Alfred Izuruha he is a boy like many others who lives on a space colony which has officially declared its neutrality in the conflict between the Earth Federation and the Principality of Zeon. We are in the year 0079 of the Universal Centuryin fact, and what will in retrospect be remembered as the “One Year War”. Al and his classmates glorify the distant conflict as something magical and exciting, dreaming of one day being able to see a live Mobile Suits. And that day is not far away, as the team Cyclops of the Principalityafter having let slip the new prototype of MS federal in Augusta Base on Earth, chases him to the colony of Libotthe same one where he lives To the. And this is how the little boy will get to know Bernard “Bernie” Wisemanthe soldier who will replace one of the veterans defeated in Augusta on the Cyclops team, and who attacks the colony with them in search of the Gundam. Through a series of unfortunate coincidences, Al manages to come into contact with the mysterious man Gundam “Alex” by sneaking into the colony’s spaceport, earning the friendship of Bernie and the trust of his comrades. However, fate wants him to be the one to pilot it Christina “Chris” MackenzieAl’s neighbor with whom, hopelessly, Bernie will fall in love at first sight.
This is, more or less, the incipit of Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocketthe very first OVA series in the franchise Gundamthe first animated production of the saga to which Yoshiyuki Tomino he did not participate in any way. Directed by Fumihiko Takayamabut with names much better known in character and mecha design — Haruhiko Mikimoto And Yutaka Izubuchi — War in the Pocket it is, in my opinion, one of the most beautiful productions of the entire franchise, exciting and more relevant than ever even thirty-five years after the original release. Today, thanks to Dynit, Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket is finally available in our country dubbed into Italian, in an exclusive limited edition box set that we are going to examine in this review.
- Original title: 機動戦士ガンダム0080 ポケットの中の戦争 (Kidō Senshi Gandamu 0080: Poketto no naka no sensō)
- English title: Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket
- Japanese release: March 25, 1989 – August 25, 1989
- Italian release: January 15, 2024 (Prime Video), May 29, 2024 (home video)
- Platform: Prime Video, Blu-ray, DVD
- Type: Sci-Fi, Mecha
- Number of episodes: 6
- Duration: 37 min
- Animation studio: Sunrise
- Adapted from: original work
- Tongue: Italian, Japanese
We reviewed Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket via home video box provided free of charge by Dynit.
“The Federation doesn’t have Mobile Suits!”
Consisting of just six episodes, Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket is one of the series of Gundam shortest ever among those belonging to the Universal Centuryas well as the one where the clash between Mobile Suits it is placed more in the background compared to the human drama experienced by the protagonists. If in the first episodes we will get to know To thethe rest of the cast and the plot put together in a rather “carefree” way, it is with the incredible ending that the series plants an arrow in the hearts of the spectators, giving some of the most unforgettable moments in the history of Japanese animation.
For the first time in GundamFurthermore, he is not the pilot of the Mobile Suits homonymous to have the role of protagonist, which is instead entrusted to a normal civilian totally foreign to the concept of war. For Alfred, collecting insignia and shell casings is the greatest fun that the world around him can offer, and becoming best friends with an officer of Zeon it sends him to seventh heaven. Al’s enthusiasm that accompanies the viewer for the first episodes hides a very cruel fate that will transform a Zeonian soldier into a true hero, truly putting the Federation in a bad light, in favor of the spacenoid independentists. This new perspective has strongly cemented in the Japanese public an increasingly strong sympathy towards characters coming from the canonically opposing faction in the One Year Warthat of Zeon, which already with characters of the caliber of Char Aznable and Ramba Ral had earned the favor of enthusiasts. Series like War in the Pocket before, as well STARDUST MEMORY And The 08th MS Team further on, they show us even more than Tomino’s original how within the two factions there can exist very contrasting ideals and people and that an “antagonistic” faction like Zeon can count among its ranks people with big hearts and pacifist ideals.
“Of course I’m scared. I’d be crazy not to have some!”
Although it is a series from thirty-five years ago, the quality of the drawings and animations of Gundam 0080 certainly doesn’t make us miss the more modern series, but among the best aspects of the production I can only include the memorable soundtrack composed by Tetsurou Kashibuchi, capable of best conveying the atmosphere of each scene with each of the songs. The opening and ending theme songs are still among the most beautiful of the franchise today and I don’t hide the emotion I feel every time I find myself listening to the ending again “Tooi Kioku” thinking back to the series finale.
The Italian edition edited by Dynit presents a very respectable Italian dubbing, with carefully chosen voices for each of the characters. The adaptation plays its role the best, though I would have preferred a change of direction in the pronunciation of the word “Gundam” which once again maintains the tradition inaugurated by the 1980 dubbing of First series. The Italian box set includes inside two Blu-rays and two DVDsas well as one collector’s cardsa pamphlet advertising upcoming themed Dynit releases Gundam (The 08th MS Team and 0083) as well as the highlight, a 42-page booklet which contains within it as much information as possible for the series, from the sheets of every single character that appears in the six OVAs to the inevitable Mobile Suitsfrom the illustrations of the backdrops to the rich glossary of terms relating to the calendar Universal Century.
“Bernie, you’re an idiot!”
Inside the booklet, however, there are some errors, especially in the section relating to the summaries. Unfortunately, the latter seem to have been created carelessly and in stark contrast with the rest of the booklet, confusing for example the Libot colony with Side 3The Principality of Zeon and indicating one of the characters with a different name than his card later. Errors that could have been avoided with greater attention on the part of those who supervised such contents.
Nothing to say about the extras contained on the discs, but I would like to say a few words on the format itself: I would certainly have preferred an edition that contained only the Blu-rays, or at most the latter and any 4K Blu-rays, because in my opinion In my opinion, the DVDs are now dated and anachronistic and unnecessarily increase the price of the box set, which could have been lower without them. Alternatively, together with the Blu-rays it would have been appropriate to insert a key for the download of digital versionscurrently available (but not forever) only to subscribers Prime Video. Despite this I feel like thanking you Dynit for your commitment to including the Japanese audio track at the highest quality, unlike other publishers who consider the original audio a quirk that they can do without.
Who do we recommend Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket to?
War in the Pocket is one of the finest works created for the franchise Mobile Suit Gundam and fans shouldn’t miss out on this limited-run box set. If you’ve never seen the series you’ll love it, if you’ve never had anything to do with Gundam you will still be able to understand the events and consider it a good entry point, with a minimum of general knowledge of the events of the First Series.
Universal Century 0079. When the Principality of Zeon learns of the construction of a Gundam, the Cyclops unit is sent to the civilian colony of Libot to investigate. Their member, Bernard “Bernie” Wiseman, is shot down in action and meets the young Alfred “Al” Izuruha, who dreams of mobile suits and space battles. Al considers Bernie a friend but doesn’t realize the potential danger he finds himself in. The situation gets even worse when his neighbor, Christina “Chris” Mackenzie, returns home with a new “government job.”
- Excellent work with the Italian dubbing
- The maximum in audiovisual quality
- The box contains both Blu-ray and DVD…
- …But do we still really need DVDs?
- Gross errors in the booklet
Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket
One of the best stories of the Gundam saga
Thanks to Dynit we can finally fill an important gap in our collection. Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket is one of the most exciting and significant works in the universe of Gundamalthough the events narrated in it do not affect the continuity of the Universal Century Significantly. The intertwining of the lives of Al, Bernie and Chris it cannot leave any type of spectator indifferent and the tragic ending is among the most beautiful ever told in the history of Japanese animation.
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