Tom dives further into the publication history of Syd Mead’s Gundam movie concept art and examines rarely seen original sketches.
Tag: bandai
The Unusual Production History of Genocyber
A cult classic in the schlock n’ gore OVA genre, Genocyber took an unlikely road from pitch to production.
Left in the Dust: Uncovering the Secret of the Stampede Valkyrie
Before Macross sequels hit video shelves and airwaves, Shoji Kawamori’s Stampede Valkyrie was one of a handful of rarely seen and now mostly forgotten designs created for Macross side-projects.
Stream•Base: Riding the Gunpla Boom in the Early Days of Gundam Model Mania
The gunpla boom of the early ’80s saw an explosion of interest in mecha modeling and provided unprecedented opportunities for a group of model enthusiasts that dubbed themselves “Stream•Base.”
Bandai, The Post-Gundam Wave, and the Year 1985
With the gunpla boom in decline and TV robot anime losing its luster, in 1985 Bandai began to look for new ways to embrace older fans and early otaku.
Bandai’s Brain Bank Media: B-Club
At the tail end of the gunpla boom, Bandai’s enthusiast publishing and garage kit division, B-Club, unleashed a monthly magazine and dozens of garage kits on a modeling community that was growing out of normal plastic model kits.
Moé for Moai
The Emotion logo was created in 1983 — around the same time moai statues made a surreal appearance as spacefaring, laser-vomiting opponents in shooting game series Gradius. Just why is Japan so moé for moai?
When Gundam Came to Hollywood
The never-before-told story of the unproduced American film based on the Japanese giant robot series.
Anime Archaeology: Shibuya’s B-Club Shop
We’re taking another look back at Tokyo’s otaku past, this time we’re visiting B-Club’s long-gone shop in Shibuya.