Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team: A masterpiece with realistic depictions of war and character development

Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team

■ Public Media

OVA

■ Original Media

Anime Original

■ Release date

January 25, 1996

■Release and sales

Bandai Visual

■Frequencies

half an hour

■ Number of Episodes

Episode 11

■Original Story

Hajime Yatate/Yoshiyuki Tomino

■ Director

Takeyuki Kanda and Umanosuke Iida

■Works

© Sotsu, Sunrise

■ Story

In UC0079, the Earth Sphere was in the midst of a battle that would later be called the "One Year War." Shiro Amada, a young lieutenant in the Earth Federation Forces, meets Aina Sahalin, a female pilot in the Zeon Forces, on the battlefield on his way to Earth. Despite being enemies, Shiro and Aina are attracted to each other. However, the two are bound by their respective positions and return to where they belong. Shiro is assigned to the Kojima Battalion on the ground and becomes the captain of the 08th MS Team. He faces many difficulties, including friction with rebellious members and harsh missions in an unfamiliar environment. However, he overcomes these obstacles and grows into a platoon leader who is trusted by his members. Meanwhile, Aina has landed on Earth to save her brother, Ginias Sahalin. Aina throws herself into the battlefield as the pilot of the Apsaras, a secret weapon developed by her brother. The cruel reality of war was about to reconnect the bond between the two that had been severed in space.

■Cast

• Shiro Amada/Nobuyuki Hiyama
• Aina Sakharin/Kikuko Inoue
• Mikel Ninolic/Hiro Yuki
• Karen Joshua/Mami Koyama
• Terry Sanders Jr./Tetsuo Genda
• Eledor Mathis/Keiji Fujiwara
• Kiki Rosita/Nishimura Chinami
• Guineas/Hayami Shou
• Norris/Osamu Ichikawa
• Zidane Nickard/Ichiro Nagai

■ Main staff

• Directed by: Takeyuki Kanda, Umanosuke Iida
• Character design: Toshihiro Kawamoto
• Mechanical design: Kunio Okawara, Hajime Katoki, Kimitoshi Yamane
• Screenplay by Ken Okeya and Hiroaki Kitajima
• Music by Kohei Tanaka

■ Main Characters

Shiro Amada <br> A rookie captain who took up his post in Platoon 08, replacing his predecessor who left the squad due to neurosis. Due to the bitter experience of being unable to protect people from a Zeon gas attack in his hometown of Side 2, he is a highly motivated commander who values ​​the lives of his comrades above all else. At first, his honesty only created a gap in his feelings with the other members of his squad, who were living in a harsh battlefield, but when he showed his generosity in winning over even guerrillas, he was recognized as the captain in both name and reality. Meanwhile, Shiro himself developed feelings for Aina Sahalin, a Zeon officer he met just before taking up his post, and they were eventually reunited during a battle. After confirming their feelings for each other, he began to question the very idea of ​​war, where people who should understand each other kill each other. In order to find the answer to the meaning of fighting and his love for Aina, Shiro's personal war was about to begin.

Karen Joshua
A senior NCO who serves as an MS pilot in MS Team 08. She boasts MS piloting skills in gravity combat that surpass those of Shiro immediately after she was appointed, and is the best female hero in Kojima Battalion, never losing her cool head no matter how desperate the situation. Her attitude at work is the epitome of a soldier, but on the other hand, perhaps because of her vast experience, she secretly mocks Shiro's idealism, which is unsuited to the harsh battlefield, calling him a "softie." Although she obeys him but does not respect him, her honest personality and rapidly improving skills gradually lead her to trust him as a commander. Incidentally, before becoming an MS pilot, she was a medical student and a widow who lost her husband, a military doctor. Her occasional concern for her comrades shows that she is a kind-hearted woman, despite her brave and calm fighting style.

