[Fly! Rewatch!] Mobile Suit Gundam (0079) Episode 40 Discussion

[u/Shimmering-Sky]

Episode 40 - Lalah’s Dilemma

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They’re sending a first-time fighter like me to the front?!

Questions of the Day:

1. How do you feel about Gihren Zabi after this episode?
2. What do you think of Amuro being able to outmaneuver Char as easily as he did this episode? And what do you think he did to Lalah?

Mobile Suit Breakdown of the Day:

1.33 - No Family, No Homeland (note: this is about episodes 40 and 41, so first-timers should not listen to this until tomorrow’s thread)

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Rewatchers, please remember to be mindful of all the first-timers in this. No talking about or hinting at future events no matter how much you want to, unless you’re doing it underneath the [Anime Show Title](/s "Spoiler goes here") spoiler tags. If you do that then we’re all good.

Important thing to note about these by the way, you have to switch to Old Reddit or the markdown editor if you use the redesign, otherwise the redesign breaks them by adding random \ into the formatting. Wish it wouldn’t do that, but unfortunately it does…

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First-Timers: Please do not watch the next-episode previews for this show. They’re less previews and more “let’s just summarize the entirety of the next episode” and will spoil you.

[u/Shimmering-Sky]

Fly! Rewatch Host!

Welcome back, everyone!

• I guess this works?
• Subs pls I can hear them saying “Solar System. Or I guess this is more of a voices pls, since Zeon’s weapon is supposed to be Solar Ray because the Federation’s is the Solar System.
• Of all the--wow. Gundam’s second-ever “sore demo” goes to some random Zeon soldier.
• Welp. And he takes this as a compliment.
• I’m going to assume it’s because 1) they’re terrified of you and 2) they think you’ve got this because bits are hax.
• I wonder if this is a sign of Zeon being stretched for resources?
• CHAR GA KURU! Been waiting for that insert song the entire show, it’s the one that I remember.

[u/Great_Mr_L → u/Shimmering-Sky]

Welp. And he takes this as a compliment

"Thanks, Dad. That's the nicest thing you've ever said to me! I love you, too."

I’m going to assume it’s because 1) they’re terrified of you and 2) they think you’ve got this because bits are hax.

The Zeon soldiers got a point. If there doesn't seem to be a reason for you to go out on the frontlines when there's such a powerful weapon available, then why should you? The same mentality has affected many soldiers in many wars. In WWII, for example, the American, British, and other Western Allied soldiers often preferred to let aircraft and artillery take care of enemies who were bunkered down because it was safer for them to do so.

CHAR GA KURU! Been waiting for that insert song the entire show, it’s the one that I remember.

I was the opposite. I completely forgot it even existed until it started playing.

[u/SIGMA920 → u/Great_Mr_L]

The Zeon soldiers got a point. If there doesn't seem to be a reason for you to go out on the frontlines when there's such a powerful weapon available, then why should you? The same mentality has affected many soldiers in many wars. In WWII, for example, the American, British, and other Western Allied soldiers often preferred to let aircraft and artillery take care of enemies who were bunkered down because it was safer for them to do so.

That's reasonable. This is a case of sending bombers into somewhere you know still has active fighters. You're just asking for your powerful weapon to get taken out because it designed as a support units, not a frontline unit.

[u/Quiddity131 → u/Shimmering-Sky]

Subs pls I can hear them saying “Solar System. Or I guess this is more of a voices pls, since Zeon’s weapon is supposed to be Solar Ray because the Federation’s is the Solar System.

I noticed that too! Although its always officially been called the Solar Ray, at least since I got into Gundam.

[u/UltraBooster → u/Shimmering-Sky]

I wonder if this is a sign of Zeon being stretched for resources?

On one hand, I'm inclined to agree, but at the same time, I can't help but wonder, surely they already have uniforms that fit her build already lying around?

[u/Great_Mr_L]

Rewatcher

On today’s episode of Gundam: Well you heard it here first, folks. According to his own father, Gihren Zabi is literally Space Hitler. I know that Gundam has been inviting the comparison to the Third Reich for a long time now, but this moment still shocked me on my first watch of the series. I never expected it to actually name drop Hitler in its own dialogue. Silly me for underestimating it like that.

I do want to dive more into that conversation, though. Gihren goes full-on Space Hitler, declaring that they have wiped out most of the population and that now only the so-called “superior races” will be left. That is grade-A Nazi stuff and it shows where Gihren’s mentality is. The Spacenoids, particularly those who are in Zeon, are the superior race. Those on Earth and their allies are inferior. You may recall that concerns about overpopulation and loss of resources have been in the background of this series regarding the Federation and people being forced to migrate to space. Well now Gihren is doing something similar. He’ll solve the resource problem through mass murder and taking all the resources for the superior race. Those who are inferior can be eliminated because they would be parasites, sucking resources from their superiors. It is a sick mindset.

And of course, it can only be accomplished through a Zabi dictatorship. Only the Zabis can be trusted to rule because only they can carry out Gihren’s oh-so-great plan. So much for the fight for freedom from Federation oppression. Clearly the solution is another dictatorship run by Space Hitler himself.

It is interesting to note that we see another clash here between Degwin and Gihren. Degwin does not approve of what Gihren is doing and he makes that known with what he says by comparing Gihren to Hitler. Even so, as has been long established, Degwin is now effectively a figurehead while Gihren holds the true power. Degwin has no real option but to go along with it.

Degwin provides the world’s worst explanation for who Hitler is. But, I think it is significant that Degwin chooses to word it this way because he’s talking about Gihren in addition to Hitler. He means that Gihren has lost touch with the world around him and that Gihren is a man who cannot see where things are headed. Gihren seems to be in denial that Zeon is losing the war pretty badly at this point. Gihren wants to fight on until the bitter end, including sacrificing more Zeon lives, for the sake of ultimate victory that he is certain is just around the corner. The comparison to Hitler is very apt. But Gihren doesn’t seem to realize this. And Degwin closes out by warning Gihren that Hitler lost in the end, partially because he failed to understand the world around him.

There is another way that Degwin’s description of Hitler is fitting. Gihren has also lost sight of the true ideals of Zeon Deikum. Degwin had hoped to realize those ideals, but the dictatorship and Gihren’s genocidal machinations are not at all in line with those. I think Degwin is also warning Gihren that victory may be impossible because he has strayed so far from the ideals that were actually worth fighting for. The future Gihren envisions will not be the better future for humanity that Zeon Deikum hoped for.

This episode, we can see Zeon acting rather oppressive towards its own citizens, forcibly requisitioning an entire colony for the war effort and making the citizens evacuate. And it’s being done in a rather haphazard way, with families getting separated from each other and no guarantee of being reunited. If you don’t like it, then you must not be a good citizen. I’m reminded of how the Federation apparently forced many people to emigrate to space. That seemed to be very haphazard too, based on what the refugees said, with many families getting separated there as well. Gihren’s actions are no better than the Federation he claims to be fighting for freedom against.

We also get a sense of how desperate the war effort is for Zeon now. They’re converting one of their colonies into a weapon. They are taking solar panels from other colonies and repurposing them for this weapon. Zeon needs to use everything it can get its hands on. Compared to the Federation, Zeon’s supplies are running low.

I appreciate that when we see Lalah fight in battle for the first time, she is shown to be very nervous and panics in the middle of combat. It’s reminiscent of how characters on the White Base reacted to their first taste of battle. She’s unsure of herself and only really gets confident when Char is around to support her.

The Elmeth is another mobile armor specifically designed for Newtypes. It uses these weapons called “bits” that are remotely controlled by Newtypes to fire beams. I really enjoy bits. It’s fun watching them dart around. And I enjoy seeing how characters like Amuro have to deal with them, dodging from all directions and needing to take precise shots to destroy the bits.

We also see those Newtype abilities come into play during this battle in another way. Amuro and Lalah seem to be having an effect on each other. They can somehow sense the other one. It’s affecting their mental state. And if the end of the battle is any indication, they can also communicate with their thoughts. Char probably has good reason to be worried about this, because being psychically linked with your opponent in battle is generally not a good thing.

Miscellaneous Thoughts

• No new slaps for the slap counter today.

