Newtype August 2023: Ippei Gyoubu Interview on G-Witch’s Costume Designs

This is an interview of Ippei Gyoubu (Twitter) from Newtype's August 2023 issue, which was released close to the conclusion of the Witch from Mercury. The magazine did a feature of "composition" going into some of the main creative aspects of the show. 

While Gyoubu was most prominent as a mechanical designer for the show, mostly with the Jeturk House mobile suits, this interview goes into the costume and some other tech design he did. There's some interesting tidbits in how the team wanted to reflect the characters' personalities, as well as some choice comments regarding Guel.

Like last time, the English translation is by Windii (Twitter, Ko-fi). Thanks for her help with this, and consider commissioning her for JPN-ENG translations.

When we break down the world of Witch from Mercury, we get to see a lot of things. From costume design to the ending visuals, each creator was asked to break it down.

Composition

Interview: Gyoubu Ippei (Costume Design)

Mechanical designer and illustrator. He first participated in animation with Sacred Seven. His representative works include Reconguista in G, Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans, etc.

Unwavering Commitment to the Clothing

―How did you come to be in charge of costume design?

Gyoubu: I was contacted by producer Okamoto (Takuya) to help with costume design. I had already designed the pilot suit that Suletta wore when she came to the school in the first episode, and the pilot suit for the Jeturk company, but my first costume design was the business suit worn by the MS Development Council in "PROLOGUE." At that point, I was very much concerned with the "Gundam" theme, so I was thinking of suits with a military look or a strong science fiction element. However, during the design process, Director Kobayashi (Hiroshi) asked me to make them a little more like real business suits. I am glad that we were aware at the outset that this series would not be based on science fiction.

The suit worn by the members of the MS Development Council in PROLOGUE. The direction was set along the lines of a businessman's suit, faithful to the reality that director Kobayashi Hiroshi sought. This concept became the basis for the clothing design policy for this series.

―Is the director the type to give very detailed orders?

Gyoubu: Yes. He is very meticulous, and he gives us a very specific request for each order (laughs). For example, the loungewear that Suletta borrows from Miorine in episode 4 was ordered as two-piece pants-style pajamas. I was going for a simple, tasteful style that Miorine would have, but the director modified the style to be a little cuter with frills. In fact, when I looked at the finished footage, I saw the contrast between the two people, the country girl and the city person, which is essential to this scene, and it was not a priority to express the pajamas as belonging to the fashionable and sophisticated Miorine. That was a correction with a clear intention, once again.

The pajamas that Suletta borrows from Miorine in the fourth episode were specified in detail by Director Kobayashi. The contrast between Suletta in her unfamiliar pajamas and the urbane Miorine stands out in this scene, just as the episode director intended.

―I feel that the director's attention to detail is evident not only in the clothing design, but in the entire work.

Gyoubu: As was the case with directors Tomino (Yoshiyuki) and Nagai (Tatsuyuki), Director Kobayashi also picks up on the desires that I spill out. When he shows me how they lead to the charm of the characters, I get carried away and want to give more and more to him (laughs).

―What was your vision for the Suletta-related outfits?

Gyoubu: For the first pilot's suit, I imagined the silhouette of a classical space suit with the theme of a country girl from Mercury. I imagined a wrapping cloth-like bag attached to it, in which she carries snacks she used to eat during the trip, a stuffed towel that she has not been able to live without since she was a child, and so on.

The normal suit that Suletta wore when she arrived at the school. The unrefined vibe is an impression that immediately identifies her as being from Mercury, a frontier planet. The bear sticker on her helmet is a symbol that, according to Gyoubu, represents something that belongs to her.

―The private clothes are also designed by you.

Gyoubu: For the main loungewear, I wanted to get across that it's a favorite of Suletta's, who hardly has any clothes. It has French sleeves and a round-cut hem, and it has that feel of a highly recommended​ t-shirt that you wore at school for the first time. I was going to put the planetary symbol of Mercury (☿) on the chest print, but it was also questionable to have Suletta from Mercury wearing a souvenir T-shirt, so I decided to remove the arrows of the male and female symbol and fuse them together, so to speak, to create a "human symbol-like" design. I wanted to create a vibe that would express Suletta's honest love for humanity and purity.

This is the personal wear that Suletta was wearing in the Earth house scene in episode 5. It was designed as Suletta's favorite wear since it is what she wears in front of everyone. The aim was to create an outfit that is not spectacular, but has some embellishment and shows her attention to detail.

―Many of the clothes Guel wears when he reaches a turning point in his life have also been designed.

Gyoubu: Basically, I am in charge of Jeturk's mechanical design, so Guel is the most important person for me (laughs). First of all, Guel's outfit as Bob in episode 10 is too delicious a situation for a noble son to start over from scratch with nothing to his name. I guess you could say that even though he is wearing a rag, he has a sex appeal that cannot be hidden. I designed the costume to show Guel's upbringing, even though he is mixed in with the general public.

Work clothes from the company where Guel worked under the alias Bob. It is a common work uniform, but when Guel wears it, it is hard to hide his upbringing. The discrepancy between Guel, who used to be a noble son, and the work clothes he suddenly wears became a topic of conversation.

