Kidou Senshi Gundam SEED

An outstanding series which probes deep into the causes and philosophy behind warfare, and gives a great insight into human nature.


Context:
I never got the big deal about Gundam, so much to the extent that during my childhood days in Japan, I helped the girls build a flowery Mikoshi (portable Shinto shrine) when the guys decided to do a Gundam one. 10 years down the road, I watched a few episodes of SEED with my cousin on Cartoon Network. The dub was horrific, but it got me hooked enough to obtain the subs - and became an all-time favourate series of mine and it ... is about time I wrote a review for it!


Story 10/10:
Apparently a carbon-copy of the 1979 Gundam original which I've never watched, I throughly liked the series. The story really hits home with serious real-life issues that the world faces today, which makes it especially outstanding. It is also very character-driven which will be described later.

The first thing which hit me was that it was about genetically modified human beings. Genetics today has been causing plenty of controversy these days and a few years after SEED has finished airing, I've read on the BBC about how we will be able to create designer babies (hair, eye colour etc). This is EXACTLY the same as the premise of SEED which is simply great foresight, considering cloning was still relatively new in 2002.

Secondly, the long desert sequence in Africa is all about the philosophy of war and rules of engagement. We have international laws on warfare, but SEED portrays the brutal reality that victory, loss and surrender is hardly clear-cut. The desert sequence also shows an authoritarian regime which brutally represses people, but still allows decent living standards for those who comply. We then have the insurgents fighting no matter what. This really relates well to parts of the world today.

Thirdly, we have the aspects of human hatred and the desire for revenge dominating the series from episode 20-30ish. It is all too easy to go an eye-for-an-eye but SEED portrays how such a response results in a vicious cycle of hate, war and destruction. It is very true that people really go nuts after losing their loved ones and become hell-bent on revenge. The propaganda and biased views of authority to mobilise/brainwash the populace is also there.

Last but not least, the Orb and Lacus faction saga portrays aspects of humility, forgiveness and reconciliation - something very hard for humans to achieve, yet it is portrayed (and I agree) this is the only way forward. Us humans have to learn how to yield, instead of the "me, me, me" attitude which so dominates today.


Character 10/10
The character development is excellent in this series. The mindset of the main cast evolves, adapts and changes excellently to the events that occur during the series, and there is good representation of personalites and motives. Despite the immensely huge cast, it is surprisingly fluid and well balanced.

Case in point is the cynical side characer, Kazui who is also portrayed as a wimp. However, his cynical and fearful reaction to various situations are perfectly plausible in the confusion of war. It is simply impossible to see through people, including your closest friends.

Other notable excellence is the desire to protect your own friends at any cost, and the reactions to the death of friends. To sum it up, it is simply so excellent I cannot put everything down.


Art: 7/10
Fairly good art and animation, and the X10A_Freedom Gundam to me was simply pr0n. That aside, there is severe overuse of recycled stock footage in battles, and what's with the PINK explosions? The animation while fairly smooth comes nowhere near close to Fullmetal Panic Fumoffu? which came out in the same time period.


Sound: 10/10
The BGM is nothing short of astonishing. We have 4 CDs full of music throughout this series and they are extremely well timed and used throughout the whole series. It is the music which made the revelation behind Kira's scientific history so epic. While music cannot save shoddy stories, the combination of excellent music to an excellent storyline just pushes up the value of the series even further.

The vocal tracks are also great, and the way "Akatsuki no Kuruma" and "Find The Way" were used during the series is simply breathtaking. The former in episode 40 still sends shivers down my skin.


Enjoyment: 8/10
While I eventually ended up enjoying this series tremendously due to the plot and characters, it was extremely challenging to grasp the cause of the events and get up to speed with the plot at the beginning which was extremely frustrating. It is already hard enough to get to know new characters without the chaos of invading armed units!


Overall: 9/10
I arrive here with very little left to say. Simply excellent - except the art and animation which is "only" good, as well as the excessive re-use of footage which brings the mark down to a 9.

Out of all the Alternative Gundam Timelines, the Cosmic Era is seemed to the one to get the most hate from hardcore Gundam fans. The negative feedback was so strong that many people especially hardcore Gundam fans call this the joke timeline. When I just finished the Build Fighters series as well Wing I decided to check out Gundam Seed and I originally watched it just to see how bad it was however once I was done with Gundam Seed and Gundam Seed Destiny I quickly came to a conclusion that while the Cosmic Era is indeed a pretty bad compared to the other ... timelines, however, I don’t think that Gundam Seed Season 1 is as bad as everyone says it is. Don’t get me wrong Gundam Season 1 is still an average show that has a lot of mediocre to subpar moments but I don’t think it’s as a bad as something like Wing, 00 Movie, G Savoir, ZZ Gundam, Build Divers and Build Fighters Try.
This review will only cover Gundam Seed Season 1 meaning I won’t mentioning Gundam Seed Destiny at all. Now with that said let’s begin.

Story and Characters.
It is the year 70 of the Cosmic Era, the war rages on. On one side is the Earth Alliance, and on the opposite is the space colonies that form ZAFT (Zodiac Alliance of Freedom Treaty). Mankind is divided over human genetic engineering, with normal humans known as ‘Naturals’ and the genetically altered humans known as ‘Coordinators’. ZAFT has a head start on mobile suit design; the Earth Alliance quickly catches up with its five prototype Gundam’s. With ZAFT having stolen four of the prototypes, young pilot Kira Yamato takes the Strike Gundam and is forced to fight his old friend Athrun Zala. Little do they know that there are sinister forces at work that go far beyond their worst nightmares.

Honestly, the story of Gundam Seed is average at best.

To start off with Gundam Seed, for the most part, reuses story and characters elements in Gundam 0079. Two factions are at war with each other, the first battle is in a colony, the main protagonist and his friends get caught up in the middle of the war etc. While I understand that the creators of Gundam Seed were trying to pay a homage to Gundam 0079 aka the first Gundam series, however, I felt that Gundam Seed played it too safe with this and as a result the show ended up being a poor man’s Gundam 0079.
Another thing that I didn’t about Gundam Seed are the flashbacks. Personally, I don’t mind flashbacks as long they are done right but this show really got carried away with this and it really screws up the pacing of the show. While it’s not as bad here when compared to Seed Destiny it’s still pretty annoying.
The series explores the themes of genetic manipulation were individuals who had their DNA modified before birth struggle to coexist with people who are born with natural jeans. While the idea itself was a great and unique way to go over the themes of racism however the execution was sadly mediocre at best mainly because it ended up being pretty preachy. Not only that I was also not a fan of how they made the actual war more like a good vs evil type of story rather than a battle of ideology. If you don’t count G Gundam the franchise has never been a battle between good vs evil. This also hurts the overall narrative of the show as it quickly became predictable in a bad way thanks to its story structure.

When it comes to the characters of Gundam Seed I thought they were mostly forgetful.
Now I kinda like Kira Yamato in the beginning because I thought he was kinda of character you sympathize with due to him being the only coordinator in the archangel who had no choice to fight against his own people including his best friend Athurn. I personally found that concept to redundant when considering that Turn A the Gundam series that came out before Seed has already used this idea. Now for Kira himself, I actually liked him for the first half of the series despite him being whiny at times. Unfortunately, at a certain point of the series, Kira character development gets thrown out of the window and by the second half, he becomes a full fleshed Gary sue.

