Universal Century 0079.
The Principality of Zeon has declared war on the Earth Federation. Following a devastating colony drop onto
Earth, The Dutchy of Zeon and the Earth Federation face off at the Battle of
Loum, where Char Aznable and many others will immortalize their names in the
pages of history. Across the stars, many
star crossed youths, each with their own part in the battles to come, begin to
gather at Side 7, where a special secret project might be the key to the
Federations survival in this war. This
is where The Origin ends…and Mobile Suit Gundam begins.
When it was first being made, Mobile Suit Gundam: The
Origin was commissioned for a 4 episode OVA run. Not long after the completion of these
episodes in 2016, two more were announced.
These two feature length additions would cover the Battle of Loum, one
of the most important events of the Universal Century and serve as a direct
lead in to the original Mobile Suit Gundam series. Well, I’m really glad they decided on this
course of action because otherwise The Origin might’ve just ended on a so-so
note rather than the epic one it deserved.
Episode 5 might contain one of the most terrifying and
difficult to watch segments in all of Gundam.
We all know about the infamous colony drop and even see some of the
original images from the original series updated in HD animation. What we might not have known are how Zeon
acquired the colony and whether or not it was inhabited. In an act that clearly inspired later Gundam
villains, The Titans, Ghirren orders the entire population gassed to death
before the colony is slammed into the Earth.
We see most of this through the eyes of two Island Iffish inhabitants, Mayuki
and Fang Li. Clearly in love and hoping
to see Earth one day, watching them go through what they go through is so damn
difficult to digest. I have plenty of
sympathy for several members of the Zeon military due to their complex natures
and decent personalities. Ghirren Zabi
is the absolute worst for daring to make this tragedy happen. Watching Mayuki despratley trying to reach
the colony shelter, unaware that he is dying and that his love is already dead
inside hits right where it hurts and I doubt I’ll be looking at that colony
drop the same way ever again.
Episode 5 is also a bit of a mistitled episode. The actual Battle of Loum doesn’t begin until
the last 5 minutes or so of the episode, while it takes up the first half hour
of the 6th and final episode.
Besides the battle itself, these last two chapters are all about putting
the pieces into place for things to come.
We’re no longer looking at just Char and Sayla anymore. This is about the entire Earth sphere and the
chaos surrounding it and space as the One Year War kicks off. That’s not to say we don’t check in with our
two central siblings. Char plays his big
role in the Battle of Loum that landed him his claim to fame. As for Sayla, man her story arc completes
itself in the most satisfactory way. No
longer a little girl unaware of the world around her and constantly screaming
at every little catastrophe. No, Sayla
is now the bad ass woman we can believe will slap Kai Shiden in face and call
him a coward. Her bold defense of the
Aznable homestead on the Texas Colony is one of the best action sequences in
the whole of The Origin. Of course, we
also see some of Sayla’s medical career in space just before and after that
battle, setting up her initial role in the series.
But let’s get to the Battle of Loum, shall we. WOW!!!
Yes all of the political intrigue and character driven stories have been
great all throughout this series but this was the battle we all wanted to see
and it did not disappoint. From Dozle’s
brilliant strategy straight from the playbook of Obi Wan Kenobi, “These tracks
are side by side. Sand People ride
single file in order to hide their numbers,” in order to turn the tide against
a superior force, to the debut of the Zeon Zaku’s that all but seal victory for
Zeon, the battle we’d heard only spoken of in passing lived up to its chaotic
legend. The CG action was incredible,
especially when Char and the Black Tri Stars got to work kicking all the
ass. Not that this battle wasn’t
completely devoid of emotion. I like
that Dozle came to regret the colony drop just by looking at his baby daughter
(Hi Mineva) and even told his soldiers to take a moment to honor the dead, both
Zeon and Federation once the battle was concluded. Garma may want to impress his father in
battle but Degwin clearly wants a better life for his youngest son, which gives
me a bit of new respect for Garma.
Dozle, I’ve always liked cause he was a good commander who valued the
lives of his men and would die or him.
Getting to see more of his personal life: meeting his wife, being less
of a dictator than Ghirren or Kycyllia, makes him more of a favorite in my eyes
after this series.
Once the Battle of Loum concluded, it was all about
wrapping everything up. Unlike the
amount of material forced into most of Episode 4 to try and tie everything
together, Episodes 5 & 6 have a lot more room to breathe so that when it
comes time to end everything, it’s far more satisfactory. We see everyone in the military getting the
assignments they’ll be on at the beginning of Mobile Suit Gundam. We see Admiral Revel’s declaration of
continued hostilities during the signing of the Antarctic Treaty (and the fact
that he has one constantly peeved facial expression on his face at all
times…seriously, I know there’s a war on but there’s more than one emotion to
show besides pissed off Santa guy). We
see Amuro trying to question the Federation about the Gundam…ok, ok, ok,
stop. That I’m not ok with. I suppose this was all done just to give
Amuro more to do in an origin tale that didn’t really need his direct involvement. But for a Gundam purest like myself, him
trying to crack the mystery of his dads pet project was one of the most
unnecessary plotlines of this OVA.
Fairing a bit better was a brief glimpse of all the major White Base
players: Mirai, Kai, Fraw, Hayato, Katz, Letz, Kika, Sayla, Amuro and Bright, a
clear indicator that once you’re done with this story, you can jump right into
Mobile Suit Gundam with all the knowledge you need for a more complete
experience.
Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin is one of the absolute
best chapters of the Gundam mythos and a special treat for fans of the original
series itself. The rise of Char and the
slow but tense build up to the war that defines an entire era was done mostly
with careful attention to what comes later and how to tie everything together. For his part in the tale, Char was an
excellent lead and its good to see a character over 40 years old still being
given the best treatment. He is one of
Gundam’s most defining characters for a reason.
The new animation is an excellent mix of improvement and good omage to
the original 70’s Anime style and I liked the reuse of old theme music from the
old series as well. Where the OVA did
faulter with some clunky story bits and plots that weren’t necessary at all, it
made up for with grand spectacle and strong character work, helping to flesh
out characters who might not have gotten their proper amount of screentime long
ago. The action was also pretty amazing,
especially since much of it until the Battle of Loum lacked a lot of Mobile
Suits (for good reason). But the Dawn
Rebellion and the Siege of the Aznable Estate both benefitting thanks to some
exciting moments and added personal investment in players like Char, Garma and
Sayla. It’s definitely a granted wish
for those like myself who might’ve wanted to see more of the behind the scenes
backstabbing the Zabis were up to during this entire war. This OVA is a love letter to the Gundam
series that started it all. Now
hopefully we can get a full adaptation of the Gundam: The Origin Manga which
would mean a mega HD update/retelling of the first Gundam series. Sunrise, please get on this. If you love the franchise and can make the
Universal Century look this good, it’s about time Mobile Suit Gundam got the
same treatment. For now, I award Mobile
Suit Gundam: The Origin a 9/10. Fly on
Gundam!!!
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