Mailbag 9: Insufficient Postage

Mailbag 9: Insufficient Postage

Posted December 22, 2005

The Mailbag rises from the grave.

Dave G asks:
I've noticed that in the dubs and on Gundam Official that the characters all have different ranks. Is this because the original Japanese ranks equate to that in the American system, or was someone at Sunrise/Bandai really messed up when translating? For example, the dub refers to Mu La Flaga as a lieutenant commander, but the original Japanese version calls him "shosa" (major). Besides, could someone like William Sutherland (Azrael's go-to man), a "captain" in the dub, hold as much power at the Atlantic Federation's HQ as he did? No captain could do that. Maybe a colonel, but not a captain.

Chris responds:
Rank translation has always been a problem with Gundam, in particular the Universal Century. This is because different productions have inconsistently used United States Army and Navy ranks. For example, in the original Gundam series, Revil is referred to by the Army rank "General." But in 08th MS Team, he's called "Admiral." Similarly, Mu La Flaga's rank of "shosa" would translate to "Lt. Comdr." in Naval ranks, but in Army ranks it would translate to "Major." Since you also mentioned William Sutherland, his rank of "taisa" would translate to "Captain" in the Navy and "Colonel" in the Army. In the case of SEED, Bandai just decided to use Naval ranks instead of Army ranks.

Mattf7455 asks:

Hi, I have been looking over your site for quite a few years now and I have a question. I know Gundam SEED and Gundam SEED DESTINY are mainly just for showing off the brand new Gundams and get people to buy model kits, but is there a chance a new series might have just one Gundam and everyone else is using standard or 'non-Gundam' mobile suits? Another question I have is about DESTINY's Akatsuki. I read on the US site for Gundam that a DRAGOON system requires a nuclear powerplant to function. Is Akatsuki nuclear powered or did they just bend their own rules for the sake of giving Mu/Neo a suit with remote weapons? Thanks for reading this e-mail from a fan.

Chris responds:
1. This will likely never happen. Every traditionally animated series since G Gundam, with the sole exception of Turn A Gundam, has featured more than one Gundam. Why is this? Because Gundam kits sell more than grunt kits. In the old days, usually only the hero and supporting characters would have Gundams, with some occasional enemy Gundams like the Psycos or Physalis. Now, everybody under the sun has a Gundam. Turn A Gundam is different because it's a Tomino series, and I imagine he would have more pull at Sunrise to do what he wants than someone like Mitsuo Fukuda. Bandai wants lots of Gundams in their series now, and this isn't going to change.

2. What you see on Gundam Official may not apply because it hasn't been updated yet to incorporate information on new technological developments from DESTINY. For example, the original DRAGOON system could only be controlled by pilots with enhanced spatial awareness, such as Rau Le Creuset, Mu La Flaga, Morgan Chevalier and Prayer Reverie. The upgraded DRAGOONs in DESTINY allow normal people such as Kira Yamato and Sting Oakley to use them. Information on later suits from DESTINY is very scant. The DRAGOON-equipped Legend Gundam uses a hyper deuterion nuclear engine, but what exactly that does hasn't been explained. As for the Akatsuki, it's a virtual mystery. We don't know what kind of engine it runs on, or how its armor is able to deflect beams and positrons. We'll have to wait and see what (if any) technical details are provided.

Bob Knuckles asks:

1. I know that Gundam, VOTOMS, Patlabor and Macross are considered
classics for their realism of character and story development, along with
several other mecha series like Vifam. I'm curious as to what other
non-mecha oriented science fiction animes are noted for this same sort of
realism. Some titles that I know are like this are Space Battleship Yamato, Legend of the Galactic Heroes and Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (yes, this show has cyborgs and robots, but it's not really a giant robot show).

2. One of the things most evident in all the Gundam series, is that the
stories all take place in our solar system, specifically around the Moon and Earth, and to some extent Jupiter and Mars. What are the chances of a future Gundam series involving settlements outside our solar system, kind of a war between two solar systems instead of just Earth and it's space colonies. Or will future series just keep imitating the settings of the
original (and from what I've seen FAR superior) Universal Century series and movies?

