Latest news with #GQuuuuuuX
Gizmodo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Gizmodo
The ‘GQuuuuuuX' Endgame Is About the Messiest Relationship in All of ‘Gundam'
What is Mobile Suit Gundam about? Sometimes, it's about cool robots. Sometimes, it's about the horrors of war. Sometimes, it's about the balance of power, and the exploitation of have-nots by the haves, a cycle of class conflict that is inextricably interwoven through the cycle of military conflict. But really, a lot of the time–especially in the series' foundational Universal Century setting–Gundam is a story about the two most divorced people to have ever not been married. And now Gundam GQuuuuuuX, in its own remixing of that timeline, is seemingly going to close out being about Char Aznable and Amuro Ray too. I've written before that GQuuuuuuX's narrative has been haunted from the very beginning by the 1979 anime's main characters. Char has been the most present of those specters, both in how the series has repeatedly flashed back to his exploits in the One Year War, to the man himself lurking in the background waiting for pieces of his plan to fall into place. Now, in GQuuuuuuX's penultimate episode, Char begins making his moves in the open, casting off his 'disguise' as Shirouzu as he makes clear to everyone around him his aims: to stop the Rose of Sharon and its mysterious alternate Lalah from inadvertently destroying reality as this 'remix' of the Universal Century has come to know it. Char and our heroes alike, however, find themselves at odds. Machu can only see the struggles of the Lalah she encountered on Earth in this trapped alternate version of her, and so Char's desire to save the world by destroying her sees Machu race to stop him. It further turns out that Shuji, making his grand return to the story after mysteriously vanishing a few weeks ago, is by her side against Char: purportedly first as an extension of the dormant Lalah's psionic will, but then, in a climactic heel turn, through a revelation that he too is from the same reality as Lalah… pulled into this aberrant timeline in an attempt to erase it. How Shuji intends to do that, and why, is left unclear, save for GQuuuuuuX's most audacious twist in the episode's final moments: emerging beyond the Rose of Sharon's psionic gateway to another world comes a Gundam. The Gundam. Not the re-imagined Mobile Suit we've seen in the show's prior re-imagining of the One Year War; there is no lanky, skeletal, almost Evangelion-esque frame here. This is the RX-78-2, as seen in the classic Mobile Suit Gundam—and, presumably, inside it is some version of Amuro Ray. That bit remains uncertain, to be fair. Perhaps the reality Shuji is from is one where he is the pilot of the first Gundam, perhaps, just as Char said of Lalah, he is using his vast powers as a Newtype to somehow possess Amuro and fling him at his new foes like an attack dog. Perhaps it's someone else in there entirely, or no one, and it's the Gundam itself being puppeteered by Shuji. For what it's worth, GQuuuuuuX's invocation of 'Beyond the Time' in this episode, the rock-ballad anthem that acts as the ending theme of Char's Counterattack, almost feels like it has to be Amuro in some form or another, rather than a fake out. We already know Lalah has seen visions of other worlds that play out the fateful encounter between herself, Char, and Amuro that ended with her sacrifice in the original series over and over in infinite combinations. Surely now then, it is time to see that battle play out again, but this time with the fate of a universe at stake. Because after all what is the story of the Universal Century if not that of Char Aznable and Amuro Ray? The evolution of Char and Amuro from wartime rivals to uncertain allies, to once-again foes yearning to understand their confounding connection to each other, is one that plays out across Gundam as a series for the best part of its first decade. Bonded by Lalah and the emergence of them both as Newtypes—capable of this heightened connection and understanding, but forever only on the brink of actually understanding each other and their visions for the world they fight for—the cycle of Gundam, in the Universal Century at least, is largely defined by the relationship between these two men. We haven't seen a GQuuuuuuX version of Amuro throughout the series so far—his role in the alternate version of past events is left pointedly out of the picture. Perhaps that's the true aberration Shuji speaks of in the creation of this world is, in some ways, that there could be some version of Char's story without him, one that lacks this fundamental figure that defines so much of it in the original Gundam. If GQuuuuuuX is going to make reframing and remixing the original Gundam its defining trait, there's probably no other way it could've ended than Char and Amuro, in some form or another, making their deal the whole universe's problem.
