Trivia / Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ

• Anime First: As with most Gundam shows.
• Keep Circulating the Tapes: Believe it or not, there was an English dub of ZZ... by Animax in Asia. The majority of said dub seems to have been lost to time, with only a few clips (like this one) surviving. Apparently the main reason it wasn't included on RightStuf's Blu-ray release was actually because Sunrise didn't like it.
• Marth Debuted in "Smash Bros.": Judau & the ZZ, as well as a handful of other characters and mechs, appeared in licensed games released in English long before ZZ got an official translation. Though Dynasty Warriors: Gundam is the best known, Judau and Ple-Two's actual stateside debut was the beautifully rendered but otherwise forgettable Gundam Battle Assault Fighting Game.
• No Export for You: Bandai had no plans for releasing the TV series for Region 1 for the longest time, although characters and mobile suits from the series featured in games that eventually got a North American release. While it wasn't a physical release, the series did eventually get set up for legal streaming by the website Daisuki. The series was also uploaded to the Gundam Official channel on Youtube, but without subs, a problem which was never corrected. However, the series was eventually removed from both websites.
  • As noted on the front page, RightStuf has openly stated they plan on fixing this with their new distribution deal, though there's no word on just when discs will be sold or if there will be a dub of any kind. And that'll still have made it a nearly thirty-year delay in getting an official disc release. As of mid-2016, Gundam ZZ has finally arrived on Region 1 shores as a two-disc set for DVD or Blu-Ray.
• The Original Darrin: After being replaced by Jurota Kosugi for Zeta Gundam, Ichirō Nagai returned to narrate the first episode of ZZ.
• What Could Have Been: Tomino and the other writers considered having Char and Amuro appear in this series, but by the end of the show the Char's Counterattack film was in planning, and the characters were ultimately saved for that. Amuro does appear briefly in the novel version.
  • In general, Tomino had a very different original idea for ZZ Gundam; however, his original idea has not been released, and he himself doesn't remember what his original plan for Char's return would've been. It's safe to assume that he was given the go-ahead to conclude Amuro and Char's rivalry in a movie early on in the series, since not only do both Char and Amuro appear in the opening (despite neither making appearances in the show), but the ZZ Gundam is introduced earlier than the Zeta was, and the tone darkens significantly once Haman shows up.
• You Sound Familiar:
  • Bin Shimada, who played Niki and Nie Gihren, previously voiced Paptimus Scirocco in Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam.
  • Kenichi Ogata, the voice of Dido Kaltoha, previously voiced Denim in Mobile Suit Gundam.
  • Panpa Rida is voiced by Fumihiko Tachiki, who voiced Kigunan Ramza in Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam.
  • Kimie Sawaki voiced Lila Milla Rila in Zeta Gundam before playing Illia Pazom here.
  • Kōzō Shioya (Mondo Agake), Masami Kikuchi (Iino Abbav) and Kayoko Fujii (Emary Ounce) voiced minor characters in Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam.
  • Takko Ishimori voiced Franklin Bidan in Zeta Gundam and would later go on to play Karahan in Gundam ZZ.
  • Judau Ashta's actor Kazuki Yao previously played Gates Kappa, Sorama and Ajiz Aziba in Zeta Gundam.
  • Amatha Pola is voiced by Kyoko Tongu, who voiced Letz Kobayashi in Zeta Gundam.
  • Ryusuke Obayashi, Rakan Dakaran's voice actor, previously played Ben Wooder in Zeta Gundam.
  • Yuko Mizutani (Milly Childer) previously voiced Sarah Zabiarov in Zeta Gundam.

---