Forum - View topicBuried Treasure - Gundam 0080
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Nagisa
Moderator
 Posts: 6128 Location: Atlanta-ish, Jawjuh |
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THANK YOU. I think I've been around overly delusional Gundam fans so much that running across people willing to tell it like it is, that Tomino's a hack, is a rare and incredibly delightful breath of fresh air. He's a good concept man like Pepperidge said, he can create wonderful worlds, characters, and basic plots, but he's abysmal at implementing them most of the time. His character writing is especially awful, because it doesn't really follow any sort of logical progression, and is all extremely awkward. Take Zeta Gundam, for example. Jerid spoiler[kills Kamille's girlfriend, Four,] so Kamille's immediate reaction is to go to Char and lambast him over his pseudonym. And then call Char by that pseudonym in the very next scene there in, and completely forget spoiler[Four] even existed until about ten episodes later. What? And Victory Gundam is even worse. I'll spare the details right now, but suffice it to say I'll be covering every gory detail on my blog, starting here (warning: language). Y'know, it's a funny thing, being a Gundam fan who can't stand Tomino. I mean, I like Turn-A (it's actually one of my personal favorites, in spite of its writer and director), I think the original series and Zeta are alright, and Char's Counterattack is barely acceptable. That aside, everything I like in Gundam is either the non-Tomino UC material (with 08th MS Team at the forefront) and the Alternate Universe material (G, X, and the first SEED, primarily). And various manga and novel offerings, like Astray and Ecole du Ciel. Suffice it to say, my opinion generally isn't very popular among hardcore Gundam fans. |
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TurboWasis
 Posts: 15 Location: Toronto, Ontario |
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I'm glad to see some Gundam make it's way into the column. I love 0080! It's one of my favourite Gundam series. Being a big Gundam fan, I will shamelessly watch anything Gundam, good or bad. However, it's true that Gundam isn't for everyone but I really think that 0080 is an exception. I hope more people will give it a chance after reading this column.
It doesn't matter which DVDs you get. Bandai just puts the exact same DVDs in different packaging. The biggest difference between the two is that the separate DVDs have inserts and reversible covers while the collection won't. Well, I've never seen a Bandai collection that did anyway. |
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Randall Miyashiro
 Posts: 2451 Location: A block away from Golden Gate Park |
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The X film is by far Rintaro's worst film, but I agree with Gatsu and consider him one of my favorites. War in the Pocket is one of my favorite OVAs and I remember eagerly awaiting the next volume when it came out. I really appreciate it's pacing as a complete unit and often find it frustrating that most/all other Gundam series require a MS fight in almost every episode. One of the highlights in my anime fandom was playing the 16mm prints of all six episodes at Animecon 91. I remember requesting covering the hours as the projectionist that this series was played at the con. I believe it was a brand new virgin print since it had no scratches and smelt strongly of the film emulsion. I wish that there were more Gundam series like 0080. I would rather see alternate takes on a pre-established universe, instead of the same conflict and story in a new universe. I would love to see a pre-Igloo series involving Char and Sayla as kids and the young Zabi family. Of course it wouldn't be MS Gundam without mobile suits or the Gundam so they would need to call it the Death of Zion or rise of Zabi or something. |
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penguintruth
 Posts: 8461 Location: Penguinopolis |
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I disagree with the assessment that Tomino's works are "mediocre". The original Mobile Suit Gundam defined a generation of real robot programs, and there are several strong programs of Tomino's that are unreleated to the Gundam franchise. Although it is true his core concepts are often lost to the tides of new and exciting story ideas (especially the Newtype concept - the evolution of man, which loses all focus and meaning down the line in the Universal Century era productions), he is able to render drama and technological wonder all at the same time, even if it comes with a toy marketing agenda. His characters are strong, even though some of this utilizations of them aren't. He has his flaws as a director, but is prolific and worth noting on level with greats like Leiji Matsumoto or Go Nagai for his talents. Zeta Gundam, for instance, is one of the most amazing accomplishments of 80s anime, in my opinion.
That said, I rather enjoyed Gundam 0080. Even though the One Year war period of the UC timeline has been done to death by now, it was a great work that chronicled not a massive space war's epic battles and impact on politics and life of humanity, but rather a young boy's outlook on life and the sacrifices of unsung soldiers. A well done, moving short series that does more with its six episodes that many Gundam programs fail to do in thirty plus. Last edited by penguintruth on Thu Aug 16, 2007 6:20 am; edited 1 time in total |
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abruli
 Posts: 19 |
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While 0080 is one of the best, if not the best Gundam around, it has one ultimate flaw. Alfred's voice is like someone scraping the blackboard with fingernails or sharp metallic instruments. It is so horrible that for me it took away a large chunk of the enjoyability of the show. Daisuke Namikawa latter starred in Beck too as Yukio's voice and by doing so made the whole show a farce. Man can't sing worth shit. "Full moon sway..." still haunts me when I go to sleep
Nagisa, I agree with you completely. I too am a fan of Gundam but find it hard to enjoy anything that Tomino has done apart from Turn-A Gundam. Zeta was the biggest disappointment considering how much it has been praised, I barely managed to watch it through. And to my absolute amazement I found myself enjoying the heavily lambasted and failed Double Zeta more than the original Zeta. Victory I couldn't even finish. Even the original movie trilogy took several attempts to finish. |
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Nagisa
Moderator
Posts: 6128 Location: Atlanta-ish, Jawjuh |
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But that's the thing. Nobody here is saying he has bad ideas, but that his execution is iffy. The themes he wants to present and the characters he comes up with are all (mostly) incredible, but as you say yourself, the way he utlizes these ideas in his stories makes them suffer. |
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nightmaregenie
 Posts: 167 Location: Palmy, NZ - student central |
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K here's an extremely hard question...
