The Official Gundam Unicorn Anime Thread Mk V

[J-Lead]

Know what we should be talking about? The third OST.

The second one was decent, but holy CRACKERS, is the third one made of all kinds of win. That 5th track, Gundam? Maybe the best in the series so far.

I dunno, this OST seems to lack a song that goes in the series of UNICORN and MAD-NUG. While GUNDAM is good, I actually liked MOBILE ARMOR better. I dunno, I think OST 1 and 2 were better.

I blame that on the lack of actual new content. OST 3 was half new songs, half live orchestra versions of old ones.

[schwarz ritter]

I tend to find this to be one of the most interesting splits between the Gundam fans, since it boils down to if you believe in the Newtype concept or the cold hard military fact. The former sides with Banagher, the latter with Riddhe. It's actually one of those things that makes me roll my eyes at people who insist 'Gundam is a serious military war drama'. You couldn't really do a series about say, America vs Afghanistan and have an American pilot and an Afghan tank driver have a Newtype moment in the middle of a battle. The whole Newtype concept and what it can do (rainbow tether!) pretty much pushes Gundam out of being 'serious' war story since Newtype powers are effectively a classification for the 'blazing justice' so common in Japanese light entertainment. Really, they're stories about the non-soldier's response and romanticised ways to end it. Loni is a clear example of that since Banagher overlooks the fact she's controlling a giant metal monster dishing out lashings of piping hot beam death to connect with her own inner turmoil. Some will consider Banagher mature and evolved for that, others will see him as immature and naive.

Just got ninja'd...AGAIN.


But I agree: if one wants to see a real "war drama", better to watch Spielberg's masterpiece, "Saving Private Ryan" or Kubrick's "Full Metal Jacket" than Gundam. I mean, its not the same thing to have your precious Gundam's right arm torn off...THAN YOUR ACTUAL RIGHT ARM BEING TORN OFF BY AN EFFING .50 BROWNING MACHINE GUN ROUND.

I know this has been overused, but the most "realistic" (keep in mind its in quotes) depiction of war I 've seen in Gundam so far has been in the previous UC OVAs and Sentinel (kudos to Deacon Blues), which didn't have any Newtype hax whatsoever. They're still giant robots, but they feel a bit more "realistic" as in they seem to be more akin to real-life aerial fighters than heroic giant robots like in...Zeta or Unicorn.


But I still love Gundam Unicorn (despite episode 4), so I really don't care: just let me taste the Newtype Hax more, please. lol

[HellCat]

One thing I do think is a feather in the overall UC's cap and does help push realism- things never hit a lasting peace, unlike the AUs which tend to have fairy tale endings. For all the talk of evolution and young Newtypes shining on the frontlines, pretty much every UC war ends when the war mongers have been killed by whatever means. The Zabis, Jamitov, Bask, Scirocco, Haman, Char, Iron Mask, etc. That feels realistic given even the bloodiest wars in actual history haven't stopped us from starting more for various reasons. Even with Unicorn, we know just decades later the Crossbone Vanguard will appear.

[Kratos]

Any sort of claim at "realism" in Gundam will always come with a disclaimer, as the mechs are themselves inherently unrealistic. Suspension of disbelief is always required in any mecha series, despite the alternate "Real Robot" name for the genre (which seems to be more about how the series depicts its mecha, rather than how well they match up with reality).

Gundam has never, not once in its life, been a "serious war drama". Well, alright, maybe a few times in its life, but the original series wasn't even really "about" war, despite taking place during one; certainly, it had anti-war undertones, but the war seemed more a vehicle for the cast's development than anything else. I would say that if it was "about" anything, then it was about belonging. Similarly, Zeta somewhat awkwardly brings Newtypes to the forefront, and presents the concept of understanding - of humanity's inability to do so, and the resulting tragedies that arise. Unicorn touches on all that too, and as such isn't "about" war (which, incidentally, is one of the reasons that I don't really have an issue with Banagher using his power to avoid killing). Now, there are certainly series that do indeed focus on war as a theme - 0080, among several others - but I think imposing that sort of commentary on all Gundam forever is sort of missing the forest for the trees, as it were. I might just be crazy, but these are thoughts I've been having for a while now.

As for the whole Riddhe and Banagher thing with Loni - there's shouldn't really be two ways to "side" with the issue. Riddhe did what any responsible human being would have done, in what was probably his last rational action in the series. Banagher got through to her, sure, but...so what? Riddhe had no way of knowing that, and that's the problem - even when Newtypes can communicate without misunderstanding, there's still a whole world of people who can't.

