Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory

Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory
Cover of the Blu-ray re-release of the compilation movie The Last Glow of Zeon/Afterglow of Zeon
機動戦士ガンダム0083 STARDUST MEMORY (Kidō Senshi Gandamu Daburuōeitīsurī Sutādasuto Memorī)
Genre	Military science fiction, Mecha
Original video animation
Directed by	Mitsuko Kase, Takashi Imanishi
Studio	Sunrise
Released	May 23, 1991 – September 24, 1992
Episodes	13
Anime film
Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: The Last Blitz of Zeon
Directed by	Takashi Imanishi
Studio	Sunrise
Released	August 29, 1992
Runtime	120 minutes
Anime and Manga Portal

Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory (機動戦士ガンダム0083 STARDUST MEMORY, Kidō Senshi Gandamu Daburuōeitīsrī Sutādasuto Memorī^?) is a 13-episode anime OVA series set in the Gundam universe. The first volume containing two 30-minute episodes was released in Japan on May 23, 1991. Subsequent volumes, containing one 30-minute episode each, followed every one or two months; the final volume went on sale on September 24, 1992. The series was directed by Mitsuko Kase (Episodes 1–7) and Takashi Imanishi (Eps 8–13). The characters were designed by Toshihiro Kawamoto. Mechanical designs were by Shoji Kawamori (of Macross fame) and Hajime Katoki. Gundam 0083 is licensed in North America by Bandai Entertainment and is available on VHS and DVD.

Premise

Set during October and November UC 0083, the series focuses on the crew of the Earth Federation Space Force assault carrier Albion as they try to recover a nuclear-armed Gundam mobile suit stolen by a Zeon group at a base in Australia. Little do they know that the theft is part of a greater plan to destabilize the Earth Federation by dropping a colony on North America to damage the Earth's food supply. At the same time, the Zeon forces stationed on the Axis asteroid base send a small force to prepare for the main body's arrival.

In the larger Universal Century storyline, 0083 depicts the transition of the Earth Federation between the events of Mobile Suit Gundam and Zeta Gundam, providing a backstory for the rise of the Titans organization.

