SD Gundam Musha Banchō Fūunroku (SDガンダム武者番長風雲録) is a short-lived SD Gundam manga series, a spin-off from the popular Gundam anime. It is authored by Masato Ichishiki and ran in Comic Bom Bom. The Bancho in the title is Japanese slang for student delinquents

Story

The series appears to be a sequel to the earlier SD Gundam Musha Maruden. Official relations were formed between Earth and the land of Ark. At an inter-racial school attended by humans and Mobile Citizens, young Ryuunosuke befriends fellow student Kokuryu. Life at the school can sometimes be fierce, with student gangs seeking to disrupt the harmony. But in the face of this, Kokuryu reveals a powerful ability- although he normally looks like a little kid, he can transform into the maturer samurai warrior Kokuryu Gundam. The series initially involves his battles against similar robotic creatures along with Gundam friends such as the bishōnen Hakuou Gundam and good natured/rough and ready Sekijishi Gundam. Eventually a mysterious group emerges, forcing Kokuryu and company to leave simple schoolyard scraps behind and engage in life or death combat. The general merchandising gimmick for this series involves the Gundam's being able to combine. This is similar to the gimmick for the series Transformers: Energon

Characters

Each of the Gundams are introduced in an order with visual similarities to the same order of the Universal Century:

Main characters

Gigantic Musha Modes - Gachinko

Minor characters

Enemies

Schools

Collected volumes bonus content

The collected third and fourth volume present extra content that was not seen in the original Comic BomBom publishing. Volume three contains a trio of yonkomas focusing on: As the series was Ichishiki's final SD Gundam work, volume four presentes a bonus chapter in which Kokuryu encounters Mushamaru, Wakamaru, Bakimaru and Retsumaru, the leads of the three previous series penned by Ichishiki.

Model kits

The major gimmick for the model kits is their ability to combine into pre-designed forms. For example, both Kokuryu and Hakuou can transform into the legs or upper body of a larger Gundam design and combine to create a completed Gundam model. However, playing into the popularity of SD Gundam customisation, the models also suggest various other ways to make a combination. These include: By itself, each kit can form one of two forms- a smaller child form or a larger adult form. The child form makes use of a limited number of parts (usually at least the head and torso) whilst the adult forms use all of them. Kokuryu and Hakuou come with instructions for combining their left over parts into catapult-like weapons. In the manga, the Gundams upgrade themselves using cuts of a special scroll. A simulated length of this scroll was included with Hakuou Gundam's kit. Similarly, Sekijishi Gundam comes with a makeshift stand for his surfboard which is made from the smallest parts runner and a cardboard wave cut out from the side of the top lid of the box. After the release of BB #292 Seirou Gundam in August 2006 the line entered a hiatus with no further kits from the series produced. With the continuation of the manga and the recent unveiling of new forms for Kokuryu and Hakuou, it remains to be seen if any further kits shall be produced. The manga presents several kits that don't exist in reality, such as a High Grade Leo from Gundam Wing. Both Kokuryu and Hakuou can combine their forearm armour onto their forehead as a weapon. Notes on the instruction sheet for Kokuryu's model kit imply Ichishiki based the look on a large quiff, a hairstyle commonly associated with bancho culture in Japan.

Information links

Publisher links