Gizmodo
03-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Gizmodo
‘GQuuuuuuX' Is Taking Its ‘Gundam' Remix to a Whole Other Level
Last week, I said that Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX's remixing of the original Gundam continuity was letting several of the original series' biggest characters haunt the narrative, from the absent Amuro Ray, to the slightly less absent Char Aznable, and then the one figure who's really been skirting around the edges of GQuuuuuuX's periphery in earnest, the mysterious Lalah Sune. This week, Lalah stopped skirting… and then some. To the surprise of no one after last week's setup, episode nine of GQuuuuuuX, 'The Rose of Sharon,' is indeed for the most part about Lalah Sune making her way into the series' narrative, as Machu manages to escape confinement with the GQuuuuuuX and head to Earth, where she finds Lalah forced to work at a lavish brothel. But while this Lalah is indeed a Newtype—regaling staff and Machu alike of the visions she sees in her dreams—she is not the Rose of Sharon that Machu was seeking in her hopes to be reunited with Shuji. Instead, this Lalah is almost haunted by what has come to pass, her Newtypism not really granting her a vision of the future, but what was, as GQuuuuuuX offers yet another spin on a classic scene from the 1979 anime. Floating in the cosmic glow that represents the connection forged between Newtypes, Lalah flatly explains that the future she sees is her own: the future of another Lalah, a young woman who meets a young Zeon officer in red who whisks her to the stars… a Lalah who falls in love with that man, and also his rival, as she dies in battle saving the former from the latter. What the Lalah of GQuuuuuuX sees beyond time, as she says to Machu, is the original story of Mobile Suit Gundam. The implication then that GQuuuuuuX's remixed timeline of the Universal Century co-exists alongside Gundam's original one, in some capacity, already raises a bunch of fascinating questions, but things only get more interesting in the episode's climactic moments, when we and Machu alike discover that the Lalah was right when she told them that she is not the rose neither she, nor Shuji, nor everyone else has been looking for after it went missing… Because another Lalah Sune is. The Lalah Sune, if you will. Hidden for years at the bottom of the ocean until Machu and the GQuuuuuuX find it, Lalah's mobile armor the Elmeth, locked in time from the moment of her death in the 1979 anime, has some how become an almighty object of vast psionic power, a Newtype beacon that has transitioned across this divergent timeline, calling out to the generation of Newtypes that forged it in the first place in characters like Char and Lalah, but also the generation that has grown beyond them in this new timeline, like Machu, Nyaan, and Shuji. Of course, Gundam is no stranger to the alternate reality trend that has become du jour in contemporary pop culture. It's been on it for decades at this point, when Mobile Fighter G Gundam created the first alternate Gundam universe to exist on TV outside of the stories that had been told in the Universal Century setting. Ever since we've had a bunch of other alternate realities to provide the setting to new Gundam series, we've had realities that, like GQuuuuuuX, has mirrored and riffed on the Universal Century stories to create their own echoes of its ideas. Hell, Turn A Gundam presented a vision where its setting was a far-flung future after a 'Dark History' that eradicated humanity back to a technological reset—one that touched upon every corner of Gundam continuity up to that point in some way, a comment on the cyclical nature of historical trends, while also symbolically honoring the entire metatext of the franchise up to that point, regardless of continuity. Suffice to say, the coexistence of a GQuuuuuuX timeline, with all its changes, and that potential of the original timeline alongside it, is not exactly unfamiliar territory that Gundam is wading into as it explores all this. With GQuuuuuuX having just a few more episodes to lay out what exactly it wants to say in all this remixing and meta-commentary, time will tell if all these self-referential reveals will result in the series creating something additive to that vast canon—or if its wild evocations are simply designed to spin the heads of diehard fans.
