One of the greatest joys I get as a curation editor for Polygon is being able to share some cool shit with readers. Case in point: Good Luck Kingfisher Three, an explosive, beautiful mecha anime-inspired short film that premiered on YouTube this Saturday.
This season’s best mecha anime is a student film inspired by Mobile Suit Gundam
Good Luck Kingfisher Three is a fantastic homage to Tomino & co.
Toussaint Egan (he/him) is a curation editor, out to highlight the best movies, TV, anime, comics, and games. He has been writing professionally for over a decade.
Created by a talented group of animation students at San José State University, Good Luck Kingfisher Three was submitted as a thesis project for the SJSU’s animation program. Directed by Simon Hirose, assistant directed by Shay Heath, and storyboarded and color scripted by Timn Lam and Theodore Cox, the 2D/3D hybrid short film feels like a love letter not only to the legacy of the Mobile Suit Gundam franchise, but to the iconic artwork of sci-fi artists like Syd Mead, Craig Mullins, and Chris Foss. It’s brilliantly conceived, impressively well animated, and damn cool to watch.
Good Luck Kingfisher Three follows a team of two mecha pilots dispatched to infiltrate a supposedly neutral space colony in order to acquire intel on a secret enemy weapon that could turn the tide of a bitter interstellar war for independence. After entering the colony, the team come face to face with enemy forces, as well as the mysterious enemy weapon itself.