Edrea Mathis
He is a hover truck driver and sonar operator for MS Team 08. His sharp hearing allows him to detect the enemy using sound pattern sonar, and his accurate judgment of the battle situation based on that makes him an important asset in supporting the squad. However, he is an anarchic, playful person with a very irresponsible attitude towards work. He is also the man who drove Shiro's predecessor to a neurotic state. Of course, he is not fond of the new Shiro, and he is harsh towards his idealistic remarks, but he eventually recognizes that Shiro is not all talk, and he has the ability to act, and they develop a sense of solidarity. Before volunteering, he was a musician, and when it was decided that his own song would make its major debut while he was in office, he made a request on the radio himself to promote it. On the other hand, he seems to be hiding his extreme claustrophobia and his feelings for Karen.

Terry Sanders Jr.
A mobile suit pilot assigned to MS Team 08 along with Shiro and Mikel. A valuable ace in the Federation Forces, he has already shot down six units with a mass-produced GM. However, throughout his career, all of his units except for him were wiped out on the third sortie. As a result, the Kojima Battalion members call him "Death God Sanders," and he himself is very afraid of the ominous jinx. As this fact shows, contrary to his appearance as a tough, large man, he is an intelligent, trustworthy, and common-sense person. Even in the space battle just before he took up his post in MS Team 08, he was concerned about Shiro, who rushed to his aid alone in his crises, and insisted on going out on another sortie without even repairing his mobile suit. Since then, he has become one of the few people who fully trust the rookie Shiro.

Mikel Ninolic
He is a hover truck driver and machine gunner for the 8th MS Team. He is a rookie soldier like Shiro, but he is far from being enthusiastic, and whenever he opens his mouth, all he says is complain or pessimism. Because of this, he is often looked down upon by those around him, but he seems to think that he is "looking at things calmly." His only thought was "surviving and returning to the lover he left behind in his hometown," and whenever he had free time, he wrote letters to her diligently, but his feelings were in vain, and their long-distance relationship soon became cloudy... His anxiety often led to conflicts with Shiro, but on the other hand, he was gradually influenced by Shiro, who never lost hope no matter what hardship he faced and acted based on his beliefs, and something inside him began to change.

Sally, Rob, Mike <br> Members of the 07th MS Platoon, belonging to the Kojima Battalion. Corporal Sally, the only female, is in charge of reconnaissance, while Mike, who wears a jacket over his bare skin as his trademark, and Lieutenant Rob, the platoon commander, serve as MS pilots. However, while an MS Platoon is usually made up of four people, one member seems to have been absent for a long time, and in the final stages of the battle on the same front, Sally was also made to pilot an MS. Personality-wise, perhaps due to a sense of rivalry, they are enemies of the 08th MS Platoon, and are troublesome people who get involved at every opportunity. In particular, Sanders, who has the "Grim Reaper" jinx, and the "spoiled" Shiro are perfect prey for them, and it is common for them to make nasty remarks. Sometimes, they have even escalated into fist fights.

Zidane Nickard <br> The captain of the supply company, the lifeblood of the Kojima Battalion. He is a typical bad guy, with an unparalleled love of gambling and always drunk even during missions, but he is also a tough guy who knows the ins and outs of the military, and there is almost nothing he can't get his hands on, from food to weapons and ammunition, and even orders signed by the battalion commander. He also has an unexpected side to him as a stylish gentleman, never letting go of his ten-gallon hat and never giving up on love and respect to middle-aged ladies. He seems to find the actions of the 08th MS Team members amusing, and often takes care of them despite his complaints.

Kojima <br> The commander-in-chief of the Far East Army's mechanized mixed battalion, which includes Shiro and the 08th Platoon, and has 24 mobile suits in 8 platoons. The nickname of the battalion, "Kojima Battalion," also comes from this person's name. In other words, he is the most important person in the battalion, but despite his rank, his appearance gives the impression of a typical daydream. Perhaps because he was assigned to the scorching heat of Southeast Asia despite his dislike of air conditioning, he would only complain about the malfunctioning electric fan, which greatly confused Shiro when he was first assigned. However, beneath that mask, he has a strong will that cares about his subordinates and sticks to his principles, and a dignity that leaves no room for argument when it matters most, and once he intervenes in a fight, even the hottest members of the battalion will turn tail between their legs. Eventually, Shiro and the others come to respect his noble personality very much.

