Gundam AGE Episode 1 (Spoilers Below)
* We will have our full review up soon *
Episode 1: Savior Gundam
Summary: Flit, having become an orphan from an attack on his hometown by the mysterious enemy UE (Unknown Entity), was raised in the Federation Forces Base on Nora. Flit creates the Mobile Suit Gundam, called a "Savior" based on the blueprints in the Age Device he received from his mother. Just then, Nora comes under attack by the UE and Flit activates the Gundam!
So the latest series Gundam AGE kicked off in Japan at 4:00pm in Japan yesterday. Streaming for the show was avaliable on Gundam.Info, but was only limited to certain countries.
The OP theme song "Asu e" (To Tomorrow) by Galileo Galilei was pretty good. It has a mellow tune and is nice to listen to. And the OST through out the show is epic in my own opinion, it really creates a grandeur feel for the show.
When the U.E. Unknown Enemy attacked the Federation Base Nora, I was a bit surprise that Nora didn't have much of a initial line of defense, and the U.E. penetrated the hull of the colony and started attacking. That kind of turned me off a little bit. But I remain hopeful...
The mobile Suit Genoace makes it appereance.... but it is the Gafran that stole the show with its awesome action sequence. The Gafran owns the genoace in every way. Althought the Gafran seems a bit too powerful being prone to the rocket fire from the armor tank and the Genoace beam rifle...
Just like any first episode of most Gundam Series, the protagonist jumps into the Gundam for the first time. The entire sequence was very effective by showing flashbacks of Flit's mother's funeral and the hard work he endured to develop the Gundam. That really hit a emotional chord and give the main character a sense of purpose.
The battle between the Gundam AGE-1 Normal and the Gafrans was totally awesome.
The mystery behind the U.E. is thus far the main draw of this episode for me. Where did they come from? Who's piloting the Gafrans? What is their motive?
The U.E. seems to be a ferocious bunch attacking anything in their sight, even to the extent of destroying a fallen comrade.
Ending Theme Song CD Single, [君の中の英雄'] (Translated: 'Hero in You') sung by Minami Kuribayashi
But my overall initial impression for this first episode is pretty good. The anime is well executed, and the storyline looks to be well thought out. Again, I am impress with the soundtrack for this series. The overall story-arc is interesting and I truly hope that they won't mess it up like some other Gundam series.
I definitely look forward to finding out more about these U.E., and also who the Char of this series is going to be. We will discuss more about this first episode in our full review by a new member of Team GG [RLZIII].
- HG 1/144 R-05 GAT-X303 Aegis Gundam (Release Date: Nov 2011, Price: 1200 yen)
