Gundam? Nay. This is beautiful theatre.
From all my Mobile Suit experiences so far, including such series as G-Gundam, Zeta, 08MS Team, Seed, its spinoffs, Stardust Memory, I must say in slight tunnel vision that each series had its good and bad – in some, the good outweigh the bad, and vice-versa.
But what if Sunrise could straighten out all the plot device flaws of the past?
What if for once, they made a blend of all the best there was in Gundam?
Ladies and gentlemen, after waiting our hair grey since 2006, Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn.
In the trunk with you, woman.
Unicorn isn’t new. It’s not innovative. Terrorist force causes chaos in colony, Federation relief forces cause as much damage as they do good. Unwitting boy protagonist is thrown into the fray, a nearly impossible chain of events causing him to land in the cockpit of the newest mobile super-weapon. A Federation-aligned protagonist’s rivalry with a Zeonic ambitious and charismatic leader – hell, Full Frontal even has a mask and pilots a gym-slim Sazabi.
I wish I could chance across unmanned giant robots by wandering aimlessly.
They’re not subtle with the fact that they’re adopting a great amount from previous series at all. But the point is, these devices are iconic when it comes to Mobile Suit Gundam. We were expecting them. The main point here isn’t what Unicorn decided to use, but how it was used. I’m acutely reminded of Aorii’s post here – sometimes, it doesn’t take innovation to craft a delightful story.
Now, instead of giving you the play by play, because there’s no merit in spoiling anybody, I’ll highlight what’s been done right, contrasting it to a slip in the past. Looks like I’m going to be bashing Zeta Gundam again.
Point I – Physics and Dimension
How not to do it:
Image is self-explanatory.
This momentum from this punch would normally mean countless tonnes of kinetic force that would destroy my arm and crush you in an instant, but why physics when you can badass?!
If g-forces existed in the past, all our favorite Gundam characters would be splattered all over the walls of their cockpits in seconds.
How to do it:
Even Marida gets some smothering action. I’d like some smothering there, if you know what I me-
A rapidly-inflating, rapidly-deflating airbag that systematically activates when an impact is inevitable, which then quickly makes itself scarce so that it doesn’t block the pilot’s line of sight.
When high-powered beams are flying around, people are bound to get incinerated. A fact that they’ve finally stopped dodging (Though Nicol in SEED did melt).
Given a mobile suit’s nuclear reactor, shooting one directly should result in an explosion like this.
This one really struck me.
With the advent of so many series they’ve finally realized space exists on three axises. You’ll notice that in the past everything in Gundam exists on one plane in space – there’s a properly defined ‘right-side up’ and ‘upside-down’; all battleships and mobile suits heads and control bridges point towards the same direction, and if the earth’s nearby their legs are usually pointed towards it. This is of course impossible and very illogical warfare-wise; in space combat, one would want to utilize every axis to be able to attack enemies on any angle. Marida’s Funnels illustrate this; though she obviously isn’t the first funnel-user, the camera-work in these scenes really give you a greater sense of dimension.
Since the gravity in colonies is artificial, it’d make sense to use instances of zero-gravity to man’s advantage – it gives a lot of opportunities to minimize the amount of space needed for facilities, as seen in those first two shots. Ingenious stuff.
Point II – Protagonist’s Teenage Angst
How not to do it:
Now that I think about it, Kamille wasn’t that unwilling at all.
How to do it:
“Say that you need me! Then I’ll-”
“I don’t need you.”
Okay, I’m joking a little here, I laughed out loud in this scene, with how blunt MinevaAudrey was. Still, Banagher didn’t come off as insane. He followed Audrey because of a strong newtype attraction and tries to deal with an inexplicable yet powerful urge to stay around her. It’s definitely illogical to throw everything away and follow somebody who claims to be an important figure that can stop a war, but there’s a psychic element in this that doesn’t understand rationality.
How not to do it:
How to do it:
Banagher programs Haro to start beeping to imitate a time bomb-
He kicks Haro away, directing Marida and co’s attention upwards, grabs Audrey, jumps to the next platform and kicks away the pursuer-
He then proceeds to catch Haro, all in one movement.
Marida, an enhanced human easily capable of jumping two-three stories pursues-
But Banagher’s awesome break-dancing dodges all of her blows.
