BB Senshi Sangokuden

BB Senshi Sangokuden is a toyline created by Bandai, commemorating the 20th anniversary of SD Gundams, and ongoing from 2007 to 2011.

A continuation of the long-running BB Senshi line of SD Gundam models, this series also draws upon Romance of the Three Kingdoms for its characters, whose designs are all based on classic Gundam models from the Universal Century to the semi-recent Gundam Wing and G Gundam. So far, the story has been divided into three chapters: Fuuun Gouketsu Hen, Eiyuu Gekitotsu Hen and Senjin Kettou Hen. Expanding on this is the sidestory Sangokuden Gaiden: Buyou Gekitou Roku, and now an Animated Adaptation with the subtitle Brave Battle Warriors currently airs after Keroro Gunsou.

Note: This article uses the Japanese version of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, and as such Cao Cao = Sousou, Liu Bei = Ryuubi, Sun Quan = Sonken.

Tropes used in BB Senshi Sangokuden include:

• Actor Allusion: The classic Mobile Suits that the Sangokuden characters are based on are sometimes referred to as 'actors', allowing for a whole pile of these to slip through.
  • Sousou will be voiced by Kenji Nomura, who has a record of voicing Magnificent Bastards (the Persian messenger and Lex Luthor)
• Affirmative Action Girl: Sonshoukou Gerbera.
• Amplified Animal Aptitude: The horses of the Nanban Kibatai are bred and trained to traverse the implausible terrain of the untamed Southern regions.
• Anachronism Stew: Ignoring the whole robot angle for a second, you've got characters armed with swords, spears, polearms mostly, and bows and throwing blades for ranged combat, alongside machine guns, BFGs, mobile artillery... there's also Sekitoba turning into a motorcycle, Kannei's jetski, the list goes on.
• Animated Adaptation: In the form of The Movie, double-billed with the fifth Keroro Gunsou movie.
  • This troper will die happy if it turns out half as good as this.
  • And now an animated series following The Movie (in 15-minute episodes) is now on air.
• The Berserker: Bachou Blue Destiny, Shukuyuu Gundam.
• Bifurcated Weapon and Swiss Army Weapon: Just about all of the characters (or at least their kits) have one or both.
• Blade on a Stick: Nearly everybody. (This is Three Kingdoms.)
• Bling of War: Nearly every set has gold parts (two notable exceptions, Shiba-I and Shuuyu, are the tacticians). A few deluxe sets up the ante with vaccuum metallised gold.
  • Shuuyu IS Bling of War, considering that his actor is the Hyaku-Shiki.
• Brick Joke: Reactions over one of Ryubi Gundam's twin katanas being "forgotten" for the anime were mixed, but the anime's final arc even goes on to omit one of the twin Phoenix swords that Sousou Gundam gets.
• Butt Monkey: Chouhi is pretty much the Butt Monkey around these parts. Though in Brave Battle Warriors, Sonken Dendrobium is openly mocked by pretty much everybody, since he has yet to level up.
• Calling Your Attacks: cranked Up to Eleven in the anime.
• Camp Gay - The Chou Trio, who speak with overly effeminate overtones and in Brave Battle Warriors, have body language to match.
• Combining Mecha: from the (heavily reimagined) Yellow Turban brothers to Shuu Neue Ziel with the Black Gyokuji and three sons of Shiba-I.
• Conspicuous CGI: Brave Battle Warriors mixes cel shaded CGI characters (usually leading ones) with normally animated ones, leading instantly to speculation that anyone not in CGI is not getting a model kit made. Jossed with Toutaku Zaku.
  • Toutaku Zaku did eventually get his own CG model for the last couple episodes he appeared in. Kanpei Gundam turns from cel to CGI in his debut episode.
• Cool Horse: Practically everyone, at least implied so - Ryofu Tallgeese has the Sekitoba, which turns into a bike; Chou-un Gundam has the Hieisen; Shouretsutei Ryuubi Gundam has the Tekiro; and everyone else gets the generic Hakugin Ryuuseiba, identical to Hieisen.
  • There's also the Nanban Kibatai, Moukaku Gundam's mounted cavalry.
  • The anime introduces Sousou's Zetsuei, a sharp, jet black affair.
• Cool Shades: Kan-U Gundam, Sonken Gundam, Sosaku Physalis and Sonken Zephyrantes actually have these incorporated into their design. The Shuuyu Hyakushiki model includes an alternate sticker for the eyes intended to invoke this.