Gizmodo
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Gizmodo
‘Gundam GQuuuuuuX' Is Ready to Drop Its Biggest Bombshell
The latest episode of the series sets the stage for 'GQuuuuuuX' and its remixing of classic 'Gundam' to enter a fascinating new step. Gundam GQuuuuuuX's remixing of the story of the 1979 anime classic has had to dance around some pretty major players as it weaves in a cast of a new generation of post-war spacenoids and obscure faves from the original show. The shadow of Amuro Ray, through his absence, and Char Aznable, through his perpetual ability to stalk Gundam's narrative, looms large over everything the series has done up to this point. But now, arguably the original Gundam's other major figure is preparing to step into the spotlight. 'Falling on the Moon,' the latest episode of GQuuuuuuX, splits itself between the events of the final hours of the One Year War in 0079—polishing off the remainder of the prologue footage from GQuuuuuuX – Beginning – in the the process—and the series' contemporary five-years-later era to set the stage for what is now a brewing conflict to come between its young female heroines Machu and Nyaan. Together, they are pawns in the broader astropolitical game among Zeon's head honchos that has simmered in the background of the series. But that conflict is about to get a huge psychic wrench thrown in it, it seems. The closing moments of the episodes follow two researchers, Tirza Lionni and the mysterious Shirouzu, as they discuss their eager participation in two of Zeon's top secret projects. One is the 'Yomang'tho site,' the secret name given to development of the Solar Ray, a vast superweapon from the original Gundam, and the other is the successor mobile suit to the GQuuuuuuX, the GfreD (much easier to say for those initially confused by the series' title). But Shirouzu is immediately presented as suspicious to the audience, as he briefly regards Tirza with a look that shows one of his bright blue eyes under a mop of platinum blond hair. He happens to look at a lot like Char Aznable, who has been missing since the closing moments of the war depicted earlier in the episode. He happens to sound a lot like Char Aznable, and shares a voice actor with him in both Japanese and English. Char Aznable (excuse me, sorry, Casval rem Deikun, excuse me, sorry, Quattro Bajeena) certainly does not have a history across Gundam of using pseudonyms and assumed identities to infiltrate and undermine the plans of his most hated enemies, Zeon's ruling Zabi family, or anything. But if all that wasn't enough, it's even more deliberately clear that Shirouzu is a Char (whether the man himself or some kind of clone; Gundam has, of course, done both, metaphorically and literally) in what he's reacting to when his proverbial mask falls away for a moment: Tirza regretfully confides to him her frustration that Zeon has been unable to locate the mysterious 'Rose of Sharon.' This 'object' has been brought up briefly in GQuuuuuuX before—whatever the Rose was, it was under the control of the Zabis before it vanished just as mysteriously as Char did in the 'zeknova' explosion that ended GQuuuuuuX's version of the One Year War. But the next time trailer for episode nine, itself titled 'The Rose of Sharon,' makes it all the more explicit just what that object is: a person with an uncanny resemblance to Lalah Sune from the original Gundam. Introduced in the final few episodes of the 1979 anime, Lalah is one of the most important thematic cornerstones of the show, and her legacy drives much of the thematic thrust of the rest of Gundam's primary 'Universal Century' timeline. A young woman groomed by Char as his potential secret weapon in his revenge plot against the Zabis, Lalah is one of the first and most prominent emergences of Newtypes in Gundam. The purported next evolutionary step for humanity as civilization moves from beyond Earth and toward life in the stars, Newtypes are beings with enhanced senses, from psionic precognition to empathic communication abilities. Lalah is presented as both one of the most powerful to have emerged and also Gundam's commentary on the tragic exploitation of this burgeoning evolution of humankind, as she's promptly tasked with using her Newtype abilities to control an experimental weapon of war and enact awesome and terrifying levels of carnage. It's this exploitation that ultimately sees Lalah lose her life just a few episodes after her introduction in the climactic episodes of the original Mobile Suit Gundam—sacrificing herself in the crossfire of a duel between Char and Amuro—but her relationship with the two men as they both begin to grasp with their evolutions as a Newtypes becomes a defining connection between them throughout their remaining appearances in Gundam continuity. It's no surprise, then, that