I am surprised it took me this long to get around to
Gundam Build Fighters. The series and it’s
sequel, Gundam Build Fighters Try, have both been available of Sunrise’s
GundamInfo Youtube page since they debuted a couple of years back. I was always curious to check it out but I guess
just never got around to them. What a
mistake that was. Gundam Build Fighters
took a concept that was risky with a franchise like Gundam and in the end,
struck me right in my heart as a fan of this decades spanning giant robot
franchise.
The series is set in present day, decades after the
initial boom of Gunpla (short for Gundam Plastic Models). Gunpla is everywhere now and is now
recognized as a world sport, both modeling and battling. A special system has been invented which can
allows builders and fighters to participate in Gunpla Battle, virtual
simulations where Gunpla can clash at their leisure. Sei Iori has been a Gundam fan since birth. His mother runs a Gunpla shop and his father is
a Gunpla building legend. But Sei isn’t
a fighter and his dreams of becoming a world champion like his father seem very
distant despite his love for Gundam.
That all changes when he meets Reiji, a mysterious boy who feels like he’s
from another world and has never heard of Gunpla Battle. But once Sei introduces him to it, Reiji is hooked
and he quickly commandeers Sei’s skills to build, manage and support a Gunpla
he can pilot. Oh and Reiji just happens
to be a Prince from another world that might have a strange connection to the
particles that power Gunpla battles…yeah just go with it, it’s hardly ever
brought up after the first time.
After finishing the first series, im kind of at a loss of
where to start talking. The plot? The
multitude of Gundams? The strange but
loveable cast? The annoyances that never
really cleared themselves up? The fact that I want this world to actually exist
and talk Gundam with everyone all day?
Oooooook, let’s take a breath.
Like I said, with so many emotions as to why I enjoyed
this series, I have to remember how this show should not have worked. I mean yes, Gundam Plastic Models have been
more the lifesblood of Mobile Suit Gundam than the shows themselves. Every time a new show rolls out, new models
appear for sale and Gundam’s popularity has thrived off of that. It got an especially added boost after Gundam
Wing took the US by storm in 2000 and unleashed it’s merch as well. But to make a series based off these popular
items and forgo Gundam’s usual war torn set up?
This was kind of attempted with the first alternate reality Gundam
Series, G Gundam, with Gundams used more for martial arts combat than a real war. I have mixed feelings about that series: love
the mechs but think the lead character is a waste of time and effort (Yes
Internet, I hate Domon Kasshu…deal with it).
So why did Build Fighters impress me?
Sei is a key factor.
In his first scene, showing a couple of customers around his familys
shop, he immediately goes into the full spec and historical details of the Wing
Gundam from Gundam Wing. That is
basically my inner Gundam fan on display there.
So excited, so thrilled, so happy to talk about it with others. He’s basically the little brother I didn’t think
I wanted in life but there he is. His
passion for Gundam is one people can understand as it isn’t different from ones
dedication to sports, which Gunpla Battle is recognized as I remind you. And he’s nowhere near as creepy as Gundam 00’s
Graham Acker…who let’s face it basically wanted to (CENSORED) a Gundam. Sei’s spirit drives many of the events of
this series and while he isn’t the best fighter, he is still a good teacher for
Reiji, who ends up becoming his best friend.
Yeah I mentioned Reiji is from a kingdom in another
dimension…really that isn’t really talked about much until right before the end
of the series and it’s rarely brought up before hand, everyone kind of just
ignores it. Reiji’s Prince status is
evident in his attitude which did make him irksome from time to time. At some points I felt like he never gave a
crap about Sei and his thoughts on Gunpla and just wanted to fight to win. But Reiji came around and found a friend and
even a family once he was taken in by Sei’s insanely hot mother, Rinko. Once Reiji figures out his deeper reasons for
enjoying Gunpla, he becomes Sei’s equal and voices his enjoyment of the battle
with pride and happiness.
The cast is as diverse as they come, especially since the
latter half of the series find Sei and Reiji in a Gunpla Battle World
Tournament. There’s the cat like
building genius Mao, my personal fav; Italian flirter Fellini; an American
Science Ninja (yes that’s a thing) Nils; a beautiful European child prodigy
Aila; and there’s even a Char knock off in the form of Tatsuya who takes on the
mantle of a legendary Gunpla fighter Meijin Kawaguchi. Oh and believe it or not, legendary Zeon Ace
Ramba Ral from the original Mobile Suit Gundam, is a main character, serving as
Sei and Reiji’s chief mentor in their journey.
You want more fan service, Episode 23 features a Gunpla festival with
cameo appearances from pretty much every chief Gundam character from the last
35 years, talk about whoa.
Next to Sei, the Gunpla battles are definitely my
favorite part of this series.
Immeidatley, I was naming off models left and right as this series has
no distinct set of suits. Nope, every
series in Gundam history is repped here in one way. And because this series is just that full of
imagination, we get special custom forms of beloved favorites like the Gundam
Mark 2, Deathsythe, Exia, Epyon, even non Gundams like Tallgeese, GM and
Goufs. It’s a total nerd gast seeing the
franchise clash in epic fashion. I was a
little worried when we got to the World Tournament just before the second half
of the series began as I was worried they were going to drag out the remaining
episodes of a relatively short series for a Gundam. But seeing the Gunpla in a battle royale,
even a race or test of various hilarity degrees alleviated my fears. And then we got some truly epic battles to
sate the hype. Sei and Reiji had so many
great back to back battles in the finals: their putting Nils in his place and
their battle with Fellini both stood out the most.
The only limits to how far this series can go with it’s
battle and mech choices are the limits of the staffs imagination. And I think that’s what I enjoyed the
most. It was so fun back in the day to
collect Gundam action figures and have Amuro’s RX-78 take on Heero’s Wing Zero
or Kira Yamato’s Strike Gundam. Build
Fighters is a Gundam fans playground, with a long library of mechs, both
original and custom to build from. I so
wanted this world to be a reality, this Yu Gi Oh meets Mech fighting
amazement. I felt so at home and
eventually sad that the series came to an appropriate end after 25
episodes. While I have begun watching
Gundam Build Fighters Try, ill admit that show will have to work a bit harder
to suck me back in since it picks up years later and there’s been no sign of
Sei, Reiji or their allies from the original series.
It’s been a long time since ive cared about a series this
much and of course it had to be a Gundam one.
Did I have problems with it? Oh
yeah. I was sick of Nils trying to use
science and statistics to win instead of having fun like everyone else…though
he got better after fighting Sei and Reiji.
Oh and I HATED the Tournament President who had a mysterious connection
to Reiji but refused to tell us why and just whine about it. We do learn the secret but it seems like such
a let down after such an angering build up I wish he had been replaced all
together…his assistant was pretty hot though and it was funny he originally met
her when she cosplayed as Sayla Mass from Mobile Suit Gundam.
I loved this series, faults and all. It’s the vision I have of Valhalla…within an
Anime Convention. It reminded me that it’s
ok to be a nerd and enjoy something you love so long as you don’t lose faith in
it. For me that’s Anime and chief of
those is Gundam. Gundam Build Fighters shouldn’t
have been a hit with me. It looks like a
kids show with Gundam meeting Yu Gi Oh.
But it’s more than just a kid friendly entry in the franchise: it’s a
love letter to fans of the legendary mobile suit from past to present. And it rocked for 25 straight episodes.
Yeah, it’s getting a 9/10…check it out and never let your
imagination die.
No comments:
Post a Comment