Review of Mobile Suit Gundam: GQuuuuuuX

I've once had a discussion with a few friends on how we don't get real trainwrecks anymore. The current industry being too risk-averse to even do originals, let alone something so batshit and over-the-top that you stop and question what you're watching. GQuuuuuuX isn't quite Valvrave level, but it'll do for now. I'm satisfied with how stupid, poorly thought out, batshit madness that has transpired over 12 episodes, though I wish they'd make another cour to continue the insanity. GQuuuuuuX presents itself as an "Alternate Timeline" if Zeon won the One Year War, but in actuality, in a similar vein to Higurashi Gou/Sotsu or Final FantasyVII Remake/Rebirth/Rewhatever, a Meta-Sequel that very poorly tries to answer the question "What if Franchise tried to give everyone a happy ending?". However, unlike with Higurashi or FFVII, I have no nostalgia or biases towards Gundam (my first Gundam was Birdie Wing of all things), so I ended up really enjoying GQuuuuuuX , though your mileage will of course vary, if you're the type of septuagenarian who grew up watching 0079 when it was airing.

Let's see, Machu and Nyaan are unlikable, and their infatuation with Shuuji comes laughably quick with no buildup (Nyaan especially), and Shuuji has all the personality of a wet rag. But of course, they're not important, because as the Meta-Sequel demands it, the only real important characters are the legacy characters from the original series, being Char, Lalah, and Challia Bull. Now Challia I do find his antics quite enjoyable seeing as he was otherwise a throwaway character from the original series, although his (and Comoli's) inexplicable ability to read the actual GQuuuuuuX script is never explained.

I suppose part of the charm is seeing familiar elements distorted or remixed for the show. Familiar designs taking on new life thanks to being reimagined by Gainax (you're still Gainax to me dammit) brings something fresh every episode, and really does add to the "Why would they do this, Sunrise would never" pile.

Call it a guilty pleasure or whatever, but GQuuuuuuX has been a fun ride throughout. After Witch from Mercury I feared a majority of the show would be Clan Battles but I'm glad to be proven wrong as the whole show wraps up in just 12 episodes with pacing equivalent to a 52 episode anime. It's the closest thing to a trainwreck wild ride in the Reiwa era, and one that is nowhere near as aggravating or infuriating as the Higurashi meta-sequel.

Thank you Gainax. Next time maybe cut down on the EVA references.

7/10