Kidou Senshi Gundam AGE

Since completing the series, I feel I should update this review.

Well, this will be my first ever review for a series.. reasons for me actually taking the time to write one, is because I believe this is a very underrated series as it's part of the Gundam franchise.. I'll break it down.

Story: 10

The story progress was brilliance at it's best. The show progresses throughout 100 years, and moves through three generations.. I felt this was a very interesting concept that could be explored in other Gundam series in the future. There was a lot of accusations towards this series about being a children's version ... of a Gundam series.. This is inaccurate, as throughout the entire series it is very serious in the way it approaches the dialogue and story..

Art: 10

Why? because it was different then what I normally see and now in the end, it's unique.. People complain that the art is childish. the Gundam wasn't designed well,etc.. if you pay attention it develops into a very well designed Gundam; following the series as both the story and the characters evolve.

Sound: 9

The sound design is amazing, but out of the OP or ED I have grown increasingly fond of 'My World' by SPYAIR.. the song has such a great meaning behind it, which is a perfect fit for the arc, and after this series I have become a great fan of their music and I recommend anyone who enjoys the ED to check out the rest of their music line up.

Enjoyment: 10

I greatly enjoy this series, because I've grown to love each of the characters.. As you move through each arc you clamor to find out what happens to each of the side characters, the previous main characters, etc.. overall the show just engulfs you until the very end.. It proves that if you stick with it, it can stand with even the best of the franchise.

Overall: 10

This series has been a complete joy to watch and I wish it would of went farther into the storyline, definitely worth the watch.. if your hanging on the fence to watch or not watch, this is no SD Gundam.. and for that I am thankful.. To me this ranks with Gundam Wing and Gundam 00 , which are among my favorite series.. Go watch this already.. quoted from a comment on GA.com episode 20.. "People hated AGE, but it just keeps getting better and better.."

I was quite reluctant to write a review on this, but after seeing this anime getting so much hate which it truly doesn't deserve, at least not until someone has seen at least first few episodes of an anime which is expected to have a 4Q run (50-ish episodes), I decided to write a review on much hated Gundam AGE to share my takes on it.

What the synopsis tells is, the story begins with the death of Flit Asuno's mother. Flit's mother, and probably his entire family became a victim of an attack by Unidentified Enemy, or UE as they are referred to in short. ... Flit, a genius, carrying the bloodline of Asuno family, often regarded as the geniuses who have been the creators of previous models of Gundam, creates the Gundam AGE and develops its AGE System to protect everyone from further attacks from UE.

Lame the whole story synopsis sounds I know, and I was myself reluctant to watch this anime after seeing Gundam 00 franchise ending up being a complete trainwreck with 'aliens' in the movie 'A wakening of the Trailblazer' courtesy of Director Mizushima. ALIENS! is a NO NO for Gundam. Dare I say, we have Macross for that. So I was expecting pretty much similar failure of 'Aliens in Gundam' which never would work out. But after seeing the first three episodes, I can humbly say, it would have been a mistake to not have followed this series. Because so far, it has had a very steady but nicely paced development of a story that is expected to improve much more from here on out!

So here are my few takes.

Flit is our 14 year old protagonist, although looks more like a 10 year old. Yeah, he is a couple of years younger than Setsuna F. Seiei and Kira Yamato, which is a BIG MINUS(!) for most of us. I seriously don't know why though.

FIGHTING against ALIENS? Did they ever once show that the opponents are aliens? If you have asked me, they look more like mobile suits in Isekai no Seikishi Monogatari. And there is no way to tell they are 'alines'. At least they gave hints that those could be piloted by men's worst enemy. If you are smart enough, you might as well assume the rest. It's alright for Flit though, as long as he keeps thinking he is fighting aliens. No level headed 14 year old would keep his cool aiming his DODS Beam Rifle and destroying mobile suits being piloted by a species you would rather not aim at.

As many have stated already in their hatred, this is a matter of fact, a Wonderful KID'S ANIME(!), I will assume it is to be one, since it just showed nothing more than a little girl holding a teddy on one hand and her mother on the other and crying her eyes out seeing the place she was born being destroyed right before her, a helpless young boy unable to save his mother as she dies right in front of him, an entire space colony being destroyed with countless lives lost and lots of blood.

