At nearly half a century old, the Mobile Suit Gundam franchise is still going strong and continuing to reinvent itself for modern times. The latest anime stemming from the mecha series is none other than Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX , giving us a view into an alternate version of the original series directed by Kazuya Tsurumaki at both Sunrise and Studio Khara. Ahead of the series’ TV airing this season, a film version of the anime was released in theaters around the world under the title Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX -Beginning. The film combined the prologue and the first two episodes, giving everyone a taste of what’s to come in this alternate telling of the Universal Century timeline. Over the scorching summer in Japan, Anime Tokyo Station in Ikebukuro is holding an exhibition to celebrate the opening chapters of Beginning , complete with production art, AR photo spots and more. Crunchyroll News was invited to a media preview for the event ahead of opening. Starting With Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX -Beginning- It’s not uncommon these days to have anime TV series showcase their first few episodes in theaters ahead of broadcast: DAN DA DAN did it for the first season and will be for the second. Oshi no Ko made waves with its movie-length first episode and Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba has headed to the big screen for each of its arcs. So, as Gundam heads to its “into the 45th and 50th anniversaries,” according to franchise producer Naohiro Ogata , the first team-up between Sunrise and Studio Khara — best known for the Evangelion rebuild films — got a feature-length presentation. During its release in Japan the film made 3.4 billion yen and is the 6th highest-grossing film of the year in the country , according to Box Office Mojo. The feature exhibit itself was split into two parts: The first was a prologue to the series, which focused on Gundam icon Char Aznable acquiring the White Gundam and thus creating an alternate version of the well-known Universal Century timeline. The second, five years after the One Year War, played out in this timeline and its ramifications on the colony Side 6. Because of this, the first two sections of the exhibition were the two halves. Walking in, I was greeted by life-sized Char and Challia Bull, both characters from the original 1979 Mobile Suit Gundam series. Bull, who only appeared in one episode of the original series, got an expanded role in GQuuuuuuX itself as he works alongside Char. Bull’s role continues throughout the film, while Char’s becomes mysterious. While the people might have been life-sized, the Gundam on display was sadly not. Sandwiched between the first and second sections was a massive display of the key visual and the story synopsis in three languages, Chinese, English and Japanese, of course. In fact, most of the event was displayed in all three languages, which is something I’ve never seen before at any other exhibition. This is the first event I’ve been to at Tokyo Anime Station, so they may have had others like this in the past, but I very much welcome the accessibility with all three languages. One of the highlights of the exhibition is the photo spots, which, unless you’re taking a ton of selfies with your bae Char, start in the second section with Shuji's depiction of the Kira-Kira. The platform allows you to walk up and take photos with the wall directly. It isn’t the only spot, though. The now-iconic train gates that Nyaan jumps over can also be walked through. The World of GQuuuuuuX Five Years Later Following the cute photo spots, it was time to meet all the characters from Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX -Beginning- past the prologue, starting with Kaneban Co. Ltd, known as the Pomeranians, and the mecha piloted for the Clan Battles, including the titular GQuuuuuuX. The pilot of the GQuuuuuuX was the center of the next wall with Machu standing side by side with Nyaan and Shuji Ito — the pilot of the Red Gundam that Char used to drive — and the new MAV for Machu in the Clan Battles. Next up, the wall featured the military members of the Sodon crew from the Principality of Zeon military. This is where Challia Bull comes into play once again in his “five years later” design alongside Xavier Olivette, the ensign who loses the GQuuuuuuX, and Comoli Harcourt, another ensign who works with Bull. The final display explained the MAV system and Clan Battles with a life-sized standee of Machu in her plug suit and the ever-lovable HARO who followed her around. Inside Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX On display following the characters were production materials from the feature-length anime. While unable to photograph the displays, the ADR scripts of the prologue written by Evangelion creator Hideaki Anno were shown. Across from them were all the bonus items that were given out during the theatrical run of the film, including the two design works. Just to keep people up to speed with the timeline of the non-alternate Universal Century, the exhibition had the entire history of the series from the first series all the way to Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan's Island . This was also the first piece where it was Japanese only, other than the production material, of course, but it was the script used in the recording sessions. That said, the timeline would make for a great poster, which sadly they don’t sell in the shop. The final large room featured pivotal scenes from mostly the back half of GQuuuuuuX -Beginning- of Machu becoming more confident in wanting to pilot the Gundam and discovering the Kira-Kira and Shuji. Ultimately, the exhibition is for photo spots with the final one inside the halls being an AR section. I scanned a QR code and was able to take selfies in the large room or against a background with the series’ logo. The QR code sent me to a website with different filters, my favorite of which was the filter that gave me Challia Bull's glasses and mustache. I gotta say, lookin’ snazzy! The photo spots didn’t end there, though, with the shop also having spots available for your newly purchased plush of HARO or CONCH. Both are adorable in their own right, but would look great against the Kira-Kira or Tokyo Anime Station platform. The Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX -Beginning- special exhibition at Tokyo Anime Station started on May 24 and runs all Summer in Tokyo’s Ikebukuro district until August 11. All images were taken by Daryl Harding. ©SOTSU ・ SUNRISE
