In this chapter, Ikeda discusses recording for Zeta Gundam and Char’s Counterattack, as well as his thoughts on the Zeta: A New Translation remakes.

This chapter opens with Ikeda discussing his initial surprise at the fact a sequel to Gundam was being made at all. Despite low ratings for the TV series, the compilation movies were a big hit. Even so it came as a surprise to him when only a few years later, he heard about the production of a sequel, Zeta Gundam.

“How can I build back my motivation again?”, he wondered at the time. To him, the story of Char Aznable had already finished with a satisfying conclusion.

It had been three years since the final compilation film and six years since the end of the TV series. Anime production as a whole had changed, as had the sponsors. The public’s view of Director Yoshiyuki Tomino had changed from “occupational director” to “anime creator”, and the pressure was on to make this next work a big hit.

Earlier in this book, Ikeda mentioned that he feels Char is in a way a voice for Tomino. He references this again here.

Ikeda: I think it was very natural for Director Tomino to introduce the popular character Char into Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam as a foothold for making his work a hit. More than insurance for the success of the work, Char is the character that Director Tomino himself can empathize with the most, so I think he was indispensable in moving the story of Zeta Gundam as a character who could speak for him.

This makes his next point especially interesting.

Regarding the production of Zeta Gundam, Ikeda could see that Tomino was under a lot of pressure, both from the sponsors wanting it a certain way and the need to keep the characters consistent.

Ikeda: I wonder if that mental state came through in the show when Char accepted Kamille hitting him, explaining it away as “That’s what it is to be young…”. It may have been a reflection of Director Tomino’s own mental state of “please someone hit me.”

To continue in Ikeda’s words,

Ikeda: When Mobile Suit Gundam started, Director Tomino was 38 years old at the time, and he may have been pretentious (apologies) due to his youth. He must have had the momentum to complete the work with total focus. But in the 4 years since the original, in Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam, the characters have stopped uttering Director Tomino’s principles. The director himself may have felt that “I’m not young enough to shout out loud anymore.” Director Tomino probably didn’t trust the characters of Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam enough to let them speak for him. Am I overthinking that it was Char’s line, “That’s what it is to be young…” that represented Director Tomino’s self-deprecating sentiments?

Though Char did not appear in Gundam ZZ, production of the Char’s Counterattack movie began around that time, so Ikeda was aware he would return again. Even before release, there was a lot of buzz around the final confrontation between Amuro and Char.

Once again, Ikeda references one of Char’s famous lines.

Ikeda: At the time of Mobile Suit Gundam, he [Char] distinguished the war between the Federation and Zeon and his own struggle with the Zabi family, and told Artesia to “Become a good woman.” In Mobile Suit Gundam: Char’s Counterattack, Char confesses that he wanted a mother. When I first read this line in the script, I honestly thought. “Char, were you this childish?”

In his eyes, Char’s score was settled at the end of Gundam when he shot Kycilia. That’s why he felt uncomfortable with Zeta as a continuation, and wonders if perhaps Tomino felt the same, that he was tired of making Gundam. Char’s Counterattack may have been his way of finally closing the book on Char and Amuro’s story, and drawing the line that Gundam ends here.

But then, 20 years after Zeta Gundam originally aired, Ikeda learned that a theatrical adaptation of the show was in production. His first thought was, “Why now?”

Ikeda asked if he should go back and watch the original TV series, but according to him, Tomino said, “I’m going to do this theatrical version as if it’s a new work, so please don’t have any preconceptions due to the TV series.”

This was convenient for Ikeda, but he worried about getting back into the role of Char once more. However, upon receiving the script for the first film, he felt a sense of relief. In his eyes, there were some things that he had left unfinished in regards to the original show, and he liked what he saw in this new version.

Ikeda: During the recording of Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam: Heirs to the Stars, Director Tomino gave me the instructions: “Speak louder, please.” It’s rare for a director to give me direct instructions. I think this was also something that Director Tomino directed to himself. “Leave this movie to me. I still can’t leave it to the young people. So Char, you should speak out more.” That’s what it sounded like.

When he finally saw the finished film for the first time, Ikeda was struck by how it made him feel.