The characters are matured, despite some of them just being kids. Fourteen year old Flit is actually more matured than Setsuna and Kira ever became in their twenties. Emily is your 'simple' girl as many gundams had in their run, but unlike most of those, she seems to be the main heroine of the anime. Although Yurin, a mysterious girl, have grabbed my attention the most so far. The rest of the side characters so far have an air around them, which makes them not just another side character, two of them who stood out are Aynor Grudech and Aloi Miles. However, the character designs follow the old Gundam, and Gundam Zeta franchise, which might not be taken lightly by some fans, who actually loved the more matured and detailed character designs in newer gundams like Gundam SEED and Gundam 00. Don't get me wrong, since I am one of them too.

The background details and the background music in Gundam AGE are nothing short of brilliant. I am really impressed with the level of animation quality they have put in an anime that is expected to run a whole year! The OP by Galileo Galilei is good, but the ED by Kuribayashi Minami is one of the best of all the OPEDs of anime airing at this moment of time.

The only thing probably I am really trying to overlook is the Gundam model itself, which is not as detailed as the gundams we have seen over the last decade or so. I cannot agree more with those who think the Gundam AGE design is mediocre and lacks originality, because I thought the same way too. But what gives? I already think the anime has huge potential and could be one of the better shows this season, or might even become one of the best shows in the whole calender year. You just never know. Into episode three, and it has shown much more promise than Gundam 00 managed in its entire first half of season one. There you go. I have just said it. I hope you didn't judge Kemono no Souja Erin by its cover, and I will request you not to do so for Gundam AGE too! We are definitely going to see a few time-skips!

I'm kind of a minimal Gundam fan. I was raised by badly-dubbed Malay episodes of G Gundam and Gundam Wing, and i've seen the first two episodes of Gundam SEED and i kind of enjoyed it.

When i heard about people raging over Gundam AGE, i said to myself "Hm, stupid weeaboos not being raised by Doraemon, Astro Boy and Ninja Boy". From the character design i can basically tell that it's not only for kids, but it's also for parents or those raised by traditional kids anime from the 80's and early 90's. And i understand that. This is not for the 00/SEED fan. And ... it pretty much says that in the artwork.

But seeing the first two episodes, i said to myself "Hey, this is not bad. Not a great start like 00 but still decent". It's okay.

The story is pretty much a rip-off of Nadesico where some kid named Flit Asuno (played by Toyonaga Toshiyuki from DRRR!!) lost his mom but got this AGE system which enables him to pilot Gundams. He has a cute female childhood friend named Emily and works with an Agasa lookalike scientist in the development of a new Gundam.

In this story the space colonies are under attack by unknown Alien-looking mechs called GAFRANs. The fact that they look different that the usual Gundam enemies makes me want to believe that the story is pretty much a rip-off of Nadesico. Dead parents, supernatural technology, space colonies and alien enemy mechs without an early backstory makes this story sound like Nadesico, and to me that's kind of a low point.

The characters are okay. Flit is a type of guy who wants to pilot a Gundam, since they look cool in oil paintings. Alot of them look very old-school, especially one military guy named Aynor who looks like he just came from a 1980's mecha anime-themed Japanese barbershop. And Haro's back. Hooray.

I'm really loving the art. It looks well-made and very polished. So far they are using the budget well and it's use of simplicity to create a very child-like character design is one thing i applaud Sunrise for. I love it when anime companies that do really big projects does an anime that is based on childlike art (like IG's Usagi Drop and Gainax's P&S), and Gundam AGE is one of them.

The sound is nothing to be judged. I'll wait for the next few episodes before making a judgement out of it. So far, Toyonaga makes an okay Flit and i love the AnoHana OP from galileo Galilei, and having them do the OP for AGE is pretty cool.

So far, it's an okay show. It has a chance to get better after the next few episodes provided Sunrise won't fuck this up in SEED Destiny levels. I'll keep my eyes on this.

