Gundam Turns Iconic Mobile Suits Into 370-Year-Old Japanese Art for Exclusive New Ceramic Collection

Bandai is blending Mobile Suit Gundam with one of Japan’s oldest ceramic traditions for a new six-piece collection that reimagines iconic Mobile Suits and characters through centuries-old Japanese artwork.

Created through their STRICT-G JAPAN label, the new ceramic set brings the original 1979 anime together with Kutani ware, a style of decorated porcelain that has been produced in Ishikawa Prefecture for approximately 370 years.

Kutani ware is particularly associated with bold overglaze decoration, with black outlines traditionally combined with thickly applied Japanese pigments using the five colors known as Kutani Gosai: red, yellow, green, purple and deep blue.

For this new collection, Bandai has matched six familiar Gundam subjects with different historical Kutani decorative styles.

The RX-78-2 Gundam and Gouf are represented using Ko-Kutani-inspired designs, while the mass-production Zaku II receives a Yoshidaya-style treatment.

Char Aznable’s red Zaku II uses an Iidaya-inspired design, Dom is interpreted through the Mokubei style, and Char himself completes the collection with artwork based around the Shoza tradition.

Using a different style for each design gives the ceramic collection plenty of visual variety, with the colors, patterns and surrounding decoration changing to suit each Mobile Suit or character rather than repeating the same treatment across all six plates.

The choice of characters also keeps the collection firmly connected to the original Mobile Suit Gundam, covering Amuro Ray’s RX-78-2 alongside several of the Principality of Zeon’s most recognizable machines and its famous Red Comet.

Each ceramic plate measures approximately 10 cm in diameter and 2 cm tall when laid flat, placing them in the traditional mamezara category of small Japanese dishes commonly used for condiments, side dishes and other small servings.

All six are supplied together in an original wooden presentation box, reinforcing the idea of the set as a traditional craft collectible rather than a group of individually packaged character plates.

The ceramic collection continues STRICT-G JAPAN’s broader focus on combining Gundam with Japanese craftsmanship, following its recent Mobile Suit Gundam SEED collaboration with Fukushima artisans that resulted in Shirakawa Daruma based on Strike Freedom Gundam and Infinite Justice Gundam.

Bandai has explored similar ideas elsewhere in its 2026 merchandise as well, including a series of Entry Grade Gunpla kits that surrounded RX-78-2 Gundam, Strike Gundam, Wing Gundam and ν Gundam with ukiyo-e artwork inspired by traditional Japanese prints and Mount Fuji imagery.

This new Kutani ware collection takes that interest in traditional Japanese art directly into the material and production of the items themselves, with the ceramic craft forming an integral part of each Gundam design.

Pre-orders for the “STRICT-G JAPAN Mobile Suit Gundam Kutani Ware Mamezara 6-Piece Set,” priced at ¥13,200 (approximately $86 / £64), opened through Premium Bandai Japan on September 11 and are scheduled to remain available until September 27 at 11:00 PM JST, although orders will close earlier if the allocated quantity sells out.

The collection will also become available at select STRICT-G stores across Japan from September 19, while online orders are currently scheduled to ship during October 2026.

Source: Essential Japan — News — Read the original article