G-Saviour

Universal Century 0223.  The Earth Federation is no more.  In it’s wake, the Congress of Settlement Nations (CONSENT) polices both the Earth and the Space Colonies.  A dangerous food shortage strikes the Earth, leaving the planet in dire need of resources.  Freedom Fighters from the neutral colony cluster Side 8, codename Gaea, retrieve an experimental enzyme that could save the planet.  But CONSENT has it’s own plans to capitalize on this crisis.  It soon falls to a bold and kind hearted doctor from Gaea and an Ex-CONSENT pilot to take the fight to the Earth’s military.  The fate of all mankind rests on the shoulders of Gaea and their latest Mobile Suit, the G-Saviour.

Two years ago, I did a Top 5 list on the Top 5 Titles I (Probably) Wont Review on the Gundam Anime Corner.  At the top of that list (See here: http://gundamanimeblog.blogspot.com/2018/02/t5w130-top-5-titles-i-probably-wont.html) was a little known title called G-Saviour.  Even by bad Gundam standards, people called this one bad.  Knowing this, I didn’t want to touch G-Saviour with a ten foot pole, even if I want to somehow see everything Gundam related in my lifetime.  Well, somehow, I managed to get a copy of the movie…and it couldn’t be avoided.  So, for this, the Sixth Anniversary of the Gundam Anime Corner, I’m checking out the biggest, darkest blotch on the Gundam legacy, G-Saviour.  Is it really that terrible?  Is it worse than any grievances I have against Gundam Seed Destiny or Gundam Build Fighters Try?

The Gundam Anime Corner 6th Anniversary

 

Call me crazy, but ive gotten into the habit of planning out reviews well far in advance.  Case in point, most of 2020 is more or less locked in (still finalizing stuff for the end of the year) and I have at least 2 confirmed titles for 2021.  Why bring this up?  Because my blog turns 6 today and it is such a huge feeling to be able to see this plans go into action.  Reviews, Top 5 lists, First Impressions, other odds and ends, I cant believe how much the Gundam Anime Corner has grown since it’s humble beginning on March 31, 2014.  Now we come to the end of Year 6 with celebration and begin Year 7 with a lot of enthusiasm.  Before I give a sneak peak of whats coming over the next couple of months, I want to take a second to say “Thank You”.  Whether you’ve been a long time reader, just passing through for a casual second, or discovering my neck of the woods for the first time, every little bit helps and it energizes me to seek out more titles to look at and review.  This blog is my baby but it wouldn’t be where it is without your feedback and support (whether directly on the blog itself or through my various postings on Facebook and Instagram).  So yeah…thank you so much for your time and heres to Year 7: hopefully the best year yet for the Gundam Anime Corner.

Ok, here’s the breakdown of everything from Spring to Summer:

Carole and Tuesday Part 6 Episodes 21-24

It’s been a while since Carole met a runaway rich girl named Tuesday on a bridge.  Since then they’ve risen to become front runners for the Best New Artist on Mars Award at the Mars Grammys.  If only everything else were so bright.  Tuesday’s mothers political agenda pushes civil unrest to the brink and Angela faces her own despair when the unthinkable happens.  With Mars becoming a powder keg about to burst, musicians from across the red planet unite in protest…and they want Carole and Tuesday to write the song they’ll all perform.  At last, the “Seven Minute Miracle” event will finally be revealed as the epic opening chapter of the legend of Carole and Tuesday draws to a close.

“The light that shines in the dark is you.”  Crystal says this to Carole and Tuesday just before the epic final musical number and it basically describes the core duo in a nutshell.  The latter half of Carole and Tuesday has been more of a mixed bag than the first half.  Between trying to cram in Angela’s story and making her more sympathetic and the growing political conflict, it felt like everything was competing for air time and it felt like I was watching three different shows at once.  Part of me wonder if this was the point and it’s soley because of that aforementioned line…but I’m getting ahead of myself.  How about we take a step back and look a bit more closely at this final four episodes of Carole and Tuesday, eh?”

