A baffling production that only really falls into crystal clarity when taken as a piece with director Yoshikazu Yasuhiko's wider Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin project. The Origin is, essentially, a fix fic of First Gundam, one that follows the original show relatively faithfully with some things cut or streamlined (including this episode, natch), but with the crucial difference that the story is realigned to fit with Yas' conception of Gundam, most notably through the inclusion of a long flashback arc depicting the backstory of Char and Sayla, and the rise of the Principality of Zeon.

There's good stuff in the Origin, and as a comic, it frequently looks absolutely gorgeous. As an artist, Yas is clearly an immense talent, but as a writer, and as a conveyor of the Gundam story, he runs roughshod over a lot of the nuances and perspectives present in First Gundam in order to ensure that his conception of it rules the day. Zeon is transformed from a worthy cause hijacked by a fascist family into a ridiculous ideology conceived by a madman right from the very start, Char morphs into a Light Yagami-Esque serial killer, Ramba Ral is suddenly this super pivotal character deeply intertwined with the politics of the setting rather than being an excellent sympathetic antagonist...Yas is outspoken about the fact that he doesn't like any of the sequels to the original Mobile Suit Gundam, and considers it the only Gundam, but it's more than that, he only really seems willing to acknowledge his own narrow vision of that show, and has spearheaded this entire sub-franchise that closes off doors of interpretation and resonance opened by the other creators who worked on that show.

In many ways, this film is the apotheosis of that. It's a lavish, multi-million full theatrical reproduction of the episode of Gundam that was produced while Yas was in the hospital from overworking, and that he famously absolutely disavows, an episode whose infamy is inflamed by the fact that Yoshiyuki Tomino has requested that this episode not be included on western releases of the show, apparently due to a dispute between him and another member of staff that he's not willing to elaborate on as long as that person is alive, out of respect. For these reasons, and the fact that the episode contains some noticeable off-model shots, Episode 15 of Mobile Suit Gundam has acquired a reputation as some legendarily bad Spock's Brain status despite the fact that it's... just good.

It's really good, in fact! It's no Time Be Still, but the thing is, First Gundam just rips, and Cucuruz Doan's Island is no exception. It's a really illustrative episode for Amuro's character, and there's a lot of tragic weight brought out of how it becomes increasingly clear that Amuro has more in common with this older broken soldier than the kids around him closer to his age. And yeah, there's some off-model shots, but also, First Gundam is a hand-drawn show from the 70s, that's just what's gonna happen, and it's not like every other episode is totally immaculate and on-model. It's fine, it's charming! Cucuruz Doan's Island (the episode) feels lovingly hand-crafted and full of heart, in a way this film just doesn't.

It's not bad, to be clear. There are some bits I really really love, like flashbacks and hallucinations that evoke the wild colour palette of the 79 show, and the amazing gundam activations sequence in the third act, where the Gundam looms so menacingly, holding it's beam saber like Michael Myers might hold a knife dripping with blood, and the bit immediately after (you know the one)...that stuff is great, but it's small snapshots through a film that doesn't really have much of anything to justify its existence. It's an indulgence, not really for the fans, but for Yas himself, to "fix" yet another thing from First Gundam that doesn't meet his approval, whilst inevitably losing something in the process.

I enjoyed my time with it, sure, and I think I'd enjoy it even more if that time was closer to 70 minutes rather than 120. But it represents a vision of what Gundam is and can be that I strongly dislike. I kept thinking about Hathaway while watching this, a film that I have some issues with but has only grown in my mind as something that, even as it continues to mine obscure Tomino ephemera for content, represents an exacting and modern vision for this franchise that expands what it can be and what it can do into new and exciting places.

Hathaway made Gundam bigger, weirder, and more interesting. Cucuruz Doan's Island Remake just makes it smaller and smaller, until it only really fits into the box Yas is so desperate to cram it into.

Oh, and this is just a personal thing, but I don't like all the RG stickers the Gundam has. Keep that awful monstrous wonderful boy clean, thank you very much.