since I feel empty after finishing breaking bad, and I'm in the mood for anime I've been thinking to watch gundam, but there's like 15 different versions, so I would like someone who told me whats a good starting point.
I'm thinking about starting to watch gundam, where should I start?
- Thread starter axillarypuma
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The original Modile Suit Gundam works well for the Universal Century timeline since that's where it all began.
Gundam Wing, G Fighter Gundam, After War Gundam X, and Gundam 00 are all standalones in their own timelines so any one works.
Gundam Seed is the first of two series in the Seed timeline, the other being Gundam Seed Destiny.
Turn-A Gundam works as a standalone despite being the end of the Universal Century.
Gundam Wing, G Fighter Gundam, After War Gundam X, and Gundam 00 are all standalones in their own timelines so any one works.
Gundam Seed is the first of two series in the Seed timeline, the other being Gundam Seed Destiny.
Turn-A Gundam works as a standalone despite being the end of the Universal Century.
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Gundam Wing was the first one I ever saw, and it's still my favorite, though a large part of that is nostalgia. A lot of the battle footage gets repeated over and over again because the budget wasn't big enough to animate every fight. Still has a pretty good story and some solid action. Arguably the best gundam designs as well.
Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team is widely considered to be one of the best gundam series.
I also quite like Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn.
Really though, you can watch many of the series because most of them don't connect in a meaningful way. Just stay away from Gundam Seed and 00 Gundam, they're pretty awful. Well, Seed can be entertaining if you can turn off your brain and don't mind whiney teenage angst too much, but 00 Gundam really is one of the worst big budget anime I've ever watched (and I watched both seasons on it because it was such a train wreck that I couldn't look away).
Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team is widely considered to be one of the best gundam series.
I also quite like Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn.
Really though, you can watch many of the series because most of them don't connect in a meaningful way. Just stay away from Gundam Seed and 00 Gundam, they're pretty awful. Well, Seed can be entertaining if you can turn off your brain and don't mind whiney teenage angst too much, but 00 Gundam really is one of the worst big budget anime I've ever watched (and I watched both seasons on it because it was such a train wreck that I couldn't look away).
I started getting into Gundam at the start of this year. I'm into Mechs, but slow cumbersome realistic types, (BattleTech, Patlabor, Gunhed, Chromehounds, etc).
I saw a picture of a Zaku and all the different variants and thought they looked awesome, so I decided to watch Gundam for that reason alone. I even bought a PS2 Gundam RPG that had heavy customizations, etc.
I watched the original Gundam, and then the sequel, Zeta Gundam. They're okay. The storyline is epic in scale, plenty of backstories, mythologies, etc.
I can't stand fillers, so it was kinda painful watching the plot go-go-go-go-stop... waiting... nothing happens... etc.
The battles are awesome and plentiful. I like the fact that there's no, "Believe in your friendship and you can win!" Crap. People die regardless of what they're fighting for.
The romance is terrible. Women falling in love for no good reason, or creating a deep and meaningful relationship after a 2 minute conversation with the main character. Just old-school anime sexism trope stuff. There's a few scenes where women go emotional and they come to their senses when a man slaps them across the face and belittles them.
That's my two cents there.
I saw a picture of a Zaku and all the different variants and thought they looked awesome, so I decided to watch Gundam for that reason alone. I even bought a PS2 Gundam RPG that had heavy customizations, etc.
I watched the original Gundam, and then the sequel, Zeta Gundam. They're okay. The storyline is epic in scale, plenty of backstories, mythologies, etc.
I can't stand fillers, so it was kinda painful watching the plot go-go-go-go-stop... waiting... nothing happens... etc.
The battles are awesome and plentiful. I like the fact that there's no, "Believe in your friendship and you can win!" Crap. People die regardless of what they're fighting for.
The romance is terrible. Women falling in love for no good reason, or creating a deep and meaningful relationship after a 2 minute conversation with the main character. Just old-school anime sexism trope stuff. There's a few scenes where women go emotional and they come to their senses when a man slaps them across the face and belittles them.
