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Pearl Krabs

Pearl Krabs is a fictional character in the Nickelodeon animated television series SpongeBob SquarePants. She is voiced by actress Lori Alan and first appeared in the season one episode "Squeaky Boots" on September 17, 1999. She was created by marine biologist and animator Stephen Hillenburg, who was inspired to design a whale character while supervising whale watches at the Ocean Institute in Dana Point, California.

Pearl is a teenage sperm whale who lives in a hollow anchor with her father Eugene "Mr." Krabs, the greedy founder of the popular Krusty Krab restaurant. Pearl will inherit the restaurant and become its owner when she grows older. She is currently employed at the local shopping center, the Bikini Bottom Mall. The identity and whereabouts of Pearl's unseen mother have never been explained directly by the characters. While supplemental materials indicate her father married a whale who gave birth to Pearl, Hillenburg was strongly against revealing this in an episode.

Critical reception for Pearl has been largely positive. Her depiction as the child of a single parent has been praised by critics as an example of SpongeBob's ability to challenge social norms such as the construct of a nuclear family. She has been featured frequently in a variety of merchandise, such as plush toys and video games, and at amusement park attractions. She appears in the 2004 feature film The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, the 2017 Broadway musical based on the series, in Kamp Koral: SpongeBob's Under Years as an infant, and as a young child in The Patrick Star Show.

Role in SpongeBob SquarePants
Because she is a whale and most other characters are small tide pool organisms, Pearl is depicted as extraordinarily tall and heavy. Her size compared to the other characters is often used for visual gags; for example, she is able to shake the entire Krusty Krab when she jumps and can fill the entire building with tears when she cries. The floors of the Krabs' residence are equipped with drain plugs so the house can be emptied after Pearl cries or spouts water from her blowhole. Wherever she goes, she stomps loudly and causes the ground to shake slightly.

Mr. Krabs attempts to interest Pearl in working at the Krusty Krab—their family business—but she does not want to work there until she graduates from high school, believing it would deprive her of a social life. Despite this, she manages the Krusty Krab when Mr. Krabs cannot, and fills in for other employees when needed. Being a sperm whale, Pearl has the largest brain of any Bikini Bottom resident and is gifted in math. Mr. Krabs has tried to use this to his own advantage and wants Pearl to eventually become a bookkeeper for his restaurant.

Pearl's favorite activities are socializing at the Bikini Bottom Mall and using her father's credit card to buy anything that is totally "coral" (Bikini Bottom slang for "cool"). Mr. Krabs disapproves of Pearl's prodigious spending, but nonetheless pays for her items to avoid disappointing his daughter. Pearl is employed as an assistant at Grandma's Apron, a store for elderly residents on the ground floor of the shopping center. Beatrice, her boss at Grandma's Apron, was voiced by actress Betty White.

Fictional origin
The disparity in species between Pearl and her father has never been explained directly in an episode, but merchandise makers and production crew members have stated that Mr. Krabs was once married to a whale who gave birth to Pearl. A trivia book penned by former SpongeBob writer David Fain in 2000 states that Pearl "takes after her mother," implying that she is the biological offspring of Mr. Krabs and a whale. According to creative director Vincent Waller, Stephen Hillenburg received many letters requesting a Pearl origin story, but was still "very much against solving [the] mystery" of how she joined the Krabs family. A step outline for an episode focusing on her origin was written and started early development stages, but the episode has been shelved indefinitely because of Hillenburg's disapproval.

Pearl's name, and the decision to portray her as motherless, were an homage to the phrase mother-of-pearl, which refers to the inner layer of some sea-dwelling mollusk shells. Mr. Krabs uses this phrase when he is startled, in a similar vein to "Mother of God", as a reference to the absence of Pearl's mother. His use of the phrase only when he is dismayed or shocked has led some viewers to believe something tragic happened to Mrs. Krabs.

At Dragon Con in 2016, Lori Alan and Rodger Bumpass addressed Pearl's origins as their characters Pearl and Squidward. In the skit, Squidward asks Pearl if she is adopted. Pearl does not give a definite response, instead saying that she gets emotional over the topic. Later at the same event, the actors discussed the disappearance of Pearl's mother. Alan affirmed that Mrs. Krabs' whereabouts are secret, and Bumpass joked that she had been taken to an oceanarium, saying: "Two words: Sea World."

Creation and design
Pearl was one of the first five characters Stephen Hillenburg created for SpongeBob. Her conceptualization is rooted in Hillenburg's tenure as a teacher at the Orange County Marine Institute in Dana Point, California. Screenwriter Allan Neuwirth describes the Marine Institute as Hillenburg's "first stop on the road to SpongeBob SquarePants," as it inspired the development of many of the series' characters; Hillenburg's decision to include a whale character was influenced by his regular supervision of whale watches, and a cetacean skeleton exhibit at the institute. Hillenburg's original sketch of Pearl in the show bible included flukes and pigtails, which were dropped from her final design. Mr. Krabs and Pearl had matching yellow and orange clothes initially, but they were given individualized colors before the production of the pilot episode.

Hillenburg made Pearl a different species from her father because he wanted each member of the main cast to be a different type of animal. When he was first developing the characters, Hillenburg wanted Pearl and Mr. Krabs to travel around town in a caravan boat with a whale-sized teardrop trailer connected to it; while this element did make it into the series, it was only used sparsely in season one. The decision to have Mr. Krabs and Pearl live in an anchor was made after production of the first season had begun. The original map of the show's setting, which Hillenburg showed Nickelodeon executives as part of his pitch to the network in 1997, did not include an anchor house, and instead labeled the Krusty Krab as both characters' residence.

Hillenburg originally planned for Pearl and Mr. Krabs to be mostly separate characters, with specific episodes dedicated to each character individually. This happened in several early episodes, such as "The Chaperone," but the writers found it more natural to include Mr. Krabs in Pearl-centric stories. Hillenburg considered this the biggest difference between the series and how he originally envisioned it. Animation historian Jerry Beck has stated that Pearl's breakout role was in "Bossy Boots," which he considers the episode that best established her as one of the series' stars.

Voice
Pearl's voice is provided by American actress Lori Alan in the series, both feature films, and the associated video games. During her audition for the role, she was shown an early drawing of Pearl with the other main characters. She noted how Pearl was much larger than the rest of the cast, and decided to reflect the character's size in her voice by making it deep and full in tone. She also aimed to make the voice invoke the sound of whales’ low vocalizations while also sounding "spoiled and lovable". In an interview with AfterBuzz TV, Alan said that she knew Pearl "had to sound somewhat like a child," but at the same time needed "an abnormally large voice".

Pearl's catchphrase "Daddy!" was developed early during production of the first season, but was not used in an episode until later on. A script that the main voice actors were reading from during a rehearsal had the line fully capitalized, with the first syllable extended ("daaaaddy!"), so Alan knew to put particular emphasis on the line when it was in a script. Rodger Bumpass, the voice of Squidward Tentacles, describes Alan's portrayal of Pearl as a "unique and wonderful take on how this teenager should be ... No one else has a teenager that sounds like Pearl."

Critical response
Pearl's character has received popularity and critical acclaim. In a review of the first official trailer for The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water, Victoria McNally of The Mary Sue said that Pearl was her favorite character, and she was disappointed not to see her in the movie's preview. She writes, "if they can manage to work Pearl into the plot somewhere, I'll take back everything I've already said about this film. Maybe she could get beached on the shore, I don't know. Pearl's the best." Joseph Foy, author of the novel SpongeBob SquarePants and Philosophy, felt that it was difficult not to sympathize with Pearl's situation since she believes she is "more important to her father than money," but "we, the viewing audience, know differently". DVD Talk's Paul Mavis wrote in his review of Legends of Bikini Bottom that he found Pearl "annoyingly funny". In 2013, José Antonio Gómez Marín of El Mundo said that he felt Pearl brings an easily recognizable youthful tone to the show.

Like Mr. Krabs, Pearl has also been considered a stereotyped character; Sharon Lamb and Lyn Mikel Brown wrote in their 2007 book Packaging Girlhood that Pearl exhibits the traits of an archetypal girly girl. A study by the federal office of gender equality in Mexico, El Instituto Nacional de las Mujeres, found that Pearl's roles sometimes rely on characteristics associated with stereotypes of women, such as vanity and materialism.

