Mobile Suit Gundam

After almost ten years of giant toys ruling anime, 1979 was the Year of the Gundam. Although 25 years old by now, and cheaply produced at the time, this anime is still very enjoyable and deep. Many are the reasons of its success... some here below:

• No aliens coming to rule the Earth. This is a war for independence. Men against men. Same blood color;

• No good guys vs bad guys. Here everyone fights to survive, it doesn't matter if they agree with war reasons or not. It's everyman fight.

• No giant samurai robot vs. monsters from outer space. Robots in "Gundam" are conventional mass produced weapons as good as tanks or choppers, for both sides. They need energy, fuel, ammo, maintenance, logistic, recover, repair, spare parts. Al these goods are often unavailable in the middle of the battlefield;

• No heroes. Just ordinary people, youths throwed in the middle of a war they didn't want and still can't understand. And, in some of them, Fear will ignite boys' growth to become men;

• no fairy tales. In Gundam people, lots of main characters, dies. Often in ungloryous ways. Often in second rank battles. But they always die for what they think is right. Sacrifice to protect a friend, not to win a battle;

Even being closer to war movie than to Sci-Fi, Gundam is still known as one of the most important and revolutionary examples of Science Fiction. I often ask myself why a good expansive Hollywood adaptation of first Gundam series hasn't still be made...

In fall of 1979, Kidô Senshi Gandamu (Translated as Mobile Suit Gundam) premiered on japanese television to low ratings and general disinterest among japanese youth. The main problem is that most of the kids who watched Giant Robot animé were used to the thin plots and superheroic meka of the older shows, most of which were little more than thirty minute long toy commercials. They didn't know what to make of the complex plot and deep characters. So the show was canceled, and ended nine episodes early.

However, some months later, something unusual happened. While Gundam toys were gathering dust on the shelves, highly detailed scale model kits based on the show's Mobile Suits were selling incredibly well. And while the japanese networks were offering 'more of the same' in first run broadcast, this little known and seemingly unpopular series was gathering a huge fan following in syndication...

Now, 20 years later, we in the US finally are going to get to see what started it all. I can't believe that such shows as Macross (Robotech: The Macross Saga) and Armor Trooper Votoms, which are the direct line decendants of Gundam in storytelling and portrayal of realistic mecha, would be brought to these shores years ago, while the show that started it all would be left to languish until now.

The way was paved by 1995's visually beautiful, but ultimately empty Gundam Wing. While this was a wise business choice for Bandai, knowing that the spectacular visuals would capture the attention of the 'all important' kids's market, we dedicated fans can't help but wish that the original had been the first one released. Wing, while visually spectacular, is little more than a muddled and overly preachy and pretentious pastiche of the Universal Century saga (Gundam,Zeta Gundam, ZZ Gundam, and Gundam: Char's Counterattack) with out the cohesion of plot that the original shows contain (Although with ZZ, cohesion of plot can be argued.)

Yes, I know that the animation doesn't stand up to Gundam Wing. However, what do you expect? The show was made over 20 years ago. If you want eye candy, go watch Wing. If you want a truly outstanding story and characters, join me to watch the original Gundam, the most influential and important animé of all time, or, if you don't have Cartoon Network, at least watch the compilation movies (Sub only though, as poor Neil Nadelman was for some reason forced to use Star Trek doubletalk in the script for the dub.)

I had the fortune to ignore New Mobile Report Gundam Wing when it came out for the first time in America. The next year the original Mobile Suit Gundam aired on television for the first time and I was attracted by its complexity and depth. All the characters are likable Federation And Zeon.

Completely detailed so to be considered a universe of its own, MSG, apart from the misadventures of the young White Base crew and the obsession of Char Aznable to follow the White Base (carrier ship), is more in the war genre than science fiction. History repeats itself like in World War II when the Germans ceaselessly looked for the perfect machine to defeat Allied Forces, the Zeon ceaselessly look for the perfect mobile suit to combat the Gundam. The determination of winning the war at any cost makes the Zeons meet their own demise at the end of the One Year War. Amuro Ray pilots the Gundam. He and many other crewmates never had any combat experience before being attacked at their own space colony. As they experience the horrors of war, they have to learn to stay alive when Zeon persecutes White Base through space, the earth and back to space again.

Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket, The 08th MS Team, Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory, Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam, and Char's Counterattack are the only series and movies directly related to the original Mobile Suit Gundam. The rest of the Gundam series are alternate versions, or alternate universes.

Mobile Suit Gundam gave new depth to anime from the end of the 1970's well into the present.

