watch a couple of episodes to test the waters, but given that this is specifically aimed for children, it is likely that Gundam AGE will be a miss for me, but I won't bet on that.





But there's more! There will be another Gundam project to be announced on 25th June on Gundam Info. It doesn't say whether this project will be an anime or not, so we will have to wait and see. Maybe those who are disappointed with the annoucement of Gundam AGE can look forward to this one instead? Or maybe just stick with Gundam UC OVA for the time being.


Regarding on reactions from "fans", it's not surprising that many will be disappointed that the new Gundam anime series that is to be aired this October will eb a "kiddy" show, and that the enemy will be alien look-alikes just like the Gundam 00 Movie, which got a lot of extreme views from audience.

While the difference from the Gundam series that we are used to is vast, I think it's too early to jump into conclusion and judge the book by the cover even before the anime series has even aired. Looking back at G Gundam, which had a strong super robot style to it while lacking the theme of war in it, was it a disaster though? Sure it was different, but at the end many people accepted and even liked it means that Gundam can still be different and be good I think, but those who are very used to, say, the Universal Century era and its well established lore may find the new substance too different from the rooted settings that they were used to, and resist it. Money-milking talk aside (I personally would like to avoid this as it is one thing that tends to draw a lot of tensions), I think that the Gundam fandom has turned to a low end with a lot of conflicts and unecessary hatred out of entertainment and hobby nowadays.

There I have said it, and I will like to move on.


Sources and info from Gigazine
http://gigazine.net/news/20110613_gundam_age_pv01/
http://gigazine.net/news/20110613_gundam_age_mecha_chara_staff//
http://gigazine.net/news/20110613_gundam_age_toy_game//
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Gundam Age anime announced

New Gundam series teaser picture from Sunrise official website

A new Gundam anime series has been announced with cooperation from CoroCoro Comic magazine (コロコロコミック), which is now known Mobile Suit Gundam AGE (機動戦士ガンダムAGE).

This new series is supposed to debut from an official annoucement on 13th June via Bandai Channel Live and Gundam Info, but an early release of a magazine, presumably the July 2011 issue of CoroCoro Comic, shows what the new series is going to be.









And a blurry picture of a Gundam (original source unknown), presumably that of the protagonist. The Gundam is seen to have 2 extra forms - Suparo (Sparrow?) and Taitasu (Titus?), as seen in the 2nd magazine scan

The anime series will go on air this autumn, and it will be produced by Level-5, which is known for making Inazuma Eleven and Professor Layton series (game and animation).

Manga and merchandise are being planned and have taken shapes already, as seen in the 3rd scan.

早耳ガンプラ情報局 has some info on Gundam AGE already, of which you can read the English translation on Gundam Guy.


Well, I suppose many Gundams fans will be disappointed, or even angry by this newly announced Gundam series. Although there were annoucements earlier that Gundam will have a joint project with CoroCoro Comic, I did not fully anticipate that the joint project will be the new anime series, but given that CoroCoro Comic is a magazine catered primarily for children, it is not too surprising that Gundam AGE will be targeting children as the main audience, as suggested from the character designs.

And my reaction? Let's just say I could not fully anticipate such radical changes, and it's a little hard to swallow. I really am not sure whether this will be the kind of thing for me for now (due to the target audience the series is aiming for), but I'll wait and see. Besides we only have 3 magazine scans and a really blurry image of the protagonist's Gundam (most likely designed by Okawara Kunio UPDATED: Okawara says on twitter that he is "not involved" in the new Gundam series) at the moment, and more info may be revealed on 13th.

So, has the Gundam franchise really turned into "a new low" as some "diehard fans" will call it? Or that Sunrise and Bandai are planning something ambitious to cater specifically for younger audience this time while Gundam UC OVA is around? Could this be something with great potential that perhaps we are not able to see through for now? I do not know what to say as for now, but I'll leave it here for now, and see what more we shall see when 13th June comes around.


Magazine scans from Futaba Channel (2chan)
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Ginkgo

A fallen ginkgo leaf near Tsukiji Honganji on Shin-Ohashi road (新大橋通り), taken last year while I was leaving Tsukiji in Tokyo trip last year

Ginkgo (銀杏) is a particular kind of tree seen in some areas of Asia such as China, Korea, and Japan. In fact it now has no living relatives so it's a rather unique species and is also considered a living fossil. Its fan shape leaf is a distinctive feature of this species.