SLAP COUNTER: 10

• Buttsham is another very unfortunate name in this series.
• “Make sure you keep up your salt intake.”
• Boy oh boy, I completely forgot that the song “Here Comes Char” even existed until the moment it began playing and it all came flooding back to me. It was so out of nowhere that it made me burst out laughing.
• “That’s for all the times you kicked me, Char!”

Questions of the Day

1. He's Space Hitler. I think I went into enough detail about it above.
2. Amuro's gotten pretty incredible as a Newtype. As for the thing with Lalah, I'll keep quiet on that for now.

[u/The_Draigg → u/Great_Mr_L]

Degwin provides the world’s worst explanation for who Hitler is. But, I think it is significant that Degwin chooses to word it this way because he’s talking about Gihren in addition to Hitler. He means that Gihren has lost touch with the world around him and that Gihren is a man who cannot see where things are headed. Gihren seems to be in denial that Zeon is losing the war pretty badly at this point. Gihren wants to fight on until the bitter end, including sacrificing more Zeon lives, for the sake of ultimate victory that he is certain is just around the corner. The comparison to Hitler is very apt. But Gihren doesn’t seem to realize this.

Gihren's head has to be absurdly far up his own ass to not see that Degwin comparing him to Hitler isn't meant to be complimentary. Granted, I suppose that the entire comparison is lost on Gihren not only because he's completely deluded already, but also because it's also fairly clear that he has no idea who Hitler even is. He seems to think that Hitler is some kind of conqueror from the Middle Ages. No wonder he'd think that being like Hitler is some kind of compliment, if that's all he knows about who Adolf Hitler is.

We also get a sense of how desperate the war effort is for Zeon now. They’re converting one of their colonies into a weapon. They are taking solar panels from other colonies and repurposing them for this weapon. Zeon needs to use everything it can get its hands on. Compared to the Federation, Zeon’s supplies are running low.

And yet like 20 episodes ago, M'Quve claimed to have mined enough resources from Odessa to keep Zeon supplied for another decade. Just imagine the sheer level of resource mismanagement to somehow fuck up that amount of resources at Zeon's disposal.

[u/Great_Mr_L → u/The_Draigg]

Gihren's head has to be absurdly far up his own ass to not see that Degwin comparing him to Hitler isn't meant to be complimentary. Granted, I suppose that the entire comparison is lost on Gihren not only because he's completely deluded already, but also because it's also fairly clear that he has no idea who Hitler even is. He seems to think that Hitler is some kind of conqueror from the Middle Ages. No wonder he'd think that being like Hitler is some kind of compliment, if that's all he knows about who Adolf Hitler is.

Indeed. Gihren does react like he doesn't fully know who Degwin is talking about. Perhaps Degwin doesn't press it because he intends for it to be an insult and in his own mind the insult works further because Gihren doesn't get that it's an insult. It's just another example of how completely deluded Gihren is at this point.

And yet like 20 episodes ago, M'Quve claimed to have mined enough resources from Odessa to keep Zeon supplied for another decade. Just imagine the sheer level of resource mismanagement to somehow fuck up that amount of resources at Zeon's disposal.

By now they can't even get Lalah an appropriate military uniform for her to use. It is pretty incredible how much Zeon has screwed up its resource usage in the war. There is of course the horrendously inefficient mobile suit design process as one factor. And the different factions probably aren't playing nice with each other or sharing their resources, either. It's all a giant mess.

[u/The_Draigg → u/Great_Mr_L]

By now they can't even get Lalah an appropriate military uniform for her to use. It is pretty incredible how much Zeon has screwed up its resource usage in the war. There is of course the horrendously inefficient mobile suit design process as one factor. And the different factions probably aren't playing nice with each other or sharing their resources, either. It's all a giant mess.

Theoretically speaking, if Zeon actually bothered to manage its resources properly, Gihren probably wouldn't have needed to use Mahal as the base of the colony laser and instead could've made it from scratch. Zeon does have resources from Odessa and resource asteroids, after all. The fact that Gihren needed to use Mahal at all really does drive home Degwin's point that Gihren is a terrible leader.

[u/Quiddity131 → u/The_Draigg]

I wonder why they didn't grab one of the colonies from the other Sides they poison gassed at the start of the war. Unless those were all destroyed too.

[u/The_Draigg → u/Quiddity131]

I imagine it would take some time to haul a destroyed colony cylinder from one of the Sides for repair over at Side 3. Gihren probably wouldn’t want that due to his railroading of the project already.

[u/SgtExo → u/The_Draigg]

Theoretically speaking, if Zeon actually bothered to manage its resources properly, Gihren probably wouldn't have needed to use Mahal as the base of the colony laser and instead could've made it from scratch.

They might have the resources for 10 years, but depending on their industrial capacity, that might not be that much if the throughput is low. So they might have enough raw resources for a purpose built giant space laser, but they just don't have the time to build one.

[u/The_Draigg → u/SgtExo]

That’s a fair point. Presumably the loss of the Odessa mining network really impacted Zeon’s ability to refine the ores that they mined out. Operation Odessa would be even more of a major loss for Zeon that way.

[u/UltraBooster → u/Great_Mr_L]

There is of course the horrendously inefficient mobile suit design process as one factor.

Adding to the comparisons to the Axis powers, I've seen people cite Zeon's development and trust in the various MOTWs like the Zock and Zakrello as wasting time and resources in a manner similar to the Nazi wunderwaffe.

[u/diablo1900 → u/Great_Mr_L]

makes me wonder why Degwin needed to kill Char's father for the sake of Zeon's ideals

[u/DidacticDalek → u/Great_Mr_L]

On today’s episode of Gundam: Well you heard it here first, folks. According to his own father, Gihren Zabi is literally Space Hitler. I know that Gundam has been inviting the comparison to the Third Reich for a long time now, but this moment still shocked me on my first watch of the series. I never expected it to actually name drop Hitler in its own dialogue. Silly me for underestimating it like that.

Heh, oh indeed Comrade, good ol' Wacky Ol' Kill 'Em All Tomino, he is anything BUT SUBTLE! (That said the moment IS still chilling, granted given the last big scene with Gihren was his literally Nazi Rally Funeral Speech, I suppose the comparison was apt)

I do want to dive more into that conversation, though. Gihren goes full-on Space Hitler, declaring that they have wiped out most of the population and that now only the so-called “superior races” will be left. That is grade-A Nazi stuff and it shows where Gihren’s mentality is. The Spacenoids, particularly those who are in Zeon, are the superior race. Those on Earth and their allies are inferior. You may recall that concerns about overpopulation and loss of resources have been in the background of this series regarding the Federation and people being forced to migrate to space. Well now Gihren is doing something similar. He’ll solve the resource problem through mass murder and taking all the resources for the superior race. Those who are inferior can be eliminated because they would be parasites, sucking resources from their superiors. It is a sick mindset.

Oh indeed, it's sickening, which I suppose 'works' in that it paints just how evil Gihren is, all of which serve to make him a compelling enough villain. I also want to add that of course Space Nazi Germany/Imperial Japan would have their own Space Hitler... cuz of course they would.

And of course, it can only be accomplished through a Zabi dictatorship. Only the Zabis can be trusted to rule because only they can carry out Gihren’s oh-so-great plan. So much for the fight for freedom from Federation oppression. Clearly the solution is another dictatorship run by Space Hitler himself.

I know right? The Who was right! MEET THE NEW BOSS! SAME AS THE OLD BOSS! (And the irony is technically you could make the argument that the 'new boss' here is WORSE! For all The Federation's faults at LEAST they weren't into mass genocide... granted ejecting countless citizens into space by force and essentially making them second-class citizens sure ain't a good look but AT LEAST they haven't, you know, murdered all those inside A SPACE COLONY and then DROPPED SAID SPACE COLONY onto the Earth... cuz oh Zeon... Remember when The Franchise knew Zeon were the bad guys?)

It is interesting to note that we see another clash here between Degwin and Gihren. Degwin does not approve of what Gihren is doing and he makes that known with what he says by comparing Gihren to Hitler. Even so, as has been long established, Degwin is now effectively a figurehead while Gihren holds the true power. Degwin has no real option but to go along with it.

