Turn A Gundam Staff, Production, and Episode Analyses – Episode #16 “All About Turn A”

Turn A Gundam‘s sixteenth episode was broadcast on Fuji TV on July 23, 1999.

*Turn A Gundam*‘s sixteenth episode was broadcast on Fuji TV on July 16, 1999.

This is the only recap episode in the show. It’s narrated by Loran as he guides the viewer through Turn A Gundam‘s characters, mecha, and romances thus far. There’s little out of the ordinary here, but it’s a nice refresher for those who need it. Some interesting things of note:

This episode is denoted as 15.5 on all official studio documentation. That means that Turn A Gundam‘s original episode count was 49, but this was later changed to the 50 that we’re used to. This makes it a little annoying when acquiring and parsing through studio material (scripts, storyboards, etc.) for episodes past 16—you have to take into account the proper episode count number.
It advertises Turn A Gundam as a show that brings forth a new “era”, and that it may contain “clues” on how people will live in the 21st century.
Loran actually refers to the White Doll as the “Gundam” and/or “Turn A Gundam”. This is probably for the audience’s sake, more than anything else, as the “Turn A” moniker for the titular Gundam doesn’t come until much later in the show.
The Borjarnons are referred to as mobile suits which “may look familiar to some viewers” because they “resemble Zakus from the original Gundam.” This confirms to the viewer that mobile suits like the Kapool, the Borjarnon, and the Cannon Illefuto are intended to resemble suits from previous shows.
Loran’s love and infatuation with Dianna is made clear, and his shock at Kihel looking exactly like her is also pronounced. This is noteworthy because in Turn A Gundam‘s original framework, Tomino specifically wanted Loran to be in love with a blonde woman and this plot-point was revised and reworked several times. For instance, in earlier drafts of the story—where Loran is NOT Moonrace—he’s in love with Kihel, who dies early on, and that spurs Loran and Sochie to join the Militia to fight against the Moonrace invaders. It’s interesting to see how this plot-point evolved.