CREATOR INTERVIEW
Yasunao Aoki (Director) x Katsuyuki Sumizawa (Script) x Hikaru Midorikawa (Heero Yuy)

“WINGS” ARE THE ESSENCE OF ENDLESS WALTZ

――When was the OVA project decided?

Sumizawa: The OVA project landed on my desk around April ’96, right after the TV series wrapped. I remember Tomioka, our producer at the time, telling me, “Try not to use too many mechs, okay?” But when we lifted the lid, it was mech central! (chuckles)

――Midorikawa, when did you hear about the OVA project?

Midorikawa: It felt pretty early on for me too. I recall answering an interview question around that time, saying, “I don’t mind if Heero’s not in the sequel, as long as Wing Gundam gets plenty of screen time!” (laughs) I’ve always been a bit of a Gunpla enthusiast. I figured the OVA would up the quality from the TV series, so my simple mind just assumed we’d see mechs in action non-stop.

――Director Aoki, you were involved in the TV series as well, weren’t you?

Aoki: That’s right. I directed and storyboarded about a dozen episodes for the TV series, including the first and last. My involvement in Endless Waltz came a bit later than Sumizawa’s.

――Sumizawa, did you handle the story structure?

Sumizawa: With Tomioka’s request to “minimize mechs, and if you use them, don’t move them,” we thought, “Well, why don’t we just chuck the Gundams into the sun?” There was this nugget in the initial Gundam Wing plot about tossing Gundams into the sun. We brought that to the forefront of Endless Waltz. The first episode came together with the idea that once we ditched the Gundams, war would break out again. When I was penning the script, I hadn’t envisioned the white-winged Wing Gundam Zero. I assumed we’d use the TV designs, even thinking we could recycle the final battle footage from the TV series. But when production kicked into high gear, the mech designs had evolved. We had to recreate the opening mech scenes, and the quality skyrocketed.

――Director Aoki, did you discuss the mech designs with Katoki?

Aoki: Katoki asked if he could refine the mechs a bit. I said, “Sure,” and when I saw the rough designs, Wing Zero had sprouted wings! (laughs) It was a surprise, but I found it intriguing. So we ran with it.

Sumizawa: It’s fascinating, isn’t it? I believe Endless Waltz is what it is because of those mech designs. This is truly Director Aoki’s creation. To me, Endless Waltz has this allegorical, fantastical feel. Having a Gundam with angel wings, another with bat wings, and one wearing a clown mask – it all fits perfectly with that image. Director Aoki’s vision shaped the entire atmosphere of the project. Those scenes of Wing Zero spreading its wings, scattering feathers, the sheer beauty of its ascent…

――Midorikawa, what was your reaction when you saw the redesigned Wing Zero?

Midorikawa: I had no idea from the script alone. On the day of the voice recording, when we saw the design, Seki was incredibly excited. He kept saying, “It’s got wings!” (laughs) Listening to you both now, it’s fascinating. As probably the biggest fan among us here, I’m still processing this invaluable insight. It’s mind-blowing that amidst instructions from the top to “minimize mechs,” there was approval for redesigns. That’s unheard of for a sequel. And the mech designs that came back far exceeded expectations. Perhaps that’s why it remains such a remarkable work. The quality doesn’t feel 17 years old at all.

Aoki: Tomioka did tell us to “keep the quality in check.”

Sumizawa: But Director Aoki’s storyboards were already high quality, and then the animators elevated it even further.

Aoki: Actually, I thought we needed to push the quality even higher because it was an OVA. I felt like we were holding back.

Sumizawa: So in your mind, this was the restrained version? (laughs)

Aoki: The animators really threw themselves into it, knowing it was an OVA.

Midorikawa: How did the animators react when they first saw the winged Wing Zero?

Aoki: They were pretty shocked too! (laughs)

Midorikawa: Those wings move, so it must have been incredibly challenging to animate even one feather. (laughs)

Aoki: But seeing that design, you can’t help but want to scatter real feathers. It sparks all sorts of imagery, like having it flap its wings like a bird when it flies. The animators really brought those ideas to life.

HEERO AS FRANKENSTEIN’S MONSTER

――How did Mariemaia’s episode come about?