That's my two cents there.
I've only ever been a casual fan of Mobile Suit Gundam but I'll tell you a bit about myself and my experiences with the franchise which may help you to choose a starting point.
I'm an older fan of anime, getting my start way back in the 1980s when I was very young. I was about 7 years old when I was first introduced to stuff like Tetsuwan Atom, Super Dimension Fortress Macross and Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. Unfortunately I never got into Gundam when I was young, I saw it for the first time around 2001. I began by watching the original Mobile Suit Gundam 1979 animated TV series. I did not have a good time. Being an old school fan I was well prepared for the dated animation, but the series was just too far removed from my pop culture sensibilities that I couldn't get into it. It was a struggle to finish.
Next I decided to try something much more current and watched one of the more popular ones; Gundam Wing. This was almost as bad a decision. While the modern production values made the show much more visually interesting, I found the story and characters almost insufferable.
After two failures I had given up. At the beheast of a good friend I trust, I was convinced to give the franchise another chance. This time I followed his advice and also did my own research, reading wikis and fansites about each of the Gundam productions. I picked a few that sounded interesting. MUCH BETTER. I went through Gundam 0083 Stardust Memory, Mobile Suit Gundam Zeta, Gundam F91, Chars Counterattack, and the Mobile Suit Gundam The 08th MS Team. Zeta and Char's CC were may favorites. It was also at the tail end of this that I discovered Mobile Suit Gundam 0080 War in the Pocket. This is an AMAZING 6-episode OVA series. It remains my absolute favorite Gundam production of all time. Most of these are all 1980s anime, so they are a bit dated, but being an old school fan they really appealed to me.
After exploring all the retro Gundam for most of the 2000s, I pretty much overdosed on the franchise and left it for a while. A couple years back I got intrigued by a new series called Gundam 00. This TV series was a throughly enjoyable show with gorgeous animation, great action, some truly funny moments and even some engaging drama. I much prefer the first season and don't enjoy much of the second season. Nonetheless, it is a great modern Gundam show that I highly recommend.
Though I've not yet finished it, I can also recommend Gundam Unicorn another very modern anime that has a phenomenal production budget, looking just astounding. It's a rather serious show, which may turn some off. But it's quite the experience to see.
I hope all this helps.
I'm an older fan of anime, getting my start way back in the 1980s when I was very young. I was about 7 years old when I was first introduced to stuff like Tetsuwan Atom, Super Dimension Fortress Macross and Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. Unfortunately I never got into Gundam when I was young, I saw it for the first time around 2001. I began by watching the original Mobile Suit Gundam 1979 animated TV series. I did not have a good time. Being an old school fan I was well prepared for the dated animation, but the series was just too far removed from my pop culture sensibilities that I couldn't get into it. It was a struggle to finish.
Next I decided to try something much more current and watched one of the more popular ones; Gundam Wing. This was almost as bad a decision. While the modern production values made the show much more visually interesting, I found the story and characters almost insufferable.
After two failures I had given up. At the beheast of a good friend I trust, I was convinced to give the franchise another chance. This time I followed his advice and also did my own research, reading wikis and fansites about each of the Gundam productions. I picked a few that sounded interesting. MUCH BETTER. I went through Gundam 0083 Stardust Memory, Mobile Suit Gundam Zeta, Gundam F91, Chars Counterattack, and the Mobile Suit Gundam The 08th MS Team. Zeta and Char's CC were may favorites. It was also at the tail end of this that I discovered Mobile Suit Gundam 0080 War in the Pocket. This is an AMAZING 6-episode OVA series. It remains my absolute favorite Gundam production of all time. Most of these are all 1980s anime, so they are a bit dated, but being an old school fan they really appealed to me.
After exploring all the retro Gundam for most of the 2000s, I pretty much overdosed on the franchise and left it for a while. A couple years back I got intrigued by a new series called Gundam 00. This TV series was a throughly enjoyable show with gorgeous animation, great action, some truly funny moments and even some engaging drama. I much prefer the first season and don't enjoy much of the second season. Nonetheless, it is a great modern Gundam show that I highly recommend.
