kiriska

Gundam SEED started off as just another Gundam series for me. I watched it because it was airing and convenient... I didn't expect it to become my favorite Gundam series of all time. STORY - At this point, you'd have to stretch pretty far to find a Gundam series with a mindblowingly different premise, so there's no point in really focusing on the fact that yes, this is another series about teenagers in giant robots fighting a war that's pretty pointless. There is nothing new about Gundam SEED, but then, it deserves points for being able to stand out despite that very fact. For me, oneof the most appealing things about SEED was its very easy-to-understand plotline. The root of the war, while decidedly trivial to some extent, is simple. I'm sure more than a few people were confused, and subsequently put off, by the political madness that ravaged the plots of the original Mobile Suit Gundam, as well as newer classics like Gundam Wing, so it was nice to see something so simple come along. In addition to the war, one of the strongest story points for me was the conflict between Athrun and Kira. The cruelty and tragicness of pitting friend against friend works very well here, and I know I've said before that I'm just a sucker for this kind of stuff. For SEED, this conflict was well done, progressed smoothly, and resolved rather satisfactory. It was pretty neat to see the same conflict mirrored later with Dearka and Yzak too. Also, this series was one of the first in a long time to surprise me so much with things happening in the story. People died. People you really didn't expect to die died. So many people die that at some point, you kind of started wondering if anyone was actually going to live! But despite the number of deaths, you never got the feeling that it was overdone, or that any of the characters' deaths didn't have some significance or meaning, and that's definitely a feat. Those two aspects of SEED made up for all the cliches that came with being a Gundam series -- white mask's ulterior motive was nothing amazing, and the ending to the war wasn't anything special either. But by the end of it all, it isn't the basics of the story that's important, it's all the progress you've made with the characters and their own personal resolutions. CHARACTER - The characters in SEED probably contributed the most to gaining my favor. All of them are exceptionally well done. Yes, even the minor characters, which is definitely a rarity in anime. All of them seem like real people; they're complex and have emotions, motives, flaws. Both of the protagonists are split between a side that has to fight and a side that hurt because of everything that's happening. After all the stoic personalities in Gundam Wing, it was incredible for me to see characters that would actually cry. On several occasions, even. In fact, for the first half of the series, it seriously surprised me just how much of a crybaby Kira was. But it worked for his character, so even though he kind of turned into a godmodding, self-righteous bastard later on, it was okay. Kira aside, for me, Athrun was the most interesting character and had the most depth. Throughout the entire series, he was in conflict. And as soon as one conflict was resolved, another would present itself. The poor guy was in constant turmoil, which was really great to see. He was easy to relate to and never grew out of reach like Kira did. Secondary characters like Cagalli and Lacus were also refreshing to see -- female characters that had strength to stand up on their own. Indeed, one might venture to say that our male protagonists depended much more on their female counterparts than the other way around, as is traditionally the case. It would be exhausting to go through the list of other characters, though many of them are also important and very relevant. Suffice to say that there are almost NO flat characters in SEED. All of them have dimension and depth and develop throughout the series. I don't really think this happens in many other anime. ARTWORK & ANIMATION - I rather like the art style of SEED (the same people also did Sokyuu no Fafner); it's pleasing to the eye and works well for the content of the series. The animation itself is pretty average, and I'm still waiting for the day when explosions in the distance graduate from looking like Pacman, but oh well. There's nothing else really worth noting, but it certainly isn't an ugly series. MUSIC - I... adore the music for this entire series. All three instrumental soundtracks are well worth getting! The battle music is strong and epic! The introspection music is interesting and intriguing! The tragic music makes the already tragic scene ten times more touching. It's just fantastic all around. After the bigshots Yoko Kanno and Yuki Kajiura, it's Toshihiko Sahashi that makes it on my playlist the most! And the OP/ED themes are pretty much all top notch as well. I've been a fan of T.M. Revolution for a long time, so "Invoke" was perfect for the first opening. SEED introduced the world to Nami Tamaki, and I must say I've definitely become a fan since her debut. SEE-SAW and Mika Nakashima are always good as well, and even the lesser known artists in the lineup are pretty awesome. DUBBING & VOCALS - I saw the first half of this series in English but ended up seeing the second half subbed (because SEED was, for some reason, so unpopular that CN shoved it in a death slot). The dub was nothing spectacular certainly, but it was decent. None of the voices were up to par with their Japanese counterparts, but the only one that seriously annoyed me was Richard Cox, and that was mostly because the man can't seem to change his voice between characters (and thus, the character he voiced sounded like Inuyasha to me). The Japanese cast, on the other hand, is top notch. Akira Ishida as Athrun remains one of my favorite performances ever, and Souichiro Hoshi as Kira was pretty great too. And of course, you can't forget Rie Tanaka as Lacus -- Lacus has several songs she performs within the series and Tanaka is the one singing all of them. It always pleases me when they're able to do that and helps reaffirm the fact that the Japanese seem to take their voice acting much more seriously than we do. OVERALL - I know I haven't seen all of the Gundam series out there, but of those I've seen, this is definitely my favorite. The characters come to life and everything else falls into place behind that. A lot of people cling onto Mobile Suit Gundam as the only good one because it's the original, but though it was a good series that obviously propelled the creation of all subsequent Gundams, for this generation of anime fans, it's sorely outdated. I really feel like Gundam SEED should be the series taking its place for the post-2000 generation of fans. That statement may bode well in Japan, as this series was wildly popular, but I'm disappointed to see that it failed miserably in the States. Chalk that up to other factors though, 'cause this series is damn good.

