In Conclusion:
Gundam Iron-Blooded Orphans may not be the Gundam some people want, but it’s the one we deserve. Gundam has always been a series about the futility of conflict and war, yet people latch on to the impressive and cool mechs and forget the human cost of the bloodshed. IBO just makes sure to hammer home that point more than other recent Gundam series. Tekkadan were not the heroes of the people, they were simply the children of a broken system trying to fight for their lives. They made mistakes, terrible and costly ones, and ultimately Orga and Mika realize too late that the future they were looking toward couldn’t be won with force.
It’s rare that a series goes to such lengths to show the actions of the protagonists may be seen as villainous to the rest of the world. Watching Tekkadan build during the first season only to reach a point where their actions not only didn’t accomplish Kudelia’s overall goal of better worlds but made some things worse, set the tone for the second season. The desire for power and the idea that if only they had more of it then everything will work out is a poison. It leads to the downfall of not only Tekkadan but the other major power player, McGillis. The only way to win a war game is not to play, a lesson Takaki learns early in the second season. Had Tekkadan stepped back at that time then they wouldn’t have had to say goodbye to so many friends. In the end when the dream of peace is finally realized it’s only after a majority of the leading cast has paid the ultimate price.
Is it a perfect Gundam series? No. Large parts of the first season dragged. Some of the character developments were frustratingly stupid. Early on most of the clearly villainous bad guys were simple cartoons waiting to be defeated. It wasted time on story arcs that could have been told in half that time. The second season was paced far better, but a few loose ends remain untied. However, it has to be one of the best in messaging in a long while. Okada and the rest of the staff created a Gundam universe where shades of gray are the order of business, and heroes are few and far between. They twisted the usual expectations of a series like this without it being a complete deconstruction, and the payoff was handled well. I would love for a prequel series to go back and look at the Calamity War, to see where all these Gundam came from and the development on the runaway Mobile Armor.
Episode Grade: A
Streamed by: Daisuki, Crunchyroll, Youtube, and Gundam.info in select regions.
Kate O'Neil
http://www.fandompost.com/author/sonicbug/
Kate has a long history of leaving pieces of herself all over the internet, alighting upon fandom after fandom to briefly taste of its nectar before flitting away. She has accrued a collection of manga so large she believes her home may now have structural integrity issues. She also watches anime, plays video games, and occasionally writes and draws. You can also listen to her on the Fandom Post Radio podcast, available wherever fine podcasts are streamed.