SD Gundam Sangokuden Brave Battle Warriors

SD Gundam Sangokuden Brave Battle Warriors (SDガンダム三国伝 BraveBattleWarriors?) is a Japanese anime television adaptation of the SD Gundam model kit series BB Senshi Sangokuden that began airing on April 3, 2010[1] and is produced by Sunrise. It is directed by Kenichi Suzuki and Kunihiro Mori. There is no opening theme song, however, there is an ending theme song, "Mirisha Legend ~The Brave Legend~" (三璃紗伝說 ~The Brave Legend~?), which is performed by Ko-saku. This is the same theme song that has been featured in promotional animation for the BB Senshi Sangokuden model kit series.

Plot

Long ago, Three Sovereigns descended from the heavens onto the land of Mirisha. According to legend, the Three Sovereigns used their powers to bring order to the land. One became the sun and bathed the world with its sunlight. One became the moon and healed the world with its moonlight. One became the sea and nurtured the world with its waters. It is foretold that a time of strife shall arrive.

"When Mirisha is shrouded in darkness, the souls of the Three Sovereigns shall be entrusted to the Gundams. Only with guidance from the Gyokuji, shall they exorcise the land from darkness..." -Mirisha Legend, "G Chronicles"-

That time of strife will be known as Sangokuden, and that time has come upon us.

Mobile Suit Gundam Evolve

Gundam Evolve (ガンダムEVOLVE?), also known as Mobile Suit Gundam Evolve, is a series of short films set in the different timelines of the Gundam series. Originally there were only five Evolve episodes, produced from 2001 to 2003, Bandai started to create new Evolve episodes in 2004. While the first few episodes took place in the Universal Century, the new clips also show Gundams from the other timelines.

The clips often show alternative scenes, side-stories or omakes for fans. The clips feature a mix of animation media which go from traditional cels to 3-D CG rendering to even cell-shaded 2-D animation. The target is to show the Gundams and other mobile suits in high-quality CGI. Currently 15 episodes has been released in three separate volumes, namely Gundam Evolve ../+ ("Plus"), Gundam Evolve ../Ω ("Omega") and Gundam Evolve ../Α ("Alpha"). Each volume consists of 5 episodes.

The logo features a battered Core Fighter floating upside down, as seen on the final episode of the original Mobile Suit Gundam series.

Episode Summaries

01 – RX-78-2 Gundam

This episode is the only one that features no CG. Instead it is a short clip show of the original Mobile Suit Gundam series. In this episode Amuro Ray, waiting to start in the final battle of A Baoa Qu, sits in his RX-78-2 Gundam while the other forces are already fighting. He recalls many of the battles he has fought until now, beginning with his fight against the mobile armor Elmeth when he killed Lalah Sune. Afterward he recalls the battle against the Black Tri-Stars, Ramba Ral and Char Aznable. He also thinks about the people important to him who died, including Ryu Jose, Matilda Ajan and Sleggar Law. Then he hears Sayla Mass who tells him that if they can overcome war, humanity should as well. Soon afterward, Amuro launches.

02 – RX-178 Gundam Mk-II

The events of this episode take place after the Gryps Conflict. The story revolves around a video tape which is sent to Kamille Bidan by Argama chief engineer Astonaige Medoz. On the video Astonaige wishes him a quick recovery and it also contains a video scene from a battle training at which Kamille participated during the Gryps Conflict. In the training he uses the Gundam Mk.II to fight against several drones and two Rick Dias in a combat simulation. Although he thinks it is too easy he accidentally destroys the camera probe recording the training. The episode ends with a written report by Kamille apologizing over damaging the suiveillance pod, in which he angrily wrote in later sections denying himself of any responsibility for the incident, protesting over having to write such a formal apology at all, and going further on to accuse his superiors Quattro Bajeena and Henken Bekkener of being totally irrational and incompetent.

03 – GF13-017NJII God Gundam

The third Evolve clip is about G Gundam. It features Domon Kasshu, who is practicing Tai Chi with the God Gundam. However suddenly Rain Mikamura appears in the Rising Gundam and attacks him because he was away for two days. He tells her he was only training but she believes that he was off chasing skirts, and the two fight. Trying to end the battle, Domon attacks with the God Gundam’s God Finger, causing Rain to counter with the Rising Gundam’s Rising Finger attack. Both attacks clash together with an immense power, but Rain's attack breaks through. When the smoke clears, Rising Gundam is performing Tai Chi while God Gundam looks on, with insults like "Womanizer" and "Lazy Bum" written all over its head.

