Everything You Need to Know Before Gundam: GQuuuuuuX

A precise peculiar clip for anime fans is astir upon us: adjacent week, the adjacent introduction successful the Gundam franchise, GQuuuuuuX, begins, taking america into a bold and breathtaking rotation connected implicit 45 years of giant robot history. Interested but not definite wherever to start? We’re present to help.

What Is Gundam GQuuuuuuX About?

GQuuuuuuX is acceptable successful the twelvemonth 0085 of an epoch known arsenic the Universal Century—but not the Universal Century that most Gundam fans volition know, the superior timeline among several in Gundam (home to the continuity established by the 1979 original, its successors in Zeta Gundam, ZZ Gundam, Char’s Counterattack, and more). GQuuuuuuX alternatively operates successful an alternate version of that timeline where, six years prior, the secessionist abstraction colony known arsenic the Principality of Zeon won the infamous One Year War against the Earth Federation, having managed to successfully bargain the prototype Gundam and assertion it arsenic their own.

The Gundam—as good arsenic its pilot, the legendary ace Char Aznable—disappears astatine the extremity of GQuuuuuuX‘s mentation of the conflict, but mysteriously returns successful 0085 piloted by a young lad named Shuji Ito. While Shuji goes connected the tally from the Zeon forces chasing him, helium crosses paths with 2 young colonists, Nyaan (a exile from the warfare present making wealth arsenic a courier for smugglers) and Machu, an anxious young miss who finds herself inadvertently thrust into the satellite of underground Mobile Suit fights known arsenic “Clan Battles”—and done that, manages to someway find herself piloting Zeon’s latest experimental Mobile Suit, the titular GQuuuuuuX.

Do I Need Watch Any Other Gundam Before I Watch GQuuuuuuX?

© Khara/Sunrise

In theory, no. In actuality… it’s complicated.

GQuuuuuuX‘s quality of being acceptable successful this “what if” alternate world of Gundam‘s astir celebrated continuity means determination are a batch of elements it draws connected and extrapolates successful its satellite building, from mecha designs to characters and concepts. It’s hard to accidental conscionable however overmuch that worldly volition truly substance successful the amusement yet—Beginning, the prequel movie released successful theaters arsenic a compilation of the archetypal fewer episodes of GQuuuuuuX, included a prelude retelling the alternate events of the One Year War successful this timeline, and we don’t cognize however much, oregon if any, of that inheritance accusation volition look successful the show. But the superior facet of the amusement itself, astir Shuji, Machu, and Nyaan, mostly leans connected caller material, truthful you could ostensibly leap successful and spot the bid done their perspective.

That said, it would beryllium ideal, if you didn’t see Beginning, to person astatine slightest watched immoderate of the archetypal 1979 Gundam to appreciate the context of what GQuuuuuuX is doing. But 43 episodes of anime is simply a batch to effort and binge if you privation to beryllium connected committee with GQuuuuuuX erstwhile it launches. There is an alternate option: a trilogy of compilation movies that condenses the archetypal amusement down to a fistful of hours. But ironically, they person their ain contented here—one 1979 quality that has abruptly go precise important to GQuuuuuuX‘s story, the Zeon commandant Challia Bull, is chopped from the movie edit entirely, due to the fact that he’s lone successful a azygous occurrence of the archetypal show.

The original Gundam is streaming connected Crunchyroll, if you privation to cheque it out. The amusement holds up remarkably well, and is simply a classical of the genre for a reason.

What Makes GQuuuuuuX Stand Out Compared to Other Gundam Shows?

There person been pieces of Gundam media that ideate alternate outcomes of the One Year War and the Universal Century before, from games, to manga, to adjacent the archetypal novelization of the show, and portion galore of Gundam‘s myriad different timelines often riff disconnected ideas and elements of the Universal Century, determination hasn’t been a mainline amusement similar GQuuuuuuX that explicitly roots it successful a nonstop parallel mentation of it.

But it besides stands retired for the sheer magnitude of notable endowment behind its production. First off, the bid is developed by Evangelion workplace Khara, alternatively than Gundam‘s ain studios astatine Sunrise and Bandai Namco, and with that comes a batch of that fascinating down the bid crew: the amusement is directed by Kazyua Tsurumaki, who directed FLCL, Diebuster, the Evangelion rebuild films, and aggregate episodes of the archetypal anime; and it’s written mostly by Yoji Enokido, who has worked connected Evangelion, Sailor Moon, , the aforementioend FLCL, and Revolutionary Girl Utena, alongside an assistance from Evangelion creator Hideaki Anno.

The show’s extremist takes connected the classic Gundam mechanical designs are developed by Ikuto Yamashita, who not lone developed the mecha designs on Evangelion, but besides contributed mechanical plan to Atlus’ caller smash-hit JRPG Metaphor Re:Fantazio. And past there’s the quality plan itself, provided by nary different than Take, the creator champion known for being the designer of modern Pokémon quality plan since Sun and Moon. The scope of the originative squad present decidedly makes GQuuuuuuX basal out, whether you like Gundam oregon conscionable similar anime successful general!

Where Can I Watch Gundam GQuuuuuuX?

© Khara/Sunrise

Gundam GQuuuuuuX volition statesman streaming worldwide connected April 8 through Amazon Prime Video. While details person been kept nether wraps up to this constituent (including what clip precisely episodes volition release), the amusement volition debut some a subtitled and dubbed episodes connected a play ground simultaneously.

So, Uh… How Do You Pronounce GQuuuuuuX?

It’s a just question, arsenic that’s a precise intimidating looking word! While we haven’t heard however the English dub volition grip it yet, the Japanese katakana for the rubric is work arsenic Jīkuakusu—which successful English would suggest we extremity up with thing similar “G-Kwux.” The name, galore U’s aside, is derived from the machine programming word Qux, a metasyntactic variable: it’s a communal placeholder connection programmers volition usage successful coding with the intent that it volition beryllium replaced with existent terminology astatine a aboriginal date.

This makes consciousness wrong the satellite of GQuuuuuuX too. The titular Mobile Suit is presented to america arsenic an aboriginal Zeon prototype of the adjacent procreation of combat mecha, developed retired of the exertion Zeon managed to reverse-engineer from the Gundam and from its ain Mobile Suit improvement teams. Maybe it keeps the Qux designation for the duration of the show, oregon possibly it’s yet christened with its last name, we don’t cognize yet.

Why So Many U’s Though?

© Khara/Sunrise

Well, that we don’t truly cognize officially. It makes for a chill looking logo though!

For what it’s worth, it’s not just stylization for the series’ branding. Although nary 1 successful the amusement pronounced a agelong drawstring of ‘u’ sounds erstwhile saying its name, the titular suit’s authoritative designation in-universe is the gMS-Ω GQuuuuuuX. At 1 constituent in Beginning, immoderate characters exploring its interior systems for the archetypal clip bash really balk astatine seeing it written retired successful specified a way, truthful honestly—the characters successful the amusement look to cognize arsenic overmuch arsenic you oregon I do.

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