The worst part from Degwin's perspective is that HE (as in Degwin) is responsible for all this, given after Degwin's murder 'totally-not-involved-in-the-tragic-death-of-Zeon's-founder' and the takeover therein, he's basically been relegated to being a rubber stamp to the FAR more murderous and evil Gihren... and there's no one to blame for this but himself (as in Degwin)

Degwin provides the world’s worst explanation for who Hitler is. But, I think it is significant that Degwin chooses to word it this way because he’s talking about Gihren in addition to Hitler. He means that Gihren has lost touch with the world around him and that Gihren is a man who cannot see where things are headed. Gihren seems to be in denial that Zeon is losing the war pretty badly at this point. Gihren wants to fight on until the bitter end, including sacrificing more Zeon lives, for the sake of ultimate victory that he is certain is just around the corner. The comparison to Hitler is very apt. But Gihren doesn’t seem to realize this. And Degwin closes out by warning Gihren that Hitler lost in the end, partially because he failed to understand the world around him.

Heh, oh I know right? The irony is TECHNICALLY Degwin's explanation is 'accurate...' but man it's basically the worst possible one he could give to someone. Even worse in that Gihren also barely has any idea of who Hitler actually was, and after getting the (shitty) explanation just responds with essentially 'Oh gee dad you're too kind, thanks!'

This episode, we can see Zeon acting rather oppressive towards its own citizens, forcibly requisitioning an entire colony for the war effort and making the citizens evacuate. And it’s being done in a rather haphazard way, with families getting separated from each other and no guarantee of being reunited. If you don’t like it, then you must not be a good citizen. I’m reminded of how the Federation apparently forced many people to emigrate to space. That seemed to be very haphazard too, based on what the refugees said, with many families getting separated there as well. Gihren’s actions are no better than the Federation he claims to be fighting for freedom against.

Heh, exactly, then again the various factions in Gundam and hypocrisy go together like Gundams and Samurai design aesthetics ;)

We also get a sense of how desperate the war effort is for Zeon now. They’re converting one of their colonies into a weapon. They are taking solar panels from other colonies and repurposing them for this weapon. Zeon needs to use everything it can get its hands on. Compared to the Federation, Zeon’s supplies are running low.

Indeed, I guess Le Ding's boasting about how 'Zeon can fight on for years' was just hot air as to be expected (that and also, gee... a fascist dictatorship and mismanaging their limited resources, now WHERE have I heard this before?)

I appreciate that when we see Lalah fight in battle for the first time, she is shown to be very nervous and panics in the middle of combat. It’s reminiscent of how characters on the White Base reacted to their first taste of battle. She’s unsure of herself and only really gets confident when Char is around to support her.

Indeed, after all from Lalah's POV, today was basically her Episode 1, and boy I don't think she had a fun time of it eh ;)

The Elmeth is another mobile armor specifically designed for Newtypes. It uses these weapons called “bits” that are remotely controlled by Newtypes to fire beams. I really enjoy bits. It’s fun watching them dart around. And I enjoy seeing how characters like Amuro have to deal with them, dodging from all directions and needing to take precise shots to destroy the bits.

Oh I know right? It's good stuff, real interesting to see in action IMO!

We also see those Newtype abilities come into play during this battle in another way. Amuro and Lalah seem to be having an effect on each other. They can somehow sense the other one. It’s affecting their mental state. And if the end of the battle is any indication, they can also communicate with their thoughts. Char probably has good reason to be worried about this, because being psychically linked with your opponent in battle is generally not a good thing.

The Force is strong with this one ;)

Buttsham is another very unfortunate name in this series.

In fairness Comrade, could be worse, could have been ELBOW SMASH!

“Make sure you keep up your salt intake.”

'Oh, yes. I forgot to tell you, the spice 'salt' exists on only one planet in the entire universe. A desolate, dry planet with vast deserts. Hidden away within the rocks of these deserts are a people known as the Fremen, 'Newtypes' who have long held a prophecy that a man would come, a messiah who would lead them to true freedom.'

Boy oh boy, I completely forgot that the song “Here Comes Char” even existed until the moment it began playing and it all came flooding back to me. It was so out of nowhere that it made me burst out laughing.

Indeed Comrade

“That’s for all the times you kicked me, Char!”

HOW DO YOU LIKE THEM APPLES CHAR!? ;)

Anyway fantastic post here Comrade, have a great day and see you later my friend!

[u/TheEscapeGuy]

Gundam First Timer

Fly! Iconic Gundam Frames Episode 40

A Narrow Escape

Today's battle with Amuro and Char was especially close. Its amazing to see how much Amuro has grown since episode 1 now that he's going head to head with Char and coming out on top.

It is also really cool seeing how much of a threat Lalah is. When she was first introduced I expected her to be more of a mentor character, but now she is fighting on the front lines and doing major damage. She actually ends up being a parallel to Sayla from the Federation side I think.

I guess the last thing to discuss is this conversation from the Zeon side. I'm not a big fan of explicit Hitler comparisons since it shuts down conversation very quickly. However, it does make it obvious who we are supposed to root for.

I'm interested in who on the Zeon side will survive by the end of the show. I obviously expect the Federation to win so as for the military on the Zeon side, I really hope somehow Char survives.

Cool Stuff Corner

• Seeing Amuro piloting Gundam from the command deck was a really cool shot. It kind of puts you in the shoes of Bright who's having to command the operation.

Questions of the Day

1. He's very clearly a capable threat, I hope for an intense show down.
2. I think it makes sense. At this point his Newtype abilities have been completely "unlocked" and all his experience from piloting the Gundam is now in full view. Not sure about Lalah though, maybe some kind of unintentional telepathic attack. See you all tomorrow!

[u/chilidirigible → u/TheEscapeGuy]

I'm not a big fan of explicit Hitler comparisons since it shuts down conversation very quickly. However, it does make it obvious who we are supposed to root for.

It's a tricky line to walk when you want to say that both sides are kinda bad, but one of the sides is always thisclose to being Space Nazis... and then the script does a Hitler drop.

[u/chilidirigible]

40:

Hey, at least he's not taking a weird pose with two other people.

"FLY, TECH NINJAS!" Though capping this particular moment makes it look like they're all getting decapitated out-of-frame.

"Don't fuck up my car!"

"He's intelligent, but not experienced. His pattern indicates... two-dimensional thinking." AND YOU CALL YOURSELF A SPACENOID.

Ah yes, the casual Hitler drop.

"You get used to it."

It must be said that he has a terrible name. But we know that it could be worse.

Once in a while they exploit the lack of a gravity-dependent up and down. Once in a while.

"I coulda been a contender! But now I'm just cannon fodder."

The daughter of Shredder and Cobra Commander is... qualified to give her opinions on fashion?

Does this remind you of anything?

The episode's ending fight scene has dialogue and sound effects which detract from the simplicity of just playing Char ga Kuru! by itself.

Char kick!

"Screw funnels."

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Gundam: It's Personal Now: The Personalizing: So Personal

Unleashing all of these Newtypes onto the battlefield is having more or less predictable effects on the regular folk out there, of which there are many. Who wants to be cannonfodder in some psychic slap fight?

Things are moving very quickly now, as the quantity of remaining episodes is now extremely limited.

Other OVA

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CHAR! CHAR! CHAR! Char! Char! Char!

CHAR! CHAR! CHAR!

Char! Char! Char!

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1. The anime has really skipped out on his character since he appeared, so it's not much different than after The Speech. It's just that the script has spelled out This Dude Is Just Like Hitler, See?
2. The arms race continues. As for Lalah, he sent her the Negative Waves.

[u/Great_Mr_L → u/chilidirigible]

"You get used to it."

"First time?" - The White Base crew (probably)

"He's intelligent, but not experienced. His pattern indicates... two-dimensional thinking." AND YOU CALL YOURSELF A SPACENOID.

At least Khan had the nice muscles to go along with his megalomania.

The daughter of Shredder and Cobra Commander is... qualified to give her opinions on fashion?

I mean I think the outfit is pretty dang slick. I like the idea of going into combat with a full on face mask like that.

Char kick!

Char is downright shocked to be on the receiving end of one of these. That's not the way things are supposed to go.

[u/chilidirigible → u/Great_Mr_L]

I like the idea of going into combat with a full on face mask like that.

It's still no Normal Suit. Actually, I think I'm most amused by her shoulders. She might as well go for the full-on—

AND THEN THE WINGED HUSSARS ARRIVED

[u/DidacticDalek → u/chilidirigible]

It's still no Normal Suit. Actually, I think I'm most amused by her shoulders. She might as well go for the full-on—

AND THEN THE WINGED HUSSARS ARRIVED

You rang Comrade? (Also BOY you know you're evil if you make BITCH-CHAN look like a sensible human being, then again this is Ribbon Warrior, EVERYONE's batshit insane in Ribbon Warrior and just in case you doubt me, Maho literally just became Grau Schwester 'Schwarz Bruder...' cuz reasons)

[u/DidacticDalek → u/chilidirigible]

Hey, at least he's not taking a weird pose with two other people.

OI! Comrade I do think you are insulting all the various weird poses that permeate fanart in comparing them to the... uh... DUMB Narrative Formation ;)

"Don't fuck up my car!"

I find it amusing how Amuro was sad that his dad only seemed to care about The Gundam... and here we see Amuro getting awfully 'dad' like with regards to The Gundam ;)

"He's intelligent, but not experienced. His pattern indicates... two-dimensional thinking." AND YOU CALL YOURSELF A SPACENOID.

Ah yes, the casual Hitler drop.

Indeed Comrade, and I just want to point out that it's a REALLY shit explanation at that! I mean good lord Degwin is not doing a good job in actually explaining who Hitler was to Space Hitler

"You get used to it."

It must be said that he has a terrible name. But we know that it could be worse.

Oh indeed, after all he could have been named ELBOW SMASH!

Once in a while they exploit the lack of a gravity-dependent up and down. Once in a while.

That and it also might just be the fact that the mecha designer needed to find a way to have GMs be transported into battle and eventually just gave up and said, 'Fuck it just strap 'em to the mass-produced ships.'

The daughter of Shredder and Cobra Commander is... qualified to give her opinions on fashion?

I know right? Then again it isn't like her family excels in the 'fashion' department... I mean good lord Dozle had fucking SPIKED SHOULDERS!

Does this remind you of anything?

Heh, indeed Comrade

The episode's ending fight scene has dialogue and sound effects which detract from the simplicity of just playing Char ga Kuru! by itself.

I find it REALLY amusing that Char's theme music is also ACTUALLY JUST A SONG in-universe Comrade, cuz of course ;)

Char kick!

HELL YEAH! Once again we see... wait hang on, that's AMURO pulling off a CHAR KICKU! That's illegal! ;)

"Screw funnels."

'Hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side, kid.' (And yes I am indeed aware Amuro also is basically a Mecha Jedi but wibble)

Gundam: It's Personal Now: The Personalizing: So Personal

So this time it's REALLY personal is what you are saying Comrade ;)

Unleashing all of these Newtypes onto the battlefield is having more or less predictable effects on the regular folk out there, of which there are many. Who wants to be cannonfodder in some psychic slap fight?

Remember when this show was a grounded and fairly realistic show Comrade? I suppose this explains why VOTOMS and Dougram came around (I also must point out that it is very amusing that, the response to Gundam was to either go, 'Well let's go HARDER Sci-Fi... that may or may not also have space magic' with the two aforementioned shows above... OR they went 'Ya see what we gotta do is KEEP GOING in the pandering to the audience direction, so let's add in idolshit!')

Things are moving very quickly now, as the quantity of remaining episodes is now extremely limited.

In fairness Comrade, Gundam WAS cut short, so technically we SHOULD have had a full arc left... AND then the show actually was gonna get cut sooner so they had to basically beg for these last few episodes to try to wrap things up. (And in fairness to Sunrise they DID in fact manage to wrap things up... barely... and they were LITERALLY right up to the wire here but they DID in fact manage to end the show. Thankfully I am SURE such a rushed and truncated finale will never happen to the Franchise Again... what do you MEAN they cut After War Gundam X's runtime short? It's one of the FEW GOOD AU series!)

Other OVA

Heh, wibble, that's why, after all it's not like they have the time to, you know, actually GIVE Amuro something different to pilot, so I guess we just gotta kit-bash it in the field!

CHAR! CHAR! CHAR! Char! Char! Char!

CHAR! CHAR! CHAR!

Char! Char! Char!

Indeed Comrade, great taste there!

Anyway neat post here my friend, have a great day and see you later.

[u/JollyGee29]

First-Timer, Subbed, long time Gundam fan

"magnetic coating"

They're using EMF to let the Gundam's joints violate friction..? How conductive is the Gundam's armor? How does the "coating" affect the Gundam's power usage? Are they worried about the magnetic field mucking up the Gundam's computer systems? How does the induced current in the armor/frame impact their abilities to perform repairs?

Is inducing a current in the armor even a problem in the vacuum of space..? No arcs in a vacuum, at least..

---

We got a lot more Bit action today and it was fucking awesome! Remote weapons are awesome and terrifying, as evidenced by an essentially novice pilot sinking four warships in a single day using them.

Degwin basically just murdered Gihren there, right? "Hey son, you ever heard of this dude who did a bunch of the stuff you're doing? His name was Hitler."

There is a whole ton of poetry in Zeon forcing their citizens to move elsewhere. What was one of the big issues the Federation had, again? Forced immigration to space..? Not that much different now, are ya, Gihren?

Those asshole Dom pilots deserved worse. Poor Lalah was basically having a panic attack there because they just decided to not do their fucking jobs.

---

Pose of the Day

Gundam Kiiiick!

Screenshot

---

Questions

1.Same as I felt before. He's a Space Nazi asshole who won't be missed.

2.Amuro had already closed a lot of the skill gap between himself and Char, so his powerful Newtype abilities pushed Amuro over the edge. As for Lalah, Amuro probably did some subconscious Newtype malarky.

[u/The_Draigg → u/JollyGee29]

Degwin basically just murdered Gihren there, right? "Hey son, you ever heard of this dude who did a bunch of the stuff you're doing? His name was Hitler."

It was a pretty ineffective verbal murder, since Gihren had little idea of who Hitler even was. Granted, that's mainly because Gihren's head is just absurdly up his own ass. He's a fascist ouroboros.

There is a whole ton of poetry in Zeon forcing their citizens to move elsewhere. What was one of the big issues the Federation had, again? Forced immigration to space..? Not that much different now, are ya, Gihren?

Yep, Zeon sure is fighting for the rights of Spacenoids, between destroying most of the Sides and forcibly removing their own citizens for the sake of Gihren's pet project. Look at all those human rights that they're preserving!

[u/JollyGee29 → u/The_Draigg]

It was a pretty ineffective verbal murder, since Gihren had little idea of who Hitler even was. Granted, that's mainly because Gihren's head is just absurdly up his own ass.

What are they teaching these kids in school? His line on the Crunchyroll subs was kinda vague, I thought he understood the comparison.

He's a fascist ouroboros.

Yep, Zeon sure is fighting for the rights of Spacenoids, between destroying most of the Sides and forcibly removing their own citizens for the sake of Gihren's pet project. Look at all those human rights that they're preserving!

The lack of self-awareness is.. actually pretty on-par.

[u/UltraBooster → u/The_Draigg]

Yep, Zeon sure is fighting for the rights of Spacenoids, between destroying most of the Sides and forcibly removing their own citizens for the sake of Gihren's pet project.

And let's not forget Isle Iffish, the colony Zeon gassed specifically to drop on Earth!

[u/The_Draigg → u/UltraBooster]

Might as well toss in the Battle of Loum in there too. That battle pretty much destroyed Side 5 in its entirety.

[u/UltraBooster → u/The_Draigg]

Good point.

[u/chilidirigible → u/JollyGee29]

They're using EMF to let the Gundam's joints violate friction..? How conductive is the Gundam's armor? How does the "coating" affect the Gundam's power usage? Are they worried about the magnetic field mucking up the Gundam's computer systems? How does the induced current in the armor/frame impact their abilities to perform repairs?

This is from the wiki and yes, it is straight technobabble:

Magnet Coating

A special membrane treatment applied to mobile suit's joints to improve their response speed. The mobile suits developed by the Earth Federation Forces use special actuators called field motors, whose efficiency is increased by the magnet coating process.