Episode list

#	Title
01	"Gundamjack" "Gandamu Gōdatsu" (ガンダム強奪)
In the prologue (set during the Battle of A Bao A Qu in December UC0079), Zeon ace pilot Anavel Gato returns from combat to find Admiral Aiguille Delaz telling him of the deaths of Gihren and Kycilia Zabi, as the Zeon forces surrender. Despite the shock defeat, both men retreat and plan the return of Zeon. In October UC 0083, the Federation space carrier Albion delivers two Gundam Development Project (GDP) prototypes, the RX-78 GP01 Zephyranthes and the GP02A Physalis, to the Torrington Base in Australia for ground testing under the aegis of Anaheim Electronics engineer Nina Purpleton. Because of lax security, a Zeon mole helps Gato infiltrate the base and hijack the GP02 just after its nuclear weapon is loaded in the middle of the night. Having witnessed Gato activate the mobile suit, Ensign Kou Uraki takes over the Zephyranthes and prepares to face him just as Zeon forces assault the base.
02	"Endless Pursuit" "Owarinaki Tsuigeki" (終わりなき追撃)
Kou, his friend Chuck Keith, and veterans South Burning and Dick Allen follow Gato through the outback in an attempt to recapture the Physalis. Zeon forces ambush them and kill Allen as Gato awaits a Komusai shuttle for extraction. Kou destroys the shuttle but it is actually a diversion - Gato escapes on a submarine that provided covering fire during the Torrington base attack.
03	"Into Battle, Albion!" "Shutsugeki Arubion" (出撃アルビオン)
Back at Torrington, Federation General John Kowen assigns Burning to lead the Albion's pursuit of Gato with a new crew of pilots to help him. Kou and Keith join the mission. Lt Bernard Monsha, one of the new additions, doubts Kou's capability to fly the GP01. Despite Nina's assurance that Kou handled the mobile suit well, Monsha challenges him to a first-shot mobile suit duel to see who better deserves to pilot the Zephyranthes. Although Kou wins the match, Burning intervenes and sends both pilots to one week in the brig. Meanwhile, Gato heads for the Kinbareid diamond mine in East Africa, which is still occupied by Zeon holdouts from the One Year War.
04	"Attack and Retreat on the Burning Sand" "Nessa no Kōbōsen" (熱砂の攻防戦)
Somewhere in East Africa, the Albion goes on patrol, while Monsha faces Albion chief engineer Mora Bascht's wrath for hitting on the ship's female crew and trying to sabotage Kou's landing after his search patrol. Gato arrives at Kinbareid and boosts the morale of the soldiers. Meanwhile, Orville - the Zeon mole who helped Gato's infiltration in the first episode - has been unmasked and flies out in a Core Fighter II to warn Kinbareid of the Albion's patrols but could not find the base complex and is shot down by a Zaku patrol. The Zeon forces mobilize and attack the Albion to buy time for Gato and the GP02 to fly into orbit using one Heavy Launch Vehicle still in the base. The base holdouts surrender as soon as Gato flies away.
05	"Gundam, to the Sea of Stars" "Gandamu, Hoshi no Umi he" (ガンダム、星の海へ)
Gato flies back to the Garden of Thorns, a secret Zeon colony base in the Shoal Zone, to present the GP02 to Delaz. However, a chance encounter with Zeon commander Cima Garahau rankles him when their ships almost collide. Upon delivering the GP02, Delaz makes an Earth Sphere-wide declaration of war, explaining that the GP02 and its nuclear weapon is proof of the Earth Federation's military buildup. Meanwhile, aboard the Albion, Nina tries to get closer to a dense Kou when the alert sounds. Kou and the rest of the Albion's mobile suit pilots engage the Zeon intruders. However, Nina's warning about the GP-01's poor mobility in space without the so-called Full Vernian backpack proves true as Kou crashlands in the Albion under heavy damage.
06	"The Warrior of Von Braun" "Fon Buraun no Senshi" (フォン・ブラウンの戦士)
The Albion arrives at Von Braun City on the Moon to have the GP01 upgraded to Full Vernian while the crew goes on shore leave. A snide comment from Monsha at a bar prompts Kou to wander around the city where he is beaten up by some thugs. A one-armed man named Kelly Layzner rescues him and brings him to a junkyard where he lives with his lover. Kou learns of Kelly's origins as a Zeon pilot and helps him fix a Val Varo mobile armor that has been hidden for years. He returns to the Albion and begins testing the Full Vernian-equipped GP01. Elsewhere in the city, Cima blackmails Anaheim boss Gilbert O'Sullivan with a colony drop if he talks to the Federation about her. She also tells Kelly to get the Val Varo ready for action.
07	"With Shining Blue Fire" "Aoku Kagayaku Honō de" (蒼く輝く炎で)
Cima's blackmailing apparently works, as Anaheim asks Nina to be reassigned away from the Albion and out of the mobile suit development team altogether. Keith, who dates Mora, offers Kou movie tickets so he can ask Nina out after a field test. He does make a move, but a remark about the tests angers Nina again. Meanwhile, Kelly gets paid in gold bullion for his work on the Val Varo, but is shocked to hear that the Zeon forces do not want him piloting it for the new campaign. Incensed, Kelly takes out the mobile armor and challenges Kou to fight him so he could prove himself worthy of joining the Delaz Fleet again. When Nina gets in the way, Kou finally admits his feelings for her and defeats Kelly, who does not bail out from the exploding Val Varo because he never installed an escape system.
