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The latest installment in this popular franchise, Gundam Seed (2002) resembles a reworking of Yoshiyuki Tomino's original Mobile Suit Gundam (1979). Kira Yamoto accidentally becomes a mecha pilot when he stumbles onto the top secret GAT-X105 Strike Gundam during an attack on his home satellite-colony, Heliopolis. The Earth Alliance and ZAFT, the fighting arm of the genetically enhanced humans known as Coordinators, are at war. Heliopolis is caught between them. Kira is a Coordinator, which explains his ability to pilot the Strike and reprogram its OS with no training. All the elements of a solid Gundam story are in place, including a reluctant hero, a masked enemy general, and an old friend who tests Kira's loyalty. Mitsuo Kukada uses CG to choreograph some very snazzy mecha battles, in space and on the surface of Heliopolis. Released in Japan 25 years after the initial series, Seed introduces a new generation of viewers to the Gundam universe. However, the series is set in the Cosmic Era, rather than the previously explored "Gunda Saga" timeframe or the "Alternate Universe." (Rated 13 and older: violence, minor profanity) --Charles Solomon
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