• Crowning Moment of Funny: Sonshouko Gerbera's comic in its entirety.
  • From the Koutou Marines comic: Ryuubi's big plan to match Gou's naval prowess involves having Chouhi push their boat from behind and paddle like crazy all the way to the Red Cliff.
• Deal with the Devil: Heavily invoked when Shiba-En Zaku II tries to summon Shuu Neue-Ziel.
• Death by Origin Story: played straight in the anime. Lu Zhi GM Cannon and Tao Qian GM, we hardly knew ye.
• Dragons Up the Yin-Yang: Seiryu and the Shou kingdom consistently sticks dragons on everything.
• Everything's Better with Samurai: The 'spinoff' SD Sengokuden Bushin Kourin Hen.
• Expansion Pack Past: Pretty much the point of the Spin-Off Sangokuden Gaiden.
• Expy: Moukaku Gundam, based on the mecha, behaves like its pilot.
  • Sousou Gundam is more similar looking to Justice Gundam then his counterpart
    • For that matter, Kan-U has several elements from both Gundam ZZ and the Musha ZZ Gundam.
• Fan Nickname: An early group of antagonists, pirates based on the Hydra Gundam, Leo-R and Aesculapius have been dubbed the "G-Unit Pirates". Also the series as a whole has the nickname SD Gundam Dynasty Warriors.
• Five-Bad Band: The Five Giga Generals:
  • Kakouton Giros (The Dragon)
  • Kakouen Dalas (The Evil Genius)
  • Chouryo Gelgoog (The Brute)
  • Chouko Zaku II (Sixth Ranger)
  • Jyokou Serpent (The Dark Chick)
• Five-Man Band: Ryubi's Five Shou Generals:
  • Kan-U Gundam (The Big Guy)
  • Chouhi Gundam (The Lancer)
  • Chou-un Gundam (The Chick)
  • Bachou Blue Destiny (Sixth Ranger)
  • Kochu Gundam (The Smart Guy)
    • Incidentally, both five-man bands function as The Lancer to Ryubi and The Dragon to Sousou as a whole.
• The Four Gods: As symbols and motifs for the different factions instead of actual characters.
  • Seiryu, in blue, represents the kingdom of Shou and Ryuubi Gundam.
  • Suzaku, in red, represents the kingdom of Giga and Sousou Gundam.
  • Byakko, in yellow rather than white, represents the kingdom of Gou and Sonken Gundam.
  • Genbu, in purple rather than black, represents Toutaku Zaku's unnamed forces (though their flag carries the kanji for his name. And the soldiers are all in green for some reason.)
• Four Is Death: The Nanban Four Kings, based on the Walter, Grand, Heavens Sword and Master Gundams from G Gundam.
• Freudian Trio: Ryubi = Superego, Kan-U = Ego, Chouhi = Id.
  • Going by the factions themselves we have Shou = Ego, Gou = Superego and Giga = Id.
• Fridge Brilliance: The use of 'style names' from Three Kingdoms has been discreetly lampshaded - there's an overabundance of characters that simply have 'Gundam' tagged behind their proper names, but fans of the franchise will be able to identify them as Sonken GP03 , Sousou Double X, Kochu RX-178 and so on. Just as 'style names' were intended.
  • And sometimes it works out a little too well: Huang Gai Gongfu is now Kougai Gouf.
  • Both of Moukaku Gundam's archetypes, Meng Huo and Domon Kasshu, turned out to be Xanatos Suckers.
    • There's also the way Sun Ce's reputation as the "Little Tyrant of the East" mirrors Anavel Gato's reputation as "the Nightmare of Solomon"... and Gato's other two mecha being adapted as a Blood Knight (Chouryou Gelgoog) and an Eldritch Abomination (Shuu Neue Ziel).
  • With the conclusion of the toy comics, the animated series Brave Battle Warriors looks set to be based on an in-universe retelling commissioned by Kyou-I F91, which would make the series a Dramatisation of the official continuity the same way the Three Kingdoms novel was to actual history!
  • Casting all civilians (in both genders even) and Butaihei soldiers as the same RGM-79 archetype becomes a little less egregious when you realise that this is exactly how Butaihei soldiers are supposed to come about; by drafting civilians into (presumably) co-ed armed forces.
  • From the Gaiden sidestory, the Insufferable Genius Bashoku Gundam is a remold of the Strike Gundam from the equally polarizing Gundam SEED.
