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One of the most iconic Japanese anime series is currently celebrating it’s 40th anniversary. Originally released in 1979, Mobile Suit Gundam has revolutionized anime. While it has not had the same cultural impact in the West, in recent years there has been growing interest in the franchise, including the intent to produce a live-action Hollywood movie.

But where to begin in a franchise that current spans 21 television series, 10 theatrical movies and 27 OVAs? That answer is not straight-forward, but Weeabuds has your back. The Gundam franchise is essentially broken into two halves: the Universal Century and Alternative Universe. Where to begin depends on what the viewer wants to take away from the franchise.

Universal Century

Universal Century is where it all began. In fact, most fans consider the main core of the franchise. Named after the calendar system in which the shows take place, UC shows contain themes of transhumanism, space colonization and wartime trauma. Often the protagonists are Newtypes, humans that have evolved to living in space and possess almost supernatural reflexes that border on precognition as well as telepathic abilities. While the core shows and movies were released between 1979 and the early 1990s, lately there has been something of a revitalization for UC Gundam. More and more new content has been released, especially in the last 10 years.

There are two ways that are often recommended for first time views. Production order and Chronological order. Production order is simply the order in which the series were released, where as Chronological Order is the order in which the shows are based. For example, Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam first aired in 1985 and takes place in UC0086. Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory was released in 1991, but takes place in UC 0083. With chronological order, the viewer would watch Stardust Memory before Zeta Gundam. Do not do this. Weeabuds wholly rejects chronological order on the basis of the fact that later shows rely on knowledge that comes from watching earlier produced shows. The ending of 0083 would be far less punchier without having seen Zeta Gundam first. Go with production order. So where to begin? With the original series. Mobile Suit Gundam.

Mobile Suit Gundam (1979)

The OG. Still one of the better shows in the franchise and certainly one of the most iconic. Taking place in UC0079, the series takes place during what will later be called The One Year War. A group of space colonies called The Principality of Zeon has declared war against the ruling Earth Federation. In this war, the primary weapons used are giant bipedal tanks (read: robots) called Mobile Suits. Their introduction has skewed the war in Zeon’s favor since they have Mobile Suits and the Earth Federation does not. But that’s about to change. In the original series, the titular Gundam is a prototype weapon developed by the Earth Federation that falls into the hands of civillians, whom must safely escort the prototype to Earth Federation HQ in Brazil while being constantly under attack by the enemy.

The main character is Amuro Ray, a whiny, slightly misogynistic and anti-social teenager who happens to be the son of the designer of the Gundam. By sheer coincidence, he becomes the pilot of the Gundam. Opposing him is the mysterious and effortlessly cool Char Aznable, a masked ace pilot from Zeon, who harbors his own hidden agenda. The rivalry between these two men has become iconic in Japan.

There are two ways that one can experience the original Gundam series. Either the TV series or the compilation movie trilogy. I often see people recommend watching the compilation movies in favor of the original series. I can see their point, but personally I prefer the TV series. While the compilation movies move at a brisker pace, it comes at the cost of some great moments. Either way, you’ll still witness one of the greatest science fiction shows ever made. Do note though: Even if you watch the original TV series, try to watch Mobile Suit Gundam III: Encounters in Space. There is quite a bit of new animation and story sequences that are considered canon.

Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam









Bright-slap!

Released in 1985, Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam propelled the series forward 8 years after the original series. This time the Earth Federation are the villains, having ceding much of their power to a fascist branch of the government called the Titans, who have cracked down on the space colonies with an authoritarian grip. In response, a group of freedom fighters calling themselves the AEUG has emerged led by a guy who looks and sounds suspiciously like Char Aznable but goes by the name Quattro Bajeena.

Zeta Gundam continues many of the same themes of the original series. This time around, the main character is Kamille Bidan. Intially enraged at the adults who have forced the earth into its situation, Kamille eventually grows up with help to mentors like Quattro and Amuro. It’s a dark, stylish take on the franchise that established many of the key themes tropes that would continue in later series. Like the original series, Zeta Gundam also received a compilation movie series. Do not watch these. They’re barely coherent. Stick to the original series.

Mobile Suit ZZ Gundam

Taking place only a few hours after the conclusion of Zeta Gundam, ZZ Gundam (read Double Zeta Gundam) deals with the aftermath of the final battle from that show. The AEUG is in sorry shape and takes on group of New Type orphans in order to fight against their new foe, Axis Zeon.

