There’s been a lot of back and forth about “rights issues” involving Gundam Sentinel for quite a while in the fandom, so I thought it was time to dive into the published info side of things to sort of “right the ship” as it were in terms of what went down, what went wrong, however you want to phrase it. While there hasn’t been anything published as of late, the only “footnote” we got was in regards to the New Translation series for the MS Complete Collection book two, “U.C.0081-0090” where it says the title “is not included due to the wishes of the rights holder.” Very strange considering the Hobby Japan books published a trilogy of lineart with zero issue.

At any rate, let’s dive in with the first announcement.

Official Statement on the Licensing Issues Surrounding Gundam Sentinel Garage Kits
A Response to Inquiries from Readers and Industry Professionals

The circumstances behind this matter began in late February, when B-Club sent an announcement to the Model Graphix (MG) editorial team about a new 1/144 Barzam Refined Version (the Gundam Sentinel version) garage kit (hereafter, GK).

The MG staff member in charge of new product pages, Yoshida, wondered, “Have they gotten permission from the original Gundam Sentinel staff or from MG itself?” Still, because the product was coming from B-Club (Bandai), Yoshida assumed that the necessary discussions must have taken place, and so we went ahead and ran an introduction of the GK in our May issue (released March 5).

Only after that May issue went on sale did we learn that B-Club (Bandai) had gone ahead and commercialized that Barzam kit (and previously released Gundam Sentinel GK products in the K-series) without ever consulting the Gundam Sentinel stakeholders, or MG, about licensing or other rights.

In truth, only two individuals, the president of Art Box Inc. (which backs the MG editorial department), Mr. Kuniyuki Matsumoto, and the overall supervisor/producer at the time, Mr. Masahiko Asano, fully understand the intricate background of Gundam Sentinel as it was serialized in our magazine. Since neither of them is currently directly involved with character model products, it’s frankly embarrassing that the editorial department only discovered the facts so late.

Moreover, until this issue was raised, Mr. Matsumoto was not even aware that Gundam Sentinel items were being granted licenses at JAF-CON. (We fully admit that’s also an embarrassing admission on our part.) In short, in all these years, there was not even one inquiry or consultation.

After Mr. Matsumoto phoned B-Club (Bandai) to say, in essence, “Isn’t it proper to at least contact us first if you’re planning to commercialize something? Isn’t it odd that no one consulted us?” Bandai’s response was: “We don’t see how that’s odd. We’re not sure what you mean.” In other words, no one in Bandai’s relevant department understood the status or unique conditions of Gundam Sentinel.

At the same time, Mr. Matsumoto also called the JAF-CON Committee at Hobby Japan to say, “Isn’t it strange that no one reached out to us about these licensing arrangements?” They answered: “We never even considered that we should seek permission from MG.” This reply was surprising, given JAF-CON’s stated concept of “playing by the official licensing rules.” They did say, “We understand what you’re getting at; we’ll think about what to do,” and that concluded the call.

We at MG also accept part of the blame for not noticing the situation sooner; nevertheless, Gundam Sentinel has been handled within the industry with a remarkable lack of awareness.

*

Let’s clarify the facts by examining the special circumstances behind this project. Gundam Sentinel originally started as a joint initiative between Bandai and the MG editorial department, intended to develop products (plastic injection kits). At that time, Bandai proposed the idea to MG. Ultimately, the plan for those kits was suspended; however, MG reworked the concept into our own original project and, with Bandai’s approval, launched the serialized feature Gundam Sentinel in the magazine.

As Gundam Sentinel gained popularity in MG, it was suddenly decided (after that initial cancellation) that Bandai would indeed produce injection kits. Once the initial plan was called off, MG did receive an honorarium from Bandai, labeled a “project fee,” as compensation for the work we had already done. But by then, Gundam Sentinel in MG had evolved into something beyond that first joint proposal. So, when it was decided the kits would finally move forward, Bandai and MG reached an agreement: “Each time a kit from Gundam Sentinel is made, a separate product fee would be paid.”

In total, four Gundam Sentinel kits were released (strictly speaking, the first release, Full Armor ZZ Gundam, was later retroactively added as part of the Gundam Sentinel series, though it occupies a slightly different position). MG received compensation for those four items. At that time, Bandai also promised, “Should we commercialize more items in the future, we’ll pay the product fee each time.”

Of course, that was a verbal agreement. If someone claims “a verbal promise holds no legal force,” we have no official contract that proves otherwise.

