Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz - Manga Version Changes

Manga Version Changes

Published in 1997, the manga version of Endless Waltz was handled by Koichi Tokita, the writer responsible for most of the Gundam Wing manga. While the manga cleaves most closely to the OVA, it has several additions and changes not present in either animated version. Please note that this list does not include minor dialogue changes.

• There are minor costume changes throughout the manga. For example, Heero wears a different outfit in his flashback dream, while in the anime, he wore his outfit from the TV series.

• The resource satellite that is launched into the sun is changed into Vulkanus, the mobile doll plant from Battlefield of Pacifists, another Gundam Wing sequel manga illustrated by Tokita. This fact is alluded to early on, but is more important just before the final battle when Lady Une suggests using the Virgos on Vulkanus to fight Dekim. Zechs flatly refuses the idea, going so far as to threaten Une's life if she makes the order, and insists that he'll handle things personally.

• The scene where Trowa confronts Dekim (and is stopped by Wufei) is extended, in which Trowa claims that he took on Dekim's son's name as a show of allegiance to the Mariemaia Army. Dekim then boasts to the soldiers that the presence of two Gundam pilots proves that they are just. Interestingly, Dekim says that he harbors no ill will towards Trowa for his son's death.

• Zechs calls Lady Une from a city street to ask for enrollment into Preventer, instead of coming to her office. Unlike the anime, the manga shows his face. Additionally, he knows about the existence of the Tallgeese III, and specifically requests it.

• A brief scene shows a soldier telling Mariemaia about Heero and Duo's break-in, but she simply tells Relena that it's a minor disturbance; Relena, however, immediately knows that it's Heero.

• In the anime, Duo recognizes Trowa as the Serpent's pilot because it uses Trowa's preferred tactic of heavy suppression fire. In the manga, Duo recognizes it because Trowa uses an acrobatic maneuver to dodge one of Duo's attacks.

• Trowa's description of Operation Meteor is accompanied by a series of illustrations showing how the plan would work. Notably, the scene ends with an image of the original five Gundams, but re-imagined in Tokita's style. Though Wing Gundam appears the same as in the series, the other four combine elements of Katoki's "Customs" with the original versions, such as Gundam Heavyarms' beam gatling and Gundam Sandrock's shoulder missiles. However, just like the animated version, Tokita uses the Custom versions in all flashback sequences.

• Dorothy appears at the beginning of the fourth chapter, watching the Serpents descend from her mansion. Her hairstyle, as well as the mansion, are inspired by Battlefield of Pacifists, in which she played an important role.

• When Dekim, Mariemaia, and Relena arrive at the Presidential mansion, Relena has a brief flashback to a scene from Battlefield of Pacifists, in which Heero promised to be there whenever she needed him.

• Wufei's flashback includes minor elements of the prequel manga Episode Zero, with Master Long disagreeing with Operation Meteor and asking Wufei to fight according to his own sense of integrity.

• A new scene shows Zechs and Lady Une assessing the situation in Brussels before Zechs deploys. In addition to the event described earlier, this scene includes a cameo appearance by Dick Higasaki, the engineer from Tokita's popular spin-off manga G-Unit.

• Wufei gets a brief flashback to Treize's death; as with the rest of Endless Waltz, this scene replaces the original Altron design with Katoki's.

• Wing ZERO and Altron's duel is more equal than in the anime as Wing ZERO doesn't receive any noticeable damage until the very end, when Heero actually allows Wufei to strike him down.

• Dorothy appears among the crowd of civilians near Altron, as do the President and his granddaughter.

• Some character endings are slightly different. Tokita's version features the strongest hints towards a relationship between Heero and Relena, as Heero stays on as her bodyguard, complete with a Secret Service-like suit. On a more humorous note, Duo's ending features him wearing a baseball cap with "Gundam 20th Anniversary" written on the front.