Grade: 7/10
In an astounding collaboration between the two behemoths of mecha animation, Studio Khara and Studio Sunrise have released Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX -Beginning-, an original and refreshing story that sets up a new anime series in the Mobile Suit Gundam franchise.
It is a stellar retelling of the classic 1979 Mobile Suit Gundam story that pays tribute to older fans of the franchise with callbacks to its older series while ushering in newer fans with its modern animation style and colorful cast. However, an off-paced introduction holds it back from placing in the upper echelons of the studio’s already star-studded discography of anime media.
Still, the collaboration between the two studios gave this animation particular significance. Studio Sunrise has been in charge of the MSG intellectual property since its inception and is responsible for validating and popularizing anime as a form of entertainment in the West with the release of Cowboy Bebop (2001).
Studio Khara, whose founder, Hideaki Anno, created the Neon Genesis Evangelion series, announced its collaboration with Sunrise earlier this year. Neon Genesis Evangelion is known for being one of the most influential shows of the ’90s due to its experimental concept of mixing psychological thrillers with the mecha genre. While fans have been wondering if Hideaki Anno will be heavily involved with this production, he has taken a backseat as director and handed the role to his protégé, Kazuya Tsurumaki, who was in charge of the Rebuild of Evangelion film series.
Gundam: GQuuuuuux -Beginning- is a compilation film that combines episodes of the upcoming Gundam: GQuuuuuuX series. The series follows Amate Yuzuriha, a high school girl living in a space colony. She commandeers a Gundam mech from the Principality of Zeon and participates in “Clan Battles,” an illegal space battle between mobile suits for prize money. Alongside her story, Challia Bull, a returning character from the original series, searches for his long-lost commander and previous antagonist of the series, Char Aznable.
While there are some criticisms about the pacing in the first half of the film, the movie shines bright in the second half as new characters and the setting are introduced. The colony has a cyberpunk-esque vibe with concrete buildings and bright lighting, which is fitting seeing how this film is going to focus on a group of outlaws navigating life in a war-torn colony.
The soundtrack also did a great job playing into this aesthetic. “Plazma” by Kenshi Yonezu was a highlight of the soundtrack because of its really techy J-Rock sound.
The character designs are very unique, giving the Gundam franchise a new look with its characters having a bright color palette and unique personalities reminiscent of a Pokémon trainer vibe. The voice acting really amplifies the character’s personality as well, Amate is played by Tomoyo Kurosawa who previously voiced Naomi Orthmann in the Metallic Rogue series.
The studios have found a way to make action scenes interesting despite their unconventional animation. The mechs were animated using 3D graphics, which are not entirely new to the franchise. However, seeing as the franchise came off of exhilarating traditionally animated mech battle scenes from Mobile Suit Gundam: THE WITCH FROM MERCURY, it would have been a lot better to just have them hand-drawn even if it would cause delays. However, the integrated 2D animation, along with the CGI mechs, create a lot of motion in the fight scenes that makes it as heart-racing as some of the conventionally drawn action scenes from other Gundam series.
This is where the movie’s shortcomings start. The first half of the film is polarizing for new and older audiences. While it’s absolute nostalgia for older fans because of its callbacks to the original show which replicate scenes from the first ever episode aired in 1979, it eats into the screentime dedicated to introducing the new setting, alienating newer fans who were thrown hasty exposition for half the runtime.
The studio had the herculean task of cramming lore for new fans that the studio previously had several anime series and movies to explain. The original series took half of its serialization to introduce the crucial concept of new type pilots—which are essentially space-adapted pilots who can also communicate telepathically to one another—while the movie tried to introduce this concept 15 minutes in. For someone who watched a good chunk of the original continuity, they are able to understand most of the background lore. The studio would have been better off focusing on the new cast for the whole film while relegating those tribute scenes to flashbacks throughout the series. This would allow more time for lore to be spoonfed to the audience as they learn more about the underlying story while growing attached to the new cast.
Mobile Suit Gundam: GQuuuuuux -Begining- is a refreshing take on the original series, despite the weird pacing. It is an entertaining experience that keeps the audience glued to their seats throughout the movie. Gundam fans are excited to see where these two legends of the mecha genre take this series.