Ethan Rayer <br> The regimental commander of the Far East Army, to which Shiro and his Kojima Battalion belong. He regards General Revil as a rival, and is thought to wield considerable influence among the military upper echelons. In fact, he was a military strategist with great foresight, having founded a mechanized unit that introduced a large number of MS. However, his personality is dishonest, cruel, and ruthless. At the interrogation of Shiro after his encounter with Aina, he outwardly showed an understanding attitude, but secretly ordered his platoon members to keep watch, and during the battle to capture the Apsaras development base, after seeing through the presence of a trap, he used MS to blow up the tunnel. He was intentionally trying to cause a nuclear fusion reactor explosion. His attitude, which does not even consider the lives of his subordinates in order to win, plays off of Ginias' madness, and eventually leads to a great tragedy.

■Subtitle

• Episode 1: "A War for Two"
• Episode 2: "Gundam in the Jungle"
• Episode 3: "Time limit for trust"
• Episode 4: "The Devil Above"
• Episode 5: "Broken Standby Order"
• Episode 6: "The Desert Front"
• Episode 7: "Reunion"
• Episode 8: "Military Duties and Ideals"
• Episode 9: "Frontline"
• Episode 10: The Trembling Mountain (Part 1)
• Episode 11: The Trembling Mountain (Part 2)

■ Related works

• [OVA] 99.07.25 Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team Last Resort (1 episode)
• [MVA] 98.08.01 Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team: Miller's Report

Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team - Review and Recommendation

"Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team" is a work that stands out among the Gundam series, and its appeal lies in the depth of the story and the development of the characters. Set during the "One Year War" in UC0079, this work depicts the encounter and battle between rookie second lieutenant Shiro Amada of the Earth Federation Forces and female pilot Aina Saharin of the Zeon Forces. Released as an OVA in 1996, this work is a compact format of 11 30-minute episodes, but it succeeds in depicting the cruelty of war and human dignity.

Shiro Amada grows into a commander who values ​​the lives of his comrades above all else after the bitter experience of being unable to protect the people of his hometown, Side 2, from a poison gas attack by the Zeon forces. The gap between his idealism and reality deeply moves viewers. In particular, the scene where he meets Aina and is attracted to her despite being enemies is depicted as if to symbolize the tragedy of war. The relationship between Shiro and Aina is at the heart of a story that explores human bonds amid the brutal reality of war.

The members of the 08th MS Team, led by Shiro, are also unique and charming. Each character's struggles and growth are depicted, including Karen Joshua's calmness and kindness, Edrea Mathis's humor and instability, Terry Sanders Jr.'s strength and integrity, and Mikel Ninolic's pessimism and hope. Watching these characters fight alongside Shiro and grow will evoke deep empathy in the viewers.

The story is set in the jungles and deserts of Southeast Asia, which portray the harshness of war with beautiful visuals. The mecha designs are also excellent, and the MS designs by famous designers such as Kunio Okawara, Hajime Katoki, and Kimitoshi Yamane are a must-see for fans. In particular, the design of the Apsaras, the secret weapon of the Zeon army, has an overwhelming presence.

Music is also an important element that enhances the appeal of this work. Tanaka Kohei's music skillfully expresses the tension of the battlefield and the emotions of the characters. In particular, the music played during the scenes where Shiro and Aina meet and reunite strongly moves the viewer's heart.

"Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team" is a Gundam series that focuses on human drama, and it has succeeded in portraying the tragedy of war and human dignity. This work, which depicts the growth of Shiro Amada and his relationship with Aina, as well as the personalities and growth of the members of the 08th MS Team, is recommended not only for Gundam fans, but for anyone who loves war dramas and human dramas.

Be sure to check out the related works "Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team: Last Resort" and "Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team: Miller's Report." These works will help you understand the story of the 08th MS Team even more.