Sumizawa: Mariemaia’s position is akin to Mineva in the Universal Century. We aimed to capture the atmosphere of Mineva from Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam. Making her Treize’s daughter was a complex decision, but we needed a formidable opponent with pedigree to maintain that sense of a strong enemy.

――Did Murase design Mariemaia as well?

Sumizawa: Yes, Murase did. His rough sketches always have an incredible atmosphere. There’s a scene in episode 2 with young Trowa in a cockpit, wearing a cross. Murase drew that for key animation corrections. It has a unique charm – this incredibly lonely boy. We also touched on the past of the five pilots, which I’d briefly written about in a magazine article. I referenced that while writing the script for the manga New Mobile Report Gundam Wing EPISODE ZERO, and we incorporated some of those scenes into the OVA.

――EPISODE ZERO covers events before the TV series and includes the prototype for Preventer 5, which is now a drama CD, right?

Sumizawa: The past episodes are just 1-2 scenes per character. I wondered if that would be enough to pique interest. Even Heero receiving flowers from a girl in episode 1 is only about a year before Operation Meteor, so it’s not exactly his childhood. I wasn’t sure if it could truly be called “the past.”

Midorikawa: From a fan’s perspective – and I’m speaking as a fan here (laughs) – those scenes were really exciting.

Sumizawa: That’s one of the iconic scenes. I felt Director Aoki might have been channeling Frankenstein’s monster.

Aoki: Well, I just tried to imagine the atmosphere based on the scenario (laughs).

Sumizawa: There’s this movie, Frankenstein from 1931. Maria, a pure-hearted girl, fearlessly offers flowers to the monster. Heero’s encounter with the girl and her puppy mirrors that situation.

――So Heero, as a soldier on a destructive mission, was as lonely as Frankenstein’s monster. And Wufei turning against them really amped up the tension.

Sumizawa: I kept saying in interviews, “This time, they’re facing the strongest enemy ever!” It was the right promotional angle, and realistically, only Wufei could be a match for the previously invincible Heero. But Midorikawa had some comments about this during the audio commentary, right?

Midorikawa: I couldn’t help but point it out. Leo versus Altron Gundam? Come on! At least use the same mobile suits (laughs).

Sumizawa: Normally, yes. But that’s Heero for you, saying, “It’s my mistake for coming in a Leo” (laughs).

Midorikawa: It’s a serious scene, but when you think about it, there’s this “Wait, that’s odd” flavor that was present in the TV series too. I love how Endless Waltz sprinkles that throughout. We got excited in the audio commentary when Duo sees Serpent firing its double gatling guns and goes, “That fighting style… no doubt about it! It’s you, Trowa!” I mean, come on, he’s just shooting (laughs). But fans grin at that, and I love how it cleverly carries on that tradition.

Sumizawa: Heero dislikes excessive charity. Even if Wufei had prepared another Gundam and said, “Use this,” Heero would have fought in the Leo. That’s just who he is.

Midorikawa: But Wufei seems like he’d dislike that too.

Sumizawa: In the TV series, Treize once scolded Wufei for not using his Dragon Fang. Since then, Wufei gives his all even when fighting a mouse. That’s my interpretation of Wufei’s character.

Midorikawa: Just like when Heero said “One for one” when hitting Duo. For them, a win is a win. They’re all like that (laughs).

Sumizawa: Come to think of it, Heero saying “Hit me” and then “One for one” doesn’t make much sense either (laughs).

Midorikawa: They didn’t need to do any of that.

Sumizawa: It’s easier to hit someone who’s been hit before. Plus, having visible injuries made it easier to deceive Mariemaia’s soldiers.

――Director Aoki, did you face any challenges when translating the script into storyboards?

Aoki: Episodes 1 and 2 were open to various interpretations, so I had to really dig into the script. Scenes like the “one punch” moment made me consider how to interpret and present them. With Mariemaia, I had to balance between showing her dignity as Treize’s daughter and retaining her childlike aspects. Episode 2 was particularly challenging, with its focus on internal struggles. Episode 3 felt more liberating, allowing me to play with mecha scenes. Typically, Gundam climaxes move from Earth to space, but Endless Waltz does the opposite. That was intriguing, but coordinating urban warfare with snowfall was tricky.

