Rematch! Rewatching G Gundam

[Mark064]

Word is there's a new manga series where Domon trains a protege to represent Neo Japan in the 14th Gundam Fight. I'd love to have a look at that.

I can't find anything regarding a new G Gundam manga aside from the one in Gundam Ace which is just the TV version differently. However there is an old one shot from Comic Bon Bon from August 1995 which is "Mobile Fighter G Gundam Gaiden The Next Generation" This story features Domon's disciple Yugo Kagami piloting the Hyper God Gundam created by Professor Mikamura (I'm assuming Rain). The story from what I can gather looks to be involving who will be the next representative for Neo Japan in the 14th Gundam Fight. The only two other mecha that I can find appearing in the manga are Tenlow Gundam which I have no real data on aside it's from Neo Japan and the Black Gundam. The Black Gundam is piloted by Alan Mikasagi and belongs to the Mikasagi Corporation he has ambitions of ruling the world. The story seems to end with the Hyper God Gundam going into Hyper Mode and destroying the Black Gundam. I can only find a few tiny pictures:

Hyper God Gundam
A model of the Hyper God Gundam
Alan and the Black Gundam

[HellCat]

The fact that G made the characters have to work for their victories (well, Domon did kinda pull some things out of his rear later like God Shadow) is also why I dislike the bad comparisons people make between the show and Dragon Ball Z. No 'Power Level' nonsense here.

There's no 'Power Level' nonsense in Dragon Ball Z, though. This is a fault of FUNimation's dubs, but the idea of 'Power Levels' (which I assume is take from the 'sentou ryoku'/battle power that Freeza and his men use) isn't in Dragon Ball.


But hey, Shinjuku arc! I liked seeing that big meeting scene where Japan's soldiers discuss the plan as to how to deal with the Devil Gundam.

Fights in DBZ are very easy to predict. If the enemy is someone of note and you're not Goku or a Saiyan, have fun wasting your energy as you lob everything you have at the bad guy with no prize beyond getting to wet yourself as the dust clears to reveal he's at most got some crosshatch shading.

I found G to be more balanced about this. Domon for the first few episodes is going up against low level thugs and doing fine. But the likes of Master Asia and Schwarz show he's not ready to stand as the King of Hearts and that others in the tournament are a danger. His allies even seem to achieve Super/Hyper Modes independently. We basically know Domon will triumph at the end but the show does a good job of making him open to failure.

[JulieYBM]

Fights in DBZ are very easy to predict. If the enemy is someone of note and you're not Goku or a Saiyan, have fun wasting your energy as you lob everything you have at the bad guy with no prize beyond getting to wet yourself as the dust clears to reveal he's at most got some crosshatch shading.

Well, yeah, Gokuu and the other Saiyans are the only ones who actually fight or are the focus of the story past the Saiyan Invasion.

I found G to be more balanced about this. Domon for the first few episodes is going up against low level thugs and doing fine. But the likes of Master Asia and Schwarz show he's not ready to stand as the King of Hearts and that others in the tournament are a danger. His allies even seem to achieve Super/Hyper Modes independently. We basically know Domon will triumph at the end but the show does a good job of making him open to failure.

Aside from humiliating Freeza and the Gi'nyuus, Gokuu never actually succeeds at winning a fight on his own. Artificial Human No. 19? Heart virus. Cell? Admits he can't win, gives up. Cell Juniors? Exhausted from previous fight, has his ass handed to him. Yakon? A fly, hardly worth the mention. Vegeta? Let's down his guard and gets knocked out during a ceasefire. Majin Boo? Misjudges his foe and has to quit the fight. By extention, Domon wins far, far more fights as the main character of his series.

Gohan only ever defeated Cell (and that was with a peptalk from heaven), Trunks only ever defeated Fodder-Freeza and Great King Cold, Piccolo had Doctor Gero on the run but couldn't finish him, Cell, or No. 17. Vegeta's the only one with much of a winning streak, beating Kewi, Dodoria, Zarbon (after losing once!), and then stealth-killing Gurd, ReaCoom, Burta, and Jheese. Of course, after that he never wins another fight of significance, so go figure.

All-in-all, I'd say the only thing Kidou Butouden G Gundam proves is that it knows how to let it's main character win the vast majority of his fights.

[HellCat]

To be fair, G averages about a fight an episode whilst DBZ drags its fights out over several episodes at a time/adds filler fights. So Domon would have more fights because his show isn't padding them out to such a degree. G's formula is usually to give Domon or whoever two fights with an opponent; one unofficially to become aware of their special move and later an official match to reveal they've developed a counter.