In an article for Complex, Debbie Encalada praised the SpongeBob series for challenging social norms; the portrayal of the Krabses as a single-parent family was specifically highlighted as an example of the show's "subversiveness by subtly challenging the idea of the nuclear family". Psychologist Steve Harriman covers the Krabs family dynamic in the 2005 Berkley Book Absorbing SpongeBob. He calls attention to the lack of explanation for the disparity between Pearl and Mr. Krabs' species, noting that it is only after watching several episodes that viewers realize the Krabs family is broken. He also questions the decision to focus on Patrick's family, rather than Pearl's, in the only episode dealing "head-on with a core pathology of family"—"I'm with Stupid". In his review of the third season, Bryan Pope of DVD Verdict called Mr. Krabs and Pearl (as well as Krabs' girlfriend Mrs. Puff, whom he mistook for the character's wife) one of "the most head-scratching family units [he had] ever come across".

Fan theories
The absence of Pearl's mother has caused much speculation among viewers since the series' debut. Various fan theories about how Pearl became Mr. Krabs' daughter have become popular on the internet. Jon Negroni, creator of "the Pixar Theory," theorized that Mr. Krabs' fear of fish hooks in the episode "Hooky" suggests a fish hook was involved in the death of Pearl's mother, who was presumably a whale like Pearl.

In other media
Pearl has been featured in a variety of merchandise such as plush toys, video games, comics and trading cards. The Krabs family restaurant, the Krusty Krab, has been the basis for a Lego playset, and many replicas at attractions. A float modeled after the Krusty Krab, featuring a costumed mascot of Pearl that greeted guests and an animatronic Mr. Krabs, regularly appeared at Sea World's weekly "SpongeBob ParadePants" parade. A full-size replica of the building was built in Ramallah, Palestine in 2014. In January 2016, Nickelodeon's parent company Viacom filed a lawsuit against the operators of a similar for-profit "Krusty Krab" restaurant to be opened in Texas. A Texas federal judge ruled in January 2017 that the planned restaurant violated Viacom's rights to the SpongeBob property, thus halting its construction.

In 2011, the indie rock group Yo La Tengo performed a live version of Mr. Krabs and Pearl's commercial from the episode "As Seen on TV" at the El Rey Theatre in Los Angeles, California. Included as part of Yo La Tengo's first tour, it starred Ira Kaplan as Mr. Krabs and Laura Krafft as Pearl. Billy Gil of L.A. Record praised the performance in his review. An episode of the sketch comedy series Robot Chicken titled "Major League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" includes a skit that stars Mr. Krabs and Pearl. The segment, animated in stop motion like most other sketches on the program, features Mr. Krabs using crab legs as the secret ingredient for Krabby Patties. Before he is exposed for serving cannibal meals, Pearl is shown unsuspectingly eating the patties. Several tracks on The Best Day Ever, a 2006 soundtrack album, feature the vocal performance of Lori Alan as Pearl. The segment "Pearl Krabs aka Caller #5!" is a skit between Pearl and a disc jockey voiced by radio personality Jerry Blavat.

Broadway musical
In the 2017 Broadway musical based on SpongeBob, which premiered at the Palace Theatre in New York City, Pearl is played by Jai'len Christine Li Josey. Her attire in the musical was inspired by her animated counterpart; it includes a cheerleading uniform, an Afro styled into the shape of Pearl's whale head, and a pair of platform sneakers that replicate Pearl's signature loud stomping from the cartoon. In the production, Mr. Krabs plans to make her the Krusty Krab's new manager rather than SpongeBob. However, Pearl wants to become a rock band singer instead and is troubled by her father's disregard for her own hopes and dreams. She sings a duet with Mr. Krabs titled "Daddy Knows Best," an original composition written by Alex Ebert that highlights the two characters' differences.

Josey's performance as Pearl has been critically lauded, with some reviewers highlighting her as the breakout star of the musical. Entertainment Tonight named Josey one of the eight best Broadway debuts of 2017, writing that none of the musical's other debuts "were more impressive than Josey, who at 18, quite literally stormed the stage as the teenage sperm whale Pearl Krabs. Her looming presence was only matched by her stunning vocal performance." Josh Ferri of BroadwayBox.com included Pearl's "Daddy Knows Best" on a list of his 15 favorite Broadway songs of 2017, calling it "a rare star is born moment...this is for [Josey] what 'Miss Marmelstein' was for young Streisand." Jo Rosenthal of Vice wrote that "Josey nearly stole the entire show as Pearl, her voice eliciting roars of joy from the audience as she lamented the greed of her dad, Mr. Krabs." Casey Curtis of the New York Theatre Guide said that Josey's voice "was so beautifully strong and clear that it made me get misty-eyed." Vulture.com's Sara Holdren said, "Definitely try not to say 'daaamn' under your breath [during] 'Daddy Knows Best.' This whale can wail." Isabella Biedenharn of Entertainment Weekly called Josey's Pearl a "vocal powerhouse" and Siddhant Adlakha of Birth.Movies.Death. said that "every solo she gets is a moment to behold." Audience reception was similarly positive; in an analysis of reviews from children who attended the musical, Newsday reported that Pearl's character was "a part of the show that everyone seemed to enjoy" and that Josey's vocal performance "was an outstanding addition."

title: Pearl Krabs


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Mobile Suit Victory Gundam

Mobile Suit Victory Gundam (機動戦士ガンダム), is a 1993 Japanese science fiction anime television series. It consists of 51 episodes, and was directed by Gundam creator Yoshiyuki Tomino. The series was first broadcast on TV Asahi (and its ANN stations). It is the fourth TV anime installment in the Gundam franchise, first series in the franchise released in Japan's Heisei period, and the final full series to be set in the Universal Century calendar.

Plot
Victory Gundam is set in UC 0153, and succeeds the Federation Force and Crossbone Vanguard conflict of Mobile Suit Gundam F91. The Earth, still loosely controlled by the greatly weakened Earth Federation, comes under attack by BESPA, the armed forces of the space colony-based Zanscare Empire. Only a ragtag resistance movement, League Militaire, stands in BESPA's way as they swiftly conquer much of space and start their invasion of Earth, with the advanced mass-produced mobile suit, the Victory Gundam, as the League Militaire's secret weapon. However, BESPA's power continues to grow, using violent means, including public executions with guillotines, to strike fear into those living on Earth.

Living peacefully on Earth in the remote Eastern European town of Kasarelia, 13-year-old Üso Ewin and his childhood friend Shahkti Kareen are soon thrown into the conflict when they encounter ace BESPA pilot Chronicle Asher. Soon, Üso finds himself joining forces with Marbet Fingerhut and the rest of the League Militaire, piloting the Victory Gundam against the BESPA, and soon discovering the horrors of war.

Development
Victory Gundam is the fourth Gundam television series and the first of four Gundam television series that aired on TV Asahi and its sister ANN stations in Japan sequentially from 1993 through 1996. In order to attract the younger elementary school age demographic that SD Gundam was popular with at the time, the show featured the youngest protagonist in the Gundam franchise, the thirteen-year-old Uso Ewin, and established a setting within Universal Century that was largely independent of previous Gundam works. Unlike previous Gundam series that started off in space colonies, the show starts off in Eastern Europe before moving to space 15 episodes later. The intent of this was for Tomino to dispel the association between Gundam and space. Nonetheless, the mature themes of the show, as well as the high casualty rate of the main cast, meant that the show would instead attract an older crowd, the young adults who had seen Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam and Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ a decade earlier.

The show was nonetheless able to more than double the sales of "real" Gundam models, which had been greatly lagging behind SD Gundam model sales. As SD Gundam model sales had been in a decline, Bandai's Gundam toy sales ultimately increased as a result of the show, but still missed its targets of 10 million units sold. This compounded with the fact that the show had failed to attract its target audience led to a cancellation of Sunrise's next Gundam series, which was under production at the time and was to be a war story featuring a conflict between Earth and Mars colonists, with a working title of Polca Gundam (ポルカガンダム). Instead, Sunrise would go on to create Mobile Fighter G Gundam.

The Bandai acquisition of Sunrise was also in the planning stages during Victory Gundams development, with the former looking to address the declining popularity of the Gundam franchise, which was a main source of revenue for them. Years later, Tomino would lament the fact that he had started production of this series not aware of that situation, which caused a rift between the director and Sunrise for many years.

Release
The entire series was released on DVD in Japan on January 23, 2004. The limited-edition DVD box release was notable for containing an interview of Tomino titled, "This DVD should not be bought as it is not intended to be seen!!" (「このDVDは、見られたものではないので買ってはいけません!!」). Tomino has also made a similar comment on a Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam DVD interview.

Years after the show was first broadcast in Japan, the show aired on the anime satellite television network, Animax, in Japan and later its respective networks worldwide, including Hong Kong, Southeast Asia, East Asia, and other regions.

