Anime review: Neon Genesis Evangelion: Death and Rebirth

Following the conclusion of Neon Genesis Evangelion was the ending creator Hideaki Anno said he intended from the start, End of Evangelion. However, End of Evangelion was released in July 1997, so to tide fans over until the Summer, Anno and his team released Death and Rebirth in March. The response was not the praise that Neon Genesis Evangelion had garnered, rather it sparked even more controversy into the saga of Evangelion.

Death and Rebirth is ninety-seven minutes in length, and is split into two distinct portions. The first seventy minutes are a recap of episodes one through twenty-four of the original anime series. This portion of the film includes minimal new footage, only including sequences of the children practicing on orchestra instruments within the room seen in episodes twenty-five and twenty-six of the original series.


While it would make the most sense for Death and Rebirth to spend a balanced amount of time between recapping battles between the EVAs and Angels with the plot and character development, this is unfortunately not the case. The Angel battles receive plenty of focus, but the film jumps from one to another at a rate that is almost a chore to follow. The characters are almost entirely kicked to the curb and viewers are given an incredibly small amount of information and backstory to base their opinions off of. Even Shinji, the main character of the original series, feel severely underdeveloped.

This Death recap portion is set up in a similar fashion as episode fourteen of Neon Genesis Evangelion, “Weaving a Story”, in which SEELE provides a slideshow-style report of NERV’s encounters with the Angels thus far and review Gendo’s work with the EVAs. However, the way that Death and Rebirth handles this is without a voice actor, thus the transitions between each new segment as well as detailed descriptions of the Angels, EVAs, and characters are delivered by white text on a black background.

The Rebirth portion of the film includes the early events of End of Evangelion and caps out at twenty-seven minutes. This comes to an abrupt halt at the conclusion of Death and Rebirth, and could have been completely left out to include more footage for recap.


The art style is still good, even if there isn’t any real difference between what is used in Death and Rebirth and what was animated into the original series. The soundtrack is clean, though it fails to convey the emotions it did in the show – this is more to the fault of the story’s pacing than Shiro Sagisu’s orchestration, though.

Neon Genesis Evangelion: Death and Rebirth tries to compile the events of one of the most complex and multi-layered anime series ever into one hour and thirty seven-minute film. While the Rebirth portion does provide some new footage, it’s more or less to tease viewers of what is to come in End of Evangelion. The characters fall flat and are significantly underdeveloped. The psychological aspect is not particularly impactful, as it is delivered in quick and choppy segments. As impressive as the fight sequences are, they cannot carry the series alone. As far as I can tell, the only real good audience for Death and Rebirth would be viewers who want a quick refresher of the events of the original series before watching End of Evangelion. As for first-time viewers, this is one compilation film that is more of an insult than an aid to the series.

My rating: 5 (out of 10)

Anime review: MS IGLOO: The Hidden One Year War

MS IGLOO: The Hidden One Year War shows various events during the One Year War from the perspective of Oliver May, a Zeon engineer. As a non-combatant from the side that would eventually lose the war, May presents a most unusual yet intriguing perspective. He is stationed aboard the Jotunheim and tasked with overseeing tests on various weapons for Zeon. As the OVA is only three episodes in length, The Hidden One Year War focuses on specific characters for each episode, with only a few – including May, Lieutenant Commander Monique Cadillac, and Captain Martin Prochnow - becoming major recurring characters.

Each episode focuses on a separate experimental project for the Zeons, and while the series does flow together as one overarching story quite seamlessly, each story is focused enough to solidify itself as a standalone story. This works to both the series’ benefit and disadvantage, as each episode sees fitting conclusion, but the dynamics of the characters aren’t very solidified for viewers until late in the show.

The series pays some tribute to the original Mobile Suit Gundam, with May being witness to the start of Operation British and even briefly encountering Char Anzable in the midst of a major battle. The RX-79 makes a brief cameo via recorded footage from the battlefront. Little things such as these, as well as the inclusion of Zeon propaganda commercials, engages viewers greatly in the story and closely ties it to the original Mobile Suit Gundam.

The computer animation works well for the most part. The characters’ body motions and facial expressions show off an extra level of effort in creating a more realistic look for the series. The ships and mobile suits are well-detailed, though their motions and reactions can be clunky and ragdoll-like at times. Most of the animation issues are corrected after the first episode and things flow smoothly afterwards. Each episode receives a noticeable increase in detail in regards to both the character and mobile suit models. The action sequences are some of the best in any Gundam series, combining realistic tactics with flashy and stylish maneuvering.

