Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz

Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz, known in Japan as New Mobile Report Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz (Japanese: 新機動戦記ガンダムW: ENDLESS WALTZ, Hepburn: Shin Kidō Senki Gandamu Uingu: Endoresu Warutsu), is the sequel to Mobile Suit Gundam Wing, both of which are set in the "After Colony" timeline, an alternate universe to that of the original Mobile Suit Gundam series. Aside from being a continuation to the Gundam Wing TV series, it also reveals details regarding the pasts of the five Gundam pilots and the true objective behind "Operation Meteor."^[1]

Endless Waltz originally premiered in Japan as a three-part OVA in 1997,^[2][3][4] and it was later released as a theatrical compilation movie in 1998, including additional scenes and an altered musical score.^[5]

Synopsis

It is the year After Colony 196, and the battles between Earth and the space colonies have ended. Treize Khushrenada is dead and OZ has come to an end. This gives birth to the Earth Sphere Unified Nation (ESUN) and the Preventers. Seeing they won't be needed anymore, the Gundam pilots (except Wufei) send their suits into the sun. However, this peace would not last, for a rebellion occurs on the newly completed colony, L3 X-18999. Led by seven-year-old Mariemaia Khushrenada, Treize's illegitimate daughter, the rebellion kidnaps Relena Darlian, now the Vice Foreign Minister of the ESUN, during a diplomatic mission to X-18999. As the Gundam pilots investigate further, they discover that Mariemaia is merely a puppet controlled by her grandfather Dekim Barton, a former advisor to martyred colony leader Heero Yuy, who is using X-18999 to go through with the original Operation Meteor, as a contingency plan in case the ESUN doesn't comply. The Gundam pilots must prevent Dekim from seizing power over the ESUN. The Gundams are retrieved from their course to sun to Earth's orbit thanks to Quatre and the Maganacs. The pilots use their Gundams one last time to fight against Dekim's forces, not killing anyone. In the end, Dekim is killed by one of his own soldiers, Earth and its colonies are at peace once again and all mobile suits (including the Gundams) are forever destroyed.

Characters

• Heero Yuy (voiced by Hikaru Midorikawa, and by Mark Hildreth in the English release); pilot of the XXXG-00W0 Wing Gundam Zero,^[6] who was code-named after the assassinated pacifist, Heero Yuy. Though he brought an end to the war between Earth and the colonies, Heero must now prevent the Mariemaia Army from disrupting the peace.
• Relena Darlian (voiced by Akiko Yajima, and by Lisa Ann Beley in the English release); an ally of the Gundam pilots and the strongest political advocate for peace between Earth and the colonies, who is kidnapped by the Mariemaia Army.
• Duo Maxwell (voiced by Toshihiko Seki, and by Scott McNeil in the English release); pilot of the XXXG-01D2 Gundam Deathscythe Hell,^[7] who assists his fellow Gundam pilots in maintaining the peace they fought so hard to attain.
• Trowa Barton - (voiced by Shigeru Nakahara, and by Kirby Morrow in the English release); pilot of the XXXG-01H Gundam Heavyarms,^[8] who infiltrates the Mariemaia Army in order to prevent its revised version of Operation Meteor.
• Quatre Raberba Winner (voiced by Ai Orikasa, and by Brad Swaile in the English release); pilot of the XXXG-01SR Gundam Sandrock,^[9] who comes up with the idea of sending the Gundams into the Sun, but is forced to retrieve them after the Mariemaia Army declares war on the Earth.
• Chang Wufei (voiced by Ryuuzou Ishino, and by Ted Cole in the English release); pilot of the XXXG-01S2 Altron Gundam,^[10] who joins forces with the Mariemaia Army and becomes an enemy toward the other Gundam pilots.
• Zechs Merquise (voiced by Takehito Koyasu, and by Brian Drummond in the English release); a former enemy of the Gundam pilots, now their ally and a member of the Preventers (code name: "Wind"), as well as the pilot of the new OZ-00MS2B Tallgeese III mobile suit.^[11]
• Lucrezia Noin (voiced by Chisa Yokoyama, and by Saffron Henderson in the English release); an ally of the Gundam pilots and a member of the Preventers (code name: "Fire").
• Sally Po (voiced by Yumi Touma, and by Samantha Ferris in the English release); another ally of the Gundam pilots and a member of the Preventers (code name: "Water").
• Lady Une (voiced by Sayuri Yamauchi, and by Enuka Okuma in the English release); another former enemy of the Gundam pilots, now their ally and the head of the Preventers (code name: "Gold").
• Mariemaia Khushrenada (voiced by Rei Sakuma, and by Maggie Blue O'Hara in the English release); the young daughter of the deceased Treize Khushrenada, who is manipulated by her grandfather Dekim Barton into leading a rebellion against the Earth with the intentions of conquering it.
• Narrator (voiced by Akio Ōtsuka, and by Campbell Lane in the English release)

Mecha redesigns

One of the most notable features of Endless Waltz was the massive redesigns all five of the Gundams from the end of the Gundam Wing TV series received, courtesy of the artist Hajime Katoki. The Gundams in Endless Waltz have more stylized appearances, reflected in the even more demonic design of the Gundam Deathscythe Hell, the more dragon-like design of the Altron Gundam, and the new "angel-winged" design of the Wing Gundam Zero. Despite the dramatically different designs of the Gundams, the story in Endless Waltz retcons them as if the original designs from the TV series never existed.^[1] However, this changed after the release of the Glory of Losers manga series.

Music

Theme songs

• OVA Ending Theme: "White Reflection" by Two-Mix^[12]
• Movie Ending Theme: "Last Impression" by Two-Mix^[13]

Distribution

In North America, Endless Waltz premiered on Canada's YTV on September 11, 2000 and on Cartoon Network in the U.S. on November 10, 2000.^[14] It was later released to VHS, UMD, and DVD by Bandai Entertainment,^[15] with the DVD edition containing both the OVA and compilation movie versions on one disc.^[1] Due to the closure of Bandai Entertainment, the OVA and Movie went 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 Endless Waltz in North America though distribution from Right Stuf Inc., beginning in Spring 2015.^[16]

Reception

The initial airing of the OVA on November 10, 2000, was Cartoon Network's second highest-rated program ever at the time, only being topped by the premiere of Funimation's in-house dub of Dragon Ball Z.^[17] Helen McCarthy in 500 Essential Anime Movies commented that "the giant robot fights are as good as ever" and that "the art direction and design is excellent".^[18]

References

External links

• Official website (in Japanese)
• Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz English official website at the Wayback Machine (archive index)
• Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia