The Gundam Anime Corner: Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ Part 10 Episodes 43-47

Neo Zeon threatens to destroy itself as factions belonging to Haman Kahn and Glemy Toto clash. It’s the opening Judau Ashta and his comrades have been waiting for. Judau never imagined he would become the key player in the final battle of an interstellar war. But his time has come and now he must face Haman, the Neo Zeon’s most powerful warrior, in a final showdown. What kind of future is waiting for Judau, Haman and the rest of the Universal Century? No matter the cost or outcome, the First Neo Zeon War ends here.

Well, that’s all folks. From ruined and horrible beginnings, Gundam ZZ somehow managed to pull off a pretty decent finale. It doesn’t match the depressing and powerful finale of Zeta but in a way, I don’t think it’s supposed to. ZZ was supposed to be a different show from Zeta altogether but started off in a less than ideal fashion. It makes sense that the finale should reflect Tomino’s intentions to deliver a much more uplifting finale, which also planting the seeds of one more battle to come after this story ends.

The long awaited Neo Zeon Civil War took up the bulk of the finale and the Gundam Team only made a couple of short skirmishes into the fray. In a way, it was easy to see that Haman’s forces would come out on top (though it was certain when their forces were discretley bolstered by the Gundam Team). Glemy Toto might be one of the more disappointing villains in all of Gundam. His sudden rise from second tier lacky to second highest big bad behind Haman in the second half of the series was one of the big character changes that was never given the care it needed. Glemy was a bit of an oaf, a fool for Roux Louka’s charms, and a sinister mastermind who made Cyber Newtype clones of a ten year old prodigy in his spare time…all at once. The former two seemed to be the more focused aspects on Glemy for most of the show and the latter quality only seemed to manifest towards the beginning of ZZ’s final act. I often thought of Glemy as the Jerid of ZZ. But Jerid was far more consistent than Glemy. He never pulled any secret agendas or hidden qualities out of thin air. Jerid was a pompous jerk who cared little for others, whose pride ended up getting the better of him right til the very end…and he’d occasionally kill someone Kamille cared about when Kamille inadvertedly took someone from him. Glemy is an unfinished work in progress who could’ve used a clearer path. Also, I don’t think I ever learned why he saw himself worthy of leading Neo Zeon. All I heard from Glemy was “Wah Wah Wah”. So yeah, it’s ironic he should die by Roux’s hands of all people. Oh Roux, “Don’t waste tears on the stupid, you’ll be crying all day”.

Glemy not living up to his potential aside, the finale of ZZ felt like the opposite of Zetas. There was still a hefty character kill count (this is 80s Tomino after all) but most of the casualties seemed to be on the villains side compared to Zeta Gundam losing about half of the good guy cast. Only Emary and a repentant Puru Two died in the final battle. Emary rebounded from her Bright obsession and sacrificed herself and the La Vie En Rose to save the Argama. Having seen the La Vie En Rose in Zeta Gundam and briefly in Gundam 0083, I never expected to see that ship go down. Puru Two was finally brought back to the side of good by the spirit of her former self and Judau’s words of peace. It’s a shame she couldn’t have a future…but other Puru’s might. Yeah if I didn’t know what lay ahead for a certain “Puru Twelve” in another Gundam series, the sight of a Newtype Corps made up of Puru clones would scare the mess out of me. Other than them, Mashymre, Rakan and Chara, all major villains throughout the series, met their ends, some in more satisfying ways than others.

Once the asteroids had stopped ramming into space colonies and Glemy’s rebellion was squashed, there was only one last bit of unfinished business. In a move that kind of mirrors Char’s Counterattack, it’s hard to pin at what point Haman’s main interest became less about Neo Zeon and more about bringing Judau to her side no matter what (kind of like how the Second Neo Zeon would wonder if Char’s plans were really about fast tracking Humanity’s evolution into Newtypes or about settling the score with Amuro Ray). These two have had an interesting connection ever since they’ve met and its evolved from rivalry to obsession to very creepy desire? Ok, that last part might be stretching it. But in Haman’s final moments even Judau admitted she had good qualities she didn’t use the way she should have. If Haman and Judau had met in another time (and been closer in age), could Haman have become a better person? Regardless of that “what if?” Judau and Haman’s final battle was good and despite her obsession with the kid, I still think of Haman as one of Gundam’s best baddies, I’ll miss her style and menace.

