The second chapter of the Gundam animated film series Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway's Flash(directed by Murase Shukou), Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway's Flash - The Witch of Circe, has been released. This marks the first new film in roughly five years since the first chapter was released in June 2021. While the first chapter was talked about for its visual beauty, which is among the best in the Gundam series to date, the second chapter seems to express "even further." Behind the scenes of this first new film in roughly five years is director Murase Shukou's uncompromising challenge.
◇Focus on Hathaway's inner self
"Hathaway's Flash" is a film adaptation of a novel written by Gundam creator Yoshiyuki Tomino in 1989-90. It depicts the events that follow the events of the 1988 film "Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack." Set in the year 0105 of the Universal Century, Hathaway Noah, the son of Bright Noah, who suffered a bitter experience in the Second Neo Zeon War, pilots the new mobile suit, the XI Gundam, and rises up in rebellion against the Earth Federation government.
"I'll overcome both worldly and carnal desires!!" This line from Hathaway became a hot topic when the official trailer for Chapter 2 was released. In Chapter 2, Hathaway is conflicted and anguished.
"In Chapter 1, I depicted the first meeting between Hathaway, Gigi, and Kenneth, and tried to express how the three of them move from an outside camera perspective. Chapter 2 is an introspective look at what the three are thinking from their respective positions, which is also depicted in the novel. I thought that this was the natural thing to depict. The original novel, Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway's Flash, is in the same vein as the novel Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack and Beltorchika's Children, but since the Gundam series treats the visuals as the official history, this work had to be in the same vein as the theatrical anime Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack. In a sense, it's a parallel story. So there were some things that had to be replaced, and the problems Hathaway faces in Beltorchika's Children are different, so I thought the role of Chapter 2 was to clearly show that. At the end of Chapter 2, Hathaway acknowledges his own problems. I tried to show that clearly."
It has been announced that "Hathaway's Flash" will have three chapters in total. The structure of each chapter was apparently decided from the time of the production of the first chapter.
"The script for Chapter 3 is also complete, so the ending is clearly decided. The most intense parts of Tomino's novels are not the dialogue but the stage directions, so in Chapter 1 I tried to incorporate the stage directions into the dialogue and pick up as many Tomino-esque elements as possible. I feel like there were more such changes in Chapter 2. If I hadn't left anything out, the script would have ended up being about twice as long as usual. For that reason, I had to go through it again when making the storyboard. That process is difficult, but the reason it took so long to make the storyboard was because of another issue."
Before starting on the storyboard, Director Murase created a video storyboard using 3DCG production software such as Cinema 4D. This allowed him to spend more time working on the video storyboard and the storyboard.
"We first made a 3D movie and then drew the storyboard based on that. This meant that it took a long time to create the 3D before drawing the storyboard. There are scenes in Chapter 1 for which we created a video storyboard, but this was mainly to share the image with other staff members. However, even after creating the video storyboard, there were some parts that didn't turn out as we had imagined. Even if you create a layout with a 3D camera, people who are used to making 2D animation will treat the paper storyboard as the master. Because of this, we thought it would be better to decide on the layout with a 3D camera from the time of creating the storyboard to avoid any discrepancies. However, it may have taken longer to create the model than to explore the layout with a 3D camera."
Director Murase is meticulous about the details of the visuals. Anime production is a collaborative effort. He created a visual storyboard to communicate his vision to each staff member without any discrepancies.
"After working on Chapter 1, I realized that creating a solid guide model, showing where a bolt goes, or how thick a part is, is key to realism. If you start the art work using drawings of objects with incomplete detail as the master, the end result will only be half-baked. To avoid this, we were conscious of creating solid models, even though some of it may be a waste of time. Cinema 4D also has excellent lighting, and it accurately reproduces sunlight. Just getting the lighting right creates a realistic image, so we sought to improve that precision. As a result, the video control took a long time, and we had to ask the staff to wait, so we realized that we needed to rethink our production methods. So, I think the way we make Chapter 3 will be different again."
Although it was a daunting task, Director Murase was thorough in order to visualize his vision. Director Murase's visual expression, including this film, is sometimes described as being like a live-action film.
