You may or may not be aware that 2019 is the 40th anniversary of the airing of the original Gundam series which debuted on the 7th of April, 1979. This, of course, is a significant milestone and cause to be celebrated by Gundam aficionados and newcomers alike. However, Gundam can be intimidating to many and so I thought I’d give an introduction to the franchise.
The first thing to note is that Gundam is a mecha series but, more importantly, it’s a war series with the vast majority of Gundam content taking place during times of war and conflict. The original series takes no time to set this up with the viewers being told immediately that a war has claimed the lives of half of Earth’s inhabitants.
A common mistake I hear people make is comparing Gundam to Transformers. While it’s true that both franchises feature giant mechs, the comparison ends there. In Transformers, the mechs have their own personalities and motivations. In Gundam, the mechs are simply weapons that can be used and abused by anyone.
While the series does feature a lot of human suffering and dark moments, the franchise can also be lighthearted with an easy example being Haro, a robot companion that acts as the mascot of not only Gundam but of Sunrise, the animation studio that produces the franchise.
Gundam was also revolutionary for it’s depiction of mecha in a realistic manner with Amuro, the protagonist of the original series, leafing through a manual as he began to pilot the Gundam. While these aspects have been emulated by many mecha shows since then, these aspects made the seemingly distant future feel more grounded and realistic.
When discussing Gundam, it is almost inevitable that the topic of the various Gundam timelines will be brought up. This aspect, perhaps more than any other, can be intimidating to people looking to begin their Gundam journey. However, this is not quite as confusing as it might first appear.
It is noteworthy that, despite Gundam first beginning in 1979, the alternate timelines did not come into existence until 1994 meaning that any prior titles take place in a single timeline. Afterwards several timelines were established but, with the exception of Turn A Gundam, each timeline is isolated and does not require knowledge of the others. For additional information, check out this link.
Now is a great time to get into the Gundam franchise with the availability of Gundam: the Origin manga and the releases of various Gundam anime by Right Stuf and Anime Ltd. Hopefully this article has whetted your appetite for Gundam whether you’re already a fan or a newcomer. Let me know your thoughts and opinions about the Gundam franchise and what your favourite entries are!
To begin your Gundam journey, check out Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.com and Book Depository
The Origin got me into the franchise, but i’ve since started collecting and building Gunpla, which has really helped spark my interest in looking into the franchses’ anime in more depth. I’m really wanted a perfect grade gunpla next, as only the master grades can satisfy me and still remain affordable
Almost the same here. The only Gundam I experienced beforehand was Gundam Seed and Gundam Seed Destiny so Origin was my first taste of Universal Century. I’ve been meaning to collect more Gunpla but a problem I’ve been running into is shelf space!
Yeah that’s an every expanding problem for me too. What Gunpla grade kits do you have? HG?
Should be no surprise here but the original Mobile Suit Gundam TV series is the foundation of my anime fandom. When it was announced that the Gundam: The Origin manga was coming out, that’s what brought me back to anime and manga fandom in a big way.
The U.C. stories are essential, of course, and the Alternate Universe stuff like G Gundam and Iron Blooded Orphans have been a lot of fun as well.
Not only is Gundam’s anime and manga important to me but so is the decades of diverse video games and the meditative hobby of plastic model building.
Gundam for life!
Gundam the Origin is so good! That origin arc was mindblowing in how amazing it was!
America has a bit of a lead on us when it comes to Gundam releases. Can only hope that one day we’ll see a release of G Gundam and Iron Blooded Orphans over here!