The Battle of Axis might’ve been the main focus of the finale but it wasn’t all of it. Everyone got at least one moment of closure for Judau’s little Gundam Team. Beecha and Elle admitted feelings for one another. Mondo did his best to keep spirits raised despite the losses and odds against everyone. Even Roux seems to be hitting it off with Judau, going with him on a Jupiter expedition. Judau and Roux always seemed to have a good bond but romantic? Honestly, the biggest surprise was seeing Sayla appear again and she gets to actually talk with Bright. The scene feels like pure setup for Mobile Suit Gundam: Char’s Counterattack, which was greenlit for production during ZZ. Both Bright and Sayla know Char is just waiting to see how this whole affair would turn out so he could eventually make a move of his own. Sayla’s ominous warnings about her brothers plans make me wonder why she never had any part in that movie. Oh and we got to see Judau and Leina reunite AND Kamille also got a happy, or happier, ending. We don’t know his full mental state but he’s well enough to run along the beach with Fa and smile while holding her. All in all, one story ends and another gets ready to begin. But even without the promise of Char’s Counterattack, ZZ still ends just fine on its own…I didn’t see that coming 47 episodes ago.

Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ is…well I wont sugar coat it, I hated it at first and it was hard not to hate it. It’s sudden shift in tone and the comedic antics of Judau and his friends felt like an insult to everything that took place in Zeta Gundam. If I were to judge the series by that half alone, I’d be tempted to rate it lower than Gundam Seed Destiny (currently my worst scored Gundam series at 2/10, Twilight Axis has a 0). But then the memo was received and the changes were made quickly. What humor survivied the first half of the series was toned way back and was all but eliminated save for a couple of misstep episodes. The tone returned to one closer to the original Mobile Suit Gundam series without delving too deep into the grimness of Zeta. Sure, this resulted in some characters like Glemy getting a 180 from schmuck to mastermind but others were changed for the far better. Characters who ruined ZZ like Beecha and Mondo became the unsung heroes of the cast and Judau evolved from selfish asshat to a strong young man who was a very worthy successor to Amuro Ray and Kamille Bidan. ZZ even made it a point to check in with not only Kamille and Fa from time to time but also the cast of the original series as well, with Bright back in a central role and Hayato and Sayla providing welcome cameos. And Haman, Haman, Haman. She may have her flaws but to me she’s awesome: sexy, evil and a force to be reckoned with across two shows. Her relationship with Judau had its issues but they made a fun pair to watch bicker and battle back and forth. The lack of Amuro Ray or Char Aznable hurt the potential of amazing scenes and interactions…but we know theyd get their own movie to settle things. Plus, we got more Judau and Kamille than expected and all of those moments were golden.

This is a tough one to grade. If I were going by the second half of ZZ alone, it would be an 8 for certain. But that first half does exist and it’s hard to judge what episodes from that half to watch while skipping the rest and starting around Episode…19. I did hate this show, I said so in no unclear terms in earlier reviews, even calling this the reason I titled this overall Gundam Month THE GAUNTLET Part II. But Gundam Seed Destiny, ZZ is not. In the end, Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ receives a…7/10…cause yes, the back half is that damn good of a rebound with me. See ya, Judau and friends, may we meet again.

And that concludes Gundam Month Mark V-THE GAUNTLET PART II and 2021 for that matter. Hope everyones had a better year and has enjoyed all the reviews from the blog this year. See ya in 2022 everyone right here at the Gundam Anime Corner.