Gundam friends, how would you have handled Gundam in North America?

[Jonathan Lanza]

Bit of a shower thought but it got me thinking. The Gundam franchise is quite large in Japan and other parts of Asia (nowhere near as big as it was in the 20th century but still pretty big). Despite that though the franchise seemed to struggle after the initial excitement generated by Gundam Wing back in 2000 and eventually went from airing consistently to graveyard slots and was even relegated to the SyFy network at one point. In comparison, something like Yu-gi-oh (another toyetic franchise) has managed to continue airing on NA television even to this day pretty consistently.

I'm not of the mind that there's something about Gundam that is inherently incompatible with audiences and I personally chalk this all up to Bandai completely mismanaging the franchise, especially their attempts to get audiences interested in the U.C line of Gunpla which while all real cool was based off (at the time) 20+ year old cartoons. So imagine you're Bandai with complete control, how would you handle the franchise in North America so that it doesn't die off after the huge success of Wing?

 

[TheMadTitan]

I wouldn't have followed up Wing with G Gundam on Toonami.

Gundam's problem had more to with Toonami fading away and Adult Swim ditching most anime for a good stretch toward the late 2000s, IMO. It wasn't given enough airtime, and no one watches SyFy, so of course it wasn't going to get traction there.

 

[MobileSuitReactor]

I would not have aired 0079. They should have brought over X or Turn A.

 

[B.K.]

I don't think there's much you could have done. It's animated. It's always going to have a limited appeal. Most adults think cartoons are just for kids. All you could do is water it down as much as possible and try to make it into a kid's show, hoping to get some merchandise sells or or do a faithful localization for the niche anime market. Gundam was never going to be a success in America.

 

[Quinton]

Pie-in-the-sky dream: I would have begged Sunrise to create another show set in the After Colony universe. That would have kept Americans hooked.

More realistic scenario: Bring the Mobile Suit Gundam movies into the limelight rather than the show. Make an event out of their airing and immediately follow up with Zeta in a new block.

Best realistic scenario: Don't do UC yet in general. Admirable effort, but the problems were obvious. Bring X next, not G. X isn't as alien to Wing as G is. And while that made some fans (I myself prefer G over Wing), I can tell you none of my school friends were nearly as enthralled. They all stopped watching fairly swiftly; they stuck with 0079 for longer than that.

 

[Shard Shinjuku]

Are we talking the anime side or the toy side? Anime side of things I would have pushed Turn A over the original on Toonami, might not have stuck but pushing a by that point 20 year old series was just utter bollocks. As far as the toys maybe not make the ridiculous overpush with G Gundam that Bandai did with the figures.

 

[B.K.]

I wouldn't have followed up Wing with G Gundam on Toonami.

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They didn't. The aired Mobile Suit Gundam, Gundam 0080, and 0th MS Team in 2001, before G Gundam in 2002.

 

[SpudBud]

I just remember 0079 on toonami being taken off the air when 9/11 happened. That kinda screwed the UC stuff.

 

[B.K.]

I just remember 0079 on toonami being taken off the air when 9/11 happened. That kinda screwed the UC stuff.

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To this day, I still haven't seen the final episode of 08th MS Team. Toonami didn't air the final episode because they said it spoiled the ending of Mobile Suit Gundam and they didn't want to show it. The didn't even air the final four or five episodes of Mobile Suit Gundam. They aired the final episode of the series in their New Year's Evil marathon on New Year's Eve 2001 because Char was ranked high in a popularity poll.

 

[Jonathan Lanza]

I don't think there's much you could have done. It's animated. It's always going to have a limited appeal. Most adults think cartoons are just for kids. All you could do is water it down as much as possible and try to make it into a kid's show, hoping to get some merchandise sells or or do a faithful localization for the niche anime market.

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Considering where Gundam is at today with the Build series I don't think a kid focus would've been too far fetched. Though I suppose that would've taken too long to get to that point and admittedly kiddifying didn't do stuff like One Piece any favors.

