Mobile Suit Gundam Composer Yuushi Matsuyama Dies

This week, fans of Mobile Suit Gundam are taking a moment to pay their respects to one of the anime's founding composers. Yuushi Matsuyama died last week after his house caught fire. The musician was 79 years old.

As reported by Sankei News, Matsuyama's house caught on fire on April 7t at 4:35 p.m. local time. The fire originated on the second floor of Matsuyama's home, and local authorities were able to rescue the composer from his home. When firefighters pulled Matsuyama from the wreckage, he was taken to a hospital were staff pronounced him dead. Right now, there is no cause associated with the house fire, and authorities are still investigating the case.

Matsuyama was known within the anime fandom for his work on Mobile Suit Gundam. The composer created the beginning and end themes for the anime. However, the musician also worked on other projects such as Heidi, Tensai Bakabon, Samurai Giants, and more.

If you don't know much about the franchise and want to know more, then you can join the anime's fandom at any time. Having debuted in 1979, the first Mobile Suit Gundam anime debuted in Japan to mixed reviews. However, time treated the series kindly, and generations of anime lovers have since ranked the franchise as one of anime's most influential to date. The show's action-packed inclusion of massive tech suits was a hit amongst fans, and its compelling war story also left audiences on edge.

Set in a distant future, Mobile Suit Gundam tells the story of a war that breaks out between two factions, and the bloody conflict sees its tides turn with a teenage boy unveils a new robotic weapon to the battlefield. Over the years, several spin-off titles have been released which expand upon the massive war, exploring different factions and teams who helped fill in the frontlines.

If you want to know more about the anime's various series, you can see which ones scored the highest fan-ratings here!

[HT] Kotaku