Fanboy Praise
C. Stilwell | Ca USA | 10/17/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"ok, so strait up, i am a fan of (most of) the gundam franchise.
i enjoy the telling and re-telling of what, in the original release gundam series was obviously a derivation of the story of World War II. for the most part it remains the same as it always has been in terms of the story itself.
With gundam SEED however, new wrinkles such as excellent character developement and the enriched quality of story-telling which is for the most part only surpassed by the quality of the art (the entire series being considered to be this art) as a whole can bee seen.
The story of Gundam SEED: Destiny is as much about Shin Asuka as it is about Athrun Zala and toward the end of the series is much more about establishing a greater understanding of the strength of Athrun's relationship with Kira Yamato (the protagonist of Gundam SEED) even in their divergent paths in their own lives, and about what it means to fight, and to have something for which to fight than it is specifically about Shin.
I enjoyed Seed Destiny both because SEED (the core show) is my favorite rendition of the Gundam story to date (out of a reminiscence for that which i care greatly) and because the story itself is much darker. it is to Gundam SEED what Stardust Memory is to the original Gundam series, more/less.
all of "our heroes" both in ZAFT and OMNI (the earth federation's space-bourne military from whom Kira fights in SEED) have grown up, and the world has with them.
anyway, its all very refreshing, and all of the characters fit their rolls very well and for the most part are likable. i must confess, i have not seen (nor do i care to) the english dub, as it was HORRID(!) in the english release of Gundam SEED (almost all of the anime i watch is either fan-subbed, or i speak enough japanese to follow it without subs when they arent available. generally i frown on dubbing unless great care is taken, however, if the only way you are going to experience this great series is dubbed, so be it."