Overall Kira had the potential to be a decent protagonist but when he became a Gary sue he became a wasted potential character.
Athrun, in my opinion, was the highlight of Seed season 1 for me due to him having the best character development as well as actual flaws that make sense not to mention he actually a very likeable chararter, unlike Kira who just devolves into a Gary Sue.

Lacus was a decent character in the beginning but Jesus Christ does her Mary Sue levels just sky rocked as the show progressed. Plus it to a point where she becomes kinda insufferable to watch due to her being perfect at everything.

Cagalli is pretty good chararter overall. She may be a crybaby at times but least she is a pretty decent character who gets decent character development.
As for the other characters I honestly don’t have much say about them mainly because of they all pretty forgetful minus Mu la Flaga and Andrew Waltfeld.
Overall the story and characters in Gundam Seed are average at best. While the story has some cool moments that kinda interesting a bit as well as having a couple of characters that I liked, however, would have been a lot better if it was better executed.
5/10

Visuals.
Visually Gundam Seed is okay at best.
It may look very colourful and pretty to look at for the most part but in terms of actual designs for characters I found it to be lacking in a lot of areas.
The CGI not counting the HD Remaster version was pretty horrendous to look at it clearly stands out from the background scenery. The facial structure of the chararters is pretty inconstant as well the chararter models frequently go off model to a point where they look like chararters that came out straight from a hentai production.
The animation itself is mediocre which can also get a bit choppy at times and let’s not forget the fact that is stock footage here and it can be almost as bad as Wing and Build Fighters Try depending how you look at.
The HD remaster of Gundam Seed has fixed some of the issues that I had with the visuals but they didn’t fix everything that was wrong.
The mecha designs were pretty okay for the most part, however, I will admit that many of them were unoriginal especially the Freedom Gundam.
5/10

Sound.
If there’s one thing that I really liked about Gundam Seed it the music.
The soundtrack in the show is flat out amazing that is filled with great tracks left and right that fits well with the overall tone of the series. Not to mention the insert songs were pretty awesome to listen.
All of the opening the ending themes of Gundam Seed are amazing and very memorable to the eye from both the original and HD remaster version.
Now for sub vs dub.
The sub is pretty good for the most part as every Seiyuu did a pretty solid job with the roles that they were given. The dub, on the other hand, is kinda decent however there were some questionable dub performances.
9/10

Final Thoughts.
Gundam Seed may not be the best Gundam series I have ever seen nor do I think it’s one of the worst Gundam series I have seen.
The story while having some pretty good to decent moments was pretty average to overall mediocre execution. The chararters ranged from alright, annoying to forgetful, the visuals were okay at best and the music was awesome.
The Cosmic Era of Gundam may get a lot from hardcore Gundam fans but I don’t think that the Cosmic Era of Gundam was a total disaster. The Cosmic Era had a lot of potential and the original Seed showed some good signs of that potential however it was pretty mismanaged.
Which version should you Gundam Seed? I personally recommend the HD remaster version of the show as its more cleaner, has fewer recap episodes and it fixes some of the animation issues,

I highly recommend avoiding the original versions because besides of having a decent dub it’s has a lot of powerpoint presentation fights, more stock footage than the HD remaster version and no to mention it has more recap episodes.

If you haven’t seen any Gundam show before or if you’re a fan of the modern Gundam shows such as 00, Build Fighters and Iron-Blooded Orphans than this would be a decent watch and enjoyable watch however if you're are a fan of more older Gundam shows such as U.C Gundam, Turn A, X or G Gundam it’s best to approach to this with caution.
After the release of Gundam Seed, the Gundam franchise would sadly fall in the rabbit hole as the next Gundam show I will be covering will bearly have any positive praise but what the original Gundam Seed was it was a pretty alright experience.

Final Score 5/10

Gundam Seed, was essentially, the very first Gundam I ever watched. I was just a kid at the time, and I still remember the first time it aired on TV, that was after Inuyasha all the time. I remember I loved it from the first episode, and this remains still as my favourite TV series of all time. There's no way I can forget it just because it's that awesome. I've actually probably watched this like, a good 4+ times? (I think)

Story - Okay, for the most part, the story is really easy to understand. Now, I'm the type that gets confused over little things, ... but I found this relatively easy to follow, and the fact when I first watched it, I was really young. But, from the beginning on, I loved everything. I loved how every bit of this show was interesting and how I was constantly getting the feeling of wanting more. Plus, there's the fact that this is one of those shows that made me want to re-watch it, well, that's a good start.

Art - Well, if you consider the art now compared in 2011, of course there's no way this art could be considered that great. But let's go back in time, in 2002 when it first started. During that time, of course this was one of those anime's with advanced art. I mean, look at the new Gundam series! All those cool battle sequences and stuff, spot on. But, like many other animes, this is one of those that may have...how you could say, peculiar angles in some pictures, characters especially. Well, still, anime's not perfect. For me however, I loved the art style personally.

Sound - What I have to say is, BEST MUSIC EVER. I mean, every single track is so memorable, and it fits so perfectly in each episode. Plus, the opening and ending tracks of the series were pretty popular, as well as the insert songs, so bravo!
I loved both the Japanese dub and English dub. I thought they were both just fantastic. Well, seeing I started off with the English dub, of course I'd be quite used to it, even if most people (including myself) usually prefers the Japanese dub. But, even watching it now, I think that the voice actors for both languages did a really fine job and they all fit their characters.

Character - I am totally IN LOVE with the characters. Each and every one of them were memorable, and I loved how much character development was put into the plot. This is one of the more different Gundam's, where character development is put first rather than fight after fight scene. Of course that's not a bad thing, but learning about each character really adds to the overall enjoyment of any anime.
Obviously, there were good points and bad points about each character, but that just adds to them seeming more human. There's the fact that in Gundam Seed, none of these characters are "perfect," so you can relate to them, even if some of their other qualities may not be on par with yourself. Overall, I had characters I loved, and characters that I "disliked," which, of course, if perfectly normal.

Enjoyment - Like I said earlier, this is one of the anime's that tempted me to watch over, and over again. This anime is the whole reason I got into the mecha idea, and mecha now, is one of my most favourite genre's out there. I'd have to say even though this may not be everyone's favourite, especially for those who like a good battle scene, it can't hurt to give it a try, especially for those who would rather like a more relaxing show to watch, but at the same time, be filled with a lot of drama. Plus, for romance fans, you should enjoy it too. (As long as you like the pairings at least, even if the romance may be a little dumb at times.)

Overall, I recommend you to give this a try, because if you do, I'm sure you won't regret it. (hopefully) :)

When you think about it: Each episode = around 20 minutes if you edit out the song and recap. 20 * 50 = 1000 minutes or 16.667 hours of anime. Jesus, I wish I had that time back. Not that Gundam Seed was bad, it just wasn't good enough to warrant that degree of investment. But when watching, you'll get into the subplots, and before you know it...bam! 16 hours and change down the drain. This is a good anime when you have time to kill and nothing to do. Otherwise, you can probably do better.

God I feel ... used.

STORY: GS is like highschool with mechas and military. The plot takes place between genetically improved humans v. regular humans. The regs have greater numbers, but the genetically improved humans are better fighters and hence are winning the war. In the middle of this the protagonist ends up fighting for the normals to protect his normal friends. I wish I could remember the names for everyone but I forgot. This is because the story is largely simple and involves some romantic subplots, chases, internal protagonist angst (a requirement in mecha anime apparently), and best-friend-versus-best-friend done much more successfully in Code Geass.