Though the OVA is rather short, the almost complete absence of an original score is surprising. There are portions of The Hidden One Year War, such as the Hildolfr’s fight against EFSF-commandeered Zaku IIs, that are tense and uncertain for the characters and silence seems appropriate. When the soundtrack does accompany a scene, it is fairly quiet and low-key.

MS IGLOO: The Hidden One Year War provides a distinctly different take on events familiar to Gundam fans. It is an impressive OVA for how few episodes there are, and I can’t say I’m surprised that the creators went ahead and continued the story with Apocalypse 0079. Oliver May is one of the few major Zeon characters to set himself apart from the typical grunt pilot, let alone survive long enough to develop and seem human when compared to major players on the side of the EFSF. The Hidden One Year War will certainly make much more sense for hardcore fans of the Universal Century series, but is nonetheless a great addition to the Gundam saga.

My rating: 8.75 (out of 10)

My 'Project Gundam'

As I am entering the latter episodes of Gundam SEED, I feel it is appropriate to publish this post. Unlike most of my recent entries, it is not a review, rather an overview of my plans for watching the remainder of Gundam series I have yet to see in their entirety.

As of today, May 16, 2010, I have completed the following series, OVAs, ONAs, and movies from the Gundam universe:

- Mobile Suit Gundam: 08th MS Team
- MS Igloo: The Hidden One Year War
- Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket
- Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory
- Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack
- Mobile Fighter G Gundam
- Mobile Suit Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz
- Turn A Gundam
- Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Astray MSV
- Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Stargazer
- Mobile Suit Gundam 00

I have no intention of watching compilation movies such as The Last Blitz of Zeon, Miller's Report, or Moonlight Butterfly. I may, however, end up watching the Zeta Gundam: A New Translation films after I complete the 1985 Zeta Gundam series to see how the two compare. The list of series, OVAs, and films I have yet to complete (or in some cases, begin watching) includes the following:

- Mobile Suit Gundam
- MS Igloo: Apocalypse 0079
- MS Igloo 2: Gravity of the Battlefront
- Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam
- Mobile Suit ZZ Gundam
- Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn
- Mobile Suit Gundam F91
- Mobile Suit Victory Gundam
- Mobile Suit Gundam Wing
- After War Gundam X
- Mobile Suit Gundam SEED
- Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny
- Mobile Suit Gundam 00: Awakening of the Trailblazer

As Gundam Unicorn will be airing its second episode this Fall and Awakening of the Trailblazer will not be out in Japan until September, those two will obviously be on hold until they are available to me. As for the rest, I'm simply going to watch them at my leisure, intermitten with other anime series. Gundam is one of my favorite anime sagas and the OVAs and films are easy enough to watch over a short time frame. The full-length series, however, take a longer time to complete. I finished Turn A Gundam at the beginning of this year, and I am currently on episode thirty of Gundam SEED. I started watching Zeta Gundam when it was hosted under YouTube's shows and I plan to pick that series back up at some point this Summer, as it was very entertaining and had a deeper plot than I initially expected. I also managed to get nine episodes into Gundam Wing, though I'm not a huge Gundam Wing fan to begin with and I opted to complete Gundam SEED for now instead. If I manage to complete all three series by the end of the year, combined with Turn A Gundam that amounts to almost two-hundred episodes of Gundam, which would knock out of the way a major portion of the task ahead of me.

I expect this project to take me at least to the end of 2011 and possibly into 2012. As more Gundam series, OVAs, and films are released I will add them to my list. As much as I love Gundam, I do plan on watching other anime as well, because I feel like I could become overloaded if all I watch is Gundam for such a long stretch of time.

There are some series I am more excited about watching than others, based on my knowledge of the plot, characters, and director. While I do plan on watching SEED Destiny, it's not exactly a series I'm greatly anticipating. I'm going to try and end my project on a higher note, most likely with Victory Gundam or the original Mobile Suit Gundam (as odd as it might be to end with the beginning).

Anime review: Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust

I’m generally not a fan of dark fantasy anime series, due to their tendency to go overboard with blood and gore and sacrifice plot and character development. Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust handles things quite differently from this traditional formula, without removing the darker elements from the story. Though I am not familiar with the series’ works outside of Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust, the film does a great job as solidifying itself as a stand-alone piece.

