Gundam AGE General Discussion Thread
 

Okawa hinted at new Gundam Series on Twitter :-

http://img815.imageshack.us/img815/5...1381478105.jpg

Official Announcement in March :-

http://img51.imageshack.us/img51/5904/1291431318527.jpg

So we should be seeing the next TV series sometime next Summer.

PS:-

I'm not too kin on Okawa returning as mecha designer for a new series after looking at how he recycle his design on SeeD. Though I admit that his design being able to sell as model kits.

Let the speculation begin...I doubt it's a CE series though. I'd wonder which two letters will marry and become a new timeline.

Okawara spills the beans eh? That's awesome. :D

Okawara again eh...don't know how I feel about that either. The man's done a few really good designs, but his CE stuff are some of the most atrocious things I've seen in Gundam.

I hope Okawara coming back doesn't mean CE is back as a series, because I was seriously expecting it to either fade out of obscurity or come back as a movie not a series.

Maybe it's going to be a new Wing series?

SEED is far too dead to be resurrected at this point, 00 has finished and UC has Gundam Unicorn. I'm gonna bet that it's a new AU series.

Just because Okawara is back, doesn't mean it's SEED or Wing.

The bigwigs loves Okawara because he pushes out designs that are easy to draw, animate and sculpt.

Then it's up to the director of the series to choreograph action sequences which will bait the naive in.

But yah, you know that guy is running out of ideas after what we have seen of the Extreme.

Maybe since he's back for a new series, he has some good ones again.:p

Well, just because he's working on the project, doesn't mean he's going to be the main mecha designer... The man's worked on every single Gundam TV series since Victory after all.

Of course, I tend to be an optimistic guy. :p

People have been saying that he's running out of ideas for the entire time I've been in this board, at the very least.

I agree, but that's because I joined this forum when Seed started. Then when they started to introduce Okawara's designs in the latter half of the series...it just....sigh...

Far too dead ? There's still a movie and Seed charcaters are still the most popular gundam character. So no, it's not dead at all.


I hope it's a new serie in the CE universe but before that, I want my movie :upset:

Doesn't the head writer for SEED have cancer or something? That's why the movie was scrapped?

Maybe if it's a good Seed series I might get into that timeline more...

Wouldn't be suprised if it's Astray.

As if that's a bad thing. :eyebrow: A Complex design doesn't equal originality. Simplicity almost always dose, because there is usually no other way.

and most of Okawara work aren't all that simple to begin with, compared to other designers from this industry.

No, his designs are pretty simplistic and generic all around. They're nothing but rehashes of the same stuff.

Don't suppose Fukuda has a twitter...? Please let him let something slip, milk your fateful CE fans bandai, we've been waiting forever :mad:

No...it's dead...or maybe that word is too harsh. The SEED series is more or less "finished".

This new series will be a brand new AU entry, you'll see.

I would agree with the whole simple is clean, less is more ideology...usually. But this really doesn't apply to Okawara...at least not now.

Impulse, which is an extreme bastardization of the Strike design. Extremely hideous with a ridiculous combination gimmick that's so stupid they didn't even try. It's basically just...literally...splitting the gundam into three parts...no transformation required. Then his PS armor changes to different colors which are ridiculously ugly...I mean look at Launcher Impulse (forgot his real name)....what the hell is up with that color scheme oh my god.

Then here comes Destiny, the title mech of the series. It's a real freaking shame that its the title mech and you can tell almost no design philosophy or thought went through his mind when he designed poor Destiny. Destiny doesn't even look like a "complete" Mobile Suit, he just looks like a chimera of different gimmicks stuffed into one. First they gave him all the Strike packs, then gave him all the special gimmicks that OTHER main Gundams sported in their OWN series...such as Shinning Finger, Wings of Light and F91's mirage images. Like...wow they didn't even try with this guy. It's a real shame too since Destiny's face is actually quite original in Gundam designs (with the tears on his eyes and all that) but the rest of him is just complete utter crap.

Don't tell me they are homages to older series, that's just a poor excuse. When you want to do an homage you can do it with style and thought like Trans-Am in 00 as an homage to Char. Don't even get me started on Raider, Forbidden, and all the other ugly crap. As much as I dislike Seed I actually agree that there are plenty of beautiful designs from CE....but I guarantee you most of the sexy ones didn't come from Okawara.

I've been rewatching Wing and checking out Gundam X, and I certainly don't mind that Okawara is returning. Always liked his stuff. Except for the eye sore ZOIDS in SEED, but that's just ONE thing I don't like.

Lol, Sunrise seems so eager to retcon Okawara's designs in favor of Katoki's for Wing though. xD With this new manga, it's like he never designed Wing Gundam.

I don't see it. Most of his stuff has lots of unnecessary elements in their design. so I can't call his style 'simple'. And yes, he reuses a lot of element's from his previous work. most artist do tho.

I already pointed that out, most of Okawara work aren't all that simple..

You have to keep in mind that Impulse has to make sense inside the CE storyline. Impulse is supposed to be based on Strike so of course it needs to look like Strike and Okawara has to keep that in mind while working on the designs.

And it's not like Okawara can draw whatever he wants. Artists who get paid to do stuff don't always have 100% creative control, especially on such big projects like Gundam. And I've heard that Fukuda likes to get involved in all the different processes. For example, Destiny's design was supposed to be Fukuda's idea, the design was originally meant for Freedom.

