So You Want To Watch Gundam.
I often get asked, “Sophie, I want to watch Gundam because you’re posting it all the time. Where do I start?” Well, you’re in luck because today, I’m going to give you my guide for classic Gundam, since I always feel it’s best to start at the beginning. The guide will cover the first three series and the movie finale. Apologies for the long post, I can’t seem to find the Read More function…
#1: Mobile Suit Gundam
This is where you start out. This is the original series, launched in 1979. It takes place in the year 0079 of the Universal Century and focuses on a young boy named Amuro Ray. He starts off as a civilian until he takes the Federation’s prototype mobile suit into combat to defend his home colony. He is then thrust into combat and learns that he has extraordinary abilities that surpass that of normal human–essentially, he, and many other characters in the series–are the next step in humanity’s evolution.
The enemies in the series are the Principality of Zeon, a group of patriots from a section of space colonies located on the far side of the moon. In the forefront is Char Aznable, who quickly becomes Amuro’s rival. However, Char has ambitions of his own, namely a grudge with the Zabi Family, the ruling family in the Principality…
Mobile Suit Gundam launched the “Real Robot” genre–a series where the machines are not superheroes/supervillains, but instead, pieces of military hardware, and with a greater focus on character interaction. The show was actually cancelled before it could have been completed, however the director Yoshiyuki Tomino was able to get a one-month extension, which was, frankly, a better end than what we would’ve gotten.
There are several ways to see Mobile Suit Gundam. My preferred method is to watch the original movie trilogy. These are compilations, and trim out a lot of the fat (namely mobile suits/armors that felt like “Monsters of the Week”) and condense a lot of sillier elements. Make sure you watch these in Japanese, as the English dub is very, VERY questionable.
The second is the TV series, which as you can guess, has a lot more to it, but a lot of it isn’t that essential. Beware of very, VERY outdated animation. This series had very little as far as budget goes. It also has a very good dub.
The third is the manga series, Gundam: The Origin, which is written and drawn by the original character designer. Some minor story and aesthetic changes are made, and of the three main adaptations, it goes into the most detail, showing many events that occurred “off-screen” in the original series, or just didn’t happen period. It’s currently being released by Vertical in the US, and is available on Amazon. It’s also getting an anime adaptation next year, something which we’ve wanted for many, many years.
#2: Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam
Zeta Gundam takes place over 7 years after the end of Mobile Suit Gundam, and takes the series in a new direction. This series focuses on a boy named Camille Vidan, and yes, that is a girl’s name. This time, though, things are shaken up a bit. The Federation is now the enemy, namely, their elite Titans force. They make up an oppressive force within the space colonies and Earth, causing the formation of rebel groups like the AEUG (Anti-Earth United Government) and Karaba. Things take an interesting turn when a group of renegade Zeons appear on the scene at the series’ halfway point.
Both Amuro Ray and Char Aznable return to the series, with Amuro taking a minor role and Char (under the alias Quattro Vageena) essentially as Camille’s mentor. Zeta is far darker in tone than the original series, with a VERY high body count–one of the highest in the franchise. Characters from the original series appear in supporting roles in addition to a great main cast of characters on all sides, as well as featuring the debut of Haman Karn and Paptimus Scirocco, two of the franchise’s most popular villains.
There are two ways to watch this, but only one is recommended. The TV series is available to watch on Daisuki.net. There are also three compilation movies however they are not recommended. These were made 20 years after the series and frankly, thanks to Sunrise, are kind of a rushed mess. However, the new animation featured in some scenes is beautiful, and is worth watching after you see the series.
The dub is decent, however, it uses a different cast than Mobile Suit Gundam did, so you’ll hear new voices for Amuro, Char, Bright, etc.
#4: Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ
Picking up immediately where Zeta left off, ZZ (pronounced Double Zeta), is a stark contrast to Zeta’s dark tone, coming in at the most lighthearted of the series. It revolves around Judau Ashta and his team of junkyard dogs trying to steal the Zeta Gundam to sell on the black market, but of course, they end up getting dragged into the continuing war with Neo Zeon. Some characters from Zeta return, however, don’t expect to see Amuro and Char this time around. The villain of the series is once again Haman Karn, now complete regent of the asteroid Axis. While it starts off silly, it does return to a more serious tone as the show progresses.
The series is only available in TV format, and was never officially released on DVD in America. However, like Zeta, it’s available to watch on Daisuki.net. Subtitles only, of course.
#4: Mobile Suit Gundam: Char’s Counterattack
This is the final story involving Amuro and Char, and their final battle. Char has returned to the villain seat, now leading his own Neo Zeon faction. He has one goal: to get all of humanity to leave the dying, polluted Earth behind and move into space. His method? Drop the asteroid Axis onto Earth and plunge the planet into a nuclear winter. It’s a high-octane battle between the two classic rivals of the Universal Century. The movie stumbles as far as motivations and character choices go, however, it serves its purpose to close the book on the Federation/Zeon conflict, and it does that quite successfully.
Char’s Counterattack is available as a single movie, and was Gundam’s first fully-original theatrical release. It was released on DVD in the US, with a dub track by the same cast as Mobile Suit Gundam. However, I’d suggest watching some of the Blu-Ray rips for this one, as they look fantastic.
OK everyone, now that I’ve clogged up your dashboards, please, go ahead and watch Gundam the way it was meant to be enjoyed. :D