(SPOILERS AHEAD) I'm a fan of gundam so when I heard about gundam age the first thing I did was read the reviews, there was a lot of bad reviews out there about gundam age so when I sat down to watch it for myself I was a bit wary, I was however pleasantly surprised at how wrong some of the reviews were, many people wrote age off for having aliens, known as the U.E or from episode 16 onward Vagan, for those who first saw them and stopped watching you are wrong, the U.E are actually humans who were abandoned on the surface of ... mars and are attempting to gain control of Earth. Unlike the other gundam series I've seen so far age seems to be running three protagonists, starting with flit asuno aged 14 at the time of his fights in the gundam, it then moves on after 15 episodes to his son Asemu, aged 17 and flit is now a federation forces commander aged somewhere around 40. If I am correct I believe that the next protagonist will be Asemu's son Kio as the is the only asuno pilot yet without a voice actor is Kio. There are many people who refused to watch this anime due to the more childish art form, I like many others preferred the art from gundam seed which also received many bad reviews, do not be put off by age's art, the story is gripping and full of twists, all in all I believe that gundam age is a great anime.

All the rumours you've heard about AGE in its early days:

- Aliens
- Pokemon style evolution
- Baby show

this anime took a massive dump on them and the only ones who believe them are losers who were quick to judge it and haven't gone beyond the first 2 or 3 episodes. The last few episode takes a 'Zeta-ish' turn so to speak where it gets dark and occasionally violent and a handful of characters die.

Gundam AGE does nothing out of the ordinary for Gundam. It may not be a dense political drama like Wing, Turn A and 00, but it's a fun action anime like the ... SEED series and that's why it's a winner.

The story as everyone knows is a 3-generation story that takes place within the 100 year time span. Each generation arc has its own protagonist with his son picking up where the former left off.

The character designs wasn't a big deal as for me but I agree it CAN, but RARELY, get overly kiddy, but for the most part, I think it worked just fine. Much better than Gundam 00's annoying genderly ambiguous male characters who can pass off as women.

Overall, this was brilliant and I've seen EVERY Gundam series to date (except G and SD Gundam). So don't you dare say that I'm not a true Gundam fan.

Another Gundam series to add to my collection : )

Story
Gundam AGE is similar to the UC series if anyone has seen it. AGE 1- The Asuno family is famous for its Gundam. Flit's mother is killed during an attack on a colony. The one's responsible are the UE (GAFRANs) an alien race. He vows to build a Gundam that will save everyone. ( Savior Gundam) In A.G. 114, Flit completes the Gundam AGE and counterattacks against GAFRANs. One day, the UE once again attacks his new home and he must pilot the Gundam he built to defeat the UE. Now he goes to ... war with the UE. One of the many perks of this series is that Filt's Gundam can get new upgrades from the AGE's System--- Which collects battle data of the enemy and builds new weapons/parts that add to the his Gundam. Whether it be power or speed.
AGE 2-- 40 years later( AGE--140) we have a new main characters- Asem Asuno- the son of Flit Asuno- who now pilots the Gundam to fight the UE. He too will follow his father footsteps. As seen in the opening, Asem gets a new upgrade which is awesome!!! Oh yeah this arc we get a Char like character : )

Sound
Gundam series has the best op/ed ever.

Art/character-- Gundam series has the best art ever-- even the Gundams and Mobile suits.

Enjoyment
Canit wait to see more episodes

despite the risk of sounding uninformed and stupid i just had to say something about gundam Age.

no i'm not sombody that is pissed that the animation looks like it took a step or 10 back from gundam 00, or that it looks like a megaman parody etc. i'm just going to watch it and judge later. the story starts out fairly simple, dude's mother killed by unknown enemy that look like dragons, he builds gundams to kill enemy.

the series is divided into 3 parts each with its own protagonists btw but i dont know the name so yeah.

the animation is frankly nothing big, no realism ... like seed, or virtual like 00, just....basic japanese animation. in fact it reminds me of that robot boy with rockets out of his feet, cant remember the name.

voice actors, again nothing big.

characters..... just one episode so far, but pretty one dimensional, you have the heroine *so far* that follows the hero like a lost puppy and doesnt really play a role but knowing Gundam and their fondness for weird twists, i expect she'll become badass somewhere along the line lol. heo...also pretty one dimensional, his sole purpose for existing is to kill dragons.

oh and is it just me or is the whole episode feel like something out of a fairy tale? you know, magic warrior likeness painted in a picture that is family heriloom, gigantic enemies that look like dragons and act like them too, the goal of the boy is to bring that knight back to life and kickass. familliar fairy tale?

Gundam AGE is arguably the most hated anime in recent memory. Sadly most of the reasons aren't valid. Some say its too childish (Yet watch shows with children in them, even the gundams with children piloting), some say it's art is disgusting (Yet watched Higuarashi), and some haven't taken the time to even watch it. Here's an unbiased and unwarranted hate-free review:

Story -
The story is very unique, as it spans 3 generations of characters in the same family, a first for a Gundam series, and rarely done in ANY anime. This brings a certain level of connection to a war, and extra connection to ... characters. However, there isn't simply enough time to flesh out each individual story arc; without each other to lean on, they would be virtually unwatchable. A 3 Season series would probably have worked best, as each arc is only 15 or so episodes. One thing to say is that the story feels like an RPG playing out right before your eyes, and rightfully so, as the story was written by the talented game company Level 5, who made classics such as Dragon Quest VIII and Rouge Galaxy.

Art-
The Art is good, but not great. Its typical Gundam art; not groundbreaking but highly animated and explosive. Aimed at kids it isn't, there's things here that you'd see in your typical Gundam series. The Gundam models look crisp, and have some original concepts, but alot of similarities to other Gundams from the series. Was it a homage? Or did they run out of ideas? You be the judge.

Sound-
Other than the explosions, there isn't anything to talk about. The voice acting is standard fare, as well as the music.

Character-
The great thing about this anime is that there are so many characters, you'll fall in love with one of them. The best feeling in the world is moving to the next story arc/generation and seeing a character front he previous one make a return, or even upgrade from supporting to main. However, just like the story, there isn't enough time to flesh everyone out; most characters have a single storyline (avenge death, here to kill and destroy, i'm the captain, etc.). There are a few characters you'll fall in love with, but while some stay around for almost the entire series, sadly some of them only appear for a few episodes before leaving for whatever reason.

The main characters are without a doubt the best part of the show. What I love is that none of them, while being in the same bloodline, are clones of each other. They each have their own issues, hopes and fears, and to see them react to each other, especially near the end, makes up for the lack of character development anywhere else.

Enjoyment-
You would think that with such average scores of the other categories I wouldn't have enjoyed the series, but you're oh so wrong. As awkward as the stories and characters are, it was actually one of the more enjoyable anime to watch. You had to see what happened next; granted, you won't find anything shocking here, but it was always interesting to see what character would be relevant in the next episode, especially near the end when characters would pop in/out and mains would conflict. ITS GUNDAM FOR CRYING OUT LOUD! Who doesn't enjoy giant robots beating the crap out of each other?!

Overall-
Definitely give it a chance. Some will like it. Some will call it completely underrated. Some will say it's trash. But it's def. a new experience for Gundam fans and a good anime to tide you over between your next big watch.

At first, this series is intended for children under the age of 13 years. But my guess was wrong. In fact, this series actually not much different from the others: dark, gloomy, and accompanied by ideological and political conflict.

The first time anyway, I assume that this Gundam series have failed in pleasing the fans. But that series is able to attract many new viewers that most of them are fans of Inazuma Eleven (due to the fact similar character designs. Imagine if Mamoru Endo or Tenma Matsukaze a MS pilot). Then described also that the Gundam series is as a savior. In fact, most fans ... know that Gundam is nothing but a war machine like an ordinary fighting vehicles in real life.

Whatever the picture, no matter whether it's as a war machine, as a means to stop the war, even as a savior, it remains one: Gundam.

Overall, despite failing to please the the fans, but this one is mandatory Gundam series to watch.

This review will contain very little spoilers, only spoilers involved will remark on character lineage [Father-Son-Grandfather] and Character names.

The people who say that Gundam Age is for children, actually--I wonder if they even watched the show. Gundam Age is a tribute to the Universal Centry's triple threat Mobile Suit Gundam, Zeta Gundam and ZZ Gundam with Gundam AGE-1 we see the similarities between RX-78-2; with later advancements we see similarities between the gundams. There are some who say that AGE ripped off of SEED but when they say that they don't seem to have seen 00 Gundam, nor have they seen Zeta Gundam or ... ZZ Gundam. Because the forms of the mechs were more characteristic of Zeta Gundam and ZZ Gundam than of 00 (despite the UE's forms).

