Mobile Fighter G Gundam
Encyclopedia
Mobile Fighter G Gundam, known in Japan as , is a Japanese animated
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....

 television series directed by Yasuhiro Imagawa
Yasuhiro Imagawa
is a Japanese anime director and screenwriter.-Selected works:*Mister Ajikko *Giant Robo: The Day the Earth Stood Still *Gin Rei...

 (Giant Robo, Getter Robo Armageddon
Getter Robo Armageddon
, often simply referred to as Change!! Getter Robo in Japan, is an original video animation released in 1998 by Bandai Visual, based on the manga and anime series Getter Robo, created by Go Nagai and Ken Ishikawa...

). Created to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the franchise in 1994, it is the first of the Gundam
Gundam
The is a metaseries of anime created by Sunrise studios that features giant robots called "Mobile Suits" ; usually the protagonist's MS will carry the name Gundam....

 series to be set in an alternate continuity
Continuity (fiction)
In fiction, continuity is consistency of the characteristics of persons, plot, objects, places and events seen by the reader or viewer over some period of time...

 from the original "Universal Century
Universal Century
is the original timeline of the Gundam anime metaseries. The official English name U.C. is often used instead in recent production like MS Igloo and Master Grade model instructions and official pages is the original timeline of the Gundam anime metaseries. The official English name U.C....

". The 49 episodes of the series aired on TV Asahi
TV Asahi
, also known as EX and , is a Japanese television network headquartered in Roppongi, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The company writes its name in lower-case letters, tv asahi, in its logo and public-image materials. The company also owns All-Nippon News Network....

 from April 1, 1994 to March 31, 1995. An English language version aired on American Cartoon Network
Cartoon Network
Cartoon Network is a name of television channels worldwide created by Turner Broadcasting which used to primarily show animated programming. The channel began broadcasting on October 1, 1992 in the United States....

's Toonami
Toonami
Toonami was a registered trademark of Cartoon Network, used initially for action-oriented programming blocks on Cartoon Network television channels worldwide, mostly showing American cartoons and Japanese anime, originating in the United States on March 17, 1997 and ended on September 20, 2008.The...

 block from August 5, 2002 to October 16 of the same year.

The show takes place in "Future Century", a war that is fought in which a fighting tournament is held every four years between the space colonies. Each country sends a representative Gundam Fighter to fight on Earth until one is left, and the winning nation of that Gundam earns the right to govern over the colonies for the next four years. G Gundam follows Neo-Japan's representative Domon Kasshu in year 60 of that century, during the 13th Gundam Fight. He is in the fight both to win and to track down his brother, who had stolen a mysterious Gundam—the Devil Gundam (Dark Gundam in the American version)—from the Neo-Japan government.

The series takes a wildly different turn from the rest of the franchise. It has a number of shōnen elements: primarily characters gaining superhuman
Superhuman
Superhuman can mean an improved human, for example, by genetic modification, cybernetic implants, or as what humans might evolve into, in the near or distant future...

 speed and strength through intense martial arts training and a focus on decisive personal duels as opposed to large scale military conflicts. Though most of its Gundams feature super robot
Super Robot
is a term used in manga and anime to describe a giant robot or mecha, with an arsenal of fantastic super-powered weapons, extreme resistance to damage unless the plot calls for it, sometimes transformable or combined from two or more robots and/or vehicles usually piloted by young, daring heroes,...

 elements, such as heroic designs and voice activated special attacks, other mecha still behave like real robot
Real Robot
is a genre of Japanese animation. The genre contains mecha robots that are powered by conventional power sources and weapons explainable by real world science, and that use ranged weapons and speed to survive battle situations....

s.

Plot

In F.C. 60, the 13th Gundam Fight begins. Domon Kasshu pilots the Shining Gundam as the representative of Neo-Japan, the Japanese space colony. Along with his crew member Rain Mikamura, he battles the other countries' representatives in order to earn the right to rule Earth and the colonies for four years for Neo-Japan. However, Domon seems to be more concerned with finding his brother and the stolen Devil Gundam.

Characters

Domon Kasshu
The main character of the series. The pilot of the Shining Gundam and later the God Gundam (Burning Gundam in the American versions), and the new King of Hearts and leader of the Shuffle Alliance. He spent ten years training in martial arts under Master Asia (the pilot of Master Gundam), alternately called Touho Fuhai (Undefeated of the East or Invincible East). Domon is on a mission to find his brother Kyoji, who has stolen the JDG-009X Devil Gundam, and to free their father Doctor Kasshu, who was placed in cryogenic suspension due to his involvement with the Devil Gundam. This is why Domon agreed to represent Neo-Japan in the Thirteenth Gundam fight.
Rash and impulsive, Domon is willing to do what it takes to complete his mission, and sometimes he is so hotheaded, he takes it out on his partner Rain Mikamura. However, he's also very psychologically dependent on her, proven by the fact that the mere possibility of losing Rain makes him either go ballistic or become lost. His anger and rage released the super-mode of his Gundam, the Shining Gundam. With the help of his surrogate teacher Schwarz Bruder, he became a much better fighter, even learning to use inner peace and tranquility to unlock God Gundam's Ultimate Mode. At the end of the series, he hears the truth about both the Devil Gundam incident and why Master Asia sided with the JDG-009X Devil Gundam. He had trouble accepting it, but let it go when he finally heard Asia's side of the story.


Rain Mikamura
Domon's partner and childhood friend, who secretly and gradually falls in love with Domon. She is his crew member for the Thirteenth Gundam Fight, and boasts many talents: She is a renowned engineer and tactician, a decent sharpshooter, and a skilled medic/doctor. If needed, she can even pilot a Gundam herself, being one of the few non-Gundam Fighters able to put on a fighting suit despite the pain the process brings to an untrained body, and manage to use the Mobile trace system. Rain has piloted the Shining Gundam on two occasions and later piloted the Rising Gundam during the Battle Royale to aid the other Gundam Fighters.
Determined and almost shockingly patient, she manages to put up with a brash Domon throughout the series enough so they accomplish their mission and fall in love, in a sense. However, things start to change between them when she learns the truth from Schwarz about her father's involvement in the Devil Gundam. After that, she decides to go back to Neo-Japan, and ends up kidnapped and forcefully placed in the cockpit of the Devil Gundam by her former boss, Major Ulube. Only by the joint efforts of Domon, the other Shuffle Alliance members and their crew, as well as Allenby and many other Gundam Fighters, was she freed; mainly because Domon finally admitted his love to her, which allowed Rain to break her self-imposed emotional barriers and control of the Devil Gundam over her body.

Articles

The plot places the story of this series in a war in which Gundam tournaments are held to determine who shall govern all the space colonies; a set of 7 rules known as "articles" which are used for controlling each Gundam fight and the Gundam Fighters themselves.

Article 1
A unit whose head section has been destroyed is disqualified. Supplement: Accidental harm inflicted on a Gundam Fighter during a match is acceptable.


Article 2
A Gundam Fighter must never aim at the cockpit of an opponent's Gundam.


Article 3
A Gundam Fighter may repair damage to his Gundam as often as he needs, and continue to challenge as often as he desires to move on to the championship league, so long as the dream of winning remains with the fighter, and as long as the head section has not been destroyed.


Article 4
A Gundam Fighter must take responsibility for protecting his own Gundam.


Article 5
A match shall only be held on a one-on-one basis.


Article 6
A Gundam Fighter shall not taint the honor and dignity of the nation he is representing.


Article 7
The Earth is the ring! Supplement: Destruction of property on Earth due to the Gundam Fight is not considered a crime.


Throughout each episode during fights Domon and other Fighters reference these Articles so that certain actions from Fighters are knowningly justified. Domon during many fights references Article 1 before he destroys a Gundam's head section which is a legal attack.

During Domon's fight with the Neo America Fighter he references a variation of Article 3. Mid way through the fight Domon fails to finish his Shining Finger attack and lets the Neo America Fighter end the fight at that moment. The fighter continues to say he wishes he may continue after being defeated. Domon explains that as long as the dream to win is within the fighter, then according to Domon, the fighter may continue fighting.

In episode 3, Sai Saici uses Domon (while hiding his identity) to find his Gundam which had been claimed by a gang after he was separated with it upon arrival to Earth. According to Article 4, as the fighter for Neo China, Sai was legally bound to reclaim the Gundam.

In episode 4, when Domon travels to France to fight George de Sand, the fighter for Neo France, Domon calls for a fight just as Neo Cuba's Gundam Fighter is about to declare a fight with George. Domon having upset both fighters allows the two to fight him. According to Article 5, George explains that Domon is not allowed to fight more than one fighter, however Domon claims he received the signal to fight before Neo Cuba's Gundam Fighter had arrived. During the same episode the princess of France asks Domon to stage a fake kidnapping in hopes that George will rescue and fall in love with her. Domon agrees and fights George. While the two fight, George admits that he had known the kidnapping was staged. Domon asks if he is really fighting for the sake of the princess. According to Article 6 a fighter can not taint the honor and dignity of the nation he is representing. Because of this the princess had forced George to continue fighting for her even though Domon was willing to stop the fight.

Another set of 3 rules is used for the final tournament:
1. Unlimited repairs, improvements, and substitutions are acceptable during the final tournament.
2. Victory may be obtained through any means (including targeting the cockpit).
3. The final winner of the Battle Royale will be awarded the title "Gundam of Gundams."

Another rule which is used but not written down as an article is the rule of declaring a fight. In order for a Gundam Fighter to fight another Gundam Fighter, one must offer up the fight. The person who offers the fight must wait for a response. The response of an opponent can be "Go!" if they are ready to begin the fight. If the opponent is not at that time ready for fight and wishes to fight they will say "Standby Begin!" which gives them time to put on their suit and during this time the fighter that offers the fight may not attack until the opponent has told the other fighter they are ready.

Music

Openings
  1. "Flying in the Sky" by Hitofumi Ushima
  2. "Trust You Forever" by Hitofumi Ushima


Endings
  1. by Etsuko Sai
  2. by Takehide Inoue

International broadcast

G Gundam aired on Cartoon Network
Cartoon Network
Cartoon Network is a name of television channels worldwide created by Turner Broadcasting which used to primarily show animated programming. The channel began broadcasting on October 1, 1992 in the United States....

 starting in August 2002; however, many of the Gundams' actual names were changed for different reasons. Three of them were changed for religious references, one for an alcohol
Alcohol
In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....

 reference, and the rest for unknown reasons.

Original names go first followed by English adaptation names.
  • God Gundam => Burning Gundam
  • Devil Gundam => Dark Gundam
  • Death Army => Dark Army
  • Scud
    Scud
    Scud is a series of tactical ballistic missiles developed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War, and exported widely to other countries. The term comes from the NATO reporting name SS-1 Scud which was attached to the missile by Western intelligence agencies...

     Gundam
    => Desert Gundam
  • Tequila
    Tequila
    Tequila is a spirit made from the blue agave plant, primarily in the area surrounding the city of Tequila, northwest of Guadalajara, and in the highlands of the western Mexican state of Jalisco....

     Gundam
    => Spike Gundam
  • Lumber
    Lumber
    Lumber or timber is wood in any of its stages from felling through readiness for use as structural material for construction, or wood pulp for paper production....

     Gundam
    => Grizzly
    Grizzly
    Grizzly may refer to:* Grizzly bear , a North American bear* Grizzly , a Marvel Comics character* Grizzly , a novel in Gary Paulsen's World of Adventure series...

     Gundam
  • John Bull
    John Bull
    John Bull is a national personification of Britain in general and England in particular, especially in political cartoons and similar graphic works. He is usually depicted as a stout, middle-aged man, often wearing a Union Flag waistcoat.-Origin:...

     Gundam
    => Royal Gundam
  • Pharaoh
    Pharaoh
    Pharaoh is a title used in many modern discussions of the ancient Egyptian rulers of all periods. The title originates in the term "pr-aa" which means "great house" and describes the royal palace...

     Gundam IV
    => Mummy
    Mummy
    A mummy is a body, human or animal, whose skin and organs have been preserved by either intentional or incidental exposure to chemicals, extreme coldness , very low humidity, or lack of air when bodies are submerged in bogs, so that the recovered body will not decay further if kept in cool and dry...

     Gundam IV
  • Minaret
    Minaret
    A minaret مناره , sometimes مئذنه) is a distinctive architectural feature of Islamic mosques, generally a tall spire with an onion-shaped or conical crown, usually either free standing or taller than any associated support structure. The basic form of a minaret includes a base, shaft, and gallery....

     Gundam
    => Scimitar
    Scimitar
    A scimitar is a backsword or sabre with a curved blade, originating in Southwest Asia .The Arabic term saif translates to "sword" in general, but is normally taken to refer to the scimitar type of curved backsword in particular.The curved sword or "scimitar" was widespread throughout the Muslim...

     Gundam
  • Kowloon
    Kowloon
    Kowloon is an urban area in Hong Kong comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. It is bordered by the Lei Yue Mun strait in the east, Mei Foo Sun Chuen and Stonecutter's Island in the west, Tate's Cairn and Lion Rock in the north, and Victoria Harbour in the south. It had a population of...

     Gundam
    => Haow Gundam
  • Gundam Spiegel
    Der Spiegel
    Der Spiegel is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. It is one of Europe's largest publications of its kind, with a weekly circulation of more than one million.-Overview:...

    => Shadow Gundam
  • Nether Gundam => Hurricane Gundam
  • Matador
    Matador
    A torero or toureiro is a bullfighter and the main performer in bullfighting, practised in Spain, Colombia, Portugal, Mexico, France and various other countries influenced by Spanish culture. In Spanish, the word torero describes any of the performers who actively participate in the bullfight...

     Gundam
    => Toro Gundam
  • Nobel Gundam => Noble Gundam
  • Gundam Heaven's Sword => Soaring Raven Gundam


The subtitled version on the R1 DVD release keeps the original names.

Influences

Like Imagawa's Giant Robo: The Day the Earth Stood Still, G Gundam is influenced by Hong Kong action cinema
Hong Kong action cinema
Hong Kong action cinema is the principal source of the Hong Kong film industry's global fame. It combines elements from the action film, as codified by Hollywood, with Chinese storytelling and aesthetic traditions, to create a culturally distinctive form that nevertheless has a wide transcultural...

, specifically the new school of wuxia
Wuxia
Wuxia is a broad genre of Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists. Although wuxia is traditionally a form of literature, its popularity has caused it to spread to diverse art forms like Chinese opera, manhua , films, television series, and video games...

and the 1970s kung fu wave
and the old school Shounen Jump, like Ring ni Kakero
Ring ni Kakero
, or Put It All in the Ring, is a manga created by Masami Kurumada. A total of 25 volumes were published in Weekly Shōnen Jump between 1977 and 1981.- Plot :...



In a series of interviews for the official Region 1 American DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....

s, Imagawa explains that Tohofuhai martial arts (the style practiced by Domon Kasshu and his mentor Master Asia) is so successful because rather than sticking to one particular fighting style it is constantly evolving and accepts successful elements from any and all known fighting styles. This is similar to Jeet Kune Do
Jeet Kune Do
Jeet Kune Do is a hybrid martial arts system and life philosophy founded by martial artist Bruce Lee with direct, non classical and straightforward movements. Due to the way his style works they believe in minimal movement with maximum effect and extreme speed. The system works on the use of...

, which is a martial art created by Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee was a Chinese American, Hong Kong actor, martial arts instructor, philosopher, film director, film producer, screenwriter, and founder of the Jeet Kune Do martial arts movement...

.

Cameos

The final battle of G Gundam includes numerous cameo appearances by prominent mobile suits from previous Gundam series such as RX-78-2 Gundam from the original Mobile Suit Gundam
Mobile Suit Gundam
is a televised anime series, created by Sunrise. Created and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, it premiered in Japan on Nagoya Broadcasting Network on April 7, 1979, and lasted until January 26, 1980, spanning 43 episodes...

, Z Gundam
Z Gundam
The MSZ-006 Zeta Gundam, designed by Kazumi Fujita, is a fictional weapon of the anime Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam from the Universal Century timeline of the Gundam metaseries. Its popularity has led to many variations, upgrades, redesigns and influenced later design works such as the Zeta Plus and the...

 from Zeta Gundam, Gundam GP01fb from Gundam 0083, F91 Gundam Formula 91
F91 Gundam Formula 91
The F91 Gundam Formula 91 is the title mobile suit of the anime movie Mobile Suit Gundam F91.-F91 Gundam Formula 91 :The F91 Gundam is a high-performance mobile suit developed by Earth Federation's Strategic Naval Research Institute...

 from Gundam F91, Victory Gundam and Victory Gundam 2 from Victory Gundam and XM-X Crossbone Gundam
XM-X Crossbone Gundam
The XM-X Crossbone Gundam, also known as the F97 Gundam Formula 97, is a series of high-performance mobile suits developed by the Earth Federation's Strategic Naval Research Institute in the Universal Century timeline of the fictional Gundam metaseries...

 from the manga Crossbone Gundam. In addition, this battle also featured appearances by XXXG-01W Wing Gundam from Gundam Wing (the first on-screen appearance of the Wing Gundam as Gundam Wing did not air until after G Gundam was completed) which is seen twice, and the title robots Daitarn 3 and Zambot 3. Aura Battler Dunbine
Aura Battler Dunbine
is an anime television series created by Yoshiyuki Tomino and produced by Sunrise Studios.Dunbine is set in Byston Well, a parallel world that resembles the countryside of medieval Europe with kingdoms ruled by monarchs in castles, armies of unicorn-riding cavalry armed with swords and crossbows,...

's Show Zama & Marvel Frozen also appeared in the Neo Japan Colony as well. None of these machines played any significant role in the battle other than being seen in the background and being destroyed (though some can be seen during the aftermath of the battle) as they were likely included as an inside joke to long-time fans.

Drama CD

The show's second soundtrack CD (titled Round 3, as Round 1 and Round 2 were released as a two-disc album) contains an audio drama
Radio drama in Japan
Radio drama in Japan has a history as long as that of radio broadcasting in that country, which began in 1925. Some consider the first Japanese radio drama to have been "" which was a radio broadcast of a stage play. Others consider the Japanese translation of Richard Hughes's "Danger" or to be...

. In this brand new story, Domon and the others attend the premiere of a Hong Kong action film based on their adventures. The story of both the film itself and the audio drama is mostly comedic in nature: Master Asia appears as an "anonymous movie-fanatic old geezer", and a running joke involves Sai's annoyance that the film had cast him as a female and given Rain his place as Neo-China's fighter. The drama segments are interspersed with the Cantonese songs that were used to define the show's second half, set in Neo-Hong Kong. A new one created for the album—a Cantonese version of the show's first opening theme "Flying in the Sky"—opens the fictional movie. Domon appears to enjoy the song.

Manga

A three volume manga was produced serializing the show, as illustrated by Kōichi Tokita
Koichi Tokita
is a Japanese manga artist that is best known for his Gundam manga. Most of his works deal with the alternate universe Gundam series such as Mobile Fighter G Gundam, and Mobile Suit Gundam Wing....

. Tokyopop
Tokyopop
Tokyopop, styled TOKYOPOP, and formerly known as Mixx, is a distributor, licensor, and publisher of anime, manga, manhwa, and Western manga-style works. The existing German publishing division produces German translations of licensed Japanese properties and original English-language manga, as well...

 published this in English, retaining the dub's edited names.

Appearances in other media

Characters from G Gundam appear in the video game Dynasty Warriors: Gundam
Dynasty Warriors: Gundam
On the first day of its release, Gundam Musou sold over a 100,000 copies, making it the first PS3 title to do so on its first day. Also, the game sold about 70 percent of its 170,000 -180,000 launch day shipments, making it rank third in overall sales — after Ridge Racer 7 and Mobile Suit Gundam:...

. Domon Kasshu is initially playable
Player character
A player character or playable character is a character in a video game or role playing game who is controlled or controllable by a player, and is typically a protagonist of the story told in the course of the game. A player character is a persona of the player who controls it. Player characters...

, and completing his Original Mode story unlocks Master Asia. Rain Mikamura also appears as a support ship pilot. They reappear in Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 2
Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 2
Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 2, originally released in Japan as , is a tactical action video game based on the Gundam anime series, and the sequel to 2007's Dynasty Warriors: Gundam. It is developed by Koei/Omega Force and is published by Namco Bandai...

with Dark Gundam and Kyoji as some of many boss-like mobile weapons known as Mobile Armor. They are also main characters in various games in the Super Robot Wars
Super Robot Wars
is a series of tactical role-playing video games produced by Banpresto, which is now a Japanese division of Namco Bandai. The main feature of the franchise is having a story that crosses over several popular mecha anime, manga and video games, allowing characters and mecha from different titles to...

series, where they team up with many other Gundams and mecha from other series and the series plots are intertwined; and in Super Hero Operations
Super Hero Operations
is an RPG released in 1999 by Banpresto for the Sony Playstation. The game spawned a sequel, known as Super Hero Operations: Diedal's Ambition. The game is considered part of the Super Robot Wars series due to the characters Ingram Prisken and Viletta Vadim who originally debuted in the game...

, another game made by Banpresto
Banpresto
is a Japanese toy company, best known in America for game development, headquartered in the Shinagawa Seaside West Building in Shinagawa, Tokyo. It was founded April 1977 as Hoei Sangyo, Co. Ltd. The company was renamed Coreland in 1982, and during the 1980s it worked mainly as a subcontractor for...

. Domon Kasshu, Rain Mikamura, Kyoji Kasshu, and Master Asia reappear in Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 3
Gundam Musou 3
is a tactical action video game based on the Gundam anime series, and the sequel to 2008's Dynasty Warriors: Gundam 2. It is developed by Koei/Omega Force and is published by Namco Bandai. The game was revealed in the September issue of Famitsu and was released on December 16, 2010 in Japan...

along with The Dark Army. In addition, in the U.S. only PS2 game "Battle Assault 3 featuring Mobile Suit Gundam Seed", Domon Kasshu and Master Asia appear as playable characters piloting the Burning and Master Gundams respectively. They must be unlocked by first finding certain hidden missions and defeating them in the game's story mode.

External links

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