In 2015, Sunrise released Victory Gundam on Blu-Ray in two box sets using a new HD master and telecine. The sets also included audio commentary, exclusive booklets, and cover art by mechanical designer Hajime Katoki. As with the DVDs, Tomino reiterated his disdain for the series in promotional materials, claiming that he wished to "deny [the show] completely" and asked that viewers of the set "find what went wrong with 'Mobile Suit V Gundam'."

In 2016, Sunrise released the series on both Blu-ray and DVD in North America via Right Stuf Inc. in two sets.

Novelization
A series of five novels were written by director Yoshiyuki Tomino and initially published under the Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko label. This adaptation generally follows the plot of the anime but is notable for additional scenes and dialogue that contain graphic sexual references. In addition, the Victory 2 Gundam does not appear in the novel. Instead it is replaced by a Victory-type with a mounted Minovsky Drive. The "Bugs", which were the automatic manslaughtering weapons of Gundam F91, also make an appearance.

Manga adaptations
A more lighthearted manga adaptation of the anime by Toshiya Iwamura was published on the Comic BomBom manga magazine. The serious atmosphere from the show was absent from the manga, replaced by gags, less serious personalities, and more super robot-style action scenes.

A gag parody manga by Tsukasa Kotobuki entitled Go! Go! Our Victory Gundam (いけ!いけ!ぼくらのVガンダム!!) was published throughout 1993 to 1994 in the Media Comic Dyne and MS Saga magazines, and was later republished in 2012 by Kadokawa Shoten, which included two side-stories from Gundam Ace involving Kai Shiden, and a parody story of Gundam Wing.

Spin-off manga
A spin-off to the series by Yuichi Hasegawa, Mobile Suit Victory Gundam Outside Story (機動戦士Vガンダム外伝), titled Mobile Suit Victory Gundam Outside Story: Escape Plan Edition (機動戦士Vガンダム外伝 脱出計画編) during serialization and republished in 2012 as Mobile Suit Victory Gundam Project Exodus (機動戦士Vガンダム プロジェクト・エクソダス), was published in 1994 in the Shōnen Kids magazine and compiled into a tankobon in 1995. The manga occurs during the events of the anime, when Uso travels to Jupiter and encounters an old man by the name of Grey Stoke.

Video games
A Super Famicom side-scrolling action game based on the show was released in Japan on March 11, 1994. It was developed by Tose and published by Bandai. The series also made appearances in Banpresto's (now Bandai Namco) Super Robot Wars series, debuting in Super Robot Wars 2G for the Game Boy and more recently, in the mobile game Super Robot Wars X-Ω and the Compati Hero Series as well as appearing in various Gundam crossover games.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Mobile Suit Victory Gundam


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Talk:SpongeBob SquarePants (character)

SpongeRobert
Should the Spongebob character article should begin with "SpongeRobert "Spongebob" Squarepants". I don't think the name SpongeRobert is as common as other characters' full names. I think I have seen other characters articles without their full names at the start. NatwonTSG2 (talk) 23:21, 1 August 2023 (UTC)

SpongeBob image in infobox
Why was the image of SpongeBob in the infobox changed? The previous image had a non-free use rationale, yet one editor claimed it wasn't licensed. Tarantula TM (speak with me) (my legacy) 05:47, 22 November 2023 (UTC)
 * Non-free use rationales are for unlicensed files. They can be used, per WP:NFCC, only when there is no available free replacement. Nickelodeon released some clips from SpongeBob under a CC-BY license on YouTube, and screenshots from these clips can be used for the character, so such an image must be used and there is no rationale under WP:NFCC for the use of an unlicensed image. (This picture is from a montage of characters shown in the clip, but there are other frames you could use too.) D. Benjamin Miller (talk) 00:01, 24 November 2023 (UTC)
 * This is a terrible idea. — Alexis Jazz (talk or ping me) 08:08, 24 November 2023 (UTC)
 * I want to read the discussion you linked but now it's long gone. Neocorelight (Talk) 05:38, 20 April 2024 (UTC)

Semi-protected edit request on 10 January 2024
Occupation: Fast food worker Morpeko-peko (talk) 22:34, 10 January 2024 (UTC)

 * Red question icon with gradient background.svg Not done: it's not clear what changes you want to be made. Please mention the specific changes in a "change X to Y" format and provide a reliable source if appropriate. Rehsarb (talk) 23:30, 10 January 2024 (UTC)

Naive or naïve?
I know it's a really small detail, and pretty much insignificant, but still, I think it's worth asking. Should, under "Role in SpongeBob SquarePants", it be spelt naive or naïve? SonOfYoutubers (talk) 01:26, 16 January 2024 (UTC)

title: Talk:SpongeBob SquarePants (character)


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1997 Governor General's Awards

The winners of the 1997 Governor General's Literary Awards were announced on November 18 by Donna Scott, Chairman of the Canada Council for the Arts. Each winner received a cheque for $10,000.

title: 1997 Governor General's Awards


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Mobile Fighter G Gundam

Mobile Fighter G Gundam, also known in Japan as Mobile Fighting Legend G Gundam (機動武闘伝Gガンダム) (and commonly referred to as simply G Gundam), is a 1994 Japanese animated television series produced by Sunrise and the fifth installment in the long-running Gundam franchise. The series is set in the "Future Century", where space colonies representing countries have agreed to hold an organized fighting tournament known as the "Gundam Fight" every four years to settle their political differences in place of war. Each colony sends a representative fighter piloting a giant, humanoid mecha called a Gundam to battle on Earth until only one is left, and the winning nation earns the right to govern over all the colonies until the next tournament. The events of G Gundam follow Domon Kasshu, the pilot of Neo Japan's Shining Gundam during the 13th Gundam Fight. Domon's mission is to both win the tournament and to track down his older brother, who is believed to have stolen the mysterious Devil Gundam (AKA the Dark Gundam outside of Japan/Asia) from the Neo Japan government.

Commemorating the 15th anniversary of the Gundam brand, G Gundam was produced to reboot the waning popularity of the long-running franchise. It is the first Gundam series with a self-contained plot set in an alternate calendar era from the original "Universal Century" timeline. Additionally, the show casts aside many of the conventions set by its predecessors and takes many new steps for its franchise, such as a focus on martial arts and decisive, personal duels as opposed to large-scale military conflicts. G Gundam was directed by Yasuhiro Imagawa, with its settings and characters significantly influenced by the director's interest in world cinema. The anime's real-world locales were drawn from numerous foreign films and were planned using location scouting. G Gundam ran for 49 episodes on Japan's TV Asahi from April 22, 1994, to March 31, 1995. An English-language version produced by Bandai Entertainment aired in the United States on Cartoon Network's Toonami block beginning on August 5, 2002. Since its original broadcast, G Gundam has spawned manga, audio albums, video games, guide books, and several lines of scale models.

During its conception and Japanese television debut, G Gundam was met with controversy among its production staff, sponsors, and fans because the show takes a wildly different turn from all previous entries in the Gundam universe. However, for that very reason, the series is cited as a milestone in its long-running franchise and ultimately proved very popular in the region. Reception for G Gundam has been generally positive in North America. Reviewers praised the primary characters and mecha as unique and stylized, but strongly disagreed on the plot. While some critics enjoyed the bold and campy divergence from the more dramatic social and political undertones traditional of Gundam, others found G Gundam's story diffusely shallow, repetitive, or not up to standards set by its anime predecessors.

Plot
Unlike previous series in the Gundam franchise which are set in the "Universal Century" timeline, Mobile Fighter G Gundam takes place in an alternate "Future Century" universe. Within this timeline, much of mankind has abandoned a ruined Earth to live in space colonies. The countries on Earth have corresponding colonies just outside the planet's atmosphere. Rather than fight wars for political and social dominance, the colonies agree to hold a "Gundam Fight" tournament every four years. Each country sends to Earth a representative piloting a highly advanced, humanoid mobile fighter called a Gundam. The Gundams compete with one another in one-on-one battles, under a strict set of rules, until only one fighter remains; the nation represented by the winner earns the right to rule all of space for that period. Each Gundam is controlled directly by the user within the cockpit using the "Mobile Trace System", a gesture recognition and feedback mechanism whereby the Gundam mimics the pilot's own body motion, combat skills, and weapon-wielding capabilities. G Gundam opens at the start of the 13th Gundam Fight in Future Century year 60 and follows Neo Japan's Domon Kasshu, fighter of his nation's Shining Gundam and bearer of the coveted "King of Hearts" martial arts crest. Aside from winning the tournament, Domon's mission is to track down his fugitive, older brother Kyoji, who allegedly stole the experimental Devil Gundam from Neo Japan's government, leaving their mother dead and their father (Dr. Raizo Kasshu) to be arrested and placed in a cryogenic state.