Overall, this is a great Slice-of-life mecha anime that explores the idea of a protagonist being overwhelmed with anger, and revenge. And what happens when that is seen first and foremost. I put this one off for a while, but now I wonder why. This is a very good calling back to the old UC series' and it puts a new spin on it. If you want an idea of what it's like. Imagine Amuro being a father, and he sends his kid to war, and then his kid has a kid--and so on. Imagine the lineage you're leaving behind. This show is a growth of all three characters, Flit, Asemu and Kio.

The way the show ends? You'll have to see. Some people are disappointed, but I am not. The character development in the third arc really made it a necessity. Some say that after Arc 2, you will get bored. But really--Arc 3 is where the major character changes are made. It is really worth it for Gundam fans, and for non Gundam fans, this is a good one to start with.

Cons: There ARE some episodes that leave ideas floating, and there are some things that don't make sense. More "PIS" (plot induced stupidity) stuff but overall, the anime is good. I loved the story, and the characters the most.

What did this show do the best? Flit and his whole story throughout the three arcs, showed the advancement of story without seeming like it NEEDED to go on--it just seemed to flow. It didn't seem like a forced story.

[2nd Edit] MS Gundam AGE is a mixed bag that you should see if you like the Gundam franchise. It does some things that no other Gundam did so far (I know, I`ve watched them all), so it has some extremely original content. It is interesting in its own way, with a particular charm of its own. More bellow.

Story: You probably guessed by looking at its promotional poster that Gundam AGE is a shonen Gundam. Thus, beware for classical Japanese teen drama, classical "moral questions" that are always the same and, of course, some of the "killing is wrong, we all should live in harmony" ... stuff. Hence, the overall political plot is lame. HOWEVER, the storytelling aspects are where Gundam AGE shines the best. It shines on the aspect that no other Gundam did in one series so far: you will follow the characters throughout generations. Yes, it does not stop on the kids in the cover, it goes on and on as they grow into adults. This baffled me so much because I was not expecting anything like that. This is important for you to know because otherwise, you might think that it is just some classical shonen anime. I only persisted because I am a die-hard Gundam fan. However, the moment that I saw that Gundam AGE was about generations, this show gained a different meaning. Gundam AGE is divided into 3 arcs, in which the second one is the darkest of them all. Gundam AGE attempts to kinda rewrite the UC in some other way. So think that from 1-15 ep you are watching Shonen MS Gundam, from 16 to 28 you are watching Shonen Zeta Gundam (dark as Zeta, in its way), and from 29-50 you are watching a mix of Shonen Unicorn + Char`s Counterattack + Zeta. You know something I think its funny? Iron-Blooded Orphans is considered the Gundam with the highest body count, in terms of named characters. Well, shonen Gundam AGE comes very close! I fully support the writer's choice to create a whole generation odyssey, instead of a single story with the same characters.

Art & Sound: The art is OK, better than Gundam SEED, worse than Gundam 00. It's somewhere in between. Sometimes the characters design are extremely lame, being far from what the franchise usually do. They are frequently out of proportion, with tiny lets, large arms. But these are the exception, not the rule. The sound is cool. The openings are fine. If I am not mistaken, the composer is the same as Gundam SEED, which is awesome.

Characters: Ah! here is where Gundam AGE shines. First, remember that this is a shonen anime, it is not dark and mature as Iron-Blooded Orphans, or Zeta Gundam. But in its own rules and world, the characters in Gundam AGE have great development. For you to have an idea, you will follow Flit Asuno (the main protagonist) from 13 years old until 64 years old. You will also follow the other two protagonists, Asumo Asuno (his son) and Kio Asuno (his grandson), as Gundam pilots as well, and this is awesome. They have great character development in the entire series, and here is where I was caught off-guard. I wasn't expecting everything they become. I can`t say without spoiling, so I just know that it is pretty good. Other secondary characters like Woolf Enacle and Ainoa Grodek are extremely likable as well. As always, you will have some irritating characters but they are not invasive like in other shows of the series. My only complaint here is the Char clone of Gundam AGE, he is probably one of the worse Chars clones in the entire Gundamverse, maybe being a little better than Full Frontal. The only problem is the lame romance subplot. All Gundam has a romantic subplot and the one in Gundam AGE is one of the lamest.