• Gratuitous English: the anime trades the Fuun Gekitotsu etc. subtitle for "Brave Battle Warriors."
• Heel Face Turn: Several. Most of them even keep the motif of whichever faction they defected from (see The Four Gods above).
  • With the notable exception of Kyou-I F91, who goes through an Expository Design Change.
• Hey, It's That Voice!: According to the official site, Kan-U is Germany. And Sonshoukou is Rihoko.
  • Gundam alumnus here: Chousen was Marina Ismail. Enshou Bawoo was MASTER ASIA.
• Historical Beauty Update: this may be the only Three Kingdoms adaptation that DOESN'T depict Zhang Fei and Meng Huo as The Big Guy Boisterous Bruisers. And Dong Zhuo is above average in size but NOT fat.
• Historical In-Joke: The descendants of Sima Yi may have won in the end, but here they've only seized control of a dark version of the Imperial Seal, and it's not been doing them any favors..
• Homage: The characters (and some MacGuffins) draw their design not only from classic Gundams, but Koei's treatment of the Three Kingdoms characters in all their Dynasty Warriors games. Lu Bu's pheasant feathers? Ryofu Tallgeese has 'em. Ma Chao's wild hair? Bachou Blue Destiny has ARTICULATED hair. Sun Ce's giant tonfa? Wait till you see what Sonsaku Physalis' shoulder boosters double up as.
• Hour of Power: The Five Shou Generals experience this with the Ryuukihou.
• IKEA Weaponry/Swiss Army Weapon: Seveal. The box for Kakouen Daras even proclaims "6 different weapons in 1".
• Instant Awesome, Just Add Mecha
• Legacy Character: several, particularly in Sangokuden Gaiden. Ryuhou and Choubou even carry weapons identical to those of Ryubi and Chouhi respectively.
• Loads and Loads of Characters
• MacGuffin: The Tengyokugai, Tenkaisyo and Ryuukihou double as IKEA Weaponry. The Black Gyokuji may be based on Psycho Gundam but acts as a MacGuffin instead of a character.
  • And there's the Gyokuji, the Imperial Seal that ignited the whole war in the first place.
• Mecha Expansion Pack
• Mega Neko: Sonken Gundam's Goutaitei upgrade involves the Kourinpaku, a massive tiger-shaped coat of arms.
  • Apparently the gate of Korou Fortress is shaped like one.
• Merchandise-Driven: reaches an egregious level when the new Kiba Breaker toyline, featuring our heroes on motorised mounts that are basically Weaponised Cars with horse heads, make it into the anime.
• Mid-Season Upgrade: Invoked at different points with Ryuubi Gundam, Sousou Gundam, Koumei Re-GZ, Sonken Gundam, Ryofu Tallgeese and Shiba-I Sazabi.
  • The anime does something similar after Tengyokugai is awakened and a brief Time Skip is invoked - our heroes use the time to upgrade into Ryousou (Dragon-Armor) Ryubi, Ogasou (Demon Tusk-Armor) Kan-U, Raisou (Thunder-Armor) Chouhi, Gurensou (Red-Mantle) Sousou and Mokousou (Tiger-Armor) Sonken. All this is placed chronologically before the ones stated above.
• Military Mashup Machine: Lampshaded with Moukaku Gundam's elephant cavalry (the use of elephants in war is Older Than Feudalism) that transform into tanks (their more contemporary equivalent).
• Mooks: The Butaihei, modelled after the RX-79 GM (for Shou, Gou, Giga), Zaku-1 (Toutaku Zaku and maybe Giga), and Leo (Ryofu Tallgeese's personal army). Moukaku Gundam has the Nanban Kibatai.
• Mythology Gag: For starters...
  • Shouretsutei Ryuubi resembles the Hakuryu Taitei Gundam, acknowleging the nobility of his bloodline
  • Chou-un, the youngest of the Five Shou Generals, being based on the V2 Gundam
  • Bachou's Red Eyes, Take Warning mirrors the effect of the Blue Destiny EXAM system
  • Moukaku, bearing the title Ashurao, not only resembles the Gundam Ashurao but mimics the Asskicking Pose normally adoped by Shining or G-Gundam in their boxart
    • Shukuyuu is known to fly into a Berserker Rage just like Allenby
  • Sonsaku Physalis is possessed by Shuu Neue Ziel late in the storyline - both are based on Anavel Gato's mecha
• Nice Hat
• Omake: This seems to qualify.