it's clearly going to be the case in GQuuuuuuX that Lalah is similarly treated as a tool for other people's goals and ambitions, given the way the Rose is talked about more like an object rather than a living being. But what is surprising is that, so far at least, Lalah's connection to Char is playing out slightly differently in this re-imagining—and may not climax in tragedy this time around. Although episode nine is going to be the first time we explicitly deal with Lalah as a character in GQuuuuuuX, it's not the first time the series has invoked her. The psychic sing-song sound that became her leitmotif in the original series has shown up multiple times as an important beat throughout GQuuuuuuX so far, most notably during the aforementioned explosion that saw Char vanish. Even Lalah's death sequence from the first Gundam has already been referenced in the series during its fourth episode, with the killing of the vengeful Federation Newtype Shiiko serving as a similar moment of psionic bridging between Shuji and Machu being framed and presented in a similar way to how Lalah and Amuro interacted with each other in her final moments. 'Falling on the Moon' further makes her psychic connection to Char apparent too, with Lalah appearing in a split-second frame during the episode's 0079 sequence, seemingly making him realize that he's about to fight and potentially kill his sister Artesia (better known by her alternate identity, Sayla Mass), who had become the Federation's top Newtype pilot in GQuuuuuuX's seemingly Amuro-less timeline. Even before she's fully on the stage, GQuuuuuuX has constantly woven Lalah into its broader exploration of the Newtype concept, albeit subtly. Now it seems like the time is nigh for her to not just step from the shadows, but also potentially put her on a path toward encountering Char once again. Will it put her on a path to exploitation and fated death, after she's seemingly managed to escape that in GQuuuuuuX's imagining of the Universal Century? What will Lalah mean to the series' new protagonists, beyond her connections to some of Gundam's oldest and most defining moments? What does it mean for the chance for things for this character to play out differently in the first place? We'll have to wait and see, but it's clear GQuuuuuuX is ready to engage with all these questions now. What remains is what it will have to say beyond echoing Gundam's classic stories as it does so. Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX is now streaming on Amazon Prime Video.
Forbes
24-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
‘Gundam GQuuuuuuX' Gets A Fun Little Exhibition In Tokyo
A new 'Gundam GQuuuuuuX' exhibition opens today in Tokyo. What with Gundam GQuuuuuuX well under way, the anime has now been given a nice little exhibition in Ikebukuro, Tokyo. Housed within the Anime Tokyo Station, the exhibition is fairly small but also quite comprehensive. Covering the initial movie Beginning, as well as the subsequent TV series (as the movie is built from those elements), the exhibition breaks down its focus across the characters and mecha quite nicely. There are also multi-lingual notes placed around the exhibition as well. You also have mockup spaces of certain events from the anime, as well as the 'kira kira' effect for what the Newtypes now see. There's also a small AR area, which is also a nice touch. As always, I love the rendering of the characters from anime done at full scale. You always have the respective heights of each of the characters worked out, so it's nice to see that followed through with full-size cutouts (shown below). Nyann (left), Machu (center) and Shuji (right) rendered at full scale. The mecha side of things was fairly brief, and while I am still not really enjoying these new mecha designs, they do need to be included in an exhibition like this. I still feel that they are over-designed, especially the main Gundams, but I'm hoping I will eventually come around to at least tolerating them once the series is done. In addition to all this, there was a nice video of a discussion between the members of the anime's production. Again, I always think these are helpful in showing that making anime is very much a group effort. The final highlight was all the merchandise at the end, with lots of plushies and badges. Although this time I managed to abstain, I came very close to picking a few up. Gundam GQuuuuuuX Special Exhibition opens today at Anime Tokyo Station in Ikebukuro and closes on August 11. Entry is free. Gundam GQuuuuuuX Exhibition Gundam GQuuuuuuX Special Exhibition Gallery Location: Anime Tokyo Station Duration: May 24 - August 11 Entrance: Free Follow me on X, Facebook and YouTube. I also manage Mecha Damashii and am currently featured in the Giant Robots exhibition currently touring Japan.
