dbeatty - 2015-01-17 02:58:35

As someone who did not enjoy Zeta very much at all, ZZ felt very much a step in the right direction. The first half of the series isn't great content-wise, but does a decent enough job of establishing character. The comedy aspects were, for the most part, pretty terrible. However, unlike Zeta, ZZ has relatively consistent characterization, which goes a long way in the series making sense all the way through.

ZZ really hits it's stride in what I consider to be it's peak, "Leina's Blood", around the halfway point, featuring what I consider to be some of the best action scenes in the entire early Gundam trilogy in the second part, along with fantastic emotional resonance. However, the show later goes on to ruin the contents of this 2-parter with some really dumb deus ex machina bullshit, but it's still some really quality stuff.

Judau Ashtau, the protagonist, is very likable. He starts out rebellious, but mellows out much more easily than Amuro and Kamille, and much of his angst feels justified, as it's never overused. The supporting cast is less impressive, with Beecha, and to a lesser extent, Mondo, being the only ones to get a significant character arc. In terms of villians, they serve to be at least more than the one-sided evil caricatures featured in Zeta. But nothing will compare to Char, of course.