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Summary: Gundam Wars: Special Edition
Review: A New Mobile SuitWhen Cartoon Network announced that they would be airing the original Mobile Suit Gundam TV series, I was excited. The show that started it all, the great giant robot epic, the STAR WARS OF JAPAN. And then I watched it. I couldn't believe it. I was actually BORED. The animation was mediocre, the plot, slow, the characters, largely annoying. And don't get me started on the English voice-acting. So you can imagine with what reluctance I purchased the Gundam Movie Trilogy on DVD. And what a surprise it was. Pretty much every complaint I had with the TV show was completely obliterated. The animation, even in the first Gundam movie, looked MUCH nicer. Maybe it was the DVD format, maybe the picture was cleaned up and restored...I don't know. All I know is, the animation looked WAY better. And remember all those redundant scenes (like the Gundam parts switching in mid-air) that were beginning to drive you mad? Gone. Remember those spread-out action scenes that happened just barely often enough to keep you watching? Now they're all part of the same battle, the action escalating and escalating until you're practically hyperventilating. And glory be, the characters seem more fully fleshed out too. And the plot improvements? A bit like replacing "What are midichloreans?" (hope I spelled that right) with "The force is what gives a Jedi his power." The sound effects, speech, and music were redone for the dvds as well. No words can describe the difference. What was cheesy or fake now sounds awesome. I kid you not. Zeon Strikes Back These DVDs do have one or two downsides. First, they're not exactly cheap. Secondly, there's almost no extras at all. No trailers, no making of documentary, no commentary. Nothing. And third, there's no English version of the speech. Now I can deal with that, but I really wish they had gone through the trouble to record a good English version of these movies. It really would have been the icing on the cake. Then of course there is a bit of a boring lag in between the first and third Gundam movies. I know, I know, we get more insight into the characters and their motivations in the second movie. But compared to the gripping drama of the first and third movies (not to mention the awesome rivalry between Char and Amuro) the second movie is a bit slow-moving. For the movie with Char and Amuro on the cover, you'd think there would be more of the cool Amuro vs. Char action. Oh, well. Return of the Newtype Let's face it, great animation doesn't hurt. Great music and sound effects enhance everything. Good voice-acting helps a lot too. But what really makes for an engaging Mecha Saga is plot, action, and characterization. It's awful hard to get hooked when you don't care about the characters, the plot is boring and the action is comatose. Foretunately, the third Gundam movie delivers in these all-important ways, and features the best animation of the three movies as well. In the third Gundam movie, everything comes to a head. Sayla confronts Char. Char and Amuro have a showdown. Mirai tries to decide who she loves. Complications of war and emotional turmoil tears at everyone. And every time you think the last battle is over, the action gets even more intense. It quite literally blew me away. In short, the Gundam movies succeed in every way. If you loved the show, buy the movies. If you hated the show, buy the movies. If you love anything Gundam, buy the movies. These movies have a priviledged place on my shelf, ahead of Gundam Wing, Martian Successor Nadesico, and even the awesome Macross Saga. I can give no higher recommendation.
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Summary: A story of sheer prophecy and uncommon brilliance
Review: After five years of loving Japanese Animation, I have seen only a handful of features that have both caught my conscious and heart. The Mobile Suit Gundam trilogy is in the select few that have done this to me. It rivals the brilliance of the Star Wars Trilogy(my 1st love) and films by barker, spielberg, and kubrick.
The tale begins in a realistic future society, where humans have been forced into space colonies due to overpopulation. With the development of warfare, long-range weapons-systems are useless, henceforth the creation of mobile suits. With the gaining strength of the colonies, The Principlaity of Zeon have spurned a war of Independance from the Earth Federation. And so, the stage is set.
To avoid spoiling the series for newbies, I'll describe the Gundam experience. The animation is old and looks like your high school art projects, but the plot and character/history/feel/political/philosophical/mecha design will captivate anyone. When I first watched these films, I was overtaken by the great intensity of emotion and depth each character experienced. Its standpoint on human nature gives insight to the human creature and its contant strife into tranformation into a being of space and expansion. The Mobile Suit Gundam Trilogy is highly reccomended for strangers of anime alike. FOR THOSE WHO PROCLAIM THEIR LOVE OF ANIME HAVE NOTHING TO BACK THEMSELVES WITH UNTIL THEY OWN THIS BOX SET. BUY IT NOW, AND BE THANFUL FOR GIVING YOURSELF MEMORIES YOU'LL NEVER FORGET!
Rating: 
Summary: Beware
Review: Beware, these DVD's are only in Japaese. I don't understand it and I don't read subtitles. Well I've been bitten by this I only hope others read this and avoid problems... at no stage was it indicated that it was in anything apart from Eglish.
