“Mobile Suit Gundam II: Soldiers of Sorrow”, Original Release Japanese Movie Poster 1981, B2 Size (51 × 73 cm) L289
This is an original Japanese B2 poster printed in 1981 for the first theatrical release of Mobile Suit Gundam II: Soldiers of Sorrow (機動戦士ガンダムII 哀・戦士編). Released in Japan by Shochiku on 11 July 1981, the film forms the second chapter of the original Mobile Suit Gundam theatrical trilogy and represents one of the defining works from the emergence of the “real robot” anime genre.
The poster bears the original Shochiku Film identification at upper left and features a monumental painted composition associated with legendary character designer and animation director Yoshikazu Yasuhiko.
Film background
Mobile Suit Gundam II: Soldiers of Sorrow re-edits and expands the central portion of Yoshiyuki Tomino’s original television series. It follows Amuro Ray and the crew of White Base through increasingly severe battles, including their encounters with Ramba Ral, the Odessa campaign, Char Aznable’s return, and the advance towards the Earth Federation headquarters at Jaburo.
This second film is often regarded as the emotional centre of the original trilogy. Amuro’s youthful idealism is steadily replaced by exhaustion, grief, and an increasingly acute awareness of the human cost of war. The film combines large-scale military conflict with intimate tragedy, presenting its mobile suits not as invincible superheroes but as weapons operated by frightened and vulnerable people.
The principal creative team includes Yoshiyuki Tomino as supervising director, Yoshikazu Yasuhiko as character designer and animation director, and Kunio Okawara as mechanical designer—three figures central to the visual and narrative identity of the Gundam franchise.
Poster design
This Japanese B2 features an exceptionally atmospheric composition dominated by three monumental figures: Amuro Ray, the RX-78-2 Gundam, and Ramba Ral.
Amuro walks forward alone across a cold, undulating landscape, carrying his helmet loosely at his side. His lowered posture and sombre expression convey psychological fatigue rather than conventional heroism. Behind him, the enormous head of the RX-78-2 Gundam rises against the pale sky, its glowing red eyes introducing the poster’s only intense accents of colour.
To the left appears the helmeted figure of Ramba Ral, rendered in the same restrained blue palette. His inclusion gives the design particular emotional significance: Ral is not presented simply as an enemy combatant, but as one of the film’s most dignified and tragic adult figures.
The vertical campaign line reads:
「哀の地平に覚醒めるか 愛！」
Approximately:
“Will love awaken on the horizon of sorrow?”
The copy directly reflects the Japanese subtitle 哀・戦士編, literally suggesting a chapter of “Soldiers of Sorrow.” It captures the film’s defining tension between warfare, personal loss, and the possibility of human connection.
At lower right, the artwork carries the printed signature:
“YAS.”
This is the familiar signature associated with Yoshikazu Yasuhiko, whose expressive character work helped define the human dimension of the original Gundam series.
The restrained cream, grey, and deep-blue palette distinguishes this poster from more action-driven mecha advertising. Its emphasis on solitude, landscape, and psychological weight makes it one of the most refined and emotionally resonant designs from the original Gundam theatrical campaign.
Condition
Very Good+. The poster presents strongly, with rich colour and excellent overall visual impact. Original fold lines, light handling creases, minor surface wear, and small age-related marks are consistent with an authentic theatrical poster of this period. Please review the photographs—they show the exact poster for sale.
This poster is an original Japanese theatrical B2 from the 1981 first-release campaign.
It is not a reproduction or a modern reprint.
It is approximately 45 years old.
Certificate of Authenticity included.
