Well, we had to come to this sooner or later. The minute Kamille began a romance with unstable Cyber Newtype Four Murasame, history was bound to repeat itself…or echo I guess. But believe it or not, Four’s death probably wasn’t the most major event of todays section of Zeta Gundam. That’s not to downplay it either. It’s just that save for one meadering storyline that probably wont go anywhere vital, things got real very fast.
Yeah, Four didn’t make it and it was Lalah Sune all over again. The only difference is that she died shielding Kamille and wasn’t slain by another love interest…and Jerid’s just evened the score between him and Kamille, who’s killed three of his friends so far. It’s funny. The Kamille/Four romance was a clear inspiration for the romance subplot between Shinn Asuka and Stellar Louiser in Gundam Seed Destiny. However, while we spent too much time with Stellar and learned nothing and just expected her and genocidal Gundam maniac Shinn to fall in love, we spent only a handful of episodes with Four and yet she was a better defined character with a better developed romance with Kamille. It’s not showing right away but her definite death is gonna sink in for Kamille before the show is over…granted he’s got other bombshells to worry about but we’ll table that for now.
Big development #2 was Char finally stepping up to his new role as head of the AEUG and addressing the Federation higher ups directly over the crimes of the Titans. If it hasn’t already been made clear yet, Char is a freaking bad ass. Not only did he out himself as the son of Zeon Diekun (something I guess few actually knew) but he gave a passionate speech in an assembly hall that the Titans were trying to destroy just to shut him up. He didn’t flinch, he didn’t run. Char laid it all out and did so without fear. What really got me though was the aftermath. Seeing Amuro have a congratulatory drink with Char and speak with him as if they were old friends is probably one of the most tear inducing moments in all of Gundam. These two are best known as rivals but here…man knowing what lies in wait for Char and what could have been…its almost tragic to see him and Amuro getting along so well. There’s still time to see if Zeta answers the crucial question as to what changed Char’s mind and drove him to the extremes he was willing to put Earth through in Char’s Counterattack.
The final big development was Kamille’s reunion with Reccoa, now a full fledged member of the Titans. Not only does Kamille know she’s alive but he’s horrified to see her like this, wishing she were gone so they wouldn’t have to meet as enemies. Reccoa’s reasonings for switching sides are murky but she’s torn up inside and feels even now she cant go back to the AEUG. It’s just as painful for Kamille considering he loves Reccoa like family and swore to protect her if she did come back. IS there a chance Reccoa might come back? It could really be too late…especially after she sees the Titans use Gryps, upgraded to Colony Laser status, to blast a hole in a colony to show their strength and deter any further acts of rebellion. She’s in deep now and theyre only gonna test her further. Guilt ridden as Reccoa is, I’m sure Scirocco will use his boyish evil Newtype charms to calm her more into his sway, same as he’s doing with Sarah.
However, it wasn’t all excellent and tragic game changers. We still had a fair share of dumb moments and questionable character directions. Rosamia returned after being away a while and suddenly believes she is Kamille’s long lost sister. I remember she and Kamille did fight but neither recognized the other. Rosamia knows something of Kamille cause of his Newtype presence (I think). But the whole “Big Brother” plotline feels out of nowhere. Yeah, it tracks with how damaged Cyber Newtypes are, we saw it plenty with Four. But unless there’s a point to this, this new “Rosamy” plotline doesn’t need to be here and she doesn’t need to be on the Argama unless it’s under lock and key cause everyone, even Kamille, is suspicious of her. I’m glad Amuro got to get in on the action one more time but why couldn’t he go to Space with Char and Kamille? I guess there’s still more to do on the ground but…idk I suppose it's fine to have one Gundam lead on the ground and the other in space. Actually, we FINALLY rounded out the old White Base crew with a very silent cameo from Sayla Mass aka Char’s sister, who was listening to Char’s broadcast. Considering who she is to Char, why the hell hasn’t Sayla been given an actual role in this (or Char’s Counterattack for that matter)? It feels like a waste of the return of one of Gundams strongest female protagonists and I’d like to know why that was.
Couple of extra thoughts. Beltorchika actually played an important and useful role in the Dakar operation. I’m glad she’s grown and become less of an annoyance since the last time we saw her. Her quick but flirty scenes with Amuro had a better energy (I guess theyre officially a couple now and Amuro promised her more than a kiss when others weren’t around) and she even had a friendly chat with Kamille. Guess everyones grown even if we aren’t looking at them all the time. One last quibble about Amuro: why doesn’t he get a Gundam on Earth? The AEUG had 3 Gundam Mark II’s at the beginning of the series: one became the Zeta, one went to Emma. Unless I missed something, that’s one unaccounted for. I guess the whole Jaburo operation was hectic sure but why couldn’t the AEUG have sent the last Mark II to Amuro so he could be back behind the saddle of the Mobile Suit that helped make him famous? Lastly, Argama kids Shinta and Qum try to pilot Fa’s Mobile Suit to help in battle…even Katz, Letz and Kika weren’t that stupid during the One Year War, God those two are useless and unmemorable.
We end this week of Zeta Gundam with quite the cliffhanger. The Titans have a Colony Laser and they aren’t afraid to use it. How will this hinder the AEUG’s future plans and what about the Axis Zeons? We saw Haman and Mineva briefly but their group hasn’t seen action since they appeared last time. Next Monday, the end begins as we start to close out Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam right here at the Gundam Anime Corner. Be ready for anything dear readers.
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