The One Year War; the most brutal and devastating war in the history of mankind. There are lots of stories to tell from this horrifying time-period, with spectacular battles, devastating physical and mental ramifications on its combatants. In 9 minutes, we get to see some of what Gundam is perfectly known for, with Zeon grunt pilots being tossed around in the final battle of A Boa Qu as the Gundam approaches.
To make this clear, it is mandatory that you witness the events of the final few episodes of the original Mobile Suit Gundam or see the finale of the compilation movie trilogy, otherwise you will never understand what is going on here and just treat it as just a random battle where nothing is really going on that you can latch onto. As this is also a prequel to the PS3 video game Gundam Battlefield Report U.C. 0081, you might wonder how it works in that regard. While I have not played the game myself, it unfortunately doesn't seem to mean too much other than the fact that there are pilots working on something during this final battle and that these men will be in the game.
Regardless, the fight is rather exhilarating. We are given a glimpse into just how terrifying the Zeon forces found the Gundam or "White Devil", as their comrades are killed by it and one of them is injured by it. The battle is rendered in amazing art that is more like that of the previous millennia because it seems like the art is hand-drawn rather than being rendered in the digital art of the modern day anime. The animation is smooth and crisp to compliment such a spectacle and the characters, while they do not get to animate much, still look decent. There is a case of egregious CGI in the first 20 seconds but that thankfully disappears real quick. The only other problem is that while the few tracks that play here are fine enough, not only are they ultimately unable to stand out, but there is a stock tension music effect played for no good reason.
Regardless of everything, this is a completely harmless and decently fun 8-9 minute short that you should check out once you have seen the original Mobile Suit Gundam simply for the short yet fun battle that occurs, regardless if you're going to play the game it it is a prologue for or not (I unfortunately can't anyway). There's not much wrong or spectacular here but it's certainly better than other short specials or series in this franchise and timeline, that's for sure. So, with all that said, I bid you adieu.
OVERALL: 7/10 RAW SCORE: 73/100
