Our last music piece was from a handheld title, the criminally underused Daybreak’s Bell from Mobile Suit Gundam 00. And we’re launching into the second half of the challenge with the idea of ‘criminally underused’ in mind.
Day 16: Track that you want to hear a new remix of – Flying in the Sky (Mobile Fighter G Gundam) (Super Robot Wars R)
Whether due to licensing issues, infrequent series appearances, or some other third thing, certain songs just don’t appear as often as we wish. And believe me, I have no shortage of options to pick from. Heck, any of the licensed track that have appeared in previous entries could have fit here. But to me, there’s no track that I’d like to see in the spotlight again more than Flying in the Sky. It’s the first opening theme to Mobile Fighter G Gundam, and the last time it appeared in SRW was in Super Robot Wars R on the GBA.
Of all the Gundam series, G Gundam is the one that straddles the line between Super and Real robots the most. G Gundam taking place in an alternate Earth where much of humanity is now living in space colonies, with each colony representing one of the countries on the Earth. In order to avoid going to war with one another, these colonies instead hold a Gundam Fight tournament every four years. The country who’s fighter is the last one standing gets to rule over the others until the next tournament.
However, these fights use the Earth itself as the ring, and this has lead to widespread destruction all around the planet. Dr. Raizo Kasshu, a scientist who lives in the Neo Japan space colony, creates a Mobile Fighter known as the Ultimate Gundam. Using regenerative nanomachines, he hopes to use it to restore the Earth’s ecosystem.
Unfortunately, the Ultimate Gundam is stolen and Dr. Kasshu is imprisoner on false charges. Domon Kasshu, the younger son of Raizo, then becomes Neo Japan’s Gundam Fighter for the 13th Gundam Fight. His goal is not only to win the fight, but to track down the Ultimate Gundam and recover it from the person who stole it; none other than his own elder brother Kyoji Kasshu.
Now, G Gundam isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. The first spin-off Gundam series, it has none of the overtones and themes of the original Gundam series. It’s far more akin to Dragon Ball Z, having elaborate energy attacks, borderline-stereotyped mech designs (Neo Holland’s Gundam literally looks like a windmill) and a heaping helping of yelling.
But to be perfectly honest, I love it! It was my first Gundam series, and it still remains my favorite! What G Gundam does right, it does really well. The action is great, the characters are deep, and while there’s no massive war going on, the stakes are still high enough to reel you in to the story.
After a six-year hiatus, G Gundam made a return in Super Robot Wars T, complete with a new arrangement of it’s second OP, Trust You Forever. And I’ll say up front, I do really like that song, and the T version of it is musical gold. But…potentially hot take here…I like Flying in the Sky better. There I said it, and I’ll stand by my opinion.
I think I just jive with the allegro tempo that Flying in the Sky has over Trust You Forever’s more andante speed. And don’t get me wrong, I do enjoy listening to R’s chiptune mix of this track. But man, if G Gundam appears in SRW again, I would be over the moon to hear a modern take on Flying in the Sky.
So, which of G Gundam’s OPs do you prefer? Like them both the same? Have any musical hot takes of your own? Any time you want to share your thoughts, leave a comment. That’s what the comment section is there for. And be sure to join me next time, where I pick a song from a game that I actually don’t enjoy playing.