However, that isn't consistent. Shinjuku for one is Domon getting his ass handed to him by his Master (in the final episode, he goes down with a single kick) and at most forcing him to retreat with the unreliable Super Mode. When his treachery revealed, Master Asia even only retreats out of pity towards Domon. In turn the Guyana Highlands arc is about Domon trying and failing to improve and at the same time helping his new allies advance. That of course pays off in the early stages of Neo-Hong Kong where Domon is clearly a happier and more focussed fighter, able to use his true ability. Again, the one stage I think is stretching it is the 'Domon vs Shuffles' matches where he starts pulling tricks out of nowhere. Though given the range of tricks his master had, that could be seen as him stepping up and following the same path. Domon creating his own techniques is certainly more powerful then just constantly trying to copy his mentor.

[HellCat]

Somehow after a rough week, the first half of the Guyana arc is a good pick me up.

I always found it an interesting choice that we aren't shown specifically why everyone went to Guyana, just shown Schwarz creating the situation that gets Chibodee there and left to assume he did the same with the others. Though given G's setting, I could easily see some computer system that exists to tell you where a specific Gundam is (though given we've already had a few plots about Fighters in hiding from their nations, maybe not).

Love the very 90's clothes in Chibodee's crew's flashback. Something I like about this arc is not only does it have the other Shuffles interact whilst Domon is in the background, we also get a good look at their support crews. Nastasha's scenes in particular really plant the seeds for what she does at the end and I love Raymond's goofy Butler MS. Seeing it run back to George with classic anime comedy sight gags is quite unique for a Gundam show and something that G does often. They're very overplayed but work when they appear in this show.

George's rival says he escaped, went to Master Asia and got DG cells. Always wondered how that worked. Did Master Asia, possibly with the help of Wong, engineer the whole situation? In contrast to how everyone got to Guyana, there's some things which could have been more clearly shown.

Death Master and Death Dragon are awesome designs, though I'm confused quite how they could be mistaken for very distinct Gundams when even the heads are still clearly Death Army. At least Dragon attacked in the night and had smoke and flames to hide it.

[JulieYBM]

I've probably mentioned it before, but I loved the flashing light work on the Chibodee episode of the Guyana arc. G Gundam isn't shy about going 70s-ish with the animation with some of its episodes and it really worked here. I believe Ootsuka Hou'chuu also had the chance to throw in some more whacky Engrish, which is always appreciated. "Gaddamu!!!"

Something I wish the series had been a little more consistant about was the Super Mode/Hyper mode aura. Sometimes it turned the Gundam solid gold (which was badass) and sometimes it didn't and I'm not convinced it was meant to mean the user hadn't perfected the form yet.

[HellCat]

I'm pretty sure it was foreshadowing. In the moment Domon activates it he's focussed on that specific do or die moment. The hue vanishes as soon as he switches to focussing on his anger and screaming he'll never forgive the enemy for what has angered him. It's only when he completes the training Schwarz gives him that he realises where he was going wrong and is able to freely use the form, keeping the gold. He learns that the secret is a calm focus free of the regrets of the past and the insecurities of the future, instead taking each passing second as the now that is full of potential.

[balofo]

http://img14.poco.cn/mypoco/myphoto/201 ... 26_000.jpg

Upgrades or enemies?

[AmuroNT1]

It says "New personal MFs for the Shuffle Alliance arrive!" and mentions the Guyana Highlands, so I guess maybe the others get their own Finals-exclusive upgrades?

[HellCat]

WOOOOOOOO!

[HellCat]

It's fitting that the news of upgrade Gundams comes as I reach the same spot in my rewatch. To be honest, I always felt God Gundam was something of a cheat. Domon gets a brand new machine but his team mates become just as powerful with their older ones? I know it all goes back to merchandising but them all getting upgrades in the comic will hopefully smooth that over.

One thing I do like about God Gundam is that the exit of Shining is a huge deal. Alot of Gundam shows just bring in a new machine and hand the old one down to a talented secondary. With G, this is a big deal for Domon and Rain. Domon in particular sees it like leaving an ally or brother behind ("Shining Gundam....I'm sorry, there just isn't time") and goes onto make a big deal that God Gundam isn't simply a new machine for him but Shining's reincarnation. I still prefer Shining (how the hell does that Core Lander drive down a street with those wings?) but they really make it matter in a way I don't think was matched again until 00. AGE tried to do it with Flit's view of Gundam but it mainly stayed in the sidestory stuff.

As a whole the 4 episode arc of escaping Guyana is one of my favourites and as a teenager I watched it over and over. It's nice to take a break from the kung fu stuff briefly to once again show military planning at work.

The final episode in particular stands out because I think it's the only time Master Asia is presented as an old man. Gone is the titan we've seen thus far, replaced with a desperate rambler who is lashing out. It gives him some humanity that will be important for later and I love that after the epic brawls we've just seen this is too men who can barely stand trading ineffective blows. The scene where both are locked crushing the other's head and just fall over is perfect.

Domon doesn't recognise quite who Schwarz is....if he'd stayed on the colony, he'd have watched Speed Racer as a child.

