RX-75 Guntank
Encyclopedia
The RX-75 Guntank is a fictional weapon from the mecha
anime
Mobile Suit Gundam
. The real life Type 87 self-propelled anti-aircraft gun
of the Japan Self-Defense Forces
was unofficially nicknamed as Guntank after the fictional weapon by troopers.
The RX-75 Guntank was the first prototype mobile suit developed in the Earth Federation
's Project V
. However, the Guntank hardly qualified at all as a mobile suit, which generally referred to bipedal machine
s. The Guntank had the torso and arms of a mobile suit, but possessed a tank-like base with track
s. It also lacked the humanoid manipulator hand
s and had a canopy-style cockpit on the head, along with the cockpit in the torso. Like all Project V prototypes, the Guntank's design incorporate the Core Block System.
The RX-75 Guntank was developed when the first rumors of the Principality of Zeon's mobile suits reached the Federation. The Guntank was designed as a long-range anti-mobile suit and artillery support unit. Although its performance in this role fell below expectations, it did pack a heavy punch. Its main weapons were twin 180 mm recoilless cannons, which were capable of both effective direct
and indirect fire
s at both long and medium ranges. The Guntank's two arms ended in four-barrel missile launchers instead of manipulator hands. These weapons provided good cover fire against enemy tanks and aircraft but less effective against enemy mobile suits at close range.
Guntank, along with Gundam has great cultural influence in Japan. The rescue robot T-52 Enryu (援竜) (official link of newer model T-53) created by Tmsuk(official page) for the Japanese fire department is quoted to be Guntank(?)'s huge rescue robot by My commu journal.
attack. This remaining prototype made its way to the Pegasus-class assault cruiser White Base
. The Guntank design fought alongside the RX-77-2 Guncannon and the RX-78-2 Gundam, but it was easily outclassed due to the close-range nature of warfare under Minovsky interference. However, after the death of the Guntank pilot Ryu Jose
, the mobile suit was upgraded to be used by a single pilot in the canopy-style cockpit, and continued to be piloted by Hayato Kobayashi. The RX-75-4 Guntank was finally decommissioned at the Federation's General Headquarters at Jaburo, South America in November UC 0079 having served admirably in its short service.
In the original Mobile Suit Gundam
TV anime, the RX-75-4 Guntank was not decommissioned at Jaburo but continued service on board the White Base
until it was destroyed at the Zeon space fortress A Baoa Qu. The discrepancy between the two versions of events exists because the Guntank was seen more as a 'super robot' genre
mecha than the 'real robot' genre
mecha that the series was aiming for. The movie version of events is considered more canonical
, as it reflects the latest version of Tomino's vision.
The RX-75-4 Guntank first appear in Mobile Suit Gundam
, design by Kunio Okawara
.
The RX-75 Guntank was given a new look to make it more realistic in the "origin" manga, changes from the animated 1979 guntank include a shorter torso, and the open area between the driver's cockpit and the gunner's cockpit suggests that this Guntank does not utilize the FF-X7 Core Fighter used by the original.
.
, a flamethrower
and a variety of high-explosive bomb
s, mine
s and multi-rocket system
, the RTX-440 is also equipped with an "emergency destruction system
" for kamikaze run
s. Its mobility is also enhanced by a pair of tank treads in front of the body, which are deployed when the machine is in fast-attack mode. Only three RTX-440 units are ever built before the project was canceled, apparently due to the defection of Federation technical officer Clyde Bettany, who leaked the prototype's inside information to the Principality. In reality, Federation intelligence organized the defection to plant Bettany as a double agent
within the Zeon command.
The three Guntanks are assigned to a trio of convicts led by Bettany's lover, Lt. Arleen Nazon, who was jailed for his "treason". In exchange for a grand amnesty, the group is deployed for various high-risk operations across Europe, eventually participating in Operation Odessa. The team self-destructs their units in an effort to take out two Zeon Dobday-class land battleships. Ironically, Bettany was aboard the second Dobday, which he was supposed to take over from the inside — the very reason the RTX-440 project was sacrificed.
After the One Year War, the development of Guntanks continued, resulting in the RMV-1 Guntank II, which was even more tank-like (and less mobile suit-like) than its predecessors. A pair of recoilless 120 mm cannon mounted on its head turret gave it wider firing arcs than previous Guntank models. The new torso was capable of independently rotating, so the arms were replaced with rocket and missile launchers. The new Guntank was designed in every way as a vehicle for ground combat. Some Japanese reference material classifies the Guntank II as a mobile vehicle instead of a mobile suit, hence the RMV code in its model number. This model of Guntank stays in service up to the Gryps conflict of Zeta Gundam where they can be seen among other MSV units defending Jaburo from the AEUG forces.