(It's worth noting that nothing within the actual G Gundam series implies Rising can perform a Finger attack in the manner shown; in the series, the Rising Gundam's strongest attack is the Rising Arrow, which is fired from the beam bow on its left arm. Likewise, Rain being able to outmatch Domon in actual Gundam combat seems strictly for comedy.)

04 – RX-78 GP03 Dendrobium

After the last clip played in the Future Century, this episode returns to the Universal Century. It is revealed that several people leaked information about the Gundam Development Project to the Zeon Forces because Jamitov Hymem dislikes it. Afterwards a ruined MS-14A Gelgoog is shown floating in space after a group of Gelgoog Marine Types and MS-06F Zaku II mobile suits attack the La Vie en Rose. To counter them a woman named Defrah Kar pilots the Gundam GP03 Dendrobium Stamen to destroy them. To make this easier she uses the Orchis platform and, thanks to its powerful weapons, is easily able to destroy them, and thanks to her I-field she is even able to defend herself from the attack of a large battleship. However, after the battle and while ejecting the Stamen from the Orchis, a severely damaged Gelgoog is able to shoot at the cockpit of the Stamen, killing Defrah and incidentally destroying the experimental cockpit. Afterwards the people who looked on the Gundam data examine the data of the GP04 Gerbera. This animation may explain the confusion concerning the two types of cockpits for the Stamen unit.

05 – RX-93 ν Gundam

This episode shows a bright alternative scenario for Quess Paraya from Char's Counterattack, as Tomino's attitude during Char's Counterattack was rather grim and depressing. The episode begins with Quess, who had apparently used the NZ-333 Alpha Azieru to severely damage Hathaway Noa's RGM-89 Jegan. Afterwards Amuro Ray in his RX-93 Nu Gundam has a Newtype reaction to her and confronts her. He accuses her of not understanding Hathaway's feelings, but Quess doesn't listen and attacks him. However Amuro is able to trap her inside the Fin Funnel's beam barriers. Afterwards they hear Hathaway who tells Quess not to be angry, and Amuro tells Quess that Hathaway isn't dead. Thanks to this and Amuro's words she calms down and she finally uses the Alpha Azieru to rescue Hathaway.

This episode was written by Yoshiyuki Tomino, whose change of outlook used this animation to give Quess a happy ending as an alternative to her death in the movie.

06 – YMF-X000A Dreadnought Gundam

The clip starts off with a battle between the YMF-X000A Dreadnought and several ZGMF-600 GuAIZ. Although Prayer Reverie tells them that he doesn’t want to fight they continue and one of them slams him in an asteroid. Suddenly a DRAGOON-equipped Dreadnought "ghost" appears, separates itself from the real Dreadnought and attacks the GuAIZ, destroying all of them very easily. Afterwards it fires all its weapons on the real Dreadnought but the attack is stopped by the CAT1-X1/3 Hyperion. Then the two suits battle and finally Prayer joins the fight and together with the Hyperion he destroys the "ghost". At last the two suits turn their weapons on each other. In the end, this turned out to be a dream of Prayer's, foreshadowing his eventual battle with the Hyperion.

07 - XXXG-00W0 Wing Gundam Zero

This episode begins with a figure in a spacesuit (Heero Yuy) setting bombs, then fades to Gundam engineer Doctor J, apparently imprisoned. He talks to a shadowy visitor about history and his young protege as the person in space suit tries to escape the facility he has just sabotaged. The guards catch up to him, but he uses a nearby Virgo II mobile doll to distract them and escape to his machine - Wing Zero. Heero uses the twin buster rifle to break out of the base's hangar, but loses the weapon in the escape and resorts to using a Virgo II beam rifle. He is chased by several Virgo IIs along the length of the facility, which is actually a gigantic colony cannon. After dealing with his pursuit, Heero attacks the cannon directly with his beam rifle as the bombs begin to go off. Doctor J finishes his narration, commenting to his visitor (now revealed as Relena Peacecraft) that he chose Heero's codename personally. As the colony cannon explodes, Heero flies away to his next mission.

