History of the Dark Gundam - The Most Romantic Sci-Fi Anime of All Times: G-Gundam by Dan

This was a dark episode

A History Marked in Blood

Now that Domon has seen some of the strongest nations on Earth, he decided to return to Japan, in order to rest before returning to the Gundam fight. All his leads dried up, and now he’s back to square one. Therefore he heads to a temple in Kyoto, which has been overgrown and pretty much empty. A sad state for such a wonderful city. The walls and temples, even the castles are pretty much in a state of disrepair that if Neo Japan were to actually spend its money properly, they’d be able to fix it up.

This episode is actually telling more about the background of the Gundam fight and the setting of the series. The elderly monk tells us that the Gundam Fight started sixty years prior to the series, which shows that it’s a pretty recent decision in the overall view of things. He states that the people in the cities went up in space, and Kyoto is deserted. We don’t see if there’s anyone living in the city, but the greenery has overtaken the city. The only real place that hasn’t been overgrown is the temple they are at. This does say that there are some monks that have stayed at temples all over the place. Although he leaves it ambiguous if the people joined the colonies at their own volition.

Domon also shows that there is a pious side to him, and that his spirit is Shintoist in nature, paying respect to temples, particularly with Japanese history. But the problem is, Domon is very trusting of this monk who reveals that Raine has vanished and wouldn’t be joining them, and that the tea is drugged, knocking Domon unconscious. The monk shows a wicked face, showing that he had an ulterior motive. This is indeed odd that a nation would poison its own fighter, that hasn’t gone rogue. But here, the government of Neo Japan proceeded with this.

We are then brought to a scene with mobile suits firing upon a magma geyser in hopes of stopping it, which is revealed to be the Devil Gundam that destroys the entire crew of the unit present. We hear government representatives that tell us about the rise of the Devil Gundam being a year prior. We are properly introduced to two officials, one being Commissioner Kurato who doesn’t like that they brought Domon back, a move that is not acceptable by most of the other colonies. Ulube explains that there’s a good reason why he’d want this.

They decided to do a reenactment of the first day of the rise of the Devil Gundam. The simulation is made for Domon to have come back from training to rejoin his family. And this is when we are introduced to the man in the picture, Kyoji Kasshu, also Domon’s older brother. We also meet his family, and how he were to interact with them. A part of him shows that boy within him who craves his family’s acknowledgement. It’s odd to see him smile like a schoolboy.

And then we see the shape of the colony of Neo Japan, which looks exactly like the nation itself. Doing this causes the Japanese to be torn between Space and Tradition, and they can’t seem to shake it off at the end of the day.

There seems to be a discussion as well going between Kurato and Ulube, as the Commissioner is scolding, extremely worried about what might happen with their standing in the Gundam Fight, and with other governments, as removing Domon is dangerous in the matter, and only extreme exceptions can be done on the matter, and Kurato doesn’t think having a simulation test is a good reason, as it’s something that should have been done before the Gundam Fight, and not during, which is excellent reasoning. Ulube tries to reassure him that Domon has a different responsibility, which goes to show that there’s a very important reason why Domon was chosen, and it isn’t for the Gundam Fight.

When we see Domon again, he comes across Raine, and Kyoji teases him about her, saying that Domon and her were childhood friends. Since in the simulation, it happened a full year before the series began, and Domon is 20 in the series, he would have been nine when he began his training under a man called Master Asia, as it is mentioned right after that he’s been gone for ten years. This is where he reveals where he got his title of “King of Hearts”.

We learn more about the background of his master, who was the head of the Shuffle Alliance, the five strongest Fighters in the world currently. He is also known as the “Undefeated of the East”. It really sounds like the Martial Arts part of the series is really coming out, and is giving a complete picture of the background of the story. Domon reveals that when Master Asia considered his training complete, just gave him the title, and vanished, which meant Domon could return home. Also, the picture that Domon carries around, we see it the beginning of the scene, where Domon was a young child, but Kiyoji was a teenager or adult, demonstrating that there’s a huge age gap between the brothers. The sheer size between the two shows what kind of difference there is.

Kyoji then interjects, talking about his and his father’s project. As his mother cuts both Kiyoji and Domon’s father off from talking about work, she comments on how Domon just returned, and they should focus on him. Domon however, seems to suspect something, but instead he just thanks his mother, and starts eating, in a way that might seem very out of character, truly acting like a child, embracing this moment with his family. The Domon we’ve seen so far, was never shown to be this happy and joyful, a complete contrast to what happened, which shows that what caused the family fallout was extremely traumatising.

