is a 1985
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
ese
television
Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...
anime
is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
series, the second installment in the ''
Gundam
is a Japanese military fiction media franchise. Created by Yoshiyuki Tomino and Sunrise (now Bandai Namco Filmworks), the franchise features giant robots, or mecha, with the name "Gundam". The franchise began on April 7, 1979, with ''Mobile ...
'' franchise, and a
sequel
A sequel is a work of literature, film, theatre, television, music or video game that continues the story of, or expands upon, some earlier work. In the common context of a narrative work of fiction, a sequel portrays events set in the same ...
to the original ''
Mobile Suit Gundam
, also known as ''First Gundam'', ''Gundam 0079'' or simply ''Gundam '79'', is an anime television series, produced and animated by Nippon Sunrise. Created and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, it premiered in Japan on Nagoya Broadcasting ...
''. The show was created and directed by
Yoshiyuki Tomino
is a Japanese mecha anime creator, animator, director, screenwriter, songwriter and novelist best known for creating the ''Gundam'' anime franchise. He was born in Odawara, Kanagawa Prefecture, and studied at Nihon University's College of Art. ...
, with character designs by
Yoshikazu Yasuhiko
is a Japanese animator, manga artist, and anime director. He is best known for being the character designer and animation director of the original ''Mobile Suit Gundam'' anime, which began in 1979. That same year, he began working as a manga art ...
, while the series' mechanical designs is split among
Kunio Okawara
is a mechanical designer in the Japanese anime industry. Okawara was the first in the industry to be specifically credited as a mechanical designer. He designed mecha for the ''Gundam'' and ''Brave Series'' franchises, as well as those of numerou ...
,
Mamoru Nagano
is a Japanese manga artist, animator, and mecha and character designer. Born in Maizuru, Kyoto Prefecture, he is noted for his work with anime studio Sunrise. He is married to voice actress Maria Kawamura.
Career
Mamoru Nagano made his profess ...
, and
Kazumi Fujita
is a Japanese mecha designer, who has worked on several noted anime series and video games, notably ''Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam'', '' The King of Braves GaoGaiGar Final'', and ''Quo Vadis 2''. He designed the Zeta Gundam, winning heated competition ...
. The series was originally aired on
Nagoya Broadcasting Network
JOLX-DTV, virtual channel 6 (UHF digital channel 22), branded as is the Chūbu region flagship station of the All-Nippon News Network, owned by the , with its headquarters in Nagoya. It is broadcast in Aichi Prefecture, Gifu Prefecture, and ...
and its sister
ANN
Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie.
Anne is sometimes used as a male name in the ...
stations between 1985 and 1986.
The plot is set in the futuristic "Universal Century" timeline and takes place eight years after the events of the original series. ''Zeta'' centers on a new conflict that is formed between two new factions - the Titans, a corrupt task force formed by the Earth Federation, and the Anti-Earth Union Group (AEUG), a rebel group that seeks to end the Titans. The show is told through the perspective of
Kamille Bidan
'' Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam'' is a Japanese science fiction anime television series that originally aired on Nagoya Broadcasting Network between March 2, 1985, and February 22, 1986. ''Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam'' featured many new characters and s ...
, a teenage member of the AEUG and pilot of the RX-178 Gundam Mk-II, and later the MSZ-006 Zeta Gundam. Several main characters from the previous ''Gundam'' series return in supporting roles, including
Amuro Ray
is a fictional character introduced in Sunrise's 1979 anime series ''Mobile Suit Gundam''. Amuro is a mechanic who becomes the pilot of the mecha known as RX-78-2 Gundam to protect himself from the Zeon forces invading his space colony during the ...
and his rival
Char Aznable
, born and also gone by the name , is a fictional character from the ''Gundam'' franchise. He is originally one of the main antagonists in ''Mobile Suit Gundam'' working for the Principality of Zeon, named after his late father Zeon Zum Deikun, ...
, the latter of which returns as a pilot for the AEUG under the new identity of
Quattro Bajeena
, born and also gone by the name , is a fictional character from the ''Gundam'' franchise. He is originally one of the main antagonists in ''Mobile Suit Gundam'' working for the Principality of Zeon, named after his late father Zeon Zum Deikun ...
