Hathaway The Sorcery of Nymph Circe (Gundam 2026)

Last week, I went to see the Gundam movie Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway with my eldest daughter.
Even though it was midday on a weekday, the IMAX theater in Ikebukuro was almost full.
It had just been released, but I was still surprised at how crowded it was.

The audience was overwhelmingly male, and there were also many older people.
They were probably longtime Gundam fans—the generation who admired Gundam when they were young and still love it to this day.

The reason you should watch it in IMAX

This Hathaway-“The Sorcery of Nymph Circe” is Part 2, and expectations were high that the battle scenes would be even more powerful.
That’s why I thought a large screen would help me fully enjoy the experience—and it turned out to be absolutely the right choice.

I would say that the battle scenes against a vast landscape, along with the incredible sense of speed, are something you should experience—even if it means paying the extra IMAX fee.

Also, since the movie includes many dark scenes and some lines that are difficult to catch, I highly recommend watching it in an IMAX environment, where both the visuals and the sound quality are much clearer.

Can people who haven’t seen Gundam still enjoy it?

The honest answer is “No.”
But with a little background knowledge, you can definitely enjoy it.

Actually, I myself only became interested in Gundam after GQuuuuuuX in 2025, and I’ve been gradually watching the series since then, so I’m still very much a beginner.

To make things even more complicated, Gundam has what’s called the “official timeline” and also separate parallel storylines set in alternate universes. So in order to fully enjoy Hathaway this time, you need to follow the stories set in the “official” Universal Century timeline.

The SEED series and GQuuuuuuX take place in completely different timelines from the official one, so it can be difficult to fully enjoy Hathaway even if you’ve watched those.

The main storyline runs from the original Mobile Suit Gundam to Z, ZZ, and finally Char’s Counterattack, but watching everything can be very hard.
So I recommend watching the original Gundam, Char’s Counterattack, and then Part 1 of Hathaway.

What I liked most about this film was…

Personally, what I liked most about this movie was Gigi discribed as “Circe” in the movie.
She is a professional as the count’s mistress, highly intuitive, and constantly changing her fashion depending on the person she is with.
Now I already want to watch it again.

This Hathaway story was originally published as a novel from1989 to 1990.
Among fans, there has been a lot of debate about whether the movie will have an original ending or follow the novel’s conclusion.
Since I haven’t read the novel, I have no idea how it will end.
I’m curious, but I think I’ll save that surprise for a few years from now.