Gundam Requiem For Vengeance Then. I Dont Really Have Anything To Say On The New Trailer Other Than It

Gundam Requiem for Vengeance then. I don’t really have anything to say on the new trailer other than it reminds me of a trailer I once saw for Final Fantasy 7: Advent Children.

However, given that I did a post on the Gundams in the one year war last time, I figured I’d go over the Full Armour units that I skimmed over this time around.

First up, the PF-78-1 Perfect Gundam. Now I usually try to use fairly neutral pieces of art for these, so they best illustrate the mobile suit in general, but this thing…… well.

It’s a bit of an odd one. First originating in the 1982 Manga Plamo-Kyoshiro, it was built by Shiro Kyoda (the kid in the bottom left of the above picture). Note how I said built. This manga is essentially the earliest permutation of what would eventually become the build series, where the focus is shifted from War to Modelling. Now normally this is where I’d earmark it as a build kit, except that it’s canon to the Universal Century as well. It was apparently a planned upgrade plan for the original Gundam, but was never built, with its data being carried into the Full Armour Gundam, being canonised in MSV. Its armaments are much the same as the original, only adding a built-in 2-barrel beam gun to the arm, four drop mines to the shield and a Shoulder Cannon to the backpack. The shoulder cannon is notable because it’s nature is different in each work - it’s a high pressure water gun in Plamo-Kyoshiro, a 360mm Rocket Gun in MSV, and a high-output beam cannon in Build Fighters.

I admit I was looking forward to talking about the Full Armour Gundam here, but its position in canon is just difficult. Officially, it was never built and existed only as simulation data, because the excess armour and weaponry would have slowed it down too much. Unofficially, it shows up damn everywhere, typically as a foe of either Johnny Ridden or the Perfect Zeong. I’m going to call out two examples here and then move on, primarily because they actually name pilots of the thing. In the videogame Spirits of Zeon: Dual Stars of Carnage, a blue Full Armour Gundam is piloted by Earth Federation Fighter Ace Takashi Kitamoto during the Battle of Solomon. Meanwhile in the manga Mobile Suit Gundam MSV Battle Chronicle Johnny Ridden, a Full Armour Gundam is piloted by Heinz Baer against Johnny Ridden’s Full Bullet Zaku (honestly I mention this because I absolutely love Heinz Baer’s character design, shown below). Armament wise, the Full Armour Gundam retains the Vulcan Guns and Beam sabers of the original Gundam, but carries a twin beam rifle as opposed to the original’s single-barrelled model. In addition, it gains a 360mm Rocket Cannon on its back and four missile bays, built into the knees and clavicles. As a design, I really like the thing, but I’m unsure why. Maybe it’s the simplicity of it being an up-armed and armoured version of the original Gundam, or maybe it’s that there’s some really nice art of it, particularly it’s Debut in Mobile Suit Variation (MSV).

C’mon, Look at this guy. A flying ace who wears a sweater under his pilot suit.

Next up, the FA-78[G] Full Armour Gundam Ground Operations Type, originating in MSV-R. Nice and simple, now. It’s essentially a Full Armour Variant that’s designed for ground combat, using the RX-78-1 Prototype Gundam as a base. It was designed, but never built (whether due to costs, practicality or the lack of the RX-78-1). Design-wise, yeah, it’s nice. Critical areas are up-armoured, and some new weapons added, but it still looks fairly agile, and the Prototype Gundam features make it stand out a little more. It’s armed with Vulcans, Two Beam Sabers on the left arm, a twin beam rifle on the right arm, a 360mm Rocket Cannon on the backpack and a missile launcher. Not much more on this one, it’s just neat.

The FA-78-1B Full Armour Gundam (Type B). Oh, I love this thing. Also originating from MSV-R, it was developed from the G-3 Gundam, rounding out the three full armour units. It was designed primarily for anti-fleet combat, with the assumption that it would be piloted by a Newtype. MSV-R keeps things vague on the details, but given that it seems to have been developed in response to The Battle of a Baoa Qu, the general theme of Full Armour Units and that it was intended to be used with a Newtype Pilot (which the Federation really didn’t have a lot of), it feels a safe bet to say that it was probably never built (honestly, Zeon went big on Newtype research and even they only had about five combat-ready examples). Armament wise, the Full Armour Type B is rocking Vulcan guns, a 360mm Rocket Launcher, a Triple Beam Rifle, upgraded missile launchers in the knees and clavicles, two beam sabers mounted on the left arm and a large missile launcher on the back, which is loaded with two large anti-ship missiles on the front and twenty along the back of the launcher, designed to counter any anti-beam defences employed by its victi- targets. Employed by its targets. Design-wise, gorgeous, I love the patterns on its armour and the simplistic colour palette of blue, grey and golden-yellow for the details is just wonderful. It’s heavyset yes, but it doesn’t feel excessive since it’s designed for anti-fleet work in space. The box-style beam saber adds to this, since it gives the idea of a quick weapon primarily to block attacks, as opposed to its primary armament. I’m not typically a fan of the G-3, but the Full Armour Type B blends its aesthetic so wonderfully.

Next up, the FA-78-2 Heavy Gundam. Another simple one. Three-Four units built postwar, with at least one of them being piloted by one Den Berserk. Apparently one unit was lost during atmospheric entry tests. Essentially a second go-around at the full armour Gundam concept, only a brand new mobile suit as opposed to an add-on. It is armed with: A shoulder mounted Beam Cannon, a singular beam saber, a frame launcher (essentially a composite weapon combining a Gatling gun with a 4-tube missile launcher) and an optional Beam Rifle. Again, just a lovely design, really liking the added bulk on the chest and the visor emphasises its ranged speciality.

The second unit (right) is equipped identically to the regular Heavy Gundam and appears in the Manga MSV-R: the return of Johnny Ridden, where it’s repainted and piloted by Ingrid 0. Due to the series being set in U.C. 90, Unit 2 is somewhat upgraded when compared to the original, being equipped with a bio-sensor for use by newtypes and a set of Dummy Launchers not dissimilar to those found on suits around the time of Char’s Counterattack. These were pretty clearly later additions, however. It was also equipped with a bazooka, patterned off the original Hyper Bazooka used by Gundam units in the One Year War. EDIT: I’d like to note that we don’t know which unit was lost during atmospheric entry tests, so it’s possible that the “lost” unit was Unit 2, so it could be employed “off the books”, as it were.

The RX-78SP Gunner Gundam was designed shortly after the end of the One Year War, during a review of captured Zeon materials. It’s essentially a sniper Gundam, featuring an improved sensor pod and specialised beam rifle in addition to the standard Gundam armament of Vulcans and beam sabers. I say designed because it was never built, development began and a mock-up unit was built from a GM, but it was deemed that the G06 Mudrock Gundam was able to perform the same role. A Full Armour variant appears in the Shin Matsunaga Manga however (MSV-R: Legend of the Universal Century Heroes: Rainbow’s Shin Matsunaga).

Some big boys for Interpoint Station's upcoming Lancer module.

hi, just wondering where are you watching urdr hunt?

There’s a YouTuber, Trafalgar Log, who’s translated and uploaded all the game cutscenes (and a little gameplay).

YouTube

Trafalgar Log

Mobile game cutscene translator apparently, I also translate manga elsewhere!

The entire series thus far can be watched on their channel, and it also includes translations of the sidestories from the game.

Gundam Iron Blooded Orphans Urdr Hunt Masterpost - Part 1

Alright, I’ve finally finished watching Gundam Iron Blooded Orphans Urdr Hunt, however when putting together this post I didn’t quite realise the scale of it until I was almost finished. As such I’ll be splitting it into three (ish) main posts - This one will be discussing the Ending, a little bit on Londo Bron, and the Zagan. The second post will be my thoughts on Cyclase Mayer and Gjallarhorn, and the last post will be my thoughts on Wistario and the rest of the cast. I’m also planning to do both a post on the series mechanics (in which I’ll talk about the mobile suits and mobile armours) and a character piece on Londo Bron at some point in the future. It just felt a little too long to be just one post, even for me.

Overall, I enjoyed Gundam Urdr Hunt. That said I’m glad I waited to watch it until now, because I think if I’d watched it without the promise of the movie on the horizon, I would have found the ending disappointing. But we’ll get to that. I’m largely going to be referring to my prior post, but I’ll be covering a lot of the same points. Though some of these I noted down as I was watching, so it might be a little more disjointed than usual.

We’ll get to the ending Immediately, as it happens. As I said, I found it overall a good show. The ending, well, it isn’t really an ending. It’s sort of a “the adventure continues”. Katya is recovered and Wistario goes around and thanks all the other Urdr Hunt Participants (except Cyclase) then returns to Radonitsa Colony on Venus. It feels more like the culmination of an Arc than a conclusion to the series, which I guess it is. But Gundam’s never been a series that has arcs so it’s a little odd. All that said, this is where i feel Urdr Hunt’s nature as a video game works against it, since most of the story prior to this has been “gathering the party”, with the Mobile Armour (Nerimiah) functioning as the final boss. I think the movie’s a way to give it a proper conclusion that isn’t tied down to the needs of a videogame.