Views on this show are divided. Tonally, it is very different show from Mobile Suit Gundam and Zeta Gundam. Instead of a brooding protagonist like Amuro or Kamille, Judau is a fun loving mischievous dude. Your mileage may vary, but I personally like it. Besides, its footprint is big enough in later shows that it is worth watching just to be able to catch the references.

Mobile Suit Gundam: Char’s Counterattack

Originally the conclusion of the central Earth Federation vs Zeon storyline, this 1989 movie centers on the endeavors of Char Aznable (now the leader of Neo Zeon) to drop an asteroid on Earth, forcing a nuclear winter. Amuro Ray must once again pilot a Gundam and fight his old frenemy.

This movie is a masterpiece. Other than one specific character, this is a perfect movie that needs to be scene. If you can catch up fast enough, Fathom Events is screening the movie one night only on December 5th.

What to Watch Next

With the core UC shows out of the way, you can go in a few different directions. There is a movie called Gundam F91 that places 30 years after Char’s Counterattack, that centers around a faction trying to re-establish an aristocracy. After that, there is Mobile Suit Victory Gundam. Often considered the grimdarkest Gundam series, it is certainly the series with the highest named character kill count. Rumor has it that Victory Gundam was written while series creator Yoshiyuki Tomino was in the throes of depression.

After Victory Gundam came out, UC has been relegated to films and OVAs for the last twenty years. These vary in quality. Some are great, such as 0080: War in the Pocket. Others aren’t worth watching such as Gundam Igloo. Make sure to checkout Gundam Unicorn, though. Unicorn, which takes place three years after Char’s Counter attack, is fantastic. It has one of the best soundtracks in any piece of media ever made. If all else fails, follow production order. See below for a list of UC Gundam shows. If the name has a (+) next to it, it is a series that Weeabuds strongly reccomends. If it has a (-) next to it, it is worth skipping. We’ve included the year it takes place in as well if you do decided to watch Chronological order. Again, not reccomended.

One final note: While Gundam Thunderbolt is technically a UC series, it really is in its own continuity. It just borrows UC characters and factions and does its own thing with it (and is fantastic as well)

UC Gundam Master List (Production Order)

Mobile Suit Gundam (UC0079) (+)

Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam (UC0087)(+)

Mobile Suit ZZ Gundam (UC0088)

Mobile Suit Gundam: Char’s Counterattack (+)

Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket (UC0079) (+)

Mobile Suit Gundam F91 (UC0123)

Mobile Suit Victory Gundam (UC0153)

Mobile Suit Gundam: The O8th MS Team (UC0079)(-)

Mobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOO: The Hidden One Year War (UC0079)(-)

Mobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOO: Apocalypse 0079 (UC0079) (-)

Mobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOO 2: Gravity Front (UC0079)(-)

Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn (UC0093)

Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin (UC0069 – UC0079)

Mobile Suit Gundam: Twilight AXIS (UC0096)

Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt (Alternative version of UC0079) (+)

Mobile Suit Gundam Narrative (UC0097)

On the horizon is a movie series based around the novel Hathaway’s Flash. No concrete details have been given on release date though.

Alternative Universe

The Alternative Universes are a bit harder to lock down on where to begin. Almost all of theme are unrelated to each other, though a few do have sequels, with often the only connection between giant robots. What to watch really depends on what interests you. We’ll highlight some of the more unique and important AUs.

Mobile Fighter G Gundam

The First AU created mixed Giant Robots with martial arts, G Gundam is a fan favorite. Hotblooded Domon must represent NeoJapan in a tournament to decide the ruling government of the Earthsphere, while looking for his brother who went missing after stealing the Dark Gundam. This series is a fan-favorite due to its over-the-top nature and passionate main character.

Mobile Suit Gundam Wing

This was the first Gundam series to be popular in the West, thanks to airing on Toonami in the late 90s. It centered on five teens who are given powerful Gundams and sent to earth in order to get revenge for the assassination of a prominent colony politician. It has it’s fans and is certainly watchable, but it does not do anything that was not handled better in UC Gundam. An OVA called Endless Waltz followed up the series, which is kind of forgettable.

The Gundam designs are pretty good though.

Turn A Gundam

A divisive series, but one that Weeabuds considers to be a masterpiece. Featuring artwork reminiscent of a Miyazaki film and a soundtrack composed by Yoko Kanno of Cowboy Bebop fame, this beautiful series is a post-post apocalypse story about people from the Moon trying to re-settle on earth and the conflict that erupts.