.
Often regarded as one of the best shows in the franchise, the series is praised for its dark themes, characters, and its improvements over its predecessor.
[Archived a]
Ghostarchive
and th
Wayback Machine
Between 2005 and 2006, the series was reproduced and compiled into a film trilogy, ''Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam: A New Translation''. Though still directed by Tomino, it involved many changes in the original storyline. The films were considered to be a success in Japan.
Plot
Set in the year Universal Century (UC) 0087, eight years after the events of ''
Mobile Suit Gundam
, also known as ''First Gundam'', ''Gundam 0079'' or simply ''Gundam '79'', is an anime television series, produced and animated by Nippon Sunrise. Created and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, it premiered in Japan on Nagoya Broadcasting ...
'' (0079), and four years after the events of ''
Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory'' (0083 to 0084) the series follows a rebel group called the Anti-Earth Union Group (AEUG) as they try to defeat the Titans, an elite task force of the Earth Federation designed to hunt down Zeon remnants but which ruthlessly kills anyone demanding equal rights for the space citizens in cold blood.
The story of ''Zeta Gundam'' is told through the viewpoint of
Kamille Bidan
'' Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam'' is a Japanese science fiction anime television series that originally aired on Nagoya Broadcasting Network between March 2, 1985, and February 22, 1986. ''Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam'' featured many new characters and s ...
, a civilian teenager and amateur mobile suit pilot whose parents are engineers working for the Earth Federation and the Titans. While traveling to the Green Noa colony to meet his parents, Kamille is insulted by and strikes a Titans officer named Jerid Messa. Following an AEUG attack led by
Quattro Bajeena
, born and also gone by the name , is a fictional character from the ''Gundam'' franchise. He is originally one of the main antagonists in ''Mobile Suit Gundam'' working for the Principality of Zeon, named after his late father Zeon Zum Deikun ...
on the colony to capture a trio of
Gundam Mk-II
The is a fictional manned robot (mecha), introduced in 1979 in Yoshiyuki Tomino's and Sunrise's anime series ''Mobile Suit Gundam''. In the series, it is a prototype weapon for the Earth Federation when it falls into the hands of Amuro Ray, the ...
mobile suits undergoing field tests, Kamille takes the opportunity to steal Messa's Mk-II to repel the attack and follows Quattro back to the AEUG mothership ''Argama''. The Titans, under the order of Bask Om, take Kamille's parents in an attempt to force the return of the stolen Gundam Mk-II's. Jerid, unaware of the hostage plot, mistakenly kills Kamille's mother. Because of this, and many other reasons, Kamille eventually joins the AEUG.
As the war escalates, Kamille encounters people from all sides of the conflict, including brainwashed Titans, artificial Newtypes and the leaders of Anaheim Electronics, who are secretly funding the AEUG. The AEUG eventually launch a full-scale attack on the Earth Federation's assembly at
Dakar
Dakar ( ; ; wo, Ndakaaru) (from daqaar ''tamarind''), is the capital and largest city of Senegal. The city of Dakar proper has a population of 1,030,594, whereas the population of the Dakar metropolitan area is estimated at 3.94 million in 2 ...
, leading to an Earth Sphere civil war. Quattro reveals himself to be Char Aznable and presents evidence of the Titans' tyranny including using G3 nerve gas on a defenseless colony. The Earth Federation court soon rules the Titans' actions to be illegal and backs the AEUG in hunting down Titans leader
Jamitov Hymem.
After losing the support of the Earth Federation, the Titans turn to their original enemy, remnants of the Principality of Zeon now known as Axis Zeon, to form an alliance to regain control of the Earth Sphere. Axis Zeon's leader
Haman Karn
''Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam'' is a Japanese science fiction anime television series that originally aired on Nagoya Broadcasting Network between March 2, 1985, and February 22, 1986. ''Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam'' featured many new characters and sev ...
contacts the AEUG, using the civil war of the Earth Federation at hand to politically ask for the control of Side 3, the former Zeon colony.