Art: The art in this reminded me of the cartoons GI Joe and Transformers. In other words, not very good but tolerable. Production values are obvious in this as there are a lot of internal monologues with no animation (to shave off a few seconds here and there) and a TON of flashbacks. It's like they used the budget for 25 episodes to make 50 and it shows.

SOUND: Why do the have this category? I didn't register anything objectionable so it was probably ok.

CHARACTER: While the characters are not great, they get addictive to watch. Think of other shows you may have wasted hours on for no darn reason (Saved by the Bell, professional wrestling, etc) and you'll realize that for some reason you want to know how it all sorts out. This anime series knows this and takes advantage of you.

ENJOYMENT: I don't know why but I actually enjoyed this series. It has a lot of flaws: melodrama, internal monologues up the wazoo, fairly simplistic plot and ending, and waaaay too many flashbacks. But despite it all, it was a fun watch.

OVERALL: I could watch the series once with some enjoyment, but never again. There are so many flashbacks it's like you watched the series 3 times by the time you hit the final.

Note: This review applies to both the first and second series of Gundam Seed. Despite some other views, the second series was similar to the first to not really impact my impression of the whole. I disagree those who said that the second series was really that much worse, other than the introduction of a terrible protagonist that everyone hated. Thankfully, and probably due to fan reaction, the focus on him shifts quickly to fan favorites.

Gundam Seed is one of Anime's Greatest Legend. Even now it's still popular though it's been 6 years already.

Story - The story line is really great it started well and easy to understand. The story is about Kira Yamato who was forced to be the pilot of STRIKE upon meeting Ramius and he battled against his old friend Athran Zala. Even though Kira is a Coordinator he fought his own kind to protect his friends and Fllay (who just use him). As the series progress Kira became very mature and learn how to value life and friendship.

Art - VERY NICE! It's almost what ... they call as perfection especially the mechanims and the characters were simply cool. They had the sense of modern style fashion. And also provide "FAN SERVICE" *grins*

Sound - I really like almost all the sound tracks of GS and sound effects are on the rght timing. Background songs fit the scene.

Character - Yah.. They show Morality as the series continues every character change to become more mature and more rational. Some become strong (Lacus), and others learn new things which includes Romance.

Enjoyment - Yeah. You will enjoy this. Definitely. Make sure when you watch this write down the names because there's too many characters in this Anime. But every appearance of each character shows thirll, excitement, shock, drama, suspence, romance, and lesson.

I recommend this anime for those who love to watch Sci-Fi (this anime is more on Genetics), Romance, action, Drama, Suspence.

Enjoy!

Gundam Seed. It takes the old, tried and true war premise and turns it into something that touched my heart more than I had ever thought possible. I had already watched some of the classics before this one aired originally, such as Mobile Fighter G Gundam and some of the original Mobile Suit Gundam, and I am currently watching Gundam Wing, but this one continues to stand out to me in a way I am quite impressed by under the circumstances.

Two waring factions: space, and the Earth. Nothing new there. More masked villain/anti-heroes, friend against friends, and other generally over-used plot themes. I am not ... denying that the Gundam series pretty much re-uses the same concepts over and over again, but what really makes this one work to me as opposed to the others, is the emotion behind the characters, as well as the plot and every aspect of the series.

Let me use Gundam Wing as an example. It has a lot of potential in terms of plot and characters, but unfortunately, it falls flat because there was no semblance of emotion or feeling in series. Everything was so lackluster and cardboard in consistency, even the relationships that they had with each other. It gets so bad, I don't even care what happens to them because none of the characters have built real bonds with ANYONE. They could all die and as horrible as it sounds, I wouldn't even bat an eyelash in response because the creators didn't bother to build on the Gundam pilots, or anyone in the show for that matter. I'm halfway through the series and I know nothing about them.

As opposed to that, each and every person you meet in Gundam Seed is real, complex, and you can relate to all of them in some way or another. It doesn't take long, either. After the very first episode, I was already hooked. They have their own fears, problems to work through, dreams to fulfill...by the time you come to the end, you feel like you truly know these people, and that, to me, is the most important thing of all.

The conflict between Athrun and Kira, as well as the plight of the Archangel and the plot twists as you carry on in the show, do their job in attaching you to the characters and building a simple, yet enjoyable plot, and they do it well. Like the other Gundam shows, it brings the nature of humanity itself into question, and makes you think about the world as we know it. What must we fight for? What is truly important? A little cliché perhaps, but it is what it is. Gundam Seed takes these over-used concepts and makes them fresh, innovative...mixes everything they weren't quite able to execute properly before, and makes it work better than any other mecha series of its time. Certainly since the original Mobile Suit Gundam, at least.

The music is fantastic. Every song fits the situations they are put into perfectly, and I can't speak for everyone, but I never get tired of the theme songs either. They are just that catchy, and they get you pumped up for more. The art is equally as pleasing. I've never seen anything like it, and I think it's beautiful.

I would recommend this to everyone. Older Gundam fans, I have found, take a lot of issue with it, and I can understand why. But to me, Gundam Seed may be a mash up of everything used in the previous Gundam shows, but it still stands out despite all of that, and to me, that makes it a masterpiece in its own right.

Holy. Shit. Believe me when I say that Gundam SEED is possibly the worst anime I have ever seen. This show was absolutely appalling from start to finish, and I honestly can't believe I sat through it. I can't believe something like this was even created. It's so incredibly bad I'm not even sure where to begin with it.

I am a massive Gundam fanboy. Particularly for UC. As much as I love UC Gundam, I've always had a bit of a hard time getting into most of the non-UC stuff. Everybody adores Gundam 00, but I couldn't get into it. Gundam SEED seemed pretty well-liked, ... and I wasn't really expecting anything from this show, but holy crap, this is absolutely fucking abysmal in every single way.

For one, the whole concept of this show is basically just the original Gundam series from 1979. A colony gets attacked by the enemy faction and a bunch of people from the colony have to escape on a massive ship that is basically just the White Base, except now it's called the "Archangel". I don't really have a problem with doing the old Gundam story again, and for the most part Gundam SEED does make an effort to be different from it, but it does leave a bad taste in your mouth right from the start. As the show goes on, it basically has no real story or conflict. The Archangel just kind of floats around, fights occasionally happen, annoying teen drama happens, and that's the entire show. I'm not kidding. There's no fucking story. You might try to say "wasn't the original Gundam like that?", to which I would say "no". The original Gundam series did have a kind of episodic structure, but at the same time there was a central conflict that was progressing throughout the show, there was character development, and by the time it was over, it had a satisfying conclusion to everything that was going on. Gundam SEED just has no damn story. So many filler episodes just exist to waste time and spread out tiny things to extremely long lengths. I found myself speeding up or skipping half way through some episodes, and I missed absolutely nothing.