But as the mother seems to say that he shouldn’t leave, with a different tone, Domon seems to follow it, wanting to stay, which causes Raine to look upset, as if she’s been forced to take part in the simulation. Raine steps out quietly and starts crying over how cruel and sadistic this simulation is. She is aware of why, and how there’s something wrong with the Neo Japanese government. Neo Italy is run by mobsters. Neo America scripts everything. Neo France has enriched itself, letting the Royal family rule their earth counterpart. Neo China is apathetic towards the state of the Earth. And Neo Russia has imprisoned and destroyed its own nation. But in Neo Japan, it seems like the military has taken over the government, and sees Domon as nothing more than a weapon, and wants to make sure he is pliable to their interests.

But when we shift back to Domon, it’s a destroyed room, and based off of his memories, with Domon alone, as if he’s in a hypnotic state, which is horrible of the government, showing how far Ulube is willing to go.When we see Domon’s face, it looks like there’s a mix between denial and joy, like a part of him knows deep down, but another part that wants to live in the dream world. Kurato doesn’t understand why the simulation is necessary, but Ulube reveals the reason why he is conducting the test: His concern is the Dark Gundam, (Devil Gundam in Japanese) which showed up that day.

When Raine runs away, her father comes out and scolds her, with Raine telling her that she’s against this test, and how inhumane it is. Her father makes excuses on how he doesn’t like it either, and to view it as a punishment and how Domon doesn’t take it as seriously and needs to keep fighting, despite Domon having taken a small respite in Kyoto. He reveals that Kurato is only interested in winning and doesn’t care about the Earth. All he wants is to become Prime Minister of Neo Japan, as if his election is far more important, setting all his hopes on winning the Gundam fight. This also shows that Neo Japan matched election time around the Gundam Fight to determine which candidates will win or lose, based on their arguments with the victory or loss on Earth, and it can either help them look good, or make them look like a clown in front of the people.

There seems to be a focus on Kurato not seeing the big picture, however it’s a deflection from Ulube being the one who put this plan in action, like there’s something being hidden from everyone. Why focus on the guy who wants to be Prime Minister, when the Military head put everything together? Who would risk the Gundam Fight for a simulation? Whom is responsible for the cold-hearted test? Why would the Prime Minister who wants to win the election risk everything?

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Introducing the Devil Gundam!

We are then introduced to the Dark Gundam, with a discussion about the future of mankind, with Kiyoji commenting in a very bitter and sadistic way, which seems odd to Domon’s mind. This is when the police conveniently march in to arrest the family. The claim is about treason against Neo Japan, and how both Domon’s father and brother want to take over the United Colonies Federation and Earth. His father denies it, upset, and Kiyoji laughs like a villain, and addresses Domon specifically on how that’s true.

After Kiyoji kills the military police, the head shoots Domon’s mother, who shields Kiyoji, with Domon upset by this turn of events with Kiyoji getting into the Dark Gundam, and Domon clutching nothing, which would be the body of his mother in the simulation. This is shown to be far crueler, when Ulube reveals the truth of the simulation.

The simulation was based only on the records and reports of the surviving members of the military police, and that Domon never returned home in time to see this, which tells us that there’s no way to tell what parts of this timeline is accurate or not, if the charges were trumped up with the Neo Japanese government wanting the Dark Gundam, or not… But judging by the scene at the beginning about the attack against the Dark Gundam that was a flashback, it does argue that this is how it mostly happened. It’s a damning conclusion against Kiyoji.

This is when we learn when Domon returned, and what he did immediately. It was Raine’s father that greeted him and brought him to the cemetery to visit his mother. This does display that Raine’s father is far weaker emotionally, as he would need to step in as a father figure, as the two families were very close. Domon’s father was also punished with cryogenics for an indefinite amount of time, which means… forever. As if he were an example against Dr. Mikamura, as he was a fellow scientist and friend, meaning he may have worked partially on the Dark Gundam as well.

