Three years ago, the very first Top 5 Wednesday I ever
did was my Top 5 Gundam Entries. Yeah,
that was purely just because it had to do with the blogs namesake. But three years is a long time. Ive seen more Gundam and become reacquainted
with other titles id seen but had forgotten how much I’d enjoyed them. Id been wanting to do a Redux list, like the
one I did for My Top 5 My Hero Academia Heroes a couple weeks back, for a while
now but never knew when to do so.
Well…would have been last week but Otakon happened. So I just decided to push it back another
week. Also, I wanted to do a double
sized list to commemorate the update of my three year old list, though I know
some people will still complain about a couple of notable absences…but that’s
just because ive never seen those shows all the way through or I still want
people to realize there’s more to Gundam than just Seed and Wing (though you
can guess one of those titles is def on the list). Anyway, enough yapping, enjoy this double
sized Top 5 Wednesday of my Top 10 Gundam Entries.
#10-Gundam Build
Divers
As of this post, Build Divers is still going on in Japan
but it has won my heart. This is the
sequel Gundam Build Fighters Try never wanted to be and failed because of
it. Build Divers takes everything that
made Gundam Build Fighters fun and puts it on a new, digital stage with a cast
of enthusiastic (and hopeful) characters who have fun and learn important life
lessons about loving Gunpla and team building.
Even when this show tries to go the Build Fighters Try route of trying
to darken a fun hobby, Build Divers always bounces back with an inspiring
message that will make anyone with a heart cry.
Like the original Build Fighters, this is more than just a 30 min ad for
Gunpla, it’s a love letter to all Gundam fans out there.
#9-Mobile Suit
Gundam Unicorn
While I do have issues with many of its characters
(Banagher and especially Riddhe), Gundam Unicorn is still a very important and
well put together sequel in the Universal Century saga. It is a well explained history lesson about
the era with a few big and brilliant surprises and offers some interesting
hints at the future to come (set between this series in UC 0096 and Gundam F91
set in UC0123…unless that gets jettisoned but who knows). It’s also obvious that the time in between
episode releases did wonders for the animation.
This is how Gundam was always meant to look. Factor in the kick ass Unicorn Gundam (a worthy
addition to the pantheon) and some great battles featuring new mobile suits and
the return of some old favorites and a great soundtrack and you’ll see why
Gundam Unicorn is considered required viewing for anyone who calls themselves a
Gundam fan.
#8-Mobile Suit
Gundam Wing
You know it had to be on here right? Without this show, I wouldn’t know Gundam or
love it as much as I do. This was the
one that started it all. Heero Yuy, Duo
Maxwell, Zechs Merquise, Wing Zero, Deathsythe.
This was the series that briefly replaced Dragon Ball Z as the show
every kid had to talk about at lunch the next day. Having just rewatched the series on Blu Ray
recently, I can tell you the show does have faults both in animation and
storytelling. Gundam Wing may not have aged as well as other entries on this
list but the place it holds in my heart cannot be moved. And, whether we want to admit it or not,
without it’s huge presence on Toonami back in 2000, Gundam might not have
caught on at all in the States as it did.
I for one choose to love it and always will.
#7-Mobile Suit
Gundam 00
Having just finished another yearly watch of this series,
I can honestly say that, similar to Wing above, 00 has problems but it’s a show
I still like a great deal. The story
might teeter into absurdity but I like its ideas and its nods to previous
Gundam stories. Many of the characters
irritate the crap out of me but I still really like the stories of several of
the more central ones like Setsua and Tierria and both versions of Lockon
Stratos. In the end, it’s all about
having fun with this one, even if it doesn’t make sense. Oh and there’s the Gundam 00 Raiser, one of
the best Gundam units ever made (especially if you’re using it in Dynasty
Warriors Gundam 3…same goes for the Unicorn FYI). In the end, 00 is a good successor to the
legacy of Gundam Wing for me: it made a big splash in my life as an Anime fan
and continues to be a title I will always return to for a watch every year.
#6-Mobile Suit
Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket
Few Anime can do in 26-50 episodes what War in the Pocket
manages to do in just six. Set nice and
snug towards the end of the original series, Gundam 0080 is a heartbreaking
side story about the horrors of war seen through the eyes of a child. Al Izuruma fantasizes about the action but
could never imagine how dire the consequences of war really are. And yet, Gundam 0080 makes you feel and hurt
for every single character from Al to the Zeon Cyclops Team to eternally doomed
lovers Bernie and Chris. This OVA is about
characters first…but it’s Mobile Suit Gundam so theres still plenty of action
and Mobile Suits to go around. This is
almost as close to truly perfect Gundam has come in a total package and was
worthy to be created for the 10th Anniversary of the franchise…frak
it’s almost 30 years old.
