SoraNews24 —Japan News—

Bringing you yesterday's news from Japan and Asia, today.

TOP

» Japan
» Overhauling your Gundam model for maximum cuteness

Featured

Weird
Studio Ghibli
Jobs

Overhauling your Gundam model for maximum cuteness

Casey Baseel Jun 11, 2014
Tweet

There’s a unique challenge for anime professionals working on a franchise with as long a history as Gundam, which aired its first episode 35 years ago. Since each new series does away with the war mechs of its predecessors, designers are always under pressure to come up with giant robots that look more powerful, technologically advanced, and, in the case of the villains’ machines, sinister than what fans have seen before.

With Gundam Unicorn’s NZ-999 Neo Zeong, piloted by baffling-named antagonist (and Toyota owner) Full Frontal, we think the animators did a pretty good job. From its sharp, angular lines, blood-red paint job, and the crevices in the sheet metal produce murky shadows, the mobile armor appears immediately menacing and dangerous.

Unless that is, you remove the head unit and replace it with a cute anime girl or kitty cat.

As a reference point, here’s how the Neo Zeong appears in the anime.

Since the only three things in life that are absolutely certain are death, taxes, and Gundam merchandising, toymaker Bandai has naturally released multiple model kits of the robot. The newest is this super-deformed version, which gives the Neo Zeong a chubbier build and shorter limbs. Fans weren’t quite finished squeezing all the potential cuteness out of the kit, though. For example, the stock head unit is still pretty intimidating. Why not replace it with one from a friendlier looking super-deformed Gundam?

今週末入荷予定のBB戦士「ネオ・ジオング」のサンプルをさっそく組み立ててみました！　ネオジオングの胸部分は空洞になっていて、ここにシナンジュがすっぽりと入りますってあれぇぇぇぇ？#gunpla #g_uc pic.twitter.com/ZAX6QO9JCs

— イエローサブマリンなんば本店ホビー (@YS_NANBAGAME) June 6, 2014

Among anime fans, there’s a pretty solid consensus that the gritty Gundam franchise falls into the “real robot” category, as opposed to the more over-the-top stylings of “super robot” anime. But what happens to that argument when you have a real robot with Super Mario at the controls?

https://twitter.com/nise_learn/status/475210547814612992

Of course, if you’re so into anime that you buy, build, and then customize Gundam models, you probably have a few cute anime girl figurines sitting around your apartment, so why not put them to use?

2014年紅白の赤組の取りは天海春香さんです。#ネオジオング pic.twitter.com/ORWNctPOji

— Ｋ谷＠夢カグ (@kagutsuchino) June 7, 2014

▼ We know Puella Magi Madoka Magica’s Sayaka has the ability to recover from any injury, but wouldn’t it still be better to avoid said injuries in the first place with the help of thick armor plating?