The Official Gundam Unicorn Anime Thread Mk VII

[balofo]

Fukui asked at the end of an event if there was a UC sequel if the fans would like new or keep the old characters...

There sure are lots of elements for a sequel: Zeon Republic, the rest of the Sleeved fleet that never appeared, Gryps II, Angelo still alive. Could also better tie in HF.

There's also the new story written by Fukui for the PG Unicorn.

Is a UC part 2 even feasible story wise?

[Kratos]

If anything, Unicorn could use a side-story to expand on some of the stuff that happens DURING it.

While it wouldn't surprise me at all if a sequel was greenlit, anybody attempting one would have their work cut out for them. There are some dangling threads, sure, but none so egregious that they need a full sequel to explore. That's not to say a particularly talented writer/director couldn't get some mileage out of it, just that it'd be tough (and ultimately kind of unnecessary - Unicorn has a very heavy air of finality about it, especially taking F91 and Victory into consideration).

Personally, I would want any sequel to move away from the Sleeves/Zeon completely (well, okay, maybe an Angelo cameo wouldn't hurt), and I guess explore the impact of Mineva's speech and the opening of the Box, maybe as a backdrop to Riddhe/Mineva/Banagher figuring out what to do with their pair of god machines.

[Gundam420]

People keep saying there's still more to do since the General Revil is still out there, but I'm thinking: "does it even matter?" Not really, because the Sinanju single-handedly took it down, now you have a pair of god mode Unicorns that that can disable a squad of mobile suits with a hand wave. So no, doesn't really need a sequel as far as I'm concerned. An animated short would be cool, but I'm good.

[Kratos]

I might like a short about Full Frontal, actually, considering they didn't deem it necessary to explore his origins in the OVA itself.

[Deacon Blues]

Gaia Gear *cough cough*

[toysdream]

I'd like to think that Full Frontal is an early product of the "Char Continue Project" dedicated to producing a perfect memory clone of the Red Comet.

-- Mark

[Deacon Blues]

I'd like to think that Full Frontal is an early product of the "Char Continue Project" dedicated to producing a perfect memory clone of the Red Comet.

-- Mark

I'm glad I'm not the only one that though of this... Bah! All the people that laughed at me for it!

[Kratos]

Didn't some shady folk make Frontal as a memory clone using some old Psycoframe in the the novels? I could have sworn I read that somewhere.

My personal head-canon (for the OVA) is that Frontal was a memory clone created for propaganda purposes by the Sleeves' backers using the preserved mental patterns in the psyco-frame from the Sazabi. When Char died, he had an "I CAN SEE TIME!" moment ala Lalah, and this experienced was transferred to Frontal when he was created and greatly influenced his nihilism/despair (and was also why he could take Banagher on the magical mystery tour - he's just sharing memories through the linked psycoframes of the Unicorn and Sinanju/Neo Zeong).

[balofo]

Shame that there won't be a new UC OVA series until Origin ends, optimistically, in 2018...

[SuperChar Trek]

My personal head-canon (for the OVA) is that Frontal was a memory clone created for propaganda purposes by the Sleeves' backers using the preserved mental patterns in the psyco-frame from the Sazabi.

With the exception of Sazabi, that's essentially the novel's origin of Full Frontal.

After just finishing the novels, re-watching the OVAs, and reading recent staff interviews, however, I now just assume that OVA Full Frontal is Char.

Reasons:

1. The OVA goes out of its way in removing references to Full Frontal having handlers.

Bakharov's son and his Republic of Zeon military faction are Frontal's handlers. They were excluded. All of the important conversations Frontal had with them, including similar conversations Frontal had with Zinnerman regarding Mineva's role, were excluded. The novel's version of Neo Zeon's capture of the Nahel Argama, which was an important scene for Frontal's handlers, was also excluded.

2. The Lalah scene.

I'm sure we all know this wasn't in the novels. But this scene makes no sense to me if Frontal wasn't the genuine Char in some intimate manner.

I can't wait for Fukui to reach this scene in Bande Dessinee.

[Kratos]

Well, except Char HIMSELF also shows up to...steal Full Frontal's soul, or whatever, and the constant claims of him being a fake and/or imposter (which I can't imagine weren't done on purpose).

[SuperChar Trek]

True. I interpreted that as One Year War Char, the part that believed in newtypes, coming back to get the 'rest of himself'--the part that no longer believed in newtypes. There's an interview in the Gundam Ace June 2014 magazine with the staff where something similar was stated as an explanation.

[toysdream]

In the animated episode 7, I recall Mineva suggesting that the whole Side Co-Prosperity Sphere scheme may have been part of Frontal's programming. (Can't check my scripts right now but I think that was pretty much the phrasing.) That rather supports the idea he's a fake created as a tool of Zeon Republic bigwigs, and this plot point may just have been omitted from the anime to fit in more mecha cameos.