The series has less action then many in the franchise, but has more world and character building than most in the franchise. It also has a vaguely steampunk aesthetic, which is unique for the franchise.

Mobile Suit Gundam Seed and Seed Destiny

I’ve been dreading getting to this point. For some reason, Gundam Seed is extremely popular in Japan. For the life of me, I can’t figure out why. The first series is essentially a boring retelling of the original series, but with ugly character designs, generic music and overwrought mecha. By time I reached the ending of Gundam Seed, I was exhausted.

Gundam Seed Destiny actually started off okay. The first 6 or so episodes showed promise. Plus the main villain is voiced by franchise veteran Shuichi Ikeda, known for his role as Char Aznable. He’s very cool in this show too. But after 6 episodes, the show nose dives. It manages to be the least watchable show in the entire franchise. Skip SKIP SKIP.

The only piece of Gundam Seed media worth watching Gundam Seed C.E. 73: Stargazer. That OVA is pretty good.

Mobile Suit Gundam 00

Made by the same team that did Fullmetal Alchemist, Gundam 00 is the first in the franchise to cover post-9/11 themes. The main characters are essentially terrorists that have been sent to Earth with the goal of uniting the planet against a common foe. Featuring great characters, this series ran for two seasons. It was followed up by a movie, Mobile Suit Gundam 00 the Movie: A Wakening the Trailblazer. It’s not great.

Gundam Build Fighters

Gundam Build Fighters is unique in that it takes place in modern times. Rather than being weapons of war, the characters fight with Gundam models (Gunpla) in a tournament. The original series is great. Iori Sei is one of the best protagonists in the series.

It was followed up by Gundam Build Fighters Try, which isn’t great. Most of the original cast has disappeared, replaced with far more inferior characters. There are still echos of the original, so it’s at least watchable but ultimately forgettable. There were also two OVAs, Battlogue and GM’s Counterattack.

Mobile Suit Gundam Iron-Blooded Orphans

A gritty story about child-soldiers trying to carve their own place in the world, this is a cautionary tale about how children can be manipulated by predatory adults seeking to further own goals. I was not onboard with this series at first, but it great on me as it went on. The second season is better than the first. It is relatively low tech for the franchise. The main Gundam, Lupus, is powerful but not dominating. Certainly an interesting take for the franchise.

What Else to Watch

There are a few other AUs as well. After Wars Gundam X is a post-apocalypse take on the theme. Think Mad Max with robots. Gundam AGE was created as a joint venture with Level 5 and tells the multi-generational story of a war between the Earth and mysterious aliens. Reconguista in G was a long hyped project which saw the return of series creator Yoshiyuki Tomino, but resulted in a bizarre overly complex mess.

Then there is Gundam Build Divers and Gundam Divers Re:Rise. Similar to Gundam Build Fighters, instead of battling directly with models the action takes place in a VR video game. Like Universal Century, we’ve included a list of AU shows. (+) represents a show we reccomend, (-) represents a show to avoid. The list is in production order except when related shows and movies will be grouped together.

AU Master List (in Mostly Production Order)

Mobile Fighter G Gundam (+)

Mobile Suit Gundam Wing

Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz

After Wars Gundam X

Turn A Gundam (+)

Mobile Suit Gundam SEED(–) AVOID

Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny (–) REALLY AVOID

Mobile Suit Gundam SEED C.E. 73: Stargazer

Mobile Suit Gundam 00

Mobile Suit Gundam 00 the Movie: A Wakening the Trailerblazer(-)

Model Suit Gunpla Builders Begginning G (+)

Mobile Suit Gundam AGE

Gundam Build Fighters (+)

Reconguista in G

Gundam Build Fighters Try

Gundam Build Fighters: Battlogue

Gundam Build Fighters: GM’s Counterattack

Gundam Build Divers

Gundam Build Divers Re:Rise

How to Watch

Now that you know what to watch, the next question should be “Where can I watch these shows? It has never been easier. The official Gundam youtube channel cycles through various shows. Netflix is currently airing Unicorn and Iron-Blooded Orphans. Finally, if ownership is more your speed, Rightstuf has been releasing many of the older shows on Blu Ray and DVD.

Just remember to skip Gundam Seed and Seed Destiny

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