The Gundam statue in Odaiba, Tokyo, was first built in 2009 to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the Gundam anime series. The original statue was 18 meters tall and stood in Odaiba’s Shiokaze Park for a limited time before being taken down.
Since then, the statue has been replaced with newer versions several times, with the most recent iteration, the RX-0 Unicorn Gundam, being unveiled in 2017. The Unicorn Gundam statue stands at 19.7 meters tall and features a more advanced design with moving parts and special lighting effects. Check it out in DiverCity Tokyo Plaza.
The lighting effects and moving parts are, well not the most impressive thing ever, but it’s still pretty cool and crowds will wait around for it. If you’re there, you have no reason to skip it, so stick around.
If you like what you see you can visit a hobby shop, or big box electronics store like Bic Camera to shop for a plastic Gundam model to take home as a souvenir. You should be able to find the same RX-0 Gundam that you see here in Odaiba.
What? You’ve never heard of Gundam?
Even though it’s 40 years old, every anime fan should know about Gundam. Gundam is significant as a robot anime for several reasons:
- It introduced the concept of realistic mecha: Before Gundam, mecha in anime were typically portrayed as fantastical, larger-than-life robots. Gundam introduced the concept of mecha as realistic military machines, with an emphasis on their engineering and design.
- Gundam explored mature themes: Gundam was one of the first mecha anime to explore mature themes such as war, politics, and the human cost of conflict.
- Many anime, manga, and video games draw their inspiration from Gundam.
- Gundam spawned a successful franchise: Gundam is not just a single anime series, but a franchise that includes multiple anime, manga, video games, and other media.
There are a few other giant robot statues in Japan as well.
Tetsujin 28-go (Gigantor) is in Kobe Wakamatsu Park. The statue is 18 meters tall and was erected in 2009 to commemorate the 80th anniversary of Kobe city.
EVA-01 Test Type in Hakone. It’s located in the Hakone area near Mount Fuji, and is a replica of the EVA-01 Test Type from the anime series Neon Genesis Evangelion. It’s 15.8 meters tall.
There may be more, but that’s all I’m tracking at the moment.
If you’re in Tokyo and want to see a giant robot… Odaiba is the place to go!