The characters are all absolutely awful, and I hate all of them. The main character, Kira "Jesus" Yamato, is nothing but a Marty Stu who can do literally anything and has no flaws. All the girls fall in love with him because of course they do. He cucks his best friend from college by stealing his girlfriend and having sex with her, and then beats him up when he gets upset about it. As hilarious and absurd as it was, it's amazing to me that anyone writing this dog shit honestly thought this was a good idea. The other characters are all forgettable and have no real personality. There is a Char Aznable clone with a weird name who does absolutely nothing the entire series. There is Kira's childhood friend Athrun who is now on the opposing faction from him, and that's probably the only interesting thing in the show, but it's barely explored at all which leaves it feeling like a waste. The characters typically spend their time crying, having emotional breakdowns, and having teen drama. Because that's what military organizations are all about, right? Crying like a bitch and acting like a child! It's amazing to me how there is absolutely no discipline in either faction and they all act like toddlers.

The art style is awful. I hate the character designs, I hate how everyone looks like a muppet with no nose, I hate how all the men look like women, I hate it. It just looks like shit. Every time I see any other anime with the same character designers and art style, I get PTSD flashbacks to how bad Gundam SEED was.

The mech designs were... okay. There was some cool ones in there, but most of them were pretty bland and looked all the same. Every mech essentially looked like the Strike Gundam but with different colours. I didn't really find any of them interesting, and for a Gundam show, that's pretty bad. Many of the mech fights were mildly entertaining, but not good enough to sit through 50 episodes for. If you want good mech fights without having to waste so much of your fucking time, just go watch 08th MS Team or something.

The music is probably the only saving grace this show has. The opening song is a banger, and most of the other music throughout the show was pretty good, not that I can remember much of it though.

That's about all I have to say. Gundam SEED was so damn bad that I just had to write this review to express my feelings, because I absolutely can not believe this anime gets so many high ratings from people. Granted, if I had watched this anime when I was 12 years old, I probably would of liked it, but that's not exactly a compliment. Gundam SEED also made me stop watching Gundam for a long time, and I still haven't returned to the franchise as of writing this review.

Gundam is a very expansive series with universes that aren't connected at all. Well, that is, until the Black History occurs resulting in Turn A Gundam where all the Gundam universes collided to create the Correct Century. But there comes a time when a new gateway Gundam series is needed. The original Mobile Suit Gundam 0079 was released in 1979 and has not aged that well in twenty some years since it released at this point in time. So Sunrise created Gundam SEED, a series that was meant to serve as a new Gundam 0079 and be a new gateway point for newer fans. This ... had a 50/50 result. In Japan, the series is still heralded to this day as the greatest Gundam series to ever be created. However, it was no so warmly received here in the United States. So while it managed to do its job in its home country, it did not have the same effect here, and is actually by some to be the reason that interest in Gundam began to decline in the West. While I personally disagree, I can't deny that it definitely was not popular.

Part of the reason it did not fare so well here in the states was because of the characters, namely the protagonist Kira Yamato. Kira is a Coordinator, a Human that was either placed in an artificial womb to alter its genes or was born to at least one Coordinator parent. So this automatically makes him a special snowflake. But what really caused his downfall in the eyes of the viewers was the multiple Deus Ex Machina's that saved his life on more than one occasion. This resulted in Kira being given the not so kind nickname of Jesus. That's not to say he's a bad character. He's very idealistic and these ideals are constantly put to the test throughout the series. This is also in conflict with many other characters who do not share his ideals. Chief among them being his best friend Athrun Zala who fights on the opposite side of the war, and thus represents an opposing viewpoint. The character designs were done by CLAMP. If you're familiar with their work(xxxHolic, Code Geass, Tsubasa Chronicles), then you should know what to expect. Almost all of the characters are lean, with long arms and legs, big eyes, but otherwise still good looking characters, and quite possibly some of the more realistic proportions that CLAMP has ever done.

Gundam SEED is arguably one of the most adult Gundam series ever made for two reasons. Reason #1) It is the one and only Gundam series to depict a sexual act. Not imply, actually visually depicted and further expanded upon in the compilation films much to the dismay or parents. And Reason #2) It is the most gory Gundam series, with the primary example being hundreds upon hundreds of people blowing up like balloons and then popping in a bloody mist due to massive amounts of radiation. No other Gundam series has either of those two things.There are also many severed limbs, decapitations, halves of bodies, etc. You get the point.

The soundtrack for Gundam SEED is honestly quite beautiful. It was very orchestral in nature with a lot of piano songs. Quite possibly the best song of the entire soundtrack is "Theme of Tears" which was composed by one of the main characters and is often referred to as his theme. The series also has many insert songs, most of which are J-Pop songs sung by Rie Tanaka, the voice actress for Lacus Clyne who is a pop star in the series. The rest of the insert songs were composed and sung by T.M. Revolution and is the main reason why I am in love with their songs, namely "Zips".

The theme of Gundam SEED is racism through and through. Like, you can't even attempt to argue or deny that. The whole series revolves around the Earth Alliance composed entirely of Human Naturals and the Zodiac Alliance of Free Trade(Z.A.F.T.) composed entirely of Coordinators who all reside in the orbital space colonies known as the PLANTS. On the side of the Earth Alliance is the organization known as Blue Cosmos who are essentially the Cosmic Era version of the Ku Klux Klan minus the white hoods and robes. And in the middle of this war is the neutral nation of ORB where Naturals and Coordinators peacefully coexist. Their creed is that they will not attack another nation, they will not involve themselves in the affairs of other nations, and will not partake in any wars. They will however, defend themselves should they be attacked by another nation. So as you can see, this series is clearly about racism and it covers all of its bases from the get go.

As far as the overall story is concerned however, it isn't half bad. It is very entwined with international politics so you'll get a lot of, well, politics out of this series as well as flashy mobile suit battles. The mecha designs are fairly old-fashioned with a lot of throwbacks to the original Gundam series. The art for the mecha is computer shaded which at the time was fairly new. Since this was the first Gundam series to use computer-assisted animation and art, it's a bit rough around the edges, especially where CG is concerned. Overall though, this all pulls together to make for an entertaining story with more of an emphasis on romance than any of the other Gundam series save maybe Gundam X. It has an emotional impact on many levels, and despite quite a few BS moments, still turns out alright.

In the end, Gundam SEED is a series I can recommend to just about anyone honestly. It was designed as a gateway series and it is capable of doing that job just fine. It's not my personal recommendation to start with SEED, but I'm not going to tell you no either.

I originally didn't plan to watch SEED but it's HD remaster made me give it a try and the mecha designs made me continue it past first ep which ended me being involved with the huge cast.

Story 6/10
Just like any other Gundam series, SEED also follows the story of some teenagers having extraordinary abilities to pilot a mobile suit. But this time the pilots with exceptional piloting skills are Coordinators; human beings whose biological traits have been altered before birth. The Coordinators shelter themselves in man-made space colonies because the hatred received from the Naturals the unaltered people. As the war continues both sides ... get tired of it and take extreme measures in trying to stop it having the cast play along in this quest of bloodshed.

Art and Animation 7/10
The character art has surely aged but mecha designs were greatly drawn as always and as expected from a Gundam show. Considering this is from 2002 the animation was good specially in battles.

Sound 8/10
The aural aspects of this show are alone worthy to commend. The soundtrack for all the battle scenes, character drama scenes just give the feeling of a classic show. All of the openings, endings and the insert songs were good.

Characters 6/10
The characters were written adequately to portray like real life humans and subjectively it can work both ways; bad or good. Even tho the cast was huge but every character got their enough share of the screentime and a lot could be written on a single character from the series. Being honest... I can't say that I liked Kira or Arthrun, my favorite character would either be Mu La Flaga or Rau Le Creuset, other than them I liked Natarle Badgiruel and Murrue Ramius.

