Farewell, Gundam: Tokyo's life-size statue farewell ceremony to be broadcast live

An official farewell ceremony has been announced for the life-size Gundam statue in Tokyo. The event will be broadcast live—an opportunity to pay tribute to one of Japan’s iconic pop culture installations before its removal.

Sayonara (さようなら): An Official Farewell

An official farewell ceremony—the "Farewell Final Ceremony"—has been announced for the life-size Gundam statue in Odaiba (Tokyo), according to SoraNews24. The event will be livestreamed, allowing fans worldwide to attend.

The news spread quickly through international fan communities. For many, this statue is more than a tourist attraction: it is a symbol of what Japan can achieve when it blends engineering, pop culture, and large-scale artistic ambition.

Background: The Unicorn Gundam at Diver City

Since September 2017, a life-size replica of the RX-0 Unicorn Gundam (ユニコーンガンダム, from the series Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn) has been on display at Diver City Tokyo Plaza in Odaiba. It is this statue whose farewell ceremony has been announced.

Japan has a long tradition of monumental Gundam installations. Before the Unicorn Gundam at Diver City, an RX-78-2 (the original Gundam from the 1979 series Mobile Suit Gundam, created by Yoshiyuki Tomino and Sunrise Studio) was installed in Odaiba in 2009 for the franchise’s 30th anniversary, then dismantled. More recently, a mobile RX-78-2—the "Moving Gundam" at the Gundam Factory Yokohama—could move its head and arms before the site closed.

The Gundam franchise (機動戦士ガンダム, Kidō Senshi Gandamu) is one of Japan’s most important intellectual properties: it has spawned dozens of series, films, model kits (gunpla), and merchandise, and remains a major cultural touchstone for multiple generations. The future of the Diver City site and any potential replacement installation remains uncertain.

What This Departure Means

These statues are cultural landmarks as much as attractions. Their temporary nature is almost intentional—in the Japanese tradition of mono no aware (物の哀れ, "the pathos of things"), beauty is often heightened by the awareness of its impermanence.

That the ceremony will be livestreamed says something about the international audience this franchise has built. Gunpla model kit fans from Rio de Janeiro to Paris, gamers who grew up with Gundam VS games, anime enthusiasts who cried watching Zeta Gundam or Unicorn—all will be able to witness this moment.

To attend the ceremony: the livestream will be broadcast live—details on where to watch will be confirmed via official Gundam channels. SoraNews24 will cover the event for international readers.