Gundam fans in Japan will be able to visit Yokohama's famous life-sized Gundam statue and get a new Gunpla model for free as part of The Gundam Factory's new sustainability push.
As reported by Sora News 24, The Gundam Factory, Yokohama's official Gundam store and museum, has declared Nov. 3 to "Sustainability Day." The venue will host several promotions that day to promote awareness of green energy and recycling programs in the area, which includes free tours of its almost 60-foot tall RX-78-2 Gundam installation. Tickets to see the massive, moving mobile suit usually cost the equivalent of about $15 USD, but fans will be able to see the statue for free during the event. However, in order to avoid large crowds during the pandemic, The Gundam Factory is requiring all visitors to preorder their tickets and reserve a visitation time beforehand.
Numerous life-sized Gundam statues have been installed throughout Japan, but the RX-78-2 Gundam statue in Yokohama is the most mobile of them all: this mobile suit lives up to its name by being capable of a full range of stationary movement, and can walk and run in place. The statue also lights up and is posable enough to strike several of the original Gundam's most iconic poses. The machinery that powers this mobility is completely provided by green energy: a single wind turbine located on the other side of the installation's grounds provides all the power that the massive robot needs to move. In addition to just looking cool, the life-sized RX-78-2 statue was also meant to demonstrate the amount of energy that can be collected through sustainable methods.
Fans who visit The Gundam Factory during the event will also be given a new variant of the 144th scale High Grade Gunpla model of the RX-78-2, which is made of new "Ecopura" recycled materials. Gunpla builders are also encouraged to bring in their left over model kit runners, as The Gundam Factory has now installed collection stations to ensure that the left over plastic gets properly recycled. Series producer Bandai has announced that it will install more of these collection boxes at arcades and hobby shops throughout the country in order to reduce the amount of plastic waste created by its products.
In addition to Yokohama's RX-78-2, a life-sized version of the transforming Unicorn Gundam has also been built in Tokyo. The statue gained international attention this past summer when it served as the backdrop for several events during the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. The next life-sized Gundam statue will be installed in a shopping center in Fukuoka, and will be based on a new redesign of the iconic Nu Gundam from Char's Counterattack.
Source: Sora News 24
