Random Anime: Mobile Suit Gundam Char's Counterattack

Disclaimer: Everything written here is only my opinion and my personal preferences, do not take any kind of offense of what i write here. Also as the name suggests, I use a randomizer to pick what anime i'll write about next.

Title: Mobile Suit Gundam Char's Counterattack
Episode Count: 1 Movie
Aired: 1988
Studio: Sunrise
Source: Novel
Genre: Drama, Mecha, Military, Sci-fi

- Synopsis (Source: MAL):

U.C. 0093 - Char Aznable, the infamous "Red Comet" of the One Year War, has come out of hiding to lead the Neo-Zeon Army and wage war against the Earth Federation. Only his greatest rival, Gundam pilot Amuro Ray, can stop him from dropping the Axis asteroid on Earth and causing a major global catastrophe.

Nu Gundam VS Sazabi

- Personal Thoughts (probably will be biased and has a bad quality, you have been warned):

First things first, this series is a Gundam series, specifically in UC 0093. If you haven't watch the previous gundam releases what that first. Second, this is Gundam, mecha, war, deaths, betrayal, politics, and so on plays a big part in this, if you don't like any of them, this isn't for you. That again, I'll recommend anyone to try Gundam, unlike most mecha, it is actually good. For a bit of a guide to start this, watch Mobile Suit Gundam (the one from 1979) which takes place in UC 0079 and plays a major role in UC timeline since the One Year War takes place in this time. Also watch Mobile Suit Gundam 0083 Stardust Memories where Zeon strikes back and this is also when Titans is born. Then Mobile Suit Gundam Zeta which is a Titans vs AEUG-Karaba then Mobile Suit Gubdam ZZ. Yes, there's a lot... but that's where Gundam shines the most, the world building is top notch. I can't really talk about this series without talking about UC timeline in the whole so I'll do just that. This is a Gundam series, especially at UC timeline, the story mainly revolves around war from two sides. None are good nor are they bad. Both in the grey area and they fight in believing their ideals, which is quite realistic i say. Nothing in this world is truly bad or truly good, what is bad and what is good depends on how you see it, that's why i like series that do this, and since Gundam always do this, they quickly, if not instantly, convert me into a big fan of Gundam series. Anyway, back to this movie, this movie is a conclusion in the long rivalry between Amuro Ray and the Red Comet, Char Aznable. This rivalry starts from the One Year War in UC 0079 and ended in this series in UC 0093. This series revolves in the war between Neo Zeon and Earth Federation AGAIN. Yeah, Zeon and Earth Federation will never have a long lasting peace I doubt. Leading a special fleet of Earth Federation, the Londo Bell, is Bright Noa, the former captain of thr infamous White Base. And in the opposition side is Neo Zeon led by Casval, the real son of Zeon Daikun, the founder of Zeon, but he's more well known as Char Aznable, the Red Comet.

Char Aznable with his mobile suits

After Char working together with the Earth Federation as a member of AEUG, he grows closer and closer to humans that lived in earth to the point where he sees every single bad and corrupted things about them. This led him to believe that humanity has been weighted down by earth's gravity and wants to free them by sending them to live in space in space colonies, also for them to be able to stop discriminating spacenoids, humans who are born in space. But this won't be possible without any drastic measures. So Char decided to drop Axis that is filled eith nuclear warheads to earth and cause a nuclear winter which will leave earth unhabitable for a long time. His ideals are for human to live in space and force them to evolve to new types and led the world to a better place. This ideal clashes directly with his long rival, Amuro Ray, who believes that humanity will get better by time and they should wait for them to evolve naturally. This ended up in this war. Amuro Ray piloting Nu Gundam, alongside Londo bell has to fight against Sazabi, pilotted by Char and his neo zeon.

The iconic pilot of the iconic RX-78 Gundam, Amuro Ray

For the characters, we got Amuro Ray, Char Aznable, and Bright Noa who we all should already be familiar with if we follow the UC timeline. There's some new ones too, although most of them plays very little role to the plot. But some major one is the annoying Hathaway Noa, Bright Noa's son. The not so annoying Chen, and the pedophile Gyunei. God damn it, those three should go away. There's also Quess Paraya who is a childish girl who seeks attention like crazy. Despite being annoying, they play their role in the series and all in all, they're all a well done characters. Graphics is what you expect from a movie from 1988, so don't compare it with recent anime. But if we consider its age, the animation is really well done for its time and frankly speaking, in today's standard, it's not too bad too.

I really like Jagd Doga's design. I even have the model kit of it

This is Gundam, there's one thing that i want to talk about, that is the mechanical design of the mecha, or better known as Mobile Suits. For non Gundam fan out there, no, the robots are not all Gundam. Zaku isn't a gundam. Nor is Sazabi. Char's Counterattack has a lot of great mechanical designs for their mobile suit. I like most of them actually. Starting with earth federation mobile suits are Nu Gundam (which is the black and white Gundam in the picture). Nu Gundam is one of my personal favourite in Gundam designs. The grunt suit is also some of the most popular grunt suit out there, which is Jegan and Stark Jegan. I won't say anything about Re-Gz. And in Neo Zeon side, there's Sazabi, my personal favourite non Gundam designs, I'll refrain on talking too much about it since i'll only ramble on and on about it. There's also the two version of Jagd Doga. And i'm also a big fan of Quess' Jagd Doga. Not so much for Gyunei's though. Come to think of it, i'm probably just liking anything that has funnels.

 - Verdict:

If you can't guess it already, i'm a big fan of Gundam and Mobile Suit Gundam Char's Counterattack isn't an exception to that. In fact, i really love this movie and the mobile suit that appears in it.especially Sazabi. Gosh, i'll stop now. I, without a doubt, recommend this to everyone that wants to watch UC greatness. But do please watch it in order to be able to understand everything.