Mobile Suit Gundam SEED

Mobile Suit Gundam SEED (機動戦士ガンダムSEED [シード], Kidō Senshi Gandamu SEED [Shīdo]), often shortened to Gundam SEED, is an anime television series animated by Sunrise and directed by Mitsuo Fukuda. It is a part of the Gundam franchise that started in 1979, but takes place in an alternate universe called the Cosmic Era. The series spans fifty episodes, which broadcast in Japan from October 5, 2002 to September 27, 2003 at 6:00 p.m. on the JNN TV stations TBS and MBS. The series won the Animage Anime Grand Prix prize in 2002. It was adapted into a manga published by Kodansha on February 17, 2003. Gundam SEED's story continues in Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny.

Plot

The series is the first set in the Cosmic Era. This series begins with the Bloody Valentine War between Earth and the colonies that is similar to the One Year War of the original Gundam series with certain traditional elements from Mobile Suit Gundam Wing and After War Gundam X such as the presence of five multicolored Gundam mobile suits and the threat of an apocalypse. On one side is the Earth Alliance, and on the opposite is the space colonies that form ZAFT (Zodiac Alliance of Freedom Treaty). Mankind is divided over human genetic engineering, with normal humans known as "Naturals" and the genetically altered humans known as "Coordinators". Like the original series, while ZAFT has a head start on mobile suit design, the Earth Alliance quickly catches up with its five prototype Gundams. With ZAFT having stolen four of the prototypes, young Coordinator Kira Yamato pilots the GAT-X105 Strike Gundam and is forced to fight his old friend Athrun Zala. Little do they know that there exist sinister forces working to bring about events that go far beyond their worst nightmares.

Reception

The show has become one of the most popular of the Gundam series in Japan enjoying high television ratings and DVD sales. According to the analyst John Oppliger of AnimeNation, Gundam SEED became the first Gundam series which was widely successful not only among "Gundam fans and hardcore otaku" but also "mainstream, casual Japanese viewers". Gundam SEED is the eighth TV Feature Award winner at the Animation Kobe Awards in 2003, the third Grand Prix award winner at the Japanese Otaku Awards in 2003, the winner of the Tokyo International Anime Fair's animation of the year in 2004, Animage's 25th Anime Grand Prix award winner in 2002, and topped the charts in Newtype magazine reader poll. However, the show was not well received by older Japanese fans. Sunrise's president, Takayuki Yoshii, believes it was because Gundam SEED incorporated elements from popular live-action television dramas. Instead of focusing on the robot action, the show focused more on the characters.

Controversy

In episode sixteen, the main protagonist, sixteen-year-old Kira Yamato, is seen putting on pants after getting out of a bed, where fifteen-year-old Flay Allster lies sleeping naked suggesting a sexual relationship. The Japanese Commission for Better Broadcasting reported that viewers filed complaints regarding the scene because the show was aired at 6 pm when children would be watching. Mecha Anime HQ's review indicated that the scene was the first time a "Gundam hero" ever had sex during the course of a Gundam series and also considered it relevant to the plot. The scene was extended in the special edition.