T5W#193-Top 5 Missed Opportunities in Gundam

I think it goes without saying that I love Mobile Suit Gundam.  Without Gundam Wing to start it off for me, I wouldn’t be the Anime fan I am today and who knows, maybe this blog might’ve been given a different name.  However, as much as I love the franchise, it isn’t perfect and I don’t pretend to think that it is.  Gundam may have several shows and characters near and dear to my heart.  But what about the times it either messed up royally or never took advantage of a solid opportunity?  To appreciate a fandom fully, one must accept the flaws as well as the strong points.  So to close out Top 5 Wednesday’s Gundam Month Mark III segments, todays list will be covering the Top 5 Missed Opportunities in Gundam…and I point them all out with love, not malice.

#5-Never revisiting Christina Mackenzie

Im well aware that before Gundam 0080 we had a few female Gundam pilots in Sayla Mass, Emma Sheen and Roux Louka to name a few.  Chris Mackenzie has always been one of my all time favs for more than just her drop dead gorgeous looks.  She’s a great character and the fact that she managed to pilot a Gundam intended for Amuro Ray speaks volumes to her level of pilot capability.  Sadly, Chris was shipped off back to Earth at the end of Gundam 0080 and hasn’t been seen or heard from since.  Im sure plenty can debate her overall importance in the grand scheme of the Universal Century, but Chris deserved more than just a place in one of the best Gundam entries in the franchise.  While I doubt we’ll ever see her return in any UC projects, I can always dream we’ll see my red headed Gundam pilot again one day.

#4-Gundam Wing: Episode Zero Never Getting an Anime Adaptation

Originally, Episode Zero was intended to be part of the Gundam Wing Television Series.  However, production problems put this little arc on indefinite hold and instead we got two recap episodes, one from Heero and Relena’s perspectives and the other from Trieze and Lady Une’s.  Episode Zero may not be perfect but it sheds a lot of light on the motivations and origins of the core quintet of Gundam pilots and many of their allies and rivals.  Heero’s story in particular actually sets up much of the conflict involving the White Fang during the shows last act (if you’ll recall my Gundam Wing review, you’ll remember how I felt the White Fang getting zero build up or backstory hindered their arrival so late in the show).  The Episode Zero Manga is a great read if youre a Gundam Wing fan.  I hope one day we can see these secret origins of the Gundam boys the way they were originally meant to be shown.

#3-Not choosing Gundam X, G Gundam or Turn A Gundam to succeed Gundam Wing in the West

One of the most baffling decisions regarding Gundams boom in the West was to promote the original series and several of its Universal Century brethren right after the game changing run of Gundam Wing.  Here me out: There’s nothing wrong with the original Mobile Suit Gundam series, nothing at all, nor any of the other titles that came along with it (08th MS Team, Gundam 0080…Gundam 0083 is more of a mixed bag).  My thing is that maybe they should have been in the third salvo of Gundam shows instead of the second.  Some of the (at the time) more contemporary Gundam series like Gundam X or G Gundam would have probably worked better following Wings example (G maybe more so but ironically that was the third salvo of Gundam and maybe came too late).  I’d argue maybe Turn A Gundam would have worked too but that show is far more different than most Gundam shows, even if it was the most recent at the time so it might not have been too popular.  This point could be totally mute though as Gundam Wings magic seemed like a one time only juggernaut that perhaps no other entry in the series could ever capitalize on here in the States, God knows many have tried.

#2-A Lack of Original Stories for 2019

2019 is a big year for the Gundam franchise.  40 years is nothing to scoff at and I was excited to hear what projects might be in the pipeline to celebrate this momentous occasion.  And then the slate was revealed…consisted of mostly rehashes and compilation movies.  Gundam: The Origin is being chopped into a 13 episode TV Series and the relatively universally disliked Reconguista in G is getting a compilation movie this year as well.  Sure we’re getting the launch of the Hathaway’s Flash movie trilogy but that isn’t coming until the end of the year.  Where’s the annoncement that The Origin was leading to a new TV update of the original series?  What about some sequels to other Alternate Universe Gundam stories like Wing or Seed or 00?  Why do we need a TV version of The Origin when the OVA was just fine and is it going to have anything new unlike the lackluster Gundam Unicorn: RE0096 TV Series?  This feels far more like a disappointment more than a missed opportunity the more I think about it.

#1-A Universal Crossover Event

This one is a bit of a stretch.  But hey if Gundam Build Fighters and Build Divers can have Gunpla battles that look like Yu Gi Oh and Sword Art Online then this is definitely possible.  There are quite a few universes where Gundams are a thing.  And while we did get an event like the one im suggesting in Dynasty Warriors Gundam, I think we need to see this in Anime form.  Think about it?  A Secret Wars/Crisis on Infinite Earth’s level event where the greatest of the Gundam legends are brought together to battle one huge threat that could eliminate all life in the multiverse.  Seeing Amuro Ray bounce ideas and match philosophies with Loran Cehack, Heero Yuy and Setsun F Seiei sharing a monotone conversation about how to best live your life, Char and Zechs…nuff said on that one.  We’ve all had these fantasies playing with out Gunpla and Gundam Action Figures…and im sure some higher power at Sunrise would want this to happen eventually too.