As a brief preface and
disclaimer, I have never read the original manga for Gundam
Thunderbolt. As such, when watching this first episode, I came into
it with a completely fresh set of eyes, and only a very basic
knowledge of the source material.
My first thoughts upon
seeing Thunderbolt, is just to say, it is a beautiful episode. The
animation style is beautiful, crisp and just absolutely gorgeous. The
fight scenes are well crafted, I never felt lost in the action,
despite the busy setting. The character designs are also excellent.
In a lot of scenes, you can see these rough edges, that really bring
out the feeling of the material.
In terms of story.
Thunderbolt takes the brutality and cold honesty of the UC and keeps
it going. Both sides are represented with varying shades of grey.
From the small glimpse we get in the first episode, the Earth
Federation forces come off cold, and their ordained hero, Io Flemming
definitely comes off as a very solid anti-hero character.
On the other hand, the
members of the Living Dead division are very human. Daryl Lorenz
comes off as cold but, with some very likeable qualities, and the
small interactions with his allies definitely help the humanity of
his character shine through like a beacon. Being a near antithesis of
Flemming, makes this series seem like it's going to be a very
interesting tale from a character standpoint.
For it's design, I love
Thunderbolt. The widespread, debris filled battlefields. The way that
some of the more traditional mobile suits a drawn with it's style are
beautiful fare. The few scenes in which the Gundam is shown, it looks
threatening and immediately draws your attention. The sheer normality
of some of the scenes is also a very interesting view.
From a sheer quality
standpoint, Thunderbolt is beautiful, and instantly leaves you
wanting more. Next to Iron Blooded Orphans, which has had it's fair
share of animation issues, it's absolutely fantastic. While I enjoy
Iron Blooded Orphans as a weekly show, the long span between episodes
keeps me chomping at the bit for the next episode.
Until next time! - JC
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