―You were also in charge of Guel's outfit for his return to the school in episode 16.

Gyoubu: It is obvious that Guel cannot come back to school in a clean outfit for this scene, but I designed it so that he would look cool no matter what he wears. Guel has never had the opportunity to wear street fashion, so I thought that if he showed up in a style that was an extension of his actual clothes, he would feel more familiar. My personal fantasy is that there is a pile of old clothes owned by Dawn of Fold, and it would be interesting to think that Olcott chose from among them. Also, the theme of the casual clothes worn in the hiding scene in episode 19 was to show Guel's collarbone.

Clothes worn by Guel upon his return from Earth; according to Gyoubu, it is imagined that Olcott chose these clothes from the large amount of used clothing that is sent to conflict zones for donations, etc. The boots of Dawn of Fold are assumed to be of the wrong size and worn with a layer of socks.

The clothes Guel changed into on Earth to follow Sedo; in Gyoubu's image, Guel was wearing Sedo's cap, and his clothes were supposed to be paired with the cap. The most important key point was to "show Guel's collarbone".

―Now that we're talking about Guel, you were also in charge of the president's suit.

Gyoubu: The suits for Lauda and Vim were not my responsibility, but the one Guel is wearing is a slight adaptation from that. Lauda and Vim's suits were tight-fitting and followed the lines of their bodies, but Guel works out, so I designed a boxy jacket with side vents so that his long legs would form a straight silhouette from his body. I also added sporty arrangements such as the stripes on the shoulder.

Guel's suit for his new position as CEO of Jeturk. The suit was designed to create a sporty image with reference to Vim and Lauda's suits. Arrangements were made to show Guel's well-trained body and proportions.

Jeturk's President's Clothing: Jeturk's CEO has a standard suit with a stand-up collar and side opening. Lauda's CEO suit was designed by character designer Mogmog, and Vim's CEO suit was designed by character designer Takaya Hirotoshi based on Director Kobayashi's concept.

―Could you also tell us about Miorine's president's uniform?

Gyoubu: At first, I imagined a female version of the president's uniform that Delling wore, but the director asked me to make this an extension of the business suit. I had originally designed Miorine's loungewear first, but I personally have the image of her liking simple, cool clothes like Prada among high brands, and I put together the president's outfit in that direction as well. Miorine's usual clothes were put together in the image color of gentle blue like Tiffany, but when she wears the president's outfit, she is acting in self-disguise and forcing herself to do things for Suletta. To express this, a blue supplement color with a hint of purple is used.

This suit worn by Delling, the president of the Benerit Group. While basically based on a modern suit, it incorporates particular gimmicks in the smallest details, such as the terminals on the back and the loop for the tie fastener.

The business suit worn by Miorine in episode 18. While based on a chic black base, blue was used as a color supplement. This blue is slightly more purple than Miorine's usual image color to symbolize her "posture in action".

―We heard that Cool and Hot of the keychain were also designed by you.

Gyoubu: The name of the order was "a lame keychain" (laughs). Suletta grew up in a different environment from everyone else, so she has a unique sensibility. Since the goods were chosen with her sense of style, they should not be too cute or too creepy. Since this is my personal area of expertise, I was able to design it quite freely. At first, the torso was longer and skinnier, but it was too creepy, so thanks to the director, we finally settled on the shape we have now. The name and the description of the mint chili-flavored snack as "a popular character known only to those in the know," which I wrote just for fun when I was designing, were glorious because they were taken up as an official trait.

Cool & Hot: The visualized characters for Cool & Hot, a subtle mint chili flavored snack food. Designed to symbolize Suletta's slightly off-kilter sense of style, the item was designed to strike the perfect balance between not too cute and not too creepy.

―What is your message to your fans?

Gyoubu: The premise was that the characters were drawn by director Kobayashi Hiroshi, Mogmog, Tagashira Marie, Toida Shuri, and Takaya Hirotoshi, and I was just helping them, so it was very gratifying to have this kind of attention. I uploaded illustrations on Twitter every episode, and I was happy to see how fans responded to them. It was very rewarding to see how the messages I put into each of the costumes was felt by the audience live.

Some of my own thoughts:

• As always, while I've seen Ichiro Okouchi's name credited online in most discussions about the show, a lot of these interviews show how heavily involved Director Kobayashi was in much of the show's creative direction. I may ruminate on this in the future.
• The comment about not wanting to base the outfits on science fiction seems odd, but I think it makes a certain amount of sense in going for a more grounded or contemporaneous style.
• I had thought the sticker on Suletta's helmet was a rabbit, but it seems they were going for more of a bear. Still, it kind of fits with the general "dog-like" approach Mogumo took with her character design as well.
• Similarly, I thought that the symbol on Suletta's shirt was supposed to be the Mercurian symbol, which in this case was half-right.
• Gyoubu's comment about Guel's "sex appeal" is remarkably frank, but I like him noting trying to emphasize his larger build in the different clothing.
• "Not too cute or creepy" is Gyoubu's self-declared area of expertise. I wonder what the "too creepy" version of the keychains could even look like.
• Although he doesn't touch on it here, I'm very curious to hear the design process for the Earth House casual wear as well, since I like all the touches that they each have.