From Losers to Glory-A Gundam Wing Special-Part 4

Previously:

The Gundam Pilots were tricked into attacking a peace conference while OZ began a worldwide takeover.  In the chaos, Heero accidentally killed Relena’s father…well that’s a sudden change for sure.  So what’s next for our quintet of Gundam Backstreet Boys?  From Losers to Glory continues with Volume 4 of the new Gundam Wing Manga.

Carole and Tuesday Part 5 Episodes 17-20

The road to success just got a bit tougher for Carole and Tuesday.  While the two are in demand, recording their first album and getting another shot at Cydonia Fest, the rest of the world seems to be heading in a darker direction.  In her race for the Mars Presidency, Tuesday’s Mother pushes her isolationist policy further, which forces Tuesday to take a bold step to protect her best friend, Carole.  Angela’s got problems of her own when her cyber stalker begins discretley attacking her associates.  With her situation so dire, will Tao himself decide to intervene?  And when he loses all of his money, DJ Ertegun must confront his own inner demons if he’s going to make it back to the top.  The world is going crazy…so Carole and Tuesday are gonna show it the light.

As much as I love Carole and Tuesday’s eternal optimism, I’ve been wondering how the newly established plotlines that I haven’t been a huge fan of would tie into their story.  Sure enough, we made some forward progress and, for once, things didn’t end on a sunny note for the series (dramatically, all the episodes themselves were fine).

T5W#241-Top 5 Moments from Dragon Ball Z Abridged Episode 60 (The Series Finale)

We’ve spent all this month on Top 5 Wednesday looking back on Dragon Ball Z Abridged now that Team Four Star has announced it has concluded.  From the series, to the movies, to the specials, I’ve looked at all the highs and still feel like I’ve scratched the surface of how much goodness DBZA has brought to the Anime community.  So I had to think about what Top 5 would be adequate enough to finish out this month long special.  Well, we’ve seen the history, now what about what ended up being the very end of the journey?  Today, I cover that end with my Top 5 Moments from Dragon Ball Z Abridged Episode 60 (The Series Finale).  This covers all 3 parts of the finale plus the Future Trunks Epilogue.  Thank you Team Four Star and thank you Dragon Ball Z Abridged…may we meet again my friends.

Carole and Tuesday Part 4 Episodes 13-16

With their success at the Mars’ Brightest competition, Carole and Tuesday have crossed a major hurdle in their dream to become recognized singers.  Now comes the toughest part: being famous.  Between legions of reporters looking for an interview and a foul mouthed record producer who cant be impressed, the duo face constant struggles in light of their recent brush with fame.  But there are those who have become inspired by Carole and Tuesday’s music and they want to show their appreciation.  Meanwhile, Angela’s newfound stardom comes with a severe drawback: an obsessive stalker.  No one said being famous was easy.  

Mars’ Brightest was a solid way to wrap up the first half of Carole and Tuesday and left me kind of wondering if the show could have just ended there.  Well after a little bit of a rough beginning, this weeks episodes showed that these two stars have more stories to tell and aren’t done tugging at the heartstrings, even when new plot elements don’t feel like theyre gelling well with the overall show.

From Losers to Glory-A Gundam Wing Special-Part 3

Previously:

While destroying the Lake Victoria Base commanded by Lt. Noin, Wufei has flashbacks to his dead wife and we learned the true origin of his Gundam’s nickname, “Nataku”.  Meanwhile, before Heero and Duo could get into mano v mano brawl, the Gundam pilots were all contacted by their respective Doctors and told to head to New Edwards to stop the distribution of a new breed of Space Mobile Suit.  Yeah…not all of that quite happened in the Anime and on today’s “From Losers to Glory”, the changes only become more substantial as we head into the third volume of Mobile Suit Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz-Glory of the Losers.  Let’s get started then.

