Best Gundam Protagonist?

Just like I did with my Top 5 Gundam Series post, I want to poll people on what they think about the question of who the top Gundam protagonist is. I actually made a Top 5 Gundam Protagonists post in the past, but it was awful and I've since gotten rid of it. Considering how difficult and possibly meaningless this question is, I thought I'd just ask people instead of attempting to create a new list.

As usual, this question is almost impossible to answer objectively. People have their own opinions on what "best" means, and personal bias is going to play a big part in it. Still, there's got to be a general consensus for certain characters.

So, who is it? Amuro Ray? Garrod Ran (who actually seems to get a lot of love)? Kamille? Setsuna? Who is the best Gundam protagonist in the meta-series?

Songs of Final Fantasy: Top 10 Battle Themes

Here's a shocker: I'm a huge fan of Final Fantasy. I absolutely love the series, and I've been a fan since Clinton was in office. I've played every title in the series several times, and the one thing that always sticks with me is the music. The various themes in each game come to define that particular game. Most of it is owed to the mastery of musical genius Nobuo Uematsu, but other composers have produced some memorable themes as well.

In this top ten list, I'm going to be ranking the best battle themes in the Final Fantasy series. Battle themes are usually the most memorable and definitive songs in the games, along with the overworld themes. Therefore, I think it's only proper to do them some justice. I'll be including all of the main series titles and all related spin-offs. As usual, these are just my opinions so feel free to disagree and share your own thoughts in the comments. Now then...

MG Wing Gundam Proto Zero EW Announced

This is sort of amazing news. The long awaited Master Grade Wing Zero has finally been announced. Now, to be honest, I was waiting for the TV version to get the MG treatment so this announcement disappointed me for a split second. Still, I think this is about as good as it'll get for now.

Keep in mind that this is the Endless Waltz version of the design. The Tallgeese, Epyon, and Heavyarms had similar releases in this fashion. I'm not exactly sure what "Proto Zero" is supposed to imply, so if anyone has any guesses on that, that would be great. But yeah, the design is sure to look great so I definitely can't wait!

As usual, Gundam Guy is my source. Find the original article here.

Not Impressed With Next-Gen Graphics

Yeah I said it. I'm completely unimpressed with the "next generation" of gaming graphics. I thought I was the only one who thought this, but comments from the gaming community have assured me otherwise. Perhaps it's too early to say, but the PS4 and Xbox One are getting ready for launch. Here's a trailer of some of the upcoming titles...

Pretty damn impressive, right? But honestly, is this the next-generation?  To put it as nicely as I can, it's just a tad bit better than the current gen. Maybe we're just used to the enormous leaps that have occurred in previous generations. I mean, we went from this...

to this...

And then from this...

 to this..

Perhaps we've hit a plateau? I think perhaps we're not quite ready to take that enormous leap. It's merely due to the rules of marketing that Sony/Microsoft had to release new hardware to compete with after so many years. It's hard to argue with that, but there's a part of me that thinks maybe we can wait a few more years. 

I think the main reason so many of us are unimpressed is that it's hard for us to detect the minute improvements with our lousy human eyes. The difference between 8-bit and 64-bit is obvious, but what about super high polygon HD graphics and super-super high polygon HD graphics with better lighting effects? Yeah, it's getting a little less obvious. 

To be fair, the trailer just shows a bunch of development footage and pre-rendered scenes. Just like with the current gen, the graphics will improve once developers get a hang of the new hardware. But for now, all I can say is that I'm underwhelmed. What do you guys think? 

MG RX-78-2 Gundam Ver. 3.0 - Thoughts?

Here's an interesting bit of news: Bandai has announced that a Master Grade RX-78-2 Gundam Version 3.0 is coming out in August. As usual, you can go to Gundam Guy for a little more detail. As a lot of people have mentioned, it appears to be an upscaled version of the RG 1/144 model. We can expect an extraordinary new standard of detail from this

Normally, I don't like sharing news that's probably on a million other blogs, but I'd like to know what people think about this. Some are intrigued, while others are indifferent. Bandai has rather actively been trying to revamp its MG line, with the new MG Strike Gundam coming to mind. With this 3.0, Bandai is taking its first step into the future.

Personally, I'm a little indifferent. I love the idea of upping the quality, but I'm getting a little tired of the RX-78-2. Mind you, I loved the 2.0 model, so I'm not very excited about a new version. I'd much rather see some forgotten favorites (DX, Heavyarms Custom) get the MG treatment instead.

But what do you say? It is on the buy-list or the ignore-list?

Thoughts on Gundam 00

This is the one I've been waiting for. What are your thoughts on Gundam 00? I remember being thoroughly entertained through the first season, and though the quality of the show dipped considerably by the second season, I still would not say that 00 is a complete miss. We were treated to high-def animation and explosive battle sequences, which were definitely the highlight of this very recent series.

Of course, the U.C. community looks at 00 like they do every AU series: it's just another abortion of a Gundam series that can't possibly compare to the classics. All-bishounen casts were as prominent as usual, and the power-ups became so over the top and unbelievable that the series bordered on super robot territory. The villains were weak and forgettable, and the plot became less and less appealing with its convoluted Innovator nonsense. 

Though, that's just what some people say. There are newer fans who obviously love the series, and see it as an entertaining romp nonetheless. What do you say about Gundam 00? Was it worthy of its place in the Gundam metaseries?

Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin, Vol.I - Activation

My copy of Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin Vol.1 has arrived, so I thought I'd give it a mini-review. In case you're unfamiliar, Gundam: The Origin is a manga adaptation of the original anime series. Viz attempted an American release, but their run ended due to low sales. Thus, publisher Vertical decided to release The Origin in a format similar to the "Aizoban" collector's editions in Japan. 

The first thing I'm going to say is, this book is absolutely gorgeous...