sarina04 - 2016-05-15 05:11:41

schowalter.mable - 2016-04-26 11:11:37

Despite being a mere four 15-minute episodes, Gundam Thunderbolt has been quite an emotional roller-coaster. As expected from a UC series (and most AU Gundam series) which show the perspective of both sides in a war.

This series takes place during the One Year War, in the remains of the colony Side 4... now known as the "Thunderbolt Sector".

Unlike most series where one of two sides in a war end up being the morally-correct, or a few characters from both sides end up forming a third faction that opposes the former two, Thunderbolt keeps character allegiance in line.

There are no clear protagonists or antagonists in this story - the plot is, for the most parts, centered around two pilots on opposing sides (with opposing music tastes) who are forced to carry the interests and consequences of their respective factions in their own way.

Overall, it is a good, quick "stimulant" series after Iron-Blooded Orphans, which has an odd mix of humor and tragedy...

...whereby Thunderbolt is like a snowball of violence that gets bigger with each episode, with named and unnamed characters visibly dying left and right.

garrett79 - 2016-04-23 13:37:33

Calling this short 4-episodes series as a "slice-of-war" may sound cheesy, but that's exactly the point it tries to get across. Much like other Gundam UC side-stories, it presents a valuable peek into the life of soldiers, involved in a much larger conflict whether they like it or not. The scale is smaller and looks into personal conflicts rather than having a large over-arching plot, which may be a breath of fresh air for many.

Does one need to watch any other Gundam Universal Century series to enjoy this one? Absolutely not, as that's just the background of the fight. The Principality of Zeon has seceded from the Earth Federation, and now they're fighting a grueling war with heavy losses from both sides, while the ordinary people involved in the conflict might be more similar to one other than they might think. Point taken, no punches are pulled in the depiction of violence.

However, this large and broad conflict does not always apply to the people who are fighting it. People join the war for revenge, for glory, for thrills, and because they have no choice and nowhere else to go. The series does not paint war in a positive light, nor does it coddle the viewer, as the atmosphere is extremely heavy throughout the entire show.

The two lead characters from each side, Daryl Lorenz and Io Flemming are both adult soldiers with distinctive personalities. Though whatever morals they might have, love and loss affect each other in similar ways. And that's pretty much the beauty of it. As they battle, the 2 leads find out more about each other, the viewer can be made to sympathize with both sides, though the characters themselves are in constant conflict. There are cannon-fodder soldiers to be expected, but the show is not afraid to kill off others as well.

I may not be criticizing a lot, because there is not a lot to criticize. The characters have linear actions and act in logical ways, and two sides fight each other for control. If one reads a summary of this series, it may look like it was a pointless show in it's entirety, but that is the very nature of the series. Sunrise did not intend for this to be a full-length Gundam series, which usually span a multitude of episodes. Could have it used more to wrap up the ending better? Sure it could have, as the ending is the biggest problem, with how it hurriedly resolves the conflict that's been developing for the past 3 episodes. It is left open-ended, which many may assume is just an advertisement for the manga, but again, it's the shows nature to be this way, it was never intended to be a full-length series, you could watch it in just one sitting.

The characters are interesting and human, because they drive the show, not just the robots they pilot. They have their own backstories too, as everyone does. They evolve to see the nature of the war, which is pretty grim to say the least. Some are victimized, and some are not. The setting is rich and highly detailed, the ruins of a space colony, Side 4, which is now just a battleground known as the "Thunderbolt Sector." It's is actually useful in this series, as the colony ruins provide cover, timed attacks must be done right, and snipers can be strategically placed in the rubble.

And that brings me to the art and animation, the second most impressive thing about the series. There is no CG, no sir, even the ships are hand drawn. The shading of faces and people are some of the most impressive I have ever seen, not to mentioned the well choreographed and frankly gorgeous mech-battles. If you want to watch it for entertainment alone, there is no shortage of eye candy and cinematic production values. And as the sound goes, yeah, there's space jazz, but it's also a very human trait for people to like their own type of music. The music can be both thrilling and sad, and compliments the show in a good way, while adding just a bit of flair to it as well.

tl;dr It is much worth your time to watch the series; it's short and succinct. Watch it for the mech-fights, but most of all watch it for the people and what they do. My biggest recommendation is the Area 88 OVA series, another well thought-out war drama. It may seem dated, but the hand-drawn jets in it can easily beat a lot of what is animated today. It also has a killer 80's soundtrack, and the message at the end of the series reminds me a lot of this one.

All in all, if it was just just an advertisement for the manga, it has done a more than sufficient job if convincing me to read it.