Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team

Takeyuki Kanda, Umanosuke Iida, Sunrise, Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team (1996-1999), “Copyrighted Image”

Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team is a 12 episode OVA released in 1996-1999. The story follows Shiro Amada, a soldier who is sent to earth to be a commander. While he is on a ship to Earth, it is attacked by a Zaku ll, and he uses the mobile pod RB-79K Ball K. He defeats the Zaku ll, and hides in the wreckage nearby where he finds the pilot of the Zaku – Aina Sahalin. After he is rescued, he is assigned to be the commander of the 08th squad, and pilots the RX-79G Ground Gundam along with his new team members. Little does he know, that Aina has also been sent to Earth, and as fate would have it, they would meet each other on Earth fighting on opposing sides.

Story and Characters:

To start off, let’s talk about our main character, Shiro Armada. At the start of the series, Shiro becomes the leader of the 08th MS Team. Unlike most Gundam leads, he is a young adult rather than a teenager. Due to his young age, he still has a sense of innocence, but he is more mature than most Gundam protagonists. He has to prove himself to his teammates that he is a capable leader, and gain their trust and cooperation. As for skill, he definitely has it, as he uses a Ball against a Zaku and defeats it. That is almost impossible for most pilots. As for the side characters, more specifically his teammates, they are relatable and likable. Each of them have their own dreams and ambitions, such as Eledore Massis wanting to be a singer. At the end of the day, all of them want the war to be over as soon as possible. This sense of bond and comradery in Gundam is something that we’ve rarely seen in Gundam, and has seen very little since then. It works to bond our characters together and makes us root for them to succeed. However, since most Gundam series feature overpowered Gundam as the lead mobile suit, its difficult for this type of teamwork to happen, as the Gundam completely defeats the enemy. Even when there’s a team of overpowered Gundams, they don’t work together and work individually to defeat their rivals. This time, the Gundam’s ability is limited, which is why they have to win through strategy and teamwork.

Unlike previous Gundam series, this shows aims to be more realistic and talk about things in detail. This is more of a look at the life of the grunts in war – regular soldiers who fight to survive – and not some person who gets a super prototype. Things such as the enemy pointing out that the Gundams use beam weaponry and the limitations for the Gundam such as the need for the Gundam to be outfitted with special armor for use in deserts are often overlooked. The first Gundam piloted by Amuro spent a quarter of the series in the desert, and yet it didn’t have any problems with sand getting into the gears. However, while the show’s realism lets us understand the characters and brings more depth into their strategy and plan.

However, the thing that made the show less memorable was the romance between Aina and Shiro. The romance just didn’t work and felt unnatural. It felt more like a typical Gundam show, where everything revolves around them and what they feel. The focus completely shifted towards just those two, and the other characters were left in the dust. While there was a genuine struggle between whether to remain faithful to each other or their respective sides, I felt it was handled poorly and too selfish. The show shifted from a story of the common soldier to revolving around two individuals who wanted to be together. This concept could have worked, as it doesn’t sound like a bad idea, but it needed to executed in a different way. A suggestion could be something similar to the OVA Gundam 0080 War in the Pocket, where a similar romance story between two characters on different sides, but it was executed better. Finally, the ending for the show is terrible, and was uninteresting and unsatisfying.

Animation:

Now, the animation for the show is one of the best parts. As I’ve said, the show is more realistic than most Gundam series, preferring to focus on the combat situations rather than politics. So, the animation needed to be excellent to be able to show the mobile suits in combat. The mobile suits on Earth are affected by gravity, and move very slowly.  Unlike mobile suits from other series, they don’t have large backpacks, so they can’t fly. The fight scenes are fluid and well-choreographed, and seeing these epic and heavy machines clash is thrilling. Not to mention because all of the mobile suits have their own limitations, it is a challenge for the main characters because they cannot defeat the enemy within one try. The animation really makes them seem heavy and clumsy, which means that piloting a suit on Earth requires more skills due to the slower reaction time of the mobile suits. This made me more excited and thrilled for the fights as it is a fight of skill and strategy, as opposed to already knowing that the Gundam is going to defeat everyone without any effort.

As for the MS designs, let’s talk about the Gundam Ground Type, or Ground Gundam. The Gundam was made from spare parts when the RX-78-2 Gundam was developed, and so it isn’t as powerful as that. However, it is still more powerful than a GM, and it can be a powerful force when used as a team. The Gundam design has a chunky and bulky look, as well as a colour scheme that isn’t as bright as the original Gundam, so it looks more ready for ground battle as opposed to the Gundam. My favorites are the Gouf Custom and Gouf Flight Type. I like the Flight Type because it can hover on air like the Dom, and it looked cool, despite only having showing up for a short time. The Gouf Custom, however, was absolutely awesome. The gatling gun mounted on its left shied is awesome, and Norris Packard piloted it skilfully in the series. Seriously, while the fight between the Apsalus mobile armor and the Ez8 may have been the visual spectacle of the series, nothing can beat the memorability and impact of the fight between the Ez8 and the Gouf Custom. Norris Packard is truly one of the most badass pilots in Gundam, and well-deserving of the title of ace pilot. He pilots it with such skill and elegance, like its super easy to pilot a heavy robot with a heavy gatling gun on an arm. To summarize, 08th MS Team contains some of the most memorable and well animated fight scenes in Gundam.

Conclusion:

Mobile Suit Gundam: 08th MS Team is a good show. Although it has a flaws that really makes it less enjoyable, and goes towards a more traditional Gundam perspective. The ending wasn’t good as well, so it didn’t end well. However, this is a show that I highly recommend to anyone interested in Gundam, as it is a good starting point. I really wish more Gundam series would go for a more realistic style and focus more on teamwork and characters instead of just using the fight scenes to progress the plot. Unfortunately, I don’t think this type of show will ever see the light of day, which is tragic and its really a shame. I want more Gundam series like this, and I don’t us getting anything as realistic and relatable as this ever again in the future. Still, I think that is what makes this entry in the Gundam franchise worth your time. Trust me, while you may be left slightly bitter and unsatisfied at the end, looking back you will realize just how much you enjoyed this show.