Publisher: Sunrise
Distributer: Nozomi Entertainment
Release Date: September 5th, 2017
Do you enjoy Gundam? Wanna watch some of the old series but don’t have time for all the episodes? Nozomi has you covered! Mobile Suit Gundam Zeta: A New Translation (Zeta New) is a three-part amalgamation of the original Gundam Zeta, but condensed into movie format. Using plenty of remastered footage from the original animation, Zeta New provides a succinct version of 50-episodes of material. Many thanks to Nozomi Entertainment for the review unit!
In UC0087, Kamille Bidan is a seemingly frustrated, non-military youth. In a fight between the Titans (some powerful group) and the AEUG (another group), he somehow ends up stealing the Gundam Mk-II. In the process, he ends up running away from his space-colony home. After joining up with the AEUG, through love, hardships, and many battles, Kamille must find peace in himself as he fights against the Titans.
At least… that’s what I experienced with the series… To be quite honest, I was lost on the story in Disc 2 and Disc 3. While I did immensely enjoy watching Zeta New, I couldn’t help but feel lost more and more as the story progressed. As my first Gundam in 20 years (since I was about 7 or 8 years old!), MSG:O spoiled me in terms of storytelling elements. In MSG:O, you learn the origins of the Gundam and the pilot who later becomes known as The Red Comet. Zeta New confused me not because the story was bad, but because it feels like it relies on you having previous knowledge of the Mobile Suit Gundam universe, which is kind of understandable given its format.
The animation was inspiring. The music and voice acting stirred my emotions. I cannot say that Zeta New is bad, in that regard. However, the pacing (due to it being mostly footage from the original show) was extremely bad for a person who is recently stepping into the world of Gundam. It was like washing under a waterfall in Canada and, suddenly, a Western Lowland Gorilla falls on your head and you have no idea why.
Overall, I enjoyed myself… after I wiki’d some things for back story. For the price of $59.99 USD on RightStuf, I believe it’s worth buying if you are not stepping into Gundam for the first time. The music and animation are on point. (I’ve never loved seeing hand-drawn explosions as much as I did in this series.) Mobile Suit Gundam Zeta: A New Translation may have been one of the twisty-est rides in anime I’ve had in a while. However, I’d watch it a third and fourth time after I get more of the Gundam timeline and backstory in my head.
Lolinia gives Mobile Suit Gundam Zeta: A New Translation a Drastik Moé Measure of 6.0 out of 10.0 (60) (3 out of 5 stars).