Under orders from Major Ullube Ishikawa, Domon and his childhood friend and mechanic Rain Mikamura travel from country to country, challenging each one's Gundam while searching for clues to the whereabouts of Kyoji and the Devil Gundam. Domon's initial matches with Neo America's Chibodee Crocket, Neo France's George DeSand, Neo China's Sai Sai Ci, and Neo Russia's Argo Gulskii end in draws, gaining mutual respect among the fighters. As they encounter Gundam pilots who had come in contact with the Devil Gundam, Domon and Rain learn of its unique cellular properties to regenerate, multiply, and evolve by infecting organic matter and causing violent behavior in living things. The duo then journey to Neo Tokyo, a city decimated by the Devil Gundam's army of mobile weapons. Domon reunites with his esteemed martial arts instructor Master Asia, who is also the champion of the last Gundam Fight, the former King of Hearts, and one-time leader of an elite group of Gundam fighters called the Shuffle Alliance. After Domon and Rain help the city's survivors defend their last outpost in Shinjuku, Master Asia reveals himself as a servant of the Devil Gundam, having also gained control over Chibodee, George, Sai Sai Ci, and Argo using Devil Gundam (DG) cells. The four remaining members of the Shuffle Alliance intervene and vow to destroy their previous leader for his crimes. Ultimately, the Alliance members offer their lives in purging the DG cells from Domon's four comrades and bestow each of them with a Shuffle Alliance crest as their successors. Kyoji and the enormous Devil Gundam eventually appear from beneath the ground of Shinjuku but shortly thereafter vanish alongside Master Asia. As the Shuffle Alliance trains in the Guiana Highlands for the Gundam Fight finals, Master Asia and the Devil Gundam reappear. With the help of his friends and a new ally in Neo Germany's masked warrior Schwarz Bruder, Domon defeats the Devil Gundam. When the Shining Gundam becomes incapacitated during the battle, Domon desperately manages to activate a newly acquired God Gundam, escape Master Asia, and make his way to the finals set in Neo Hong Kong.

The Gundam Fight finals are presided over by Wong Yunfat, Neo Hong Kong's prime minister, and the current ruler of the space colonies and Earth. Wong chooses to have the qualifying nations battle in one-on-one and tag team preliminary matches to reach a battle royale on Lantau Island, where the tournament is to end with the winner facing the defending champion Master Asia. Having gained possession of the Devil Gundam, Wong secretly plots to revive and control it as his trump card to inevitably maintain his own power over space. Domon and his companions make their way to the battle royale while several truths concerning the Devil Gundam are unveiled. Rain's father, Dr. Mikamura, eventually explains that the Devil Gundam (originally called the Ultimate Gundam) was constructed by Dr. Kasshu to rejuvenate the dying Earth. Jealous of his genius colleague, Dr. Mikamura had Neo Japan's officials attempt to confiscate Kasshu's creation. To prevent the military from using his father's invention for its own agenda, Kyoji fled with and crash-landed the Gundam on Earth, where its computer malfunctioned, triggering its malevolent activity. Ullube subsequently had Dr. Kasshu arrested, framed Kyoji as a criminal, and used Domon and Rain as pawns in recovering the Gundam. In a separate confession, Master Asia discloses to Domon that, having been distressed by the utter destruction wrought by the Gundam Fights, he planned to use the Devil Gundam to wipe out humanity and allow Earth to heal naturally. The battle on Lantau Island culminates with Domon fatally besting Master Asia in a final confrontation, while Kyoji and Schwarz sacrifice themselves so that Domon can attack the Devil Gundam's cockpit and disable it once again. Though the schemes of both Wong and Master Asia are foiled, Ullube quietly claims the Devil Gundam and transports it to Neo Japan's space colony for his own purpose. Having been corrupted by DG cells with ambitions of supreme power, Ullube kidnaps Rain and places her into the Devil Gundam's core to act as its energy source. The hulking monstrosity then merges with the colony and begins absorbing Earth itself. As the entire world's Gundams unite to assault the Devil Gundam from the outside, the Shuffle Alliance breaks inside the colony and destroys Ullube. Finally, Domon professes his love for Rain and releases her from the core. Invoking the power of the King of Hearts, the couple vanquishes the Devil Gundam once and for all.

Staff and conception
Mobile Fighter G Gundam was produced by Sunrise in association with advertising agencies Sotsu and Dentsu, and toy company Bandai. The series was created to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the Gundam franchise, created by Yoshiyuki Tomino in 1979. G Gundam was directed by Yasuhiro Imagawa, known for his work on the Giant Robo and Getter Robo Armageddon original video animations (OVAs). G Gundam was chiefly written and supervised by Fuyunori Gobu, a veteran screenwriter for various Sunrise properties such as Shippū! Iron Leaguer and The King of Braves GaoGaiGar. Many of the principal production crew members for G Gundam were carried over the previous season's Mobile Suit Victory Gundam, including character designer Hiroshi Ōsaka and mechanical designers Kunio Okawara and Hajime Katoki. Manga artist Kazuhiko Shimamoto collaborated on the show's character designs. Kimitoshi Yamane acted as a back-up mechanical designer and has since worked on Sunrise's acclaimed series Cowboy Bebop and The Vision of Escaflowne. Hirotoshi Sano, previously credited for Tekkaman Blade, was responsible for directing the mechanical animation in G Gundam, but also produced much of show's promotional artwork seen on home media covers. The musical score for G Gundam was composed by Kohei Tanaka. The opening theme song "Flying in the Sky" performed by Yoshifumi Ushima and the closing theme "Umi Yori mo Fukaku" (海よりも深く) by Etsuko Sai are played for the first 25 episodes of the series. The opening theme "Trust You Forever" by Ushima and the closing theme "Kimi no Naka no Eien" (君の中の永遠) by Takehide Inoue are played for the remaining episodes.

Like other early mecha anime, the Mobile Suit Gundam franchise was backed by sponsors whose main interest was having television programs advertise plastic models and toys. Gundam fiction set itself apart from others in the same genre with its dramatic plot devices, morally complex characters, and depictions of the horrors of war. These aspects, combined with its "Real Robot" mecha approach, made Gundam immensely popular for several years. After the broadcast of Victory Gundam beginning in 1993, Imagawa, a young protégé of Tomino, was selected as the director of the next installment in the franchise, titled Polcarino Gundam. However, as Gundam popularity dwindled and sales began to drop by this time, the sponsors forced the creators to reboot the brand with the newly titled Mobile Fighter G Gundam. Conceived as a less realistic "Super Robot" series, G Gundam abandoned its military roots and was aimed at younger viewers to increase toy sales. Alterations including a lack of a warfare-centered plot, Gundams stereotypically based on nationality, and Earth as a ring were originally seen as blasphemous to Imagawa and much of Sunrise's staff. Notwithstanding, Imagawa became more supportive of the changes after seeing some impressive, complex designs in G Gundam's sponsor-created toys. He eventually settled into his position, taking advice from his mentor. "If you continue to make a copy of a copy of a copy," he stated, "eventually the image degrades to nothing." Imagawa thought it was important for creators and sponsors to buy into each other's ideas for the benefit of a product's success. The director also commented that in order to sell a product like G Gundam to an audience resistant of such ambitious changes, creators must instill their own personalities to overcome hardships and make the work unique. By the end of production, Imagawa considered it meaningless to compare G Gundam to other parts of the franchise and disregarded the concept of a "conventional" Gundam series. "This is MY Gundam," he proclaimed, "And I've made a Gundam that I can be proud of."

Influences
As a film fanatic, Imagawa perceived that referencing world cinema would help illustrate the real world settings in G Gundam. The production staff primarily wished to utilize sightseeing guide books, but found that these books did not show the locations from the perspective of everyday people. The battlegrounds in the first several episodes were conveyed using a number of multimedia works including films by Federico Fellini, Woody Allen, Alfred Hitchcock, and Yılmaz Güney; films based on Wong Fei-hung; video clips of the band Swing Out Sister; music by the groups Genesis and Magma; and scenery from Monty Python acts. Each episode's introductory narration, provided by the character Stalker, was inspired by American television dramas such as Star Trek and The Twilight Zone. In the same manner, certain G Gundam character names and their techniques were drawn from films, most prominently the Hong Kong wuxia genre. For instance, the alternate name of antagonist Master Asia, Tōhō Fuhai (東方不敗), is named directly after the protagonist of a film of the same title. Additionally, the villain Wong Yunfat is based heavily on Hong Kong star Chow Yun-fat, specifically the actor's appearance in the film God of Gamblers. Some elements in G Gundam were taken from other anime and manga. A key scene at the series midpoint involving the Shining Gundam's gold-colored "Super Mode" was inspired by Saint Seiya. Another instance towards the show's climax, where the hero's rivals join him to fight a greater opposing force, was a commonly used motif in Weekly Shōnen Jump comics, most notably Ring ni Kakero.

Design
Some of the settings in G Gundam were planned using location scouting, a technique Imagawa learned while working on his directorial debut, Mister Ajikko. He stated that this type of research can "upgrade" animation production quality when supplemented by indirect experience from watching films. For the prison in Neo Russia, Imagawa drew from the architecture of the Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary, which he coincidentally toured one year before G Gundam's development. When his superiors requested he restrict the show's setting to one location, Imagawa used the city Shinjuku (beginning in the 12th episode) as an opportunity for his staff to learn and practice location scouting within Japan. Changing countries every week in the show's early run was overwhelming for the set designers and background artists, yet the crew felt Imagawa "over-elaborate" on Shinjuku. The story transitioned to Guyana so that the artists could apply a simpler, dense forest environment. Once this portion of the anime's plot concluded, staff members flew to Hong Kong to research and record for the Neo Hong Kong story arc. Imagawa mentioned that Neo Hong Kong does not possess its own space colony in G Gundam, so he wanted to accurately depict the country as one that continues to thrive on Earth. The director speculated that it would be difficult to illustrate Hong Kong due to its amount of detail, but he was very satisfied with the background artist's work.

Imagawa credits himself for conceiving a majority of the various Gundams participating in the finals of the Neo Hong Kong arc. The director worked closely with mecha artists to create these "one-shot" opponents and found many of the comical and eccentric designs very charming, especially the windmill-shaped Hurricane Gundam of Neo Holland. The designs for Neo Singapore's Ashura Gundam and Neo Malaysia's Skull Gundam were included in the show as winners of contests held by the Kodansha publications Comic BonBon and TV Magazine; Imagawa expressed regret that these Gundams were used as enemy characters since they were designed by young fans of the anime.

Around the 40th episode, Imagawa focused on adding a romantic theme into G Gundam's narrative. He explained that he was "not good at depicting female characters" when directing and he had not previously "written a 'normal' relationship of man and woman". G Gundam was Imagawa's first attempt at a "love story", though he admitted it took him the entire length of the series demonstrates this point. The show's final scene shows Domon and Rain riding off together on the horse Fuun Saiki; Imagawa sensed that the cliché of the hero with his damsel on a white horse was "the safe road" given the director's lack of experience with love stories. Imagawa polarized the production studio staff when he decided to insert the English phrase "Love-Love" into Domon and Rain's final attack against the Devil Gundam. Sunrise producer Masahiko Minami protested that it sounded so "unseemly" that he even confronted Imagawa about it at the director's home. However, Imagawa not only thought the phrase had a nice ring to it but wanted to include it because he had already found success in defying convention with G Gundam. Imagawa was prepared to take the risk of any harsh criticism for its use in the finale. "I didn't even care if I wouldn't be able to work in the industry because of that 'Love-Love'," he said. "I truly believe that one cannot work as a director without enthusiasm and a love of challenges."

Anime
The Mobile Fighter G Gundam television series originally aired in Japan the terrestrial channel TV Asahi from April 22, 1994, to March 31, 1995, for a total of 49 episodes. The show would not reach North American audiences until many years later. Mobile Suit Gundam Wing, a series that succeeded G Gundam on Japanese television in 1995, was first localized in North America by Bandai Entertainment in early 2000. Gundam Wing was a huge success in the United States while being broadcast on the popular afternoon Toonami block of Cartoon Network often beating block stalwarts Dragon Ball Z and Sailor Moon and was the highest-rated program on all of Cartoon Network for a time. In late 2001, Bandai acquired the rights to distribute an English-dubbed version of G Gundam with voice casting recorded by Ocean Productions in their Blue Water studio in Calgary, Alberta. The English-language version of G Gundam premiered as a free screening at the Sony Metreon Action Theatre in San Francisco on March 30, 2002. G Gundam began airing on Toonami on August 5, 2002. Due to the channel's censorship policies, some edits were made for the broadcast. This mainly involved altering the names of several mobile fighters, such as changing God Gundam and Devil Gundam to Burning Gundam and Dark Gundam respectively. The show was also aired on the channel's "Midnight Run" and as part of its Saturday programming in November 2002. Cartoon Network officially dropped G Gundam from its afternoon schedule the following June. The series has since been re-broadcast on the Japanese cable network Family Gekijo and the satellite channel Animax.

Bandai Entertainment released G Gundam on DVD in North America in four box sets and in twelve separate volumes (each disc containing four to five episodes). The DVDs contain both the English-dubbed and Japanese-subtitled versions, as well as extras such as production notes from the director. The first three volumes and first box set were released on November 5, 2002. The second box set and next three volumes were released on February 4, 2003. The third box set and next three volumes were released on April 22, 2003. The final box set and last three volumes were released on June 17, 2003. Bandai re-released the series as part of its "Anime Legends" label in two larger collections on May 9 and June 27, 2006. G Gundam has had similar DVD releases in Japan; a collection containing the entire series was placed on sale October 27, 2010. G Gundam has further been made available on various video on demand services including Amazon Instant Video, the broadband access site Bandai Channel, and Bandai's official GundamInfo YouTube channel. Due to the closure of Bandai Entertainment, the series has been out-of-print. On October 11, 2014, at their 2014 New York Comic Con panel, Sunrise announced they will be releasing all of the Gundam franchise, including G Gundam in North America though distribution from Right Stuf Inc., beginning in Spring 2015. On March 29, 2017, Crunchyroll began streaming the series on their website. Right Stuf will release the series on Blu-ray and DVD in 2018.

Gundams
GF13-017NJ also known as Neo Japan’s Shining Gundam appeared in episode #1 “Gundam Fight Begins! The Gundam that fell to earth, Shining Gundam is piloted by Domo Kasshu.

GF13-055NI also known as Neo Italy’s Neros Gundam appeared in episode #1 “Gundam Fight Begins! The Gundam that fell to earth,” Neros Gundam is piloted by Michelo Chariot.

GF13-006NA also known as Neo America’s Gundam Maxter appeared in episode #2 “Roar of the winning Punch.” Gundam Maxter is piloted by Chibodee Crocket.

GF13-011NC also known as Neo China’s Dragon Gundam appeared in episode #3 “Beat the Dragon Gundam,” Dragon Gundam is piloted by Sai Saici.

GF13-009NFII also known as Neo France’s Rose Gundam appeared in episode #4 “Challenge! The Red Rose Knight!” Rose Gundam is piloted by George De Sand.

GF13-013NR also known as Neo Russia’a Bolt Gundam appeared in episode #5 “Great Escape! A Captive Gundam Fighter”, Bolt Gundam is piloted by Argo Gulskii

Ultimate Gundam also known as Devil Gundam and Dark Gundam appeared in episode #6 “Fight, Domon! Earth is the Ring”, Ultimate Gundam is piloted by Kyoji Kasshu.

GF13-049NM also known as Neo Mexico’s Tequila Gundam and Spike Gundam appeared in episode #7 “Prepare to Fight! Desperate Fugitive”, Tequila Gundam is piloted by Chico Rodriguez.

GF13-037NCA also known as Neo Canada’s Lumbar Gundam appeared in episode #8 “Old Grudge: Revenge of the Space Police”, Lumbar Gundam is piloted by Andrew Graham.

GF12-001NEL also known as Neo England’s John Bull Gundam and Royal Gundam appeared in episode #9 “Powerful Enemy! Chapman’s Heroic Challenge”, Royal Gundam is piloted by Gentle Chapman.

GF13-051NE also known as Neo Egypt’s Pharaoh Gundam XIII appeared in episode #10 “Terror! The Phantom Fighter Appears”, Pharaoh Gundam XIII is piloted by Kaure Ramses.

GF4-001NE also known as NeoEgypt’s Pharaoh Gundam IV appeared in episode #10 “Terror! The Phantom Fighter Appears”, Pharaoh Gundam IV is piloted by Dahal Muhammad.

GF13-052NT also known as Neo Turkey’s Minaret Gundam appeared in episode #11 “Reunion in the falling rain”, Minaret Gundam is piloted by Saette Gyuzelle.

JDG-009X also known as Death Army appeared in episode #12 "He's The Undefeated of the East! Master Asia Appears", Death Army is piloted by Devil Gundam contaminated Zombie soldiers.

GF13-001NH also known as Neo Hong Kong’s Kowloon appeared in episode #14 "Shocking! Shining Finger Defeated!", Kowloon Gundam is piloted by Master Asia

GF13-001NHII also known as Master Gundam appeared in episode #14 "Shocking! Shining Finger Defeated!", Master Gundam is piloted by Master Asia.