RMV-1 Guntank II first appear as part of Mobile Suit Variations and design by Kunio Okawara
.
Jung Roy, who acquired the machine into his collection at the age of 44 and re-numbered it RXR-44. When Crossbone Vanguard invaded Frontier IV in U.C.0123, Roy, along with several other civilians, launched out in his prized R-44 into battle in a valiant but foolhardy act of resistance. The R-44 was later destroyed when an injured Seabook Arno
attempted to ram the tank into Dorel Ronah's XM-04 Berga Dalas, who in turn stabbed the tank with his shot lancer and caused it to crash against a wall.
The R-44's design was incorporated from an earlier transformable mobile suit, ECOAS's D-50C Loto, as seen in the 2007 novel Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn
.
Mecha
A mech , is a science fiction term for a large walking bipedal tank or robot, including ones on treads and animal shapes.-Characteristics:...
anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
Mobile Suit Gundam
Mobile Suit Gundam
is a televised anime series, created by Sunrise. Created and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, it premiered in Japan on Nagoya Broadcasting Network on April 7, 1979, and lasted until January 26, 1980, spanning 43 episodes...
. The real life Type 87 self-propelled anti-aircraft gun
Type 87 Self-Propelled Anti-Aircraft Gun
The is a Japanese air defense weapon built around the Oerlikon 35 mm twin cannon system used on the Gepard tank. The system uses a modified Type 74 tank chassis...
of the Japan Self-Defense Forces
Japan Self-Defense Forces
The , or JSDF, occasionally referred to as JSF or SDF, are the unified military forces of Japan that were established after the end of the post–World War II Allied occupation of Japan. For most of the post-war period the JSDF was confined to the islands of Japan and not permitted to be deployed...
was unofficially nicknamed as Guntank after the fictional weapon by troopers.
The RX-75 Guntank was the first prototype mobile suit developed in the Earth Federation
Earth Federation
The is a fictional organization in the Universal Century timeline of the Gundam anime series. The name also made a reappearance outside of the Gundam series in following media.* Godzilla vs...
's Project V
Project V
The Project V was a fictional weapon development program in the mecha anime Mobile Suit Gundam-Background History:...
. However, the Guntank hardly qualified at all as a mobile suit, which generally referred to bipedal machine
Humanoid robot
A humanoid robot or an anthropomorphic robot is a robot with its overall appearance, based on that of the human body, allowing interaction with made-for-human tools or environments. In general humanoid robots have a torso with a head, two arms and two legs, although some forms of humanoid robots...
s. The Guntank had the torso and arms of a mobile suit, but possessed a tank-like base with track
Caterpillar track
Continuous tracks or caterpillar tracks are a system of vehicle propulsion in which modular metal plates linked into a continuous band are driven by two or more wheels...
s. It also lacked the humanoid manipulator hand
Manipulator
In robotics a manipulator is a device used to manipulate materials without direct contact. The applications were originally for dealing with radioactive or biohazardous materials, using robotic arms, or they were used in inaccessible places. In more recent developments they have been used in...
s and had a canopy-style cockpit on the head, along with the cockpit in the torso. Like all Project V prototypes, the Guntank's design incorporate the Core Block System.
The RX-75 Guntank was developed when the first rumors of the Principality of Zeon's mobile suits reached the Federation. The Guntank was designed as a long-range anti-mobile suit and artillery support unit. Although its performance in this role fell below expectations, it did pack a heavy punch. Its main weapons were twin 180 mm recoilless cannons, which were capable of both effective direct
Direct fire
Direct fire refers to the launching of a projectile directly at a target on a relatively flat trajectory. The firing weapon must have a sighting device and an unobstructed line of sight to the target, which means no objects or friendly units can be between it and the target...
and indirect fire
Indirect fire
Indirect fire means aiming and firing a projectile in a high trajectory without relying on a direct line of sight between the gun and its target, as in the case of direct fire...
s at both long and medium ranges. The Guntank's two arms ended in four-barrel missile launchers instead of manipulator hands. These weapons provided good cover fire against enemy tanks and aircraft but less effective against enemy mobile suits at close range.
Guntank, along with Gundam has great cultural influence in Japan. The rescue robot T-52 Enryu (援竜) (official link of newer model T-53) created by Tmsuk(official page) for the Japanese fire department is quoted to be Guntank(?)'s huge rescue robot by My commu journal.