The film begins with a human, Charlotte, being taken from her home by a carriage in the middle of the night. D is hired to return Charlotte from her alleged kidnapper, a vampire known as Baron Meier Link, who is deeply in love with Charlotte. To hinder D, Meier employs three monsters to guard Charlotte and the carriage during the daytime as he is unable to enter the sunlight. Though Meier tries to avoid violence unless provoked, his guards are much more prone to begin a brawl. While Meier and Charlotte are key players in the events of the film and more complex of characters than they initially let on, the other three members of the troupe are stereotypical henchmen who do little more than cackle and fight when their mission is threatened.


A short while into his chase D encounters a group of humans after the same bounty. All but one of these hunters uses traditional weaponry to fight Meier and his cohorts, as well as any zombies they encounter as they travel through a rather desolate world. The fifth member is bed-ridden and frail, though he is able to use astral projection on rare occasions, so long as his body can handle the strain. Though these hunters are separate from D, they follow him in hopes that he might ally himself with them. For the most part, these hunters are either played as stereotypes or not given enough involvement to develop as characters, which is both good and bad. They do not detract the story, allowing greater focus on Leila, D, and Meier, but there is plenty of potential that could have been expanded upon.

Leila, the sole female of the group, lost her parents to vampires many years ago. While she is initially concerned with the bounty for the return of Charlotte, she becomes sidetracked in chasing down D, as he is a dunpeal (half-vampire). The two aid each other on multiple occasions and are the two most prominent characters in the film.

As a dunpeal, D is constantly questioning his existence and the rationale of his parents. This plays into what he believes Charlotte and Meier’s fates should ultimately be. His situation as a half-breed makes his views of the world around him understandable, but his lack of emotional expression can make D seem boring at times. Thankfully, he has Left Hand, a parasite who – as his name implies – lives within D’s left hand. Left Hand provides information on the places D visits and helps him in tracking Meier through treacherous terrain. He has a sarcastic sense of humor, and while his involvement over the course of the film is minimal, he provides a good amount of comic relief to an otherwise dark and serious story.


The art of Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust is very intricate and relies heavily on varying shades of green, brown, and red. Though a large portion of the film’s events take place at night, there are a few select scenes that occur midday by a lake filled with ruins of a building and the glistening sands of a vast desert. These provide a much-needed break from the overall bleak atmosphere of the film and somewhat fill a role as metaphors for Leila and D’s thoughts. There are a large number of fight sequences, though the blood isn’t excessive and the gory elements kept to a minimum, coming into play appropriately near the end of the film. The soundtrack is impressive, relying heavily on string instruments to create haunting melodies at calm points in the film and bringing in brass and drums for the more intense segments. Some viewers may find the opera-esque vocal pieces later in the film to be a bit repetitive and perhaps even annoying, as fitting as they may be. As far as English voice actors are concerned, the cast does a good job overall in portraying their respective characters. No one seems out of place in this regard, though they certainly aren’t going to win any awards for their contributions.

The story is a little confusing at the start of the film, giving viewers little information to base things off of. After the first thirty minutes or so, the focus begins to take shape and the story moves at a pace that is neither too fast nor too slow. The climax of the film is something that I think few viewers will see coming, but will find overall appropriate and enjoyable. Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust's story comes full-circle and provides a satisfying conclusion to an hour and forty-minute film.

My rating: 8 (out of 10)

Anime review: Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team

Like many Americans, my first introduction to Gundam came in the early 2000s via Cartoon Network’s Toonami block. When a friend of mine first told me about Gundam Wing, it was late in the series. With the plot being difficult for me to follow at the point and my general dislike of the style of Gundam Wing, I ignored it (though nowadays I’ve warmed up to the series more). When Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team aired, however, I started from episode one and was almost immediately hooked. The battles were gritty and intense and I felt as if there was something about this series that made it special, that broke it away from the rest of Toonami’s shows. Perhaps it was due to the fact that 08th MS Team was one of the edgier shows that ran in Toonami’s heyday (re-watching the series in unedited format proved to me that it wasn’t exactly intended for the preteen audience). One thing is for certain – 08th MS Team is the single Gundam series that got me hooked on the franchise and is still one of my favorite anime series today.

