Design unchanged for nearly 40 years......The enthusiasm and sincerity of Wave that continues to produce plastic models of "Armored Trooper Votoms" (Hobby Industry Inside Vol. 54)

The robot anime "Armored Trooper Votoms" aired in 1983. There is probably no other anime that has been more closely associated with "plastic modeling" and "modeling" than this one, from the very beginning of its broadcast.
Immediately after the end of the old Takara plastic model series, the AT (Armored Trooper. Wave Co., Ltd. was one of the first to release remodeled parts for AT (Armored Trooper, the generic name for the robots appearing in "VOTOMS"). The AT, which had not been commercialized for some time, was sculpted as a garage kit. We interviewed Mr. Yoshikazu Asahina of Wave's Development Department, who is in charge of the 1/35 plastic model series that has been in development since 2014.

What exactly are the specifications for "faithfully reproducing the settings"?

───The PS (Pro Spec) version of the "Diving Beetle" will be released in late October, and the long-awaited "Berzelga WP" will be released in late February next year, 2020. Does this mean that the AT in the Kumen Arc will continue for a while?

Asahina: No, the OVA "Burglary Dog" from "The Brilliant Heresy" will be released later this month, and I don't intend to concentrate on the Kumen Arc.

─ ─ But the first one was "Rabid Dog" from the Quent Arc, wasn't it? I thought for sure that the lineup would follow the TV series from the back .......

Asahina: There are many variations of "Scopedog," so if we continue with only Scopedog-type products, customers will get bored. So, after we release a Scopedog lineup, we try to add another AT next. For example, after releasing the "Scopedog Turbo Custom" that appeared in the OVA "The Last Red Shoulder," we decided on the lineup based on the idea that the "Bloodsucker" would be necessary as a counterpart.


───Bloodsucker has been released as a resin kit, but this is the first time it has been sculpted as an injection kit.

Asahina: Since this was an aircraft that appeared in an OVA, away from the restrictions of television, the designer, Kunio Okawara, seemed to have designed it freely. It is often said that the lines are similar to those of the "Aoki Ryusei SPT Reisner".

─ ─ However, in the setting, the Bloodsucker would later lead to the "Strike Dog," right?　Did you ever think about making the plastic models consistent with the development lineage?

Asahina: We did not pay particular attention to the lineage in the settings. We are focusing on the three-dimensional modeling of each AT in each setting. I am careful not to put my own interpretation into the development lineage.

─ ─ Even among the ATs that appeared on TV, "Mercy Dog" and "Scopedog" should differ only in their lower bodies, right? However, looking at the setting drawing, the Mercy Dog is a little thicker. When I covered Bandai's Gashapura before, I heard that they made Mercy Dog's thighs a little thicker.

Asahina: If there had been an order at the time of the broadcast, "Mr. Okawara, please draw Mercy Dog's thighs thicker," I would have made them thicker. However, if you look closely, you will notice that the shape of the head is flatter than that of Scopedog, and the shape of the visor with the lens is also different. In other words, the thickness of the thighs may also be within the margin of error due to the fact that they were drawn by hand.

───The former Takara's 1/24 Mercy Dog had slimmer legs as an impression, didn't it?

Asahina: The original "1/24 Scopedog," which was the basis for the Mercy Dog, was a gem in the history of character plastic models. However, when compared to the setting drawing, there were no identical parts at all, and it was only completed as a plastic model. However, it is difficult to arrange the same logic as that Scopedog now. Our stance is to conform to the setting drawings and reflect the opinions of Sunrise when they are expressed. We first draw a three-sided drawing and then begin discussions. Then, the curvature. Mr. Koichi Inoue, who was a staff member of "VOTOMS," is helping us with this project. Mr. Inoue is very helpful because he puts red lines on the three-dimensional drawing, and there are no abstract instructions such as "make it look cooler" or "just make it look stronger.
In this 1/35 kit, I don't think in terms of "let's change it because it will look cooler this way. We are aiming for the greatest common denominator, which is "If this picture is made into a 3D model, it will certainly look like this", even if it is not as good as ......, which overlaps exactly with the setting picture if photographed from the same angle.