*

We want to set the record straight, so we reached out to people involved at the time and noted these details as accurately as possible. Even if you don’t know the full backstory, MG believed it was widely understood that the rights to commercialize Gundam Sentinel lay with both Bandai and MG. Or, at the very least, we assumed that any newly planned Gundam Sentinel product or event dealing with Gundam Sentinel merchandise would naturally prompt some contact with MG.

However, as it turns out, that notion had simply disappeared from the industry’s collective mindset, including Bandai’s.

After Mr. Matsumoto’s phone call, JAF-CON’s organizers independently decided not to grant licenses to any dealer selling Gundam Sentinel–related merchandise. This has apparently caused some misunderstanding. Please note that MG has never insisted on halting sales, nor has it demanded, “Pay us a license fee.” We simply stated, “it’s strange that there has been no communication, including up until now.”

Furthermore, JAF-CON’s committee has not followed up with MG to say, “Please let us proceed with these sales.” And it took more than three months before the same Bandai representatives who initially said, “We don’t see what the issue is,” finally contacted MG to admit, “This was entirely our mistake.”

*

On the most basic level, that kind of oversight has caused MG a substantial headache. The sudden revocation of Gundam Sentinel licensing at JAF-CON fueled the rumor, among industry people and amateur garage-kit dealers, that MG was excluded from the event, so in retaliation, MG pressured Hobby Japan and Bandai out of spite. The question of license fees is beside the point here; as a media outlet, MG’s credibility is at stake.

To be candid, we must also point to the letter JAF-CON organizers sent to participating dealers. An excerpt from that letter reads:

“(Omitted text)… Regarding the Gundam Sentinel items you applied for, unforeseen circumstances on the licensor’s side have suddenly made it difficult to commercialize them. We regret any trouble this may cause due to our inadequacy, and we sincerely apologize. We intend to work with the rights holders to resolve this issue by the next JAF-CON, and we ask for your understanding.”

Reading this, people might assume that it’s MG’s circumstances that made it impossible to commercialize these items. As stated earlier, that interpretation is incorrect. The letter also says “our inadequacy,” but as we noted, there was never any official communication with us at any point. (As of August 7, when we prepared this manuscript, that remains unchanged.) In that sense, calling it “inadequacy” may be an overreach.

While we’ve used these pages in this issue to present our official position, airing behind-the-scenes industry complications isn’t our goal. Yet if MG were simply to accept everything quietly, we’d risk losing your confidence, which must never happen.

We also believe it’s MG’s duty to inform readers how Gundam Sentinel has ended up handled within the industry and explore what allowed these problems to arise.

In the past, writer Kenji Murasame offered the following critique of Gundam Sentinel:

“Although Sentinel began as a joint venture between Bandai and MG, in the end it was recognized only after the fact for its marketability; it was essentially a by-blow of Gundam that protected the core brand, and was grudgingly acknowledged like a quasi-legitimate child. People basically regard it in the same category as SD Gundam.”

It’s an unfortunate worst-case example, but perhaps now you can see what Murasame’s words meant. Sadly, Gundam Sentinel isn’t accorded the respectful recognition that fans like to imagine.

*

At present, we can’t definitively say what will happen regarding future garage kits or who will oversee licensing for Gundam Sentinel. But let us be perfectly clear on one point: MG has no intention of ever blocking Gundam Sentinel merchandise out of spite. That scenario simply doesn’t exist.

Source: Model Graphix October 1996 Vol.143

It would take a couple of months, but Model Graphix would eventually have to walk back some of the claims in an apology column in the magazine.

Corrections and Apologies Regarding Our October Issue’s “Official Statement on the Licensing Issues Surrounding Gundam Sentinel Garage Kits”

We received an overwhelming response from both readers and industry professionals to the “Gundam Sentinel GK: Official Views on Licensing Issues” article published in our October issue, and we have deeply reflected on the gravity of our responsibility as a media outlet. We would like to issue several corrections and clarifications here, in order to prevent any further misunderstanding. At the same time, we offer our sincerest thanks and apologies to our readers and all those involved in the industry.

Below are the principal portions of the original text that may have caused confusion:

• The phrase indicating “…this was entirely our mistake.”
• The statement suggesting that “…B-Club (Bandai) independently decided to commercialize [the product].”
• The reference to “Should we commercialize more items in the future, we’ll pay the product fee each time.”

First, Bandai produced and released these products only after receiving formal authorization from Sotsu Agency, which holds the rights to commercialize the Gundam series. Therefore, the phrase “independent decision” was inaccurate, and the mention of “entirely our mistake” was not appropriate.