Earth Federation pilot Shiro Amada has been assigned to lead the 08th Mobile Suit Team, which is comprised of misfits who aren’t exactly keen on one another from the start. Karen is the toughest of the bunch and often critiques her squad-mates. Sanders is paranoid that he carries a curse which will bring about the death of the rest of the squad, but tries to remain as focused as he can when on the battlefield. Eledore and Michel provide support from the Hovertruck. Eledore is a dreamer who wants to be a songwriter after the war ends, while Michel is a hopeless romantic constantly writing love letters to his girlfriend who still lives aboard one of the space colonies.


As their tour of duty carries on, the team encounters many friends and foes. Kiki and the guerillas in a nearby village support the Federation in driving the Zeon patrols away from their home. Shiro personally develops a relationship with Aina Sahalin the test pilot for the Apsalus and a daughter of Zeon nobility, as the two continuously encounter each other over the course of the series. As the two become lovers from opposite sides of the war, this aspect of the series draws a great deal of inspiration from Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. During the final battle of the series, Shiro finds himself facing Norris Packard, a veteran Zeon pilot whose mobile suit of choice is a customized Gouf. While the fight sequences throughout 08th MS Team are executed beautifully, this particular fight is the cream of the crop, combining carefully laid out tactics with a plethora of questions looming in Shiro’s mind about the war and the future.

08th MS Team separates itself from most other Universal Century series through its depiction of the One Year War. As the series starts late in the war, things are becoming more and more desperate for the Zeonic forces. The pressure of constructing the Apsalus gnaws at Ginias Sahalin, Aina’s elder brother, and he slowly loses his grip on sanity. While Shiro questions the causes and outcomes of the war, the Earth Federation chain of command becomes increasingly suspicious of him and presumes him to be a spy, asking his squad members to take drastic action should he disobey their orders in any way. While Karen and Sanders don’t want to ignore orders from their superior officers, they trust Shiro a great deal and this makes for a tense atmosphere during the latter portion of the series.

Unlike the original Mobile Suit Gundam, 08th MS Team focuses almost exclusively on ground combat. The 08th MS Team is granted use of the RX-79 Gundam, mass-produced after the schematics of Amuro Ray’s RX-78. The RX-79 is a much stronger mobile suit than the typical grunt GM, but is not invincible, as evidenced when the team encounters Zeon forces in battle. The series’ combat sequences are tense but carefully planned out. Shiro calculates the possible outcomes before beginning a mission, as he greatly values the lives of his pilots.


While the most intense and entertaining episodes are saved for the second portion of the series, 08th MS Team does a great job with its pacing. There is a practically perfect balance in action and plot development throughout and some minor story climaxes spike before the the two-part finale of "The Shuddering Mountain". The final episode of the OVA (which was never aired in the US on Cartoon Network) feels a little disjointed at first. It isn't exactly the resolution most viewers will be expecting, but it is very much appropriate given the context of the series. Even if viewers aren't overly thrilled by episode twelve, it is seperate enough from the main story that it won't ruin 08th MS Team for them.

Though it was an early dub, the English voice actors do a great job of portraying their characters to a point where it becomes almost interchangeable with their Japanese counterparts. The soundtrack is much more fitting and inspired than most Gundam soundtracks, but it still isn’t quite at the level of superb. The art style utilizes a more realistic look, with greens and browns for the backdrops of the jungle and desert environments. The mobile suits are incredibly detailed down to the tiniest inner mechanics. Everything is given a weathered look, emphasizing the impact of the One Year War and the pilots' time spent on the frontlines. Thankfully there is no filler content, and while the pacing of the episodes may make them feel longer than they actually are at times, this is a good thing as it allows all the events to settle in and make an impact on viewers.


Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team is certainly one of the more adult Gundam series to date, and this could be a make-or-break aspect for viewers. The impact of the One Year War is ever-present over the course of the series and the logic posed by the characters much deeper and more meaningful than in many other Gundam series. The characters are very believable and while some viewers might not enjoy each diverse personality equally, it is those differences that allow the characters to play off one another so fluidly.

My rating: 9.75 (out of 10)

Anime review: Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack

In bringing the Char Aznable/Amuro Ray story to a close, Tomino and his team decided to go ahead with a full-length theatrical finale. The film was called Mobile Suit Gundam: Char’s Counterattack, and took place six years after the conclusion of Zeta Gundam and fourteen years after the original Mobile Suit Gundam. Unlike Zeta Gundam – wherein Amuro and Char fought side-by-side for the AEUG – Char’s Counterattack pitted the two against each other, much like their relationship during the One Year War. While this was completely new material, the film was – to an extent – a tribute to the fans as well.

