Spoiler Preface!!!
This post contains what some may constitute as spoilers for Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket.
I’ve built models of a number of mobile suits from Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket, but somehow it took me this long to build the OVA’s most iconic mecha1 - the RX78 NT-1 (aka The Gundam Alex).
About War in the Pocket
War in the Pocket was a six episode OVA released in 1989. Created to celebrate Gundam’s tenth anniversary, War in the Pocket was the actually the first Gundam OVA series ever made, and the first Gundam story with no involvement from series creator Yoshiyuki Tomino2.
It also happens to be one of the best Gundam stories ever made. In fact, it is my personal opinion that it is one of the best pieces of Japanese animation ever made. War in the Pocket is one of the only anime stories that not only tries, but succeeds in replicating the structure, style, and pathos of a classic Greek Tragedy. I won’t say any more about the how and the why, but suffice to say that War in the Pocket is absolutely worth your time.
About the Alex
In the original Mobile Suit Gundam, a lot of fuss is made about the fact that the Gundam is eventually unable to keep up with the speed and reaction times of its pilot, Amuro Ray, as his Newtype abilities begin to flourish. The Gundam NT-1 (which I’ll simply refer to as the Alex from here on out) was designed near the end of the One Year War in order to solve this problem.
The Alex is new model Gundam specifically built for Newtypes. It was (as far as I know) the first mobile suit to use a 360 degree panoramic cockpit, which allows the pilot to survey the battlefield in all directions (including behind and below them):
While this would eventually become standard issue in all mobile suits, it was initially considered for Newtypes. It was believed that Newtype pilots would be able to move and react even more quickly if they were able to assess more of the battleground at all times.
Additionally, the Alex was designed to be more responsive. This is an issue that was semi-solved with the original Gundam, through the use of “magnetic coating” on its joints. This allowed the limbs and torso to move more quickly in reaction to Amuro’s commands. However, this was a stopgap solution, whereas the Alex was built with this idea in mind.
Of course, the Alex was also given better weapons. In addition to a bigger, better beam rifle, it was equipped with a pair of massive gatling guns on its arms:
Oh, and I guess I can’t forget the Chobam Armor:
This is a set of armor plates that go atop the Alex. While it provides it much greater defense, it also makes the MS slower and unable to use all its weapons. I always felt like the armor was pointless, but for some reason fans are obsessed with it. That probably explains why Bandai made sure to include it in this kit:
Anyway, the Alex is clearly a better mobile suit than the OG Gundam, but alas, we never get to see how much better. The Alex has its head lopped off at the end of War in the Pocket, in one of the most iconic fight scenes in all of Gundam. With the One Year War ending on that very same day, the Alex was no longer needed, and presumably the top brass in the Earth Federation decided it wasn’t worth the effor to repair the mobile suit. It never makes it to Amuro, and we never see just how far he’d be able to push it.
Why did the Alex Lose in Battle?
It's a simple question - if the Alex is so good, how come it lost a fight? Aside from the simple fact that these things can happen in war, there are a few contributing factors.
For one, the Alex wasn't quite ready for combat. Fun fact - we never actually see its Beam Rifle or shield in the OVA, as they were not ready for use (or were simply not nearby)
We also know from its final battle that the Alex's arm guns were not fully loaded up. It only used them a little bit before they went dry.
Lastly, while the Alex was intended for use by Amuro, its test pilot was the non-Newtype Christina Mackenzie:
Don't get me wrong, I love Chris as a character. As one of the first (and only) female Gundam pilots, she'll always have a special place in my heart. And for all we know, she may have been really good! But War in the Pocket subtly hints at the idea that the Alex was troublesome for non-Newtypes to pilot, on account of how it was designed. When you consider this problem, and factor in the lack of weapons, it makes more sense that Chris and the Alex might struggle in combat.
About the Visual Design
This is such a fun mobile suit to analyze. It is like a chimera or something. Sometimes I think it looks one way, and then I think it looks like something else entirely.
Consider the overall shape of the design (we’ll get to discussing the colors later). It kind of looks like the Grandaddy Gundam, but it also kind of doesn’t:
It has the same basic shape, but the Alex adds a bit of extra bulk to the legs and arms. Its feet and skirt armor are also longer, which help make it look and feel a bit more sturdy.
As far as colors go, when you look at these two units side by side, their color schemes don’t look that far off. But looks can be deceiving:
- Where the OG Gundam uses a bright yellow, the Alex uses a yellowish-orange. (PS - don’t be deceived by that photo of the OG Gundam. That may look a bit like orange, but it’s full-on yellow)
- Where the OG Gundam uses a fairly bright blue, the Alex uses a much darker Royal Blue.
- The Alex uses a shade of red that also has a bit of an orange tint to it.
- In its original iteration, the OG Gundam is not actually white, but rather a very light shade of grey. Meanwhile the Alex is a full on, pure white.
- The Alex uses blue in a lot of places where original Gundam uses red.
- All of the major body parts of the Alex are either white or blue. The other two colors are only used for highlights and detailing.
I’ve built enough models to know that both minor variations in color and minor variations in color placement can have a profound effect on the look of a mobile suit. The original Gundam has a very strong “Saturday Morning Cartoon” vibe. It is bright (read as “heroic”) without being too bold (read as “it isn’t scary or intimidating”).
Meanwhile, the Alex is largely defined by contrasts. The hints of red and orange stand out against the dark blue, which in turn offers a high contrast to the bright white. Based on your viewing angle and other considerations, it can feel subdued and simple, or it can feel loud and striking. It has wonderful depths and intricacies to explore.
About the Build
Here are the back and front photos of the finished model (per the manual):
Now here are those same photos in which I’ve highlighted all the tiny little areas that need to be painted with not one, but two colors of paint:
This is exactly the kind of detailing work I had to do a few years ago for the Gundam F91, which … didn’t work out too well:
To be honest, the prospect of having to do this again filled me with dread, so much so that I put this build on ice for two months. I actually started it back in February, but I only got as far as finishing the weapons. I felt like I needed to be in the right headspace in order to try and detail the body, and late February/early March was a rough stretch of time for me.
However, as of writing this post, I can tell you that I have already done all the detailing, so there won’t be any more delays. As for wether or not it came out well, you’ll just have to wait and see.
Other Thoughts
- If you look closely at some of the photos of the Alex, you might notice some markings that refer to "UNT Spacy". As far as I know, this is what the Earth Federation Space Force was referred to in the early years of Gundam, before Sunrise standardized on "EFSF". I've always wondered if they changed it so as not to be confused with the "UN Spacy" organization from Macross.
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Even though the Beam Rifle and shield do not appear in the OVA, there exist artist sketches of both of them. I can't tell if they were drawn during production of the film, or later on for use in model kits, but the look of the sketches leads me to believe they are circa 1989.
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The box for this kit is huge ....
... but I'm not sure why. As you can see below, there's a ton of empty space:
Bandai probably wasn't worried as much about efficient packaging and environmental impact back when this model was first shipped. Whatever - I'll use it for storing spare parts and manuals.
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I wasn't in a good headspace back in February, but weirdly enough, I think I was in an even _worse_ place when I finally detailed the body this past week. Ironically, having a semi-destructive, "I don't care what happens anymore" attitude is what finally drove me to make an attempt.
