The latest installment of the Gundam series, Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX, co-produced by Sunrise and Khara, held a special stage greeting event in Tokyo on the 28th to commemorate the re-release of the theatrical prequel Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX -Beginning. The event featured voice actress Tomoyo Kurosawa, who plays Amate Yuzuriha (MACHU), scriptwriter Yoji Enokido, and director Kazuya Tsurumaki.

The final episode (Episode 12) had just aired late on the 24th, and the event featured previously untold stories. In Episode 11, it was revealed that Shirouz was actually Char Aznable—a twist that stirred excitement, particularly because of his dramatic “transformation” scene.

Enokido shared the behind-the-scenes story:

“After I submitted the draft of Episode 11, the director called me and said, ‘I really want to show Char wearing his officer uniform and mask here. But it would be weird if he just brought the costume himself and changed into it offscreen. I don’t like that,’” he said with a laugh.

“So I thought, why not have him transform? In the world of GQuuuuuuX, the Zeknova Phenomenon happens all the time—mobile suits appear and disappear suddenly. So why not clothing? I figured if it’s just an aftereffect of the mysterious appearance of the red Gundam, the audience might accept it.”

The explanation drew applause from the crowd.

Director Tsurumaki also recalled:

“Normally, Shirouz could’ve just piloted the red Gundam as-is, but I had a gut feeling—maybe putting him in Char’s iconic costume would be more exciting for the audience.

I made an unreasonable request. At first I thought, ‘A transformation? That’s pushing it.’ But then I realized… there was no other way but to have him transform.”

This series is a new Gundam installment created through a collaboration between Studio Khara—known for the Evangelion series—and Sunrise. It aired on the Nippon TV network. Tsurumaki, who directed Evangelion: 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time and other entries in the Rebuild of Evangelion film series, directed this work. The series composition was handled by Yoji Enokido, with mechanical design by Ikuto Yamashita, gathering a star-studded creative team.

Source : ORICON NEWS