Enjoyment 6/10
The first half of the series just goes slow and portray teenage drama which killed most of my enjoyment but the latter half makes up for it.

Overall I'd give this show a solid 7. Even tho I had my problems but it's a decent show.

Bandai x Sunrise sure like milking their fans with the releases of new Gundam franchise anime. This is what I think today, after watching almost all gundam series and re-watching a considerable amount of them several times. As for SEED, well, it was my first G series, so I might have a little soft spot for it...

The story isn't bad, especially since it is a rip-off from Zeta Gundam. Although some parts seem to be a total copies of their predecessors in Z, they work quite well in general and for someone who has not seen any G series before those will make no ... difference. Up to ep 30 or so, I was quite satisfied with the direction the show was heading, although that's also the time when first major characters started dieing. For such serious series, this is a bit late, but I can understand SUNRISE for making it as kid friendly as possible. After the 30th episode, the story gets really really bad, and despite the fact that essentially it follows the older series' footsteps on that, it does it in a very distinctive and quite obscure way. For ex, the war, which was quite dormant so far (the viewer at some point tends to think that the Archangel is the only EAF ship out there...) breaks out immediately on every front possible (let's not forget that the war itself started several months before ep one). Just how realistic is that? Moreover, the scriptwriter ruins the concept of 'the best enemies' in one single instant. It was great so far, although we did not see Kira and Athrun throwing at each other that much, but in a single moment the story evaporates in a completely different direction. I would imagine, that if your best friend brutally murdered your other friend... well, at the very least you would want to kick the former's ass... Anyways, I'm not quite satisfied with the ending. Having seen all those dramatic G series where most of the characters die in the final cluster of episodes, seeing a considerable number of the crew alive and kicking... well, it just doesn't fit the tone of the series.

As for the characters. Kira is not fit to be the main protagonist. At least after ep 30. Up until this moment he's quite OK. He may have doubts for fighting his own kind, he may have doubts for fighting in general, but still does his job and moves forward. Later on, however, his personality is somehow switched for mindless fighting and crying like a baby every second episode :/. Athrun as main antagonist (wow, wow, hola! antagonist?) is no better. Judging by his appearance he's more fit to lead a kindergarten than a group of pilots and a mobile suit in combat. For a brief moment, however, he's exactly the person he should be. But then again, this lasts only one episode. Maybe female fans attacked SUNRISE for making their fav Athrun so evil :D. The rest of the crew is average at most, although I did come to like Fllay Allster for her psychotic nature and unstable mind, however awkward it sounds. She's probably the only believable character here. Well, if you send kids to war they won't find themselves fond of it, they'll start snapping. Dunno why SUNRISE keep forgetting about that...

There is also love, betrayal and politics here. But these parts seem to be underdeveloped. Of course, by the end of the series the main heroes and heroines will couple, all fine and well, but neither of those relationships is believable. I mean, come on, how can you actually fall in love with someone who shot you, threw a knife at you and discarded you in the very end. The only realistic relationship ends in ep 49, but hey, no spoilers. Betrayal part is, idiotic. Every damn leader in this anime only thinks of himself. I can give a credit to Patrick Zala for being a sadistic sob, but his actions at the very end are, well, incomprehensible at the very least.

Moreover, the show suffers from a major underdevelopment of characters who might've really been interesting. Where are the stories of artificial newtypes from Zeta?

The art and sound require an additional few lines. Although the drawings seem a bit awkward at times and the show suffers from major re-usage of the very same frames in different colours, I still kind of like it. The characters design is quite different from older series and although some say that Kira's face resembles a chimpanzee, well it's not THAT bad. The quality of the animation is satisfactory, yet I have to add a coin to the poor quality of Archangel's CGI. I liked it better the moments it was hand drawn.
The music, on the other hand, was splendid all the way around. Openings and endings are very memorable and fit the overall tone of series, but where SEED shines the most is the background music. At all times it's just epic. Sounds for battle, choir here and there, heart-touching piano elements - this is the kind of music that the G series have always had to have. Huge improvement over poor quality of the score from Wing G.

Despite all that, I won't recommend the series to someone who likes an epic music and good animation. I won't recommend it to the old-school G fans - those will bash it instantly. If you're a non-G fan, you are the one to watch it. You'll like it the most then. When you start comparing the series to it's grand predecessors - it'll only lose.

Gundam Seed is my first Gundam series that I watched. It's purpose was to introduce me to the fascinating universe of Gundam. I watched this first when I was merely 15 years old and I loved it. I re-watched now in the sub version, my appreciation for it remains the same. It's one of those special series for me that introduced me to anime. But I try to be the most un-bias as possible in this review even though it is kind of hard since it is one of my favorite animes from my teen years. I will review this section by section.

Story 9/10

The story ... yet not totally being original puts the protagonist (Kira) against his childhood friend Athrun on the front lines to fight for their friends and family. Kira being a coordinator sides with the earth federation or "Naturals". It's kind of a typical Gundam series with 2 sides fighting each other for their proper beliefs. This isn't the first time it was done in Gundam (Turn A Gundam) but I find it was really executed a lot better in Gundam seed. We felt the real issues of war at hand. I will be honest there were some iffy moments (more towards the beginning few episodes after eps 3) during the whole 50 episodes, but overall I found it had a very interesting story about friends fighting on opposite sides on the battlefield. The emotion that the stories told felt realistic. Like previous Gundams the story of Gundam Seed has a lot of political settings since that's what Gundam do, they want to bring out the issues of war and the people governing it (and also the politics behind it).

Animation 10/10

I personally found the anime to be really great for its time. It looked a lot better than the previous gundam animations and the beams looked far better by actually making them "flash". But personally I think the animation was great for its time and improved a lot compared with the older gundam animations.

Sound 10/10

I honestly believe out of all the Gundam series, this one had not only great soundtracks, but also great opening and ending songs performed by big stars. The transition of the soundtrack from battle to lighter moments was really done well. So for the sound and music part it had all covered. The music and soundtrack for this anime was simply amazing.

Character 10/10

The Characters were interesting and a few of the characters had a lot of depth. I found Kira to be one of those characters that you really see growing as the serie goes on. He goes from rookie pilot to a snob at some point and later finally matures a lot at the end of the serie. He has a lot of strength has a main character and we see his ways of thinking changes, but one thing never changed it's his focus to protect his friends and loved ones. He was always devoted to that and still kept it later on even though he changed his mind on how he saw the war. Athrun is another fascinating character, who is Kira's childhood friend. We see him fighting for the same reasons as Kira and later starts to change his way of thinking also and questioning about what he is doing, if what he is doing is right or not. Athrun has a deep hatred for the "Naturals" (which I will not spoil why) which slowly changes (I will not tell you how he changes because I might spoil). There is a lot of side characters that make the story interesting and makes the two main characters learn a lot from them. Overall, I found the true strength of this anime is really in its characters. They truly did a great job in creating characters that really do evolve as the serie goes on and really makes us love them even more.

Enjoyment 10/10

As I watched the Dub version first then the sub version, I can say they are both excellent. I watched it while I was young and later and I still find the same enjoyment as I did back then no matter how many times I watch it. I enjoyed watching the anime for the great soundtrack, the amazing story, but overall for their characters and how they changed during the 50 episodes.