In particular, the final scene, where Char and Amuro see each other again for the first time:

Ikeda: This “encounter” scene is filled with warmth for a nostalgic person. When the screen becomes freeze frame, the intro of the ending song begins to play. At this moment, I felt that the uneasiness I had for the last 20 years about Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam was disappearing.

Ikeda: I’m glad I did it. Now, even 20 years later, it was meaningful. I was filled with gratitude for the first “encounter” in 20 years.

In Ikeda’s opinion, the sight of other animators in action, and the voices of young staff and fans wanting more, must have given the director a great deal of strength in his passion for creating his works. You can almost hear Director Tomino say, “Can I really leave it up to the young guys?!”

Ikeda: I think that’s why Director Tomino cut Char’s line, “That’s what it is to be young…” and his long speech in the theatrical version. Char is portrayed as a grown-up who doesn’t whine and who has the confidence to motivate the young guys. It’s not just Char, Captain Bright and Captain Henken also fulfill their roles as adult men. The appearance of adults who support these young people was the missing piece in Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam that Director Tomino could not depict 20 years ago.

On the movies having a different ending than the TV series, Ikeda had this to say.

Ikeda: As you all know, Kamille also has a happy ending in the theatrical trilogy of Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam. There are pros and cons to this last scene, but I love it. You may think that it is a little sweet as a place to leave off on, but the image of Kamille and Fa hugging each other and flowing through space is a passionate message from Director Tomino, “I have entrusted the future to you, the young generation.” I could feel it.

His closing thoughts about Tomino are as follows.

Ikeda: Japan has many anime creators, but director Yoshiyuki Tomino is unique. There are many things that only you can do. Whether it’s a purge or an asteroid drop, Char and I have high hopes for you. It may not be the old man who creates the new age, but it is too early for you to grow old. “Not yet! This won’t end yet!!”

Ikeda wraps up this chapter by discussing his relationships with two of his co-stars in Zeta Gundam, Nobuo Tobita (Kamille Bidan) and Jūrōta Kosugi (Henken Bekkener, Narrator).

Nobuo Tobita

Ikeda says his first impression of Tobita was that he was a bit of a serious guy. Whenever he and Hirotaka Suzuoki (voice of Bright Noa) invited him out for drinks, he always seemed to go reluctantly. He thinks that Tobita put on a good performance at the time, but was likely feeling the pressure of being the “troupe leader” of Zeta Gundam, as the main character.

The two didn’t have the chance to work with each other again until the New Translation movies 20 years later. Ikeda comments on how this time Tobita truly felt like the “leader of the Zeta Gundam Troupe” and not the nervous young man he knew all those years ago.

There were quite a few cast changes for the New Translation films, and it seemed to Ikeda that some of the younger voice actors were intimated by himself, Tōru Furuya, and Suzuoki.

Ikeda: It would be strange for us to go and say hello, so we sat down and drank, but then Tobita-kun appeared and said, “Please talk to the young kids too.” He volunteered to act as a liaison between the younger generation and us. I heard about it later, but at that time some of the young people were saying that they were scared of Char, Amuro, and Bright. It seems that Tobita said a cool line, “It’s okay, I’ll protect you from those guys.” Later, when we heard about it, we laughed and said, “Tobita-kun has grown up too.”

Ikeda comments on how this confidence carried over to Tobita’s performance too.

Ikeda: I felt that Tobita-kun was finally able to become the troupe leader of Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam. Working side by side with him on the movie version after he had grown up was a really fun job.

Jūrōta Kosugi

Kosugi inherited the role of series narrator from Ichiro Nagai in addition to his role as Henken, and thus had some pretty big shoes to fill.

Ikeda comments that Kosugi understood this responsibility very well, and worked hard to live up to everyone’s expectations.

He fondly recalls a scene from the recording of the second New Translation film (Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam: A New Translation II – Lovers), where Bright, Henken, and Quattro hold a strategy meeting.

Ikeda: From a movie point of view, this ~Lovers would center on tragedy and the robot fights, but it seems that Director Tomino assigned the three middle-aged men to be in charge of the lighthearted in-between parts. The three of us got to have fun acting too.