Sony Pictures registers Gundam movie domains

[Strike Zero]

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/20 ... y-pictures


Oh, boy.

[Dark Duel]

Well now, this could be interesting. Or it could be another complete disaster.

[HellCat]

http://www.animenewsnetwork.co.uk/news/ ... y-pictures

I'm hopeful for this to work out.

[Destiny_Gundam]

Let me crush some hopes and dreams for once.

Companies license domain names like this all the time. It usually amounts to nothing.

[Toxicity]

Well, mecha in hollywood has certainly been a trend in recent years. Just to name a few off the top of my head; Iron Man, District 9, Avatar, and Transformers have all included or featured mecha and all done very well, with many having additional productions in the works already.

I'm not saying you're wrong about this type of stuff being mentioned once and never again, it certainly does happen often, but given the current trend, there's no time like the present if Sunrise wishes to attempt another live action or CGI/animated production for the west.

[ShadowCell]

threads merged.

[Destiny_Gundam]

Well, mecha in hollywood has certainly been a trend in recent years. Just to name a few off the top of my head; Iron Man, District 9, Avatar, and Transformers have all included or featured mecha and all done very well, with many having additional productions in the works already.

I'm not saying you're wrong about this type of stuff being mentioned once and never again, it certainly does happen often, but given the current trend, there's no time like the present if Sunrise wishes to attempt another live action or CGI/animated production for the west.

We'd get that Robotech movie first if that was the case. Gundam doesn't have the same level of mass market appeal.

[Homeless]

Let me crush some hopes and dreams for once.

I don't care about this particular development, I just want to say it is refreshing to see the MechaTalk staff completely upfront and honest about its reaction to every conversation started on the board.

[bullethead]

Well, we'll see if it ever gets out of pre-production. If it does and they have a good writing/directing staff, it might have a chance to do well.

[ShadowCell]

Let me crush some hopes and dreams for once.

I don't care about this particular development, I just want to say it is refreshing to see the MechaTalk staff completely upfront and honest about its reaction to every conversation started on the board.

we can't help it if they're so tasty

[Toxicity]

I don't care about this particular development, I just want to say it is refreshing to see the MechaTalk staff completely upfront and honest about its reaction to every conversation started on the board.

Even if it means potentially killing the discussion before it even begins or completely derailing the thread? Me too, I love forum drama. It gives me something to laugh at while I'm bored at work.

I have a hard time believing that Robotech has a larger following or market base in the west than Gundam, even despite the latter being essentially killed by poor marketing decisions. I see far more Gundam games and DVDs on the shelves of electronics stores, and I don't think I've ever seen a Robotech model kit or action figure anywhere in my life. Gundam may not be flourishing in the west, but to the average guy who isn't familiar with either franchise, I'm willing to bet he'd learn of Gundam's existence well before Robotech's because Sunrise/Bandai actually make things with their IPs rather than letting them sit stagnant for decades hoping that whoever owns Battletech this week will take a shot at using the Unseen designs.

[Chris]

Even if it means potentially killing the discussion before it even begins or completely derailing the thread? Me too, I love forum drama. It gives me something to laugh at while I'm bored at work.

I have a hard time believing that Robotech has a larger following or market base in the west than Gundam, even despite the latter being essentially killed by poor marketing decisions. I see far more Gundam games and DVDs on the shelves of electronics stores, and I don't think I've ever seen a Robotech model kit or action figure anywhere in my life. Gundam may not be flourishing in the west, but to the average guy who isn't familiar with either franchise, I'm willing to bet he'd learn of Gundam's existence well before Robotech's because Sunrise/Bandai actually make things with their IPs rather than letting them sit stagnant for decades hoping that whoever owns Battletech this week will take a shot at using the Unseen designs.

What discussion? Domain registrations mean nothing by themselves, and all this thread will probably turn into is people just posting all their assumptions and wishlists. There's no news here of anything actually being announced.

As for your second point about Robotech, you're ignoring that it has 15 years on the airing of Wing and contains that same nostalgia appeal for an entire generation of fans that Transformers does. Gundam shone brightly here very briefly with Wing, but it faded away after that. You see more Gundam DVDs and games sitting on store shelves, but that's exactly what they're doing...sitting there. Also, just because you see some Gundam merchandise and not Robotech, your personal experience alone isn't representative of any trend.

