Tomoyo Kurosawa:"Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX" Thoughts on the main character, Machu "Machu is Director Tsurumaki!"

The finale stage greeting for the advance theatrical version of the latest work in the popular anime series "Gundam", "Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuX (Geku Axe)", "Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuX -Beginning-", was held on March 23rd at TOHO Cinemas Hibiya (Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo). This was the "last" stage greeting before the TV series airs, and Tomoyo Kurosawa, who plays the main character Amate Yuzuriha (Machu), Shimba Tsuchiya, who plays Shuuji Ito, Shinji Kawada, who plays Sharia Bull, Yuki Arata, who plays Char Aznable, and Mariya Ise, who plays Anky, appeared. Kurosawa, who appeared for the first time at the advance theatrical version stage greeting, spoke about her feelings for Machu.

Regarding her role as Machu, Kurosawa said, "The initial materials I received described her as a 'mannish, coquettish girl.' I thought that getting to know Director Tsurumaki (Kazuya)'s values ​​would directly lead to getting to know Machu. There were times when I got stuck, but asking about Director Tsurumaki's hobbies and the like gave me clues for playing the role. We would talk about things like, 'What makes you excited?' and after that, I didn't have to ask him any questions. Machu is Director Tsurumaki!"

When asked about their impressions of Kurosawa and Machu during the recording, Kawada said, "He was putting a lot of energy into trying to become Machu in front of the microphone, and I thought he was an amazing person! Machu was a bit like Kurosawa." Arata responded, "Machu is free-spirited, unconventional, and sensitive. I watched him thinking that he was easy to grasp, but also not. I'm curious to see what his attitude will be as he takes on new challenges."

Ise praised her, saying, "She is both Kurosawa Tomoyo and Machu. They seem opposites, but they are two sides of the same coin, yet they are the same thing. When Tomoyo is acting, she is acting, but she is still Kurosawa Tomoyo. Machu seemed to me to be Kurosawa Tomoyo."

During the stage greeting, a video comment by Kenshi Yonezu, who wrote the theme song "Plazma" for the TV anime series that was shown in advance of the theatrical release, was also introduced.

Finally, Kurosawa said, "This is a work that was made up of a lot of dreams, hopes and passion. We have planned it and brought it to this point. I think that it is precisely because a work is started with such passion that a lot of effort is required. It has come to this point with the help of so many people. When I saw this film, I felt the effort that the many staff members put in, one step at a time, to get to this point, and we too have worked sincerely. In short, I want to say 'please enjoy', and I hope that our feelings reach out to you as well."

Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX is also a hot topic as it is the first collaboration between Sunrise, which produces the Gundam series, and khara, known for the Evangelion series. Ahead of the TV anime series, a pre-release movie version that reconstructed some episodes began screening on January 17th, and has been a hit, grossing 3.2 billion yen and attracting over 1.93 million viewers. The TV anime series will be broadcast on 30 Nippon TV affiliates every Tuesday at 12:29am starting from April 8th.

*Excerpt from the video comment made by Kenshi Yonezu during his stage greeting (original text)

When I was making "Plazma", I read all the storyboards for the TV anime, and when I first read it, I was shocked. This Gundam is a story that has another big axis, the "what if" axis, in addition to the story of Machu and Nyaan. I thought that by filling it with the nuance of the children jumping out of their small world into a bigger world at the same time, I could create a song that suits this work. From that hunch, I expanded it one by one. I myself am very familiar with Gundam, so I am very honored to be involved in the theme song at this time. Please support "Plazma" along with the anime.