Gundam Evolve 7 was written and directed by Shukou Murase.[1] The original Japanese voice actors are used; Hikaru Midorikawa for Heero Yuy and Minoru Inaba for Doctor J.[1] The 3D animation was based on Bandai's Master Grade "Wing Gundam Zero - Endless Waltz" model.[1]

It should be noted that this Evolve's place within Gundam Wing continuity is unclear, but it appears to take place during the last story arc of the series, after White Fang captures Relena but before Doctor J dies. During this period, Heero was working with the other four Gundam pilots; their absence from this mission is a source of much of this confusion.

08 - GAT-X105 Strike Gundam

In a secret ZAFT desert base, the Aile Strike Gundam faces off against several GINN OCHER Types. The animation adapted the style of visual special effect seen in The Matrix, and featured the Grand Slam Sword included with the Perfect Grade and later Master Grade Strike Gundam model kits.

09 - MSZ-006 Zeta Gundam

In space there lies a giant mobile armor called the Psycho Weapon and it's decimating the EFSF fleets so it's up to 3 Zeta Gundams to destroy the huge weapon...

Although numbered 9, this Evolve is the last to come out in Gundam Evolve ../Ω. It is said to feature three Zeta Gundams, three pilots with the aliases Red Snake, Grey Wolf, and White Unicorn as well as an enormous MA of unknown affiliation in orbit (listed as "QRX-006 Geminus" by MAHQ, but the ending credits suggest a name "Blue Rose"). There is also the mentioning of the Chakra Laboratory of AEUG/Karaba and a top-secret mission.

Red Snake's Zeta Gundam is red, with redesigned armour on the chest, feet, skirt and lower leg. The new armour sports a spiked look. In addition, the wings are wider and pointed, and there is a large vertical spike behind its head, apparently prodruding from the middle of its back. The pilot apparently is a young Newtype girl named Yurii Ajissah, who holds a special feeling towards her squadron leader, White Unicorn.

White Unicorn is believed to be the legendary ace Amuro Ray, based on the physical appearance, personal logo, military ranking, Yurii's memory of their encounter at Side 6 during the One Year War, and most importantly, Toru Furuya being the character's voice actor. His Zeta Gundam unit appears to be the same one that Amuro piloted in the short CGI film Green Divers (white with purple stripes, plus Amuro's signature "A" symbol on the left shoulder armour).

Grey Wolf's Zeta Gundam (nicknamed "Buster Zeta") unit is a yellow colour with two additional fins/airfoils on its upper back. Grey Wolf is unhappy with his machine's colors and would have preferred it to be grey. This, coupled with his nickname, his "Grey Wolf" logo and the fact that he is a former Zeon pilot, seems to imply that Grey Wolf is actually Zeon ace pilot Shin Matsunaga, the infamous "White Wolf of Solomon". Similarly, the original pilot of Red Snake's Zeta is implied to be Johnny Ridden, who was reassigned since Red Zeta is a Newtype-use machine.

10 - MSZ-010 ZZ Gundam

Judau is assigned to protect/escort the space transport ship Jupitris on his (probably also his girlfriend Roux Louka's) birthday. While on the recovery missions he encounters Neo Zeon forces pursuing a AMX-004-3 Quebeley MK.II. Seeing the Quebeley posing no threat, Judau assists it in destroying the Neo Zeon squad composed of Doven Wolfs riding on sub-flight platforms, allowing the Quebeley to land safely on Jupitris.

The last image of this short film shows a pilot whose face isn't seen, yet it bears a striking resemblance to an old friend (Puru 2)...

11 – RB-79 Ball

A Baoa Qu, the grounds of the final battle of the One Year War. As the scars of war remain fresh in the battlefield, novice Federation pilot Hiden surveys the area in a RB-79 Ball. Word comes in that Zeon remnants are about to attack. Though afraid, the young pilots proceed through the silent interiors of A Baoa Qu. Without warning, gunshots echo through the air and his party is decimated one-by-one. When Hiden, the sole survivor, presses further into the depths, he discovers the harsh reality behind war...

12 – RMS-099 Rick Dias

Quattro Bajeena boards his Rick Dias for a battle simulation to transfer combat data to the mass-production model. The data personnel has some fun with him, turning the Rick Dias's monitor red, revealing his own old Zaku from his "Red Comet" days as his opponent. Quattro is gradually cornered by the Zaku... Can he win against the legendary Red Comet?

And then he switches to the Hyaku Shiki, and faces off with an old rival...

13 - RMS-108 Marasai

As the AEUG attempt to enter the atmosphere for the drop operation on Jaburo, they come under attack by the Titans' Marasai mobile suits. An orbital battle ensues...

The storyline of this clip centers around a young Titans pilot named Jonathan, as he deals with the battle and his difficult personal affairs at the same time.

14 - SD Musha Gundam

As evil Zaku bandits terrorise the country of Ark. Rekka Musha Gundam comes to the rescue chasing their leader Mazaku for the Scroll of Light he had stolen. Stopping briefly at a teahouse, Rekka informs three young kids about the Seven of Light Gundam team he leads. Suddenly Mazaku's Gelgoog minions set the building on fire. After defeating the minions, Mazaku appears and uses the Scroll to transform into the gigantic Hadou Musha Mazaku. Rekka is easily defeated by his gigantic and powerful foe. The children prepare to surrender but Rekka stands up and cries out. His noble spirit causes the Scroll to abandon Mazaku and give Rekka its true power, gifting him with the Armour of Light. With his new power and cheered on by the children, Rekka slices Mazaku in half and saves the day.

The episode's kanji title "頑駄無 異歩流武" (ガンダム イボルブ) is actually a pun similar to Lady Mondegreen, and is read as "Gan Da Mu I Bu Ru Bu", namely "Gundam Evolve".

15 - "Newtype Challia Bull"

The short is a re-imagined version of an episode of the TV series with updated mechanical designs.

"Challia Bull was found to have the attributes of a Newtype during his activities in the Jupiter Energy Fleet. While doubtful of his own abilities, he is recruited and assigned by commander-in-chief Gihren to serve in Char Aznable's combat unit under Kycilia's command. Even as he senses the girl he met, known as Lalah Sune, to be something of a Newtype, the fierce combat with the Federation ace-piloted Gundam changed his convictions...."

Music
- Black Stars by Sumitada Azumano (Evolve 6, 7)
- SOLDIER -Kanashimi No Shi- by Chino (Evolve 8)
- Konnamon Janai! by Shoichiro Hirata (Evolve 10)
- TIME IS ON MY SIDE by LISA (Evolve 11)
- shift by Sachiko Tsujimoto (Evolve 14)
- Owaranu Mirai by Jiro Kawakami

Mobile Suit Gundam F91

Mobile Suit Gundam F91 (機動戦士ガンダムＦ91, Kidō Senshi Gandamu F91?) is a 1991 anime film, which was Gundam creator Yoshiyuki Tomino's attempt to launch a new Gundam saga, set thirty years after Char's Counterattack. He re-teamed with character designer Yoshikazu Yasuhiko and mecha designer Kunio Okawara for the occasion. The movie was first released in Japan on March 16, 1991.

Story

Renewed conflict breaks out after a generation of peace in this continuation of the "Mobile Suit Gundam" anime saga. To accommodate the growing population, the Earth Federation has built new space colonies. But the Crossbone Vanguard decides to seize these cities to help establish its extraterrestrial empire. Now, reluctant hero Seabook Arno and his Gundam F91 must lead a fierce struggle for survival.

Overview

Originally planned as a full-length television series, Gundam F91 hit a production snag due to staff disputes, and the project was stopped after the screenplays for the first thirteen episodes were written. It was then decided that what was made of the show would be condensed into a theatrical feature film. Condensing a story originally intended to be told over the course of fifty half-hour episodes into less than two hours of screen time required much of the original story to be cut.

The story of Gundam F91 revolves around teenage space colonist Seabook Arno, his girlfriend Cecily Fairchild, and the efforts of the Crossbone Vanguard militia, led by Cecily's grandfather Meitzer Ronah, to establish an aristocracy known as "Cosmo Babylonia". In keeping with Gundam tradition, the civilian Seabook is forced by circumstance to pilot the F91 Gundam, coincidentally designed in part by his estranged mother, Dr. Monica Arno.

The Gundam F91 story was fleshed out in much greater detail in Tomino's two-part novelization. Tomino's manga, Crossbone Gundam, is a direct sequel which takes place ten years after the events of the movie.

