The Gundam Chronicles: 002 – The 08th MS Team

My first Gundam experience was indeed a pleasant one, with 08th MS Team. As I was told, the characters in this series are indeed excellent. I particularly enjoyed the love story between Shiro and Aina, which kinda reminded me of Romeo and Juliet – a kind of “forbidden romance” between members of opposing sides. Eledore, Michel, and Kiki were among my other favorite characters from the show.

I also very much enjoyed the battle scenes. Considering the time this was made in, the animation is very well done. The music was great, especially the OP theme song, which got me into the series immediately. I forgot that Gundam has such awesome music. I have actually been a fan of Nami Tamaki and HIGH and MIGHTY COLOR for a long time, and I’m familiar with the songs they did for Gundam SEED and Gundam SEED Destiny.

I also watched Miller’s Report, which was bascically a recap of the series in a 51-minute “movie.” Even though it was mostly stuff I had already seen, it was nice to have a recap, especially since I tend to miss things the first time I watch something.

The only thing I didn’t like about 08th MS Team was the final episode, which many people had warned me about. It seemed very out of place and unnecessary. Most of the episode involves Kiki and Michel spending time in a town full of children, although in the end it turns out the children don’t actually exist. So they were some kind of hallucination? Or ghosts? Whatever it was, it just doesn’t seem to fit into a Gundam series.

My next Gundam series will be Gundam Wing. I ordered the box set from Amazon.com and got it yesterday. Unfortunately, the DVD case was damaged, and I need to send it back. Hopefully I’ll be getting a replacement soon. In the meantime, I will be watching Blue Drop.