Though I've not yet finished it, I can also recommend Gundam Unicorn another very modern anime that has a phenomenal production budget, looking just astounding. It's a rather serious show, which may turn some off. But it's quite the experience to see.
I hope all this helps.
I've been watching the 8th MS Team recently. Its basically Gundam meets Vietnam and it's pretty good. War in the Pocket is also great, and it goes into some really dark places near the end. The OVA is essentially the "Anti Gundam" Gundam series. It calls out a lot of the bullshit from the franchise and the rampant commercialization of Gundam Toys, and reminds the viewer that war fucking sucks.
Right at the end, when Al is crying over the death of Bernie, the fat kid in his class thinks that Al is sad because the Gundam got blown up. The fat kid tries to cheer up Al by telling him that its just a matter of time before they make a new, cooler robot to fight and blow stuff up.
It's easy to see this as a criticism of Gundam's dual personality. On one hand, the series tries to show the horrors of war, while on the other hand, it's a media juggernaut that makes most of its money selling models and action figures to impressionable children.
When this attitude is contrasted against the downright depressing nature of War in the Pocket, the irony becomes that much more poignant. In the end, the battle for Side 6 was completely pointless, an irrelevant conflict in the final days of a destructive war that accomplished nothing except killing good people and destroying a child's innocence.
It's easy to see this as a criticism of Gundam's dual personality. On one hand, the series tries to show the horrors of war, while on the other hand, it's a media juggernaut that makes most of its money selling models and action figures to impressionable children.
When this attitude is contrasted against the downright depressing nature of War in the Pocket, the irony becomes that much more poignant. In the end, the battle for Side 6 was completely pointless, an irrelevant conflict in the final days of a destructive war that accomplished nothing except killing good people and destroying a child's innocence.
I started with the Mobile Suit Gundam movies. They were a bit of a slog, some things happened in the first movie that were not explained until the third, and the only version I'm aware of is subtitled so I hope you like those. They were great fun and I prefer to think of them as the story of Char Aznable rather than Amuro Ray. However, I will admit that Gundam Seed might be an easier way to get into the series.
Gundam Wing on Toonami was my introduction to the Gundam series and was also around the time I started to watch anime. The problem at the time was it was really easy to miss an episode, and so much could happen in just one 22 minute show that you'd be pretty lost when you watched the following episode, so I never really saw it all until I got them on DVD. I really enjoy the designs of the various Gundams and did enjoy the politics of the show, which was something I was very unused to seeing in television.
I followed up by renting the Mobile Suit Gundam movies and found them enjoyable despite the very dated animation. I managed to pick up 08th MS Team, 0083 Stardust Memory, and 0080 War in the Pocket all of which I thought were fantastic. Soviet Heavy above nails the description of War in the Pocket and I consider it a must-see for any Gundam fan. Or really, any fan of war movies. It just works.
In your case, OP, I'd try the original Mobile Suit Gundam movies to start with, but if you aren't enjoying them, try one of the other series in the Universal Century (main storyline) like 08th MS team, 0083 or 0080. Alternately, if you primarily like the designs of the mechs, try Gundam Wing and the movie Endless Waltz as they have some fantastic designs.
I followed up by renting the Mobile Suit Gundam movies and found them enjoyable despite the very dated animation. I managed to pick up 08th MS Team, 0083 Stardust Memory, and 0080 War in the Pocket all of which I thought were fantastic. Soviet Heavy above nails the description of War in the Pocket and I consider it a must-see for any Gundam fan. Or really, any fan of war movies. It just works.
In your case, OP, I'd try the original Mobile Suit Gundam movies to start with, but if you aren't enjoying them, try one of the other series in the Universal Century (main storyline) like 08th MS team, 0083 or 0080. Alternately, if you primarily like the designs of the mechs, try Gundam Wing and the movie Endless Waltz as they have some fantastic designs.
