A stage greeting to celebrate the release of the second chapter of the popular Gundam anime film series, "Mobile Suit Gundam Hathaway's Flash" (directed by Murase Shukou), "Mobile Suit Gundam Hathaway's Flash: The Witch of Circe", was held on January 31st at Grand Cinema Sunshine Ikebukuro (Toshima Ward, Tokyo). Director Murase Shukou seemed relieved about his first new film in about five years, saying, "I'm able to stand on this stage thanks to everyone's cooperation. I'm really glad it's finished. I'm glad it's been so warmly welcomed."
Director Murase said, "As a result of making people wait five years, I think those years are engraved into the images.It's a work packed with information, so I hope you will enjoy it over and over again."
Producer Keisuke Kasai of Bandai Namco Filmworks, which is producing the anime, said, "It was a long production period, but I'm happy that we were able to deliver it to you. Five years later, I'd like to express my gratitude for being welcomed like this." He added, "We have some material in store for Chapter 3, so I hope you'll watch it multiple times. We'll do our best to release Chapter 3 a little earlier."
Ono Kensho, who plays the main character Hathaway Noah, smiled and said, "I was nervous until the film was released, but seeing everyone's expressions made me feel at ease. I was happy to realize that people would enjoy it."
Also appearing on stage to greet the audience were Kensho Ono, who plays Hathaway Noah, Reina Ueda, who plays Gigi Andalusia, Junichi Suwabe, who plays Kenneth Sleg, and Soma Saito, who plays Lane Aim.
"Mobile Suit Gundam Hathaway" is based on a novel published in 1989-90 by director Yoshiyuki Tomino, known as the creator of the "Gundam" series. Set in the year 0105 of the Universal Century, Hathaway, the son of Bright Noa, who experienced a bitter separation during the Second Neo Zeon War, pilots a new mobile suit, the Xi Gundam, and rises up in rebellion against the Earth Federation government. The anime has been announced to be made up of three chapters, with the first chapter, released in June 2021, being a hit, grossing approximately 2.23 billion yen at the box office.