I am not what people might call a "long time fan". My first Gundam show was "Gundam Seed" for crying out loud. I have heard the outcry of many fans as to the unoriginality of Gundam Seed, hence i decided to "go back to the source" and check out the original 1979 Gundam series: The legend that started it all. My chance came when it was shown on local TV for a while(too bad it never completed its run and was replaced by the 3rd rerun of Gundam seed again) "Oh the horror!". My thoughts exactly as i sat through the painfully campy opening theme song. As i shook my head in disgust over the horrendously childish lyrics that sounded like some rejected theme song from Tetsuwan Atom(Astro Boy to you guys in the west), i prepared myself for the worse disappointment in my life.

And i was so proved wrong.

Gundam's story was anything BUT childish or campy. I presented a very real and very engaging war story about a gifted youngster and his friends thrown into the heat of combat by circumstance.

The story goes that "The Principality of Zeon" wages war with the Earth Federation over authority in the outlying space colonies. The war soon spreads to the colony "side 7" where our main character, Amuro Ray, resides. Following an unprovoked attack on the colony, Amuro and his friends stumble across the prototype Federation mobile suit called "Gundam". A series of events lead up to our unlikely heroes landing on board and becoming drafted as the crew of "White Base", a powerful Federation space carrier commanded by the then ensign Bright Noa. This motley gang soon learn to work together and in due time, they and Gundam come to play a pivotal role in the war.

I was at first impressed by how The drama and inter character relationships and interactions play out as good as some live action TV shows and they manage to engage you on an emotional level that many anime fail to. You get a sense that the characters really grow and evolve as the story moves along, never falling too far into the usual stock character stereotypes. Aside from some well developed characters, I like how the story manages to weave in some underlying philosophies and thought provoking points of view on war. It lends an edge to the show that makes it a whole lot "smarter" than your average shonen adventure or super robot series.

I actually found myself more interested in the ZEON side of the conflict. There was a subplot of political backstabbing and "power-play" among the ruling party of ZEON. Very intriguing. What was more intriguing was the mysterious Char Aznable. Aside from being a highly skilled mobile suit pilot and "rival" to Amuro Ray, bits and pieces of his past and ulterior motives are revealed little by little in such a way that makes you want to know more about him. He is easily my favorite character among all the characters from various gundam series.

True to the hype, the numerous battles in Gundam are done so much more realistically than the more recent Gundam Seed and Gundam 00. Also, there is a greater emphasis on teamwork between Amuro in the Gundam, the weapons and support team on White Base and the other pilots in the other mobile suits. The inexperience of the crew and the vulnerability of the Gundam make each battle a true nail-biter with a greater sense of true peril than battles in the recent Gundam series.

Admittedly, this is not an easy series to get into, mainly due to its age. Already mediocre compared to other anime series that came out in the late 70s and 80s, the animation style is painfully dated compared to today's fare. But I urge all you people who are hungry for some well thought out war drama to look past the superficial aspects and embrace the essence of what Gundam is.

Look past the dated animation, skip the opening theme song if you must, and you will find out why MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM is such a well respected and influential anime classic.

PS: Why is Gundam Seed's picture there? This is supposed to be the original Gundam, not Gundam Seed.

Macross, Evangellion, and Patlabor. All of these series pale in comparison to the original mecha piloted by a young man with a competitive spirit.

Young protagonist Amuro Ray is pulled out of his everyday monotonous life and is thrown headfirst into adventure and war just by pushing a button or two. Amuro must pilot the Gundam to save his friends. Rivals are made, obstacles are presented, and battles are fought, and Amuro through it all becomes a man and a great pilot, but that's only half of this war story. The other half is about the man in red, Char Aznable, the mysterious masked man who is an ace pilot for the fascist Zeon army, who always pilots red mechs, his signature color, hence his nickname "the Red Comet". No one knows where he came from or what his true objectives are, and this is what draws you in to him. His rivalry with Amuro takes center stage in much of the series, and it keeps you on your toes. Just when you think you got it figured out the battle situation changes.

If you are thinking this show is the campy "good guy always prevails over bad guy" cliché, you're in for a rude awakening. The plot and character's features are a staple for future Gundam series, such as Gundam Wing and more recently Gundam Seed. The formula is the same, the main character is a young man thrown into war and finds a bitter enemy in an enigmatic blond masked man. The formula is interpreted differently in both these shows, but Amuro and Char set the standard for an enjoyable plot that can be imitated in many different ways. Always imitated but never duplicated.

Old men tell me War and Peace is something everyone should read, and I tell them Mobile Suit Gundam is something everyone should see. Sure it has giant robots killing each other but behind the machines there are elements of war that are all around the world today. The pitfalls and the possibilities, the consequences of battle and the reason to fight. I rank Mobile Suit Gundam up there with Platoon and Full Metal Jacket since it shows how violent and horrid war can really be.

The definitive anime for 20+ years, Mobile Suit Gundam. Who will survive?