Gundam fans dancing in the streets in Tokyo circa 1980. Who were the Tominoko Tribe?
Tag: gundam
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.
Resin Royalty: Kotobukiya’s Original Kit Catalog of 1991
A quick look through a 30-year-old catalog from garage kit manufacturer Kotobukiya.
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.
Two Factory: A Translated Interview with Kow Yokoyama and Makoto Kobayashi
In 1988, Kow Yokoyama and Makoto Kobayashi stood atop the artist and model making scene. Their illustrations and model work appeared in anime, magazines, video games, and a collaborative artbook called Two Factory.
No Utopias: Gerard O’Neill, Gundam, and the Illusion of Space Colonization
War in the Pocket provides perhaps the most pointed critique of space colonization within the larger Gundam canon. Directly in conversation with Gerard O’Neill’s The High Frontier, 0080 shows the colonial dream for what it is: a destructive illusion.
The Mobile Suit Machinations of Kazuhisa Kondo, A Translated Interview
Originally published nearly three decades ago in the manual of a PC-98 strategy game, this interview with Kazuhisa Kondo sheds light on his unique approach to portraying mobile suits in his comics.
Towards a Historiography of Gundam’s One Year War
Gundam could be considered reader-hostile considering the lengths it makes fans go to in order to reach its stories.
Unlucky Clover: The Story of Gundam’s Ill-Fated Toy Sponsorship
Like all good giant robot shows, Mobile Suit Gundam had a proper toy sponsor. Unfortunately, the brightly colored metallic toys were utterly at odds with the show’s more realistic tone. Before Bandai’s gunpla, there was Clover’s toys.
Gunpla Doujin: Universal Century 0087
What was a diehard Gundam modeler in 1986 to do if they weren’t satisfied by Bandai’s kits based on the all-new Zeta Gundam? This doujin by Studio Mk-0 offered detailed how-to guides for improving your gunpla