08	"Conspiracy Sector" "Sakubō no Chūiki" (策謀の宙域)
A few days out of Von Braun, Burning continues to train Kou and Keith, who later eggs him to try giving Nina a chance. Keith also earns Mora's ire for showing him Monsha's private collection of Nina pictures. A resupply rendezvous by a Federation ship is cut short as the Albion detects the Federation flagship Birmingham, with General Green Wyatt aboard - meeting with Cima. In the midst of the ensuing battle, Burning retrieves a briefcase that contains files for something called "Operation Stardust" and talks with Kou about them. However, a minor hit on Burning's GM Custom during the battle turns fatal, as the mobile suit careens out of control and explodes. Uraki is promoted to junior lieutenant as the crew mourns Burning's death.
09	"The Nightmare of Solomon" "Soromon no Akumu" (ソロモンの悪夢)
Kou and Keith continue to fight Zeon forces while on patrol near Konpeitoh (Solomon). As Delaz welcomes the Axis Advance Fleet into the Earth Sphere, Gato prepares for his own part of an attack on Konpeitoh, which is hosting the Naval Review. The Delaz Fleet keeps probing the Federation defenses, keeping Kou occupied. A defense satellite detects Gato breaking through another sector and Uraki is ordered to intercept him before he crashes the Review. He fails to get to Gato in time, as the Zeon pilot fires the GP02's MK82 nuclear bazooka at the Federation fleet with the Birmingham in the center of his sights.
10	"Colliding War Zones" "Gekitotsu Sen'iki" (激突戦域)
Gato retreats after the nuclear strike destroys two-thirds of the Federation's fleet, but runs into Kou. As Nina breaks down watching them fight, both of their mobile suits take heavy damage and the pilots flee before they explode. Meanwhile, Cima's fleet hijacks two colonies in transport and later blow off one mirror each from them. When the Albion crew is informed of the colonyjack, Nina correctly theorizes that the colonies will crash into each other, with one in direct course for the Moon. She also reveals the existence of a third Gundam built under the GDP.
11	"La Vie En Rose" "Ra Bi An Rōzu" (ラビアンローズ)
The Albion arrives at Anaheim Electronics' La Vie En Rose research ship to get the GP03 Dendrobium Stamen, where they are met by designer Lucette Auduvie and Federation officer Nakaha Nakato. Almost immediately, Nakato tells the crew that the GDP has been suspended and they are all confined to the Albion until further notice. Lucette shows Kou the GP03's diagrams and later sacrifices her life to stop Nakato killing Kou as he takes over the GP03 with the Albion crew's help and leave La Vie En Rose. Meanwhile, the Federation command expresses indifference at the upcoming Zeon colony drop on the Moon. The Konpeitoh survivors mobilize and try to stop it, but run out of fuel when Cima maneuvers to have Von Braun City's laser station activate the colony's engines to redirect it toward Earth. Gato also meets up with the Axis Advance Fleet, where he gets the massive Neue Ziel mobile armor and tries it against a small Federation patrol.
12	"Assault on the Point of No Return" "Kyōshū, Soshi Genkaiten" (強襲、阻止限界点)
Kou and Gato, now in their mobile armors, finally take each other on as the Albion crew tries to stop the colony before it passes the minimum limit for terminal entry. Cima's crew takes Delaz hostage aboard his flagship, the Gwaden. At Jaburo, General Kowen desperately tries to convince EFSF supreme commander Gen Gene Collini of mobilizing the military's full might to stop the colony, but Jamitov Hymem has Kowen taken away. Delaz discovers that the Federation has deployed the Solar System II mirror array past the terminal entry point and encourages Gato to see the operation through - before Cima kills him. Out of rage, Gato drives one of the Neue Ziel's claws at the Gwaden bridge.
13	"A Storm Raging Through" "Kakenukeru Arashi" (駆け抜ける嵐)
The battle to stop the colony goes full-blast, with the Federation and Cima's forces working together to protect the Solar System II on one hand and the Delaz fleet shepherding the colony on the other while the Axis Advance Fleet stands back. Kou kills Cima in the fracas. The Solar System II fires, but Gato destroys the command ship, resulting in a weaker blast that barely damages the colony. As it breaks through the solar array, Gato enters the colony and inputs the final course corrections. Kou tries to stop him, but Nina interferes and protects Gato as they leave, revealing that they were once lovers. The two pilots continue to fight after Gato has Karius bring Nina to safety. The Solar System II remnants fire again, with many forces on both sides destroyed as the colony crashes into the Midwest. The Federation orders the Axis Advance Fleet to leave the Earth Sphere immediately, having overstayed their welcome, but Gato leads the Delaz Fleet survivors to attempt a breakthrough and dies in a kamikaze attack on a Federation ship. Several weeks later, Hymem and Bask Om announce the creation of the Titans. All records of Operation Stardust and the GDP are erased, including Kou's one-year hard labour sentence. He eventually reunites with Nina, Keith, and Mora.