RX-75-4 Guntank
On Side 7, only one unit, the RX-75-4 Guntank, survived the Zeon ZakuMS-06 Zaku II
The MS-06 Zaku II is a mobile suit from the Mobile Suit Gundam metaverse. It is redesigned by Kunio Okawara based upon the earlier draft by the series director Yoshiyuki Tomino, in which only the name was kept. The Zaku II has seen various redesigns and variants for hundreds of pieces of...
attack. This remaining prototype made its way to the Pegasus-class assault cruiser White Base
White Base
The White Base is a fictional spaceship from the Japanese science fiction anime series Mobile Suit Gundam. It serves as the mothership of the protagonist crew members and the famous mobile suit Gundam...
. The Guntank design fought alongside the RX-77-2 Guncannon and the RX-78-2 Gundam, but it was easily outclassed due to the close-range nature of warfare under Minovsky interference. However, after the death of the Guntank pilot Ryu Jose
Ryu Jose
is a fictional character from the 1979 anime series Mobile Suit Gundam. He was voiced by Shōzō Iizuka in the original Japanese version and by Ward Perry in the English dub.-Fictional background:...
, the mobile suit was upgraded to be used by a single pilot in the canopy-style cockpit, and continued to be piloted by Hayato Kobayashi. The RX-75-4 Guntank was finally decommissioned at the Federation's General Headquarters at Jaburo, South America in November UC 0079 having served admirably in its short service.
In the original Mobile Suit Gundam
Mobile Suit Gundam
is a televised anime series, created by Sunrise. Created and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, it premiered in Japan on Nagoya Broadcasting Network on April 7, 1979, and lasted until January 26, 1980, spanning 43 episodes...
TV anime, the RX-75-4 Guntank was not decommissioned at Jaburo but continued service on board the White Base
White Base
The White Base is a fictional spaceship from the Japanese science fiction anime series Mobile Suit Gundam. It serves as the mothership of the protagonist crew members and the famous mobile suit Gundam...
until it was destroyed at the Zeon space fortress A Baoa Qu. The discrepancy between the two versions of events exists because the Guntank was seen more as a 'super robot' genre
Super Robot
is a term used in manga and anime to describe a giant robot or mecha, with an arsenal of fantastic super-powered weapons, extreme resistance to damage unless the plot calls for it, sometimes transformable or combined from two or more robots and/or vehicles usually piloted by young, daring heroes,...
mecha than the 'real robot' genre
Real Robot
is a genre of Japanese animation. The genre contains mecha robots that are powered by conventional power sources and weapons explainable by real world science, and that use ranged weapons and speed to survive battle situations....
mecha that the series was aiming for. The movie version of events is considered more canonical
Canon (fiction)
In the context of a work of fiction, the term canon denotes the material accepted as "official" in a fictional universe's fan base. It is often contrasted with, or used as the basis for, works of fan fiction, which are not considered canonical...
, as it reflects the latest version of Tomino's vision.
The RX-75-4 Guntank first appear in Mobile Suit Gundam
Mobile Suit Gundam
is a televised anime series, created by Sunrise. Created and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, it premiered in Japan on Nagoya Broadcasting Network on April 7, 1979, and lasted until January 26, 1980, spanning 43 episodes...
, design by Kunio Okawara
Kunio Okawara
is a mechanical designer in the Japanese anime industry. A mechanical designer is similar to a character designer, but the design is for robots, ships, and other mechanical items found in a particular show. Okawara was the first in the industry to be specifically credited as a mechanical designer...
.
The RX-75 Guntank was given a new look to make it more realistic in the "origin" manga, changes from the animated 1979 guntank include a shorter torso, and the open area between the driver's cockpit and the gunner's cockpit suggests that this Guntank does not utilize the FF-X7 Core Fighter used by the original.
RX-75 Guntank Mass-Production Type
A mass production model of Guntank was produced later in the war, designated RX-75 Guntank Mass-Production Type. The Mass-production Type abandoned the Core Block system to cut costs; the new model could also swivel its upper torso. The original Guntank's 180 mm cannons were replaced with smaller 120 mm cannons; these cannons could be removed and replaced with other appendages. Some of these mass-produced Guntanks were equipped with a forward bulldozer mounted on the front glacis plate and crane for recovery work. It was proven to be a highly efficient artillery support unit in the later phase of the One Year War. It first appeared in Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS TeamMobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team
is an original video animation anime series in the Gundam franchise. Released from January 25, 1996, to April 25, 1999, the 11-episode series details the adventures of an Earth Federation Space Force ground unit during the One Year War - specifically before the original 1979 Gundam series and into...
.