[Strike Zero]

Putting the issue of dwindling popularity aside, one has to at least consider that Gundam has been a much more active presence in the West than Robotech over the course of the past decade. SEED, DESTINY, 00, Trailblazer and Unicorn were all released here, whereas the last visual production Robotech managed to give us was The Shadow Chronicles. Nostalgic appeal is all well and good, but it doesn't change the fact that the Robotech franchise has essentially been dead in the water since 2006.

However unlikely a Hollywood Gundam production may be, it still seems more likely to happen than a Robotech one.

[Chris]

Putting the issue of dwindling popularity aside, one has to at least consider that Gundam has been a much more active presence in the West than Robotech over the course of the past decade. SEED, DESTINY, 00, Trailblazer and Unicorn were all released here, whereas the last visual production Robotech managed to give us was The Shadow Chronicles. Nostalgic appeal is all well and good, but it doesn't change the fact that the Robotech franchise has essentially been dead in the water since 2006.

However unlikely a Hollywood Gundam production may be, it still seems more likely to happen than a Robotech one.

Active, but in a very small way. SEED was sentenced to a terrible timeslot halfway through, DESTINY didn't even air in the U.S. and Unicorn is now available only from Right Stuf. And it's been more than six years since the last release of a Gundam game here that didn't have Dynasty Warriors in the title. The only bright spot in the last few years is 00 airing on Syfy, but that hasn't helped AGE get aired here, and Syfy doesn't even have an anime block.

Don't discount the power that nostalgia has. Aside from Transformers, look how much money is made in profiting on the nostalgia that Americans have for the 80s, especially with video games. Robotech is part of that culture (no pun intended). Gundam isn't and can't tap into that power. Plus, as mired as it is now in development hell, Robotech at least had a big star behind it in the form of Tobey Maguire. And if he couldn't get the Robotech movie off the ground, what hope does Gundam have?

[Strike Zero]

Well, that all depends on how much weight Bandai would be willing to put behind it. A high-budget live-action Gundam movie would most probably be just as marketable in Japan as it would be in the United States, if not even more so.

[azrael]

As mentioned, domain registrations mean nothing. It could be nothing more than Sony sitting on the name just to resell it later or they might do something with it. Keep in mind domains get bought up routinely without anything done. It could also mean Sony has bought up distribution rights or they are planning on doing something. Unless a press release comes out, it's nothing more than domain parking.

[Toxicity]

I'm not ignoring anything, I'm well aware that robotech aired around the same time as G1 and I never tried to deny that. I just think that if robotech has the following you guys claim it to, a following that is comparable to transformers, don't you think that HG would've noticed and made some more stuff to appeal to this crowd?

I also never implied that my own personal experiences regarding what i've seen on store shelves were anything more than just that. Please don't label me as one of those types of guys who think their opinion is fact just because we're on opposite sides of this discussion.

Edit: damn my fat fingers and this touchscreen phone.

[Destiny_Gundam]

I just think that if robotech has the following you guys claim it to, a following that is comparable to transformers, don't you think that HG would've noticed and made some more stuff to appeal to this crowd?

They made Shadow Chronicles. It didn't end well.

I don't think Harmoney Gold has the resources to do much of anything, but I could be wrong.

Anyways, what Chris said is right, especially about the Star Power. It's not rare for Hollywood people to say how much they like anime. Robin Williams loves Evangelion, James Cameron likes Battle Angel, the Wachowskies like Akira, and even Zac Effron says he likes Full Metal Panic. When has anyone in Hollywood said they like Gundam?

However I suppose there's one way it could happen. I don't know which studios are tied to these, exactly, but if ones other than Sony have the rights to Robotech and Voltron, I can see Sony going for Gundam if they really wanted to make a giant robot movie with a name that was big at one point. But with the way Bandai is with Gundam, it might be cheaper to make their own original giant robot movie.

And I'd be all for that. I just care if it's a movie with giant robots. The Gundam name attached to it doesn't matter. I wouldn't rush to the theater any faster if it was called Mobile Suit Gundam: Pacific Rim.

Speaking of, I think how well Pacific Rim does will be a major factor in whether or not we get something like a Gundam movie.

[Toxicity]

Syd Mead maybe? He did bunch of designs for Turn A after all, but I doubt he has the same level of influence (or money, oh wait those are the same thing) as some of the others you mentioned. Not that i think sony or sunrise would need his or anybody else's money if they are actually serious about any of this.

[Deacon Blues]

I think Gundam has the potential to reach out to scifi and action fans here in States if it is done well. They'd probably have to go with a team approach, but if it were an entirely separate universe of itself, perhaps it would work well. Muddle it with nods to other works and we're posing a problem.