Axis involvement and Jamitov's assassination by Jupiter Fleet commander Paptimus Scirocco soon leads to a battle over the colony headquarters of the Titans, Gryps, which has been modified to be a colony laser. The war ends when Kamille, piloting the titular mobile suit Z Gundam, kills Scirocco in battle and the AEUG sinks Scirocco's flagship and most of the Titans' fleet. However, Kamille himself is psychologically broken and although survives without any physical harm to him or the Zeta Gundam, becomes mentally unstable with signs of memory lapse and/or insanity.
The series concludes with both the AEUG and Earth Federation, after suffering considerable losses over the course of the war, facing the full force of Axis Zeon, leading into ''
Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ
is the third installment in Sunrise's long running ''Gundam'' franchise and the last TV series in the franchise released in Japan's Shōwa period. A direct follow up to ''Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam'', it is directed and written by Yoshiyuki Tom ...
''.
Production
Yoshiyuki Tomino crammed his frustrations into ''Zeta Gundam''. He created the anime with the idea of telling viewers "Hey, watch my new Gundam, youngsters. Why are you not so lively like them in Z?" Tomino has mixed feelings about ''Zeta Gundam''. Tomino did not like the series and believes he should have ended the story in the first TV series. However, at the same time, he noted that thanks to ''Zeta'' the franchise became more popular.
Soundtrack
A majority of the series background music was written by Japanese
composer
A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music.
Etymology and Defi ...
Shigeaki Saegusa
Shigeaki Saegusa (, formerly ; ''Saegusa Shigeaki''; born July 8, 1942) is a Japanese composer.
Career
Saegusa is best known for his opera version '' Chushingura'' of the well-known kabuki epic of the Forty-seven Ronin/Chūshingura with a lib ...
. The melodies of the two opening themes and sole ending theme were written by American pop singer/songwriter
Neil Sedaka
Neil Sedaka (; born March 13, 1939) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. Since his music career began in 1957, he has sold millions of records worldwide and has written or co-written over 500 songs for himself and other artists, collabo ...
. The first opening song used is called which was performed by
Mami Ayukawa, and used for the first twenty-three episodes. ''Zeta - Toki wo Koete'' was based upon the song "Better Days are Coming" from Sedaka's 1972 album ''Solitaire''. The second opening song used is entitled and was performed by
Hiroko Moriguchi
(born June 13, 1968 in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan), better known by her stage name is a female Japanese singer and tarento. Moriguchi is affiliated with the talent agency NoReason Inc., where she also serves as Second Production Departme ...
, this second opening song is used in episodes twenty-four to fifty. The song "''Mizu no Hoshi e Ai wo Komete''" was derived from an unreleased song entitled "For Us to Decide".
The sole ending song used for the series is called which was sung by Mami Ayukawa. "''Hoshizora no Believe''" was adapted from the song "Bad and Beautiful" from the 1976 album ''Steppin' Out''. In addition to the opening/ending songs an insert song was also made called . This song is sung by Hiroko Moriguchi and is used in episode twenty.
The opening and ending songs differed for the International release version, as well as Japanese streaming versions, as opposed to the original. The opening song used is called which was composed by Saegusa, while the song used for the endings entitled was also written by Saegusa.
The songs used for the three films that came out of Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam were all performed by
Gackt
, better known by his mononymous stage name Gackt (stylized as GACKT), is a Japanese musician, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor.
Born in Okinawa, Japan, to a Ryukyuan family, Gackt learned the piano at a young age and was raise ...
, and were compiled and released on his tribute album
0079-0088. The first film ''Heirs To The Stars'' uses two songs; ''
Metamorphoze
is a single released by Gackt on May 25, 2005 under Nippon Crown. It peaked at second place on the Oricon weekly chart and charted for thirteen weeks. In 2005, it was the 62nd best selling single of the year, with sales of 156,709 copies, making ...
'' is used as the opening song while is used for the ending. The second film ''Lovers'' uses just one new song called ''Mind Forest'' for the ending song. Mind Forest is also featured on Gackt's album called "Crescent". The final film made ''Love is the Pulse of the Stars'' uses two new songs. ''Love Letter'' is used as an insert song followed by the song ''Dybbuk'' which is used as the ending song.
