Product Info

Studio

Sunrise

Director

Yoshikazu Yasuhiko

Genre

Action, Animation, Drama

Rated

NA

Theatrical Release Date (NA)

Sep 22, 2022

Film Length

1 hr 48 min

Purchase From

Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan’s Island is an animated film based on episode 15 of the famous 1979 Mobile Suit Gundam series (Gundam 0079). The episode never aired outside of Japan and was labeled as the “lost episode”. With this release updating the animation while staying faithful to the original ‘79 character designs, this film is well worth the trip for Gundam fans.

The Forgotten Episode

The 24-minute episode 15 of Mobile Suit Gundam originally ran in Japan like normal but was prevented from airing outside the country. This included the later DVD, Blu-Ray and streaming releases. The exact reasons why the episode was removed aren’t clear. Many possible theories spread as a result, ranging from internal divisions with the episode’s conflict to insufficient production standards. All that is known with certainty is that original creator Yoshiyuki Tomino himself asked Bandai Entertainment to pull the episode.

A Story Retold

The film makes up for lost time, making many updates for the better. Both the anime episode and the film use the same core storyline about an ex-soldier from Zeon named Cucuruz Doan living in solitude with orphans and protecting them from enemies. Amuro Ray, the teenage boy protagonist and Gundam pilot who fights against Zeon, confronts the ex-soldier on the battlefield. After staying on the island, he understands that Doan’s intentions are good and aids him. However, there are some significant differences between the two versions.

In the original episode, Amuro initially received a distress call from a deserted island and cared for two wounded soldiers who ended up dying. Amuro faces Cucuruz Doan and the two battle: Doan in his Zaku mobile suit and Amuro in his fighter jet. In the Doan’s Island film, Amuro was directed by his superiors to search the island for enemy soldiers using his Gundam, not the fighter jet. Upon reaching the island, he doesn’t confront the injured soldiers but instead is ambushed from behind by Cucuruz Doan.

Additionally, the film adds more character background to Cucuruz Doan. In the anime episode, it’s simply stated that he was a soldier for Zeon and abandoned the military after killing the orphans’ parents on the battlefield. In the film, Doan was more than just a soldier piloting a Zaku mobile suit. He was a famed pilot for Zeon, and the leader of the Southern Cross Corps. After witnessing civilian deaths in the battlefield, Doan left the force and was labeled a traitor. However, there’s a bigger addition to the film: a Zeon missile base underneath the island. Zeon forces send out Doan’s old comrades from the Southern Cross Corps to investigate and initiate a missile launch. If the film had left everything like it originally was in the anime, it wouldn’t have kept the audience’s attention for too long.

However, there are pacing issues with the updated script and additions. The story building when Amuro and team visits the island is entertaining, but there’s a long stretch afterwards that’s less so. When Amuro wakes up after Doan’s surprise attack, the relationships between Amuro, the orphans, and Doan are slowly built up. Viewers will watch how daily life on the island works with these abandoned children, such as milking a goat and fixing a broken well pipe underground. Though it’s interesting to see Amuro grow and build his relationship with the children, it simply takes a long time to get to the point.

Beauty on the Battlefield

On the other hand, the animation itself has vastly improved, which shouldn’t be a surprise. Taking an episode from 1979 to today’s animation quality for films is a big jump. The film keeps the original characters, but the visual quality is considerably better. Aside from the cleaner and smoother look of everything, mobile suits are given fully 3D models. Though there’s some stiffness to their movements (as expected?), it works rather well and fans should be pleased to see this classic Gundam in action. With this film, there’s no reason why Sunrise (Bandai Namco Filmworks) couldn’t create more modified-episode movies from other series, such as Gundam Wing.

The movie’s soundtrack is re-orchestrated and its quality fits the film’s scenes flawlessly. From the glooming battle between Amuro and Doan to daily life on the island, the sound team made watching these scenes fitting.

The Final Battle

It may have taken a few decades for Mobile Suit Gundam’s lost episode to arrive, but Mobile Suit Gundam: Cucuruz Doan’s Island is a fine way to finally watch it. It’s an entertaining film with great visuals that all Gundam fans should experience. Suit up, again!

An early screening provided for this review.