Wait you don't really like mecha shows, but you liked Valvrave? If that show didn't have great opening themes, I would have long forgotten it by now. I mean people argue which is worse Valvrave or Gundam SEED Destiny. (I don't mean to make an attack on your person, I just was really disappointed by Valvrave.)sanquin said:
OP: While I do like Gundam SEED, G Gundam, and Gundam 00, currently my favorite Gundam series us Build Fighters(I might get some flak for this.) it doesn't take itself seriously and it's a lot of fun. It's basic premise is that Gundam is a very popular TV show and people build and customize Gundam models and have them fight in tournaments.
This is an interesting question, as there are so many series that don't have any real relation to one another that can all be watched pretty much independently. I'll rate them by Universe. Series within each universe are in chronological order.
1. The Universal Century Universe - the Original, and still the best. About half of Gundam takes place in this universe. If I were you, I'd watch it in in-universe chronological order.
- Gundam (TV show or movies, whichever you'd prefer - the movies have better animation and lose some of the filler)
- Gundam 0080 (miniseries)
- 08th MS Team (miniseries)
- MS Igloo 1-3 (shorts)
- Gundam 0083 (miniseries)
- Gundam Zeta (Again, movies are available for this one if you'd rather skip the filler)
- Gundam Double Zeta
- Char's Counterattack (movie)
- Gundam Unicorn (miniseries)
- Gundam F91 (movie)
- Victory Gundam
-G-Saviour (Don't watch G-Saviour, you'll spend the rest of your life regretting it.)
The Original series, 0080, 08th MS Team, and Igloo all take place at about the same time, just in different places. If you're new to the show, 0080 and 08th MS Team are both very short, relatively continuity-light, and incredibly good. If you're impatient, watch them first. They're better in context, though. These shows all came out at different times in real life, so that animation quality is variable between them. Things like that don't bother me, though, so I'd just watch them in order.
2. Anno Domini Universe - Excellent series, by far the best stand-alone Universe. Movie is a bit shitty though.
- Gundam 00
- Gundam 00: Awakening of the Trailblazer (movie)
3. Correct Centuary Universe - Another very good universe, with good animation, but this series benefits greatly from having seen a number of the series preceding it. Don't watch it until you have a few others under your belt, or you'll miss a lot of the in-jokes.
- Turn A Gundam
4. After Colony Universe - The one most Americans came in to the show with, the Gundam Wing Universe. Pretty good show (great movie). Mildly repetitive in places, and less of a "real robot" show than some of the others, but still very enjoyable.
- Gundam Wing
- Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz (movie)
5. Future Century Universe - Ah, G Gundam. This series is weird. It's definitely a super-robot show, and it isn't like any of the others. It's a very good show, but it's hardly even in the same genre as the rest of the series. Your mileage may vary.
- G Gundam
6. After War Universe - Ah, poor maligned Gundam X. It's original run was shortened due to poor ratings (it had the unfortunate luck to originally air in the same timeslot as Evangelion), but it's a good show. It's also sort of a wink-wink-nudge-nudge direct sequel to the Original series, so don't watch it if you haven't seen that yet. It finally resolves the Newtype problem to my satisfaction, however.
- Gundam X
7. Comic Era Universe - Gundam Seed, what can I say about it? Pretty animation, silly plot, bad characters. Starts off like a remake of the original series, then halfway through decides it wants to be it's own show afterall. Pulls a bait-and-switch with the main characters in the second series. Sweet Mecha designs, though. The mini-series, Stargazer, is quite good. It takes place in the early stages of Destiny, and follows other characters.
- Gundam SEED
- Gundam SEED: Astray (shorts)
- Gundam SEED: Stargazer (miniseries)
- Gundam SEED: Destiny
8. Advanced Generation - This series starts out promising, but has a terrible ending and ultimately wastes its potential. Pass unless you're a completionist.
- Gundam AGE
I haven't seen the Gunpla Builders series, and thus feel unable to comment on them.