Someone above said that Loni is basically a vehicle for the two boys' development, and that's probably the unfortunate truth of the matter, because her death shows Banagher (and the audience) what can be achieved by Newtypes and gives Banagher the resolve he needs to take an active part in and bring an end to this whole little conflict. Remember that scene in episode 5, I believe right after he rescues Audrey? He says something along the lines of "I know what I can do now" (or he has a line that conveys a similar conviction, anyways). He can use the Unicorn to communicate, in that way Cardeas spoke of to Zinnerman. He, Banagher Links, knows that he has a more useful skill to bring to this nonsense than killing, that both he and the Unicorn are more than that. From here, that whole world full of people who can't communicate will be the hill he has to climb, but the Unicorn has the strength to do it - neither through will nor strength alone, and all that. I love this, by the way; Loni existing solely as a means to bring all that out sucks, and it's unfortunate that this was her only real purpose, but the end result is fantastic. It creates a scenario where the protagonist not wanting to use his giant robot for killing isn't entirely inherently hypocritical, and simultaneously serves as probably the most satisfying development of the Newtype concept to emerge from Gundam.

[MaC]

I really don't get why people are like shocked and appalled Bright helped the Garencieres, emphasis mine. Bright did not assist the Sleeves. He trusted his intuition that Banagher wasn't interested in furthering the Federations corrupt agenda, nor was he interested in propagating Sleeve's agenda. He followed his intuition that Banagher made the right judgement call about the Garencieres crew and called in Nahel Argama to assist Banagher. It made perfect sense to me and he didn't know Full Frontal would appear. The entire point of that scene, with Banagher being aided by Gilboa(Sleeve) and Daguza(Federation) was, imo, representative of Banagher transcending those factions, of uniting the two ships together. IMO it's kind of apparent that the Garencieres crew are moving beyond being Frontal's dogs and with Nahel Argama forced to fight to survive the Minerva/Banagher faction is in full swing I think.

Anyway. Soundtrack 3 has got to be my favorite so far. Psycho-Field, Audrey, Angelo, Banshee, and Gundams are stand-out excellent quality tracks. I loved Mobile Armor as a track but I can't say I like it any more then most of the stuff on OST 3. I also kinda love the live renditions. So definitely happy with OST3

[Soma Taozi]

So excuse my stupidity, but with all the talk of the third OST, does that mean it was released? I only heard the sample versions of the songs, but people are talking about stuff like it has been OUT already? Did I miss something?

[Andrew_Graruru]

Yeah, its been out since before Ep 5 was released.

[schwarz ritter]

One thing I do think is a feather in the overall UC's cap and does help push realism- things never hit a lasting peace, unlike the AUs which tend to have fairy tale endings. For all the talk of evolution and young Newtypes shining on the frontlines, pretty much every UC war ends when the war mongers have been killed by whatever means. The Zabis, Jamitov, Bask, Scirocco, Haman, Char, Iron Mask, etc. That feels realistic given even the bloodiest wars in actual history haven't stopped us from starting more for various reasons. Even with Unicorn, we know just decades later the Crossbone Vanguard will appear.

Perhaps that's the only "realism" it has, but overall, whether its UC or any other AU, Gundam really isn't about the "horror of war". Like I said, there are many works of art like "Saving Private Ryan" that are truly about the horror of war.

But of course, I'm comparing apples to oranges. Maybe I'm being completely nonsensical and I just can't seem to see the "realism" in Gundam.

[HellCat]

I think alot of the realism perhaps comes from the core idea of 'war seen through the eyes of children'. The idea that characters like Amuro, Kamille, Judau etc react with disgust and heartbreak to the things that happen in war whilst the adults are getting by with a constant 'That's just how life is, sadly'. In that respect I think Unicorn hits the nail on the head when Banagher says 'No matter how much sadness you've felt, you can't close off your heart'. Essentially, if you follow the crowd and deny the horror of what is happening then nothing will ever change. It's probably one of the greatest human tragedies that we all start off looking at the world bluntly but as we get older we lose that desire to really change anything and prioritise our own lives. Sure would be nice to tear down the system, but now you need that mortgage...
Obviously as I already said the further this has been explored the more unrealistic things have perhaps become but I don't think anyone can deny that core starting point and it's probably why Gundam continues to resonate today.