But the battle at Ratatoskr I do have one criticism of - Wistario races to reach the shuttle, but it’s struck by lightning and explodes. Agonising moments pass, as Wistario thinks he’s failed, then Katya appears from the explosion. Putting aside the fact that we knew damn well she was gonna survive, fuck those Gjallarhorn Pilots, am I right? Also, she survives an explosion in just a normal suit? No shrapnel or explosive force? It feels more annoying because she could have just been in a casket or escape pod or something, but no, magic explosion. I don’t know, it just seems odd, like there’s so many other ways that it could’ve gone that would’ve made more sense.

I like how we get that view into Gjallarhorn with Mcgillis, Okina Uroka and Isurugi. It’s nice to see an internal view on how that all went down (even though I’m sure Uroka is seething on the inside). It’s also very interesting how Uroka just straight up doesn’t answer Mcgillis’ direct question. Way to tip off you have something to hide, my guy.

In brief, the ending’s just alright, there’s stuff I liked (Gjallarhorn), stuff I didn’t (Magic Explosion) and stuff I’m middling on (Nerimiah). I’m glad that there’s a movie coming so it can have a proper conclusion.

However, I do have plenty of other things to say, so let’s get to those;

Londo Bron is an idiot and I love him

I’ll be doing a proper post on him at some point later, but I’m so very happy for his inclusion in the series. He’s basically one of Carta’s former subordinates, her ex-“knight” if you will and I absolutely love the character dynamic this brings to the table. If I didn’t already love the Zagan, he would have definitely made me look at it fondly.

Speaking of, the Gundam Zagan. I’ve already talked about it just from a design perspective prior, but it’s an absolute juggernaut in this. It carves through three Grazes with ease, and is the only enemy in the series to seriously give Wistario a run for his money. It does all this, with a pilot without Alaya-Vijinana. I don’t doubt that other skilled pilots like Londo Brom exist in post disaster, but the Issues certainly weren’t head of the Seven Stars for nothing. It would have been sufficient as a final boss in my mind, but I really can’t find flaw with it. (I might do a proper post on the series mechanics too)

It’s possible that it’s stored in Ratatoskr as a last resort if Nerimiah was to escape. I’m genuinely unsure as to why anyone would willingly preserve a mobile armour, especially (presumably) Arzona Issue, but at least Zagan’s inclusion as part of the prison shows some foresight.

I really hope it’s able to be salvaged though, mostly because if it appears in something else, we might get a HG kit of it. (Also it bothers me a little that Londo Bron essentially wrecked a relic of the Calamity War in its first sortie in 300 years against Wistario. Kinda feels like I’m watching someone use an antique vase to bludgeon a child to death).

I usually think of the Seven Stars system and heraldry as being a immediate post-war thing for three main reasons:

It makes sense as a post war institution - lots of disparate peoples to unite, infrastructure to rebuild and it’s a clear pecking order. It allows a clear delineation of who is responsible for what and stops the multiple families stepping on each other’s toes.

We only ever see crests or markings of the style of the Seven Stars on their own Gundam Frames, we don’t see them on any of the other machines we know fought in the Calamity War - the Marchosias, the Gremory or the Dantalion (the Astaroth Origin, Calamity War Flauros and the Asmoday itself all also lack them, but I feel you could argue mitigating factors for each). This would imply they were added to the gundam’s post-calamity war, in order to sell them as “the machines that ended the calamity war”. The relative obscurity of the Valkyrja frame could also be counted as a point towards this, since we know at least one saw combat (the Oltlinde), but they’re not presented in the same way. It makes sense that the Seven Stars would put their Crests on the surviving Gundam Frames, since they are essentially the beginnings of their authority and they want to reinforce that (à La the divine right of kings).

If the Seven Stars were a pre-existing institution then it rankles me slightly that the top seven members of Gjallarhorn were all part of this pre-war nobility, when their position was decided meritocratically. You’d expect at least one member to be a nobody who reached their position through feat of arms.

Expanding on that third point, I feel it makes more sense thematically for the Seven Stars to have been founded on a meritocratic basis, each member coming from nothing, because it ties in to Tekkadan’s rise to fame. The Current Seven stars are at least the third generation from the original founders of Gjallarhorn, with barely a hint of merit to any of them - Gaelio’s very sheltered and all too easygoing in his duties, Iok’s actively incompetent and a danger to those around him. Carta, while not ineffective, is in a largely ceremonial position and her successes are due more to brute strength than any strategic nous. Mcgillis’ is adopted into the Fareed Family, unrelated to the original founder. Rustal’s the only one that seems to buck the trend. But nonetheless, each family came to be where they are now through the actions of their predecessor in their Gundam Frames

How does Tekkadan, a family of Child Soldiers and Human Debris come to their power? Through the actions of their pilots through their Gundam Frames. The enemies they fight reinforce this - Ein, a monster made using forbidden technology from the Calamity War, and then Hashmal, a bona-fide relic of the Calamity War. They follow the same path to glory as each of the Seven Stars Founders would have, climbing ever higher, until it eclipses them.