Ginkgo leaves turn yellow in autumn. Picture from Wikipedia

Gingko is originally cultivated in China, and while now widely cultivated, it is apparently rarely seen in the wild. It shares the same name (character-wise) in Chinese and Japanese as 銀杏, which literally means "Silver Apricot". The English name "ginkgo" is apparently a mispelling of "ginkyo / ginkyou" when a German botanist saw it in a Japanese garden in late 17th century, and the name stuck ever since.


One of the 6 surviving ginkgo trees that survived the atomic bomb in Hiroshima. Picture source here

Perseverance is something associated with this tree: When the atomic bomb Little Boy as dropped on Hiroshima in the closing month of WWII, devastating damage had occured, and many lives were lost. However 6 ginkgo trees have managed to survive, rejuvenate, and are still alive to this day. They are labelled "A-bombed Ginkgo trees", and as they presevere desptie much brutality they are sometimes known as the "bearer of hope" for the locals. More details on those trees can be found here if you are interested.


Picture of a tooth from a Gingko-toothed beaked whale. Note the similarity with the Gingko leaf (hence the name of the whale).

As for something unrelated, a whale species called Ginkgo-toothed beaked whale is named due to its protruding teeth midway down the jaw having the shape of a gingko leaf. Beaked whales are in general one of the least observed and studied species due to its remote and deep sea habitat, and this one is no exception.


With its longevity and preseverance, ginkgo somehow reminds me of how they represent the Japanese people in a way. Both are known to be long-lived, and both are known to endure through a lot of hardship and face them through somehow. This is perhaps something worth thinking about... And even though there are a lot more stuff one can write about on this tree, I think I'd leave it here for today.


P.S. How have I become so pseudo-philosophical all of a sudden?! o_o;; Oh well, this is a bit of a random post, but this has somehow stuck to my head recently, and I thought I might share it out. Hope you'd like it though!
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Drei Dreissens

Bought myself 3 boxes of HGUC 1/144 Dreissen (Unicorn Version) shortly after its release earlier this month, and you may or may not know that I tend to have a liking for grunts and buy multiple units of them, so this is no exception ^^;

I don't review models very often, but I thought this post will serve as a teaser for now before the real one.


If there is one thing I have dreaded over the building of the 3 Dreissens, then it would have to be the fancy carving/emblems on the sleeves of the Dreissens. I don't feel like slapping the foil stickers on the uneven surface of the nicely carved sleeves, so I thought I would colour them with Gundam markers. And since white is not the easiest colour to use for Gundam markers, I thought to myself "how about giving them gold & black like Sinanju and give them more of an elite status?".


Here's a quick result: 3 Dreissens ready for sortie. Black Tri-Stars shall rise again!


While I don't paint Gunplas normally, I think I may give these guys some decals and top coat later on. Well, we shall see once I have the time to do a proper post for these guys in June!
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Rello Zulu

Custom fan-made MG model cover art from pixiv

When 1st April comes a bunch of April Fool's jokes come here and there, and many would get forgotten easily. Among those that fly around during this year's April Fool's, one did catch my attention, and possibly some Gundam fans too. This was the Rello Zulu (レロ・ズール).


The joke has its origin has a "leak" from the official Gundam Unicorn twitter page, which posted several mecha design linearts seemingly for upcoming episode 4 of Gundam UC OVA. Most of them look rather normal, except for the top right one as seen in the picture above.


Here's the said lineart zoomed in, and you can see that it is supposedly Angelo Sauper's custom MS, known as the Rello Zulu.


A clean lineart derived from the "leaked" pictures. Image from here


For those who are not familiar with the origin of such bizzare joke design, this Rello Zulu is literally a hybrid of Angelo Sauper's Geara Zulu...
Image from MAHQ


... And the funny looking Zakrello, which only appeared in the TV series version of the original Mobile Suit Gundam.
Image from MAHQ


And somebody actually made a model for it too. XD
Image from gf-site, requires registration/log-in to access.


Despite it being a one-off April Fool's joke, it did give a good laugh to the fans. It might look silly and bizzare, but I would welcome it with a smile on my face should it make a cameo appearance in future episodes of Gundam UC OVA. And thanks to Yui (aka yui_style) for showing me this. I can't believe you actually thought this was genuine though XD And I feel sorry for you that somebody beat you to making a custom model for itbefore you can even get started XDD
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