Yeah which is why I said that I would agree usually, except not now. His recent designs are extremely hideous. Like Nos pointed out, his older designs like X and F91 are pretty nice. But his recent library of works from the Gundam-verse are....very very meh.

I did keep that in mind. I wasn't criticizing that it looked like Strike, I was criticizing how it was a bastardization of the design. I was talking about it's complete no-detail combining gimmick as well as it's disgusting color palette.

I am an artist myself, so I know full well how production can get in the way of the creative process. But that is really NO EXCUSE for the quality of work you produce. Your job is to do great designs/work even if you are under control or pressure. Your job is to manage to still design great stuff even if it needs to be simple/blocky/easy to animate/easy to make models of/etc. I have to say Okawara did not manage to do that in his recent designs for the CE verse.

Also diverting the blame from Destiny to Freedom doesn't make that any better...it's still bad. Besides Fukuda is the director of the Seed series, his job is to oversee the entire production, so him giving his two cents in design/plot/characters is expected and very normal. Let's put it this way, if Okawara was doing a good job he wouldn't design ugly things, if Fukuda was doing a good job he wouldn't approve of Okawara's ugly designs. Both are at fault, but it doesn't make Okawara's sin any lighter.

Anyway...I'd be a bit upset if they devolve back to Okawara when Ebikawa (and the other guy) did such a fantastic job in 00.

I have a strong feeling, until we actually see something from this show. We're gonna be bickering ALOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT.

.....If you want to see some unique designs that stood the test of time. You only need to look to the Zeta mechas designed by Mamoru Nagano. I don't think you'll see their elements being reused elsewhere in the franchise. (Asides from the lineages of said mechs, of course.)

Bandai did regretted hiring Nagano later due to the technical hurdle they had to face when making his designs in transition to model kits. That is why you never see Nagano working on another Gundam title.

What was the hurdle?

To mention a few....

Zeta's transformation.
Qubeley's slender form with it's big shoulder.
The O's belly.
Assimar's transformation.

It was years before they manage to iron out the chinks. See how Zeta's transformation was only perfected in it's model form in 2005.

Oh, Makube, why did you say that we'll be seeing the next series in the summer? Is it a recurring element to announce a new Gundam series, and air it a few months later?

I'm not a big fan of Impulse either, but I don't really share your opinion on this one. it's not his best work but I don't think Impulse is that bad. I liked how simple the transformation was, in fact I would have made it even shorter. what I really didn't like about the Impulse was the whole concept of 'based on Strike'. The color palette was indeed rather hideous but in my opinion that's usually the case with most Gundam.

I'll stop here, I think we had a little misunderstanding, I was not trying to defend Okawara or his resent work:eyebrow: My original point was Simplicity>>>(unnecessary) complexity.

Yes.

Seed/Seed Destiny were announced in July, and aired in October.

00 was announced in June, aired in October.

Okawara's choice of colors for Seed Gundams is much worse than anything out there... Way too many contrasting colors that don't fit with each other, and it seems he just enjoys putting them together for the sake of making things colorful.

Calamity - Teal/Orange/Green/White/Red?
Forbidden - three different shades of puke-like green, red, black?
Abyss - White, yellow, purple, sky blue, dark grey?
Destiny - Red/Grey/Blue/Baby Blue/Dull Green/Yellow/Black/WTF?

In fashion terms, most typical wardrobes need 3 primary colors maximum. MS design should really be the same.

Kick ass, seems like the wait won't be long.:D

did everyone forget about Okawara's designs for the Sunrise & TakaraTOMY's Yuusha/Brave robots series? mostly with GaoGaiGar & Baan Gaan?

Hush now. Let them all get their ragehate for SEED out of their system for now.

I loved the design for Gao Gai Gar and his variations, I also like Ban Gaan....but then his super form was disgusting....

I have to say the aesthetic used in a super-robot show is quite different from the aesthetic used in a real-robot show. I know both shows are equally impractical in real-life but in a real-robot show people expect some kind of design philosophy and realism in the design. Where as a super-robot show can be as ridiculous as it can be (lion on chest, and dolphins as shoulders) and no body would care.

I have to say that Okawara might or should stick with super-robot stuff if Extreme Gundam is any indication of his recent abilities.

i hope its a seed series :P i didnt say much about 00 which i didnt like so it would pay off if we CE fans get a new series :P

i hope that Okawara used his style from Armored Trooper VOTOMS, Aura Battler Dunbine, & Heavy Metal L-gaim for this new Gundam series

The mechanical designs in L-Gaim were done by Mamoru Nagano, Okawara had nothing to do with them. It's pretty easy to see.

Also, Okawara doesn't think of himself as an artist, but as someone who creates his designs based on the ideas of the director, e.g. a craftsman. That's what he said in the booklet for the three new Votoms-OVAs.

so it was Mamoru Nagano who did the L-Gaim designs? sorry my bad then :heh:, i'm must be confused with shows like Layzner & Dragonar

For those wondering about Okawara's posts:

I'm not at liberty to talk about it. I'm sorry but you'll have to wait until March of next year. I'm terribly sorry.

Exciting news will be announced in March 2011

Oh well, March isn't too far off. I can handle the wait.

I think....

It's not. CE isn't UC so haha SEED fans:p

There's about a 10-30% Chance that the new series would be a CE series so I wouldn't brag about it not being a CE Series.

Though my assumption would be a completely new series set on a completely new timeline, I'd still want a better conclusion to CE; whether its a new series, a movie or even a novel would suffice.