T5W#240-Top 5 Dragon Ball Z Abridged TV Special Moments

Incase you came in late: This months Top 5 Wednesdays are one big shout out to Team Four Star and their Abridged Series masterpiece, Dragon Ball Z Abridged.  Recently, the guys announced the end of their passion project and that’s prompted me to look back at the greatest hits of the work that changed the Abridging landscape forever.  We’ve looked at the main series and the movies already.  This week, I’m counting down my Top 5 Dragon Ball Z Abridged TV Special Moments.  This means we’ll be looking at the TV Specials and OVAs made for Dragon Ball Z and aren’t considered movies themselves: Bardock-The Father of Goku, The History of Trunks, Episode of Bardock, Plan to Eradicate the Saiyans and, cause I forgot to include them in other lists, the Dragon Ball Z Kai Abridged minisodes.  Let’s get to the fun.

Carole and Tuesday Part 3 Episodes 9-12

Mars Brightest has begun and already several contestants are showing promise.  Carole and Tuesday might be among them but there are those eager to crush their dreams.  And then there’s Tuesday’s family, which has been search for her ever since she ran away.  With the final rounds of Mars Brightest fast approaching, Carole, Roddy and Gus will have to pull off the impossible and somehow manage to free Tuesday and make it to the Mars Brightest finals before they are disqualified.  The race is on.

Music has the power to move the heart, to stir up all kinds of emotions and make a really bad day have a sunny spot which can make you smile.  The art of the Anime OST is a key factor to many Anime titles like Cowboy Bebop, FLCL or Your Name.  Why am I starting this weeks review with this sentiment?  Because it's hard not to be crying a bit after the last moments of Episode 12.  Carole and Tuesday went through a lot this week, not all of it pretty.  But damn if they didn’t get the reward they deserved.  And better yet, the bulk of Mars wanted them to have it too.

From Losers to Glory-A Gundam Wing Special-Part 2

Previously

Five Gundams and five young pilots descended to Earth but their story we all know if happening a bit…differently.  Welcome back to From Glory to Losers: A Gundam Wing Special.  Over the course of the next couple of months I’ll be looking at each volume of the manga Mobile Suit Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz-Glory of the Losers, and comparing them to the span of episodes they cover in the TV Anime.  Last weeks debut Volume didn’t have a tremendous amount of changes but they were still substantial.  This week…well we get a helluva lot more.  Let’s get to them.

The Gundam Anime Corner-A Safe Space For All

I usually try to keep real world matters away from blog posts.  I think the only other time I might’ve alluded to that kind of stuff was back in 2016 during another time of great uncertainty.  Here, today though, im making an exception because the last couple of days have been difficult to say the least.  There’s a ton of really scared people out there and I’m equal parts scared, worried and just plain ashamed by how everyone is going right to paranoia and hysteria caused by the Caronavirus outbreak.

It saddens me 2020 has taken such a dismal turn and there are times I feel like we might lose a full on year over this event…but not here…not on this blog. 

This blog has always been a place for me to come to for peace, for venting, for inspiration.  And I want to continue to make this a safe space for all too.  When the news of new cancellations and lockdowns comes up, I want people to be able to come to the Gundam Anime Corner for even a few seconds to check out an article, a Top 5, a rant, whatever, just to let them know that the world isn’t ending.  This is an Anime safe space and I’m going to continue to deliver reviews galore althroughout the year and beyond not because I want too (though I really do) but because I want to do some part in making somones twitter, Instagram of Facebook feed more than just a sad string of bad news.  And if that means I need to accelerate some reviews so that something goes up maybe everyday (it’s possible, the next two shows I have planned have been reviewed well in advance).  So be it. 