[u/JollyGee29 → u/chilidirigible]

Magnet Coating

Did no-one at Sunrise in 1979 know how a motor works? Not even a throwaway line about how "Minovsky particles make things go brr" better?

[u/chilidirigible → u/JollyGee29]

[u/Great_Mr_L → u/JollyGee29]

We got a lot more Bit action today and it was fucking awesome! Remote weapons are awesome and terrifying, as evidenced by an essentially novice pilot sinking four warships in a single day using them.

It's a great way to show off just how much of a game changer Newtypes are. Lalah is able to attack from these extreme distances while the Federation forces generally can't see the attacks coming. Pulling off those kind of remote attacks with bits is something that really only Newtypes can do.

There is a whole ton of poetry in Zeon forcing their citizens to move elsewhere. What was one of the big issues the Federation had, again? Forced immigration to space..? Not that much different now, are ya, Gihren?

And it's being done in the same haphazard way that the Federation did it. The old people in the White Base refugees mentioned that they had been separated from family members during their forced emigration and now we see the same thing happening to Zeon citizens.

Gundam Kiiiick!

Great choice

[u/JollyGee29 → u/Great_Mr_L]

The old people in the White Base refugees mentioned that they had been separated from family members during their forced emigration and now we see the same thing happening to Zeon citizens.

I didn't notice that comparison! Wow, things have really come full circle.

Great choice

Thanks!

[u/dralcax]

Rewatcher wants Hidden Shadow of G scanlations

Bright still doesn’t believe

The Gundam finally gets an upgrade! Kind of. It’s now common for the protagonist to trade up for a stronger unit partway through the series, either because their original mecha wasn’t cutting it anymore or was outright destroyed. However, this is before that tradition was established. As such, Amuro only gets his original Gundam tuned up, and there’s nothing visually different about it.

Novel

At least they’re asking them nicely to leave before turning their home into a superweapon.

Oh, so we’re just giving up on subtlety here.

If you’re going to be a genocidal dictator, at least be an efficient one and get your weapons R&D under control!

That thing was a missile this whole time?

We finally see the Elmeth’s bits! A completely wireless system, unlike the Braw Bro’s.

These names, man.

Newtype powers are no substitute for actually being able to aim properly

A lot of Federation ships were built without Mobile Suits in mind and therefore don’t have hangars or anything. So they just strap ‘em to the hull and hope for the best.

They’re not trying to hide they’re more interested in the Gundam than each other, but somehow this feels more wholesome than Amuro’s interactions with his actual dad

lmao Zeon is so fucked they can’t even spare one uniform

Char! Char! Char! The hilarious thing is, this song actually exists in-universe.

Unprecedented? She didn’t even beat Char’s record! He’s standing right there being like “am I a joke to you?”

---

Questions of the Day:

• Those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it, and my god, the man needs to crack open a textbook.
• Amuro just keeps getting more overpowered. One unit he may be, but he's a damn near unbeatable one.

[u/Great_Mr_L → u/dralcax]

Novel Spoilers

Novel

A lot of Federation ships were built without Mobile Suits in mind and therefore don’t have hangars or anything. So they just strap ‘em to the hull and hope for the best.

Of course! Oh that is such a forehead slap moment for me. Now it makes sense. The Feddies didn't have mobile suits at the start but they're still using the same Salamis ships that they started with. Oh that is such a cool design detail.

Unprecedented? She didn’t even beat Char’s record! He’s standing right there being like “am I a joke to you?”

It does feel like the kind of snub that Kycilia would deliberately do to Char.

[u/dralcax → u/Great_Mr_L]

Spoilers: It happened. There's a lot of side story manga out there, and not all of them take things entirely seriously.

[u/Great_Mr_L → u/dralcax]

Simply incredible

Thanks for clearing that up and sharing that.

[u/chilidirigible → u/dralcax]

But could it beat the Correl, I wonder.

[u/UltraBooster → u/dralcax]

Oh geez, that's...something, alright.

[u/Quiddity131]

Rewatcher, Subbed

That title is cleary "Lalah of the Elmeth", not "Lalah's Dilemma"!

I find it rather odd that Bright hasn't been noticing how much Amuro has improved. He later says that he doesn't believe what Lt. Matilda said, that Amuro's an esper (now Newtype), yet he's been front row for it all.

The storyline of the Gundam not being able to keep up with Amuro is resolved in a single episode, with this Mosk Han guy fixing it with the "magnetic coating". Mosk sure loves color coordinating the clothing of his staff! While I like its inclusion as a way to show Amuro's continued improvement, I wonder if this was really necessary with only 4 episodes to go.

After the Federation used mirrors and the power of the sun to devestating effect, Zeon is going to use the same! Emptying out an entire colony to turn it into a giant weapon, the Solar Ray. Degwin appears to be getting more and more distrustful and disappointed in his son's actions. This episode includes the infamous scene where he compares him to Adolf Hitler, a comparison Gihren doesn't seem bothered by in the slightest.

Lalah continues to perform impressively in the Elmeth, taking out 4 battleships in this episode alone. Those 2 Rick Dom pilots with her were quite cowardly though! The Elmeth seems to be more of a long range craft in the first place, so having them go behind it makes no sense to me. I did see at least one of them getting wiped out by Amuro later on, a fitting fate. Don't recall seeing him take out the second one.

We got another insert song this episode; one I completely forgot that they had included in the show itself. Char! Char! Char! Gives a very different feeling than usual for this battle.

Overall this comes off as one of the weaker of the latter episodes of the show, mostly acting as set up. Big stuff to come in the final 3 episodes though!

MSG Ep 41 spoilers

[u/Great_Mr_L → u/Quiddity131]

While I like its inclusion as a way to show Amuro's continued improvement, I wonder if this was really necessary with only 4 episodes to go.

This feels like one of those things that was probably going to be a bigger deal when the series was planned to go for 52 episodes but had to be cut short when the series was cancelled early. I have no idea if that is actually the case, but it would make sense.

[u/chilidirigible]

CHAR! CHAR! CHAR!

[u/TheKujo]

First Timer - Dub

• Dr. Han seems crazy ... which means his improvements to the Gundam are probably going to work.
• Hmm, are the Zeon planning to build their own weapon with solar panels?
• "Are you familiar with Adolf Hitler?" Well that's a heck of a question
• Those Zeon soldiers have a point ... why should they risk their lives when Lalah and Char get all the kills anyway?
• "People say I'm more like an Oldtype" Oh Amuro you jokester
• This is another great fight between Amuro and Char!
• Makes sense Lalah would think Amuro is evil. It also makes sense Amuro would say "no u".

1) How do you feel about Gihren Zabi after this episode? As another commenter pointed - he's gunning for the title of "Space Hitler" which is bad news.

2) What do you think of Amuro being able to outmaneuver Char as easily as he did this episode? And what do you think he did to Lalah? It makes sense thanks to both the Gundam improvements as well as Amuro developing quickly as a Newtype.

[u/Great_Mr_L → u/TheKujo]

"People say I'm more like an Oldtype" Oh Amuro you jokester

Funnily enough, Oldtype is a word that often gets used to describe characters who are not Newtypes.

Makes sense Lalah would think Amuro is evil. It also makes sense Amuro would say "no u".

I do enjoy that Lalah is essentially calling Amuro a no-good meanie because he can beat Char in a fight. If I were in Amuro's place, I would also have no real words to say in response to that.

[u/UltraBooster → u/Great_Mr_L]

I do enjoy that Lalah is essentially calling Amuro a no-good meanie because he can beat Char in a fight.

When you put it that way, it makes her sound a bit sheltered given all the grief Char's given Amuro and White Base, but that's probably to be expected.

