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49-627: As the success of the series began the Gundam franchise, the robot's design was the first of many variations in subsequent works. The design appearing in Mobile Suit Gundam serves as the symbol of the Gundam franchise and sparked the creation of its multiple sequels and spinoffs; most future Gundams featured use the RX-78-2's color scheme and shape. The RX-78's initial concept was that of

98-446: A TV series that defined the " real robot " mecha anime genre by featuring giant robots called mobile suits (including the original titular mecha ) in a militaristic setting. The popularity of the series and its merchandise spawned a franchise that includes 50 TV series , films and OVAs as well as manga , novels and video games , along with a whole industry of plastic model kits known as Gunpla which makes up 90 percent of

147-412: A powered armor , the primary design for Yoshiyuki Tomino 's proposed series Freedom Fighter Gunboy . The series later changed its name to Mobile Suit Gundam and Kunio Okawara was given Tomino's concept to shape into a finalized design for the anime. Okawara created multiple designs before settling on the current, samurai-styled design for the anime in 1979. Enemies in the series regularly refer to

196-433: A collaboration to develop a live-action Gundam film. Brian K. Vaughan was brought in to write and serve as an executive producer for the film. In April 2021, it was reported that the project had landed at Netflix and that Jordan Vogt-Roberts had been hired to direct. In October 2024, it was announced that Jim Mickle would be the new director and writer, and that Netflix is no longer involved. Manga adaptations of

245-469: A few fictional elements to function (such as Minovsky Physics ). Most of the Gundam animation (including the earliest series) is set in what is known as the Universal Century (UC) calendar era , with later series set in alternate calendars or timelines . Although many new Gundam stories are told in their parallel universe with independent timelines (giving them greater creative freedom),

294-538: A fictional era, with a new calendar adopted after a drastic event or chain of events and typically involve a major conflict involving Earth and space colonies (and in some cases the Moon and terraformed planets). An exception is the Gundam Build timeline, which is set in an alternate present time where all other Gundam installments are fictional. At the 2018 Anime Expo , Legendary Pictures and Sunrise announced

343-481: A fire fighting poster in Japan. The RX-78-2 was equipped with water spraying equipment. On July 16, 2010 to June 30, 2011, ANA launched a series of flights as part of the 30th anniversary of Gunpla. Called the "ANA x GUNDAM Sky Project," the promotion used specially painted Boeing 777s on domestic and international flights. The initial flight was from Tokyo to Osaka. Promotional model kits include 1/144 scale versions of

392-854: A full-size RX-78-2 Gundam model was constructed and displayed at Gundam Front Tokyo, in the Odaiba district; it was taken down on March 5, 2017. A new statue of the Unicorn Gundam was erected at the same location, now renamed The Gundam Base Tokyo. Bandai , Gundam 's primary licensee, produces a variety of products. Other companies produce unofficial merchandise, such as toys, models and T-shirts. Products include Mobile Suit In Action (MSiA) action figures and Gundam model kits in several scales and design complexities. Each series generally has its own set of products, MSiA and model lines such as Master Grade and High Grade Universal Century may extend across series. The most popular action-figure line has been

441-403: A gun powerful enough to hold back enemies like a hydroelectric dam holding back water. In keeping with the concept, Gundams are usually depicted as prototypes or limited-production, with higher capabilities than mass-produced units, which are often referred to simply as mobile suits . Most Gundams are large, bipedal, humanoid vehicles controlled from a cockpit by a human pilot. The cockpit

490-474: A life-size 1/1 scale bust of the Strike Freedom Gundam from the show Mobile Suit Gundam SEED . The nearby hotel, Grand Nikko Tokyo Daiba (formerly Grand Pacific le Daiba) had a Gundam themed hotel room during this time. The original line of toys produced by the show's original sponsor Clover , diecast figures with more super robot aestethics, clashed with the show's themes and audience and

539-529: A limited time (usually to promote a DVD release). Common content includes character and mecha listings, lists of related merchandise and pay-for-download content. Special pages are frequent, often presenting downloadable wallpaper or a small game. The Superior Defender Gundam Force website has a game in which players take the role of villain Commander Sazabi, attempting to blast his subordinate with weapons. Since 1980, Gundam has also appeared in