#5-Mobile Suit
Gundam: The 08th MS Team
08th MS Team made a bold move to return to the
One Year War and elect to focus on an Earth based Federation Unit with no
Newtypes and no appearances from any of the original series cast (though
Ghirren Zabi’s speech is heard briefly at one point). And it works.
Much like Gundam 0080, 08th MS Team prioritizes the titular
squad first and foremost, molding them from a rag tag bunch into a closely knit
unit. The love story at the heart of
this tale is pretty touching too, Shiro and Aina make a cute couple. However, the action is one of the reasons this
show rocks. The emphasis on ground
combat gives a very dirty and realistic vibe to the action scenes. The showdown between Shiro Amada and Norris
Packard towards the end of the series is the absolute high point of the show
and also stands as one of the greatest duels in Gundam History.
#4-Mobile Suit
Gundam: Char’s Counterattack
How do you close out the first (and arguably) most
important chapter of the Gundam legacy?
By going as big as possible that’s how.
Char’s Counterattack had a lot of work to do when released, mainly
concluding a saga spanning 14 years of the Universal Century and 3 Television
Series. To say it does it’s job with a
bang is an understatement…it does so with a great many bangs. Everything about Char’s Counterattack feels
epic. The space battles were the largest
to date and on a scale few Gundams have yet to match (though Gundam 0083
managed to do so). And, of course, the
titular bad ass himself and Amuro Ray are back for one last tussle. Who will win in the end, who is on who’s
side, who will live, who will die? So
many questions keep you guessing until the shocking final moments. The first chapter of Gundam History ends on
an incredibly strong note here.
#3-Mobile Suit
Gundam
Universal Century 0079.
The fictional year that would live in infamy. While we can all see the popularity of Gundam
Wing, Gundam Seed and many others, said popularity would not have been possible
if this show had not succeeded, and it still holds up today. The animation? Classic. The characters? Timeless. The story? Still one of the most important in
Anime history. Just how would humanity
fight a civil war with giant robots and what costs would come with it? Mobile Suit Gundam doesn’t hold back at the
harsh realities of war time but still maintains an air of fantasy and infinite
possibility. This is where the legacy
began and I still think that, of all the entries on this list, Mobile Suit
Gundam remains one of the most important titles in the world of Anime that
should be watched at least once. It
blazed a trail for most of the Giant Robot Genre to follow.
#2-Mobile Suit
Gundam: The Origin
Years of questions have finally been answered with this
Godsend of a title. While the main focus
is on the rise of Char Aznable (one of Gundam’s most legendary bad asses), The
Origin does just what the title implies: explores pretty much every nook and
cranny of the road to The One Year War.
We get stories dedicated to several other Gundam legends like Ramba Ral,
Garma Zabi, the Black Tri Stars. Heck
even later episodes give us glimpses into the lives of Amuro Ray and his future
White Base comrades before they entered the greatest conflict in human history. Who would’ve thought that the original series
had all of this gold that came before it?
That’s exactly what Gundam: The Origin is, a goldmine. If you loved the original series and had a
ton of lingering questions or theories about characters and events, this is the
title you have been waiting for.
#1-Gundam Build
Fighters
I was never sure what to expect checking out a Gundam
series about building Gunpla and making them battle each other on a specialized
digital arena. Low and behold, I ended
up discovering, what I feel is, the ultimate love letter to one of Anime’s most
endearing franchises. Gundam Build
Fighters opens the mecha toybox filled with Gunpla, dumps it on the floor and tells
the fans to have fun. And fun is what
you get. From spectacular battles to an
amazing central duo of protagonists to literally hundreds of blink and you’ll
miss Easter Eggs from literally every corner of the Gundam Universe, Gundam
Build Fighters has it all. The show
spoke to the 7th grader in me who first gazed upon that 15 second
teaser trailer for Gundam Wing and reminded me of the kid I was back then and
how I first fell in love with this universe.
Gundam Build Fighters wasn’t an Anime made for me…it was made for all of
us Gundam fans who have loved this franchise forever…and always will.
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