Almost Banagher, almost! I can see it! Keep pulling!
He proceeds to throw her off the elevator.
The beauty of it all is that no Marida was harmed in the creation of this scene – Banagher managed to save the princess and thwart Marida without even hitting her at the same time. He’s quite the superhero.
Yes, I realize none of this is humanly possible for Banagher, unless the academy he goes to is secretly the School of Master Asia, but it sure was fun to watch. Definitely beats Kamille’s blind rushes. It offsets my physics point a little, but hey, nobody noticed. I mean, I was grinning like a schoolboy when I saw Marida jump three stories and run at bullet-train speeds.
Also, might I direct your attention towards Marida’s fashion sense? It sure beats these three’s.
Point III – Pleasing Color Palettes
How not to do it:
Jarring use of green, yellow and red. In its defense though, this is a forced screencap. G-Gundam does fairly well normally with its color palettes, despite being an old series.
How to do it:
I’ve whipped together a few shots that show a few of the prevalent colors in the screencap. These are the exact colors extracted by the Photoshop dropper, and are by no means my own eye approximations.
Notice the soft colors. Many scenes are in shades that are very comfortable to watch. The music sets a wonderful mood for these colors as well. While you watch Unicorn, pay special attention to when the music shifts or starts and how it sounds. Rather, you probably don’t have to pay attention to that, as it will be delightfully apparent.
But then we have a shot like this – sharp yellow, green, red, white, it’s as jarring as the first screencap – But at this point in the episode it works wonderfully well. Of course, I’m not saying Unicorn is the first series ever to skilfully manipulate its color palettes – But there aren’t many that can make it so pleasing on the eyes, and so drastic in difference. The music is upbeat; this is the climax of the pilot. Soft colors aren’t called for anymore. We hear the colors – it’s very synesthetic.
Point IV – Cultural Insensitivity
How not to do it:
How to do it:
You know that monotone mechanical female voice that tells the pilot the status of their giant robot/space battleship? In Unicorn, they got somebody who can speak bona fide English to voice those over. No more silly Engrish. As expected from a series slated for international release. Sunrise is getting big, but I prefer not to ponder their powers.
Point V – Omigawd it’s Zeon get in da Gundam
The climax of a Gundam first episode usually involves the protagonist climbing into the iconic Mobile Suit for the first time and fighting back invaders. Usually this involves them climbing into the cockpit and figuring out how to beat people up with it with prodigious speed. That’s okay, but…
How to do it:
“People are different from animals.”
Was there anyone else Banagher could’ve met in this cockpit that would make this scene any more impactful than the man who would never acknowledge him? I won’t spill their relation, but here’s where it becomes full circle.
They reconcile and Banagher yells tearfully – a very Darth Vader-esque scene.
Kanosei no kemono.
Sunrise proceeds to give the fans exactly what they wanted to see.
Well, not exactly what I wanted to see. He didn’t need to break the Kshatriya’s fingers, for goodness’ sake. Banagher needs to learn how to treat a lady’s hands.
By now, I don’t think I need to give a verdict. You all know how I think. Go and watch it if you haven’t already. It’s a great experience. Think Avatar; we all know that it’s not the most original story, trying to push Dances with Wolves out of our heads while watching it, but it’s damn wonderful eye candy (Unicorn is in glorious HD) while having a lovable storyline.
Or lovable characters. I’m 110% sure now that I’ve some droopy-eyed fetish.
One thing though; if you remember my initial reaction to Zeta Gundam, you’ll understand my fears here. I liked its pilot episode. Albeit not for the picture-perfectness of Unicorn, but I was entertained. My feelings for Zeta gradually deteriorated as the series went along – something that would utterly wreck me should it happen to Unicorn. I await episode 2 with bated breath.
Ningyo
Related posts:
February 21st, 2010 at 8:15 pm
Oh my you fallen to marida cruz hahaha how about haman-sama? don’t forgot with her
LOL dropy eye-fetish
can they make a better end although it’s just eps 1 ;_;
February 21st, 2010 at 8:28 pm
I was wondering what Unicorn was. Anyway, I enjoyed reading the post even though I haven’t seen any Gundams. The analysis of color palettes was especially interesting. It’s also definitely something that tends not to be discussed much, so I’m glad you gave it attention.