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588-610: A long range funnel weapon (dubbed the RX-93ff) in Fukuoka, Japan in 2022. Gundam the Ride: A Baoa Qu was a theme park attraction from Fuji-Q Highland which ran from 2000 to 2007. Visitors are escorted in a battlship by 2 GM suits during the titular battle. The ride was replaced by Gundam Crisis, where visitors explore a hangar in order to collect data to access the RX-78-2's cockpit. If successful, an exclusive video will be shown inside

637-662: A major venue for international expositions. The D1 Grand Prix motorsport series hosted drifting events at Odaiba from 2004 to 2018. Odaiba was one of the venues for the 2020 Summer Olympics . A temporary arena was built at Shiokaze Park for beach volleyball , and temporary stands were built for the Odaiba Marine Park to hold triathlon and marathon swimming . Today's Odaiba is a popular shopping and sightseeing destination for Tokyoites and tourists alike. Major attractions include: Two Shuto Expressway lines access Odaiba: Route 11 enters from central Tokyo crossing

686-436: A showcase for futuristic living, with new residential and commercial development housing a population of over 100,000. The redevelopment was scheduled to be complete in time for a planned "International Urban Exposition" in spring 1996. Suzuki's successor Yukio Aoshima halted the plan in 1995, by which point over JPY 1 trillion had been spent on the project, and Odaiba was still underpopulated and full of vacant lots. Many of

735-399: A spinoff of Gundam which began during the mid-1980s, features super deformed designs and emphasizes comedy and adventure. Model Suit Gunpla Builders Beginning G , Gundam Build Fighters , and Gundam Build Divers feature contemporary settings and use Gunpla as plot elements. Except for Mobile Suit Gundam 00 , which follows the current calendar era , all Gundam series are set in

784-654: A statue of the RX-0 Unicorn Gundam from Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn . A second statue based on the original Gundam was announced in late 2018 as part of the "Gundam Global Challenge" made to receive concepts for an animatronic version. The statue, known as the RX-78F00 Yokohama Gundam, finished construction in 2020 and opened to the public on December 19, 2020 as part of the Gundam Factory Yokohama attraciton. The statue

833-577: Is a large artificial island in Tokyo Bay , Japan, across the Rainbow Bridge from central Tokyo . Odaiba was initially built for defensive purposes in the 1850s. The land was dramatically expanded during the late 20th century as a seaport district, and was redeveloped in the 1990s into a major commercial, residential and leisure area. Odaiba, along with Minato Mirai 21 in Yokohama, is one of

882-423: Is located in the torso , while the head serves as a camera to transmit images back to the cockpit. Most of the series' protagonists are Newtypes , genetically advanced humans adapted for space. Newtypes have psychic abilities that enable them to sense each other across space and to utilize special mobile suits. The series itself has been described as a space opera . Mobile Suit Gundam reportedly pioneered

931-659: Is noted in many major areas of the plot. Odaiba serves as the main setting for the multimedia project Love Live! Nijigasaki High School Idol Club , in which the Tokyo Big Sight building serves as the Nijigasaki High School ((虹ヶ咲学園, Nijigasaki Gakuen). Diver City, Sega Joypolis and the Rainbow Bridge can be seen as settings in the animation. Odaiba may be referenced in the game Slow Damage by NITRO CHiRAL. The plot takes place in

980-572: Is the official Japanese site. Its English-language counterpart is the US-maintained Gundam Official. In 2005, the website hosted the Gundam Official User Forum. The forum was based on the existing fan forum, Gundam Watch, using many of its staff. When the project was retired, Gundam Watch was reborn and became Gundam Evolution. A number of series-specific websites have been created, often available for