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Summary: Char's Counterattack
Review: Char's Counterattack is the first and only Gundam movie I ever saw. I saw it in Japanese with no dubbing or subtitles, so I cannot comment on the plot. However, the action was tremendous. Huge, intense space battles, great big machines--everything a good anime film ought to be. On top of that, all the space battle scenes are done true to the real physics of space, i.e., no sound. You might think that the lack of sound effects for the missiles and lasers would detract from the action, but it only served to make it more tense and exciting. Anyway, if the third movie in this set is Char's Counterattack, I will definitely buy the set when it is released.
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Summary: Awesome films!
Review: Classic Japaneese films. Although MSG I is a little shacky, II and III blow most other SCI-fi away. It still can't beat Star Trek, but you'll wonder why you ever watched Star Wars (except episode V). III is one of the darkest films I have ever seen. Not only do six main characters kick the bucket, I estimate that 80% of the White Base's crew dies as well. the ship is destoryed, and thousands of federation soldiers die in a blast from a Death-Star like weapon.
WARNING: If you are a parent with young children who like pokiman, digimon, or Gundam Wing, this isn't for them. In addition to violence, there is breif nudity, profanity, and WW2 overtones.
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Summary: An excellent movie for Tomino fans
Review: First of all, this movie has nothing to do with the recently popular series Gundam Wing. Gundam Wing is set in an alternate reality to Mobile Suit Gundam. Once you get past that premise, it is an excellent movie. From the acclaimed creator of Gundam Wing, Aura Battler Dunbine, and Garzey's Wing comes a memorable story of action, adventure, and intrigue. The Dutchy of Zeon has broken free from the Earth Federation, and the only things standing in the way of thier Mobile Suits are the crew of the warship White Base and its trio of mobile suits: the RX-78-2 Gundam, the RX-77 Guncannon, and the RX-75 Guntank. This movie trilogy was compiled from a 42 episode Japanese TV show, so many of the great battles of the original anime have been removed to shorten the film. However, if you have already seen the TV show, see the movies anyway, because 30% of the material in the second movie and 70% of the material in the third movie is new. If you aren't going to be upset because the movies have nothing to do with Gundam Wing, make this anime yours!
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Summary: Mobile Suit Gundam: The Formula Most Anime Would Follow
Review: First, let me get this out of the way, Mobile Suit Gundam is quite possibly my favorite anime ever. The original is superior to almost EVERY spin-off show, including the testosterone-y Gundam Wing, following the Gundam mythos. The only series that could possibly rival it in quality is Gundam 0083. It is a classic in every sense of the word. Condensing 42 episodes of a television series into three films a tough thing to do. Somehow, though, it works, and to some degree, to a higher extent than the television series. By eliminating some silly subplots that plagued the television show and strictly focusing on the major points of the series, the emphasis on the drama is drastically intensified. While the first two movies may seem a tad formuliac, the third makes up for this fully, offering one of the greatest expiriences in anime, the battle of A Bao Qu. This comes of with my highest recommendation.
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Summary: An oldie but goodie
Review: For anyone watching the new Gundam Wing this brings you back to the begining. If you like Wing just buy this box set
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Summary: Truly one of the Great Classics of Anime
Review: Gundam is sometimes described as "Japan's Answer to Star Trek," and in a way it is. When the first series, Mobile Suit Gundam, was broadcast back in 1979, it was cut short (originally 52 episodes, it was trimmed down to 43) due to low ratings. It went into syndication, where it rapidly gained a following. So much so that it spawned movies, television series, direct-to-video series, spinoffs, etc. ad infinitum. And it continues on, just like one particular American series has. This box set contains the three Mobile Suit Gundam films, compiled from the first 43-episode series for theatrical release in Japan, back in the early 80's. Obviously material was cut in the compiling process, but new (for then) animation was added for the theatrical release. The result is well over seven hours of animation, about the final months of the One-Year War between the Earth Federation and the Duchy of Zeon. An earlier customer review did mention that, compared to today's standards, the animation looks dated (twenty years after all), but the story and drama is STILL as good today as it was back when. If you ever get a chance, Grab this, it's a keeper!
Rating:
Summary: Truly one of the Great Classics of Anime
Review: Gundam is sometimes described as "Japan's Answer to Star Trek," and in a way it is. When the first series, Mobile Suit Gundam, was broadcast back in 1979, it was cut short (originally 52 episodes, it was trimmed down to 43) due to low ratings. It went into syndication, where it rapidly gained a following. So much so that it spawned movies, television series, direct-to-video series, spinoffs, etc. ad infinitum. And it continues on, just like one particular American series has. This box set contains the three Mobile Suit Gundam films, compiled from the first 43-episode series for theatrical release in Japan, back in the early 80's. Obviously material was cut in the compiling process, but new (for then) animation was added for the theatrical release. The result is well over seven hours of animation, about the final months of the One-Year War between the Earth Federation and the Duchy of Zeon. An earlier customer review did mention that, compared to today's standards, the animation looks dated (twenty years after all), but the story and drama is STILL as good today as it was back when. If you ever get a chance, Grab this, it's a keeper!
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