International release
The show has been placed on rerun on the anime
satellite television
Satellite television is a service that delivers television programming to viewers by relaying it from a communications satellite orbiting the Earth directly to the viewer's location. The signals are received via an outdoor parabolic antenna comm ...
network,
Animax
, stylized as ANIMAX, is a Japanese animation satellite television network, dedicated to broadcasting anime programming. The channel also dubbed other cartoons in Japanese language. A subsidiary of Sony Pictures Entertainment Japan, it is headq ...
, across Japan and later its respective networks worldwide, including
East Asia
East Asia is the eastern region of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The modern states of East Asia include China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan. China, North Korea, South Korea and ...
,
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...
,
South Asia
South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical and ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.;;;;;;;; ...
, and other regions.
In 2004, after almost 2 years of delays and failed television and merchandising deals,
Bandai
is a Japanese multinational toy manufacturer and distributor headquartered in Taitō, Tokyo. Its international branches, Bandai Namco Toys & Collectables America and Bandai UK, are respectively headquartered in Irvine, California and Richmond ...
released a limited edition Zeta Gundam boxset with dubbed English and original Japanese audio tracks. The box-set includes pencil sharpener collectibles and a 48-page booklet and poster. The English dub was done by
Ocean Production's Blue Water Studio based in
Calgary
Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...
in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
. Due to Bandai not having rights to the theme songs outside of Asia, the opening and closing sequences were altered.
The English subtitles were criticized as inaccurate and appeared to be based on the script for the English dub, rather than a direct translation of the original Japanese script. Bandai corrected the subtitles to a properly translated version for later DVD releases in 5 cases with 2 discs each. Each disc contained five episodes.
In 2006,
Bandai Entertainment
was a Japanese anime, film production, and distribution enterprise, established by Bandai and a subsidiary of Bandai Namco Holdings. They focused mainly in international distribution of anime properties in North America.
Most of the anime and f ...
acquired the rights to the US release of the "A New Translation" film trilogy, originally slated for release on June 22, 2010, but was later changed to July 6. The series and films have been out of print, following the closure of Bandai Entertainment.
On October 11, 2014, at their 2014
New York Comic-Con
The New York Comic Con is an annual New York City fan convention dedicated to comics, Western comics, graphic novels, anime, manga, video games, cosplay, toys, Film, movies, and television. It was first held in 2006.
History
The New York Comic ...
panel, Sunrise announced they will be releasing all of the Gundam franchise, including the ''Zeta Gundam'' TV series and films in North America through distribution from
Right Stuf Inc.
Right Stuf Inc. (formerly known as The Right Stuf International Inc.) is an American video publisher and distributor of video programming that specializes in Asian entertainment (anime and live action films). The company since 2022 is owned by ...
, beginning in Spring 2015.
Related media
Manga
A manga adaptation of the series by Kazuhisa Kondo was released by
Kodansha
is a Japanese privately-held publishing company headquartered in Bunkyō, Tokyo. Kodansha is the largest Japanese publishing company, and it produces the manga magazines ''Nakayoshi'', ''Afternoon'', ''Evening'', ''Weekly Shōnen Magazine'' an ...
in
Comic BomBom
was a monthly Japanese children's manga magazine published by Kodansha. It was first published on October 15, 1981, and ceased publication in 2007. A web version of the magazine has been published on Pixiv Comic since the end of July 2017.
Simi ...
from March 1985 to February 1986 issues, and compiled into three volumes. A manga remake was also made entitled . This remake was written and illustrated by
Hiroyuki Kitazume
is a Japanese animator, manga artist, and illustrator. He is often noted for his work with anime studio Sunrise. Helen McCarthy in ''500 Essential Anime Movies'' commented that he "shot to fame" in 1985 as a character designer on the ''Zeta Gunda ...
and began serialiation in ''
Gundam Ace
is a monthly Japanese shōnen manga magazine published by Kadokawa Shoten. It largely focuses on the ''Gundam'' franchise. There was a Chinese version published by Kadokawa Media (Taiwan) Co., Ltd, discontinued in 2008.
Overview
Gundam Ace s ...
'' on June 25, 2011.
