International distribution for the Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt: December Sky home video release of the theatrical cut of the web series continues on as Anime Limited has announced that they’ll be distributing it in the UK. The company has set it up in their shop with a May 22nd, 2016 cutoff for orders for it. This comes after Right Stuf announced they were handling North American distribution of the import release. With a strong relationship in bringing out Gundam material the last few years this is definitely welcome news for those that don’t want to work through the larger import hoops. The release is scheduled for a July 2nd, 2016 debut in Japan priced at $89.99. It’ll contain English and Japanese language tracks with English, Japanese, Chinese, French and Korean subtitles.
It comes with a bonus disc containing “Documentary of Thunderbolt,”storyboards from episodes 1 to 4 streamed exclusively in Japanese, staff and cast audio commentary, promo videos, and TV commercials. It’s not expected that any of these will be subtitled.
“Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt contains a storage box specially illustrated by Hajime Katoki, an 108-page “Animation Works” booklet containing line art illustrations and staff interviews, a sleeve case specially illustrated by Yasuo Ohtagaki, a jacket illustration specially created for this release, and a special 16-page booklet.”
The project has Kou Matsuo directing it and working on the scripts with it naturally being animated at Sunrise. Hirotoshi Takaya is on board with the character designs for it.
The cast includes Yūichi Nakamura as Io Fleming, Ryohei Kimura as Daryl Lorentz, Toa Yukinari as Claudia Palh, Sayaka Ohara as Kara Mitchum, Daisuke Hirakawa as Cornelius Caca, Shunsuke Sakuya as Graham, Mutsumi Sasaki as Burroughs and Hiroshi Tsuchida as J.J. Sexton.
The book, which began in 2012 in Big Comic Superior from Yasuo Ohtagaki, is a side story for the UC timeline set in 0079. It’s aimed at an older audience with more of a science fiction/military design than the traditional action-oriented materials of the last decade or so.
Plot concept: Federation troops and Zeon forces carry out a fierce battle in the Thunderbolt Sector in what was once Side 4 “Mua”. The Thunderbolt Sector is a shoal zone composed of the debris of destroyed space colonies, named for the electrical discharges from the metal debris. MS pilot Io Flemming is among the Federation soldiers who are dispatched to the area, where Zeon sniper Daryl Lorenz awaits them on the battlefield.
