This is the Iconic Non-Combat Quote from 'Mobile Suit Gundam'! Chef Tamura, Responsible for the Crew's Lives, Says 'We're Short on Salt'

You can't fight on an empty stomach. Without the head chef, who knows what might have happened to Amuro and the others... In the anime "Mobile Suit Gundam," there was a character who made a strong impression despite only appearing a few times. That character is Chef Tamura (voiced by Ichiro Nagai). In episode 16, there's a scene where he earnestly pleads with Bright Noa (voiced by Hirotaka Suzuoki) about the salt shortage, saying it affects their fighting capability.

The White Base was heading west across the deserts of Central Asia, cut off from communication with the Earth Federation Headquarters. Within the sphere of influence of the Principality of Zeon, the crew aboard the White Base battled their anxiety and drowsiness as they awaited contact from General Revil, which hadn't come despite the promised time.

Amidst this, Tamura, while delivering breakfast, quietly consulted with Bright, saying, "It's my carelessness. We're out of salt; could you possibly obtain some?" Unfortunately, just at that moment, a messenger from General Revil arrived, interrupting their conversation.

Later, when Bright finished dealing with the messenger and exited the infirmary, Tamura was waiting. When Bright asked, "Is there something you need?" Tamura once again emphasized the seriousness of the salt shortage. However, Bright, citing the presence of Zeon's strongest troops ahead, replied, "It's simply impossible to obtain it." Yet, Tamura didn't back down, convincing Bright by stating, "Without salt, it will affect our combat strength," and managed to alter their course to include a salt lake.

The lake they aimed for had the unique characteristic of swinging east and west like a pendulum every 500 years. Unfortunately, the lake wasn't where they targeted, and upon realizing they couldn't obtain salt, Tamura was devastated. He lamented that his actions had endangered the White Base. After repelling an attack from the Ramba Ral team, they eventually found the relocated salt lake. "Now we can get salt!" Tamura smiled once again.

In his first appearance in episode 9, Tamura was complained to by Kai Shiden (voiced by Toshio Furukawa) with "Your complexion is too good!" and faced dissatisfaction from Amuro Ray and Ryu Jose over differences in meal content. Additionally, in episode 33, he was shown going out to buy groceries, satisfied that "Now I can serve something different."

When it comes to enduring war, the importance of resupplying weapons and ammunition goes without saying, but "meals" are just as essential. Although Tamura appeared infrequently, his role was crucial, akin to Bright's, in being responsible for the crew's lives. Tamura, the unsung hero, added a sense of realism to the story of "Mobile Suit Gundam."

Incidentally, in the movie version, Tamura's rank is Lieutenant, making him higher in rank than Captain Bright.

The anime "Mobile Suit Gundam" is a robot anime produced by Sunrise, aired from April 1979 to January 1980, directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino. It pioneered the new genre of "real robot anime," greatly influencing subsequent animations. Although its ratings during the original broadcast were lackluster, its popularity skyrocketed with reruns and movie releases, leading to a "Gunpla" boom and unprecedented success. Numerous series and spin-offs have been produced to this day, maintaining high popularity.

(C) Sotsu・Sunrise