I would highly recommend this anime for mecha fans, people who like a cast of great characters and for any action lover since it does involve plenty of action.

Before Gundam SEED appeared, I always believed that Gundam WING was the best one ever among all Gundam series. But now! My friends can see on my study-desk and book-case, two series of chibi-figure of G.Seed there ^.^ Also guide books and special binder from NewType. Kyaaaa I feel proud of myself for having them *gomen :p i wasn't try to show-off here wkwkkw :D*

I love all about Gundam SEED . The plot itself... well for me it looks like want to critize the reality war between two countries that happened in the same time with G.Seed release dates. The stories also very touching, even ... my tears came out in the scene Athlun finally want to talk with Kira privately in Orb *my friends laughed at me he3*

The characters? Definitely Athlun and Kira stole my heart 'till now! Overall i like Yzak Jule and all characters too... expect maybe for Frey *hahah sorry to her fans*
Gundams? Love them! After so disappointed with Turn-A-Gundam's design, Freedom-Justice-and-co really heal it!! BANZAAAII ^-^

ASHITA E NO TSUBASA FOREVER!

This was my favorite Gundam series so far. I love the story and the plot twists as well as the back-and-forth of the show. If you want a compelling story along with your emotions tugged, then this is a great show to watch, not just amongst the Gundam series, just as a show in general.

Story - Story was very progressive and had lots of emotional moments as well as you changing sides as to who was good and who was bad (or who to root for)

Art - I think at the time I watched it, the art was one of the best during those years, ... the Gundams themselves were very cool looking and imaginative

Character - The character development in this show is very, very good. You will see a huge progress from the characters at the beginning of this show all the way to the end and to the end of Gundam Seed Destiny.

Overall I loved this show and is probably somewhere in my top 3, behind Code Geass.

Just another Gundam this may be, but there are a few major differences between this gundam and the other gundams.

The plot and character setup is typical of any gundam, a regular civilian teenager thrust into war due to some fairly wacky circumstances. Now that would be perfectly ok if the entire story was not a complete ripoff of the original Mobile Suit Gundam. From a Char Aznabel knock off, to an impenetrable fortress in space which is destroyed completely cause the guys on sentry were (metaphorically) asleep, to the interrupted re-entry which lands them in the middle of a desert dead in the middle of ... enemy territory. The plot of Gundam Seed is scene for scene a copy of the original gundam. And lets not forget the Gins which are really just defective Zakus that ZEON pulled off the assembly line and auctioned off to the nearest sucker.

The characters are horrendously bad. Emo teenagers were the norm but in any other Gundam the Emo kids manned up and said "F*** it i'm in a war now...LETS DO THIS!!!!! IT'S GOOO TIIIIIME!!!!" Kira, Athrun, everyone else, they just stayed Emo, very very emo. Cagali being Kira's sister twist was horribly written and the fall of ORB just illogical. As history has clearly pointed out, a neutral nation can only exist because it has the biggest guns.

i refuse to use more than 13 words to mention the romance roulette wheel.

overall if you just want to see robots fight and explode, go for it! however if you're looking for something that will keep you interested, look elsewhere.

The Gundam metaseries has a long history. Given that so many of the series in this universe are drastically different and given the diehard nature of Gundam fandom, it's not a surprise that people have strong opinions about each Gundam story. I try my best to avoid letting show reputation and fan opinion color my enjoyment each time I watch a new show, and to be as objective as possible. That being said, Gundam SEED is an okay show which ultimately does not do anything original and is perhaps best skipped over.

I accept the fact that each Gundam show plays homage to older Gundam shows, ... such as the tradition of there always being an antagonist who wears a mask like Char. When every single character and plot point feels derivative of an older Gundam show though, it's less of an homage and more of a lazy attempt to remake the Same Old Stuff for an easy cash-in.

Let me know if any of this sounds familiar. There's a war between people who live primarily on Earth and people who live primarily in space. There's a teenage boy who by random chance is forced to pilot a prototype Gundam suit. There are childhood best friends who are forced to fight each other on opposite sides of the same war. There's a country who wants to take neither side and promote a peaceful third option to ending the war. Humanity becomes divided into those with heightened ability and those with normal ability (New-types, Innovators, Coordinators, it's all the same thing).

Plot points and characters aren't the only thing that Gundam SEED reuses, as they reuse more of their own footage than any Gundam show before or since. For example, I watched probably seven episodes in a row where I saw the exact same animations during battle from Clotho, Shani, and Orga during a skirmish. The show tried to present each battle as being unique, but I can't get any sense of suspense from these encounters when I know they're just going through the motions.

So putting aside the unoriginality of the show as a whole, were there parts that stood out as enjoyable or memorable? Yes, there were. Some of the characters showed a willingness to evolve and mature over the course of the show, such as Yzak, Dearka, Athrun, Natarly, and Flay. Flay Allster will no doubt be seen as one of the most dislikable characters in the series, but I appreciate her for being more than a one-dimensional character. There were also specific scenes that struck me as being well-done and compelling. Without giving away spoilers, one involves how to eat kebab, another takes place during a showdown in a genetics lab, and probably the best scene comes near the end and involves Natarly standing up for herself.

I probably won't watch this series a second time. It will have value for people who have not watched other Gundam shows, as it will feel more original for them. If you want a by-the-numbers space drama and are okay watching something that has been done before, it's not a bad show. It doesn't do any one thing especially poorly. And if you like seeing people cry, oh man will you love Kira and Cagalli. For those looking for something fresh or exceptional, feel free to pass on this one.

Mobile Suit Gundam SEED. Sitting down for watching fifty episodes of this anime — the series (or rather to say anime — the epic), decide what you want to see. Category one — mecha, but it has many sub-genres, from science fiction, romance and other genres.

Background to tell you it makes no sense. It all takes a few minutes in the first episode and is reduced to the fact that war broke out between the two... hmm... categories of people: «Naturals» and «Coordinators». And it's actually very sad. Naturals envy Coordinators for their abilities, they in turn see themselves as the new master race. And ... so they fight — wall to wall, as they say. Coordinators with the huge, multi-functional armor, and people with nuclear weapons. This creation studio «SUNRISE» appeared to me one more answer to world problems.

The war is the battle, pain, death and suffering. It may not be fair. And the most fundamental dictators understand this. What to say about ordinary soldiers, and on this side and on the other hand, when their eyes were dying relatives and friends. They begin to hate. The main thing — revenge. And such a war can not end. «Why go to war if you can not beat it?!» — So said Patrick Zala. They just can not turn back, shake hands and scatter to their homes. The war of all against all. None of the episode goes by without a battle, and some are just dying, it proves to be right.
«Coordinators — not people! They must be destroyed! They destroyed the city where my family lived!»
«The Naturals deceitful and selfish creatures! They killed my friend!» It is difficult to choose the side on which the will to fight. If you are an independent country, if not come down to whose — either way, you be accused of cowardice. Either with us or against us. Unfortunately, you can not win a war without battles, it Lacus Clyne knew, but on the other side of the war did not end when you continue to fight. Vicious circle, which is very difficult to understand in order to break. In a word — war. I think that one word, to mean all of the above written.