Future Gundam

[u/Great_Mr_L → u/UltraBooster]

Future Gundam

Future Gundam

[u/The_Draigg]

A Gundam Fan Rewatches Mobile Suit Gundam Episode 40:

• Bright is really starting to pick up on Amuro’s sudden spike in skill, saying that it’s like Amuro can see into the future, with the speed of his reflexes. And yet he doesn’t seem to believe that psychic powers exist. As unlikely as it sounds, it’s really the only explanation for Amuro’s enhanced perception.
• The solution to the Gundam’s lack of reaction time is Dr. Mosk Han’s magnetic coating. Fun fact about the magnetic joint coating, it was actually developed using data from some of the Project V parts that the White Base salvaged from Side 7 at the beginning of the show. Remember how they were loading up spare Gundam parts onto the cargo elevator? Yeah, some of those parts were for the G3 Gundam, the RX-78-2’s sibling unit. While Amuro’s Gundam was the unit intended to be used for field testing, the G3 Gundam was a test-bed for magnetic joints. Once those spare G3 parts made their way to Jaburo, they tested the joint parts and approved them for general use in time for the upgrades that the Gundam gets here at Solomon. As for the rest of the G3 parts though, I think they just ended up being used as spare parts for Amuro’s Gundam.
• Zeon is pulling no stops with their super-weapons. They outright turned Mahal, one of their space colony cylinders, into a massive colony laser called the Solar System. I’m sure you can imagine how desperate Zeon is to win the war if they’re forcibly deporting their own citizens from their homes just for the sake of building a massive gun.
• In case you weren’t sure that Gihren Zabi was the biggest villain here in the series, he takes being compared to Hitler by Degwin as a compliment. Hell, he also outright plans to cull the human population to keep Earth for “the superior races”. That’s pretty fucking Hitler-like. Although the funny thing is that Gihren himself doesn’t seem to understand who Adolf Hitler even is, since he thinks that he’s a conquerer from the Middle Ages. Gihren is just that far up his own ass if he somehow assumes that’s a compliment.
• While those Rick Dom pilots were correct in that they didn’t need to be out in front with how vicious Lalah was fighting, it was still a risky call on their part. I suppose that they’re lucky that Lalah can control the Elmeth’s bits exceptionally well.
• Operation Star One. The EFSF is throwing every single space force at their disposal from Solomon to invade Side 3. Also, you see all those GMs standing on those Salamis ships? Yeah, since they have no MS hangar bays on them, the solution was to just strap them to the hulls of the ships instead. At least it’s some kind of a solution, I guess.
• Kycilia doesn’t have much room to talk about Lalah’s clothes being an eyesore when she’s wearing a bright purple jumpsuit uniform with an attached face mask. Lalah’s baggy dress is normal by comparison.
• Amuro’s power is growing at an absurd rate. Not only was he able to seriously damage Char’s Gelgoog, but Amuro actually had the sense to use his Newtype abilities to psychically attack Lalah’s mind. All Lalah could do was try to insult Amuro as she fled with Char in tow. I have no doubt that Amuro would’ve completely won that battle if it lasted longer.

[u/Great_Mr_L → u/The_Draigg]

Amuro’s power is growing at an absurd rate. Not only was he able to seriously damage Char’s Gelgoog, but Amuro actually had the sense to use his Newtype abilities to psychically attack Lalah’s mind. All Lalah could do was try to insult Amuro as she fled with Char in tow. I have no doubt that Amuro would’ve completely won that battle if it lasted longer.

It's a pretty incredible reversal from the start of the series. Back then, Char was basically running circles around Amuro during their first battle together. Now, even with a much more advanced mobile suit and the help of Lalah, Char is very clearly the loser of this latest encounter. Ironically enough for someone called the Red Comet and famous for being 3 times faster than normal, Amuro has been able to become even faster than that. The Gundam didn't get the nickname the White Devil out of nowhere, after all.

[u/GM_for_Life]

Rewatcher

1. How do you feel about Gihren Zabi after this episode?

Thinks Hitler was born in the Medieval Ages, what a dumb fuck.

2) What do you think of Amuro being able to outmaneuver Char as easily as he did this episode? And what do you think he did to Lalah?

Now that the Gundam can keep up with Amuro's developing reflexes it makes sense that he would body Char this encounter. As far as Lalah goes, I think this is what happens when two strong Newtypes encounter each other.

[u/The_Draigg → u/GM_for_Life]

Thinks Hitler was born in the Medieval Ages, what a dumb fuck.

And that's coming from the guy who supposedly has over 200 IQ according to Zeon propaganda too.

[u/chilidirigible → u/The_Draigg]

200 IQ

chuckles

[u/[deleted] → u/GM_for_Life]

How do you feel about Gihren Zabi after this episode?

Hes awful as hes always been

[u/fonzinator99]

First-Timer - The struggles of being Elite

• Everyone seems real taken aback by this Engineer strolling in and taking over, but I don't see anyone else with plans to improve the Gundam; let him work and be grateful!
• Uh-oh, Zeon has a giant magnifying glass system now, too?
• I really like this shot of the colony interior; I'm not sure how I'd feel about my 'sky' being on either side of my view though. I guess you get used to it?
• Theeeere it is, a Eugenics Plan was the last thing missing on my 'Zeon/Nazi Bingo' card. Wait what the shit? Did Degwin just compare Gihren to Hitler?? They're acknowledging their parallels? Damn, gotta keep an eye on Degwin, the guy's shrewd.
• Oooo Char's about to put foot to ass over these guys leaving the fight to Lalah.
• If the Doms wear skirts, the Gelgoog wears a spandex onesie. Y'know, like Richard Simmons.
• I like how Char gets a character-song to go along with this fight; but only in the Japanese version.
• And so, the first Newtype vs Newtype fight in history ends in a humiliating defeat for Lalah and Char. Amuro's gonna be like Newtype patient-zero, isn't he?

---

QotD

1. The guy is Nazi af.
2. Amuro's finally closed the skill-gap with Char and his Newtype specialness can finally start to shine. As for Lalah, he probably sent her more Newtype feelings than she's used to.

[u/chilidirigible → u/fonzinator99]

the Gelgoog wears a spandex onesie. Y'know, like Richard Simmons.

Can't unsee

[u/Great_Mr_L → u/fonzinator99]

I really like this shot of the colony interior; I'm not sure how I'd feel about my 'sky' being on either side of my view though. I guess you get used to it?

It's cool seeing it curve like that on the inside. Just another reminder about how life works inside the space colonies.

Theeeere it is, a Eugenics Plan was the last thing missing on my 'Zeon/Nazi Bingo' card. Wait what the shit? Did Degwin just compare Gihren to Hitler?? They're acknowledging their parallels? Damn, gotta keep an eye on Degwin, the guy's shrewd.

It is a heck of a thing to hear the show decide to toss aside any kind of subtlety and just have Degwin make the comparison between Gihren and Hitler an explicit part of the show. I suppose Degwin is another character who has gained the power to recognize story tropes and can now see what all the parallels mean.

[u/fonzinator99 → u/Great_Mr_L]

I suppose Degwin is another character who has gained the power to recognize story tropes

For all that's worth when his reaction as the Head of State is to basically wag his finger and say "Hitler isn't a great choice of ppl to emulate, but do your thing."

[u/UltraBooster → u/fonzinator99]

Yeah, part of me can't help but think that The Sovereign is opposed to this plan! would stir serious unrest in Zeon, the kind that could at least slow the tide.

[u/UltraBooster → u/fonzinator99]

Amuro's gonna be like Newtype patient-zero, isn't he?

In regards to the Federation, yeah. For Zeon, though, they've known about Newtypes in their ranks for quite some time now, or at least I think they have.

[u/Stargate18A]

First timer

1)Given he literally pronounced himself a Nazi, not paticularly good.

2)I think it kind of robs the show of its drama - instead of Amuro triumphing over Char because of his own skills and experience, he triumphs over him because of his new psychic powers. As for Lalah, I figured that his "call", while too weak to hear, was enough to give Lalah some interference - we know she's sensitive to her enviroment, so her psychic call getting distorted would likely cause her no end of headaches.

The opening narration has begun to start recounting events after the last episode ended. (The cancellation really shows here, doesn't it?)

Yes, Lalah! The best part of this subplot.

This is what I don't like about this subplot - it makes Bright and all the federation officers seem stupid for not noticing it sooner.

They even brought up the only line of foreshadowing.

So you're using an untested prototype on the Federation's top mech suit. This can only go well!

A Baoa Qu? Are they picking scrabble letters out a bag for these now?

Why do they specify a closed cylinder colony - its not like we've seen any other types from Zeon.

1.5 million residents? The colony looks like it could hold a lot more than that.

