Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron Blooded Orphans-Urdr Hunt: Path of the Little Challenger

For Wistario Afam, the restoration and prospertity of his home colony, the Venus based Radonitsa, has been his life long dream.  When he finds himself a sudden participant in the Urdr Hunt, Wistario potentially has the means to make this dream a reality.  Going up against Pirates, Vagabonds, Warriors and Mercenaries, Wistario will have to fight tooth and nail to achieve the ultimate prize.  He is unaware, however, that his actions will have serious consequences for Radonitsa should he fail as the world of the Post Disaster Era continues to change in the wake of Tekkadan’s revolution.

Released as part of the 10^th Anniversary of Iron Blooded Orphans, Path of the Little Challenger is a Compilation Film comprised of the Anime segments of a now defunct Mobile Game: Iron Blooded Orphans G.  It’s the first bit of brand new Gundam storytelling from the Post Disaster Era since IBO’s conclusion in 2017 and while not exactly held in as high regard as Gundam Wing or The Witch from Mercury, Iron Blooded Orphans is still considered a solid entry in the Gundam franchise.  You wouldn’t know that from watching the Urdr Hunt movie though.  While it does boast some of the brutal close quarters combat action that helped define the parent series, Path of the Little Challenger is still a short and fast compilation film that lacks any of what made IBO so great in the first place.
 
If you’re unaware of or have never played the Iron Blooded Orphans G game then you’re going to instantly be wondering what the heck is even going on in the first few minutes of Path of the Little Challenger.  In fact, it’s those first 3-5 minutes that signal the movie is not going to work on any proper storytelling level as we are instantly thrown into the middle of the action with next to no introduction.  The closest we get to understanding anything is the continuous narraration from Coronal, who in the story proper literally shows up and says Wistario and his…servant…butler (we’ll come back to him) are eligible to participate in the Urd Hunt, that’s all.  And it’s this same kind of approach the movie takes to just about every ounce of its short runtime: introduce new character, narrarate the backstory; action scene; wash, rinse, repeat.  So yeah this is a classic Compilation Movie where running through the highlights are more important than telling an actual story or having anything make any kind of sense.
 
The characters all suffer from this.  I mentioned that old man who was with Wistario and I couldn’t tell you how he was even related or acquainted with the kid.  Heck who the heck even is Wistario himself?  Why does he have a Gundam?  Does he run a company or is a leading figure in a prominent family?  All I can tell you is that he is a very different protagonist from Orga or Mikazuki, being a kid who’s had not as harsh an upbringing so he can be friendly and trusting to just about everyone he meets.  Heck the kid collects friends like they were Pokemon.  All he needs to do is have their backstories told via Coronals voice over and boom, he has an ally or new crewmember.  Besides Wistario, most of the movies runtime is centered on Cature, who may or may not be Wistario’s love interest, idk.  Cature actually has an important connection to a prominent character in IBO’s first season.  And while the back half of the film becomes all about keeping her alive and safe, there’s very little explained about her situation to really care and man do they want you to care.  But yeah when the film starts narrowing its focus to her and Wistario and occasionally Coronal, everyone else is just window dressing, barely even characters themselves.
 
While being billed as a mostly stand alone entry in the IBO universe, Path of the Little Challenger does inevitably include references or cameos to the heroes and villains of Tekkadan and Gjallarhorn.  Some of these appearances are blink and you’ll miss given how quickly it’s trying to get itself over with.  But some faces do play more prominent roles than others.  For example McGillis is flying around in his masked persona for some reason and why exactly he’s intervening in the Urdr Hunt is merely hinted at but never confirmed or elaborated on.  It begs the question: why?  Why did Urdr Hunt even need to tie into anything going on with the main plot of IBO when it can barely tell a coherent story of its own without probable video game dialogue to support the onscreen nonsense.  At the very least the movie was nice enough to keep Mika and Orga out of it.  God only knows how those two would handle being in the same room with Wistario’s happy go lucky attitude.
 
Is there any praise I can give this feature length spark notes movie?  Well the action sticks with the gladiatorial, up close and personal aesthetic established in IBO and it’s good to see it again, especially after the chaotic mess that was GQuuuuuX.  And in some places the animation, which doesn’t get tuned up for a theatrical release so it looks on par with the IBO TV Series, does make the mecha look kind of awesome.  I did enjoy the flashback to the Calamity War that created the Post Disaster Era where we got to see the original Gundam Hajiroboshi take on a Mobile Armor it recognized.  But beyond that, it’s hard to care about or enjoy the action when there’s no personal connection to the players involved.  We barely spend any time with Wistario or his allies to form any kind of attachment.  So when theyre in danger, I feel nothing.  It’s nowhere near the emotional turmoil IBO constantly threw us into where anyone, even Mika and Orga, could die at any moment cause we gave a damn about their dreams and futures.  Comparably, I couldn’t care less about Wistario’s dream coming true and ultimately, it doesn’t matter…
 
Yeah so Spoiler Alert: the movie ends on a cliffhanger.  Yeah, the IBO G game was discontinued after running from 2022 to 2024.  And to my knowledge there aren’t any plans to conclude or resolve the story in any way shape or form.  Which begs the question again…WHY!!?  Why was this chosen as the big 10^th Anniversary Project for Iron Blooded Orphans?  Why not just make a 2 part Compilation Film of the TV Series (maybe stretch it into a Mobile Suit Gundam style trilogy to get all the major story and character beats in)?  Why choose the Anime segments of a Mobile Game few have heard of and even fewer have played outside of Japan?  It just makes the near one hour runtime all the more of a waste of time, which is honestly on par for most Gundam Compilation Films I’ve seen.
 
Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron Blooded Orphans-Urdr Hunt: Path of the Little Challenger is not only a terrible way to celebrate the 10^th Anniversary of an excellent entry in the Gundam franchise, it’s a terrible way to introduce fans to a game that no longer exists with an Anime that isnt very good.  The story is a rushed patch job.  The characters are nowhere near as deep, developed or likeable as anyone in the original IBO TV Series.  I haven’t even mentioned how boring the presentation overall was to the point where people around me in the movies were falling asleep.  Plus the fact that they didn’t even bother to wrap everything up in the end is more an insult.  Which is honestly ok.  I’m not interested in seeing if the Urdr Hunt wraps up in victory for Wistario or anyone involved.  My interest in the Post Disaster Era resides with Tekkadan and that’s the show I’ll be going back to long before the Urdr Hunt ever gets some kind of proper conclusion.
 
1/10
 
Fret not though cause they did bother to have the original cast of IBO get some kind of love for their 10^th Anniversary.  My special bonus review of Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron Blooded Orphans-Wedge of the Interlude is now up and ready to read over at the Gundam Anime Corner.