War can not be held without the participation of people in front of us, and there are the main characters. Kira Yamato and Athrun Zala, childhood friends and enemies in the past to the present (a familiar story, is not it?). For them I was going through. I was afraid that they, in fact, kill one — another. It's so hard to fight against the ones you love. It is almost impossible! But sometimes anger, desire for revenge — all that is stronger than the most sincere good feeling. When the eyes of the dying one way or another you will take up arms when the culprit in front of you (not everyone is yet to be your alarmist). It's almost animal instinct. It can not be avoided, unless you are... In the anime, there is also a crowd of others, perhaps even more interesting characters. I am truly sick of Yzak Joule, Dearka Elsman and Miriallia Haw. Mu La Flaga and Rau Le Creuset is also very remarkable his charismatic personality. Murrue Ramius — a strong, wonderful woman. Cagalli Yula Athha — it's something uncontrollable, and at the same time vulnerable. I liked it. Lacus Clyne, it would seem, my dear girl, do not affect the overall story, a kind of kawaii item, and no. It turned out the opposite. We should also mention Flay Allster (I did not realize it until the end). And for a long time we can speak in such a way...

Unfortunately, it turns out that it is at war, you can check the strength of feeling. Friendship or love, or something else. My first acquaintance with the Gundam franchise, «Mobile Suit Gundam Wing» began with.
But after watching two seasons of «Gundam SEED», I'm incredibly in love with this anime, more to the Universe Cosmic Era.

I love mecha! The fighting is impressive, some so eager and review. Music is in harmony with the action. Openings and endings theme is also encouraging. It turns out that Gundam me happy! What I wanted, what I saw. See you want if you do not mind fur, because it is everywhere. It is important not to miss the main thing, because «life is not just a war».

Verdict — 10/10.

P.S. : In december 2011 started the show Gundam SEED HD Remaster.
Yes, we once again see «the same» Gundam SEED, only in HD. In fact, he is not inferior to the version in 2002.
Naturally, some changes (the cooling, the openings, endings, again redrawn many scenes, characters, etc.) do exist, but it does not take away any impression on the viewer.

Short meaningful review for those who don't read the essays other users post.

In a nutshell, MSG SEED was a modern interpretation of the one year war. Where the UC gundam universe is rich with lore and exposition, SEED fails to carry that sense of gundam grandeur that the originals had.

This doesn't mean SEED didn't deliver. Coming from a elitist UC gundam fan, I'm not embarrassed to say I genuinely enjoyed SEED a lot.

While UC gundam follows a trend of delivering implicit details that suggest previous knowledge of older gundams like 0079, zeta, cca, and 0080, SEED is a complete package where as it's ... much simpler and easier to watch for casual anime watchers while gundam enthusiasts disavowal it at first glance.

In general every character in SEED is a clone of a previous gundam character, while certain key plot elements were mutated and watered down for the ease of comprehension of what gundam is generally about; such as war, love, rivalry, and politics.

The superficial components of the anime such as art sound is good. Not great, not bad, but it's done well enough to not take away from the story.

I highly recommend SEED to those gundam lovers who want something fresh, yet familiar. Just make sure you have an open mind and to not be opinionated while watching it. It's good

[2nd Edit] Gundam Seed it's not what it looks like at first glance. When you look at Seed, you see what? Well, you see a shonen (teen) looking Gundam, right? Well, it sort of is, but this will fool you. Gundam Seed is a great Gundam series, with one of the best plots out there. See my review below, so you can decide for yourself. I try to look beyond the obvious, so I have some things to say.

Story: This is the most shonen of all Gundam, but it will not affect the story. As all shonen series, Seed will sometimes focus on some relationship ... drama, but they all make sense! Without spoiling the series, you will see some classic dramas, but they all have a crucial setting that will affect the story. Additionally, this drama makes sense in the context of war, death, and hate towards people. Some people think that Seed has too much drama, and I have no idea what they are talking about. It has, but it takes too little of the story, like 10%. Well, moving forward, the story of Seed has one of the BEST political settings and conclusions in the Gundamverse. The political aspects are intricate and logical. The military background is the most accurate of them all, where you see on point military tactics and laws. Gundam Seed has also one of the best portraits of how people can hate each other just because they are different, making it extremely relevant to our own reality. The story will slowly bring you awe as you go, and it has a great conclusion to it. If for some reason, you don`t like the shonen aspect, I would say: continue to watch, because the story will not disappoint you. Gundam Seed portraits a war in an accurate social view, a little different from the other Gundam out there. Little Trivia: Gundam Seed is actually a remake of the original Mobile Suit Gundam, for the newer generation. Thus, if you saw the original, you will see similar moments or scenes that are the very same as the original but remade for Seed. I think that Seed is a 90% improvement from the original.

Art and Sound: This is not the greatest of all Gundam in terms of art. It is nice, and as the series progresses, it gets better. But it has some crude drawings sometimes that it is completely distant from the other Gundam. The sound is great, with various OSTs that are emotional and epic.

Character: As I mentioned, it is a more shonen Gundam, so they are more teen-thinking characters. Nevertheless, their actions are in agreement with the situations, and you will not see cringe situations. For example, if you saw Gundam Unicorn, you know Banagher Links, right? Well, there are no Banagher here, which is good. There is no "Oh, my God, please stop mass murdering people in front of me!". Nah, this will not happen. Kira Yamato is a young pilot, but he progresses in an amazing way in the series. Not only Kira but all of the main protagonists are developed in a satisfactory way, even the annoying ones, like Flay. There is some emotional depth to their relationship that will be AMAZING in the final episodes. So, yes, they are teens, but they are good. I am the kind of person that looks down on shonen drama and characters, but that didn't affect me on Gundam Seed. One great aspect is how accurate some moments are. Like when Kira fights for the first time he is in complete shock, which is what some teen would be if he just faced a war for the first time. Not like other Gundam (like Unicorn), where the student becomes an elite pilot in 5 seconds. Don't worry, the characters in Seed will not let you down. As I mentioned, Seed is heavily based on the original, so Kira brings some of Amuro`s characteristics, but the good part is that he brings the best of Amuro. Amuro is extremely selfish sometimes, but Kira didn't inherit those traits. I also liked the fact that the major rivalry (aside from the two main pilots) is between two female characters, which is always a fresh look at things. In general, all female characters in Seed are interesting and strong, which I give a thumbs up because it is common for animes to make women fragile and etc. Lacus is the only character that is kinda lame. She is clearly an iteration of a Japanese singer idol, and her appearances will not bring to much to the table.

Mechas: Freedom and Justice are one of my favorite Gundam mechas. They are beautiful mechas in all aspects, from gimmicks to fighting style. Your standard space-NPC Mobile suits are also nice, and one of the prettiest looking Zaku`s out there. Some of them, like Buster and Duel, are generic, but Blitz has cool gimmicks and the Astray types are cool generic MS. Some late-series Gundam is nice, although some of them are knockoffs from Wing, like the Forbidden Gundam, which is a less cool version of DeathScythe. Still, love the mechas in Seed, especially Freedom that becomes more badass as the series progresses.

Overall: I really enjoyed Seed, despite its shonen origins. The story is emotional but with outstanding political and military settings. The fights are superb and the way the final episodes conclude the story is just epic. Yes, you will see some teen drama, but they are all in agreement with the background set for the characters. You will see development and a great conclusion. Don't miss this series just because some people can`t see beyond their superficial view. Go for it! And if you saw the original, you will have some fun seen the similarities.