"I stopped watching anime. When I'm drawing and directing, it's rare to find a shot that goes well, and I always feel like something's wrong. Even when I watch other anime, I find myself questioning it and thinking, 'Maybe it's not like this?' It's difficult. So maybe the fact that I've only ever seen live-action works is having an effect. I'm not good at the stylized beauty and camerawork that are unique to anime. I'm also thinking about how to incorporate realistic lighting into anime, but that's difficult too. The only thing I can do is work hard on filming, but there's a timing when all the materials need to be gathered, and I can't spend much time on it. So one solution I found was to decide on the lighting first using 3D software, and then use that as a guide as I went along, but this is also difficult to incorporate into the animation production flow. But I think it's a good method in the sense that it allows me to convey my image in a concrete way."
◇What Hathaway saw in "Char's Counterattack"
Chapter 2 emphasizes that "Mobile Suit Gundam : Hathaway's Flash" is a story connected to the animated film "Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack." It also seems to be an attempt to reinterpret "Char's Counterattack."
"It's not a reinterpretation, but rather an attempt to depict what Hathaway saw and experienced at the time of 'Char's Counterattack'. I haven't added any new interpretations, and I haven't tried to depict anything that Hathaway doesn't see. For Hathaway, what he saw was everything, and he didn't see the conversation between Amuro and Char. He also didn't see the phenomenon caused by the T-shaped Psycoframe. However, he should understand the theory behind the Psycoframe, so I intentionally depicted the glowing Psycoframe on Chain's waist."
The scene in which the Nu Gundam attacks with its head vulcan cannon, just like in the teaser trailer for "Char's Counterattack," is also impressive. In fact, the attack scene in the teaser trailer does not appear in the actual film. It is also called a "phantom" scene, and is etched in the hearts of fans.
"That scene triggers Hathaway's flashbacks. I wanted to depict it as a hook," he said, adding that he wanted to create a connection between "Hathaway's Flash" and "Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack."
Director Murase did not participate in "Char's Counterattack." He served as animation director for the 1991 animated film "Mobile Suit Gundam F91," which was directed by Director Tomino.
"I wasn't involved in 'Char's Counterattack,' and my first work for Sunrise in a while was 'Armored Troopers.' The same staff as 'Char's Counterattack' were involved, so I heard that the production site was tough, but I could feel the passion for the work from the film. 'F91' started out as an attempt to surpass that, but there were some areas where it couldn't keep up. In this work, I tried to recreate the detailed effects of 'Char's Counterattack,' but in the end I couldn't compete with that passion."
It's sometimes said that Japanese hand-drawn animation reached a technological peak in the 1980s and 1990s. While hand-drawn animation techniques like those used in "Char's Counterattack" may be lost technology, Hathaway has revived the masterpiece in a style unique to the Reiwa era, demonstrating how heavily influenced he was by Amuro and Char.
◇What will happen in Chapter 3?
When the first chapter was released, Director Tomino, the original author, commented, "It builds on today's animation technology and offers a new interpretation that paves the way for the conclusion of the Gundam series as a whole."
He said that he had a chance to speak with Director Tomino when production of the first chapter began, but added, "I've only met him about twice in the last five years or so, and we haven't talked about work. I'm sure he would tell me if I asked him. He didn't say it to me directly, but apparently during the first chapter, 'a fundamentalist' said, 'Why are you doing it just like that?' If Tomino were to animate ' Hathaway's Flash' now, I don't think it would be faithful to the original."
The animated version of "Hathaway's Flash" is brimming with respect for Director Murase's novel. Director Murase's exceptional visual sense has brought out the charm of the novel to the fullest, resulting in the kind of visuals that fans have been waiting to see.
People are also curious about the development of Chapter 3 and when it will be released, and Director Murase says, "There were some changes made while making Chapter 2, so some adjustments are necessary, but the basic direction and structure have been decided. As for the production, we are trying to put it together while resolving the issues in Chapter 2." We look forward to seeing the continuation of Director Murase's uncompromising challenge. (Anima Mitsuru/MANTANWEB)