Lol at Gundam Zebra and Gundam Cobra.
February 21st, 2010 at 9:02 pm
LOL stop hating on Zeta hehehe. You really need to relax and come to terms with the phenomenon that is LOLTOMINO
http://ghostlightning.wordpress.com/2009/07/10/loltomino/
That said, I’m not excusing him for his um, eccentricities. It’s just inherent in his work. I don’t blame you if you have no patience for him though LOL.
It’s good to look forward to progress in direction and storytelling in Unicorn.
February 21st, 2010 at 10:39 pm
It is interesting, but you haven’t seen Char’s Counterattack. In that one, a lot of the scientific accuracy things that you mention actually happened, also in Gundam F91. I don’t like the fact that Unicorn didn’t stick with the visual style of the original Tomino Gundam series, like Zeta ZZ and Char’s, because those ARE Gundam canon, Unicorn’s status of canon in my mind is dubious. Also, they really retconed a lot of newtype things that never existed in the original Gundam series. Judau, the most powerful newtype, seen in ZZ, couldn’t jump two stories. Also, the whole fashion sense thing was just because it was the 80s when they made the damn series! Overall, based on the screenshots, this series looks like Seed superimposed on the world of ZZ and Char’s Counterattack. I wish they stayed a little more true to the style of the trailblazers, but also taking more innovative approaches, like with the way they reanimated 60% of Zeta Gundam for the movie trilogy a few years ago. Check that out, and you’ll see that good color palletes or not, they could have made a gorgeous looking show, without alienating the hard line Gundam freaks like me.
February 21st, 2010 at 11:23 pm
I almost didn’t want to read or look through this post because I’m waiting for my copy to arrive… But well you’ve kept it pretty spoiler-free and an interesting read. I’m not one to notice colours, so even the switch is supposed to be jarring, I wouldn’t have noticed ^^;
Yeah, from what I gather it does look like another kid who got thrust into another Gundam, forced to pilot it and fight a rival mobile suit pilot that’ll be on his ass the whole series. I hope they cut the excessive filler episodes much shorter since they only plan for much fewer episode count (6, is it?)
February 22nd, 2010 at 9:45 am
Ah at least there aren’t any fist fights like zeta haha :D Nice review of the Unicorn without the spoilers!! Very wonderful read. And kshatriya’s hand got crushed in the first ep?! Ouch…..better not do that to your girlfriend of wife lol…
As a side track. if I am not mistaken, G gundam should have the most number of gundams…even my country’s gundam is inside (in glaring red and white lol…)
Lets hope unicorn won’t repeat the mistakes of the previous series!
February 22nd, 2010 at 2:10 pm
Atleast talk about that very cool jegan…those ReZEL’s really fail, can’t even damage one kshatriya when there were like 6 or 7 f them.
And they removed the scene of charlie breaking the cage like a beast showed in the trailer.
Why does the cockpit need to transform too when charlie changes to NT-D…it’s transformation also made it look like it’s empty inside. The beam from the fin funnels curved when it transformed too…just like those rangers having invulnerable henshin time.
The beam rifles also look more like beam sabers…look at how that geara doga was sliced.
February 22nd, 2010 at 4:43 pm
woow……this series looks interesting, even though the gundam shining like a model of molecules colliding together to perform the big bang. But hey, you’re bound to expect continuing new series of gundams to become better and more appealing than what it used to be (Zeta). Taking into account of realism makes that much more creative and more engaging, unlike how it always have to be so unrealistic that makes the series almost an entire joke.
God that zebra gundam made me crack ahaha…….typically it almost reminds me of Zoid or liek transformers.
February 22nd, 2010 at 6:04 pm
@moemoekyun
Of course, I’d never forget Haman-sama. My love is boundless, there’s easily enough for all of them >:3
Well, I think by the ‘better end’ everyone is asking for they’re thinking of Marida and Banagher’s fight playing out. Actually seeing Destroy Mode in action. That would be splendid to watch, but I think, from a dramatic perspective, this was the perfect place to end the first episode. Here they’ve created an excellent cliff-hanger, and I think the very fact that people are saying they should’ve included the actual fight means they’ve succeeded. At least, it means everyone’s in for the second episode.