RTX-440 Guntank Ground Assault Type
Only appearing in Episode 3 of MS IGLOO 2: Gravity Front, the RTX-440 is a prototype designed for rapid penetration attack and laying down heavy suppressive barrages. Normally armed with a single 220mm cannon, two arm autocannonAutocannon
An autocannon or automatic cannon is a rapid-fire projectile weapon firing a shell as opposed to the bullet fired by a machine gun. Autocannons often have a larger caliber than a machine gun . Usually, autocannons are smaller than a field gun or other artillery, and are mechanically loaded for a...
, a flamethrower
Flamethrower
A flamethrower is a mechanical device designed to project a long controllable stream of fire.Some flamethrowers project a stream of ignited flammable liquid; some project a long gas flame. Most military flamethrowers use liquids, but commercial flamethrowers tend to use high-pressure propane and...
and a variety of high-explosive bomb
Bomb
A bomb is any of a range of explosive weapons that only rely on the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy...
s, mine
Land mine
A land mine is usually a weight-triggered explosive device which is intended to damage a target—either human or inanimate—by means of a blast and/or fragment impact....
s and multi-rocket system
Multiple rocket launcher
A multiple rocket launcher is a type of unguided rocket artillery system. Like other rocket artillery, multiple rocket launchers are less accurate and have a much lower rate of fire than batteries of traditional artillery guns...
, the RTX-440 is also equipped with an "emergency destruction system
Self-destruct
A self-destruct is a mechanism which causes a device to destroy itself under a predefined set of circumstances.Self-destruct mechanisms are also found on devices and systems where malfunction could endanger large numbers of people...
" for kamikaze run
Kamikaze
The were suicide attacks by military aviators from the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, designed to destroy as many warships as possible....
s. Its mobility is also enhanced by a pair of tank treads in front of the body, which are deployed when the machine is in fast-attack mode. Only three RTX-440 units are ever built before the project was canceled, apparently due to the defection of Federation technical officer Clyde Bettany, who leaked the prototype's inside information to the Principality. In reality, Federation intelligence organized the defection to plant Bettany as a double agent
Double agent
A double agent, commonly abbreviated referral of double secret agent, is a counterintelligence term used to designate an employee of a secret service or organization, whose primary aim is to spy on the target organization, but who in fact is a member of that same target organization oneself. They...
within the Zeon command.
The three Guntanks are assigned to a trio of convicts led by Bettany's lover, Lt. Arleen Nazon, who was jailed for his "treason". In exchange for a grand amnesty, the group is deployed for various high-risk operations across Europe, eventually participating in Operation Odessa. The team self-destructs their units in an effort to take out two Zeon Dobday-class land battleships. Ironically, Bettany was aboard the second Dobday, which he was supposed to take over from the inside — the very reason the RTX-440 project was sacrificed.
RMV-1 Guntank II
RMV-1 Guntank II first appear as part of Mobile Suit Variations and design by Kunio Okawara
Kunio Okawara
is a mechanical designer in the Japanese anime industry. A mechanical designer is similar to a character designer, but the design is for robots, ships, and other mechanical items found in a particular show. Okawara was the first in the industry to be specifically credited as a mechanical designer...
.
F50D (RXR-44) Guntank R-44
The last "Guntank" model fielded is the F-50D Guntank R-44, a rejected prototype that transforms in to a usable mobile suit mode. It appears in the 1991 movie Gundam F91, and was under the ownership of Frontier IV war museum curatorCurator
A curator is a manager or overseer. Traditionally, a curator or keeper of a cultural heritage institution is a content specialist responsible for an institution's collections and involved with the interpretation of heritage material...
Jung Roy, who acquired the machine into his collection at the age of 44 and re-numbered it RXR-44. When Crossbone Vanguard invaded Frontier IV in U.C.0123, Roy, along with several other civilians, launched out in his prized R-44 into battle in a valiant but foolhardy act of resistance. The R-44 was later destroyed when an injured Seabook Arno
Seabook Arno
is a fictional character from the Gundam universe. He is the main protagonist in the Gundam movie, Mobile Suit Gundam F91, and also one of the supporting heroes in the manga, Mobile Suit Crossbone Gundam....
attempted to ram the tank into Dorel Ronah's XM-04 Berga Dalas, who in turn stabbed the tank with his shot lancer and caused it to crash against a wall.
The R-44's design was incorporated from an earlier transformable mobile suit, ECOAS's D-50C Loto, as seen in the 2007 novel Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn
Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn
is a novel by popular Japanese author Harutoshi Fukui . The novel takes place in Gundam's Universal Century timeline. Character and mechanical designs are provided by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko and Hajime Katoki, respectively...
.