Second, regarding the portion referring to “a fee paid per item commercialized,” it must be reiterated that all “Gundam” rights, including anything related to “Gundam Sentinel,” reside with Sotsu Agency and Sunrise, not with Model Graphix (MG). Consequently, the notion that Bandai would pay “commercialization fees” to Art Box does not hold true. In reality, what is sometimes paid upon product release is a planning/cooperation fee for collaboration on the project. Our previous wording was imprecise, and for that, we apologize.

Much of this misunderstanding arose from differing recollections of how our respective collaborations evolved in the past. However, after further discussions, we reaffirmed that all parties share the same priority: to deliver outstanding creations and accurate information to the countless Gundam fans and Model Graphix readers.

Going forward, and prompted by these events, we remain committed to forging a closer partnership. under the supervision of Sotsu Agency, which holds the comprehensive merchandise rights to Gundam, and Sunrise, which manages publication rights, so that Bandai and Art Box (the parent organization behind MG) can together enrich the world of Gundam. We offer this as both a pledge and a report to all concerned.

Source: Model Graphix March 1997 Vol.148

Several more years would go by, only this time it would appear that Hobby Japan would be the one jumping the gun when it came to announcing Sentinel news via their GFF line.

JUST IN FROM THE RUMOR MILL: PATIENCE PAYS OFF!

With the soft spring breeze gently caressing our cheeks, we find ourselves in a calm season of anticipation. As GP01’s launch draws near and GFF sales continue to soar, the editorial team has received some seriously big Gundam Fix Figuration (GFF) news: “It looks like Katoki and Bandai’s Character Toy Division are about to tackle Gundam Sentinel!”

For those who may not be familiar, Gundam Sentinel is an original Gundam storyline that ran in the model magazine Model Graphix back in 1988. It was so well-received that it actually made its way into plastic kit form. Many of the mobile suits featured were designed by Katoki, and in fact, this series was what first propelled him to fame. Upon hearing this major development, we wasted no time placing a call to the man himself to get confirmation.

His response was as bright and breezy as the spring weather:

“We’re definitely doing it! (laughs)”

So, here we are, still trying to get a handle on G-Armor’s precise development details, and behind the scenes, the Sentinel project is apparently moving full steam ahead. The release date, price, and specs are all undecided at this point, but we pressed Katoki: “Surely there’s something you can share, right?” He replied, “Well, aside from the fact that it’s FAZZ, honestly, nothing else has been settled. Oops, I guess I just let that slip…”

That’s more than enough to whet our appetites! After all, from the very start of developing the GFF line, Katoki had been saying, “Someday, I want to bring Sentinel to life.” In other words, this isn’t some random surprise announcement. Rather, it may be the result of a decade’s worth of thought. One final statement, or perhaps a form of closure, that designer Hajime Katoki wanted to give to Gundam. We’re including a special look at some of the concept artwork this time around, but the actual product launch, be it year’s end or sometime next year, remains an open question. Brace yourselves, folks: GFF is about to write its next chapter in history!

Source: Hobby Japan, July 2001 (page 081)

While those were relatively bold claims, Kawaguchi had to step in midway through 2003 to issue further clarification on the matter.

REPORT ON THE CURRENT SITUATION AND ANNOUNCEMENTS REGARDING FURTHER INFORMATION DISCLOSURE
ON THE MOVE TOWARDS “REPRODUCING SENTINEL KITS”

Since December of last year, Bandai and Artbox have been discussing reproducing Sentinel kits. It has been a very complicated and daunting task involving attempting to correct each and every mutual misunderstanding and broken promise accumulated over the past decade to create future guidelines for Sentinel content. Unfortunately, a report in the July 2001 issue of Hobby Japan magazine led to an explosive spread of rumors having little basis in the facts of this matter. These have now reached a level at which they could hinder the progress of further discussions.

Here, Mr. Kawaguchi of Bandai has stated, “I would like to extinguish these rumors by reporting the actual situation in Model Graphix magazine.” Model Graphix editorial department has also acknowledged this, and as such, a special page was set up here.

Text by Katsumi Kawaguchi (Bandai Hobby Division)
© Sotsu Agency & Sunrise

SENTINEL CONTENTS

The contents of Sentinel have occupied a unique position due to the process of its creation. Since the details are described in this magazine’s separate Sentinel volume, they will not be expanded upon here. Essentially, following the TV broadcast of ZZ, a new Gundam was planned for release. At that time, Bandai’s Hobby Division approached Artbox for a tie-in project for the first time in the magazine’s history. Artbox began planning and securing personnel in anticipation after receiving this request. However, with the release of the movie Char’s Counterattack, the priority for commercialization shifted from Sentinel to Char’s Counterattack, and the tie-in was canceled. After discussions with Bandai, the project team, which had been preparing, decided to restructure the plan and start serialization as an independent magazine project. This is how Sentinel got its start.