Also keep in mind I mean anime successful. Like how Naruto is successful in the west. Keep in mind during the first airing in March 2000, Wing was only being beaten in terms of viewership by DBZ.

Are we talking the anime side or the toy side? Anime side of things I would have pushed Turn A over the original on Toonami, might not have stuck but pushing a by that point 20 year old series was just utter bollocks. As far as the toys maybe not make the ridiculous overpush with G Gundam that Bandai did with the figures.

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Kinda both. I feel like the success of the toys goes a bit hand in hand with the success of the shows. I would use Transformers as a reference but I'm not immediately sure how the toys have been selling along with the series over the years.

 

[Shard Shinjuku]

That being said I think Gundam would have ended up exactly where it is here (Adult Swim Toonami and Netflix) unless Bandai had survived to push the Build Fighters/Divers branch. A lot of mainline Gundam is just too hot for Kids TV.

 

[jwhit28]

Isn't our love for Gundam Wing kinda made fun of like our love for Zyuranger? I'm not sure what you can do when a part of the fanbase falls in love with a very specific season of a series. For me personally, a catch'em all videogame with all the different Gundam probably would have done it. Maybe even Super Robot Wars if that could have made it over.

 

[texhnolyze]

Do you really need to watch the animes to be introduced to Gunpla? If you've been into Gunpla reddits, forums, or socmed groups, a huge chunk of builders are actually ignorant of the anime shows.

 

[TheMadTitan]

They didn't. The aired Mobile Suit Gundam, Gundam 0080, and 0th MS Team in 2001, before G Gundam in 2002.

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I remember those three being on Adult Swim rather than Toonami, and G Gundam being on Toonami and Adult Swim like Wing.

 

[B.K.]

I remember those three being on Adult Swim rather than Toonami, and G Gundam being on Toonami and Adult Swim like Wing.

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Mobile Suit Gundam and 08th MS Team were definitely on Toonami. I remember making sure I didn't do anything after school to see them. I remember MSG comign on at 5:00pm every week day afternoon. 0080 was a Toonami Midnight Run exclusive, though. Midnight Run was a precursor to Adult Swim. They aired shows less edited than Toonami. Midnight Run aired Wing completely uncensored.

Edit: After watching old promos, it looks like 08th MS Team was a Midnight Run show, too. I thought it aired on regular Toonami. Mobile Suit Gundam definitely did.

 

[zswordsman]

To this day, I still haven't seen the final episode of 08th MS Team. Toonami didn't air the final episode because they said it spoiled the ending of Mobile Suit Gundam and they didn't want to show it. The didn't even air the final four or five episodes of Mobile Suit Gundam. They aired the final episode of the series in their New Year's Evil marathon on New Year's Eve 2001 because Char was ranked high in a popularity poll.

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For real? I could have sworn I saw the ending on cable once. I literally only saw the last episode too and it left quite an impact because

Spoiler

the dude lost a leg and my kid self was like "oh damn this is way more intense than Wing"

.

It could have been Adult swim since this was forever ago but I could have sworn it was day time.

 

[pbayne]

I wouldnt have exposed people to the horror that is Wing

 

[SpudBud]

The weird thing is I ended up loving the UC stuff way more then Wing and the rest of the AU. I drove my parents nuts trying to find toys and games. Bandai didn't make it easy. Really though, Gundam was a tough sell for a "kid" show but I don't think sending it to Adult Swim did it any favors.

 

[TheMadTitan]

Mobile Suit Gundam and 08th MS Team were definitely on Toonami. I remember making sure I didn't do anything after school to see them. I remember MSG comign on at 5:00pm every week day afternoon. 0080 was a Toonami Midnight Run exclusive, though. Midnight Run was a precursor to Adult Swim. They aired shows less edited than Toonami. Midnight Run aired Wing completely uncensored.

Edit: After watching old promos, it looks like 08th MS Team was a Midnight Run show, too. I thought it aired on regular Toonami. Mobile Suit Gundam definitely did.