1029-1128: The Gundam series have been published in English in North America by a number of companies, such as Viz Media , Del Rey Manga and Tokyopop , and in Singapore by Chuang Yi . Gundam has spawned over 80 video games for arcade, computer and console platforms, some with characters not found in other Gundam media. Some of the games, in turn, inspired spinoff novels and manga. Primarily made of plastic, but sometimes paired with resin and metal detail parts, hundreds of Gundam scale plastic models , aka Gunpla, have been released. They range in quality from toolless-build children's toy kits (Entry Grades) to hobbyist and museum-grade models, and most are in common scales such as 1:35, 1:48, 1:60, 1:100 or 1:144 scale. Various Grades exist to target hobbyists, ranging from smaller sized kits such as High Grade and Real Grade, to larger Master Grade and finally Perfect Grade model kits. The Real Grade (RG) Gundam series combined

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1078-628: The Japan Self-Defense Forces has code-named its developing advanced personal-combat system Gundam. Based on a December 16, 2023 survey conducted by Nikkei Entertainment , the fanbase of Gundam within Japan has an average age of 42 years, and a male-to-female ratio that skews 90:10. The impact of Gundam in Japan has been compared to the impact of Star Wars in the United States . Odaiba Odaiba ( お台場 )

1127-489: The Japanese character plastic-model market. Academics in Japan have viewed the series as inspiration; in 2008, the virtual Gundam Academy was planned as the first academic institution based on an animated TV series. As of March 2020, the franchise is fully owned by Bandai Namco Holdings through subsidiaries Sotsu and Sunrise. The Gundam franchise had grossed over $ 5 billion in retail sales by 2000. By 2022,

1176-680: The Rainbow Bridge , while the Bayshore Route enters from Shinagawa Ward through the Tokyo Port Tunnel and from the bayfront areas of Tokyo and Chiba Prefecture to the east. By public transport, Odaiba is accessible via the automated Yurikamome transit system from Shimbashi and Toyosu . The privately operated Rinkai Line runs between Shin-kiba and Osaki , but many trains connect directly to Shibuya , Shinjuku , and Ikebukuro . City buses provide cheaper if slower access. Ferries connect Odaiba with Asakusa running along

1225-663: The Sumida River and the Kasai Rinkai Park in eastern Tokyo. The Tokyo Cruise Ship is a water bus operator in Tokyo that offers services including public lines as well as event cruises and chartered ships. Such as from Asakusa → Odaiba Seaside Park → Toyosu → Asakusa. Odaiba, the Rainbow Bridge, and other parts of the surrounding area are a major setting of the Digimon Adventure franchise. The area

1274-412: The real robot subgenre of mecha anime . In contrast to its super robot cousins, Mobile Suit Gundam attempted realism in its robot design and weaponry by running out of energy and ammunition or malfunctioning. Its technology is derived from actual science (such as Lagrange points and the O'Neill cylinder in space, and the use of helium-3 as an energy source) or feasible technology requiring only

1323-507: The "landfill no. 13" (now Minato-ku Daiba, Shinagawa-ku Higashi-Yashio and Kōtō-ku Aomi districts) was finished and connected to the park that was No. 3 Battery. On the other hand, No. 6 was left to nature (access prohibited). The modern island of Odaiba began to take shape when the Port of Tokyo opened in 1941. Tokyo governor Shunichi Suzuki began a major development plan in the early 1990s to redevelop Odaiba as Tokyo Teleport Town ,

1372-700: The Gundam Fix series, which includes the mecha in the animated series, manga and novels and accessories to create an updated version. In addition to Master Grade and High Grade Gundams, Bandai released a 30th-anniversary series of Gundam models in 2010. After the introduction of the RG Gunpla line, Bandai released the Metal Build series in March 2011 (beginning with the 00 Gundam). Bandai maintains several websites to promote Gundam projects; Gundam Perfect Web

1421-493: The Master Grade's detailed inner structure with additional colour separation, making the 1:144-scale series complex in design and compact in size, with the final goal of retooling a Gundam to what they might would look like in real life, similar to the real-life Gundam Front Tokyo RX-78-02. Promotional 1:6 or 1:12 scale models are supplied to retailers and are not commercially available. For Gundam 's 30th anniversary,

1470-611: The RX-78-2 as the white suit or the White Devil (due to the suit's formidable battle performance) while it is a mix of blue, red, and white. Tomino's response in the novel version of Gundam is that the original design was to be a grayscale machine, made up of mostly white and light gray colouring. However, Sunrise disapproved of the colouring and insisted the unit to be painted in brighter colours like other super robot anime at that time. The Japan Self-Defense Forces built an approximately full scale RX-78-3 Gundam (named after

1519-599: The RX-78-2, Gundam 00 Raiser, and Unicorn Gundam , as well as a 1/48 scale RX-78-2, all molded in ANA colors. Promotional food based on the Gundam include Pocky, Pepsi, McDonalds, and Cup Noodles. Food promotions usually tie into merchandise, including exclusive model kits or miniature statues. On March 23, 2008, a bronze statue of the Gundam was erected at the south entrance of Kami-Igusa Station in Suginami , Tokyo to honor

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1568-418: The annual revenue of the Gundam franchise reached ¥ 101.7 billion per year, ¥44.2 billion of which was retail sales of toys and hobby items. Mobile Suit Gundam was developed by animator Yoshiyuki Tomino and a changing group of Sunrise creators with the collective pseudonym of Hajime Yatate . The series was originally entitled Freedom Fighter Gunboy (or Gunboy ) for the robot's gun, with teen boys as

1617-684: The basis for the Real Grade model in 2010 and the Master Grade Ver.3.0 model in 2013 and makes an appearance in Model Suit Gunpla Builders Beginning G . In August it was dismantled and reconstructed in Odaiba , Tokyo on April 19, 2012. Until March 5, 2017, it stood in Odaiba along with a gift shop called "Gundam Front Tokyo". On March 5, it was announced that the life size RX 78-2 Gundam will be replaced by

1666-490: The cockpit. The statue stood in Odaiba, Tokyo, outside the shopping mall Diver City Tokyo, where it was a centerpiece of the "Gundam Front Tokyo" attraction until March 5, 2017. Visitors could visit the statue and also see the Gundam Front Tokyo attraction on the sixth floor of the mall, which featured a 360 degree panoramic movie theater, a room dedicated to Gundam models throughout the years, concept artwork, and

1715-626: The entire Tokyo Waterfront Secondary City Center ( 東京臨海副都心 , Tōkyō Rinkai Fukutoshin ) , which includes the Ariake and Aomi districts of Kōtō Ward and the Higashi-Yashio district of Shinagawa Ward . The name Odaiba alludes to daiba ( 台場 , " batteries " / "forts") , which formed small islands nearby. They were constructed in 1853 by Egawa Hidetatsu for the Tokugawa shogunate in order to protect Edo from attack by sea,

1764-613: The few manmade seashores in Tokyo Bay where the waterfront is accessible and not blocked by industry and harbor areas. The majority of the island is located in Tokyo's Kōtō ward, with the north and northwest of the island in Minato and Shinagawa wards. Daiba ( 台場 ) formally refers to one district of the island located in Minato. Governor Shintaro Ishihara used Odaiba to refer to

1813-487: The following countries and regions: Gundam is a Japanese cultural icon and a multi-billion- Yen annual business for Bandai Namco . Annual revenue for the franchise reached ¥54.5 billion by 2006, ¥80.2 billion by 2014, and ¥145.7 billion by 2024. Stamps have been issued, an Agriculture Ministry employee was reprimanded for contributing to the Japanese Misplaced Pages Gundam -related pages, and

1862-428: The head of the Gundam as its icon. Gundam Gundam ( Japanese : ガンダムシリーズ , Hepburn : Gandamu Shirīzu , lit. Gundam Series ) is a Japanese military science fiction media franchise . Created by Yoshiyuki Tomino and Sunrise (now Bandai Namco Filmworks ), the franchise features giant robots, or mecha , with the name "Gundam". The franchise began on April 7, 1979, with Mobile Suit Gundam ,

1911-504: The hometown animation studio Sunrise . As part of the 30th Anniversary of the Gundam series, the company officially announced a project on March 11, 2009, called Real-G planning to build a 1:1 real size scale Gundam in Japan. It was completed on June 9, 2009, and displayed in a Tokyo park. The 18-meter tall statue was later moved and reconstructed in Shizuoka City , where it stayed from July 2010 to March 2011. This design became

1960-664: The late 1990s as a tourist and leisure zone, with several large hotels and shopping malls. Several large companies including Fuji Television moved their headquarters to the island, and transportation links improved with the connection of the Rinkai Line into the JR East railway network in 2002 and the eastward extension of the Yurikamome to Toyosu in 2006. Tokyo Big Sight , the convention center originally built to house Governor Suzuki's planned intercity convention, also became

2009-454: The original UC storyline continues to be popular, with new installments frequently produced ever since. It established the series, setting the standard for hard science fiction in anime; the original Gundam marked the maturing of the giant-robot genre. Nostalgia for the oldest Gundam shows (and its status as a pop-culture icon in Japan) is a factor in its continuing success. SD Gundam ,

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2058-589: The primary target demographic. Early production had a number of references to freedom : the White Base was originally "Freedom's Fortress", the Core Fighter was the "Freedom Wing" and the Gunperry was the "Freedom Cruiser". The Yatate team combined the English word "gun" with the last syllable of the word "freedom" to form the portmanteau Gundom . Tomino changed it to Gundam , suggesting a unit wielding

2107-635: The primary threat being Commodore Matthew Perry 's Black Ships , which had arrived in the same year. In 1928, the Dai-San Daiba ( 第三台場 , No. 3 Battery) was refurbished and opened to the public as the Metropolitan Daiba Park . Of the originally planned 11 batteries, seven construction projects started, but only six were ever finished. No. 1 to No. 3 Batteries were completed in eight months in 1853. Construction on Nos. 4 to 7 started in 1854, but only Nos. 5 and 6 were finished by

2156-570: The protagonists controls the RX-78-2 to battle Mechagodzilla . On October 23, 2000, Japan included the RX-78 Gundam and Amuro Ray in the 20th Century Stamp Series. This mobile suit and other notable machines from various Gundam series were also recognized in the second set of "Anime Heroes and Heroines" stamps, released in 2005. Other franchises and series included were Pokémon , Galaxy Express 999 , and Detective Conan . The RX-78-2 Gundam & 2 Medea transport planes were featured in

2205-538: The special companies set up to develop the island became practically bankrupt. The collapse of the Japanese asset price bubble was a major factor, as it frustrated commercial development in Tokyo generally. The area was also viewed as inconvenient for business, as its physical connections to Tokyo—the Rainbow Bridge and the Yurikamome rapid transit line—made travel to and from central Tokyo relatively time-consuming and costly. The area started coming back to life in

2254-512: The use of helium-3 fuel) with styrofoam in its show and contains a simulation pod. The RX-78-2 Gundam is one of the basic units that appear in the Super Robot Wars series , representing the Gundam franchise alongside series mainstays Mazinger and Getter Robo . The RX-78-2 also makes multiple cameo appearances in the anime Sgt. Frog . The RX-78-2 Gundam appeared in the film Ready Player One (2018), where one of

2303-425: The year's end. Nos. 4 and 7 were abandoned, with 30% and 70% unfinished (respectively), and an alternative land-based battery near Gotenyama was built instead. However, they resumed construction on No. 4 in 1862 and completed it the following year. Until the mid-1960s, all except two batteries (Nos. 3 and 6) were either removed to facilitate ship navigation or incorporated into Shinagawa port and Tennōzu . In 1979,

2352-765: Was dismantled in 2024. A rebuilt version called the F00/E will be featured in the Gundam Next Future Pavilion at Expo 2025 in Osaka. This statue will be in a fixed pose, kneeling and reaching for the sky. Other statues include the Freedom Gundam from Mobile Suit Gundam SEED in Shanghai, China in 2021 , and a statue of the Nu Gundam from Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack sporting

2401-473: Was not a success. To capture the teenage and adult demographics, Bandai produced a line of model kits based on the Gundam and other mobile suits, which became immensely popular. the RX-78-2 Gundam has releases in virtually every model line and scale and is often used to commemorate a new model line or an anniversary. The current Bandai Universal Century models' label copyright classification also uses

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