1. The Universal Century Universe - the Original, and still the best. About half of Gundam takes place in this universe. If I were you, I'd watch it in in-universe chronological order.
- Gundam (TV show or movies, whichever you'd prefer - the movies have better animation and lose some of the filler)
- Gundam 0080 (miniseries)
- 08th MS Team (miniseries)
- MS Igloo 1-3 (shorts)
- Gundam 0083 (miniseries)
- Gundam Zeta (Again, movies are available for this one if you'd rather skip the filler)
- Gundam Double Zeta
- Char's Counterattack (movie)
- Gundam Unicorn (miniseries)
- Gundam F91 (movie)
- Victory Gundam
-
The Original series, 0080, 08th MS Team, and Igloo all take place at about the same time, just in different places. If you're new to the show, 0080 and 08th MS Team are both very short, relatively continuity-light, and incredibly good. If you're impatient, watch them first. They're better in context, though. These shows all came out at different times in real life, so that animation quality is variable between them. Things like that don't bother me, though, so I'd just watch them in order.
2. Anno Domini Universe - Excellent series, by far the best stand-alone Universe. Movie is a bit shitty though.
- Gundam 00
- Gundam 00: Awakening of the Trailblazer (movie)
3. Correct Centuary Universe - Another very good universe, with good animation, but this series benefits greatly from having seen a number of the series preceding it. Don't watch it until you have a few others under your belt, or you'll miss a lot of the in-jokes.
- Turn A Gundam
4. After Colony Universe - The one most Americans came in to the show with, the Gundam Wing Universe. Pretty good show (great movie). Mildly repetitive in places, and less of a "real robot" show than some of the others, but still very enjoyable.
- Gundam Wing
- Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz (movie)
5. Future Century Universe - Ah, G Gundam. This series is weird. It's definitely a super-robot show, and it isn't like any of the others. It's a very good show, but it's hardly even in the same genre as the rest of the series. Your mileage may vary.
- G Gundam
6. After War Universe - Ah, poor maligned Gundam X. It's original run was shortened due to poor ratings (it had the unfortunate luck to originally air in the same timeslot as Evangelion), but it's a good show. It's also sort of a wink-wink-nudge-nudge direct sequel to the Original series, so don't watch it if you haven't seen that yet. It finally resolves the Newtype problem to my satisfaction, however.
- Gundam X
7. Comic Era Universe - Gundam Seed, what can I say about it? Pretty animation, silly plot, bad characters. Starts off like a remake of the original series, then halfway through decides it wants to be it's own show afterall. Pulls a bait-and-switch with the main characters in the second series. Sweet Mecha designs, though. The mini-series, Stargazer, is quite good. It takes place in the early stages of Destiny, and follows other characters.
- Gundam SEED
- Gundam SEED: Astray (shorts)
- Gundam SEED: Stargazer (miniseries)
- Gundam SEED: Destiny
8. Advanced Generation - This series starts out promising, but has a terrible ending and ultimately wastes its potential. Pass unless you're a completionist.
- Gundam AGE
I haven't seen the Gunpla Builders series, and thus feel unable to comment on them.
Start with Gundam 00,if you want something that you'll enjoy and is recent. You could start with the original Gundam but keep in mind that series is over 30 years old by now.
Huh, well, I guess I'm weird like that then. Though I have to admit I found other mecha shows after that, that were a lot better. I'm actually interested in why you think it's such a bad anime. So any chance you can PM me about that to not derail this thread with it? (I promise I won't get mad.syaoran728 said:
I'm not afraid of liking things people in general hate.)
I do quite like Armored Trooper VOTOMS.raankh said:Watch Armored Trooper VOTOMS instead
Gasaraki is also phenomenal, but it's a show that pretty much needs to be marathoned, or else you risk losing track of some of the ridiculous number of plot threads that show keeps going at once.
