The PV for Thunderbolt Season 2! The “THUNDERBOLT Live OPERTION 01 “Rumble&Silence”” report

“MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM THUNDERBOLT Live OPERATION 01 “Rumble&Silence”” was held on January 20^th (Fri) at Zepp DiverCity in Odaiba.

Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt became a huge topic for its high affinity in animation and music. This concert was held with jazz musician Mr. Naruyoshi Kikuchi as its center as well as the members of the original soundtrack that was released in June of last year.
Let’s go into a report of the powerful stage performance that fascinated the audience.

The screen on stage projected footage of the Thunderbolt sector as the BGM steadily grew thunderous. The symbol of Thunderbolt “THUNDERBOLT FOR MAIN THEME” as well as “FOR BATTLE STATION” and “FOR DEPLOYMENT” were performed in succession as the tension of the audience simultaneously reached its climax.
The audience swallowed their breaths as they attentively listened to this stylish number overflowing with speed.

The impressive “Because I’m Old ~I’m 60~” with Mr. Dairo Suga on the piano was then played as the 4^th song. The set-list the continued with the soft ambience of the vocal song “White Room ~White day in the blue~” and “Cocktail of the Moon ~Martini on the moon~” with Mr. Kikuchi himself as the vocalist.
The screen then changed to footage of Io and Daryl’s battle, matching the performance, and further emphasizing the impact of the song through impressive concert direction.

During the intermission, Ms. Sayaka Ohara, voice of Karla, acted as the MC as a discussion between Mr. Kikuchi, Director Kou Matsuo, and Producer Naohiro Ogata took place.
They first discussed the inside stories behind how Mr. Kikuchi became involved in Thunderbolt and the composition proposals that took place. Director Matsuo and Mr. Kikuchi both thought back on events that occurred at the time of the production such as their encounters with the music and how the storyboards were created with the tempo of the music in mind.

A second season was announced, comprised of episodes 5 to 8, in the latter half of the discussion and will be available through paid streaming from March to June.
Furthermore, the latest PV, which had been completed the previous day, and 3 new characters, “Bianca Carlisle” and “Vincent Pike” of the Earth Federation Forces, and “Billy Hickham” of the Principality of Zeon were revealed.
Director Matsuo then spoke about the current situation of the production of the second season. They were having more trouble with the production than they had the first season and that the production of the performance scenes have just begun. Mr. Kikuchi also said that the performance scenes will have 3 cameras installed for each instrument and that they will be recording their performances.

The concert then entered its final half once the discussion was concluded. Country singer Ms. Yoshie Sakamoto appeared on stage, singing at the top of her voice, “My Country Song ~Fan of the hay~” when the melody then completely changed to an intense jazz number performance with “FOR THE START OF BATTLE” and “FOR DURING BATTLE (SEVERE BATTLE).” The audience was pulled into the world of Thunderbolt with the slow and fast tempo of the set-list.

Nobuyoshi Nakazawa then sang the blues-style “Just the Two of Us ~We’re the only ones here in this world~” and “I Only Cry ~Oh god, I’m alone~” with soulful vocals that resonated throughout the venue. Last was “Your Companion ~I’m your baby~” sung by ICI a.k.a. Ai Ichikawa with all vocalists participating as backup chorus. The audience came together as one, with dance choreography as a homage to oldies’ pop and clapping to the beat of the music, as the concert approached its end.

This was a concert, an endeavor, to combine Gundam and jazz that encompassed the maturity of the production of the second season after undergoing the trials and errors of the first season.
Mr. Kikuchi also held an autograph session after the concert and resulted in a long line made by fans who wished to have their CDs and LPs autographed.

This event is scheduled to broadcast on MTV on March 31 ^st (Fri) at 11:00pm.

Episode 5, the first episode of season two, will also begin streaming on March 24^th (Fri), so please be sure to also check for streaming information.

MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM THUNDERBOLT Live OPERATION 01 “Rumble & Silence”
January 20, 2017 (Fri) Zepp DiverCity

[Performers]
Naruyoshi Kikuchi (Saxophone, others), Dairo Suga (Piano), Tomoki Ihira (Guitar), Shiro Sasaki (Trumpet), Toshihisa Nagami (Bassist), Masatsugu Hattori (Drums), noon (Vocal), Nobuyoshi Nakazawa (Vocal), Hiroki Horiko (Vocal), ICI a.k.a Ai Ichikawa (Vocal), Yoshie Sakamoto (Vocal)

[Intermission Guests]
Kou Matsuo (Director), Sayaka Ohara (Karla Mitchum), Naohiro Ogata (Producer)

[Set-list]
M01: THUNDERBOLT FOR MAIN THEME
M02: FOR BATTLE STATION
M03: FOR DEPLOYMENT
M04: Because I’m Old ~I’m 60~
M05: White Room ~White day in the blue~
M06: Cocktail of the Moon ~Martini on the moon~
*****INTERMISSION*****
M07: My Country Song ~Fan of the hay~
M08: FOR THE START OF BATTLE
M09: FOR DURING BATTLE (SEVERE BATTLE)
M10: Just the Two of Us ~We’re the only ones here in this world~
M11: I Only Cry ~Oh god, I’m alone~
M12: Yes Girl ~Yes girl~
M13: When I Go Back to Being a Girl ~The dreaming girl in me~
M14: Your Companion ~I’m your baby~

The second season of Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt, comprised of episodes 5 to 8, is scheduled to release one episode at a time each month from March 24^th (Fri) through paid streaming. It will be 800 yen for unlimited streaming (tax excluded) and 400 yen for rental streaming (tax excluded.)
The screening events for the theatrical version of the second season as well as Blu-ray and DVD sales are also scheduled for Fall of this year.

(Gundam Info Editorial Department)