notes from ibo world + mechanics
these are some notes / tidbits i saw while looking at the ibo s1 and s2 world + mechanic books. they have interviews + notes / captions about the setting.
season 1 book:
nagai thinks they might have gone overboard in their portrayal of edmonton (hahahha)
the ars goetia theming was kinda sort random / just because, which they picked before mari okada began working as the writer. (nagai had also forgotten that 00 used angel theme.)
the "gundam frames" / skeletons were inspired by gunpla and how some models have an actual inner frame to build
ahab reactors are, of course, named after captain ahab because it gives the image of "guy who is fighting something large"
ryusei-go was originally going to be the name used for akihiro's mech. akihiro gets the graze, and since it's a mass produced unit, nagai thought to give it the name "ryusei-go" instead so it would stand out compared to the other grazes, and he had the mental image of akihiro with a somewhat annoyed face, thinking what a cringe ass name for a mech that is. however, since akihiro changes from the graze to gusion so quickly, nagai thought, "wait nvm, we can't use the name", but then he remembered that there is also shino, and so shino became the ryusei-go guy.
the eye marks on the ryusei-go are because nagai thought shino is the kind of guy who would have a mark. they're to get into the mood/spirit (vibes? they're for vibes). in a tv show, it's annoying to have a robot with marks (to contrast, he mentions it'd be a thing in an ova), so it was kept to a minimum.
the kutan was originally named kaisoku-kun (high speed-kun). nagai liked the name, but it seems he was the only one lol
season 2 book:
the mechanics section about flauros ominously implies that flauros is not really a good match for shino, but perhaps if they had found it sooner and modified it to better fit him as a pilot, things could have gone differently for tekkadan. (i feel like everyone is more trained as a melee fighter due to the nanolaminate armor in the setting. then shino in particular is a "rush in like a dumbass" type of guy, and they gave him the artillery firepower support unit.)
mech models, such as the graze, are in use for long periods of time. while this reflects reality (example given: fighter jets), it is also attributed to people's longer life spans in the setting.
makanai is in his ~180s when we meet him, and died in his ~190s.
paper is a commodity on mars, so nagai was careful about depicting things like offices w/document scattered everywhere. similarly, they use plastic boxes instead of cardboard boxes. thus, gjallarhorn/earth/etc having paper items like books (namely mcgillis's book about agnika) have more oomph when you see them.
there is no focus on the calamity war / etc since the story is about tekkadan, and reality is more important to them than history. (i appreciate this answer because it seems there is a desire for "an ibo prequel about the calamity war".)
the scene in the final ep where akihiro and mika say their full mech names is because to show that, yes, mika actually knows the full name of his robot lol. (i wonder if shino would have said flauros or ryusei-go if he was alive at this point? probably both.)
even though rustal maybe seem like a final boss, per nagai, there is no real final boss, and rustal is only the means to bring about an ending.
i don't recall this being mentioned in the anime, but, atra's bracelet motifs = protective crescent moon amulet for mikazuki, a cherry blossom for herself, and lily of the valley for her dear kudelia
tekkadan's food / atra's meals include dishes like polenta as a main dish. the sides have a south american flair, like lomo saltado, quinoa salad, and zanahorias (carrot in spanish. i assume they meant a type of carrot salad? carrot also happens to be a food shino hates... atra really has it out for shino, i guess. good for her, keep bullying the himbo.)
during season 2, the energy bars the guys are seen eating (the ones called "maximum") come in cheese, banana, and bbq flavor. however, mika continues munching on mars palms/dates.
(to be honest i was secretly wishing that nagai would say why the hell eugene is named "eugene sevenstark" when eugene is pronounced yuujin, a homophone with words like "友人 / good friend", and then there's an organization named "the seven stars" in-universe. hearing that "akihiro is the original ryusei guy" tho, haah.)
i misinterpreted the "mars coconut" part as being a flavor woops. it's not talking about an energy bar. that should be:
during season 2, the energy bars the guys are seen eating (the ones called "maximum") come in cheese, banana, and bbq flavor. however, mika continues munching on mars palms/dates.
i forgot the little nut/date-looking things he's always taking out of his pockets are called kaseiyashi.
Oh that makes sense.
Although hang on a moment...
Nah, no joy. I wondered if they showed the wrapper for the bar Mika wolfs down at Edmonton but they don't. I can't recall if we ever see him eating them elsewhere. Usually, if it's not Mars plums (which is what the dub calls them, although the English subs uses 'Mars palms'), it's Atra's sandwiches/wraps.
Oh, and hey, I realised after I reblogged the earlier version of your post that the ages given for Makanai fit relatively well with my assumption that the epilogue takes place 5-6 years after the final battle (I picked up a '6 years later' figure at some point early on but could not tell you where!).