It’s…well it’s a time for all of us.  But at least here at the Gundam Anime Corner, maybe it can be a little bit of a good for anyone who needs a break or the power of Anime to brighten their day.  Welcome to the Gundam Anime Corner, and remember, “A hero can be anyone. Even a man doing something as simple and reassuring as putting a coat around a young boy's shoulders to let him know the world hadn't ended”

T5W#239-Top 5 Dragon Ball Z Abridged Movie Moments

In the 11 years they worked on Dragon Ball Z Abridged, Team Four Star not only tackled 3/4s of the main DBZ Anime (From the Saiyan Saga to the Cells Games), they also did special Abridged versions of many of the Dragon Ball Z Movies and TV Specials.  Filled with just as much love as their main series, The Abridged Movies continued the trend of making something special feel even better.  Dragon Ball Z Abridged was a passion project by fans, for the fans and all out of love and the movies have that same kind of TLC.  Last week I took a look at the five best moments from the series.  This week, as promised, we’re looking at the Top 5 Dragon Ball Z Abridged Movie Moments.  This includes moments from the 8 movies the crew has covered: Dead Zone, The World’s Strongest, Tree of Might, Lord Slug, Cooler’s Revenge, The Return of Cooler, Super Android 13 and Broly: The Legendary Super Saiyan.

Carole and Tuesday Part 2 Episodes 5-8

With the help of a music manager looking to make a comeback and a social media expert, Carole and Tuesday have begun their journey to the big leagues.  The path to getting there is littered with obstacles and new challenges.  But none might be as daunting as Gus entering Carole and Tuesday in the “Mars Brightest” competition.  Here, they’ll openly compete with the best talents the music world has yet to see.  Anyone of them could be the next big thing, among them Angela, the starlet who may or may not survive her own frustrating ordeals with AI obsessed Tao.

Carole and Tuesday has become a show that is easy to get into and, even better, is easy to relax with.  Of course, I’m paying attention to details for review throughout.  But even the mini critical nitpicks I might have pale in comparison to my overall feelings that this show is just good escapist fun that’s also an honest critique of the music world and culture at large.  In short, Watanabe is killing it again with Carole and Tuesday same as he did with Cowboy Bebop (though with a lot less hard scifi violence).

From Losers to Glory-A Gundam Wing Special-Part 1

If you are somehow new to my nearly 6 year old blog, let me fill you in on something important: Mobile Suit Gundam Wing is one of my favorite Anime of all time.  Sure there are better Gundam shows out there but I can say that while also still enjoying Wing for what it is: an awesome mecha show that introduced me to a more mature style of Anime storytelling AND introduced me to Mobile Suit Gundam,  my all time favorite Anime franchise of all time.  Released in 1995, Gundam Wing follows five young rebels who are sent from space to battle a shadowy organization on Earth that threatens peace between the planet and the orbiting Space Colonies.  The show was big in Japan but was arguably bigger in the US thanks to a wildly unexpected successful run on Cartoon Network’s Toonami block.  It’s success garnered Wing a sequel in 1997-Mobile Suit Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz, which likewise was a mega hit on Toonami.  While Wing has seen a number of spin off manga stories, the one were here to talk about it the most recent one.  Mobile Suit Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz-Glory of the Losers retells the story from Gundam Wing with some tweeks and additions from other Manga stories, most notably Gundam Wing: Episode Zero and Endless Waltz itself.  As I went along reading it, I began taking note of all of the differences and what episodes of the TV Anime each Volume covered.  Figured I could do something special and share it with the rest of my readers.  So for the next couple of months, I’ll be covering one Volume a week (maybe two, depends) of the Glory of the Losers Manga.  I’ll add a quick synopsis of the episodes they cover before a bullet listing of the Manga changes and then add in my personal thoughts at the end.  Should be fun right?  Wow, this intro went on longer than expected.  I’ll try to keep them shorter in the future.  Anyway, SUIT UP, let’s get to Volume 1 of Mobile Suit Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz-Glory of the Losers.

