Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt (機動戦士ガンダム サンダーボルト) is a 4 part ONA series set in the UC timeline of Gundam. The series was released between December 2015 and May 2016 and is based on the manga of the same name by Otagaki Yasuo.
Taking place during the One year War, Thunderbolt follows a force of Zeon soldiers battling a force of Federation soldiers in the ruins of space colonies. The sides are locked in a bloody stalemate as they engage in small skirmishes, slowly dwindling their forces. A feud between Federation pilot, Io Flemming and Zeon sniper Darly Lorenz is the focus of the short anime. Each pilot is highly skilled and use every technical advantage they can to over come the other, all while their respective sides are being wiped out around them.
This is a dark and mature entry in the Gundam universe. Death and destruction are everywhere. Those that survive the longest have embraced the darkness of battle. The only thing they see to their actions is the victories of the battlefield and have no dreams of an end to the conflict. Willing to sacrifice life and limb to quench their thirst for the fight it's self.
With a running time of around an hour the series does a really good job at setting up the struggle between a handful of characters, showing enough of their background and personality to make everything fall into place. This is a great example of brevity in story telling. It is effective and well done. The artwork is really nice too, with character designs that reminded me of Aeon Flux. The line work is stark and bold. The combat is pretty good, typical Gundam fare. Whats best about this story is the lack of teenage wunderkind main characters. These are hardened soldiers doing their job with brutal efficiency, there is no time of second guessing or moral quandaries. Truly a mature story, something the franchise could do a little more often.
The series is as of yet not available in North America, but there is word that the theatrical version of it may see a stateside release in the near future. Sadly the manga is not available in North America either currently.
Taking place during the One year War, Thunderbolt follows a force of Zeon soldiers battling a force of Federation soldiers in the ruins of space colonies. The sides are locked in a bloody stalemate as they engage in small skirmishes, slowly dwindling their forces. A feud between Federation pilot, Io Flemming and Zeon sniper Darly Lorenz is the focus of the short anime. Each pilot is highly skilled and use every technical advantage they can to over come the other, all while their respective sides are being wiped out around them.
This is a dark and mature entry in the Gundam universe. Death and destruction are everywhere. Those that survive the longest have embraced the darkness of battle. The only thing they see to their actions is the victories of the battlefield and have no dreams of an end to the conflict. Willing to sacrifice life and limb to quench their thirst for the fight it's self.
With a running time of around an hour the series does a really good job at setting up the struggle between a handful of characters, showing enough of their background and personality to make everything fall into place. This is a great example of brevity in story telling. It is effective and well done. The artwork is really nice too, with character designs that reminded me of Aeon Flux. The line work is stark and bold. The combat is pretty good, typical Gundam fare. Whats best about this story is the lack of teenage wunderkind main characters. These are hardened soldiers doing their job with brutal efficiency, there is no time of second guessing or moral quandaries. Truly a mature story, something the franchise could do a little more often.
The series is as of yet not available in North America, but there is word that the theatrical version of it may see a stateside release in the near future. Sadly the manga is not available in North America either currently.
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