Mobile Suit Gundam 00 Volume 1

In the not-too-distant future, there are three big power blocs, each vying for more power over the others, but ostensibly keeping the peace between the blocs. When one of the countries decides to show off their latest mobile suits, a mysterious group known as the Celestial Beings show up in Gundams, declaring that they are going to bring peace to the world. And if anyone tries to stop them, they'll be met with force.

Basically, this is the Gundam 00 anime all over again, but with worse art and storytelling. If you're looking for any semblance of originality here, you're better off looking elsewhere.

Here's the thing: if you're interested in buying the Gundam 00 manga, you more likely than not have already watched Gundam 00. If you haven't gotten into Gundam 00, then you're much better off starting with the anime.

At it's core, the Gundam 00 manga is just about a page-by-page recreation of theanime. The plot follows the first two episodes, introducing all of the main characters in the Celestial Beings team and their Gundam's particular specialty. It covers the first episode or two of the show, I believe. We meet the major powers, and see that the Celestial Beings are attempting to disrupt the power games in the name of peace. And they'll use these Gundams that release magical pixie dus-- er, “GN Particles” to make the world a better place, dammit!

One of the things that really got to me about this volume was the art. It's not particularly messy or blatantly bad, but there's something off-putting about it. The character designs come off as a bit plain, as it seems the artist was saving up all his creative energy for detailing the Gundams' design. Boldness is one of the title's bigger weaknesses, as it uses thick, heavy lines that detract from character design, and shadowing is oftentimes too much.

And the writing? Laughable. The manga manages to wedge in some of the characters' catch phrases that fit within the anime as a quick line, but in an awkward manner. Lines like "Lockon Stratos and Gundam Dynames always hits the target!" are delivered over the course of three panels. Similarly, seeing Allelujah Haptism scream "I am Gundam!" on a half-page panel invites mocking.

It all comes off as terribly amateurish.

I suppose if I knew Bandai's intentions with releasing this manga, seeing as they're the publisher of the Gundam 00 anime as well, I'd be better able to judge who its audience is supposed to be. But, where I stand now, I have no idea. It certainly isn't appealing to Gundam fans, because it provides the exact same stuff that was in the anime. It won't appeal to non-Gundam fans because the story itself is poorly written.

In the end, the Gundam 00 manga series, at least from the start with this first volume, is meant for nobody. It amounts to an easy cash-in by Sunrise in Japan that I presume Bandai would be able to make a bit of a profit off of and maybe spread the Gundam name a bit more. This is something they just should have said “no thanks” to. Do your utmost to avoid this title.

Brad Rice is Editor-in-Chief at Japanator, and also writes articles for Destructoid, TomoPop, The Escapist and DannyChoo.com.

Disclosure: A review copy was provided by the publisher. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.