Compilation films
In celebration of Gundam's 25th anniversary (and also the 20th anniversary of ''Zeta Gundam''), the 50-episode series was compiled into a film trilogy called ''Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam: A New Translation''. According to Tomino, the films were created to fix some of the problems he identified in the television series and to bring it into a 21st-century context for a new generation now experiencing the increasingly
commercialized series, such as ''
Mobile Suit Gundam SEED
is an anime series developed by Sunrise and directed by Mitsuo Fukuda. The ninth installment in the ''Gundam'' franchise, ''Gundam SEED'' takes place in a future calendar era, in this case the Cosmic Era. In this era, mankind has devel ...
''. The first film, ''Heirs to the Stars'', opened on May 28, 2005, followed by ''Lovers'' on October 29, 2005, and ''Love is the Pulse of the Stars'' on March 6, 2006.
The compilations digitally remastered the television series of ''Zeta Gundam'' with new footage. Around 33% of "''Heir to the Stars''" was newly animated footage, with 70% for "''Lovers''" and almost 80% for "''Love is the Pulse of the Stars''". However, several major plot events from the TV series were either edited or removed to allow the films to flow more smoothly, unlike Tomino's previous Gundam film compilations. Likewise, the fate of some characters in the television version were entirely changed, notably Kamille's — in the original, his final battle renders him into a vegetative state, while he remains physically and mentally fit by the end of the film trilogy. In addition, mobile suits belonging to the Gundam timeline, but designed after the television broadcast of ''Zeta Gundam'', were also placed into the films.
Shigeaki Saegusa's musical score from the TV series was reused for the films, with the addition of new songs by Japanese singer-songwriter
Gackt
, better known by his mononymous stage name Gackt (stylized as GACKT), is a Japanese musician, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor.
Born in Okinawa, Japan, to a Ryukyuan family, Gackt learned the piano at a young age and was raise ...
. A music video for the first film's opening theme "
Metamorphoze
is a single released by Gackt on May 25, 2005 under Nippon Crown. It peaked at second place on the Oricon weekly chart and charted for thirteen weeks. In 2005, it was the 62nd best selling single of the year, with sales of 156,709 copies, making ...
" featured Gackt singing inside a mobile suit cockpit during battle.
The majority of the original TV voice cast returned to reprise their respective roles.
Yō Inoue
, also known by her stage name , was a Japanese voice actress. Inoue was diagnosed with lung cancer in late 2001, underwent treatments during 2002, and her condition deteriorated rapidly in the last month of her life.
At the time of her death she ...
, who died in 2003 - was posthumously credited, as an archived recording of her voice was used for a cameo appearance of Sayla Mass in the third film. There were some changes to the voice cast - namely
Yukana
, who goes by her mononymous stage name , is a Japanese voice actress and singer affiliated with Sigma Seven. Her major roles include Azuki in ''Azuki-chan'', Yuri Tanima in ''Wedding Peach'', Meiling Li in ''Cardcaptor Sakura'', Tessa in ''Ful ...
replacing
Saeko Shimazu
is a Japanese actress, voice actress and narrator from Isehara. Shimazu is notable for having had voice roles in all four of the major anime television series based on the works of Rumiko Takahashi - she played Shinobu Miyake in ''Urusei Yatsur ...
as Four Murasame,
Satomi Arai
is a Japanese voice actress from Saitama Prefecture. She married voice actor Yoshimitsu Shimoyama
is a male Japanese voice actor from Kanagawa Prefecture. He revealed himself as Satomi Arai's husband, having married since 2008 and had a son in ...
replacing Miyuki Matsuoka as Fa Yuiry, and a few others. This change sparked controversy among fans, who suspected that Yukana used her relationship with sound director Sadayoshi Fujino to land her role. The films were a box office success in Japan.
Games
In 1985, Bandai released a special board game based on the series. Designed for two to four players, ''Mobile Suit Gundam: Take Off MKII'' has a paper map and 12 miniatures of various AEUG and Titans mobile suits, plus game rules and mission files. ''
Kidō Senshi Z-Gundam: Hot Scramble'' followed in 1986. the first ''Gundam'' video game for home consoles, Hot Scramble featured first-person and side-scrolling stages. this would be followed by a 3D-fighting game, ''Mobile Suit Z Gundam'', for the Sony PlayStation in 1997. Featuring remastered cutscenes from the series, it comes on two discs, allowing players to experience the series from the viewpoints of Kamille and Char. Bandai later added the series' mobile suits as part of Gundam Vs. Zeta Gundam in 2004.
