Manga 214 Kidou Senshi Gundam The Origin

In my opinion, a true masterpiece. I just can't find excuses to not rate it 10. The story is extremely rich, the art (characters, the coloring, the angles, the action moments, the dialogues), the characters' development, everything is 10 to me. I wanted so many animes to get a manga like this. I don't have words to describe how immersive reading this was. The complex story, the political drama, the battles, the context, everything is so well explained and in such an epic way!
Even support characters like Garma got more background, we got a little bit of some slice of life of Char and ... how did he become the Red Comet, what motivated him, his backstory and so much more. I love how this mange made Gundam 0079 even richer. The way the characters are so human and realistic is incredible, they way we get to see people with their own interests, dreams, battles and ambitions is wow. A great way to get to know the franchise, I love every volume.

Mobile Suit Gundam:The Origin is best way to get into Gundam. I fell in love with each and every aspect of this masterpiece done by one of the Gods of the anime and manga industry: Yoshikazu Yasuhiko. It's a retelling of the original Anime that aired in the late 70s. Nevertheless Yasuhiko-Sensei adds a lot of backstory about the origin (as the title suggests) of the conflict as well as the individual stories and motives of some of the main characters. Now let's get started with the actual review.

～ STORY = 9 ～
The story is simple but very well executed. It starts and we're already ... in the middle of the war between Zeon and the Earth Federation. The Zakus, Zeon's Mobile Suits used for military operations, enter Side 7, one of Earth's colonies, for an espionage mission as the "Feds" are suspected to develop a secret operation in that colony still under construction. Turns out they were right as the Feds' new Mobile Suit shows up: the Gundam. But why does all of this happen in the first place? Well several months prior to those events, the Principality of Zeon (former Side 3) had self-declared its independence from the Earth Federation, so conflict became inevitable. You'll find out more about it later on in the manga as all the pieces, one by one, complete the puzzle.



～ ART = 10 ～
The artwork is stunning, it was clearly made at its author's prime as it also stays consistent from beginning to end . I've spent I don't know how much time just staring at Yasuhiko-Sensei's panels, whether he portrayed the different types of Mobile Suits and aircrafts; the characters, carefully conveying their emotions and personalities; the marvelous landscapes and cities. The amount of details is impressive too.


～ CHARACTERS = 10 ～
The cast of characters is amazing. Even the ones that appear for a small amount of chapters are fundamental to the story. I grew attached to the White Base crew (also Ramba Ral and Hamon) and I loved to hate the Zabi family. I will only spend a few words for the 2 protagonists: Amuro Ray and Char Aznable.

Amuro is just 15 when he finds himself piloting the Gundam, fighting against Zeon trained soldiers in their Zakus. He manages not only to survive, but also to prove that he is able to control the Gundam. Therefore he is forced to join White Base's crew. The weight on his shoulders oppresses him and he often acts- and reacts - impulsively . Nevertheless I think his character development is great.

My favorite character is Char , the Red Comet. He fights for Zeon but he actually is hostile to Zabi families for reasons you get to know as the story progresses. To me he is the real protagonist of the whole manga and I actually sympathized with him several times, although most of his actions aren't pure at all.


～ ENJOYMENT = 10 ～
You can't get bored with this manga. Spectacular battles, conspiracies and secret missions are always around the corner. The pace is great. It makes you always wonder what will come next.


～ OVERALL =10 ～
I recommend this manga to everyone. It doesn't matter if you're a kid or an adult , go give this a shot and see for yourself. I was very sad when I reached the last page, for me it was one of those cases where I wish I could erase the story from my memory so that I can experience it again for the first time.