[schwarz ritter]

I think alot of the realism perhaps comes from the core idea of 'war seen through the eyes of children'. The idea that characters like Amuro, Kamille, Judau etc react with disgust and heartbreak to the things that happen in war whilst the adults are getting by with a constant 'That's just how life is, sadly'. In that respect I think Unicorn hits the nail on the head when Banagher says 'No matter how much sadness you've felt, you can't close off your heart'. Essentially, if you follow the crowd and deny the horror of what is happening then nothing will ever change. It's probably one of the greatest human tragedies that we all start off looking at the world bluntly but as we get older we lose that desire to really change anything and prioritise our own lives. Sure would be nice to tear down the system, but now you need that mortgage...
Obviously as I already said the further this has been explored the more unrealistic things have perhaps become but I don't think anyone can deny that core starting point and it's probably why Gundam continues to resonate today.

Yeah, umm... all of that "war through the eyes of children" gets really, REALLY old. I miss Shiro and Kou.



Back to topic: unlike others, I actually think Bright let the Sleeves get (or at least try to) the General Revil, considering they were the ones attacking one of his own ships, the Nahel Argama, acting as the dogs of the Vist Foundation. So I wouldn't be surprised if Bright was actually expecting the Sleeves to come along and eff with the General Revil. For all he cared, that ship was being hostile against one of the ships of Londo Bell, and so whether it got destroyed by the Sleeves or not wasn't any of his concern.

[Dendrobium Stamen]

So, episode 5. Loved it. Definitely agree that Unicorn is best watched in large sittings, to aid the flow.

As for Bright... We know he's loyal to the Earth Federation, that's not in question. But his loyalty, like that of all good heroes, is to the Federation's constitutional values, rather than its political leadership. As such, he's not afraid to oppose said political leadership when it's appropriate - this would in fact be the third time he's done so.

- Joining the AEUG when the Federation Government supported the Titans in 0087.
- Mobilising the Londo Bell fleet when the Federation believed it had "peace in our time" with Char's Neo-Zeon in 0093.
- Arranging for the Sleeves to "jailbreak" Unicorn, and latterly for Nahel Argama to assist the Garcenieres, before the intervention of the General Revil, in 0096.

As such, while Bright probably didn't expect the General Revil specifically to intervene on behalf of the Vist Foundation (who probably have Staff Headquarters held by the sensitive parts), he does want to see Banagher and the Unicorn achieve their goals, whatever it takes.

And, as perhaps the Federation Forces' greatest living commander, he probably expects to be vindicated in the end - his assignment to command Londo Bell after leading the AEUG, and the Medal of Honour he received during Char's Rebellion, tend to back that up.

[Arbiter GUNDAM]

How about Episode 5's theme song by Boom Boom Satellites?

[Kratos]

It's good (and the lead singer doesn't sound much like a Japanese Weird Al! Lisyen to the Xam'd opening sometime, it's just uncanny). Cool beat. Nothing will ever surpass Ryuusei no Namida for me though, I'm afraid.

[schwarz ritter]

I will respectfully disagree with Kratos: the only song from Unicorn I've liked so far is BROKEN MIRROR from Boom Boom. The rest are too meh.

[J-Lead]

Given how generic the last few J-pop ED songs they used previously were, Broken Mirror is pretty refreshing, I'd say.

Also, I've got a big ol' stiffy for the Boom Boom Satellites.

[Kratos]

I don't know if I'd describe Kuriyama's song as "generic j-pop"; it's not really quite sugary enough, and has this...I don't know, elegance to its sound that really sets it apart in my mind.

[J-Lead]

I don't know if I'd describe Kuriyama's song as "generic j-pop"; it's not really quite sugary enough, and has this...I don't know, elegance to its sound that really sets it apart in my mind.

Yeah, but there are a lot of ED's like that, in Gundam and elsewhere.

Broken Mirror, on the other hand, I could dance to. Very gayly, I might add.

[Deacon Blues]

Ryuusei no Namida is probably one of the worst jpop songs I've heard. It doesn't suit Unicorn at all.

Chemistry's song > all.

[Andrew_Graruru]

For me Chemistry is terrible. Those whiny, moaning vocals pretty much ruined the scene for me.

Only ED I've really liked so far is Broken Mirror, but even that I'm not sure fits tonally with the episode. I like the idea of each episode being given its own ending-theme, but so far none of them have really felt at home in Unicorn for me. I almost hope for the final episode they just use an instrumental, or maybe a cover of an iconic Gundam song like 'Beyond The Time'.

[schwarz ritter]

For me Chemistry is terrible. Those whiny, moaning vocals pretty much ruined the scene for me.

I agree: they could've focused on everything that was happening there with dialogue, but instead we had to hear those...well, you said it, "whiny, moaning vocals". Wasting precious minutes with those songs instead of covering more story. :/