Amuro And His RX-78-2 Take On A Zeon Zaku II In New Teaser For Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan’s Island Film
Spencer Baculi
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With just three months left until its premiere, the upcoming cinematic retelling of the original Mobile Suit Gundam’s only ‘memory-holed’ episode, Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan’s Island, has received a new teaser trailer.
Titled ‘Gundam, can you defeat this Zaku?’ and originally released to Japanese audiences on March 9th before making its way West on March 23rd, the new minute-long teaser features a montage of scenes from the upcoming film, including its introduction of legendary Mobile Suit Gundam protagonist Amuro Ray:
Source: Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan’s Island (2022), Bandai Namco Filmworks
A fight against a Principality of Zeon Luggun, possibly connected to Doan and Amuro’s fight against the same type of unit in the original source episode:
Source: Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan’s Island (2022), Bandai Namco Filmworks
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And a showdown between Amuro in the Gundam RX-78-2 and a green Zaku II unit:
Source: Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan’s Island (2022), Bandai Namco Filmworks
Further, at its conclusion, the teaser also reveals the film’s official Japanese release date of June 3rd, 2022:
Source: Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan’s Island (2022), Bandai Namco Filmworks
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A previously released key visual for the film illustrated by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko, the film’s director and the mangaka behind Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin and its relevant spin-off Mobile Suit Gundam The Origin MSD: Cucuruz Doan’s Island, features images of Amuro’s Gundam RX-78-02 and the Zaku II belonging to the film’s eponymous centerpiece, Cucuruz Doan, superimposed over an image of the former’s pilot.
Source: Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan’s Island Official Twitter
As suggested above by Yasuhiko’s involvement with the film, Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan’s Island will serve as an adaptation of the mangaka’s Mobile Suit Gundam The Origin MSD: Cucuruz Doan’s Island series, itself a long-form expansion on the original black sheep episode of the original Mobile Suit Gundam series, Cucuruz Doan’s Island.
Source: Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin MSD Cucuruz Doan’s Island (2016), Kadokawa. Art by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko.
In the story, Cucuruz Doan is portrayed as a former Principality of Zeon fighter who, after being ordered by his superiors to kill a group of children recently orphaned by his own mistakes, deserted the group – but not before making off with a Zaku II he subsequently uses to protect the orphans.
Source: Mobile Suit Gundam Episode 15 “Cucuruz Doan’s Island” (1979), Sunrise Inc.
Some time later, Amuro stumbles upon Doan and the kids hiding out on an island, only to be met with understandable suspicion and requests to surrender from the former soldier.
However, Amuro refuses, instead focusing his energies on returning to his allies and destroying the weapon of war known as Doan’s Zaku – that is, until their location is discovered by a Principality of Zeon Luggun, who drops a Zaku of its own to take out the two men.
Source: Mobile Suit Gundam Episode 15 “Cucuruz Doan’s Island” (1979), Sunrise Inc.
As a result, the two men are forced into combat, with Amuro eventually taking down the Zeon flag ship, and Doan, in an act of atonement, destroying the enemy Zaku.
In the aftermath, recognizing that his possession of his Zaku would only beget an endless cycle of grief and violence, Doan allows Amuro to toss his Mobile Suit into the ocean, ending his time as a soldier once and for all.
Source: Mobile Suit Gundam Episode 15 “Cucuruz Doan’s Island” (1979), Sunrise Inc.
Produced as the fifteenth episode of the original 1979 Mobile Suit Gundam anime, Cucuruz Doan’s Island has since been memory-holed – being outright redacted from all international releases and broadcasts of the series – at the request of series creator Yoshiyuki Tomino – though he cryptically has never elaborated on why.
“I asked that it be skipped,” Tomino explained during a Q&A held during the 2002 Anime Expo New York. “There’s a reason, but since the staff is still alive, I can’t talk about it.”
Source: Mobile Suit Gundam Episode 15 “Cucuruz Doan’s Island” (1979), Sunrise Inc.
Does this new teaser trailer help build your hype for Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan’s Island? Let us know your thoughts on social media or in the comments down below!
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