Gundam is just the same as Jane Austen but happens to include giant mech suits • Hacker News Board

Re: Gundam is just the same as Jane Austen but happens to include giant mech suits

#191

Post by TeMPOraL » Fri, Dec 12, 2025, 10:31 AM UTC

neaden wrote: post #28

TeMPOraL wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Western shows are all about the "you don't have to sacrifice anything to win" and Eastern shows are all about the "you're the chosen one" but this one was "the establishment is the establishment and most of the time it wins". What's sorely missing is the very rare theme of "the establishment wins, and for a good reason, and it's actually a good thing".

Isn't that basically every cop show for instance? Like an episode of Law and Order is this person does something bad, the establishment finds and punishes them hurray.

Didn't watch Law and Order much (my wife is a fan though, so I'll ask).

Most of the cop shows/procedurals I saw have some kind of "corrupt mayor" arc as a substantial part of their plot, but I guess if you go one level up, it's still "the establishment wins". But then anything where civilization doesn't collapse would be that.

Re: Gundam is just the same as Jane Austen but happens to include giant mech suits

#192

Post by yomismoaqui » Fri, Dec 12, 2025, 3:27 PM UTC

vl wrote: post #190

yomismoaqui wrote: post #114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I started with some series from the alternate universes and I fully recommend them: - Gundam 00: Gundam as a terrorist - Iron Blooded Orphans: Gundam as a (child) mercenary After this I you want to watch the original universe (Universal Century) you can start with the 3 movies that summarize the OG series. They are legally on YouTube (search for gundaminfo)

Does it make sense to start with the movies?

If you want to go full on the Universal Century (UC) timeline, go for it.

But they are from the 70s, so don't expect top notch animation and scripts (it's a product of its time).

After that you can go Char's Counterattack and Gundam The Origin (this is a recent series, so more polished animation). Later maybe try watching Zeta.

As another comment mentioned you also some shorter UC side-stories like War in the Pocket, The 08th MS Team and Stardust Memory.

Re: Gundam is just the same as Jane Austen but happens to include giant mech suits

#193

Post by 0x457 » Fri, Dec 12, 2025, 5:37 PM UTC

yomismoaqui wrote: post #114

vl wrote: post #60

> A friend recently asked how to get started watching Gundam So what is good order to watch Gundam in 2025? What should be skipped? Are mangas/novels worth it or is it better just to watch anime?

I started with some series from the alternate universes and I fully recommend them: - Gundam 00: Gundam as a terrorist - Iron Blooded Orphans: Gundam as a (child) mercenary After this I you want to watch the original universe (Universal Century) you can start with the 3 movies that summarize the OG series. They are legally on YouTube (search for gundaminfo)

> Iron Blooded Orphans: Gundam as a (child) mercenary

I know what you're saying, but except for Hathaway, child mercenaries are in every Gundam installment?

I love those alternate universes, but those are so different to other gundams (UC and Seed?) both are very "what ever is cool now, but with gundams"

Re: Gundam is just the same as Jane Austen but happens to include giant mech suits

#194

Post by arjie » Fri, Dec 12, 2025, 10:55 PM UTC

Full_Clark wrote: post #123

arjie wrote: post #24

Spoilers for Iron Blooded Orphans below. I watched the one 'except' that OP has listed there "Iron Blooded Orphans". It's the only Gundam I've ever watched and I really liked it, to be honest. It was full of subversions of anime tropes. There's a prophecy, a stoic soldier like none other, a charismatic leader playing a dual role, another heroic leader trusted by his people. And there's the instrument of the establish…

> Western shows are all about the "you don't have to sacrifice anything to win" and Eastern shows are all about the "you're the chosen one" but this one was "the establishment is the establishment and most of the time it wins". I think this is why The Wire captivated me. I'd been raised on a steady diet of hero's journey stories and then suddenly I ran into David Simon's buzzsaw of contravening those expectations. In…

I do love The Wire and just recently ended up watching Generation Kill with my dad. That's another amazing one from David Simon. Very real. Cpl. Ray Person still talks about his experience in the actual unit portrayed there on Reddit as /u/plasmata.