Also notable is the music composed for the film. Many of the occurring themes are amazingly similar to those of John Williams' score for Empire Strikes Back (1980) of the Star Wars saga. For example, the opening notations for the Crossbone Vanguard and the Imperial March are nearly identical, as are those between the F91 battle theme and Empire's escape from Bespin. This could be a play around on the remarks made by western audiences involving similarities between the Gundam series and Star Wars, but it's not been confirmed

Cast

Seabook Arno - Kouji Tsujitani
Carozzo "Iron Mask" Ronah - Masaki Maeda
Cecily Fairchild / Berah Ronah - Yumi Touma
Annamarie Bourget - Chie Koujiro
Zabine Chareux - Kiyoyuki Yanada
Leahlee Edaberry - Mari Yoko
Reese Arno - Sayuri Ikemoto
Dorel Ronah - Takeshi Kusao
Meitzer Ronah - Teppei Takasugi
Leslie Arno - Mikio Terashima
Monica Arno - Miyoko Shoji
Cosmo Eigesse - Takeshi Watabe
Theo Fairchild - Tamio Ohki
Birgit Pirjo - Yoku Shioya
Dwight Camry - Takehito Koyasu

Mobile Fighter G Gundam

Mobile Fighter G Gundam, known in Japan as Mobile Fighting Legend G Gundam (機動武闘伝Gガンダム, Kidō Butōden Jī Gandamu?), is a Japanese animated television series directed by Yasuhiro Imagawa (Giant Robo, Getter Robo Armageddon). Created to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the franchise in 1994,[1] it is the first of the Gundam series to be set in an alternate continuity from the original "Universal Century". The 49 episodes of the series aired on TV Asahi from April 1, 1994 to March 31, 1995. An English language version aired on American Cartoon Network's Toonami block from August 5, 2002 to October 16 of the same year.

The show takes place in "Future Century", a war that is fought in which a fighting tournament is held every four years between the space colonies. Each country sends a representative Gundam Fighter to fight on Earth until one is left, and the winning nation earns the right to govern over the colonies for the next four years. G Gundam follows Neo-Japan's representative Domon Kasshu in year 60 of that century, during the 13th Gundam Fight. He is in the fight both to win and to track down his brother, who had stolen a mysterious Gundam—the Devil Gundam (Dark Gundam in the American version)—from the Neo-Japan government.

The series takes a wildly different turn from the rest of the franchise. It has a number of shōnen elements: the main cast behaves differently,[clarification needed] and characters gain superhuman speed and strength through intense martial arts training. Though most of its Gundams feature super robot elements, such as heroic designs and voice activated special attacks, others still behave like real robots.

Plot

In F.C. 60, the 13th Gundam Fight begins. Domon Kasshu pilots the Shining Gundam as the representative of Neo-Japan, the Japanese space colony. Along with his crew member Rain Mikamura, he battles the other countries' representatives in order to earn the right to rule Earth and the colonies for four years for Neo-Japan. However, Domon seems to be more concerned with finding his brother and the stolen Devil Gundam.

Music
Openings

"Flying in the Sky" by Hironobu Kageyama
"Trust You Forever" by Yoshifumi Ushima
Endings
"Umi Yori mo Fukaku" (海よりも深く?, "Deeper Than The Ocean") by Etsuko Sai
"Kimi no Naka no Eien" (君の中の永遠?, "The Eternity in You") by Takehide Inoue

Mobile New Century Gundam X

After War Gundam X, known in Japan as Mobile New Century Gundam X (機動新世紀ガンダムX, Kidō Shinseiki Gandamu Ekkusu?), is an anime television series from Japan. It is a part of the Gundam franchise that started in 1979, but takes place in an alternate universe called After War Era. The series has 39 episodes, aired in Japan from April 5, 1996 to December 28, 1996 across TV Asahi's ANN stations and the anime satellite television network Animax. It was directed by Sunrise veteran Shinji Takamatsu (SD Gundam, The Brave of Gold Goldran, School Rumble), and the screenplay was written by Hiroyuki Kawasaki.

Overview
Following the success of Gundam Wing, After War Gundam X premiered on TV Asahi on April 5, 1996. This series was the third of Bandai's alternate universes. This series presented a scenario similar to the Universal Century's One Year War and showed what would have happened had the colonists dropped dozens of colonies instead of one and destroyed the Earth's surface, destroying most of the Earth's population and leaving the survivors in a ruined post-apocalyptic world.