In addition, Tecmo Koei and Namco Bandai have co-published the ''
Dynasty Warriors: Gundam'' franchise since 2007.
Reception
Critical reception
''Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam'' is praised by fans of the Universal Century sect of the franchise, with many lauding it for its bleak tone, character development, and its complicated expression of war. However, the series has also been criticized for being overly depressing, and frequently exhibiting a directionless plot. The show has also been accused as being
misogynist
Misogyny () is hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against women. It is a form of sexism that is used to keep women at a lower social status than men, thus maintaining the societal roles of patriarchy. Misogyny has been widely practiced fo ...
for its overuse of
killing off female love interests and the characterization of some of the female characters. Even the series' director, Yoshiyuki Tomino, has expressed not liking the show,
finding in retrospect much of the hostility and abuse inflicted upon characters to undermine any realistic depiction of war.
The review website Mania.com gave the anime an overall 'B+' rating, regarding it as "one of
Yoshiyuki Tomino
is a Japanese mecha anime creator, animator, director, screenwriter, songwriter and novelist best known for creating the ''Gundam'' anime franchise. He was born in Odawara, Kanagawa Prefecture, and studied at Nihon University's College of Art. ...
's greatest works." They stated that the "lack of an A/A+ is that this is recommended for fans who are already familiar with the
Universal Century
is a Japanese military fiction media franchise. Created by Yoshiyuki Tomino and Sunrise (now Bandai Namco Filmworks), the franchise features giant robots, or mecha, with the name "Gundam". The franchise began on April 7, 1979, with ''Mobile S ...
storyline," recommending that audiences view "the
original film trilogy" first before watching ''Zeta Gundam''. The reviewer Chris Beveridge of Mania.com gave certain volumes of the series a full 'A' rating, describing the last ten episodes as being "the huge payoff episodes" where "you can almost feel the characters being rushed around a bit and moved through the paces. But at the same time, it all comes so fast that it's simply enjoyable to watch so much happen and change so quickly."
Beveridge would later review the Blu-Ray releases of the series for ''The Fandom Post'', giving both sets of Blu-Rays an 'A−' rating. Beveridge writes in the review for the first set, "It’s hard to believe that it’s been almost ten years since I last saw this series as you realize just how much anime you consume. But it also makes you realize which ones truly stand out over the course of time and this one is definitely one of them." Beveridge found the second half of the series weaker, though still claims that the show "hits most things right".
While reviewing for the Blu-ray release of the series, Ollie Barder of ''
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
'' gave the show a rave review, even titling it as "Possibly The Greatest 'Gundam' Series Ever Made". Barder praised the series' more realistic approach to war and its striking designs for the many different robots, though did find the transforming mechas out of place in ''Zeta's'' more grounded reality.
Lauren Orsini of ''
Anime News Network
Anime News Network (ANN) is a news website that reports on the status of anime, manga, video games, Japanese popular music and other related cultures within North America, Australia, Southeast Asia and Japan. The website offers reviews and oth ...
'' also praised the series in a review for the first Blu-ray release, giving the dub for the first set a 'B', praising it for its powerful storytelling. Orsini was more critical of the second half of the series, finding the plot too chaotic and calling it Gundam's "awkward coming-of-age". But Orsini still praised the second half for its mecha designs and strong emotional payoffs, ultimately giving the subtitle version of the series a 'B'.
''
Comic Book Resources
''Comic Book Resources'', also known by the initialism CBR, is a website dedicated to the coverage of comic book–related news and discussion.
History
Comic Book Resources was founded by Jonah Weiland in 1995 as a development of the Kingdom Co ...
'' listed ''Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam'' as the best Gundam anime in their 2020 list, and the series was later ranked as the highest-rated Gundam show on ''
IMDb
IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...
''.
''Bluefin Brand'', one of the biggest distributors of
Gunpla model kits and other Japanese branded toys in the west, had ''Zeta Gundam'' the top show to watch in the franchise.