-- Mark

[Zeonista]

Shame that there won't be a new UC OVA series until Origin ends, optimistically, in 2018...

They can always try to sneak in Crossbone Gundam, who would recognize that as a UC story?

Kratos: Yes, there can be only one Char Aznable. Accept no substitutes!

[SuperChar Trek]

In the animated episode 7, I recall Mineva suggesting that the whole Side Co-Prosperity Sphere scheme may have been part of Frontal's programming. (Can't check my scripts right now but I think that was pretty much the phrasing.) That rather supports the idea he's a fake created as a tool of Zeon Republic bigwigs, and this plot point may just have been omitted from the anime to fit in more mecha cameos.

-- Mark

I also believed that at first Mark. I thought Mineva stated that as a matter-of-fact until I sat down and read the special edition of the script that came with the theatrical blu-rays. Right after Mineva states that, Syam appeals to a piece of Japanese culture where people close to death, particularly the elderly, can see a person's spirit. Syam saw Frontal's spirit as Char's, then follows it up with the truly is a ghost comment. That seems consistent with Char's later "shiodoki ka" in response to Lalah as Char's 'ghost' leaves its 'vessel'.

This lead me to believe that Mineva's programming comment was one of continuing disbelief that the Char she knew was dead rather than a statement of identity.

Or I could be completely wrong. What do you think?

[toysdream]

Okay, here's the Mineva line in question:

「退がりなさい。フル・フロンタル。お前は、あのシャアに似せて造り上げられ、その役割を目を果たそうとしているだけだ。お前の言うサイド共栄圏の実現も与えられたプログラムにすぎないのではないのか？」

The subtitle translation:

"Leave us, Full Frontal. You're nothing but a man who was made in Char's image who is trying to fulfill his role. Are you certain that this Side Co-Prosperity Sphere you speak of isn't just part of your programming?"

After claiming that he's no longer "empty," Frontal winds up his reply with...

「……実は、私にも判らないのです。造り物の器に注がれた、この思いが一体誰のものなのか」

In the subtitle translation:

"In truth, I do not know, either. Whose thoughts are these that have been poured into this artificial vessel?"

"Artificial" is actually a generous translation choice here - 造り物 would more commonly be translated as "fake" or "imitation", and that's Frontal talking about himself! This seems completely unambiguous to me, and I think it's really reaching to suggest that he's actually Char when both Mineva and Frontal himself state otherwise.

As for Syam's comment, they've been referring to Frontal as "the ghost of Char" ever since episode 2. I could see an argument that Frontal has somehow become possessed by the spirit of the original Char, but the fact that Char's actual spirit then shows up to talk to Frontal would disprove that as well.

-- Mark

[HalfDemonInuyasha]

Maybe some weird EXAM System style thing was done and a part of Char's spirit was put in him? lol

[balofo]

It's pretty much clear the MS cameos really affected production: OVA 4 was finished just hours before the 1st showing(ruined the Earth Arc not to mention showing that Gouf that never made to Torrington) and OVA 7 got additional 30 minutes that ended up adding nothing worthwhile(nobody cared about Conroy, that should have been Tristars time to shine), ruining the pace(Riddhe's info dump) and the really unnecessary ghost trio instead of Frontal's origin and the ROZ behind the scenes(a travesty to the last 2 novels).

OVA 7 just needed to give a non anti climatic final fight with Frontal(which even with the ugly OP Neo Zeong was worse than novel) and remove the more ridiculous rainbow stuff(just stoping Gryps II was enough).

There's always BD to look forward to, since it's following the novel plot faithfully with just some anime and own stuff added.

[toysdream]

A slightly more charitable theory might be that the OVAs were created on the assumption that everyone watching them had already read the novels. Working on the script translations, I certainly felt like there were a lot of places where they didn't really explain things, and in some places I had to refer to the novels to explain plot points to the rest of the adaptation team.

In this case, Mineva and Frontal do seem to be referring to the explanation of Frontal's back story that was given in the novels. It's not clear when Mineva would have figured this out, though.

-- Mark

[balofo]

A slightly more charitable theory might be that the OVAs were created on the assumption that everyone watching them had already read the novels. Working on the script translations, I certainly felt like there were a lot of places where they didn't really explain things, and in some places I had to refer to the novels to explain plot points to the rest of the adaptation team.

In this case, Mineva and Frontal do seem to be referring to the explanation of Frontal's back story that was given in the novels. It's not clear when Mineva would have figured this out, though.

-- Mark

Yeah, I'm aware there was never enough time to give a complete adaptation of the novels with just less than 7 hours and a half.

Seriously couldn't they think of adapting the Torrington+Dakar battle into 1 single huge battle in Adelaide and so give Loni some characterization? The time where Loni and Banagher went to see the Fed faked chart in Dakar didn't even make into BD...

I also really miss the part of Frontal being an empty vessel, culminating into Banagher frying him.