The premise is the setting of Gundam X, which uses the After War (AW) calendar. The basis point of the After War timeline is the end of an apocalyptic war that resulted in the drop of virtually all space colonies onto Earth, devastating the planet and destroying 99% of humanity. The series begins in AW 0015, as the Earth is just beginning to recover. The star of this series is fifteen year-old Garrod Ran, a member of Vulture, a scavenger group that patrols the wasteland for profits, which is on a mission to find and save mistreated Newtypes in the world from those who wish to take advantage of them. The first episode's main storyline started off with Garrod doing a 'hold-up' to a reckless bandit who possessed a Mobile Suit. He was discovered by an old man (who may have had an influence) and assigned him to rescue a girl named Tiffa Adill from Vulture. As he rescues Tiffa, he discovers that she is a target of an unknown party and finds out that she is a Newtype. Then as the story goes on, they find the "15 year-old nightmare", the Gundam X. Gundam X also used the space war concept featured in previous Gundam series as a backdrop, with the New United Nations Earth and the Space Revolutionary Army as the opposing factions.

The series peaked at 6.2% of the viewing audience watching which averaged 4.3%[citation needed] during the first two quarters, about the same as Gundam series from the mid-90s onward. In October 1996, the third quarter was moved from a Friday afternoon 5:00 PM timeslot to a Saturday morning 6:00 AM timeslot, suffering declining ratings.

The sequel manga Gundam X: Under the Moonlight, released as a tie-in with the DVD release of Gundam X, proved popular and was extended from its initial run of six chapters.

Mobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOO

Mobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOO (機動戦士ガンダム MS IGLOO?) is a series of CGI feature short films of the popular Gundam meta-series. The series' storyline takes place during the One Year War of the Universal Century. Two series have been released under the original title: The Hidden One Year War, which was exclusively shown at Bandai Museum in Matsudo, Japan but has seen a limited release on DVD, and Apocalypse 0079, an OVA series released on DVD starting in April, 2006. The director of MS IGLOO is Takashi Imanishi (previously directed Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory), and Yutaka Izubuchi is the supervisor.

 
 
 
 

A sequel series, Mobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOO 2: The Gravity Front, was released on October, 2008.

Overview

Mobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOO

Taking place during the One Year War in the year U.C. 0079, MS IGLOO follows the missions of the crew of a former civilian cargo ship Jotunheim (named after the land of the giants in Norse mythology), which has been commissioned to become an experimental support ship by the Principality of Zeon to test various prototype weapons for combat use. However, the crews also served as witnesses to the cruelty of the war, as well as Zeon's path from initial successes to the eventual fate of defeat. What distinguished this show from others is that the main character of the series, Engineer Lieutenant Oliver May, is not a mobile suit pilot, but a technical officer who monitors and reports the weapons testing.

This show is the first to depict some events early in the One Year War that have not been shown in a Gundam anime previously, including Operation British (before the colony hits Earth), the Battle of Loum and the Earth Drop Operations. It also features some of the biggest mecha designer names in the industry, including Yutaka Izubuchi and Hajime Katoki.

Although it is the first Universal Century Gundam series since Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team, which was last released in 1999, MS IGLOO had been a relatively low-key project compared with contemporary Gundam series such as Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny. The Hidden One Year War has only seen a limited DVD release, though it has been available for rental in Japanese stores starting 2006. Apocalypse 0079 by contrast was given a mass release, and as a result it managed to reach a few Top 5 Anime DVD charts.

Mobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOO 2: Gravity Front

Mobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOO 2: The Gravity Front (機動戦士ガンダム MS IGLOO 2 重力戦線, Kidō Senshi Gandamu MS IGLOO 2 Juuryoku-sensen?) was announced on March 25, 2008. The series would consist of three 30-minute episodes and have its setting based on Earth and from Earth Federation's point of view. The 3D CGI will be in high definition, higher in quality than what was seen in the previous productions. The production staff is largely unchanged, though the mecha designers behind the design works in this series are Yutaka Izubuchi, Kimitoshi Yamane, Takuhito Kusanagi, Shinji Aramaki and Fumihiro Katagai. The super high-detail designs will appear in the U.C. Hardgraph line and be used as is in the animation.