Kyodo News
21-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Kyodo News
Analysis of "GQuuuuuuX" Ep. 2 "White Gundam"
By Koji Uchida, KYODO NEWS - 9 minutes ago - 18:34 | All The TV anime "Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX" (hereafter referred to as GQuuuuuuX) has been streaming on Prime Video since Tuesday, April 8, 2025. In its second episode, "White Gundam," we finally got to see part of the One Year War segment that was previewed in the theatrical release "Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX -Beginning-" back in January. For those familiar with the original "Mobile Suit Gundam" series (hereafter referred to as First Gundam), the series of unexpected events must have been quite shocking. The "-Beginning-" movie featured scenes not present in the TV series. If you haven't seen it in theaters yet and became interested after watching episode 2, I highly recommend checking it out while it's still showing. In episode 2 of GQuuuuuuX, "White Gundam" Char Aznable, the rival character as famous as Amuro Ray, managed to capture the Federation's white mobile suit, the Gundam. This act of seizing an enemy's weapon or equipment during battle is known as "capture" in military terms. In this article, we'll explore five elements that contributed to this surprising turn of events. Please note that this is purely speculative analysis and has no connection to the official GQuuuuuuX settings or storyline. 1. Gene: The First Divergent Point Both the first episode of "First Gundam" titled "Gundam Rises on Earth!!" and the second episode of "GQuuuuuuX" follow the same basic premise: Char's unit investigates Side 7 after detecting the Earth Federation Forces' mobile suit development plan, Operation V. However, in "GQuuuuuuX" Char personally infiltrates Side 7 from the outset due to an unexpected malfunction of a certain pilot's Zaku. Fans familiar with "First Gundam" might have found it thrilling to see one of the three infiltrating Zakus colored red, despite the scene's composition being nearly identical to the original. This excitement persists even though Char's character has been depicted attempting infiltrations in his conspicuous attire and mobile suit on multiple occasions. As a result, it doesn't feel particularly out of place for a unit commander to personally conduct reconnaissance or infiltration missions. In "First Gundam" the initial infiltration of Side 7 was carried out by Denim, Slender, and a character named Gene, who also accompanies Char in "GQuuuuuuX". Interestingly, it's Gene's Zaku that malfunctions in "GQuuuuuuX". Gene, a rookie soldier eager for promotion, ignores his superior Denim's orders and launches an attack in his pursuit of military achievements. In "GQuuuuuuX" Char also initiates an attack at this point. While Gene is often considered the "scapegoat" for providing Amuro the opportunity to board the Gundam, his actions are nearly identical to Char's. This raises an intriguing question: Why didn't Gene's actions in the original series lead to the same outcome as in "GQuuuuuuX" given that their actions were essentially the same? We'll explore this point in the next section. 2. Whether Gene had Earned Denim's Trust As mentioned earlier, Gene was a new recruit who, in his eagerness to prove himself, disregarded orders from his superior officer, Denim. Such behavior is typically unacceptable in the military, making it questionable whether he had earned the trust of his colleagues. However, in "GQuuuuuuX" Char also took immediate action upon discovery. This difference can be attributed to the contrasting roles of Char and Gene. If the decision had come from a unit commander, Denim, who is loyal to orders, would have likely complied immediately. In "GQuuuuuuX" there's even a line where Denim praises Char's decision, saying, "As expected of the Red Comet... always so adaptable". This indicates that Char had already earned the trust of his subordinates. The crucial difference seems to lie in this level of trust. As a result, in the original "First Gundam" by the time Gene and Denim make their discovery, Amuro has already boarded the Gundam, leading to the first-ever Mobile Suit battle in history. However, in "GQuuuuuuX" Char and Denim's swift action leads to the successful capture of the Gundam, the destruction of the Guncannon, and even the seizure of the Pegasus (White Base). If Gene had earned the trust of Denim and his fellow unit members in their daily interactions, the outcome might have been different, even if not as dramatic as Char's success. While Gene undoubtedly became a turning point, it's fascinating to see how drastically the subsequent events could change if just one factor had been different. Interestingly, the theme song "Plazma" by Kenshi Yonezu also touches on the concept of "what if" with lyrics like "Moshimo ano kaisatsu no mae de / If only at that ticket gate..." This might suggest that "GQuuuuuuX" places significant importance on these "what if" scenarios. Perhaps "GQuuuuuuX" is exploring the theme of how small changes can lead to vastly different outcomes. Who knows? This could be a key element of the series!