First I will start with pointing out what really irritated me with this anime: reused scenes, the sounds of clothing and the cutting and pasting of the stars. I mean after the zillionth time of seeing a mobile suit take aim and fire three shots at a ship you know that only the last shot will hit and the first two will be intercepted, it kind of ruins the moment when I see that scene.
Anyway! I loved this anime, especially the characters and the plot. Few other shows ever made me bite my nails in anticipation for next week’s episode or drew me near ... tears when a character died. The music for the show was brilliant and memorable and added considerably to the overall emotional impact each episode brought. Well done, well done. This is why I highly give praise to Gundam Seed and give it a nine out of ten.

Often times, when someone mentions Gundam SEED many feelings arise. Hatred. Disgust. Dislike. Disappointment. Generally, people strongly dislike this series. Common complaints are that it is too melodramatic, that the MC is a "Gary stu", that there are numerous plot holes and contrivances. But, at the core of Gundam SEED, is there a story worth telling? Is there more to this anime than its flaws and failures? After watching the show twice, I am of the mind that Gundam SEED receives far more hate than it deserves. I may get flak for this, but I think that Gundam SEED is more than the sum of ... its parts. Although it may be critically flawed in many respects, I believe that there is a powerful yet simple narrative told effectively that pays respect to the Gundam Franchise. Let's dive in.

Gundam SEED is a modern reimaging of the original Gundam which aired in 1979. As time goes by, things change. People know longer enjoy the same things, plot points, and styles. If Gundam were to modernize itself, there would have to change many things. Gundam SEED was released during the zeitgeist of Neon Genesis Evangelion. This was a period where mecha anime protagonists in particular were considered "angsty", "whiny" and "losers". Gundam SEED's protagonist, Kira Yamato, certainly fit the bill for what would be a considered a 'Shinji Ikari clone.' Gundam protagonists, although melodramatic at times, were never as emotional as Kira Yamato. With this new type (lol) of character, the entire dynamic of Gundam changed. Although SEED is in many respects a departure from previous Gundam series, it still had the soul of a Gundam anime.

Gundam SEED, at its core, is an anti-war anime. But it is also an anime dealing with topics new to the franchise such as geneticism. This is a concept introduced by Sir Francis Galton that all characteristics of a person is determined by their genetics. And that these differences are reason enough for us to hate one another. Gundam SEED tackles this idea with the right amount of nuance. There are two opposing factions, the self-proclaimed "naturals" who were born without having their genes altered, and the "Coordinators" who are products of genetic splicing. The Naturals and Coordinators are at war to decide the fate of humanity. While the naturals rule and wipe out the Coordinators? Or vice versa? The perspective of this war is shown through the eyes of teenage coordinators and naturals.

Gundam, specifically the original trilogy, has always balanced the perspectives of war with skill and grace. It is a delicate balancing act. There is a deliberate choice to show both sides of the war through a neutral lens. There is no "bad" side, just groups with opposing views. Gundam SEED is no different in this regard. Both the Earth Federation (The Naturals) and ZAFT (Coordinators) are shown to have corrupted individuals perpetuating conflict for ideological or personal reasons. Gundam SEED does well at showing both sides of the conflict and give each side legitimate reasons for fighting, no matter how warped it may seem to the viewer.

Gundam is no slouch when it comes to depicting the horror of war. Although characters, like Lacus Clyne, have a tendency to say “war is bad”, the show also shows us the destructive power of war. Gundam SEED hold no punches and even shows us children being killed during battle. This is probably one of the darker entries in the franchise, standing alongside titles such as Zeta Gundam and Victory Gundam. There is very little humor to be found in this show. Gundam SEED likes to play it straight the majority of the time to the benefit of the show. The humor in Gundam shows have always been hit or miss. Some may miss the moments of levity but I feel that the show is better off focusing on its strengths.

A common critique I would like address is the claim that SEED is melodramatic. Gundam SEED is in fact melodramatic but people fail to understand melodrama in the context of the show. The main cast is composed of mostly a group of adolescents. These are people who are not used to violence, who have never killed a person. Under the circumstances, it is understandable that they would be more “emotional” than others. They are not soldiers, although gradually, they turn into them by the end of the show. We can see that in characters like Kira who eventually learn to accept his duty as a soldier. I can understand why people do not like “melodrama”, people arguing over teenage trivialities, but in the context of the show I thought it was fine. There is nothing wrong with crying in an anime, regardless of what certain western anime may fans would have you believe.

Now SEED is not perfect. There are numerous problems with its story that prevent it from being a great anime. Its biggest offense is plot armor and contrivances. There are moments in the story where characters should have died. For example, a certain character survives an explosion when anyone else would have been obliterated. SEED is full of moments like this. People get annoyed by this and rightfully so. Another issue would be its pacing. The story drags toward the middle, with episodes that seem to go by at a snail’s pace. The combat choreography leaves a lot to be desired as well. All of the battles revolve around shooting beams back and forth, often reusing the same animation.

The biggest point of contention that people have with this show has to be Kira “Jesus” Yamato, the main character. He has been described as a “gary stu” who is overpowered and has no flaws. People also criticize him for crying too much. I have to say, this criticism holds little water to me. Throughout the show, Kira demonstrates that he is a very flawed individual. He is easily manipulated (Flay), he is indecisive, and he cries too damn much. Kira is not some perfect godlike figure that people have conjured up in their heads. He is, however, overpowered in terms of combat ability. If we were to look at all gundam pilots from every series, Kira would undoubtedly come out on top. He is the master of beam spam. The writers should have toned down Kira’s abilities because as it stands, it makes the show hard to take seriously. Take Amuro Ray in the original gundam. He is considered to be an ace pilot but even he fought difficult battles. The level of skill he displayed increased as the show went on. From the beginning of SEED, Kira is killing ace pilots left and right. The crew aboard the archangel do virtually nothing in fights. It is hard to believe he is *this* good. There is a story explanation for his skill but it is too contrived.

SEED’s supporting cast is full of likeable characters aside from *cough* *cough* Flay Allister. Athrun Zalaserves as a nice contrast to Kira’s character. Where Kira is overly emotional, Athrun demonstrates poise and composure. He struggles with his feelings in silence, battles constantly fought within him. Personally, he was my favorite between him and Kira. All cast members each add their own perspective that helps flesh out the world. Each goes through their own personal development and are entirely different from how they were in the beginning of the show. Let’s take Flay Allister. More viewers of the show will find her to be a bigoted and hateful character. And rightfully so, she is one. But as the show progresses, we see views challenged and she eventually reflects on her own beliefs. From a writing perspective, Gundam SEED sees to it that every character is given their time to shine. The show is sprinkled with little moments that develop the supporting cast. Although the cast may not be the most memorable, it is hard to say that their character arcs were left unfinished.

Maybe I have softened up in my older years. I used to have a much harsher opinion on this show. But looking at it in retrospect made me think of Gundam SEED differently. There were definitely flaws in its writing, but its message resonated with me. A simple message of overcoming hate with love. A message that if we just take a moment, we can understand each other. I think Tomino would approve of Gundam SEED. It respects the narrative traditions of Gundam while bringing it to a newer audience. I would say that if you have an open mind to give this show a try. You may not like it, but I think it is still a worthwhile experience all the same.