Note: For this post I am taking a different approach, one that is probably extremely inappropriate and unnecessary. It is my attempt at a pseudo-Socratic Dialogue, which I will use to discuss the mobile suit designs of Gundam Wing. I understand it is not 100% true to the idea of a Socratic Dialogue, but I found it to be a much easier way to get my thoughts down on this subject. Plus it is always fun to try something different.
Cee: Today I would like to discuss your dislike of Gundam Wing, particularly the design of its mobile suits.
Em: Of course.
Cee: What, exactly, is the issue that you have with them?
Em: If only I had one issue, then this discussion would be far easier on me.
Cee: You have more than one. Very well, let us go through them.
Em: I suppose the first thing that comes to mind is the Sentai influence. The show centers on five teenagers piloting giant robots with unique themes and color schemes. It is difficult for me to take them seriously when they look ready to face a stuntman in a rubber monster costume.
Cee: I believe you are exaggerating your case. Let us start with issue of color schemes. We shall start with the Wing Gundam. What colors is it made of?
Em: I see white, red, yellow, and green.
Cee: And what of the Shenlong Gundam?
Em: White, red, yellow and … green. The color palettes are exactly the, with a only a slight difference in hue between them.
Cee: Indeed. Now let us look at the Sandrock.
Em: It is colored white, yellow, red and black.
Cee: And the Deathscythe?
Em: White, yellow, red and black… I believe I see your point. Truly, the only one of the five with a truly unique color scheme is Heavyarms.
Cee: I would say that not even Heavyarms is truly unique. All five Gundams use the colors of yellow, white, and red. Thus, not only do some of them have identical colors, but the whole lot has a large degree of overlap.
Em: Indeed, but I fail to see your point. You have proven to me that my assertion is wrong, but you did so by pointing out that the opposite is true. That is, rather than having unique color schemes, we now know that their colors are extremely similar. That may be different, but I hardly believe this scenario to be better.
Cee: I agree, but the point was not to convince you that the truth is an improvement over your impressions, but to simply convince you of the truth. We cannot have an honest discussion about these mecha designs if we are arguing in bad faith.
Em: Fair enough. In that case, you have already disproven my second complaint.
Cee: Which would be?
Em: I was going to point out the Gundam team’s heavy use of theming as another point of evidence of its Sentai influence. The Shenlong, Sandrock, and Deathscythe units are all designed around different visual motifs. Shenlong is clearly informed by the look of mythical Chinese dragons, Deathscythe is a winged demon of sorts, and the Sandrock is … some confused blend of allegedly Middle Eastern traits. However …
Cee: … however, the Heavarms and the Wing Gundam have no apparent theming whatsover, thus breaking the pattern.
Em: Yes indeed. But this leaves us in a similar dilemma. I have been proven wrong in regards to my complaints of theming, but now the truth is that the designs have inconsistent theming. Honestly, that looks even worse. It makes me wonder even more just what exactly when on during the creation of this show.
Cee: I do not know the precise answer to that question, but the Gundam Wiki has some clues. Many of the wiki pages regarding Gundam Wing allude to the fact that the show was originally intended to follow in the footsteps of the show that preceded - G Gundam. Specifically, it was intended to reuse G Gundam’s concept of nationality-themed mobile suit designs. The Heavyarms, for instance, was meant to have either a football-themed design (similar to the Gundam Maxter) or even a clown-theme. Meanwhile the Wing Gundam was meant to invoke more of a Japanese motif, and was based more heavily on the design of the God Gundam. Wikipedia claims that the idea of five pilots is also inspired by G Gundam’s Shuffle Alliance. However, it appears that at some point during production, the tone of the show took a turn, and that the Sentai-ish influences you have pointed out so far are simply leftover from the show’s earliest conception.
Em: In other words, this is all due to a combination of a lack of vision, time, and money. That sounds all too appropriate for this show.
Cee: * laughing * I suppose you could say that. What are your other issues with these mobile suits?
Em: The form of the five Gundams betrays their function, or at least their intended function.
Cee: In what way?
Em: The five Gundams are, in theory, each capable of acting as a “one-mecha army” so to speak, correct?
Cee: That is true.
Em: And yet of them, two have nothing but close range weaponry, and one has only long range weaponry (I am ignoring the knife on the Heavyarms, as it is nothing but a trifle). I could see these designs working in a group, or at least in pairs, where they could complement one another. But Gundam Wing insists at the very start of the story that these mobile suits are meant to operate independent from one another. Do you honestly see Deathscythe fending off waves of flying Ares mobile suits by jumping up swatting at them? The mere idea sounds goofy, impractical, and ineffective.
Cee: And yet the show has numerous scenes depicting the Gundams tearing through their enemies. Is that not enough to convince you?
Em: Not at all. The scenes are so poorly animated - or perhaps I should say not animated. This is a show in which most grunt units do little more than stand around firing. They rarely dodge or use flanking maneuvers, and their armor is as strong as paper. The only reason the Gundams succeed is because they are essentially engaging in target practice.
Cee: It sounds like you believe they should all have been designed as all-rounders. In that case, they would all likely be similar in capability.
Em: Actually, I think a better approach can be found in Wing’s spiritual successor, Gundam 00. The Gundams in that show are all highly specialized, and they often fight in groups. When one is alone, they are usually portrayed as being at a disadvantage. If I were to go back and retool Wing, I would make each Gundam more specialized, and then have them deploy in groups. For instance, give Heavyarms additional ammunition packs along its backside, and have it move more slowly. Give the Deathscythe more thrusters and make it focus on “get in, strike fast, get out”. Things like that. Then have them work together, something the show takes a long time to get around to.
Cee: I cannot say if your ideas would wrok, but I can certainly say I would give your treatment a shot. Now, have you any more points?
Em: I could go into more detail about other specific mobile suits, but it would take too long. I would say at this point my main points are made.
Cee: In that case, what if I told you there was a way to see these Gundam Wing mobile suits in a new, better light, via Gunpla?
Em: I would tell you that I am skeptical, but interested.
To Be Continued …