@Yi
Yes, I was thinking you’d take notice of the palettes. You were one of the few people that came to mind while I was making them, for some reason.
G-Gundam gets more ridiculous. Spain has a Gundam with a body shaped like a bull head, Holland’s is a giant windmill, Denmark has a mermaid, Portugal has a clown. France’s Gundam hangar is shaped like a giant snail. I guess development teams have actually visited other countries since then.
@GL
Relaxing is the last thing I can do. Why do you think I’m a teenager? For the angst, man.
How is it that you always telepathically know immediately when I make a Mobile Suit post? Masaka… Newtyp-
Well, I can see how Tomino’s style can be seen as endearing. Still, it just doesn’t agree with me in the end, because I can’t discard my longing for verisimilitude (well, romantic verisimilitude). I just find it so important for real robots, because it furthers the realization of an impossible fantasy. Maybe I’ll be able to enjoy it once I grow out of my skeptic teenage phase. It’ll still be hard though, because I’ll never be able to get anyone to watch with me.
@muse2
I was waiting for somebody to tell me that there’d be notable nods towards physics as well in other later series and movies. It wasn’t a possibility I could eliminate, so I called it, but then guiltily pressed the post button anyways.
Is that so? I have seen Char’s Counterattack, but very, very long ago, as a tiny lad. As such, I don’t remember it at all, but I’ll definitely have to go commend it sometime if it does. Didn’t Amuro push against a falling Axis with his Nu Gundam though? That sounded like a pretty big breach of physics.
I thought Kamille was said to be the most powerful Newtype, based on director interviews? Anyhow, Marida’s a Cyber Newtype, so I think her abilities do have at least some form of base. Picking out her awesome jump was more a thing I had to do – I doubt Banagher would be able to jump half that height. I don’t think Unicorn deviates too far from the original UC canon – It is meant to be UC revisited, and tastes a lot more of the UC than the CE. SEED was a tactless ripoff of the original series; Unicorn is much more tasteful.
Despite the movies’ good reception, I’m still mulling over watching it. I didn’t like Zeta on a whole, but I did like what Tomino did in the ending.
@rob
It is six episodes. Filler episodes? In a six episode series? I would kill.
The general premise is the same, but with how much of a B-A Banagher is, his exploits will probably be interesting. Actually, he’s like Kamille in some ways – which is why I fear so much for my continued liking of this series. Oh well, at least I didn’t have to go through four thousand episodes until I finally got to see Marida for thirty seconds.
You probably would’ve, because the prevalence of soft colors was so apparent. Even if you hadn’t, you’d have at least remarked something like ‘this looks damn nice’.
@chubbybots
Fistfights are okay, in moderation. It was the same with Zeta; I was actually entertained by the fistfights at first. It’s just that when they get out of hand I need to step in and criticise how ridiculous it is.
Yeah, I guess a superman like Banagher would be bad at handling soft things like hands. I feel for Audrey. Kind of.
I think so, but then again SEED has a ridiculous amount as well, with all its little spinoffs. Let’s not forget the Hyperion, the Dreadnought, all the Astrays, these new Nebula Blitz and Gale Strike guys…
@hikariman
Ehehe, invulnerable henshin time…
Oi, that Methuss looking ‘very cool’ unit with the red beams is the ReZEL. The Kshatriya was pimpin’ Jegans in the beginning. And of course they couldn’t touch Marida, what did you expect? She’d be fsking the Unicorn something good if he weren’t the main character. The only one who could touch her is me. Zing.
Weren’t transformable cockpits already present in Red Snake’s Zeta? And yeah, I guess the NT-D henshin does look a little hollow. It’s still mad sexy, so I can’t complain.
Pretty sure they’ve grown out of their Geara Doga’s now and that one that was cut up was a Geara Zulu. But yeah, Marida’s funnels were cutting through the colony as well. That is laser-like, I guess. I don’t mind it too much.
@mat
Right – A studio that successfully survives through the times is bound to keep improving on its series. More so, it changes depending on popular contemporary plot tropes; as such, I think that’s why I’m finding Unicorn so attractive. Possessing the charm of the old UC series, but made in our generation for our generation, you know? And yes, verisimilitude is just so important when it comes to real robots. Because the realness of it is key, adhering to some degree of common sense physics is just so important in furthering the fantasy.
Yeah, G-Gundam’s hilarious. Refer to my reply to Yi; there’s the craziest stuff in there. Still, Master Asia’s final moments are very impactful/memorable.
February 23rd, 2010 at 7:37 am
lol@Wong Yun Fat..
WONG YUN FAT!
Lol. I don’t know what’s so funny. But I’m still laughing! Hah!
Pardon my lack of intellectual comments these days… :p
My brains on the road of recovery from CNY biscuit overdose.
February 23rd, 2010 at 7:01 pm
[...] Mobile Suit Z Gundam) as Ningyo, there’s a lot of good things in his analysis of what Unicorn did well in relation to older Gundam shows (Ningyo 2010/02/21) Possibly related posts: (automatically generated)Let’s Just Get This Year [...]
February 24th, 2010 at 6:14 pm
@blur
It’s okay. I laughed at first too. Apparently Japan thinks that we love Chow Yun-Fat so much that if we had to elect a Prime Minister it would definitely be him.
And it’s alright blur, a blurbomb doesn’t need to be philosophized, it just needs to have its characteristic impact.
I obviously mean that with the best of intentions.
February 24th, 2010 at 11:47 pm
[...] (particularly Mobile Suit Z Gundam) as Ningyo, there’s a lot of good things in his analysis of what Unicorn did well in relation to older Gundam shows (Ningyo 2010/02/21) Leave a Comment No Comments Yet so far Leave a comment RSS feed for [...]
February 28th, 2010 at 6:28 pm
Gundam Unicorn has made me happy in so many ways. I am happy that the gundamjack plot device not been rehashed. I am happy that older-styled character designs look fabulous with present-day technology. I am happy that Sunrise finally stopped neglecting mechanical detail in its flagship sci-fi franchise. All in all, I am a VERY happy camper after those orgasmic 54 minutes.
What I am NOT happy about is the realization that the next episode would not arrive for many, many months. The outstanding performance of the first episode only serves to build up my anticipation and cut down on my already diminutive patience. Why must good things take time to produce?
Your reflection on the first episode has been a joy to read, and I look forward to your thoughts when the next episode arrives!
March 2nd, 2010 at 2:26 am
@Chag
Orgasmic is the perfect word, my man. I lapped it all up like a good fanboy. I suppose that’s what it means to be UC; real-er robots, as opposed to CE or whenever 00 takes place. I may have to withdraw all my claims as to a better grasp of physics once we see NT-D in action, but so far, no Gundam in Unicorn has yet to sweep away an army in seconds.
Rather, I think it rather swell that good things take time to produce; it really builds up the excitement for when we finally get what we want. Or maybe that’s just the masochist in me talking. At any rate, it’s at least a solid 50 minutes long; if it were 18 pages weekly like Jump manga then I’d be peeved, but I think at 50 minutes it’d be able to maintain good coherence.
Thanks. As the biggest Marida fanboy right now I’ll be sure to hound the series.
March 9th, 2010 at 8:19 pm
*cries really loud* nooo ningyoooo!!!!!!! Not more Gundam!!!!!!! Damnit!!! lol
March 10th, 2010 at 1:24 pm
I’ve said it once before – lol at the ridiculousness of how unrealistic anime used to be. The concepts of yore were definitely amusing while “serious”. Hard to take a zebra and cobra gundam seriously, but then again, this was borne from the era of transforming from questionably homosexual flamboyant blondes into still questionably homosexually suggestive muscle men with green battle-armored tigers; let’s not forget strange teen-aged dinosaurs who can skateboard.
March 11th, 2010 at 2:14 am
@FaS
I had to do it. Unicorn is the series of the century, and Marida Kruz totally drowns me in her droopy eyes.
@radiant
Oof, I’m sorry to say your references flew right over my head. You did remind me of He-man though, he had a fabulous ‘do and always seemed to be in a pink shirt… Not sure if he was ever coupled with a green tiger though. Teenage dinosaurs blow my mind though, how in the name do you market that as serious?
G-Gundam did totally make up for its nonsense with Domon and Master Asia’s final battle. That’s one of Gundam’s best moments right there.