Love God Gundam blazing Master with its thrusters and the silliness of using the ropes to get halfway across the globe. The final episodes will pretty much directly contradict this but for me it's a benchmark moment. A bit like how loving Trans-Am Burst means 00 has you under its spell, your reaction to this pretty much says if you like G or not.

The G Files extra is interesting this time as Imagawa discusses at length his views on Domon's super mode, including why the gold came and went. I'd remembered him saying it was a nod to Saint Seiya but re-reading found he directly calls out the fear people will see it as a DBZ reference.

[JulieYBM]

The G-Files are so much fun. They're one of the best extras ever and I'm still kicking myself for not buying the Anime Legends box sets before they went out of print. Now I'm running the risk of another licensee not including them or the original credits on another release.

The Great War for Ulube's Family Name was probably my favorite bit from the G-Files. Naming him after Keiko Ishikawa from Star Trek: The Next Generation was something I hadn't known before.

[AmuroNT1]

Yeah, Imagawa's a huge Star Trek fan. If you need any proof, simply look at the Neo Japan space ships, which have the classic Enterprise shape but with spherical main hulls (making them look like the Pasteur from "All Good Things"). He actually inserted himself, in a Next Gen-era Starfleet uniform, into the show's second opening; he's part of the crowd surrounding Argo, IIRC off to the right side of the screen.

[HellCat]

Along the same lines, I really admire the UC ships the show sneaks in like the Gaws and Gunperry flying into Neo-Hong Kong. G had such a talent for inserting little secret nods like this, unlike most other AUs that seem to go "Like in UC! Remember, you liked it there?"

Though of course Wing has quite a few easter eggs itself.

[AmuroNT1]

Maybe that's just an Imagawa trademark; his versions of Giant Robo and Mazinger Z drew from the entirety of Yokoyama and Nagai's bodies of work and interpreted them in new ways. Rather famously, Shin Mazinger Impact finally introduced Kouji Kabuto's mother - who turned out to be a character from Nagai's manga Shameless School.

[Arbiter GUNDAM]

Along the same lines, I really admire the UC ships the show sneaks in like the Gaws and Gunperry flying into Neo-Hong Kong. G had such a talent for inserting little secret nods like this, unlike most other AUs that seem to go "Like in UC! Remember, you liked it there?"

Though of course Wing has quite a few easter eggs itself.

In fact, you'll see the Wing Gundam itself near the end.

[HellCat]

And here we go, it's part 2!

You know, I always felt the Devil Gundam just 'vanishing' at Shinjuku was silly. But the Kyral episode made me actually laugh out loud when the random boat he lands on does the same thing. What happened to the poor team of practicing rowers?

Back in the day I used to defend the clip show as one of the best I've seen. It still works well in context but rewatching it, it's a little embarassing how much animation gets reused.

"A kid in a Gundam spells nothing but trouble!"...I don't know who did the script translations but it seems they took that line for all it's worth

One of the interesting parts of the second half is it adds kids but somehow avoids the pitfall of the UC shows. Hoy and Ming aren't Shinta and Qum, they don't keep appearing where they shouldn't and allow us to see how Domon has matured. The only real exception might be the episode where Hoy gets involved with Chan's plan (heh) to steal a Gundam. Even then, POW! Right in da gut!

Reading the G Files this time is interesting because Imagawa apologises for all the backstory and such he's dropping that they failed to communicate in the show. Don't be sorry, sir. In the modern market, you intentionally keep that stuff out and hide it amongst guidebooks, DVD commentaries, video games and sidestories that reveal it whilst creating their own massive plotholes!

[JulieYBM]

One thing I always loved about the Hong Kong stuff was how they actually went to Hong Kong to study the look of the city. The unique look of the city in Kidou Butouden G Gundam really sticks out as a result. I also loved the use that Chinese vocal piece, however seldom it was used.

[InjuredPelican]

The entire Hong Kong arc was an interesting part of the show to be sure. After planet hopping for the whole first half, some static scenery is what the show needed to really get some character development in focus.

[HellCat]

5 months and I'm not done...real life is really hurting this rewatch project.

I'm surprised I forgot the boat of monks from 'Sai Saici In Love'. It's so daft and funny seeing it again. In fact, this is something I appreciate a bit more coming off all the UC stuff. The Sai episodes usually have alot of slapstick and such which wasn't always alien to the UC shows, despite what angry fanboys say. Plus I think Imagawa had a cunning plan behind all this that pays off in Sai's next episode.

Ah, Allenby. For those of us who like Domon but don't want to publically come out....did I say that out loud?

Again, something that's interesting to compare to UC. Allenby is clearly a twist on Four but in a way that she's her own character. So much better then all the tortured super soldiers that apparently come in the Make Your Own Gundam Show kit, wedged between the masked rival and finale super laser.

Given our earlier discussion, I watched the clown episode closely to see if it shed any further light on Finger attacks...not really. Everyone's shocked he does it in mimic but it's outside the Gundam and nothing really concrete is offered. I guess we just have to go with those novel tidbits.