After this, and once the product on the market from Char’s Counterattack settled down, Bandai proposed putting Sentinel mobile suits on the market to Artbox while considering the launch of the next series. Once again, moves to start commercialization in the form of a tie-in started. Although the terms and conditions, etc., for tie-ins, are considered, as much as possible, with mutual benefit in mind, it goes without saying that the benefit lies in merchandising for new Gundams for Bandai. By contrast, the benefit for Artbox lay in:

• The payment of planning cooperation fees
• As a general rule, the fact that Artbox would take the initiative for putting the product on the market
• The payment of a usage fee (royalty) for each mobile suit product appearing in Sentinel

And so on. Promises were made orally for each of these at the time. In addition, after the decision to commercialize four items from the series, modified kits and garage kit projects for the other mobile suits were presented to and approved by Artbox. Unfortunately, the promises made regarding this matter were not left in writing. Due to internal circumstances at Bandai, notably personnel changes, the circumstances of the establishment of this aspect of Sentinel were not conveyed to other members of the organization.

Someone in charge of product development with no knowledge of this background only knows that “Sentinel is one of Gundam’s variations” and commercializes it based on such knowledge. As a result, previously-made promises were violated. Despite actions from Artbox asking for the promises made to be fulfilled, people in charge who did not know the circumstances replied to the effect, “Since Sotsu Agency and Sunrise own Gundam, what is the problem with it being commercialized through mutual agreement between the two parties?”

Such cases were repeated a few times, and Sentinel gradually developed an image as content that was difficult to handle. This prejudice of “difficult to handle content” was gradually transformed into a misunderstanding that Sentinel couldn’t be commercialized because Artbox was claiming copyright. The relationship between the model magazine and the manufacturer, which is maintained by mutual trust, cannot function smoothly in such a situation, and the distance between Model Graphix and Bandai gradually increased.

This situation led to the start of whispers and rumors to the effect that “Bandai has approached Artbox to commercialize Sentinel, but there seem to be difficulties related to a variety of issues,” and “Sentinel hasn’t been officialized because Artbox is claiming rights.”

TOWARDS RENEWING COMMERCIALIZATION

Since I myself was not a part of the Hobby Division at the time, I was not in a position to know the details. However, since it was necessary to confirm why the Sentinel mobile suits became difficult-to-handle content when considering its renewed commercialization, I did conduct hearings from as neutral a standpoint as possible.

Following these, I judged that in order to move forward with the project, it was first necessary to talk to Artbox about renewing commercialization. We have been talking about this since the end of last year. My understanding is that Artbox has no desire to “claim rights” (copyright) but instead wants the creation of “a forum for discussions,” which have not been held since the original promises were made. The kinds of topics that should be discussed in this forum include the special position of the Sentinel content, as well as the creation of a mutual understanding with regard to how this content will be handled going forward. Of course, this is not something that can be done overnight; it is something that must be built up over time in the future. However, I am convinced that the first step towards that end goal has already been taken.

Since I was involved in these discussions, the “Announcement to Start Sentinel with GFF” featured in the July 2001 issue of Hobby Japan was a shock to me. Typically, one would think that each business division within this company called Bandai would obviously cooperate and exchange information. However, the current Bandai was formed as a group company by integrating originally separate companies. Whether latent or actual, a feeling of competition between the different business divisions persists.

Inevitably, those who have lost their sense of competitiveness are weeded out. In this sense, I do not think that a feeling of intra-company competition is terrible. However, in my opinion, the Hobby Division’s number one rival for the last few years has not been Tamiya or Hasegawa, but rather the Character Division. To put it bluntly, I have decided to write this because, while the Hobby Division has been carefully laying plans for GFF’s Sentinel mobile suits since the beginning of the year and proceeding with the renewal of commercialization work for the Sentinel mobile suits in consultation with Artbox, the party to whom previous “promises” were made, there has been speculation that we were simply falling further and further behind.

Because of the rumors about Sentinel mentioned above, the topic of the “commercialization of Sentinel” has received considerable interest, for both positive and negative reasons. I could actually feel this from users’ reactions after June 25th. This is why we recognize that we have to carefully consider how to treat the peculiar nature that is Sentinel. However, on the other hand, I do hope that understanding the pride of having had the Gunpla products support Gundam content for over 20 years, readers can understand that the Hobby Division is now working towards the renewal and commercialization of Sentinel mobile suits, including in the HGUC and MG series.

Source: Model Graphix, August 2003