――Episode 2 is packed, interweaving past episodes with the true Operation Meteor conflict.

Midorikawa: The ending of episode 2 is fantastic. The theatrical version is great too, but that direction is uniquely suited to the OVA format. It’s so cool.

Sumizawa: It really makes you eager for the next part. That scene where Lady Une brushes back her hair while looking up at the descending Tallgeese III is superb. And the final shot of Relena and Mariemaia at the Brussels presidential palace, with Relena glancing skyward and Wing Zero flying off – what a beautiful cut. Naturally, I didn’t write that level of detail in the script (laughs). That scene is purely from Director Aoki’s storyboards.

Aoki: For the Special Edition, we even considered adding a scene with Treize. Just an image of him spinning around (laughs).

Sumizawa: We had Treize’s voice actor, Ryotaro Okiayu, for the audio commentary. We should have created a scene for Treize too. Maybe Wufei being haunted by Treize’s voice would have worked (laughs).

“MS” IN FROZEN TEARDROP STANDS FOR “MARS SUIT”

Sumizawa: When Relena said, “It’s over, Heero,” I thought, “Ah, so it’s really over.”

Midorikawa: After the theatrical version, I heard a staff member say, “Gundam Wing was so popular, maybe we shouldn’t have set it up so that ‘no mobile suits exist in the Earth Sphere afterward'” (laughs). Even if higher-ups wanted to continue, it was such a significant work that it couldn’t easily be extended. I thought it was unfortunate… so I was impressed by the “Mars Suit” concept (laughs).

――Either way, it’s still “MS.” We say it’s over, but it’s not really over (laughs).

Midorikawa: Reading the novel Frozen Teardrop, I was like, “Huh!” Since it’s set on Mars, it’s not the Earth Sphere. I was really impressed by that clever workaround.

――Moving on to Frozen Teardrop, a picture drama was produced as a bonus for the Gundam Wing BD-BOX 2.

Sumizawa: Having Director Aoki handle the picture drama’s direction really expanded my internal image. His unique perspective, brought to life by the actors’ performances, was incredible. It took my previously one-dimensional, narrow view and suddenly made it two-dimensional, then three-dimensional with the actors’ performances. I’m really grateful for that. The characters by Asagi Sakura, mecha designs by Katoki, illustrations by MORUGA, and music by Koh Otani all created this space that allowed for dramatic pauses. That’s something words alone can’t convey. I’m extremely grateful to all the staff and cast.

Aoki: When I was chosen to direct “The Next Battle,” I listened to various discussions about Frozen Teardrop and tried to capture the atmosphere of that time in a way that could be felt through film.

――Midorikawa, how was your experience participating in this picture drama?

Midorikawa: I want to see more, and I wish it could move more (laughs). My dream until the end of my days is for it to become an anime. And I really want to see Snow White soon too.

――It still hasn’t taken off his cloak, has he?

Midorikawa: I’m just happy to be involved with Gundam Wing in any form. The picture drama’s dialogue included a lot of technical terms that were probably omitted from the TV series due to time constraints. Practicing those lines at home is fun. It’s usually challenging, but being able to deliver such lines effortlessly reaffirms how much I love this work and how fortunate I am to be part of it.

――Lastly, please share a message for the fans.

Midorikawa: This has been released in various formats like video and DVD, and I’m sure many of you already own all of them. I’m incredibly grateful to those who continue to support us. If you’ve stuck with us this far, I hope you’ll continue to follow future developments. This BD-BOX has excellent picture quality, so if you could share the appeal of Gundam Wing with your friends, it might lead to further developments. I’d be delighted if you continue to support us. Let’s meet again for another project related to this work.

Sumizawa: While this might be the last visual media release for Gundam Wing for now, is it really okay to end it here? I think this is an important item for moving forward. It all depends on you, the fans, so please support us. Also, if you don’t mind, I’d be grateful if you could pick up the Frozen Teardrop novel, despite its shortcomings.

Aoki: I’m truly grateful to everyone who has purchased and watched our work for so long. Endless Waltz was nearly my first work as a director, so I have a deep emotional attachment to it. To all those who have loved Gundam Wing, thank you so much.

Source: New Mobile Report Gundam-W Endless Waltz Blu-ray Box Booklet (pages 11-16)