Mobile Suit Gundam: A New Translation
Episode 1: Gundam Rising
It is the year Universal Century 0079. The war between the democratic but elitist Earth Federation and the fascist Principality of Zeon has been going on for nine solid months now, with no end in sight. It has quickly become the single most devastating conflict in human history with nearly three billion people dead, mostly space colonists. Unfortunately, after the furious initial battles in January, the war has slowed to a standstill. The Zeon have occupied large portions of Earth, but they remain deadlocked with Federation ground forces.
October 1, UC0079. At the space colony Frontier 25, Side 7, Fraw Bo checks up on her boyfriend Amuro Ray. Amuro is a quiet, socially awkward young man that relates better to machines and his few close friends than he does other people. The two discuss some of the war and Amuro shows Fraw the information that he’s hacked from his father’s files, detailing that the Federation is secretly constructing their own MS prototypes here on the colony. Fraw is worried that this will involve them in the war and doesn’t want to see a massacre like the ones that occurred at Sides 1, 2 and 4. Amuro doesn’t think that will happen. Fraw then reminds him that Hyato was going to take them to the race today. Initially Amuro tries to pass it off that he forgot about it but Fraw wheedles the truth out of him. She finally manages to get him out of the house when Hyato arrives.
Outside the colony, a transport ship carrying a number of Federation officers and supplies docks with the colony. Among the Federation personnel onboard are Ensigns Bright Noa and Connor Hawke. Bright is recently graduated from Officer Candidate School and this is his first major assignment. Connor is an RB-79K Ball pilot.
At the race, famous driver Kai Shiden shrugs off one of his many girlfriends when his manager tells him to get his butt out to his car. Elsewhere, Hyato, Amuro and Fraw arrive. Amuro is given food duty and bumps into a blond girl while trying to balance hot dogs, fries and sodas. When he asks Fraw who she is, she replies that the girl is likely a medical student at their school by the name of Sayla Mass. The race begins and Kai is supremely confident that he’ll win. Amuro for his part is bored within five minutes.
Outside the colony, behind a resource asteroid, a pair of Zeon Musai-class cruisers quietly observe the colony. The captain of one of the ships, Dren, informs mobile suit commander Char Aznable that information leaks from the colony have been proved accurate and that the Federation is indeed making their own MS. Char decides they will launch a covert operation to destroy the prototypes and the new battle cruiser built to carry them.
On the colony, Amuro’s father, Tem Ray, passes the race and wonders if his son is there. A Federation officer warns him that information about Project V has possibly been leaked. Tem replies that they should move the prototypes and all materials onto the White Base immediately.
Char’s infiltration unit enters the colony and quickly locates the factory block where the MS and White Base are located. They hurriedly attach bombs to the gantries surrounding White Base and then move out into the factory block. The bombs blow, killing a large portion of the White Base’s crew but failing to destroy the ship. Outside, two teams of three Zakus attack the colony. One team remains outside while the other moves inside. The Ball squadron that Connor is part of moves to intercept the three Zakus. The Zakus inside the colony decide to get things started by launching an attack on the Federation garrison near the factories. Chaos ensues as the Zeon commandoes attempt to finish their mission but are forced to retreat. The civilians at the race stampede out of the track stadium. Amuro runs off to find his father with Fraw Bo trailing him. Hyato gets caught up in the crowd and separated.
Amuro finds his father amidst the chaos but Tem tells him to get to a shelter and continues supervising the evacuation of the mobile suits. The Zakus arrive and start spreading destruction across the factory block. Amuro and Fraw take shelter inside a hangar, not knowing that Char is already inside. Char confronts them and hesitates to shoot Amuro, both because he is shielding Fraw and because he is a civilian. An impact from a Zaku machine gun sets off several fuel containers in the hangar and Char is knocked down. Amuro, realizing that one of the prototype MS is inside, takes Fraw and climbs aboard. Realizing that the Zakus intend to demolish the hangar, he begins powering up the suit. The display screens identify the suit as the RX-78-2 GUNDAM. Char looks up in awe as the new Federation mobile suit activates.
Outside, the Zakus approach the hangar but are blasted back as Gundam emerges from the smoke and begins literally beating them up. Amuro at first tries to use the head vulcans but eventually discovers the Gundam’s beam saber. He slices up one Zaku and stabs the second. Unfortunately he slices the third in half and that compromises its fusion reactor, blowing a hole in the colony, sucking Tem Ray out into space. Amuro and Fraw barely manage to escape and then look on in awe as the White Base blasts out of its secret hangar.
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