Mechas: They have a strong influence from several Gundam series, especially 00. Gundam AGE 1 looks like a deluxe edition of RX-78-2. AGE 2 strongly resembles Exia and 00 Raser, and AGE 3 looks like a mix between Full Armor ZZ Gundam and Virtue from 00. It also has the "modular" nature of RX-78-2 and Impulse (from Destiny), with similar launching apparatus in mid-battle. The Gundam Legilis is beautiful and was heavily inspired by Wing Gundam Zero. I also enjoy the AGE System, the star of the show, that is basically a giant weapon-building 3D printer. The AGE system is such a good idea that it changes the whole flow of Gundam AGE. Awesome. The only thing I don`t like in terms of mecha in this show is the Vegan MS (the NPCs that are always blown-up), they have a reptilian aspect that looks ridiculous. Aside from that, all Gundams look awesome.

Overall, this is a great series. Keep in mind its shonen origins but I can assure you that this series becomes something very enjoyable that you will have a good time seen it. All I can say is that Flit and Asumo characters will surprise you.

Gundam Age, the latest installment of the Gundam franchise. Instead of just one main character, the story is set into 3 generations, with 3 different gundam pilots over a continuing timeline. Sounds like a great concept, right?

It is, at first. But then now in episode 31, we are already on the third pilot. That's imo is the problem. I'm sure in the interest to sell toys, they need to iterate the different Gundams fast. In return, the story and characters suffer. The first arc started with Flit Asuno. This arc is actually fairly decently paced at first, but it's clear that they want to ... move things fast. Character development became disjointed. This is even worse on the second arc, with Asemu Asuno. I mean you literally see things turning around just after a dialogue or two or after the next scene, something that should be paced slower imo. It's extremely disjointed. Worse, just when things seem to pick up and you started to see Asemu's development, they ended the arc and started the third one. Don't get me started on the supporting characters. Other than the main pilot and maybe another one second main pilot, the rest of the pilots are pretty much useless, which makes you wonder how they can become pilots in the first place. This is amplified in the second arc to the extreme where Asemu/Woolf are pretty much the only ones doing everything. Very annoying.

I'm sure you already read the story somewhere else, so I'll skip that. But I do want to point out the fan services. Thing is, I'm not sure to say whether they are fan services, or the writers are lazy. The AGE Gundams design, many scenes, etc mirror pretty much the UC series, AGE-1 to the original Gundam, AGE-2 to Zeta Gundam, and AGE-3 to Gundam ZZ. As for similarities of scenes, just watch the finale of the 1st arc, very obvious.

The mecha art is superb. What do you expect? It's Sunrise. The characters, on the other hand, seems to be simplified, or even "kidified." It's definitely not OO, but it actually harkens back to the older Gundam series. Not a big deal imo, but the disjointed pacing doesn't help the overall enjoyment.

In the end, it's an okay Gundam series. I mean it's refreshing to see a simpler Gundam design (versus SEED), and some scenes brings nostalgia from the UC Gundam series. Still, the story seems too simplified, especially after OO, and the pacing is just annoying. Let's just hope we can get over this quickly and move on.

I just want to say that this is one Gundam series by far that I will never ever forget as long as I live. The beautiful story, the unfortunate sadness from certain characters that lost their lives during the struggle between the federation and the vagun during the seventy year long conflict, but three parts that I will say that absolutely amazed me were the age system, which is basically a self learning computer, that constantly made up grades to gundam pilot at the time's gundam. It took into account for every battle situation that was at hand as that was brilliant. The second part ... that amazed me was the fact that three generations of pilots ended up being in all one anime, you see the cover of the anime shows three boys, which at first my initial thought, was they were probably close friends, I was wrong, it was the grandfather, father, and then the last to pilot a gundam was the grandson. Now, the last and final part that astonished me was, that ship they used, they never changed it, in the entire series they used one ship. That ship held so many memories for everyone especially the grandfather, the first pilot of the gundam. That is what I loved the most. It was like a home for each gundam pilot and crew that came before the next. This gundam series deserves the highest rating possible. I loved it so much, from beginning, to end.