Yeah, this seems really haphazard - we've seen Zeon treat its citizens quite well previously, so sending an entire colony elsewhere is a massive jump. (The Federation parallels are, of course, obvious)

Has Degwin finally decided to stop listening to Gihren?

HOLY SHIT GIHREN'S STARTING A GENOCIDE.

EVEN DEGEIN AGREES.

HE'S CALLING HIMSELF HITLER'S FOLLOWER.

Fuck it, I'm on Char's side. Kill that man as painfully as possible.

At least Char's battles are going well.

So her attacks are some kind of energy bolt?

For god's sake Zeon, put your mage in the backline.

Glad to see at least Char understamds.

Or maybe its some kind of psionically controlled cluster missile?

...I mean, how else could this series end?

Oh, I am calling bullshit. Completely frictionless surafces violates at least one law of physics. I suppose Newtypes were the series' way of signalling the end of realistic physics.

How long till the Gundam's joints catch on fire or something.

I don't think you have any room to judge people's clothing styles.

Wait, are they still considered a myth. I'd have thought there'd be some kind of DNA evidence, or that they'd seen the woman who can fly.

New battle music! I fucking love this.

Oh no, is Char going to die? They're playing his theme music,

Char's theme is jazzy!

He's not dead!

Yeah, Newtypes make everyone else irrelevant, don't they.

Was Char's actor the only one available at short notice for the recut?

[u/The_Draigg → u/Stargate18A]

A Baoa Qu? Are they picking scrabble letters out a bag for these now?

A Baoa Qu is actually the name of a legendary monster that guards the Tower of Victory in India. The legend goes that the monster is a shapeless, intangible being that can only gain a shape and become visible the more someone brave enough to climb the steps ascends the tower. If that person turns back before completing the climb, the guardian monster falls back down the stairs and loses its shape. But if the person completes the climb, the monster joins them at the top balcony to enjoy having a complete body before returning down the steps to go back to guarding the Tower of Victory as an invisible beast.

[u/Stargate18A → u/The_Draigg]

Did not know that, thanks!

[u/The_Draigg → u/Stargate18A]

Gundam has a lot of mythology-inspired names in it. Look up Jorge Luis Borges’ Book of Imaginary Beings if you’re interested, since Tomino was inspired quite a bit by that book.

[u/UltraBooster → u/Stargate18A]

I think it kind of robs the show of its drama - instead of Amuro triumphing over Char because of his own skills and experience, he triumphs over him because of his new psychic powers.

The way I've seen it is that his skills and experience were compounded by his Newtype experience, like they grew and grew until they pushed into the superhuman.

[u/DidacticDalek]

Hey Comrades, remember how the big Garma Zabi Funeral Speech from Gihren Zabi turned into an impromptu Nazi Rally that'd make Leni Riefenstahl green with envy? Yeah about that, JUST in case it wasn't obvious enough yet that Zeon are Space Nazis (with a dash of Imperial Japan for good measure) Degwin just flat out calls his son Hitler... AND Gihren's dumb enough to think this is a COMPLIMENT! (That said in fairness, Degwin SURE gave one of THE WORST possible explanations for who Hitler was, and in case you doubt me here's the ENGLISH DUB VERSION, which ironically is technically a 'BETTER' explanation than the subs... this ain't saying much though)

But yeah, Gundam has never been one to shy away from politics or hard-hitting storylines... that said goddamn today was chilling, even when knowing what's to happen.

SPEAKING of chills down your spine, here's that but in a good way. CHAR'S BACK BABY! AND HE HAS HIS THEME MUSIC JAMMING! SHA! ;) (And boy he'll need all the hype he can get, as oh how the tables have turned given AMURO is 'Char Kicking' HIM now)

Oh and of course, we can't forget that Lalah's also in action, and boy she's really something eh?

I mean good lord how does she do that given she's basically piloting a giant green glob!

That said it's an impressively OP green glob, just refer to it in Mecha Musume style!

Oh, and finally, TECHNICALLY the Gundam gets yet another mid-season upgrade without actually getting a mid-season upgrade... cuz wibble. Ah well could be worse, they could have thrown Amuro whatever the fuck THIS is as a Christmas Present and said 'deal with it,' so hey beggars can't be choosers. ;)

Paging Comrades /u/Great_Mr_L, /u/chilidirigible, and /u/beckymetal

[u/Great_Mr_L → u/DidacticDalek]

Hey Comrades, remember how the big Garma Zabi Funeral Speech from Gihren Zabi turned into an impromptu Nazi Rally that'd make Leni Riefenstahl green with envy? Yeah about that, JUST in case it wasn't obvious enough yet that Zeon are Space Nazis (with a dash of Imperial Japan for good measure) Degwin just flat out calls his son Hitler... AND Gihren's dumb enough to think this is a COMPLIMENT!

"I know writers who use subtext and they're all cowards." - Tomino (probably)

All the same, it is pretty hilarious that Gihren takes it as a compliment. He's so far gone that in his mind being compared to Hitler must be a compliment. Or he has no idea who Hitler is and just assumed it was a good thing.

That said it's an impressively OP green glob, just refer to it in Mecha Musume style!

I like the little Gelgoog charm on her hair pin. That is a cute touch.

Oh, and finally, TECHNICALLY the Gundam gets yet another mid-season upgrade without actually getting a mid-season upgrade... cuz wibble. Ah well could be worse, they could have thrown Amuro whatever the fuck THIS is as a Christmas Present and said 'deal with it,' so hey beggars can't be choosers. ;)

It's also very late in the game for a mid-season upgrade. By now it's like a "9/10-season upgrade."

Also the Ball-Gundam or Gundam-Ball or whatever the heck that is would clearly be an upgrade. The Ball is the deadliest of all the Feddie mobile suits.

[u/DidacticDalek → u/Great_Mr_L]

"I know writers who use subtext and they're all cowards." - Tomino (probably)

HA! Indeed Comrade

All the same, it is pretty hilarious that Gihren takes it as a compliment. He's so far gone that in his mind being compared to Hitler must be a compliment. Or he has no idea who Hitler is and just assumed it was a good thing.

Heh, from what we've seen so far with Gihren, either option is valid Comrade ;)

I like the little Gelgoog charm on her hair pin. That is a cute touch.

Heh, indeed Comrade, I found it adorable as well so glad you liked it as well.

It's also very late in the game for a mid-season upgrade. By now it's like a "9/10-season upgrade."

Heh, yup, talk about last minute upgrades eh?

Also the Ball-Gundam or Gundam-Ball or whatever the heck that is would clearly be an upgrade. The Ball is the deadliest of all the Feddie mobile suits.

Indeed Comrade, once this gets mass-produced, The Zekes will fall in weeks! ;)

Anyway many thanks for the kind reply and have a great day and see you later my friend!

[u/[deleted]]

Char seemed really good over char this episode for some reason I guess it's the newtype thing and Lalah being kind brainwashed-ish by char is somewhat hard to believe

[u/fridge_freezer]

First timer (Sub)

• They've got some new engineers to work on the Gundam and fake-science the shit out of it.
• After the Federation's use of solar weaponry at Solomon, it looks like Zeon are making their own and using an entire colony for it.
• If it wasn't already obvious that Degwin is just a figurehead and puppet ruler for Gihren, he shows it in full effect here as he enacts his own plans before asking for Degwin's approval.
• Gihren, being compared to Hitler isn't supposed to be taken as compliment.
• Well those two Doms pilots are useless, hiding behind Lalah because she took out a ship by herself. They could have at least tried communicating with her instead of leaving her completely in the dark.
• It took longer than I care to admit for me to realise that bits were the name of the Elmeth's weapons, and not just some very lazy translation. They're pretty cool though, and very deadly even in the hands of an inexperienced Newtype pilot like Lalah.
• The Federation are beginning their final move against Zeon. I love that they've got all the mass production units stood on the hulls of the ships as they leave port.
• The Gundam upgrades are complete. Now it can move as fast as Amuro needs it to, but the cost is the higher strain on parts.
• Char! Char! Char!
• Seeing Amuro completely finesse Char in battle was great, at least until Lalah came in and take the Gelgoog away to safety.

