Written & Illustrated by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko
Published in the west by Viz Comics (right to left), $7.95 (US) max, available from www.amazon.com or www.amazon.co.uk and any other suppliers of Gundam books.

Overview

Volume three of Gundam: The Origin rejoins the action from the end of volume 2 with Char fast approaching. The first encounter between Char and Amuro proceeds as normal with Slender joining the battle only to be shot by Amuro's beam rifle. Amuro seems to be a little bit more useless in this battle than he did in the animation, which is a good thing to see. If I remember correctly the movie version of events had Amuro scaring Char of with Slender's destruction where as here it's the sudden revelation that the White Base is no mere supply ship that forces him to retreat. After some concentration on the characters and situation in the ship (including an amusing lift scene with Bright and Sayla) we are thrown back into the action as Bright formulates a plan to destroy Char as he resupplies near Luna II. There seem to be a lot more actual Federation officers present on the White Base than there were in the movies, which lends a more satisfying feeling of scale to the situation.

The crew set out to take down Char in one major departure from the series/movies which I really like - three Guntanks (one piloted by Ryu & gunned by Hayato) and three Guncannons (one piloted by Kai and one piloted by Job John!). It should make later battles very interesting and it certainly makes this operation seem more "real" rather than the Super Robot cliché of two three individual/different units doing everything. The battle feels suitably chaotic for such an artillery-fest. At the end of it the Federation forces from Luna II intervene and arrest the White Base crew (as happens in the series, I'm told). We finish with Sayla & Amuro having their first newtype moment as they both sense the approaching Char (who is sneaking in with soldiers).

Opinion

There's not much to say about the art in this volume that hasn't been said in my reviews of volumes one and two. It maintains its high standard though this time around there's just the one colour section at the start. This continues the evocatively drawn start to Amuro's first encounter with Char that finished volume two. There's a number of ships in this volume (White Base, Musai, Papua and Magellan) and they're all very well drawn. There are also several very nice pictures of Char. The battles continue to be conveyed in this format without losing any of the vigour and style of animated action.

The first time I read this volume I didn't find it as satisfying as the first two. However rereading it a few times since then has increased my enjoyment and I think it flows on from the previous book pretty well, if slightly less enchanting. The Guntanks and Guncannons in their numbers made for an excellent battle/operation. As I said already, I think that change could do a lot for increasing the excellence of the series. The situation on the White Base should feel desperate but having more Mobile Suits will keep it feeling a little more "real", if that's the right word. Thinking about the White Base's situation; there is more evidence of the chaotic placement of civilians all over the ship here, compared to the movies. I was quite interested to see how events played out after the encounter with Char as this is close to the TV events rather than the movies. The capture of the White Base and crew does seem a little odd and rather "Nazi" of Wakkein but I guess it fits into the tense wartime situation Luna II is in. Whilst this volume isn't quite up to the standards of the previous two it is still very good and well worth the purchase. Movie-only watchers should especially find it enjoyable.

Written to Warren G & Nate Dogg - Regulate