Gundam Wing was the series that won over audiences outside of Japan first, so it could be a good place to start. When it came over on Cartoon Network all those years ago I loved it still do. I find it so much more interesting now as an adult than when I was a kid. Mainly since the in-universe politics and philosophy are interesting, but as a kid I was just waiting for the mobile suit battles. It's not perfect, but it's my favorite.
Seed was good enough, but it's much less about the action and more about characters. Each battle and death has a lot more weight, while in Wing for example, you could have 30 people die in minutes and it really does not matter.
I would not start with G Gundam. While it has an interesting premise, it's just so weird. Not that weirdness is bad, but it's so much different than most of the other Gundam series.
I actually need to watch more Gundam series myself. Since I have not seen too many Gundam series, I am probably not the best person to ask about which one is best to start with.
Seed was good enough, but it's much less about the action and more about characters. Each battle and death has a lot more weight, while in Wing for example, you could have 30 people die in minutes and it really does not matter.
I would not start with G Gundam. While it has an interesting premise, it's just so weird. Not that weirdness is bad, but it's so much different than most of the other Gundam series.
I actually need to watch more Gundam series myself. Since I have not seen too many Gundam series, I am probably not the best person to ask about which one is best to start with.
Do you want some "realism" in your gundam, or do you want something over the top?
Do you want a war drama or do you want a hero story?
Do you want some romance or do you want dead people?
There are many things you need to specify lol.
Personally, My first Gundam series that I watched was Wing Gundam, but I didn't like it so much after I grew up. My favorite series is After War gundam X, I just wished it had more "luck" when it was originally airing, now it's treated as the "black sheep" of the franchise.
I personally suggest watching the very first of the franchise "Mobile Suit Gundam" and then watch the side stories of it before going into Zeta Gundam.
Do you want a war drama or do you want a hero story?
Do you want some romance or do you want dead people?
There are many things you need to specify lol.
Personally, My first Gundam series that I watched was Wing Gundam, but I didn't like it so much after I grew up. My favorite series is After War gundam X, I just wished it had more "luck" when it was originally airing, now it's treated as the "black sheep" of the franchise.
I personally suggest watching the very first of the franchise "Mobile Suit Gundam" and then watch the side stories of it before going into Zeta Gundam.
It's pretty great actually, but it's more suited to a long-term fan who has watched a good amount of Gundam series. Story wise it's a kid show, but it doesn't treat its watchers as dumb kids (not like AGE). It has very good action scenes since it's a competitive fighting series. It's a perfectly fine series to just sit back and watch with leisure.rgrekejin said:
The only Gundam series I ever watched was SEED. And...can't really recommend it. It had an interesting premise with a war caused by racism, but by the end the racism has gotten fucking cartoony and it's impossible to take seriously. Not to mention the characters don't feel real towards the end. The entire plot is based on the differences between genetically engineered humans and normal humans and the way they try and go "We're not so different" kind of falls flat.
Main character who is genetically engineered and kicks everyone's ass even though he doesn't want to to normal friend: "I know that there's a lot of things I can do that you can't. But there's a lot of things you can do that I can't."
Me: Like? LIKE!?
Main character who is genetically engineered and kicks everyone's ass even though he doesn't want to to normal friend: "I know that there's a lot of things I can do that you can't. But there's a lot of things you can do that I can't."
Me: Like? LIKE!?
Honestly?
Watch 0080, 08th MS Team, and 0083. They're not only the best of the core series, they're the best of the entire series.
After watching them, if you find yourself intrigued by the story-verse, then try expanding outward into other portions of the core universe. Only after that would I recommend venturing out into the other series.
If continuity is a concern, then I'd suggest starting with the original show. From there go with the three listed above and continue from there.
Watch 0080, 08th MS Team, and 0083. They're not only the best of the core series, they're the best of the entire series.
After watching them, if you find yourself intrigued by the story-verse, then try expanding outward into other portions of the core universe. Only after that would I recommend venturing out into the other series.
If continuity is a concern, then I'd suggest starting with the original show. From there go with the three listed above and continue from there.