Gundam Wing | Why is it So Popular?
It is widely believed that “Mobile Suit Gundam Wing” is the series that ignited the western love for Gundam, and it is very popular in Japan because it marked the beginning of the Universal Century (UC) timeline.
The storyline is set around some powerful and interesting topics like the meaning of pacifism, the place of remote-controlled weaponry in war, romance, and more.
For over 10 years now, Gundam Wing (GW) has remained the most globally popular and well-known mecha anime series.
When It Came Out The Plot Of Gundam Wing Was Intriguing
The very beginning of Gundam Wing’s appeal and popularity is its plot.
Set in the distant future, mankind’s colonization of space and oppression had brought together 5 disaffected scientists from the Organization of the Zodiac, more commonly referred to as OZ, to search for paths to peace.
The plot twists around 5 Gundam pilots with their individual backstories giving the series its super effect. There is no way you’ll not have a favorite among them.
The Realism Of The Serie Made It Easy To Relate To
In the Gundam Wing Series, there is no strong focus on space battles with oversized aliens.
It became more popular because it brought the storyline back home with human versus human duels.
Every soldier went into battle in their powered mechas with all the limitations of real war vehicles. Their human pilots were as human as any human could be, and could even get injured or killed.
The real live atmosphere and humane settings also portrayed a likeness of WW2. All these contributed to the popularity of the Gundam Wing.
The Theme Is Patriotic
The Gundam Wing reflected the struggles that came with the fight for Independence and a stand against the oppressive ruling class.
This resonated with the audience and helped build a connection and strong appeal, which in turn boosted the popularity of the Gundam Wing anime
Gundam Wing Is Full Of Action
This is one of the major reasons people love the mecha anime Gundam series, and Gundam Wing comes with a ton of it.
The story literally starts off with a bang, and besides a few slow-paced moments, the battles were super fast, furious, and very fascinating.
It could be said that Gundam Wing has the best battle scenes.
Gundam Wing Had an Amazing Design
The super well-detailed designs of the Gundam Wing gave it an iconic edge and a boost in the marketplace.
As the series was rolled out, the sales of the Gundam Wing Gunpla skyrocketed immediately after it was introduced into the western market.
With so many mobile suits in one series, one would expect a blend of everything and no uniqueness, but the Gundam Wing was able to make each one stand out.
Everyone gets hooked on such detailed, sturdy, and solid designs.
The Fierce samurai face, the V-fins, the streamlined armor, the extending dragon arms, the wings that have a feather attachment, missiles, Gatling guns, and much more are features that make these Gunpla irresistible.
All these factors contributed to the huge popularity of the Gundam Wing.
The Lead Characters
The Gundam Wing introduced a more appealing and interesting pilot look for the Lead characters that exhibited a lot of growth alongside the show theme.
This appealed to the male gender as super cool and gave the boy band appeal to the female gender.
With such a dynamic and diverse cast of protagonists, the Gundam Wing provided its audience with a variant of peak bishounen era specimens, so whoever watched the show was bound to fall in love with at least one character.
Super Sentai Sensibilities
The Gundam Wing series had the sentai sensibility features, and this was the first time a Gundam series would have a team of mobile suit pilots working together.
This was a super appealing feature to both new and old enthusiasts and helped boost the popularity of the Gundam Wing series.
You Have To Like The Opening Theme
Another reason for the popularity of the Wing Gundam is its opening theme. The general effect can only be termed as iconic and elegant.
The jaunty electronic pop song, complete with mobile suit sound effects is still one of the best openings of any Gundam series.
Everyone who has seen the show definitely remembers the first opening because of how iconic it is.
The Theme
The Gundam Wing theme portrayed a narrative that exposed the considerations of child soldiers and how war affects those who may not be directly involved in fighting it.
The anime was able to create a theme that sells an understanding of war and its devastation without fuss.
This resonated with the audience and helped increase the popularity and ranking of the Gundam Wing.
Strategic Marketing
Another reason the Gundam Wing has an edge was its strategic streaming.
It was aired during the Toonami and was also the first Gundam show to be broadcast on North American TV.
This debut timing was also an advantage to its popularity at the time as mainstream interest in anime had just started surging rapidly.
The Gundam Wing Serie Was Beautiful
The artwork in the anime was nothing short of beautiful.
The bishounen was drawn to the highest level of perfection, and this played a part in drawing large female audiences to the show.
Summing Up
If you’ll watch Gundam Wing Today You probably won’t make it to the end of the series (I tried).
When I tried Watching it again, a few years ago, the animation looked cheap, the dialog sometimes didn’t make any sense and Wufei’s idea of justice is not something I like.
But due to nostalgia, I must say that it is a good Gundam series
To understands the popularity of Gunadm Wing it is important to understand that when it came out (1995 in Japan) it was progressive, not the era’s narrative.
In the US and Europe, it blew up among kids and youth with the rise of anime in the west.