The 1st episode "Shoot at that Death!" was officially released on October 24, 2008. The 2nd episode "King of the Land, Forward!" was released on January 23, 2009. The 3rd episode "Odessa, Iron Storm!" was released on April 24, 2009.

Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz

Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz, known in Japan as New Mobile Report Gundam W: Endless Waltz (新機動戦記ガンダムW: ENDLESS WALTZ, Shin Kidō Senki Gandamu Uingu: Endoresu Warutsu?), is the sequel to Mobile Suit Gundam Wing, both of which are set in the After Colony timeline, an alternate universe to that of the original Gundam series. Aside from being the continuation of the TV series, it also revealed details regarding the past of the Gundam pilots and the true objective behind Operation Meteor.

Endless Waltz was first produced as a three part OVA and later in 1998 a compilation movie was released which also contained new scenes. It was broadcast in the US on Cartoon Network on November 10, 2000.

The Endless Waltz redesign

In Endless Waltz, all of the major Gundams underwent a massive redesign by Katoki Hajime. The Gundams are still the same ones that were used at the end of the TV series, although changed from the original TV versions. The Gundams have more stylized and somewhat ostentatious appearances, reflected in the "Angel Wings" of the Wing Gundam Zero, the much more demonic appearance of the Gundam Deathscythe Hell, and the more dragon-like appearance of the Altron Gundam. Zechs Merquise also appears in the series piloting the new Tallgeese III, which has several similarities with the Tallgeese II. Despite the dramatically different designs of the Gundams, the story in the OVA retcons them. The redesigned version of Wing Zero is also very popular among fans (considered by many to be the true canonical version even) and is commonly dubbed as the "Wing Zero Custom."

Synopsis

It is the year After Colony 196, and the battles between Earth and the colonies (known as the Eve Wars, as they occurred in late December of AC195) have ended. Treize Khushrenada is dead, and OZ has come to an end. This gives birth to the Earth Sphere Unified Nation and the Preventers police force (led by Lady Une). Seeing they won't be needed anymore, the Gundam pilots (except Wufei) send their mobile suits into the sun on a giant disposal satellite.

However, this peace would not last; at around the 1-year anniversary of the Eve Wars, a rebellion occurs on the newly-completed colony, L3 X-18999. Led by seven-year-old Mariemaia Khushrenada (Treize's daughter), the rebellion kidnaps Relena Darlian, now the Vice Foreign Minister of the Earth Sphere Unified Nation (ESUN), during a diplomatic mission to X-18999. As the Gundam pilots investigate further, they discover that Mariemaia is merely a puppet controlled by her grandfather: Dekim Barton, a former adviser to martyred colony leader Heero Yuy. Dekim plans to use X-18999 to go through with the original Operation Meteor, as a contingency plan in case the ESUN doesn't comply with his demands. The original Operation Meteor involved crashing a space colony into Earth, and allowing the Gundams to take control in the ensuing chaos. The Gundam pilots must prevent Dekim from seizing power over the ESUN.

The Gundams are retrieved by Quatre and the Maganac Corps and returned to Earth's orbit. While Heero uses Wing Zero to battle Wufei (who has joined Mariemaia's army) in space, Duo, Trowa and Quatre use their Gundams to battle Dekim's forces on Earth.

In the end, Dekim is killed by one of his own soldiers, Earth and its colonies are at peace once again, and all mobile suits, including the Gundams, are forever destroyed.

Theatrical Version Changes

When Endless Waltz was released in theaters in 1998 as a lead-in to Gundam's 20th anniversary, several new scenes were added, adding approximately ten minutes of new footage to the story.

The titlecards and transitions between episodes were removed, making the three episodes into a single movie.

Many of the instrumental score cues have been shifted around from the OVA. Additionally, the OVA's ending theme, White Reflection, is replaced with a new theme, Last Impression, performed by TWO-MIX.
Duo's flashback is moved up to the shuttle flight, just before Heero's; in the OVA, it takes place as Trowa's Serpent fires at Duo's Leo.
There is a new scene which shows Zechs reading his field manual inside the Tallgeese III and his eventual reunion with Lucrezia Noin. This takes place after he destroys the Mariemaia Army headquarters at MO-3.
A new scene shows Sally Po, donning a stolen Mariemaia Army uniform, rescuing the hostages on X18999 (including Catherine Bloom and the circus manager).
The battle scene in Brussels, involving the Gundam Pilots, the Preventers, and the Serpents, is lengthened in comparison to the OVA.
Another new scene, taking place after Relena's impromptu speech, has Dorothy Catalonia appear in Brussels, convincing the citizens to heed Relena's words and do things for themselves if they want true peace.
Another additional scene features the damaged Wing Zero lying at the bottom of the sea, with an unconscious Heero inside the cockpit, following the battle against Altron. The Gundam then re-activates on its own, awakening its pilot in the process, and supposedly convinces Heero to complete his mission.