We then learn the truth of what happened to the Dark Gundam: It’s hidden on Earth, with no one knowing where it is. According to Neo Japan, the case was then closed as it wasn’t their problem, and they already got their scapegoat. Ulube on the other hand wasn’t satisfied. This shows how much Neo Japan didn’t care about the Earth, and that Kurato is no different than the other governmental figures, which does demonstrate that Dr. Mikamura has a point about Kurato. The government of Neo Japan wanted to close the case to reassure the people that they were in control of everything.

Ulube and Mikamura reveal three unique abilities of the Dark Gundam that they found was horrifying: The ability to self-multiply, self recover and to evolve, which makes it one of the most dangerous Gundams and Mobile Suits in all of Gundam history. Why this was created is a mystery, and what both Kiyoji and Dr. Kasshu's thinking is beyond me. Perhaps they wanted to test how far they could take it, or maybe they were hired for it. Or even if the accusation that Kiyoji wanted to use it to overthrow the Federation was correct and he needed a weapon against them. But it would be far too dangerous in the hands of anyone.

We then learn that Neo Hong Kong is in charge of the Earth as they won the last Gundam Fight. I don’t know why Hong Kong is still standing alone, as it has been absorbed by China today, but perhaps it separated again later, or maybe it’s when Neo China decided they didn’t care about the Earth, and Hong Kong decided to create their own colony, knowing that there was nothing China could do. And with someone like Master Asia, it would be impossible for them to resist him.

And this is why Domon was chosen. Not only was he trained by Master Asia, but also because there’s a personal stake in hunting his brother. It also would take a year for the Dark Gundam to recover, which would occur during the Gundam Fight, which shows that despite there being something cruel about the simulation, it isn’t without reason. Ulube and Mikamura are worried about what the Dark Gundam will do. Ulube is upset, and wants Domon to capture, not kill Kiyoji. It would mean that they can free Dr. Kasshu, and punish the correct party. Domon agrees to Ulube’s deal, which this is when Kurato is satisfied, as he just wanted to see if Domon was ready to fight against Kiyoji.

Ulube explains that Domon has a strong will, but Kurato is dismissive of that, revealing that Domon doesn’t have a good record in the Gundam Fight, and is dissatisfied with Domon not eliminating. Ulube retorts that Domon found allies in them. And MIkamura reveals why they went after Italy, the US, China, France and Russia. Italy was more of a practice run, but the other four nations are historically powerful, and are suspected to have noticed something. However, we do know that none of them know, or are aware of the situation. Most of them are paper tigers or pretty much no longer a concern after the next generation. France is the only one that is truly strong.

But the simulation isn’t done. Kurato reveals that he is putting together a combat simulation to revisit the day of Kiyoji’s theft of the Dark Gundam, to see how Domon would fare against his brother. Instead of fighting the actual Gundam, it’s another mobile suit. Kurato also states that he can replace Domon, showing that Kurato really doesn’t care what happens. He just wants to win the election. Which is absolutely incorrect. Only Domon can fight Kiyoji. He also taunts Ulube with the fact that Ulube got his scar under his mask and froze when he faced it, which shows the personal stake Ulube has in the fight against the Dark Gundam and why he wants to stop it. He was there, and he understands the threat that it poses.

Raine however has gone out to protect Domon, and when she is thrown into space, Domon shakes off the illusion completely and starts to fight for real. He reveals the true power of the Shining Gundam and why they call it “Shining”. And Domon pretty much shouts at Kurato, and is rather upset with Ulube as he tells them that he’s going to do as they both wish, and to stay out of his way.

Domon says they’re returning to Earth, then corrects himself and says to their battleground. This does reveal that Domon loves Earth, and that he loves the peace of it before the fight, and is reminded of why he’s fighting. Therefore he takes Raine with him, as he wants to experience Earth with her. He wants to see Earth, he wants revenge, and he wants to save his father, not wanting his fight to be for nothing. Ulube comments on how it was a close call to lose Domon, and for Domon to turn on them. Ulube does comment that he is apologetic about involving Raine, and how the two were treated during the simulation.

This is the background to the series, and what the state of Neo Japan is like. They are more concerned with who is in office, and who is in charge. They aren’t concerned over the people on Earth, nor on the colony of Neo Japan. The military seems to be far more worried about what happened, and wants to do something about it, so they had to set up Domon as their own man in order to save the world, and that’s a lot of pressure to put on Domon’s shoulders.

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Also Crown of Blood has a new edition, with maps, character bios and more!