Shuffle Joker appeared in episode #15 "Warrior's Crest! Goodbye, Shuffle Alliance", Shuffle Joker is piloted by Tris Sergeyrev.

Shuffle Club appeared in episode #15 "Warrior's Crest! Goodbye, Shuffle Alliance", Shuffle Club is piloted by Alan Lee

Shuffle Spade appeared in episode #15 "Warrior's Crest! Goodbye, Shuffle Alliance", Shuffle Spade is piloted by Max Burns.

Shuffle Diamond appeared in episode #15 "Warrior's Crest! Goodbye, Shuffle Alliance", Shuffle Diamond is piloted by Nassius Kircher.

GF13-021NG also known as Neo Germany’s Gundam Spiegel appeared in episode #16 "Ultimate Power and Evil! Rise of the Devil Gundam", Gundam Spiegel is piloted by Schwarz Bruder.

GF13-044NNP also known as Neo Napal Mandala Gundam appeared in episode # 25 "All Fighters Gathered! The Final Battles Begin", Mandala Gundam is piloted by Kyral Mekirel.

GF13-026ND also known as Neo Denmark Mermaid Gundam appeared in episode # 25 "All Fighters Gathered! The Final Battles Begin", Mermaid Gundam is piloted by Hans Holger.

GF13-002NGR also known as Neo Greece Zeus Gundam appeared in episode # 25 "All Fighters Gathered! The Final Battles Begin", Zeus Gundam is piloted by Marcelot Cronos.

GF13-044NNP also known as Mandala Gundam appeared in episode # 25 "All Fighters Gathered! The Final Battles Begin", Mandala Gundam is piloted by Kyral Mekirel.

GF13-012NN also known as Neo Norway Viking Gundam appeared in episode # 25 "All Fighters Gathered! The Final Battles Begin", Viking Gundam is piloted by Eric the Viking

GF13-020NK also known as Neo Kenya Zebra Gundam appeared in episode # 25 "All Fighters Gathered! The Final Battles Begin", Zebra Gundam is piloted by Conta N’Doul.

GF13-045NSP also known as Neo Spain Matador Gundam appeared in episode # 25 "All Fighters Gathered! The Final Battles Begin", Matador Gundam is piloted by Carlos Andalusia.

GF13-066ND also known as Neo Holland Nether Gundam appeared in episode # 25 "All Fighters Gathered! The Final Battles Begin", Nether Gundam is piloted by Rutger Verhoeven.

GF13-017NJII also known as Neo Japan’s God Gundam, Burning Gundam appeared in episode #23 "Destined Battle! Domon vs. Devil Gundam", Burning Gundam is piloted by Domon Kasshu.

Manga and light novels
A large amount of printed fiction related to Mobile Fighter G Gundam has been published since the original Japanese airing of the series. The first was a manga adaptation of the show, illustrated by Kōichi Tokita and serialized in Kodansha's Comic BonBon from April 1994 to April 1995. Three bound volumes (tankōbon) collecting the individual chapters were released by Kodansha between October 6, 1994, and May 6, 1995. During the airing of the TV series in North America, Tokyopop acquired the rights to publish an English-translated version of the manga. All three volumes were released between June 17 and October 7, 2003. A light novel adaptation of the TV series by Yoshitake Suzuki was published in three books by Kadokawa Shoten under its Sneaker Bunko label between August 29, 1995, and March 1, 1997. In addition to the adaptations, a plethora of one-shot side stories and spin-offs to the main plot that have been published in various Japanese magazines. Two manga were serialized in certain editions of Kodansha's Comic BonBon. The first was a side story titled Kidō Butōden G Gundam Gaiden Shōryū Densetsu (機動武闘伝Gガンダム外伝翔龍伝説), detailing Sai Sai Ci's journey to improve his fighting skills after losing to Domon in the 13th Gundam Fight finals. The manga was written and illustrated by Toshiya Murakami, serialized from December 1994 to April 1995 and released as a tankōbon on June 6, 1995. The second was a prequel story titled Kidō Butōden Gaiden Gundam Fight 7th (機動武闘外伝ガンダムファイト7th), telling of a young Master Asia's participation in the 7th Gundam Fight. Authored by Kitarou Ototoi, this manga was serialized from March to December 1996 and released in tankōbon form on January 8, 1997.

From 2010 to 2016, Kadokawa Shoten's Gundam Ace magazine serialized a 26-volume G Gundam manga retelling written by series director Yasuhiro Imagawa and illustrated by the show's character collaborator Kazuhiko Shimamoto with his associated Honō Production studio. Imagawa described this manga as "the complete version of the story, the master work version". The first part, titled Chōkyū! Kidō Butōden G Gundam (超級! 機動武闘伝Gガンダム), was serialized from July 26, 2010, to August 26, 2011; seven tankōbon were released from December 25, 2010, to December 26, 2011. The second part, subtitled Shinjuku Tōhō Fuhai! (新宿・東方不敗！), was serialized from September 26, 2011, to January 26, 2013; eight tankōbon were released from December 26, 2011, to July 26, 2013. A third part, subtitled Bakunetsu Neo Hong Kong! (爆熱・ネオホンコン！), was serialized from February 26, 2013, to 2015; seven tankōbon volumes were released from July 26, 2013, to August 26, 2015. A fourth and final part, subtitled Saishū Kessen-hen (最終決戦編), was serialized from 2015 to August 26, 2016; four tankōbon volumes were released from August 26, 2015, to September 26, 2016.

CDs
A total of four soundtrack albums containing the background and vocal music of Mobile Fighter G Gundam were released during the show's original television run in Japan. All of them were republished by Starchild on March 5, 1999. The first album, Round 1 & 2, is two discs of music. The second album, Round 3, contains music and a special audio drama featuring the show's Japanese voice actors. The third album, Round 4, contains the rest of the background music. The final album, Round 5, features vocal image songs performed by the voice cast as well as instrumental versions of the show's two opening themes. Vocal songs from the show have also been included on various Gundam music compilations.

Video games
Bandai has published three Japan-exclusive fighting video games based solely on Mobile Fighter G Gundam. The first game, developed by Pandora Box for the Super Famicom, was released on December 27, 1994. The second game, also developed by Natsume, was released for the PlayStation on October 10, 2002, as the 12th volume of the Simple Characters 2000 series. The third game was released for mobile phones supported by Japan's i-mode and FOMA services on November 6, 2006. In addition, characters and mecha from G Gundam have appeared in various Gundam crossover games such as Mobile Suit Gundam: Encounters in Space, the SD Gundam G Generation series, the Dynasty Warriors: Gundam series, and Banpresto's Super Robot Wars franchise,  among others.

Other merchandise
Bandai has marketed a large amount of collectible merchandise based on G Gundam in both Japanese and North American territories. This includes plastic model kits ranging from 1:144 to 1:60 scales; expensive garage kits made from resin; and action figures, some of which are exclusive to North America. Sunrise produced a promotional short film centered on G Gundam as the third entry of an OVA series known as Gundam Evolve, packaged as a limited edition bonus with the Master Grade GF13-017NJ Shining Gundam model kit. Numerous guide/art books relating to G Gundam have been published. There are two Japanese books published by MediaWorks: Mobile Fighter G Gundam: Gundam Fight Handbook (機動武闘伝Gガンダム ガンダムファイトハンドブック) released in August 1994 and Mobile Fighter G Gundam Complete Record (機動武闘伝Gガンダム 完全収録ガンダムファイト) released in June 1995. Another book, Gundam Wars 4 Fighting G: Model Graphix Special Edition (ガンダムウォーズ4 ファイティングG―モデルグラフィックス スペシャル・エディション), was published by Dai Nippon Kaiga Co. in September 1995. Rapport released an art book titled Mobile Fighter G Gundam: Battle Memory (機動武闘伝Ｇガンダム　バトルメモリー) in 1994. Hobby Japan published a book in its Gundam Weapons series in July 2002, dedicated to collecting and building scale models based on the show. An English-language guide book, Mobile Fighter G Gundam Technical Manual, was released by Tokyopop in North America on November 12, 2002. The Japanese clothing company Cospa sells officially licensed apparel featuring G Gundam.

