Synopsis:
The year is Universal Century 0079. 50 years have passed since mankind moved to enormous space colonies orbiting the Earth. The Side 3 colonies, which are the furthest from the Earth, have declared themselves the Principality of Zeon and launched a war of independence against the Earth Federation using gigantic humanoid weapons known as Mobile Suits. Intense fighting lasted for eight months, and both sides lost half of their respective populations.

However, one of the Federation's top scientists has designed a series of new Mobile Suits to combat Zeon's Zaku series, including the Guntank, the Guncannon, and the incredibly powerful Gundam. When Zeon caught word of this, they send a ship with three Zakus to Side 7, the colony on which the Mobile Suits were being developed, to investigate. One of the pilots becomes over-zealous and attempts to destroy the Gundam. However, Amuro Ray, the son of the V-Project's top scientist, decides to hijack the Gundam model MS in order to protect the colony. The Zakus find themselves terribly outmatched and are defeated by the young boy who knows nothing of battle. Since he's the only person with experience using the Gundam, the crew of the Federation's White Base ship begin to rely on him for protection. Faced against the terrifying Zeon forces and their ace pilot, Char Aznable, Amuro must learn to overcome his fears of war before they destroy him.

 

Review:

Okay, listen up, all you little Gundam-fan-wannabes out there: You're in my house now, and you're gonna sit down, shut up, and let the teacher give his lesson unless you feel like decorating your ass with his size 13s. "Oh, it's got grainy old animation!" "It's an old mecha series, it must all be about the robots with no substantial plot of its own!" Well, if you value your balls, punk, you'll keep your filthy trap shut.

And now that we've got that cleared up, let us proceed with the review, yes? I'll start off by saying that I actually didn't see a whole lot of the original series (Partly due to the fact that I was busy a lot when it was airing, partly due to the fact that Cartoon Network cut it short). However, with these movies, that isn't necessary. They give you a good idea of the story without a lot of pointless filler. And yes, there is a story. Too many people assume that it's horribly formulatic just because it's old, but in all honesty, it beats the pants off of many newer series, then proceeds to touch them in uncomfortable places.

 

So, yes, the story. It was the first mecha series I know of to break the limits of "Good vs. Evil". Why is this? Because both sides were damn corrupt. That's right, the Federation was not portrayed as a perfect body of justice, they were just the lesser of two evils. And yet, that isn't even where the really interesting stuff was. This isn't so much a story about the One Year War as it is a story about Amuro's growth. Breaking another stereotype here, Amuro was anything but the shining knight bravely riding to the rescue. Sometimes he would completely refuse to pilot the Gundam, and other times he would use it to fulfill personal vendettas. When he's not doing either of those, he's just following his orders. Of course, the series doesn't really specify whether Amuro's development is positive or negative. Sure, he gets some discipline and stops acting like a brat, but he also gains the ability to murder enemies without hesitation. Char is also one of the more interesting characters in the series, as we begin to see his true motivation for fighting under the Zabi Family. Don't wanna give away too many spoilers, though.

 

The writing is excellent. Tomino bests the rest, as always (That means you, Fukuda). The character development is portrayed very well. Honestly, the only anime series I can think of where it's portrayed better are Zeta (Tomino strikes again) and Full Moon wo Sagashite, which you'll find a review for here on AL that's really just great. That aside, Mobile Suit Gundam stands proudly on its own two feet.

 

The music is good, if not a bit campy at times. But hey, it's the 70s-80s we're talking about here. You've gotta expect a little camp here and there. The songs are memorable, and I find myself humming them often, but that may just be me (There are those who say I'm a bit awkward. Okay, so nobody else has dreamed of grafting laser cannons onto a homeless man's arms? Nobody?)

 

The animation is good for its time, but there are some noticable slip-ups that get kind of annoying, like when the Gundam's design suddenly changes. Sometimes the mouth plate of the head will have two slits, sometimes it will have three. Maybe the crest will turn entirely red instead of its usual red and white. Who knows? But if these tiny inconsistencies turn you off from the series entirely, it might be wise to invest in some "chill pills", or at least pull that huge stick out of your ass.

 

All the brevity that the story needs without losing anything big, which is good, since it's a great story (Despite dated and sometimes inconsistent animation). And if you don't agree with me and prefer to stick with your newer Alternate Universe shows, that's not my problem. Go watch Hero blow himself up or something.

 

Things I Learned From Watching the Mobile Suit Gundam Movie Trilogy:

-In the far off future, when we're fighting with giant robots, they will have absolutely no theft prevention mechanisms, nor security guards.
-Chauvanism is better than whining.
-In the far off future, the afro will be in style once again.
-If you kill your rival's lover, it's his fault.
-In the far off future, military personnel will wear tights and short skirts. Yes, the men, too.
-If somebody is about to kill you and you kill them, it's your fault.
-In the far off future, the computer screens we use for technological warfare will be pretty lame.
-The evil creature known as "Haro" was spawned from the depths of Side 7. Because Zeon hesitated to attack, it now roams through space, seeking new prey. The hunt is on...
-This is no Zaku, boy! No Zaku!

 

Rating:

 

   

    

 

   

   

 

   

   

 

 

 

 

(This review was written by LordQuadros) (Pictures made by Levon)