The individual character endings are changed to be longer and more elaborate, but remain generally the same in tone.
 
Manga Version Changes

Published in 1997, the manga version of Endless Waltz was handled by Koichi Tokita, the writer responsible for most of the Gundam Wing manga. While the manga cleaves most closely to the OVA, it has several additions and changes not present in either animated version. Please note that this list does not include minor dialogue changes.

 

There are minor costume changes throughout the manga. For example, Heero wears a different outfit in his flashback dream, while in the anime, he wore his outfit from the TV series.

The resource satellite that is launched into the sun is changed into Vulkanus, the mobile doll plant from Battlefield of Pacifists, another Gundam Wing sequel manga illustrated by Tokita. This fact is alluded to early on, but is more important just before the final battle when Lady Une suggests using the Virgos on Vulkanus to fight Dekim. Zechs flatly refuses the idea, going so far as to threaten Une's life if she makes the order, and insists that he'll handle things personally.

The scene where Trowa confronts Dekim (and is stopped by Wufei) is extended, in which Trowa claims that he took on Dekim's son's name as a show of allegiance to the Mariemaia Army. Dekim then boasts to the soldiers that the presence of two Gundam pilots proves that they are just. Interestingly, Dekim says that he harbors no ill will towards Trowa for his son's death.

Zechs calls Lady Une from a city street to ask for enrollment into Preventer, instead of coming to her office. Unlike the anime, the manga shows his face. Additionally, he knows about the existence of the Tallgeese III, and specifically requests it.

A brief scene shows a soldier telling Mariemaia about Heero and Duo's break-in, but she simply tells Relena that it's a minor disturbance; Relena, however, immediately knows that it's Heero.

In the anime, Duo recognizes Trowa as the Serpent's pilot because it uses Trowa's preferred tactic of heavy suppression fire. In the manga, Duo recognizes it because Trowa uses an acrobatic maneuver to dodge one of Duo's attacks.

Trowa's description of Operation Meteor is accompanied by a series of illustrations showing how the plan would work. Notably, the scene ends with an image of the original five Gundams, but re-imagined in Tokita's style. Though Wing Gundam appears the same as in the series, the other four combine elements of Katoki's "Customs" with the original versions, such as Gundam Heavyarms' beam gatling and Gundam Sandrock's shoulder missiles. However, just like the animated version, Tokita uses the Custom versions in all flashback sequences.

Dorothy appears at the beginning of the fourth chapter, watching the Serpents descend from her mansion. Her hairstyle, as well as the mansion, are inspired by Battlefield of Pacifists, in which she played an important role.

When Dekim, Mariemaia, and Relena arrive at the Presidential mansion, Relena has a brief flashback to a scene from Battlefield of Pacifists, in which Heero promised to be there whenever she needed him.

Wufei's flashback includes minor elements of the prequel manga Episode Zero, with Master Long disagreeing with Operation Meteor and asking Wufei to fight according to his own sense of integrity.

A new scene shows Zechs and Lady Une assessing the situation in Brussels before Zechs deploys. In addition to the event described earlier, this scene includes a cameo appearance by Dick Higasaki, the engineer from Tokita's popular spin-off manga G-Unit.

Wufei gets a brief flashback to Treize's death; as with the rest of Endless Waltz, this scene replaces the original Altron design with Katoki's.

Wing Zero and Altron's duel is more equal than in the anime as Wing Zero doesn't receive any noticible damage until the very end, when Heero actually allows Wufei to strike him down.

Dorothy appears among the crowd of civilians near Altron, as do the President and his granddaughter.
Some character endings are slightly different. Tokita's version features the strongest hints towards a relationship between Heero and Relena, as Heero stays on as her bodyguard, complete with a Secret Service-like suit. On a more humorous note, Duo's ending features him wearing a baseball cap with "Gundam 20th Anniversary" written on the front.