Where can you get DVD's of older Gundam series in R4, without having to spend an enormous sum importing everything? 
Even if I have all that money, RightStuf doesn't even have Turn A, which is the one I'm very keen on. Sniff sniff... |
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DuelLadyS
 Posts: 1705 Location: WA state |
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I'm very pleased to see 'War in the Pocket' getting some attention! I saw a few of the episodes on Adult Swim way back when... most importantly, I saw the last episode. That ending has stayed with me since, and I consider it one of the best, most powerful endings I've ever seen in an anime.
I just recently got around to watching my DVDs of this- it was a real treat to see the whole thing, and knowing the full buildup to that climax makes it all the more amazing. 
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W-General
Posts: 280 Location: Ithaca, NY, USA / Taichung, Taiwan |
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I understand how you feel. Despite calling myself a big Gundam fan, I'm still not done "grinding" through Zeta. The original trilogy got through fine and I liked it a lot probably because it was in movie form. I am sure I would not be able to maul through the First Gundam TV series. That being said, I just remembered another Tomino work that I think is about as good as Turn A Gundam - Crossbone Gundam, it also gave me a very distinctively human feel. However I think its success is mainly due to it being on the Manga form (which readers are accustomed to reading long ramblings from the author) and also that Tomino didn't exactly draw it and decide every frame himself, but mostly just the storyline. I asked Bandai at AX if they're gonna bring Turn A Gundam over, and they gave their usual non-committal answer: "We'll work on it." 
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rayne21x
Posts: 1 |
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yes even if ur not a gundam fan, check this out. when he says the ending is devestating...it is...you wont help but shed a tear
i personally believe this is one of the best gundam series ever made. forget gundam wing, gundam seed, or gundam seed destiny. if you want to see what gundam is all about check gundam 0080 out. if you're even more interested check out gundam 08th MS team (which some believe to be the greatest gundam series ever) or gundam 0083 (which has a top gun flair to it) |
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Roy9076
 Posts: 286 Location: California |
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I own this series. I'm suprised to see this as a buried teasure! Heck yeah! I own a piece of old school goodness!
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Nagisa
Moderator
Posts: 6128 Location: Atlanta-ish, Jawjuh |
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Gundam 0083 amuses me to no end, because it's perhaps the best exercise out there in how a supporting cast can save a show from horrible, horrible leads. Kou, Nina, and Gato are probably the three worst leads in mecha anime in general, not just Gundam. Kou's a twenty-something that acts like a five-year old, Gato's a puppet of a puppet of a puppet (assuring that nothing he does is in any way compelling or of his own real volition until the last thirty seconds of his life), and Nina's a flaky technophile who can't keep a male partner because she's too infatuated with her robots. Not a one of them is worth watching. Yet on the other hand, the supporting characters are absolutely stellar. Burning, Synapse, Monsha (as much of a bastard as he is, the sad thing is almost everything he says is absolutely correct), Keith, Mora, Cima, Delaz, they're all interesting, fun to watch, and typically a whole helluva lot more competent than the three characters we're supposed to be watching, so much so that they (along with a really fascinating plot, especially from the perspective of a well-read UC veteran) end up rescuing the whole show from the jaws of sheer crapdom. The mobile suits aren't bad, either. Not quite the jaw-dropping Yutaka Izubuchi showcase that 0080 is, but you've gotta give it up for the likes of the Physalis, Xamel, Dra-C, and others. |
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Area88
 Posts: 374 |
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I would also recommend people checking out the OVA series - SD Gundam from 1988-1991. It's a super deformed parody series with lots of insane jokes and stories which don't really need a knowledge of Gundam to enjoy. There's even a Wacky Races style parody in one of the episodes. Picture below for reference:
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The Human Spider
Posts: 334 |
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The only one that really bothered was in MSG when Amuro's reaction to Ryu's death made it look like it would have been cool with him if anyone else had died. I also didn't like how in ZETA there was no good explanation to why Char brought Shinta and Qum into space with him(though I do have my own theory which is not supported by any specific details in the show.) But overall I like Tomino's stuff(I might be one of the only BRAIN POWERD fans in the world)--he's one of the few anime directors(along with Hideaki Anno and Akiyuki Shinbo) whose works I actively seek out. As for 0080, I think it had some of the best MS designs and battles in the franchise, I just wish there was more of them(I was a Gunpla fan long before I got into the series, which I approached from the viewpoint of a hardcore Gundam mecha geek.) I'd like to see more Gundam anime series that take chances with doing something different with the setting(as in TURN A) or format(as in G) of the show--I think something like ECOLE DU CIEL with it's pilot -school setting or ASTRAY/R with a main pilot who is not affiliated with the military or a militia, would be interesting for a Gundam TV or OVA series. |
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Xenofan 29A
 Posts: 378 |
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My favorite column! Please do these more often!
I've never felt compelled by a Gundam series. I really wanted to, but I could never find myself enjoying one for more than a few minutes at a time. I tried Zeta, I tried original, and god help me, I even tried Gundam Wing. A short OVA, though, I thnk I would be able to get through. I'll have to check this out. |
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