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Damn, where the fuck was I then?

 

[Jonathan Lanza]

Brief overview of the airing history

Gundam Wing - March 2000 (also ran unedited on adult swim)
Gundam Wing Endless Waltz - November 2000
Mobile Suit Gundam - July 2001 (abbreviated due to 9/11, never completed run)
08th MS Team - July 2001 (adult swim, ran that later year in october during afternoons)
Gundam 0080 - November 2001 (on adult swim)
Gundam 0083 - Feb 2002 (on adult swim)
G Gundam - August 2002
SD Gundam Force - Sep 2003
Gundam SEED - April 2004 (never completed run)
Gundam SEED Destiny - March 2007 (never aired in United States, had THREE runs on Canada's YTV from 2007-2010)
Gundam 00 - November 2008 (Syfy network. This was a real bad run with tons of scenes being cut for commercials)
Iron Blooded Orphans - June 2016 (Adult Swim's Toonami)
Gundam Unicorn - January 2017 (Adult Swim's Toonami)

 

[BioDigital Jazzman]

I wouldn't have followed up Wing with G Gundam on Toonami.

Gundam's problem had more to with Toonami fading away and Adult Swim ditching most anime for a good stretch toward the late 2000s, IMO. It wasn't given enough airtime, and no one watches SyFy, so of course it wasn't going to get traction there.

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Gundam wing aired in 2000 and G gundam in 2002. Toonami hadn't even gotten Naruto at that point and would've still been showing the buu saga

the issue was that most gundam series aren't like G or wing. They are much more political based and not as interesting. Especially for toonami audience

gubdam wing also was great because they could have tons of varied and interesting toy designs. You had 5 main pilots with 2diff gubdam forms and then zechs etc. part of the reason I liked wing as a kid was because the toys were great. The other series didn't have that appeal

 

[B.K.]

For real? I could have sworn I saw the ending on cable once. I literally only saw the last episode too and it left quite an impact because

Spoiler

the dude lost a leg and my kid self was like "oh damn this is way more intense than Wing"

.

It could have been Adult swim since this was forever ago but I could have sworn it was day time.

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Yeah. Only 11 episodes of 08th MS Team ever aired on American Toonami. Episode 12 was never shown.

Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team

Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team is an original video animation (OVA) series in the Gundam franchise, produced by Sunrise. Released from January 25, 1996 to April 25, 1999, the series was directed by Takeyuki Kanda until his death in July 1996, causing production to stall. GONZO's Umanosuke...

toonami.fandom.com

08th MS Team premiered on Toonami's Midnight Run programming block at 12:00 AM from July 23, 2001 to August 6, 2001, with reruns continuing through September 7, 2001.[SUP][1][/SUP] Reruns of the series then aired on the weekday afternoon Toonami block at 5:00 PM from October 1, 2001 to November 2, 2001.[SUP][2][/SUP] The series also returned for a second run on the Midnight Run at 12:30 AM from October 10, 2001 to November 2, 2001.

The series aired on both blocks edited for content even though the Midnight Run previously aired uncut episodes of Gundam Wing. Episodes were edited to Cartoon Network standards at the time and most explicit language, nudity, and gore was edited out of the series.[SUP][5][/SUP] Only the first 11 episodes aired on Toonami, the final episode was never aired on the block. In addition, some scenes from the movie Miller's Report were edited into episode 8 ("Duty and Ideals") specifically for Toonami.

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[TheMadTitan]

Gundam wing aired in 2000 and G gundam in 2002. Toonami hadn't even gotten Naruto at that point and would've still been showing the buu saga

the issue was that most gundam series aren't like G or wing. They are much more political based and not as interesting. Especially for toonami audience

gubdam wing also was great because they could have tons of varied and interesting toy designs. You had 5 main pilots with 2diff gubdam forms and then zechs etc. part of the reason I liked wing as a kid was because the toys were great. The other series didn't have that appeal

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8th MS Team grabbed me way more than Wing did, likewise with 0080 and 83. Probably because I was obsessed with Metal Gear. I was in high school at the time so no one was buying me anything but video games.