2Daggers

Gundam Seed was my first taste into the Gudam universe. At first I was really hesitant to start watching this series because I thought the show was for children because of the mecha. However once I started watching the series, I couldn't stop without finishing it. Story: 9/10 The whole series is basically about an ongoing war between the Natural human race and the genetically superior Coordinators. This may seem like a straightforward plotline, however several things push the plot so it is not as simple as it seems. Throughout the series you are left wondering which side is truly the right side to be on. Throughoutthe series you get to see both sides of the story as much of the Natural's justifications are shown with Kira and most of Coordinator's justifications are shown with Athrun. Art: 8/10 Because this is a very old series, the art style is very different from the art style today. It's not to say that it's bad, but it might take some getting used to for someone who has only started watching anime recently. The battle scenes have a lot of flashing lights and aren't choreographed too badly. I would say this area is the weakest point of the whole series. Sound: 9/10 I thought that all of the opening and ending songs really fit the series as a whole. The best music to me was Rie Tanaka's singing throughout the series. I was really amazed when I first heard her sing has Lacus Clyne because she sung for her own character. In my experience, many people usually get singers to sing their character roles. So I was really impressed that she sung her own song and that she was actually very good at it. Character: 10/10 The characters are the strongest point of this series. This series is built on the interaction between the characters. The battles and action almost seems secondary to me compared to the drama occurring between the main characters. This series has a lot of characters that pushed the plotline forward, but the main characters really shone above the others. Kira Yamato is the main protagonist of the story. During the beginning of the series he really is a normal person with many weaknesses and faults. However as the series progresses, he grows and matures in order to face the trials given to him. I believe Kira's growth as a person is one of the things that really grabs a viewer. He grows from a weak school student to a leader that many people can count on. Athrun Zala is another main protagonist of the story. Athrun enters the story on the opposite side of the war as Kira. Their past history of being childhood friends becomes one of the key factors in the story as Athrun and Kira both fight on opposite sides in the war. Athrun's emotional struggle continues throughout the series as he tries to figure out what is the right thing to do. Lacus Clyne is one the main female protagonists of the story. While originally appearing as Athrun's finance, she later becomes Kira's love interest. Lacus's first appearance in the series is as a normal girl who doesn't hold any importance in the war aside from the fact that her father is the High Supreme Councilor of the Coordinators. However as the story progresses, Lacus quickly shows her strength as she rallies up support against the war in face of great opposition. Cagalli Yula Athha is the other female protagonist. Although very close with Kira in the beginning of the series, she later becomes Athrun's love interest. She appears in the beginning of the series as a strong woman who is capable of fighting for what she believes in. Later on in the series her heritage of being the daughter of Orb's leader is revealed. Overall: 10/10 Gundam Seed is one of my most favorite series of all time. I would say that this is a must see series for all new, incoming anime fans.