T5W#238-Top 5 Dragon Ball Z Abridged Series Moments

There’s been much speculation as to the future of Dragon Ball Z Abridged since the end of it’s third season back in late 2018.  Well a couple weeks ago, Team Four Star, the team that took Abdridging into the stratosphere made the official announcement: The are no plans to move forward with Dragon Ball Z Abridged Season 4 aka the Buu Saga.  You can find the lengthy and tear jerking explanation over at their Youtube page right here (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZy8D4B8LLs&t=159s).  Suffice to say, they are very good and very valid reasons and there should be zero reason to be mad.  Very rarely do creators of certain shows get the opportunity to end projects on their own terms.  And I agree with KaiserNeko, if DBZA could end on any note, the finale of the Cells Games was absolutely perfect.  It’s not like Team Four Star wont be continuing to produce new content of their own…it just wont be Dragon Ball related…and that’s ok.  Today on Top 5 Wednesday, I’m truly challenging myself in that I’m going to look back over 11 years, 3 seasons and 60 episodes worth of content to choose the.  And that’s just the beginning.  All this month I’ll be dedicating Top 5 Wednesday to Team Four Star’s flagship magnum opus, looking at the best moments from their multiple DBZA projects.  Right now though, my Top 5 Dragon Ball Z Abridged Series Moments.  KaiserNeko, Lanipator and Takahata 101, this is for you guys.

The March to Year 7

Hey Everyone.  Hope you’re all having a good day.  Well we’ve made it to March after going through February at Warp Speed and now we’re officially in the countdown to the 6^th Birthday of the Gundam Anime Corner.  I usually try to make something of a big deal out it at the one month mark.  So, here’s the breakdown of what’s on the way.

Carole and Tuesday Part 1 Episodes 1-4

Tuesday is a rich girl who ran away from home with only her guitar and a desire to play.  Carole is a street smart orphan who’s been on her own as long as she can remember.  When fate brings these two together, the spark is instantaneous and before they know it, Carole and Tuesday are making music together.  Now they have a dream: to perform for the world and become the biggest hit Mars has ever seen.  With a washed up but still legit music producer and a social media specialist, that dream could become a reality.  The competition is tough, but Carole and Tuesday aren’t going to give up so easily.

When the name “Shinichiro Watanabe” is attached to an Anime project, it gets peoples attention.  This is the guy, after all, who brought us two of the biggest Anime of all time with the genre transcendant Cowboy Bebop and totally stylish Samurai Champloo.  Well, now Watanabe is back and he’s trading in gun toting bounty hunters and slick as hell Samurai for a more calmer but nonetheless heartfelt project about two girls looking to make it big in the music industry on Mars.  And if these first four episodes are any indication, Carole and Tuesday seems poised to join Bebop and Champloo as another Watanabe triumph.

My Hero Academia: Heroes Rising

With their full class roster now possessing a Provisional Hero License, the superstar students of UA Class 1-A are sent to Nabu Island, to act as it’s protectors.  As Deku and his friends gain experience and admiration from helping the citizens, they soon discover this island will be the setting for their ultimate test.  A villain named Nine has escaped custody thanks to the League of Villains.  With the power to absorb Quirks, Nine travels to Nabu Island to claim the powers of a child that can make him invincible.  Deku, Bakugo, Todoroki and the rest of Class 1-A are on their own for the first time without All Might or their teachers for help.  Now is the time to show how far they’ve come as students and as heroes.  It’s time to go PLUS ULTRA like never before and show the world that the next generation of heroes is ready to rise to the occasion.

2019 was a year in which a brand new Shonen Anime took the community by storm: Demon Slayer.  Rightfully so, it is a fantastic series.  But I bring that up firstly because My Hero Academia’s presence was rather small in 2019 due to it’s 4^th season starting so late in the year.  And while the 4^th Season is both a little bit of hit and miss for me, I can tell you that all the magic we all love about the adventures of Deku and UA High’s Class 1-A is given the best treatment in their second (and possibly last according to series author Kohei Horikoshi) theatrical outing, managing to blow Two Heroes out of the water in pretty much every way possible.