Gundam Wing - Endless Waltz (Anime Movie Classics)

The ending of the "Gundam Wing" television series wasn't really that at all. Sure, the 'bad guys' were defeated, but anyone who thinks that's all that matters isn't a fan of good storytelling. "Endless Waltz" answers pretty much every question you might have about the fates of the characters, and I don't mean just the Gundam pilots, either. Every important character of the series is brought into play, and even some not-so important ones. As icing on the cake, this DVD also answers many(though not all) questions about the characters from before the start of the series.

The animation, characterization, and excellent soundtrack ("White Reflexion!") all make up for the fact that the plot is slightly silly and a little cliched. More of a bad guys versus good guys thing as opposed to the complexity of the series. But hey, it's a movie, how deep do you want them to get, here?

Two more reccomendations. Watch the movie version, as opposed to the OVA version. You'll be glad you did. It contains extended and all-new footage that really makes the story flow better, plus there's some great music in certain scenes that were silent in the OVA vesion. Secondly, and this is something I never ever say about anime, watch it dubbed. No, I'm not insane. It's actually better, I swear to God. I've seen it in both languages, and simple lines (such as many of Heero's) just sounded better delivered in English.


The End...   February 2, 2001
David Baker (Nosgoth)
17 out of 19 found this review helpful

...but what an ending! Told mostly through flashbacks, the story of Endless Waltz is rock-solid. If you're a fan of the series, this explains the characters backgrounds and how they came to be, which is quite interesting (Trowa's origin, for example, was not only interesting, it's shocking). If you're new to Gundam Wing, well... it wouldn't be the best place to start... and at the same time, it would be if you don't want to sit through all those episodes (which is why I liked the flashbacks: I can show it to my friends and they wouldn't be left out in the cold as to what's going on in the film). Whenever you try to get someone's interest in a series, it's not always easy: nobody really has time to sit through a whole set of tapes/DVDs, and that's if you even have them; and when you try to show them a movie inspired from the series, they know nothing of the characters, and it seems that most movies expect that you already do (take, for example, Tenchi Forever: you can't show that to a first-time Tenchi viewer, as it wouldn't quite register [i.e., no explanation as to how the characters came about]). But, like I said, Endless Waltz gives you a whole background of the characters through the flashbacks, yet, doesn't take away from those that have followed the series--no easy feet. So what's the story here? Taking off a year after the Gundam Wing series ended, Mariemeia--the illegitimate daughter of deceased war leader, OZ chief Treize Krushrenada--has made plans to become the ruler of the new nation--thus taking over Earth and the Space Colonies. Obviously, this isn't good; it's, as the movie said, "An endless waltz of peace, war, and revolution." And obviously, our heroes aren't taking this lightly, either. Past villians are now good guys, the characters are more emotional than ever, and the battle scenes are the best in the entire Gundam Wing series--in fact, I honestly felt this was the peak of everything to the series: the characters have more depth, the story is at its finest, and the battle scenes are beyond amazing. If you've seen any of the episodes, you already know about dubbing: it's perfect. Very few anime titles I'll say I actually loved the dubbing, but the whole Gundam Wing series is just great. The animation is a bit dated (it was made quite awhile back), but the detail is still sharp. I'll be honest... the first time I seen Gundam Wing, I didn't care for it--I'm a Macross/Robotech fan, and I'll always fell that Macross/Robotech is king when it comes to mecha in anime... but I started liking it after awhile, and I truly feel that this movie represents all of Gundam Wing at its finest. Endless Waltz is a great, action-packed, anime movie that, hopefully, will get the success it truly deserves--definitely do not pass this up when its release day comes.


"As long as we can look each other in the eye"   January 3, 2003
Marc Ruby™ (Warren, MI USA)
14 out of 16 found this review helpful

Strange to say, it was the building of miniature Gundam figures that first got me interested in Anime. But I was never all that drawn to what I knew of the plot. I am not a battle freak, nor much of a 'hard' science fiction fan. And, if nothing else, this story of the titanic struggle between earth and the colonies is truly hard science fiction. True to my nature, when I finally decided to see one of the films, I picked 'Endless Waltz' completely missing the fact that it was the last in the series.

Oddly enough, that doesn't turn out to be a problem. While the story is very much based on what went before, the film (not the OVA version) takes just enough extra time to provide some needed continuity. In addition, the message behind it all is universal. Nor is the base plot hard to follow, even if it's sometimes difficult to place some of the characters at first. While 'Endless Waltz' didn't turn me into a complete Gundam groupie, it filled in a lot of what I didn't understand, introduced a lot of the characters and filled in the blanks behind some of the little figures that keep showing up on shelves around my house.

Despite the battle scenes and technology, 'Endless Waltz' is a political drama, as Dekim and Mariemaia Barton plan to attack earth and either rule the Earth Sphere Unified Nation or drop an entire colony on it. The Gundam, disorganized and in disagreement, must sort out their own beliefs as they find a way to create a new peace that will not cave in to such efforts at empire. But the real message of the film is that the Gundam cannot create peace on their own. Instead, the people themselves must take responsibility for creating and sustaining the world they want to live in.

This message, with the important subtext about believing that life is something far more precious than any product of technology, makes this a strong film. Even being as unfamiliar with the pilots as I was, I found something sympathetic and understandable in all of them. All of the characters are vivid, from the supremely chilling Mariemaia Khushrenada (Barton) to Relena Darlian who must also confront what she believes develop through the film, and are still growing at its end. Needless to say, artwork and battle choreography are excellent, providing a fitting end to the era of the mobile suit.

Having both the OVA and film versions is a plus since there are a number of tiny, but significant differences that are interesting of themselves. My biggest criticism is that the subtitling is a bit too minimalist. I would have appreciated translation of the various signs and credits as well as the narrative.


Awesome Stuff   November 24, 2000
7 out of 7 found this review helpful

When YTV played the uncut version back in September, I was impressed with the way this movie turned out. However, I recommend getting this DVD. You can see the uncut English dub verison along with the subtitled Japanese version.

The music is pretty good, I liked the plot, it just seemed like a small continuance of the series, just longer. When Wing Zero sprout its wings, my jaw just dropped. As weird as this seems, it's beautiful, along with the lovely inserted song when Wing Zero sprout its wings.

I don't want to spoil the plot for you, and I didn't find any major flaws in the movie, it's all great. I know this review wasn't all that helpful, just buy it or rent it or whatever


"...a place for a person who just can't get used to peace."   June 7, 2005
zephryn
7 out of 7 found this review helpful

Endless Waltz is a magnificent conclusion to a wonderful series. But this movie/ OVA is far more than a sequel, it is also of a prequel to the series - giving viewers a glimpse of their favorite Gundam pilots' past.

The Gundams return with amazing new designs (courtesy of Katoki) and with them, two new Mobile Suit models: the Serpent units and the Tallgeese III! The mechanical designs are beautiful - the cover of the dvd with Wing Zero should be more than enough to show that.

The characters have matured as well. They remain true to their personalities from the series and yet, there is definite development. They are no longer lost and confused as they had been in the series... they are more resolute and determined... of course, with a few exceptions - one of which is that of a surprising enemy. But one must wonder if it was really that much of a surprise?

Endless Waltz is a definite conclusion to the After Colony timeline. But don't be sad - this is what makes it so great! The impressions left to us by Gundam Wing and Endless Waltz (not to mention the numerous comics) is something that we, true fans, will forever remember without the story or plot being exhausted by repetition.

This is a must have for anyone who has or have watched the Gundam Wing series!