Releases

Compilation Movie

Just before the completion of the Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory OVA in September 1992, the series was reformatted into a compilation movie which was released under the title Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: The Last Blitz of Zeon (ジオンの残光|Jion no Zankō). This feature opened in Japanese theaters on August 29, 1992.

To date, Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: The Last Blitz of Zeon has not been released in America (apparently due to the lack of original footage), however it has been released in France, Italy, Benelux, Germany, and received a UK DVD release in May 2006 as Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: The Afterglow Of Zeon. Bandai Visual announced the Blu-ray release of the movie in 2011.

Home Media

A special VHS sneak peek of the first episode titled GxG Unit was given to advance ticket purchasers of Gundam F91.

The series was reissued in DVD format in Japan on four volumes; the first R2 disc went on sale on January 25, 2000.

Bandai Entertainment licensed the series for the US market. The series was released on VHS in dubbed and subtitled versions in 1999 to coincide with the Gundam Big Bang Project. It spanned 7 VHS volumes and was also available in a box set. Volume 1 of the R1 DVD went on sale in January 2002. Cartoon Network premiered the series on U.S. television a month later on its Adult Swim Action block, where it remained until November 2002.

Bandai is scheduled to release a DVD boxed set in Japan on May 27, 2011, as part of the series' 20th anniversary. ^[1]

Models

With the release of the original series in 1991, Bandai produced 1/144 kits of the GP-01 and GP-01-Fb Zephyranthes, GP-02 Physalis, GP-03 Dendrobium Stamen, and AGX-04 Gerbera Tetra. All but the AGX-04 were later released under the HGUC line, with the GP-02A also available in another kit with an MLRS launcher. Stardust Memory's HGUC line also has the GP-03 Dendrobium in 1/144 scale, not to mention it being available in 1/550 scale alongside the Val-Varo and the Neue Ziel. At least six mobile suits from the series have been released under Bandai's Master Grade line.

Radio Drama

Gundam 0083's canon includes two radio dramas on CD format billed as Cinema CDs. Both drama CDs were directed by series director Takashi with dialogue by Asahide Ōkuma (writer for 5 of the 0083 episodes).

Runga Offing Cannonade Battle (ルンガ沖砲撃戦, Runga-Oki Hōgekisen^?)

Runga Offing narrates events between Episodes 7 and 8, when the Albion engages a Chivvay-class Zeon warship. It introduces a new character, Aristide Hughes, the Albion's Gunnery Lieutenant.

Mayfly of Space (宇宙の蜉蝣, Uchū no Kagerō^?)

Mayfly reveals Cima's backstory in flashbacks as she reflects on her past prior to the events of Episode 13. It reveals that Cima and her unit poisoned a Side 5 colony using G-3 nerve gas, under orders, but were treated as pariahs afterwards by their own countrymen for committing such an atrocity. At the end of the war her superior refused to let her retreat to Axis. Because their home colony Mahal had been converted into a weapon, Cima and her men were left stranded and homeless.

Both of these stories appear in the PlayStation 2 game Mobile Suit Gundam: Encounters in Space.

Novelization and Comic Book

The story of 0083 was retold in prose form by Hiroshi Yamaguchi in three volumes. The books were published by Kadokawa Shoten and contain illustrations by Toshihiro Kawamoto, Hirotoshi Sano and Hajime Katoki.

Viz Communications also released all episodes in a comic book format from 1994 to 1995. However, instead of a manga, they used screenshots from each episode for the panels. Line art and descriptions of all units were inserted as well.

Characters

Earth Federation

Mora Bascht, Chap Adel, Bernard Monsha, Kou Uraki, Chuck Keith, Alpha Bate

Kou Uraki

Ensign Kou Uraki is a 19-year-old Federation test pilot stationed at the Torrington base in Australia. When Anavel Gato steals the Gundam GP02A, Kou goes after him in the GP01. He is later assigned to the Albion's mobile suit team under the command of Lieutenant South Burning with orders to either recapture or destroy the GP02A. Voiced by: Ryo Horikawa (Japanese), Joshua Seth (English)

Nina Purpleton

Head engineer of the project that developed the two Gundams, which she is extremely protective over. She reluctantly allows Kou to pilot GP01 in order to recapture GP02A and the two of them slowly begin a romantic relationship. She is later revealed to have a romantic past with Anavel Gato. Voiced by: Rei Sakuma (Japanese), Dorothy Elias-Fahn (English)

Eiphar Synapse

Captain Eiphar Synapse is the commanding officer of the ship Albion, which is given the tall order of recapturing the stolen Gundam GP02A. Voiced by: Chikao Otsuka (Japanese), Simon Issacson (English)

South Burning

A senior pilot at the Federation's Torrington base, Lieutenant South Burning serves as mobile suit company commander for the Albion. He pilots a RGM-79C GM and later a RGM-79N GM Custom. He dies in the eighth episode when his GM suddenly malfunctions, but not before picking up a briefcase carrying details of what is known as "Operation Stardust." Voiced by: Masashi Sugawara (Japanese), George C. Cole (English)

Chuck Keith

Kou's wingman at the Torrington Base, he is likewise reassigned to the Albion as part of its mobile suit team. He is initially seen piloting a Zeon Zaku II captured by the Earth Federation but later pilots a GM Cannon II. Over the course of the series, he has a romantic connection with Albion chief mechanic Mora Bascht. Voiced by: Yoshiharu Yamada (Japanese), Sean Mitchell (English)

