When I first started Gundam AGE I knew the show had a bad rep amongst the community. And yet my continued interest in the kind of story it was trying to tell always kept it in view (that and its my destiny to watch and review all the main Gundam entries in some way). I know it sounds like im starting Final Thoughts one part too soon. But I can say this without hesitation or any chance of my mind being changed…I hate Gundam AGE and I think after this set it has more than earned the dishonorable distinction of fighting Gundam Seed Destiny for the throne of Worst Gundam Series of All Time.
Our penultimate set of episodes kicked off the 4th and Final Arc of the series, known as the Three Generations Arc. Obviously, this meant we finally got to see Kio, Flit and Asemu together on screen, chatting and fighting together. I’d by lying if I said I wasn’t happy to see Asemu finally give Kio that long awaited hug, he actually gave him two. Asemu’s return was surprisingly welcomed with minimal fuss by his sister and his wife. The only one not happy to see him was Flit and man, oh man, for a kid who started as the would be Amuro Ray of Gundam AGE, Flit has easily become the new Shinn Asuka. He’s so blinded by his hatred for the Vagan that he’s willing to…oh what’s that word I’ve been using alongside him a lot lately, oh right, EXTERMINATE THEM. And we’re not just talking about prisoners of war. Flit’s so bloodthirsty at this point he’s not gonna stop at just the Vagan military. What’s worse is that thanks to Flit’s kiss ass protegee, Algreus, Flit has been placed in full command of Federation Forces for the final strikes on Vagan’s last bases. And no one, I mean, no one is ok with this. Kio continuously tells his grandfather that there are innocent people on Second Moon who need help and Flit’s like “And?” I have my own issues with Kio that we’ll get to, but I do like that he called out his Grandpa on his BS. Savior? Flit still believes he is such a thing when he has become the villain of his own story. And I imagine, just like Shinn, Gundam AGE is gonna try some half assed attempt to redeem him when it would probably be better if he dies in the end.
This set of episodes mostly covered the battle to retake the Federations Luna Base. However, while that battle was indeed going on, most of it was spent on the character we’ve all been waiting to see, the character this series has been building towards since Episode One…GIRARD SPRIGGAN…oh wait…who? Yeah, in a series chalk full of decades old rivalries and pointless drama, this random Ex-Federation X-Rounder suddenly became the center of attention for no reason whatsoever. I didn’t care about her backstory, her motivations, her annoying maniacal laugh or her sudden, desperate need to fight the Gundam. Everytime Girard opened her mouth all I could think of is, “Why are you here? Who the hell are you and why should I care?” She even gets half an episode dedicated to her backstory which is just another reminder of how messed up the Federation is. Did what happened to Girard happen after Flit left office? I couldn’t imagine crimes against Federation citizens happening on his watch…oh wait, this is Flit, anything goes for him at this point. Still, a lot of time was sunk into this character like she was supposed to be the breakout star of Gundam AGE…in the end she’s just another item on an epic list of fails this series has provided.
The most the Girard storyline did for anything was to advance Kio’s newfound approach to combat: The Kira Yamato Way. This means that it’s about disabling Mobile Suits but leaving the pilots alive. Unlike Kira though, Kio is wasting time trying to talk to everyone rather than Kira’s steely quiet and efficient approach. Kio is so desperate to end the war that he spends most of the Luna Base battle trying to get through to Girard and the only reason he survives is because the Gundam AGE-FX is freaking awesome, complete with shield bits that are probably the most OP Newtype weapon ive ever seen in a Gundam series, more so than the ones on Kira’s Strike Freedom from Gundam Seed Destiny. I get Kio’s wish, hell no one wants a war…except Ezelcant and Flit. But he’s going about things the wrong way: the Vagan civilians on Second Moon can be saved but Ezelcant and Zeheart have to be stopped, no reasoned with, those two are too far gone.
Oh yeah, Zeheart has officially completed his Char Aznable journey from high rising pilot to leader of Neo Zeon…GRRRRRR!!!! Sorry, Zeheart has become one of the most disappointing aspect of Gundam AGE. This kid had so much potential to be more than a Char Clone. Instead, his drive has become on par with any other Vagan Zealot by into Ezelcant’s garbage. Asemu and Kio even tell him just what the Destiny plan…er Project Eden really is…and all it takes is a lecture from a dying Ezelcant (he’s not dead yet but he’s on his way out), to convince Zeheart to take full command of the Vagan military. I know I like to harp on Zechs Merquise’s sudden decision to become the leader of White Fang in Gundam Wing cause I think it was a forced decision just to get him to fight Heero one more time. But Zechs had a far more compelling story and there’s more evidence that he’d become the big bad of Gundam Wing in the end, no matter how flimsy. Zeheart started as a spy, turned into a commander and became nothing but a drone, a tool, an insult to Char Clones across the Gundam multiverse. Cause let’s face it, while Ezelcant assures Zeheart this isn’t the case, no matter what fancy words you try to use, forced Natural Selection sounds like playing God to me.
On the plus side, there’s only five more episodes and a hopefully short and merciful movie to go. I cant believe things could get worse than they did in Arc 3 but here we are. Heroes are villains; Villains are idiots; common sense is a thing that never existed and the fate of two worlds now lies in the most dysfunctional family in Gundam history. If there weren’t some honest to God good moments in the second arc, this show would be right on its way to a 0/10. But even as things stand now, it’s not getting above a 5 and I know it’s only going to be worse. Set expectations to 0, the Series Finale of Mobile Suit Gundam AGE arrives tomorrow.
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