In what feels like vindication for lovers of everything Char’s Counterattack-adjacent, the second part of the long-awaited Hathaway trilogy has done extraordinarily well at the Japanese box office, which has opened the door for several new gunpla.
The film itself, Mobile Suit Gundam Hathaway - The Secret of Nymph Circe, surpassed a billion yen in revenue in just five days, with over half a million people buying tickets to see the second part of a trilogy.
Given that it is the second part of a trilogy and based on a relatively old light novel series, those are phenomenal numbers. Its success, alongside the billion yen box offices of the original Hathaway film and Char’s Counterattack, shows the power of word of mouth and the passion of the Gundam fans.
This passion and popularity have naturally translated to new gunpla kits, and here are the three to look out for soon.
HGUC RX-105 Xi Gundam (The Sorcery Of Nymph Circe Version)
Set to come out in April, this evolution of the Xi Gundam seen in the first Hathaway film, the Xi Gundam has been altered to replicate its condition in the second film, including a new beam rifle, shield, manipulator reproduction wrist and a few new transformation modes.
HGUC Messer M01-type
A variation of the Messer F-type used by Hathaway Noa in the first film, itself part of the same Anaheim Electronics lineage that brought us the MSN-04 Sazabi from Char’s Counterattack, the Messer M01-Type is Gawman’s replacement mobile suit following the air raid at Davao.
A unique product of necessity, its most notable feature is the bare metal shoulder piece, highlighting just how rushed the deployment of the M-type was for the anti-Earth Federation operations and the desperate need to hide the origins of the mobile suit.
HGUC TX-ff105 Alyzeus
The centrepiece of the new gunpla kits, the Alyzeus is Lane Aim’s stopgap mobile suit whilst waiting for the deployment of the Flight Form of the RX-104FF Penelope.
A heavily modified RX-94 Mass Production Type Nu Gundam at its core, its distinctly prototype design highlights just how unconventional research and design are key during the Mafty Uprising.
