Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack (1988)

Description

March U.C. 0093

Char's Counterattack, which takes place fourteen years after the original Mobile Suit Gundam series, concludes the long-running rivalry between hero Amuro Ray and his nemesis Char Aznable. After years of conflict between Earth and the space colonies, Char has devised a radical solution: by bombarding Earth with asteroids, he will render the planet uninhabitable and force all of humanity to live in space. All that stands in Char's way are Amuro and one small Earth Federation fleet, and now the destiny of the human race will be decided by the final clash between these two Newtype warriors.

Main Characters

Photo	Name	Description
	Amuro Ray	The famous Newtype Amuro Ray is now the ace pilot of the Earth Federation's Londo Bell taskforce. During the One Year War, this young civilian became the pilot of the original RX-78 Gundam, and during the Gryps Conflict of U.C. 0087 he joined the Karaba resistance group to combat a tyrannical faction of the Earth Federation Forces. Rejoining the Federation, Amuro was assigned to the Londo Bell unit, which patrols the space colonies for signs of rebellion. As a result, this veteran pilot now finds himself on the frontlines of the new struggle against his longtime rival Char Aznable. Amuro is now a confident adult, with no trace of his old fears and insecurities, but his encounters with Char show that he still retains the hot temper of his teenage years.
	Noa Bright	The captain of the legendary White Base is now the commander of the Earth Federation's Londo Bell taskforce, and the captain of its flagship Ra Cailum. In the years following the One Year War, Bright married former White Base navigator Mirai Yashima, and was then drawn into new conflicts against the Federation's evil Titans faction and resurgent Zeon forces. Years of battling tyrants and rebels have made Bright perhaps the Federation's finest tactician and its most charismatic commander, but the demands of his career leave him little chance to visit his family back on Earth. Even when Hathaway arrives aboard the Ra Cailum, Bright has no time to spare for his son, leaving the lad in the care of Amuro and his other underlings.
	Chan Agi	A Londo Bell technical officer who supervises the development of the Nu Gundam, traveling back and forth between the Ra Cailum and Anaheim Electronics's lunar factory to make sure that the construction of Amuro's new mobile suit is progressing on schedule. Chan has strong feelings for Amuro, and is concerned about Anaheim's last-minute addition of the psyco-frame to his Nu Gundam. As a result, she keeps a T-shaped sample of this exotic material with her for further study.
	Kayra Su	As the Londo Bell's number two pilot - second, of course, to Amuro Ray - Kayra fills in as mobile suit team leader while the famous ace is away. Initially a Jegan pilot, she inherits Amuro's Re-GZ after the completion of the Nu Gundam. Kayra's courage and cheerful personality are inspirational to the Londo Bell's soldiers, but her skills prove insufficient to battle Neo Zeon's Newtypes.
	Hathaway Noa	The teenaged son of former White Base crewmembers Bright and Mirai Noa, who lives with his mother and sister in Hong Kong. Unable to find space shuttle seats for all three of them, Mirai sends Hathaway ahead to meet up with his father at Side 1's Londenion colony. En route, Hathaway meets the politician's daughter Quess Paraya, and his fascination with this temperamental girl soon leads him into the middle of the conflict. Despite his mild-mannered and dutiful nature, Hathaway is willing to defy even his stern father in order to save Quess from her impending doom.
	Char Aznable	The legendary "Red Comet" has now reappeared as the leader of his own Neo Zeon movement. During the One Year War, Char fought for the Principality of Zeon as an ace mobile suit pilot. He then helped found the AEUG resistance group, which opposed the tyranny of the Federation's Titans faction - a role which put Char briefly on the same side as his former adversaries Amuro Ray and Bright Noa. However, Char's new goal is to complete the work of his father Zeon Zum Deikun by forcing all of humanity to emigrate to space, and he once again faces Amuro as an adversary. Amongst themselves, Neo Zeon's officers suspect that Char's true purpose is simply to avenge himself upon Amuro, and that their glorious cause is merely an afterthought.
	Nanai Miguel	This talented woman serves as both the director of Neo Zeon's Newtype Labs and as Char's chief operations officer, responsible for planning strategies for the Neo Zeon fleet. Char clearly thinks highly of Nanai's abilities, entrusting her with the all-important assault on the Earth Federation's Luna II base. However, their romantic relationship is largely for show, and Nanai soon becomes jealous of Char's interest in the young Newtype Quess Paraya.
	Quess Paraya	The spoiled daughter of an Earth Federation official, Quess is fascinated with the notion of Newtypes, and hopes to continue her studies with the help of ace pilot Amuro Ray. When she is rebuffed by Amuro's girlfriend Chan Agi, Quess turns instead to Char, and volunteers to fight for him as a Neo Zeon soldier (under the alias "Quess Air"). However, while Quess proves to be a powerful natural Newtype, she lacks the emotional maturity to handle the sensations of real battle, and the aggression and terror of the battlefield soon begin to overwhelm her vulnerable mind.
	Rezin Schnyder	A female ace pilot who leads one of Neo Zeon's mobile suit combat teams, flying a blue Geara Doga with a commander's antenna. Not only is Rezin a threat to the Londo Bell's ships and mobile suits, but she also harbors a deep hatred for her own Newtype allies, whether natural or artificial. This resentment, it's said, is the mark of a confirmed "Oldtype".
	Gyunei Guss	The ambitious young pilot Gyunei Guss serves as Char's wingman and bodyguard. Gyunei has undergone "cyber-enhancement" to become an artificial Newtype, but after he meets the natural Newtype Quess Paraya, he begins to realize the difference between artificial enhancement and genuine Newtype awareness. Meanwhile, it appears that Gyunei has his own motives for acquiring these powers; suspicious of Char's motives, he hopes to become powerful enough to challenge his leader.

"Black Frag"

A short CG movie about glimpses of the daily and not-so-daily life on the battlefield of Universal Century from the first and the second Gundam ZZ Memorial Blu-ray boxes. The ending of the second episode is inspired by the events shown in Gundam Evolve 10th episode.

My Review

Coming from Zeta, i think ZZ just hits right spot afterwards. After 0079 and Z, ZZ is just so much different that you'll forget it's the same universe and i rather found myself thinking about it as a "semi-canon", it's not a bad thing at all, in fact, i think it's really suit (haha get it?) it up
Yes, first half of it is not serious, but it's not a bad thing at all. It's set you up for something that you'll see after it. And may i say, i really enjoyed the beginning, especially after what Zeta made me feel. It's second half is in it true Gundam form: cruel and sad, ZZ takes you up by 5 foot tall ahead and just SMACK!!!!! you up.
Characters were adorable and really well written, they can just disappear for some time and i think it's just a good way for them to return at some point, giving your head so much theories to eat.
But at the end of the day.... it's just a watered down Zeta. Even though i enjoyed it, i can't really disagree with everyone saying that it's needed some serious tone from previous entries.

Rating: 9/10