Bernard Monsha

Lieutenant Junior Grade Bernard Monsha is one of three mobile suit pilots assigned to the Albion after the theft at Torrington. He takes an immediate dislike to Kou and Keith, especially Kou for being chosen to pilot the Gundam GP01 despite a lack of experience. When he is not on duty, Monsha likes to drink, gamble, and chase women. Voiced by: Chafurin

Alpha Bate

Lieutenant Junior Grade Alpha Bate is another reinforcement pilot who served under Lieutenant Burning along with Monsha and Adel during the One-Year War. Although he is calmer and less obnoxious than Monsha, he has a tendency to encourage his friend's misbehavior, but that does not prevent him from being promoted to deputy commander of the mobile suit team. He and Monsha, plus the rest of the Albion's bridge crew are eventually drafted into the Titans. Voiced by: Kouji Totani (Japanese), Mike D'Gord (English)

Chap Adel

Lieutenant Junior Grade Chap Adel is the third reinforcement pilot assigned to the Albion and the most mild-mannered of the three. Voiced by: Yuji Mikimoto (Japanese), Jack Hammer (English)

Mora Bascht

Lieutenant Junior Grade Mora Bascht is a tall, big-boned female mechanic who serves as chief of maintenance on board the Albion and friend to Nina. She takes a liking to Chuck ever since she met him.Voiced by: Kazue Ikura (Japanese), Jane Alan (English)

Principality of Zeon

Anavel Gato

Lieutenant Commander Anavel Gato is a former member of the Principality of Zeon's elite palace guard unit. During the One Year War, at the Battle of Solomon, Gato earns the nickname "Nightmare of Solomon". He joins Aiguille Delaz's fleet late in the war, and departs with them when the war ends. He returns to Earth in October UC 0083 to seize the Gundam GP02A, and later uses this mobile suit's nuclear weapon against the Earth Federation's Naval Review in Episode 9. He dies in Episode 13 leading a suicide charge against the Earth Federation fleet after inputting the Island East colony's final impact point. Voiced by: Akio Ōtsuka (Japanese), Kirk Thornton (English)

Aiguille Delaz

A die-hard supporter of Gihren Zabi's ideals, self-promoted Vice-Admiral Aiguille Delaz was a colonel of a Zeon flotilla during the One Year War. He refuses to join the survivors retreating to Axis and spends the next three years in a secret colony base called Thorn Garden. He dies at Cima Garahau's hands in Episode 12 after encouraging Gato to push ahead with the colony drop. Voiced by: Kiyoshi Kobayashi (Japanese), Richard Barnes (English)

Cima Garahau

Cima Garahau is a commander of a group of former Zeon marines who are called upon by Delaz to help him execute Operation Stardust. It is later revealed that she is playing both sides. She pilots an MS-14Fs Gelgoog Marine and later the AGX-04 Gerbera Tetra. Voiced by: Mari Mashiba (Japanese), Carol Stanzione (English)

Kelly Layzner

Appearing in the sixth episode, Kelly Layzner is a former Zeon lieutenant who fought alongside Gato during the One Year War, ultimately losing his left arm. When Kou is beaten up by hoodlums in Von Braun City, Kelly helps him recover his mental faculties and the two become friends. However, the two of them are well aware that if they meet in battle, they will have no choice but to fight each other. He pilots the Val Varo mobile armor. Voiced by: Tesshō Genda (Japanese), Richard Epcar (English)

Openings, Endings and Insert Songs

Opening/Insert:

• Back to Paradise by Miki Matsubara (Episode 1)

Openings:

• The Winner by Miki Matsubara (Episodes 2 to 7)
• Men of Destiny by MIO (Episodes 8 to 12)

Endings:

• Magic by Jacob Wheeler (Episodes 1 to 7)
• Evergreen by MIO (Episodes 8 to 13 ~ In its full version in episode 13's ending)
• True Shining by Rumiko Wada (Compilation movie ending)

References

1. ^ http://www.gundam0083.net/products/dvd-box.html

• Gundam Film Book Series 5 Gundam 0083 Stardust Memory ISBN 4-7511-0262-1

External links

• Official Websites: Anime, GundamOfficial
• Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory (anime) at Anime News Network's Encyclopedia

Preceded by Mobile Suit Gundam F91	Gundam metaseries (production order) 1991 — 1992	Succeeded by Mobile Suit Victory Gundam
Preceded by Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket	Gundam Universal Century timeline U.C. 0083	Succeeded by Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam