The new Gundam offering may be hiding its wild development in plain sight

Bandai today released another little new look at the Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuXthe next major entry in the venerable Mecha franchise born out of an unprecedented partnership between the studio and Neon Genesis Evangelion Khara’s power. But within the small flashes of new images, there are some very interesting looks at a new character that seem to give us a better idea of ​​what the new show will be about… and the character may not be new at all.

The new trailer for the theatrical compilation release of GQuuuuuuXopening episodes, the beginning— scheduled to hit Japanese theaters next week on January 17 — gives us more looks at the series’ main characters, as well as the titular mobile suit. But a new character stands out: an older man with bluish-white hair, wearing an olive suit and some very Interesting style on his shirt and collar. The uniform has clear similarities to the official military clothing of one of the original factions Mobile Suit Gundam and its successors – the separatist space colony Zeon – and between that and Design Man, there’s definitely some evocation of a particular, interesting character from the 1979 classic: Chalia Paul, an important character in GundamEarly explorations of one The most fascinating concepts, new genres.

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It was introduced in episode 39 of The original series “New Species: Chalia Bull,” Bull is a senior Zeon officer summoned by the military commander of the Principality, Geren Zabi, to test him as one of the legendary new species. Believed to be the natural evolution of humans after their migration into space—having developed enhanced extrasensory perceptual skills and, in some cases, latent psionic abilities—the new species was a late addition to the original narrative. Gundam. The word itself was only first uttered a few episodes before Bull was introduced, as various parties began to believe it GundamThe protagonist and main antagonist, Amuro Rei Shar Aznabel (along with the latter’s mysterious companion, Lalah Sune), may be one of the first new species to develop as the war between the Earth Federation and Zeon rages on.

But the exploration of the idea was short-lived: Paul was killed in battle with Amuro in the same episode in which he was introduced, and Gundam It ended in itself after a few episodes The future at that time uncertain. It was only in later material after that Gundam‘s future as a series was secured by exploring the new genre concept further, until it became a defining touchstone for the novels in its beloved core continuity, the “Universal Century” – the beginning of the first century. Gundam and His immediate successors Zeta and ZZ Gundamas well as a series of other shows and films from the series – both in how it explores humanity’s ability to develop a better understanding of itself outside of the conflicts of interstellar conflict, and in the tragedy of the exploitation of new species at the hands of the military’s ruling classes. Sustaining courses From that conflict.

Gundam The franchise is no stranger to replicating elements of UCLA in countless alternate, often unconnected, universes Present throughout the series. Many shows in the series are often in conversation with ideas first explored in the Universal Century, such as the concept of a new species and the evolution of humanity in space, or present their own versions of its story despite not being in the same continuity, such as Post-War Gundam X or Gundam Seedsor even the last Witch of Mercury. Just as many borrow elements of the design language from them either just for aesthetic parallels or to remotely connect themselves to the events of that initial series. GQuuuuuuXat the very least we’ve seen, is no exception: the main suit wields an axe weapon not unlike the “Thermal Falcon” used by Zakus in the original. Gundamand in both this new trailer and the previous trailer footage, there was a one-eyed mobile police suit that borrows a lot of the design language from Zaku itself as well. So it won’t happen also Surprisingly, this mysterious character is a new character intended to be a parallel to Challia Bull in both design and personality – just like how Gundam He loves himself as a char cloneand thematic and design parallels to one of the most beloved characters, across different iterations of the franchise.

But there’s also an interesting possibility raised by this similarity: this figure may actually be a variation of Paul himself, rather than just a stand-in. when GQuuuuuuX It was first revealed, and an early Italian-language version was released on the series’ promotional website (Then I quickly retreated) A brief plot summary of the series that noted that the show itself is not an alternative Gundam universe, but alternative Timetable: A version of the events of the Universal Century in which Zeon defeated the Earth Federation in the One Year War. If this is ultimately what GQuuuuuuX What he does, then there is a clear chance that this character is a version of Bull that survives his confrontation with Amuro, and that GQuuuuuuX He might have more to say about his role in awakening the new stereotypes in this version of the narrative rather than hastily leaving it to its doomed fate from the original series.

Gundam The timeline is vast and complex, but the series has never tried to do something like an alternate timeline like this (there have been several games and manga that explore the idea, but never any canonical anime entries). It would be fitting that a show announced for the series’ 45th anniversary in 2025 would be one that tackles the reimagining of the global century like this — and if it happens, we I can’t wait to see What a chance she takes with characters from the original series, like Challia Bull or otherwise, as she carves out her own spin on this beloved story.

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