Hello everybody!
This is my first review so sorry if it sucks:
Gundam. One term, this one term is known throughout the anime world.
Why? Because of it's outstanding way of story telling. And introducing the Real Robot Genre!
Here we will dissect the Very First Gundam.
Mobile Suit Gundam! It is no doubt VERY old, and we're here to find out if it holds up today.
Don't worry about Spoilers!
Story:
...
The Universal Century. Humans have finally migrated to space, the final frontier.
Because of the over abundance of people on Earth, most of the population has been forced to live in gigantic space colonies against their own will by the Earth Federation. Wishing for the independence of the Colonies Zeon Deikun forms the Federation of Zeon, a group working for the independence of the Colonies.
U.C 0079 our story starts out with Amuro Ray a boy fascinated with machines. However as his colony is attacked by Zeon Mobile suits he stumbles upon the Earth Federation's Project V. The secret weapon of the Earth Federation: Gundam. Soon after Amuro joins the Federation as a crew of the White base along with other survivors of the Colony.
I'm going to stop here now, as you really need to watch it to appreciate it.
The story after that is outstanding for it's time. Focusing on making the two factions Gray rather than good and evil. The story obviously follows Amuro and the Crew of the White Base as they battle against the Zeon forces.
Don't expect any thing too special now, since it was a fairly new idea at the time. And they were still trying to get their bearings. It has it's ups and downs with an infuriating at that point Deus ex Machina near the final parts.
But it's enjoyable to say the least. And hooks you in.
HOWEVER, it could have been expanded further if more there were more episodes, and the anime as a whole could have benefited from it. But because this is the starting point of the series i think it's great. And it leaves a lot to be expanded upon in the sequels.
Characters:
This is the bulk of the story. The characters and interactions with each other is the best part about this anime. They are all dynamic and change throughout the course of the anime and undoubtedly you will get attached to them. Amuro being a teenager has the most growth. From being a typical whiny teenager to being a soldier who has a duty to a man who has seen the true horrors of war, we see it all.
The other characters aren't left out either. My personal favorite being Kai. Who from a complete jerk evolves to a much more friendly and supporting person while not seeming like a completely different person.
Mecha:
The mecha here are all interesting. Although only two really stick out for me the titular Gundam and the Zaku.
The mecha all have varied weapons, are realistic in performance (or as close to reality as possible) and are unique from each other.
If you are a mecha fan this is just another high point. If not, you will still find at least some of them interesting.
Art:
The art is fairly average for it's time. The characters are distinguishable.
And it passes, that's all there is to say.
The mech designs however could use some detail (which is fixed in the OVAs released MUCH later)
The character designs have aged well. Not so much for the mech designs though. Especially if you have watched the later entries in the series.
Animation:
Animation is average. Standard for it's time.
But it has aged HORRIBLY. I noticed lots of repeated scenes; one that sticks out is Amuro recoiling inside the Gundam's cockpit. It is used a lot.
However it is not horrible itself. It's just a side effect of time.
If you can stand or like old animation from the 70s then you have no problem. However if you are a new age viewer who grew up with recent anime, or have started the Gundam series elsewhere, this is NOT for you.
Sound and Music:
The sound effects are standard. Nothing too particular stands out.
The Music however, is on another level. The songs are extremely well placed and thought out, dictating how you should feel whether it being scared or pumped for action. It has it all.
Two sticks out to me the most, the opening which any mecha fan worth it's salt knows and Gallant Char. Which just spews 70s vibe.
Conclusion:
I might have been a bit too hard on the Anime here, but that's because this review is meant for people who want to start the Gundam series. And from that point of view I have judged from today's standards. Either way if you want to start Gundam, this is the best place to start. If you start from either SEED or 00 as i recommend to some people they will get turned away by the aged animation and art. And besides every other anime in the UC timeline starts here. And thus watching this will result in a much more rich experience later on. And any mecha fan worth a salt HAS to see this. At least to see how every other Real Robot anime generated from. Just to pay respects.
Also there are compilation movies released recapping the original Gundam in a condensed form, i suggest you watch the anime if you can though. It's a Legend for a reason!
As a special........let's say gift for those who want to start Gundam who don't know where to start, the Wikipedia Gundam page is a good guide to follow. As it lists by their release dates.
Hope you Find this useful! And if you did THANK YOU!
If you have any further questions or plain Feedback on how to improve myself, please feel free to contact me!
Hope I helped!
All (6)FriendsRSS Feeds |
Jan 16, 2016
Kidou Senshi Gundam
(Anime)
add
Hello everybody!
This is my first review so sorry if it sucks: Gundam. One term, this one term is known throughout the anime world. Why? Because of it's outstanding way of story telling. And introducing the Real Robot Genre! Here we will dissect the Very First Gundam. Mobile Suit Gundam! It is no doubt VERY old, and we're here to find out if it holds up today. Don't worry about Spoilers! Story: ... |