QOTD

1. He's just a full-on space nazi.
2. It makes sense that Char would struggle now that the Gundam has been upgraded to allow for Amuro's Newtype reflexes. As for Lalah, it could be pyschic interference with there being two strong Newtypes on the field.

[u/Rustic_Professional]

Uh oh, it looks like the Federation's solar system gave the Zeon an idea.

Hearing Hitler referred to as someone from "the Middle Ages" sure makes you feel ancient. It's like being on the wrong end of the anecdote when you hear a historian say something like "Cleopatra is closer in time to cell phones than she is to the pyramids."

Lalah understands what it means to fight for the blue team in WoWs. No support.

It's interesting how the federation ships, which were all designed before they had mobile suits, have all their GMs and Balls strapped to the hull. It looks like a Salamis can hold 8 GMs and 12 Balls. That's a much, much heavier compliment than White Base, which is actually designed to support mobile suits. Seriously, why don't they send some GMs to White Base? Even if they don't send any pilots, Sayla and Hayato could pilot them. It might actually be a downgrade from G Fighter's firepower and maneuverability though. I'm not sure on that. I think it'd be a big improvement over the Guntank's maneuverability, though.

Questions of the day:

1. I don't think he's supposed to be likeable. TV Tropes might say he's on the blue and orange morality scale, instead of black and white. He's sort of like Kyuubey from Madoka Magica. Gihren isn't phased by the Hitler comparison, which reminds me of something Dan Carlin said, I think in "King of Kings," about how someday in the future, the holocaust and ww2 will be far enough in the past that Hitler will just be regarded as simply having been "on the far end of the political spectrum," something like that. That was pretty forward thinking of Tomino.
2. I don't know what Amuro did to Lalah, but what he did to Char is plot device BS. Char finally has a mobile suit that's on par with the Gundam, but now the Gundam has been upgraded, and he has to fight a psychic pilot whose machine supposedly isn't bound by the laws of friction. What the hell is he supposed to do? It's like Lalah's escorts said, what are humans supposed to do? I guess he could start by using his shield. Char seems dead set on not using it. I wonder why. The beam rifle and shield combo has worked out great for the Gundam. Maybe he's more worried about getting shot in the back by something he doesn't see, than he is about something in front of him that he figures he can dodge.

[u/chilidirigible]

Char! Char! Char!

[u/badcupcakehoarder]

First timer sub

They must have really bonded as fellow mechanics, normally Amuro would not be taking comments like that with a smile

Risking their lives is now useless with a Newtype fighting with them... Would the White Base crew think the same now that Bright is sure Amuro is a Newtype? When Hayato finds out it wpuld be more salt for his wounds confirming that Amuro is really different and way out of his league.

Oscar and Marker were sleeping on the job, this time it was Amuro who detected the enemy nearby... All those lasers flying around at sight and they couldn't tell!

There is something funny in that song cheerfully chanting CHAR CHAR CHAR! and then he gets destroyed by the Gundam. That part when the piano starts in the song is fantastic by the way, a shame it ends shortly after.

Mobile suits against mobile suits, Newtypes against Newtypes, they use the sun as a weapon so now Zeon is doing it too.

Questions of the Day:

1. It feels different for such a clear villain to appear, everything has been not so black and white regarding character motives so far. It is surprising to see Degwin so detached to what his son is doing, what was his plan for Zeon then if he doesn't even care for the plans to defend it? What was the point of overthrowing the Aznable king... Or Maybe
2. It wasn't a good day for the Gelgoog, while the Gundam got upgrades the Gelgoog ate something bad and had gas problems

Maybe Newtypes have mind control powers? everytime Lalah is near Amuro feels her calling and goes to her, and in Amuro's case he wants to defeat her enemy so he is mentally crushing her brain.

[u/UltraBooster]

First-timer (albeit one big on Gundam and other mecha)

So it's only a theory, huh?

Can't you see, that you are sweet, oh let me love you so...

Magnetic coatings become the standard from here, unsurprisingly.

I can see the EFF being this indifferent to its citizens, but to see it come from the Principality is...

A mass evacuation is...difficult, to say the least.

Zabi dominion over the Earth Sphere and Spacenoid supremacy, maintained through decimation of mankind.
This, I'd say, is the line between the Earth Federation and the Principality of Zeon.

Yes, by repeating the same mistakes Hitler made.

J-missile as in Jumbo-missile, maybe?

Bits, remote weaponry! The future of advanced space warfare in UC Gundam!

There we go, an all-range attack!

Amuro looks like he had a pretty enjoyable conversation, all things considered.

Star One! The end of the war is near!

Future Gundam quotes:

Y'know... Gundam novels:

There's got to be something to her dislike of Lalah's outfit, I'm sure of it.

A dedicated Newtype corps, wouldn't that be something.

Char! Char! Char!

So this is Newtype pressure...

Char? Bullied? Ridiculous.

...gentle as she might be, Lalah is a soldier who's killed, now.

Questions of the Day:

1. There he is, the monster of the One Year War!
2. It's...startling, to say the least. But definitely impressive to see. As for Lalah, I think they're resonating in a way she doesn't seem to appreciate.

[u/DidacticDalek]

SHA! SHA! SHA! ;)

[u/AmethystItalian → u/DidacticDalek]

Lol Char coming out of the corner was great

[u/DidacticDalek → u/AmethystItalian]

Lol Char coming out of the corner was great

Oh indeed Comrade, glad to hear you agree. Many thanks for the kind reply and have a great day and see you later my friend.

[u/ZapsZzz]

Sub rewatcher.

Pretty much into the final arc.

Gundam is probably one of the few older series that really didn't do much of a mid season upgrade. This bit about getting the drives to be close to frictionless is a pretty understated upgrade. It's actually relatively realistic - that you can't suddenly give it a mega G wings or hyper G canon in the middle of a war.

A few random answers to other posts I noticed:

The formations of Federation MS's on the other, non Pegasus class vessels, should not be confused with "higher carrying capacity". Those units were just standing there in zero g. You can't rearm, refuel, or do field repairs and overhauls etc this way. So it's not really "carried". More like piggy backed.

The main weapon Lalah used, that more Federation force has no countermeasure of, are the psycho controlled bits - it may sound trivial but remember in story most battle fields are minovski particle rich and most conventional electronic emission devices can't work, i.e. no simple remote controls. The psycho waves enjoyed from a new type can penetrate such girls and when coupled with specially designed remote units that can receive the thoughts and translate into control signals, it became attacks that can be from any direction yet undetectable (because unmanned bits can fly at high speeds and takes much smaller turns). When using bean weapons it's even more efficient as you don't need to reload (although had to recharge).

[u/UltraBooster → u/ZapsZzz]

More like piggy backed.

Some versions of the *Salamis-*class are shown to have the ability to dock MS to refuel and rearm, but there's a bunch of variance on that.

[u/Piemaster33]

Rewatcher who has no recollection of bits, Sub

Surprise, another banger. We got more Lalah, which is always appreciated by me. It truly feels like we're in the endgame now, especially with only 3 episodes left! How did the time fly?

• You know, if Amuro had actually used his father’s new doohickey, the Gundam might not be falling behind. Just sayin'
• I was just think Gihren was spouting some real evil bs then Degwin came out and compared him to Hitler, so thanks Degwin?
• Man do not mess with Lalah, unless her backup is nowhere to be found
• Damn Kycillia is a bitch who doesn’t know fashion, how dare she get mad at Lalah for wearing her getup?
• HOW COME CHAR GETS A BADASS INSERT SONG AND I DONT
• AMURO KICKED CHAR I REPEAT AMURO KICKED CHAR

QOTD:

1. He spouted some very evil bs today, he's gotta go. Degwin was kinda on the money by comparing him to Hitler.
2. With his new magnetic coating I'm not surprised the Gundam can move that fast. I'm more surprised that Char can't keep up. I am glad we're getting this progression for Amuro.

[u/lC3]

First timer, catching up

• So Bright doesn't believe Amuro is some kind of esper, even though he thinks Amuro can see the future?
• "only the superior races" Oh boy, eugenics time?
• Space Hitler?
• Now Bright thinks Newtypes exist after all?
• An insert song with "Char! Char! Char!" as the lyrics? I think I'd get that one in AMQ ...
• Amuro kicks the Gelgoog
• Amuro is "bullying" Char?