Just a little on the Gundam Asmoday/Asmodeus today (it apparently could’ve been called the Ashmodai, which is neat).

Okay, so the ASW-G-32 Gundam Asmoday is found by Wistario the Erda II crew (specifically Sinister) inside an Aridne Cocoon in the Debris zone. It’s specifically noted to be essentially brand new, with no records of it fighting in the calamity war, and a full complement of weapons ready to go. Based on this, and the fact that it seems to have its reactor hooked up to the cocoon, we can gauge one of two things. Either;

The Gundam wasn’t completed until either very late in the Calamity War, or just after, and thus didn’t have an opportunity to fight against the mobile armours.

This Cocoon relay station was apparently important enough to dedicate a Gundam frame just to keep it operational.

Based on the assumption that a bunch of regular ahab reactors would probably have done the job just fine, I think it’s more likely to be a case of it being completed late.

What makes this interesting is that we only know of one other Gundam frame that was completed late in the calamity war:

The ASW-G-71 Gundam Dantalion.

Now, because this is both at the end of the series (71/72) and because it’s stated that the Dantalion had been completed late, I had previously assumed that the Gundam Frames were completed sequentially. So, the ever-elusive ASW-G-70 Gundam Seere would have been completed just prior to the Dantalion, and the 72nd Gundam would have been completed after, possibly even being completed postwar (At a guess, either the Gundam Andromalius or Gundam Pruflas/Bufas - I’d be very interested in know what happened to it, since it’s be the most likely source as to any clue to the end of the calamity war and it’s immediate aftermath). But the Asmodeus implies something quite different. Unless its deployment was delayed for whatever reason, then it’s evidence that the Gundam frames may not have been built sequentially. (I’m not sure which it would be - it doesn’t seem to have any equipment that’d be too difficult to work with, being structured as a fairly direct combatant - gigant javelin as a sort of whip-sword to attack from a distance, smoke grenades and then grand tonfa’s up close, but then there’s plenty of other reasons for it to not have seen combat).

We do, however, know that Bael was the first. Add to that the seeming increase in complexity as the numbers climb (Dantalion appears simple but it has a bunch of add-on equipment not shown above, a lot of the 50’s and 60’s-series Gundams have fancy designs or systems, especially compared to the relative simplicity of the 00’s and 10’s), and we can guess that they were at least designed sequentially, with Asmoday’s presumed delay being an exception.

However, what I also think is interesting is where it was found. Inside an Ariadne Network Cocoon, big enough to be used as a harbour, administrative and let’s face it defensive point, in the network. Administered by the Falk Family (presumably headed by either Kalf Falk or his immediate successor), who already possess a Gundam Frame to their name - the Gundam Gamigin (shown above).

So what was the Asmodeus, for all intents and purposes a “phantom machine”, which exists on paper but was never actually deployed, doing there? Each Seven Stars Family or similar organisation within Gjallarhorn has precisely one Gundam Frame to their name, with no evidence of one family using multiple frames. I find it particularly interesting that it’s the Falk’s of all people that seem to have this frame - they’re one of the two families we know the absolute least about, the other being the Baklazan’s. Even then, most of the information we do know is what can be inferred from their Urdr Hunt point and their Gundam Frame. The only real supposition we can make is that they’re probably the oldest out of the Seven Stars - assuming no family got multiple Gundam Frames during the calamity war (which feels a fair assumption to make, given that we know absolutely nothing about any frames that were destroyed, implying no-ones really around to keep those records), then the ASW-G-04 Gamigin Gundam was likely deployed the earliest out of all the Seven Stars Gundam Frames, shortly after Bael (again, assuming sequential deployment). So it’s possible that the Falks were the longest surviving active participants in the Calamity war, besides Agnika Kaeru himself, of course. But it’s unclear why they would end up with another Gundam frame, and then not use it. A few possibilities:

The Intended Pilot for the Asmoday was killed before it could reach them, and the Falk’s didn’t have another pilot on hand to use it.

There was a Cocoon was involved in transporting the Gundams to their pilots, and it was kept at the cocoon until it’s recipient could be sorted out.

The Falks wanted extra “insurance” of their position once the Calamity War was over, and arranged for a second Gundam frame to be assigned to them somehow.

The Asmoday had nothing to do with the Falks, and it was left at the Cocoon by N as prize for Urdr Hunt participants.

It was salvaged from its transport during the war, and restored by the Falks.

In short, I don’t know why it was there and we’re probably not going to find out anytime soon, but it’s fun to think about. I would also like to point out that the Asmoday was also just…. Left there, which feels like it must have been purposeful in some way, but also means that the Falk’s didn’t recover it in the intervening 300 years.