So, what are your are your thought about the early-UC and late-UC spin-off manga?

[False Prophet]

As a fan, seeing the setting I love being expanded is great. And I love the idea of authors trying to experiment with new ideas instead of pre-existing framework.

For now, the quality of spin-off manga set in the U.C timeline is highly polished and well thought. Most of them, anyway. I want to specifically direct my critic to two manga series:

- Gundam Crossbone: Okay, Pirate + Alt. Universe Gundam= Awesome! Pirate + Gundam U.C=...No.

Crossbone Gundam is simply too radical for the U.C Gundam. Sure, it has its moments, but generally the whimsical nature of the manga doesn't sit well with an otherwise sombre setting. Furthermore, the plot line of the manga lacks the general cohesion with other stories of the timeline, and most connections (like Judau showed up as an old man) are shoe-horned.

Not to mention the weak characters, cardbox-cutout villains, and the 60s-style drawing which lacks the charms of authors of that era like Osamu Tezuka. (I can't understand all the hype for Crossbone in the fandom.)

- Gundam Hooligan & Gundam Katana: These are the lesser offenders. They are quite enjoyable to read, and the art do look cool, if not a bit generic. However, my biggest complain is the combat (the main attraction of the series) - they focus on close combat too much, and for the wrong reason. It's too shonen-y, which would has been better if they were set in SEED or 00. But not U.C

So, what are your are your thought about the early-UC and late-UC spin-off manga?

[Zeonista]

I think you are focusing too much on the superficial elements of Crossbone Gundam. I rather suspect Crossbone GUndam is where Gundam Formula 91 might have ended if the projected TV series had been cmpleted, and carried through on its grand theme of the rise and fall of the Crossbone Vanguard and Cosmo Babylon. There was an association of sorts between the Jupiter Empire and the Crossbone Vanguard hinted at in the movie but not revealed. Crossbone Gundam suggests a situation where the Jupiter Empire sees its allies of convenience go down in flames, sees the revealed weakness of the EUG, and decides to do the job itself. It gains an unlooked-for advantage because one of the lieutenants on Mother Vanguard is dissatisfied with his lot...

At any rate, the pirate motif should not be confused with the Golden Age of Piracy. In Oriental poli-speak "bandit" and "pirate" are frequent legal cover words for "rebel" or "non-government force", which puts the crew of Mother Vanguard in proper focus. They are former idealist rebels against the now-vanquished Cosmo Babylon, but at the same time they are not really partisans of the Federation. The struggle against the Jupiter Empire is less about strategy and more of a principled struggle to prevent the active tyranny of Jupiter from replacing the passive tyranny of the Federation.

As for Gundam: We Are Federation Hooligans!, I had commented on it at length a couple of years ago. It is a lot of fun for UC fans who are willing to take a joke and know something of shounen manga tropes.
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