''
WatchMojo
WatchMojo is a private company in video producing, publishing and syndicator that is based in Canada. The company has created around 20,000 videos on YouTube, and 5,000 additional videos from other platforms. It primarily is known for their ...
'' listed ''Zeta Gundam'' as the third-best
anime
is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
of the pre-90s, only below the original ''
Dragon Ball
is a Japanese media franchise created by Akira Toriyama in 1984. The Dragon Ball (manga), initial manga, written and illustrated by Toriyama, was serialized in ''Weekly Shōnen Jump'' from 1984 to 1995, with the 519 individual chapters colle ...
'' show and the 1988 version of ''
Legend of the Galactic Heroes
, sometimes abbreviated as ''LOTGH'', ''LOGH'' or in Japanese (and also depicted as ''Heldensagen vom Kosmosinsel'' in the anime intro), is a series of science fiction novels written by Yoshiki Tanaka. In humanity's distant fu ...
''.
In the ''
NHK's'' 2018 mega "All Gundam Poll", ''Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam'' was placed as the second-best anime in the Gundam franchise, only behind the original 1979
''Gundam'' show. The Zeta Gundam mecha was voted as the second-best mobile suit in the same poll, only behind the RX-93 ν Gundam (also known as the Nu Gundam) from ''
Char's Counterattack
is a 1988 Japanese animated science fiction film set in the Universal Century timeline of the ''Gundam'' franchise.
Making its theatrical debut on March 12, 1988, ''Char's Counterattack'' is the culmination of the original saga begun in ' ...
''. The second opening song, , was also voted the best Gundam song in the franchise.
Hiroko Moriguchi
(born June 13, 1968 in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan), better known by her stage name is a female Japanese singer and tarento. Moriguchi is affiliated with the talent agency NoReason Inc., where she also serves as Second Production Departme ...
, the original singer of ''Mizu no Hoshi'', re-recorded a new version of the song in ''
Gundam Song Covers
''Gundam Song Covers'' is a cover album by Hiroko Moriguchi, released on August 7, 2019 to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Gundam franchise. The album features Moriguchi's versions of the 10 most popular Gundam songs, as voted on NHK's . ...
'', along with the nine other songs in the top ten of ''NHK's'' poll. A music video of Moriguchi's new version of ''Mizu no Hoshi'' was released in 2019. The ''NHK'' reported that there was a total of 1,740,280 votes in the poll, with 46% of the votes for ''Zeta'' coming from voters between the ages 40 to 46.
See also
* ''
Mobile Suit Gundam
, also known as ''First Gundam'', ''Gundam 0079'' or simply ''Gundam '79'', is an anime television series, produced and animated by Nippon Sunrise. Created and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, it premiered in Japan on Nagoya Broadcasting ...
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Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ
is the third installment in Sunrise's long running ''Gundam'' franchise and the last TV series in the franchise released in Japan's Shōwa period. A direct follow up to ''Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam'', it is directed and written by Yoshiyuki Tom ...
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* ''
Kidou Senshi Z-Gundam: Hot Scramble''
* ''
Space Runaway Ideon
is a 1980 anime television series produced by Sunrise, created and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, produced immediately following his most famous work, ''Mobile Suit Gundam''. It first premiered on TV Tokyo from 1980 to 1981, followed by two f ...
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Super Dimension Fortress Macross
is an anime television series from 1982. According to story creator Shoji Kawamori, it depicts "a love triangle against the backdrop of great battles" during the first Human-alien war. It is the first part of two franchises: The Super Dime ...
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References
External links
* Official Websites
AnimeA New Translation IIIIII*
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{{Sunrise films
1985 anime television series debuts
2005 anime films
2006 anime films
2000s science fiction films
Bandai Entertainment anime titles
Children's manga
Dengeki Comics
Zeta
Zeta (, ; uppercase Ζ, lowercase ζ; grc, ζῆτα, el, ζήτα, label= Demotic Greek, classical or ''zē̂ta''; ''zíta'') is the sixth letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of 7. It was derived f ...
Japanese animated science fiction films
Shōnen manga
Sunrise (company)