• Only One Female Mold: All the female models are the exact same build, regardless of age, while males come under regular, Toutaku, and Ryofu Tallgeese.
• Palette Swap: Glaringly obvious with the three factions' footsoldiers, all based on the RX-79 GM and only differentiated by color.
  • Among the named characters, there's Gien Gundam, identical to Kochu Gundam but based on the 'Titans' recolor into which their archetype, the RX-178, was also recolored.
  • Shiba-I Sazabi goes through one for his promotion to Giga Taifu, particularly notable as he gets recolored INTO the Sazabi's normal colors (white to red).
  • This happens more often with the merchandise of course - not just straight recolors, but the Kanpei Gundam and Shuusou Doven Wolf sets include recolored Ryuubi parts.
• Plug N Play Technology: several cases thanks to the model kits' interchangeability. The Ankoku Gyokuji in particular is capable of combining with different characters to become Expies of One-Winged Angel-class mecha from different Gundam continuities.
• Power Gives You Wings: Several. Notably Kyou-I Gundam upon assuming his full F-91 form.
• Punny Name: the Nanban Kibatai. 'Kiba' can mean both 'fang' or 'horseback riding', but this mounted cavalry carries standards with the kanji for 'fang'.
• Put on a Bus: Ryofu Tallgeese in the first chapter. Ryuubi Gundam and Sousou Gundam at the end of the second chapter.
  • He's Back: All of them....
• Real Is Brown: Take a look at the recolored Koumei Re-GZ and Shuuyu Hyakushiki for the tie-in with the live-action movie Red Cliff.
• Rule of Three
• Sailor Earth: the number of unused Three Kingdoms or even Dynasty Warriors characters, coupled with the immense amount of leftover Gundam mecha provide prime fodder. Xiao Qiao Methuss, Cao Zhi Airmaster, Cao Ren Leopard...
• Scarf of Asskicking: Sonken Zephyrantes and his Chousa Four Riders have been retconned with these in the anime. Bright red. Can't miss 'em.
• Shoulders of Doom: several, particularly the Ryukihou whether it's on Shuuretsutei Ryubi or the Five Shou Generals. The Brave battle Warriors version of Shuuretsutei Ryubi has the added option of swapping his regular shoulderpieces (Kan-U and Chouhi's) with all the ones the other Five Generals would use.
  • Shuu Neue Ziel is almost all giant shoulders.
• Shout-Out: Sonshoukou Gerbera - based on the GP04, carries the weapons of the Rising Gundam, and wearing Chun Li's outfit.
  • The anime gives special emphasis to any scene with Shuuyu and Koumei together.
• The Smurfette Principle: Out of the three named female characters, Chousen Qubeley, Sonshoukou Gerbera and Shukuyuu Gundam, one has already been Stuffed in The Fridge early on. It's the first one.
  • For that matter, Red Cliff introduced the immensely popular character Xiao Qiao, who notably has no Expy in Sangokuden, yet there's no plans to add her to the lineup.
• Spared by the Adaptation: a select few, most notably Chousen Qubeley.
• The Strategist: Koumei Re-GZ, Shiba-I Sazabi, Shuuyu Hyakushiki.
• Take Up My Sword: Most notably Sonken Zephyrantes (Sun Jian) to his second son Sonken Gundam (Sun Quan).
• Theme Music Power-Up: Episode 50 full stop.
• Took a Level in Badass: Kyou-I, from smalltime Giga field tactician based on a Zaku-II to heavily-armed Shou general based on the Mobile Suit Gundam F91.
• Transforming Mecha
• Turtle Power: Ryofu Tallgeese, the only model kit under the turtle emblem of Toutaku Zaku's forces, and still the biggest Badass. He'll be joined in the toyline by his superior Toutaku Zaku, who's covered in guns for no reason other than to be covered in guns.
• What Could Have Been: Averted, as the Brave Battle Warriors line now includes model kits of 'forgotten' characters like Kousonsan Ez-8, Toutaku Zaku, Ten-I Asshimar and Enshou Bawoo.
• The Worf Effect: Kouten The.O, the Yellow Scarf Rebellion's most powerful weapon, goes down almost immediately to make way for Toutaku Zaku's forces.
• You Have Failed Me...: See Put on a Bus above. Guess what Sousou Gundam does upon his return.