The film opens up with a rather quick description of what has been occurring in recent days, as Char has ushered a Neo Zeon movement in hopes of opening the eyes of those humans living on Earth to the way they are living day to day. Much of Char’s time spent onscreen during the first half of the film, showing how he has changed and delving into his personal life. Amuro, however, is spending a lot of time trying to figure out what Char is trying to prove by dropping so many colonies/asteroids onto Earth. As he fights through various squadrons of Neo Zeon forces, it becomes very clear to viewers that Amuro has matured a great deal since his days as pilot of the RX-78 Gundam.

Plenty of other characters make returns as well, from Bright Noa (former commander of the White Base) to Astonaige Medoz (mechanic onboard the Argama and collaborator on the Zeta Gundam). While some of these characters are more prominent than others, it certainly brings a feel of nostalgia about the film.


The newcomers, however, are a mixed bag. Hathaway Noa and Quess Paraya act out the stereotypical troublesome children in the series, with Quess inevitably defecting to Char’s cause and Hathaway believing he is truly in love with Quess, going so far as to hijack a Londo Bell mobile suit in order to win her heart. Gyunei Guss serves as Neo Zeon’s ace pilot and brings back the debate between Newtypes and average humans as a cyber-Newtype. Rezin Schnyder is the head of Neo Zeon’s Geara Doga squadrons, and a hot-headed pilot with plenty to prove to Char. Chan Agi serves as Amuro’s love interest during the film, and though she did not appear in any Gundam series prior to Char’s Counterattack, her involvement is not as distracting as I thought it might be. Rather, her realtionship with Amuro keeps the story flowing right along as she too engages in combat on the side of Londo Bell.

The mobile suit designs are sleek and flashy but still practical, echoing their predecessors from days long-gone. Of significant prominence in the film are the psycommu systems incorporated into many mobile suits, as well as the experimental psycho-frame, which comes into major play late in the film. The cockpits now provide a complete 360-degree view of the space surrounding the mobile suits, and as such this adds a whole new level of depth to the fight sequences, particularly those between Amuro and Char. A few inclusions, such as the inflatable ‘dummy ships’ are a tad silly and haven’t aged as well as most of the other tech included in the film.


For the time of its release, the animation in Char's Counterattack still looks quite good, even by today's standards. The soundtrack is one of the more impressive Gundam scores, with its emphasis on brass and string instruments echoing the sounds of Star Wars. The Japanese voice actors are obviously the first to perform their respective roles, and will be the only voices fitting of their characters in the eyes of some viewers. I, however, feel that the English voice actors did a fantastic job with Char's Counterattack, with a few minor exceptions including Quess and Hathaway.

The film clocks in at just over two hours in length, and while this is far more fitting than many anime films which average an hour and a half long, it still feels rushed. The biggest issue with the timing lies in the middle of the film, as Londo Bell and Neo Zeon fight back and forth and the characters deal with their various stances on the conflict. These events fall one after another and it’s difficult as a viewer to gauge their exact time frame. As a whole, the film does a good job of explaining the story of Char’s Counterattack in detail, with plenty of characters to fuel the conflict. But with so much going on during the second half of the film, it almost would have made more sense for Tomino to expand the project from a standalone film to a short OVA series. Despite its shortcomings, the film accomplishes what it set out to do – provide a fitting end to an age-old rivalry.

My rating: 8 (out of 10)

Anime review: Gundam 00 (Season Two)

As season two of Gundam 00 begins, Tieria Erde and Ian Vashti are testing the GN drives on the new mobile suits. Tieria feels he can find Setsuna F Seiei, and shortly thereafter provides an escape for him from the mining colony Proud to the Ptolemaios II, with Saji Crossroad onboard the damaged Gundam Exia. Setsuna then agrees to bring the members of Celestial Being back together. He first manages to contact Sumeragi Lee Noriega, who has been living with Billy Katagiri, a former classmate of hers and Union engineer who works closely with Graham Aker. After Sumeragi leaves with Setsuna, it becomes abundantly clear to Billy that he had been lied to the entire time. Lockon Stratos (aka Neil Dylandy) died at the hands of Ali Al-Saachez at the end of season one, but his twin brother Lyle Dylandy apparently survived the terrorist attacks on their family years ago. He joins Celestial Being, though it becomes clear as the season progresses that he is doing this for his own personal reasons rather than feeling sympathy for the members of Celestial Being. Allelujah also survived the events of season one, but was captured and held prisoner at a high-security prison on Earth, guarded by the newly-formed Earth police force known as A-Laws.


