How does GunBuster become Dix-Neuf?

Question

At the risk of going into anime physics, how does GunBuster become Dix-Neuf?

My understanding of the series is that GunBuster, the first Buster Machine ever created, was used in the final battle of GunBuster to drop off its Degeneracy Generator. It then limped back to Earth and appeared 15,000 years later

Then in DieBuster timeline you eventually figure out that Dix-Neuf, a Buster Machine with a number in the teens, has been slowly upgraded and rebuilt over a long period of time and is missing its own Degeneracy Generator. Because of that I assumed that Dix-Neuf and GunBuster are the same.

However, how did GunBuster become Dix-Neuf if GunBuster is still floating in space? What's the connection between the two machines?

Answer 1

Here's some more.

Krazer's answer was almost right in general but Sizzler series never had numbers because they were mass-produced types. According to comics version, Buster Machine No.4+5 is called Great Gunbuster.

The image above is prototype of gunbusterII. and...Here's Great Gunbuster.

Rumour has it that Buster machine No.6 is buster corps but since it's not official so I can't guarantee it. And finally, we know what is No.7. Plus, I heard another rumour that sizzler black has been rebuilt after escape from jupiter bomb and...became Dix-Neuf. Supporting references? Sizzler black lost its left arm in the Bomb and there's a comment that Dix-Neuf's left arm was artificial from old times. However, it is also non-official opinion, not believable.

Answer 2

I think the short answer is that this is a red herring. Dix-Neuf isn't the original Gunbuster, and the reveal is after the time-skip when the original finally gets back to Earth.

An un-sourced explanation from an /a/ thread says this:

All the old Buster Machines including Dix-Neuf were built with degeneracy generator, but the former humanity removed it to bury the technology as they branded it to be too powerful. Future generation replaced them with Topless cockpits (Topless being the power-source instead of the generator) and new production of Buster Machines aren't made for the said generators, so only the old generation ones can use them.

Answer 3

Here is a breakdown of the Buster Machines in Gunbuster:

• Buster Machine No. 1 = Noriko's Buster Machine
• Buster Machine No. 2 = Kazumi's Buster Machine
• Buster Machine No. 1 + 2 = Gunbuster
• Buster Machine No. 3 = Blackhole Bomb ("Jupiter-in-a-can")
• Buster Machine No. 4, 5 and 6 = Sizzler Black, White, Silver (mass-produced prototypes)
• Buster Machine No. 7 =

Nono!

If you compare the original Gunbuster to Dix-Neuf, the "new" buster machines are fairly weak compared to the old ones and considerably smaller than the original Gunbuster as well.

Take note that the original machine had a full-height hatch in the side of its hand. Nono appears to be roughly as tall as Dix-Neuf's hand is wide. If Dix-Neuf and the original Gunbuster are built on similar proportions, the original would be at least two to three times the size of Dix-Neuf, not to mention considerably more powerful since it could dispatch a large number of space monsters similar to the "variable gravity well."

It's never referenced how old Dix-Neuf is, but it has an original Buster Machine cockpit, a set of the Top uniform, and is Degeneration Reactor compatible. The greatest difference between the traditional Buster Machines and the TOPLESS Buster Machines are their power sources (to bend the laws of physics). Traditional Buster Machines have a Degeneration Reactor, each with an output greater than the Sun. TOPLESS Buster Machines are powered by their TOPLESS.

By grabbing a Degenerating Reactor from a Buster Corp unit, Dix-Neuf becomes Buster Machine No. 19, so it never was the original Gunbuster.