Geeks rejoice! Japan wants to make full-scale moving Gundam
Try not to hyperventilate, Gundam fans, but Japan (only in Japan) has unveiled plans to construct a moving, 18m-tall Gundam.
While a one-to-one scale statue of the first Gundam – the RX-78 – was built in Tokyo Park to commemorate the series' 30th anniversary in 2009, franchise owners Sunrise are planning to go one step further for its 40th anniversary and make it move.
On Wednesday, series creator Yoshiyuki Tomino said: "When I created Gundam 35 years ago, I used my imagination freely because it wasn’t real.
"That is what creativity is for – when you dream of something. Four decades later, Gundam is growing into something new."
The original RX-78 statue now stands in Odaiba next to a shop called Gundam Front Tokyo.
Organisers are asking fans from around the world to submit their ideas on how to make it move.
Okay, it's not quite the pilotable war machine as envisaged in the anime, but hey, who knows what Sunrise will have in store when Gundam turns 50 in 2029?
Sources: AFP, Gundam Global Challenge website
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