With Saji now onboard the Ptolemaios II, his former relationship with Louise Halevy becomes a problem for the Meisters, as she is now a pilot for A-Laws. Setsuna has matured greatly since season one and is no longer brash and impulsive with his reactions. There are a few episodes in season two that put a large focus around Setsuna, but as he received a major focus in season one, he jumps in and out of the spotlight as season two progresses. Allelujah’s story puts less of a focus on his alter-ego Hallelujah, but brings into play Soma Pieres (aka Marie Perfacy) from season one, whom he previously knew during his time as a child test subject. New Lockon becomes a major focus from time to time, much like Setsuna, though he does ignore orders in exchange for his own personal interest on multiple occasions. As such, the other pilots have a difficult time accepting him as the new Lockon at first. Tieria is arguably the most prominent of the four pilots and has become a far more understanding character, though his true loyalties and reasons for fighting are brought into question many times. While virtually nothing was revealed about Tieria in season one, season two explains that there is good reason for this, as his story opens up a whole new storyline and brings plenty of new characters into play.

With season two set against a backdrop of a dystopian-style Earth, the events that takes place are much darker and the consequences of each character’s actions much more meaningful. Whereas the interactions of the Union, AEU, and HRL super-nations fueled the conflicts in season one, season two focuses on a resistance group known as Katharon who is fighting against the corrupt methods of A-Laws. In siding with Katharon, Celestial Being somewhat switches sides in season two, though the cause they are fighting for still remains largely the same underneath everything – bring about world peace. Celestial Being also faces the threat of the Innovators. Essentially a new spin on the Newtypes of Mobile Suit Gundam, Innovators are humans who have much faster reflexes than average humans and are able to communicate through a sort of telepathic means. At the head of the Innovators is Ribbons Almark, who briefly appeared in season one as an assistant to Alejandro Corner.


Many of the side characters, such as Sergei Smirnov, Ali Al-Saachez, and Graham Aker receive fitting conclusions to their stories in season two. As for the crew of the Ptolemaios II, their dynamic remains largely unchanged, despite the fact that there are a few changes in the crew members. Feldt has opened up more to others, though she does not get along well with the new Lockon Stratos. Ian plays a dual role as the ship’s mechanic and a concerned father, as his daughter Mileina has joined the crew.

The four lead mobile suits in season two are essentially upgrades of their season one counterparts. As such, they fit similar mission roles, though 00 Gundam fits the position of the more powerful lead Gundam and is far more well-rounded, equipped with a plethora of long-range and short-range weaponry. The other mobile suits in the series are a combination of new and old. The Flag, Enact, and Tieren models have been phased out by their respective militaries. Katharon now utilizes these last-generation mobile suits to strike at A-Laws. A-Laws, on the other hand, has upgraded to the Ahead mobile suit, as well as various mobile armors in order to maintain peace through questionable means.

Much of the events of season two occur in space, and as such the lighting is vastly different than in season one. The art style is also comprised of considerably darker shades, fitting for the overall darker mood of the season. The soundtrack is even more appropriate to respective events than its season one counterpart, a major step forward for the Gundam franchise. The entire cast returns to voice the characters, and do a splendid job at that, both in English and Japanese.


While the story is much stronger in season two of Gundam 00, there is nothing sacrificed in the action sequences. Rather, these are far more impressive than in season one, from the destruction of Heaven’s Pillar to the Gundams’ strike on Momento Mori to the Miester’s final battle against the Innovators. Sequences where the pilots leave their Gundams in order to perform espionage missions play a significant role in their fight against A-Laws and the Innovators. The Trans-Am system may be over-used a bit in season two and a few of the side characters could have had their stories wrapped up sooner, but all in all season two is an improvement over season one, which was impressive in and of itself. The final episodes of season two deliver a very satisfying conclusion and the series as a whole is executed beautifully.

My rating: 9 (out of 10)