It’s unfair for any other Gundam that Turn A Gundam exists. Its unfair for any other franchise that Turn A Gundam exists. What do you mean the best Gundam is a celebratory 20th anniversary piece—not burdened by it’s history but a hammer to shape and mold it's themes. What do you mean 20 years in and Gundam found a new and original way to express itself not only in story telling but visual identity.

But well--recognizing Turn A Gundam as "best Gundam" meant grappling what Gundam has been and can be.

In true Turn A spirit, this is a spoiler For All Gundam... well the ones in the set of {First Gundam, ZZ, CCA, Turn A Gundam, IBO, and G-Witch}.

A Brief Dark History of Wannabe Cat

Gundam has been a sporadic thing for me give or take 20 or 7 years depending on when you count from first exposure to "big fan, love that Char Aznable Guy". I'm not quite sure what influence a Gundam Wing Toy turned villain for DINOSAUR MAN! PROTECTOR OF THE PEOPLE, but it left an impression enough for me to check out later series. From about 2015 to about 2017 Gundam was a fixed constant in my life till it just wasn't.

Five years later would see transitioning, one still ongoing political radicalization and education¹, I returned to properly watch the TV broadcast of First Gundam. This plus a TTRPG led me back into watching bits of the series I had left. Reactions were messy to say the least. Enthrallment with mecha melodrama, surprising political spikeness (shout out to Judau and the workers), was mangled by continued sexism and just general frustration with mass media. Sentiments only doubled as I got “Witch and the Brided”², G-Witch outdoing my expectation in episode 1 and proving the first time Gundam really invested me since 2015/2017.

This of course led to the road all Gundam fans must walk: Turn A Gundam. Short and sweet loved it. From music, to animation, character designs, and storytelling almost everything was good--even great. The fact they kept this up for 50 episodes was truly inspiring.

There is too much in Turn A Gundam to be covered in a single essay (Harry--Kihel--Dianna--Loran my beloved), so lets focus on just one person.

Loran Scared Me

Loran genuinely frightened and saddened me with a single line. It was an offhand forgettable thing. Slipped right in as he’s hanging out while Sochie played with dolphins.

I’d saw this coming, and it’s when I knew: he was Amuro’s successor alright. A curious boy with a knack for machines, made to pilot an all powerful mobile suit, and even a cute toy to boot. One by one, I’d watch him no longer play with koi fish nor load Cows into the missile pods. Nah, real men shoot missiles. That’s what the militia boys taught him, he’d be Laura otherwise.

He couldn’t resist the Gundam, the enemy of spacenoids, the white devil, the Moonlight Butterfly. After dozens of episodes of Loran making the Gundam a washing machine or bridge, he’d activate the Moonlight Butterfly—the end of all things--against his foes. Using the Turn A’s VR helmet helped him fight, but he lost perspective when he did. He wouldn’t bear witnessing the dark history.

And then he bears it. The winter palace is bathed in rainbows, and for one moment the Moonlight Butterfly isn’t an ender of worlds—but a protector of Loran’s.

I never should’ve doubted. That is who Loran is at his heart. That is who he always is thick and thin. He’s the boy who sees the machine that killed the world and says “this can move cows”. It is all he ever wants.

Actually it's the only thing he dreams of

I mean—literally outside of making sure Dianna is happy—I don’t think Loran wants much else. Maybe a monarchy with Dianna-Kihel in charge, but even that doesn't feel tangiably different from a dozen fantasy or fantasy esque knights. Would he believe in the monarchy if it wasn't his Dianna-Sama?

It’s a subtle thing pop culture does. You have heroes be violent revolutionaries—but you can’t give their ideas form or substance.

Now then there is Gym Gingham swaggering up to the podium. He’s got a katana, he’s got swagger, he has a vision. Up there in his yeehaw Samurai Cosplay, he wants to go back to Earth’s darkest history (which feels awfully close to some very real world in japan). Our heroes reject this, and the Turn A Gundam spins a cocoon—locking up Gym and his Turn X. But what replaces it? We have some clues, some nestled disturbing details (the name of the episode, Guin riding off), but otherwise I think it’s safe, and formless. Does Dianna-Kihel bring changes to the Moon? Is ruling Armenia in a Skirt any different than Guin’s vision?³

Much as cockpits can slide into the Turn A (though some are a better), ideology can projected all you want! Loran will be fishing for Dianna. That’s all he dreamed about. It’s all Turn A dreams about.

But do other Gundam ever dream of a new world? Char Aznable speaks passionately of destroying the Earth, but what happens after that? Will Nanai lead it? Quess? Gyunei? Suletta and Miorine can marry, but monogamous marriage is all for them. Clues and hints point to physical romance, but that’s all. They can only gaze in each others eyes. Tekkedan can fight for a world that’ll let them live, but they cannot win (as so many Gundams before them). The new world is built by Rustal, same as the old.

Gundam can only destroy the old world with its Moonlight Butterfly. Spinning its cocoon, locking the worst of humanity with it.

That’s the limit of Gundam. Even at its best⁴—its kind of junk in quiet deadly ways⁵.

When Life Gives you Gundams...

But then Loran comes around and shows the ways that junk can be used. He might craft it into a bridge, or a nice present for Dianna. He has no say in whether the junk exists or not, but wants to find some way to use it. Gundam is kind of junk too a lot of the time, even if I love it (some of the time). Loran can’t dream of a better world, but he will try to make something out of this one. If not—then he can throw it away.

I tried to escape pop culture and it won. But did I ever escape it? I grew up on the stuff without a say in the matter. All one can do is do the best they can with the junk their given. You just have to be honest about what the junk is. Loran never believed the Turn A was for carrying cows, but he made it for carrying cows. I think in some ways that is the heart of Gundam. A child in an oppressive environment is handed a killing machine and is asked “what do you do with this?”⁶

Me? I used it to post memes and have a good time. I used it as a vehicle to heal my heart and write a lot of words. I’ll use it write more words one day, but now I think its time for a Gundam break. It's a lot better than breaking after two series frustrating me greatly.

To be clear, I don't think its exactly Gundam helping me out—but me finding an apocalypse machine floating in the ocean and using it as boat because its here and useful. An active participant in watching Gundam rather than a passive viewer. You can’t avoid pop culture, but you can find ways to navigate it and maybe make it work for you.

You just have to remember it can’t be left unchecked.

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