Reception
Mobile Fighter G Gundam received mediocre television ratings during its run on Japanese television in 1994 and 1995. According to Nikkei Business Publications, the series saw an average of just 4.02% viewership for the Kantō region and Greater Tokyo Area throughout its 49-episode run. The overall ratings for G Gundam were higher than that of the previous series Mobile Suit Victory Gundam and slightly lower than the following series Mobile Suit Gundam Wing. Critically, G Gundam was met with some controversy upon its Japanese debut. G Gundam replicates very little of the dramatic, militaristic conventions of prior Gundam series, setting itself apart with a different tone; taking place outside the franchise's main timeline; and foregoing large-scale, armed conflicts in favor of tournament-style, martial arts matches. Director Yasuhiro Imagawa claimed to have taken a large amount of criticism for these changes from both fans and design staff members. G Gundam ultimately proved very popular in Japan.

Early in the show's North American run, Bandai reported that G Gundam had the top ratings of any anime show for the period. The company considered the show to be a "hit" at the time. However, officials for Toonami recounted in 2006 that no Gundam series earned significant viewer ratings after the first North American airing of Gundam Wing in 2000. G Gundam received an overall positive critical reception amid its mainstream exposure in the United States. Nonetheless, views on G Gundam's plot remain largely mixed. Negative reactions to the plot mostly stem from its stark contrast to preceding Gundam entries that have traditionally focused on deep political and social issues in the midst of war. AnimeNation writer John Oppliger considered G Gundam to be "the plague of the Gundam franchise" and "one of the biggest mis-steps in anime history" due to its elimination of such serious subtext. Both Bamboo Dong of the Anime News Network and Duncan Scott of Protoculture Addicts were also initially disappointed for the same reason, with the latter writer feeling that the series features "Gundam" in its title purely for marketing reasons. Derrick L. Tucker of T.H.E.M. Anime Reviews called the series' episodic storyline its "most profound weakness", whereby "the narrative exists predominately [sic] to move the viewer from fight to fight". Tucker also found that the potential for its more dramatic themes, such as tension between Domon and Master Asia or Domon's romantic relationship with Rain, is "overshadowed from start to finale by the show's domineering, if repetitive action sets".

Other critics were more accepting of the plot as it progressed, overlooking comparisons to past Gundam series. Animerica editor Mark Simmons, Martin Ouellette of Protoculture Addicts, and anime journalist Mike Toole have all shared opinions that the show can be immensely enjoyed by not taking it too seriously. David Smith of IGN denoted G Gundam "the greatest giant robot series that has ever been" because of the seemingly "over-the-top" nature that drives the premise. Smith asserted, "G Gundam maintains a completely straight face through every second. That's the trick, because to let the audience laugh for one moment would break the effect. You don't laugh at G Gundam – you become completely absorbed in the wondrous violence of it all." Simmons concluded that the addition of components like "nanotechnological plagues, evil armies, zombie legions, betrayal, and heartbreak [...] make the end result entertaining for more sophisticated viewers as well as for youngsters enticed by the colorful shiny robots". Toole stated that despite valid criticism that the plot is "silly and exaggerated" and its introductory episodes suffering from "battle of the week fare", the debut of Master Asia triggers "some great character development". Dong similarly appreciated the show more in its Neo Hong Kong story arc and perceived it much easier for a new viewer to begin watching at any point in the series than with other Gundam installments.

The large cast of characters and mecha in G Gundam has received mostly praise from critics. Toole, Tucker, Ouellette, and Smith made positive mention of the primary characters for their unique designs and attributes; all four reviewers have noted many of the supporting characters to be overly stereotypical with regard to their nationality. Toole particularly enjoyed the protagonist Domon, whom he described as very well-rounded, and regarded Master Asia as "both a great hero and a great villain". Tucker interpreted the main characters "stylized and distinctive" which possess individual motivations that give them "dynamic appeal". Tucker was also impressed with the design variety and color format of the mobile fighters, which break the mold set by the conventional Gundam template. Toole and Smith together felt that the more campy Gundam stereotypes added to the show's endearment. While referring to Neo America's mobile fighter, Smith exclaimed, "This show has a cowboy/boxer/quarterback/surfer Gundam, for God's sake." Simmons equivalently and sarcastically summarized, "This is a world where the space colony of Neo Holland is represented by a Gundam that transforms into a giant windmill."

Legacy
During the North American DVD production interviews for Mobile Fighter G Gundam, Imagawa was asked to address the message "See you again Gundam Fight 14" shown at the last cut of the final episode. He answered that it was simply word play and had no intention of affirming a sequel to the anime. Granted its large number of manga side-stories, Imagawa surmised that it would be "impossible" to create an animated sequel or OVA series to G Gundam and disclosed he would not direct it if there were. He said, "I believe G Gundam is a series that started as a program for kids and eventually worked out because I stayed vividly aware of that until the very last moment, overcoming a lot of obstacles and bad situations (in terms of directing)."

Oppliger found that G Gundam had established a legacy within the anime industry, albeit a different one from its 1979 namesake. He elaborated that G Gundam represents a "catalyst for development within Japan's anime industry" for being the first complete reboot of the Gundam franchise and the first of many Gundam TV series to feature a self-contained storyline separate from the traditional franchise continuity. In 2001, G Gundam was listed by the Japanese magazine Animage among the top 100 most important anime in history in terms of historical significance, influence and impact on the anime industry.

title: Mobile Fighter G Gundam


text:
Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical

The Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical has been awarded since 1994. Before that time, both plays and musicals were considered together for the Tony Award for Best Revival. The award is given to the producers of the best musical play which has already appeared on Broadway in a previous production, or is regarded as being in the common theatrical repertoire. Like Best Musical, excerpts from the musicals that are nominated for this award are usually performed during the ceremony before this award is presented.

As of 2019, composers are also eligible for this award, when a show is considered a revival but has not previously appeared on Broadway.

Winners and nominees
{{legend|#B0C4DE|indicates the winner}}

Multiple wins

 * 2 Wins
 * Anything Goes
 * Company
 * The King and I
 * La Cage aux Folles
 * Porgy and Bess

Multiple nominations

 * 3 Nominations
 * Cabaret
 * Company
 * Fiddler on the Roof
 * Guys and Dolls
 * Gypsy
 * Peter Pan
 * Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

 * 2 Nominations
 * Annie
 * Anything Goes
 * Camelot
 * Carousel
 * Follies
 * Grease
 * Hello, Dolly!
 * How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
 * Into the Woods

 * Jesus Christ Superstar
 * The King and I
 * Kiss Me, Kate
 * La Cage aux Folles
 * The Music Man
 * My Fair Lady
 * Oklahoma!
 * She Loves Me
 * Sweet Charity
 * The Threepenny Opera
 * West Side Story


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Turn A Gundam

Turn A Gundam (ガンダム), also stylized as ∀ Gundam, is a 1999 Japanese mecha anime series produced by Sunrise, and aired between 1999 and 2000 on Japan's FNN networks. It was created for the Gundam Big Bang 20th Anniversary celebration, and is the eighth installment in the Gundam franchise. It was later compiled in 2002 into two feature-length films entitled Turn A Gundam I: Earth Light and Turn A Gundam II: Moonlight Butterfly.

Turn A Gundam was directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, who is the main creator of the Gundam franchise, and who had written and directed many previous Gundam works. Tomino created the series as a means of "affirmatively accepting all of the Gundam series", which is reflected in the series title's use of the Turned A, a mathematical symbol representing universal quantification.

Overview
Turn A Gundam takes place in the year Correct Century 2345 (正暦2345年), in a different calendar era than the previous Gundam projects. The Japanese term for Correct Century, , is a wordplay on the Japanese term for the Common Era (CE) Western calendar system (西暦; pronounced ). The population of the Earth is, at the beginning of the series, limited to simple, steam-driven technology after past cataclysms; the Moon is populated by the Moonrace, humans who left Earth after a great war long ago to reside in technologically advanced lunar colonies until such time as they deemed the Earth suitable to return to.

Plot
Turn A Gundam follows the character Loran Cehack, a young member of the Moonrace. Selected as part of a reconnaissance mission to determine whether the Earth was fit for resettlement, Loran lands on the continent of North America, spends two years living on Earth as the chauffeur to the Heim family, and grows attached to its people. With the expectation of a peaceful resettlement operation from his people, he and a pair of his close friends sent down with him confirm that the Earth is now fit for the Moonrace to make their return. He's taken by surprise when the Moonrace intends to return to Earth via an offensive with mobile suits, and their first attack sparks a violent conflict between Earth and moon.