And anime games, if they did make it over, weren't that good.

 

[Jonathan Lanza]

I'll also post this cause it makes me laugh. I wonder how effective these were at getting people's attention. They definitely make it seem more teen oriented which might've been the way to go?

 

[Voror]

I would not have aired 0079. They should have brought over X or Turn A.

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I remember reading they did ask about airing those two but were denied or something and had to go with 0079. Not sure on the reason for it.

Turn A might have been a bit of a weird sell as much as I like it but I think X could have done well.

 

[SpudBud]

I'll also post this cause it makes me laugh. I wonder how effective these were at getting people's attention. They definitely make it seem more teen oriented which might've been the way to go?

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Wow, I remember this commercial and I remember buying a gunpla once at toys r us.

Your right though, Gundam probably should focused a little older. My friends back it the day thought it was a transformer ripe off or something. I think it was always gonna be a uphill battle. Like Star Wars in China, no cultural nostalgia so no one gave a shit.

 

[Deepwater]

Brief overview of the airing history

Gundam Wing - March 2000 (also ran unedited on adult swim)
Gundam Wing Endless Waltz - November 2000
Mobile Suit Gundam - July 2001 (abbreviated due to 9/11, never completed run)
08th MS Team - July 2001 (adult swim, ran that later year in october during afternoons)
Gundam 0080 - November 2001 (on adult swim)
Gundam 0083 - Feb 2002 (on adult swim)
G Gundam - August 2002
SD Gundam Force - Sep 2003
Gundam SEED - April 2004 (never completed run)
Gundam SEED Destiny - March 2007 (never aired in United States, had THREE runs on Canada's YTV from 2007-2010)
Gundam 00 - November 2008 (Syfy network. This was a real bad run with tons of scenes being cut for commercials)
Iron Blooded Orphans - June 2016 (Adult Swim's Toonami)
Gundam Unicorn - January 2017 (Adult Swim's Toonami)

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The only real mistake here was sending Gundam 00 to Syfy. Otherwise I don't think there is more that you could do. The hard part with pre Gundam 00 is that running a full 46-50 episode series is difficult, especially for anime. It's amazing that Toonami was able to do so with Wing, and G. But it was clear I think from SEED's run (which, anecdotally, I also fell off from Gundam at this point even though I eventually revisited it around 08-09) that it wasn't possible to do on broadcast TV anymore. Idk. The 00s is really weird for Cartoons broadcasted in America. A lot of the networks got a lot things wrong.

In between IBO and 00 is Age (which would've done bad on Toonami), G Reconguista (which *Really* would've done terrible on Toonami). And of course there are the various Gunpla Builders, which honestly Toonami probably should've took a crack at. It maybe could've coasted on nostalgia.

I think Sunrise has done a terrible job making it's older gundam shows available on one streaming platform. The newest OVAs usually find their way to Netflix, but the fact that you can't even watch The MSG - Zeta Gundam - ZZ - CCA all in one place is pathetic. And good luck if you want the later UC works like F91, Victory, and Turn A. Or X for that matter (which got a DVD release in *2016*, wtf).

For as iconic as the franchise is, it's accessibility outside of Japan leaves a lot to be desired.

 

[SpudBud]

Hell I'm surprised they haven't updated the dub for the 0079 movies. Though I have a soft spot for the original dubs with Steve Blum as Sha, English Bright Noa and Gun-Damn.

 

[Jonathan Lanza]

Hell I'm surprised they haven't updated the dub for the 0079 movies. Though I have a soft spot for the original dubs with Steve Blum as Sha, English Bright Noa and Gun-Damn.

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It's pretty odd to me that they re-dubbed Seed when there's a bunch of series that haven't even been dubbed yet. I know Reco has an understandably bad rep but that really should've gotten a dub by now.