3. What directors are praised on the same level as Tomino for directing
science fiction series? From what I've seen, Tomino is the King of Mecha.
I read in this one book of Animerica interviews, that Tomino, Ryosuke
Takahashi, and the late Takeyuki Kanda made the most robot series during the 80s. So would there be any others on the same level as Tomino in popularity and acclaim? (Besides Gundam Seed's Fukuda, the King of Overused Flashbacks and Recycled Animation. I only mention him because Gundam SEED and Gundam SEED DESTINY are blockbusters and thus put him among the frontrunners.)

4. And finally, I know that Tomino has said that the films of Yasujiro Ozu
and Akira Kurosawa (my personal favorite director) and the film Destination Moon were a big influence on him in creating Gundam. On Nausicaa.net, they have a section on films and books that were highly influential to Hayao Miyazaki and his movies. What are some of the books and movies that have had tremendous influence on Tomino?

5. Any idea how soon Gundam ZZ is coming to the U.S.? I've started
collecting Zeta Gundam on DVD (have the first 20 episodes so far). Also,
how soon before the Zeta movies come to the U.S.?

Chris responds:
1. You've mentioned some of the best examples already with LoGH, Yamato and GitS: SAC. There are plenty of sci-fi anime series out there, but most don't really attempt to approach technological developments in a realistic way like those series did.

2. In the case of Gundam, it's become a problem of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." Perhaps it'd be more accurate to say "if it makes money, don't mess with the formula." Individual Gundam series, no matter good they may be, are designed to sell merchandise. For Bandai, it makes much more sense economically to stick with proven formulas instead of venturing into new territory. If you look at Turn A Gundam from a merchandising standpoint, it was a total failure. As a 50 episode TV series, it had less model kits than the 3 episode OVA Endless Waltz. By comparison, SEED and DESTINY had many more kits. Those series are also examples of playing it safe. The first half of SEED is a copy of the original series. DESTINY recycles some plot points from Zeta Gundam, along with original series suits like the Zaku, Gouf and Dom. Although Tomino managed to put a fresh spin on "Earth vs space" in Turn A, the formula is stale. It would be nice to see a series focus on the outer solar system or another star system in deep space, but it's not likely to happen.

3. I would add Yasuhiro Imagawa to your list. He's best known for G Gundam and Giant Robo, but more recently he directed the Tetsujin 28 remake. He has a unique way of telling his stories, and you can instantly identify his work when you catch a glimpse of it. You'd probably have to add GAINAX's Hideaki Anno to the list as well. In addition to directing Evangelion and Gunbuster, Anno has a long list of mecha credentials, including working as an animator on Macross and a mechanical designer for various Gundam projects. I'd also mention Yutaka Izubuchi, who has had a diverse career in the mecha industry over the last 20 years. Although he's best known as a mechanical designer, he's also a member of Headgear, the group that created Patlabor (which also includes Mamoru Oshii). Over the years, Izubuchi has been a costume designer (Gundam Wing), producer (WXIII Patlabor) and director (RahXephon). I would also refute the idea that Mitsuo Fukuda is a forerunner because of SEED and DESTINY. Those series may be popular at the moment, but 10 or 20 years from now, no one will consider Fukuda's work as comparable to Tomino, Takahashi, Imagawa or any other well-known mecha director. Even now, SEED's popularity has taken a hit with the lackluster ending of DESTINY.

4. Live action Japanese film is an area I haven't explored in-depth yet. I'll admit I have yet to even see a single Kurosawa film, although I've been wanting to see Rashomon, Seven Samurai and Throne of Blood for years. I also haven't had much experience with Japanese literature, so I don't think I'm qualified to answer this question yet.

5. The fate of Gundam ZZ and other older shows is currently up in the air. Although Bandai Entertainment has said repeatedly that it will release all Gundam in the U.S., no classic series have been released since Zeta and F91 in 2004. For 2006, Bandai's only Gundam project seems to be DESTINY. As for ZZ, you're not missing much by its non-presence in the U.S. The series really drops the ball after Zeta and doesn't really get into its story until the second half of the series. For the Zeta movies, I wouldn't expect them until at least 2007. Although Heirs to the Stars is on DVD in Japan, Lovers is still in theaters and Love is the Pulse of the Stars won't be out in theaters until March 2006. That film probably wouldn't be on DVD until late 2006, which would make 2007 the earliest possible timeframe for a U.S. release.

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