The night of the first attack, Loran is at the White Doll, an enormous humanoid statue, for a coming-of-age ceremony. When the Moonrace attacks and the battle in town can be seen from a distance the children panic. In the midst of this panic, the White Doll shatters, revealing a metallic figure within, and the shrine collapses around it. During the panic, Loran recognizes the White Doll as a mobile suit, and succeeds in applying his knowledge of the Moonrace's mobile suits to pilot it. The death of the Heim patriarch in the attack pulls the family and Loran into the budding war; Loran becomes the designated pilot of the White Doll, and its discovery prompts the excavation of further mobile suits in the various "mountain cycles" covering the Earth. As the Moonrace's invasion rapidly turns into a full-fledged war against the increasingly armed Earthrace, it becomes clear that this state of affairs is divisive among both groups; while the Moonrace's queen Dianna Soreil attempts to negotiate with the local leaders for a peaceful solution by which the Moonrace can come to reside on the Earth, the militaristic among both populations interfere with the negotiations again and again, forcing the war to continue as opposed to accepting a compromise.

Anime
The series aired 50 episodes in Japan from April 9, 1999 to April 14, 2000 on Fuji TV, being the only Gundam anime to air on said channel. It was directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino and produced by Hideyuki Tomioka, Takayuki Yoshii, and Yoshihiro Suzuki. Character designs was by Akira Yasuda and Yoshihito Hishinuma while mecha designs were done by Atsushi Shigeta, Kunio Okawara, Syd Mead, Takumi Sakura. Shigemi Ikeda directed the art and Yota Tsuruoka directed the sound. Toshiaki Ohta and Yoko Kanno composed the music.

The eponymous Turn A Gundam is notable because it is the first Gundam mecha designed entirely by a foreigner, the famous American visual futurist and conceptual artist Syd Mead. The first design of the new Gundam created by Mead was rejected at first by Yoshiyuki due to its extremely exotic appearance, since Tomino decided that he wanted a figure closer to previous Gundam designs. Because of its quality and impressive appearance, the old design was not discarded at all by Tomino, instead renamed and used by him as the antagonist mobile suit design Sumo.

Mead designed the Turn A Gundam using real world industrial design aspects, which were aimed to make it look simple and realistic. The shield was one of the components designed by Syd Mead with little constraint from the production team. It needed to be big enough so that the suit could hide behind it, making it easier for the anime production staff to draw. Syd Mead imagined it to be like a clam shell and finally settled with a design that looked like the old MS-14 Gelgoog's shield from the first series.

Turn A Gundam is the last entry of the Gundam franchise (not counting the compilations and future video game cut scenes) to be mostly hand painted on cels. Mobile Suit Gundam SEED, released in 2002, was the first series to switch entirely to digital ink and paint.

The series had two films releases, Turn A Gundam I: Earth Light released February 9, 2002 and Turn A Gundam II: Moonlight Butterfly released February 10, 2002. The films were a condensed retelling of the 50 episodes between the two.

Manga
The Series had two manga adaptations. One by Kōichi Tokita published by Kodansha Ltd. running from April 15, 1999 to March 15, 2000 through Comic BomBom Magazine. Another written by Yoshiyuki Tomino running from June 26, 1999 to March, 2002 that was published by Kodansha Ltd. In their magazine, Monthly Magazine Z.

There would be a manga release that would serve as a prequel for the main series titled, Turn A Gundam: Tsuki no Kaze written by Akira Yasuda that would be published by Kadokawa Shoten in their magazine, Gundam Ace running from March 2004 to March 2005. The manga would follow a younger Loran prior to the events of the main show or manga. Here it is shown the process that Loran and the other characters training to for the upcoming reconnaissance mission on earth. As well as introduce how Loran would eventually be selected for the mission, and send off to earth.

Relationship with other Gundam series
Turn A Gundam has been cited by Director Tomino and other sources as a show that would unify the stories from the various Gundam series into one. Throughout the show, mobile suits resembling those from the eras depicted in previous Gundam shows and indicated to be preserved by nano machines for thousands of years, including as those of the Universal Century, are excavated by the show's various factions. In Episode 42, this plotline comes to a culmination as the history of the Correct Century timeline is shown in a collection of clips known as the Dark History (黒歴史), which is revealed to be events that took place in different Gundam series prior to Turn A Gundam, thus making those events part of the Correct Century timeline's history.

The book 2001 Correct Century, A Bibliographical Study of "Dark History", printed in black pages in front of the Universal Century Gundam Officials Encyclopedia, is supposedly uncovered by a fictional Lecturer in Black History named Yokk Wakk Onimott during Correct Century 1993. Onimott spends two years to fix the broken pages, five years to interpret the language, and a year to find a publisher. He states that the book was first printed around 3,000 years ago by the Rhea branch of the Earth Federation Government University. Included in the book is a picture drawn by Kunio Okawara showing a mobile suit supposed to be MS-04 as a S.U.I.T. project of the Zeon forces in UC0072~0075. It supposedly was found in 1993 Correct Century in the mountain cycle Library A-a. The white page introduction by another fictional writer, Minaka Junkers, an economy assistant professor of the Rhea branch of the Earth Federation Government University, states the book was published in UC0100 to celebrate the Centennial anniversary of the Universal Century. Thus it is officially claimed that the Universal Century is a time before Correct Century, possibly around 3,000 years before the story of Turn A begins.

Later sources would greatly increase the time frame between the two. The official English Gundam.info Archives website, created by Sunrise, describes Correct Century as, "similar to early 20th Century America, but is actually set tens of thousands of years in the distant future and incorporates every Universal Century and Another Gundam timeline that ever existed." The manual for the Master Grade Turn X gunpla, released in June 2014, would further attempt to expand what is covered by the Dark History as the original Mobile Suit Gundam marking the beginning of humanity's space age, and Turn A as the final result, with all other Gundam series, including those that were produced prior to Turn A: G Gundam, Gundam Wing, and Gundam X, and those produced after: Gundam SEED, Gundam 00, and Gundam AGE, taking place in the tens of thousands of years in between the two shows.

Music
Openings:
 * "Turn A Turn" (ターンAターン) by Hideki Saijo (Ep. 2-38)
 * "Century Color" by RAY-GUNS (Ep. 39 - 50)

Endings:
 * "Aura" by Shinji Tanimura (Ep. 1 - 40)
 * "Tsuki no Mayu" (月の繭) by Yoko Kanno (sung by Aki Okui) (Ep. 41–49)
 * "Kagirinaki Tabiji" (限りなき旅路) by Aki Okui (Ep. 50)
 * "After All" by Donna Burke (First compilation film ending)
 * "Tsuki no Mayu" (Moon's Cocoon) by Yoko Kanno (sung by Aki Okui) (Second compilation film ending ~ In its full version right before the ending credits which are instrumental only)

Inserts:
 * "Moon" by Gabriela Robin (a.k.a. Yoko Kanno)
 * "Overnight Festival" (宵越しの祭り) by White Doll no Matsuri no Kaiichidou
 * "Queen of the Night" (月下美人) by Hideki Saijo
 * "The Spirit of the Moon" (月の魂) by RRET Team
 * "Black History" by Kaoru Nishino

North American release
On July 22, 2010, Bandai Entertainment announced that they had acquired the license to release Turn A Gundam in the United States and that they were planning to release the series on Region 1 DVD in 2011. The release was cancelled in January 2012 when Bandai Entertainment announced it would no longer offer any new products in the North American territory.

On October 11, 2014, at their 2014 New York Comic Con panel, Sunrise announced they will be releasing all of the Gundam franchise, including Turn A Gundam in North America though distribution from Right Stuf Inc., beginning in Spring 2015.

On March 11, 2015, Right Stuf Inc. announced that the first 25 episodes will be released on June 30, 2015. Sunrise and Right Stuf will also release the Turn A Gundam films in addition to the TV series.

On April 3, 2015, Right Stuf Inc. announced the remaining 25 episodes of the show would be released on August 4, 2015, via Blu-ray release.

Reception
Mobile Suit Gundam 00 designer Yun Kōga cited Turn A when asked about her favorite series within the franchise.

The Turn A Gundam was chosen to be the 100th Master Grade model of Gunpla (abbreviation of Gundam Plastic Model) and at an earlier time, the first release of the Turn A Gundam DVD box set was announced. Two of the three Model Magazine in Japan, Hobby Japan and Dengeki Hobby was informed to build their own Turn A model using the old 1/100 kit for a display in the official announcement of the MS100 Turn A. Hobby Japan modeller Seira Masuo drastically redesigned the unit while Dengeki Hobby modeller went for the original approach of diorama. Both of the models was placed next to the MG100 draft design at the Bandai display forum at the announcement of MG100. Tomino addressed his little disappointment in the design of Turn A Gundam not having good reception, but he commented that it was happy to see that it was not pointless work as Turn A was selected as the 100th Master Grade model.

Turn A Gundam is also available on High Grade 1/144 scale and on Robot Spirit line. Turn X was released in Master Grade format in June 2014.

title: Turn A Gundam