Yeah, hopefully they'll be more open to it since we're done with the 40th anniversary of gundam and gunpla so Sunrise might be slowing down on UC projects (assuming there aren't some I'm just not aware of being made) and they finished their latest build series so they have schedule openings. Nevermind the prospect of Bandai selling close to 5 dozen gundam kits and who knows how many mobile armors. C'mon guys shit practically prints money!
Yeah, I am all for this! We only got to see a handful of the Gundams, so if anything else, it would give some mecha designers out there a really wide canvas to build some unique designs! Also can't lie, it would be a giant underdog story to see the beginnings of Gjallahorn and their process of building 72 frames and naming them all after demons. Then the actual campaigns and battles! Mikazuki had to injure himself significantly (partial paralysis) to beat one mobile armor alone. Did Gundams in that era end up 'eating' pilots?? Was there a list of people willing to pilot a Gundam that was getting harder and harder to find candidates for? We all saw how even one mobile armor was enough to send TWO nearby Gundams into shutdown! Plus, 72 Gundams means 24 teams of 3 units each, so you have lots of character dynamics possible amongst Gundam pilots, their supporting team members, and any other non-Gundam pilots using more standard units. Yeah, next IBO series NEEDS to be about Calamity War. Easiest win for Gundam ever, in my book!
I thought a thing IBO was trying to do was similar to what Wing touched on but didn't dwell on; namely, while giant robot series tend to naturally have plucky teen pilots for the audience to relate to, being a child soldier messes you the hell up. Mika is a once-in-a-century talent, able to awaken a legendary machine to its full potential in a way no one else can. He can do this not because he is genetically unique or spiritually superior, but because he has no regard for his own safety as a child soldier who was subjected to inhumane technology. Mika's life experience means he doesn't really have a conscience a lot of the time; he relies on Orga for a sense of right and wrong and Orga's own perspective is skewed because while he is a smart kid who wants to look after his found family, he was raised in a might-makes-right system where anything worth having must be taken-and defended-with violence. I feel like the fact Julieta tries to ask what cause Mika could possibly have that keeps him going when he should already be dead only to realize Mika doesn't understand the question is significant. McGillis and Julieta both try to establish some sort of rapport with Mika; McGillis is disappointed and repulsed by the realization the kid he's so interested in doesn't really have anything in common with him at all besides them both being traumatized, and Julieta understanding she's fighting someone who was never raised to view anything but violence as a valid choice turns victory to ashes in her mouth. I thought it was also interesting that the antagonists, despite your framing of them as hero antagonists, are ALSO punished harshly for choosing to escalate violence rather than seek peace. Orga GIVES UP. He is willing to show his belly and surrender unconditionally to Rustal to keep his family alive; Rustal refuses because he's not done slaughtering them to make an example of anyone that picks a fight with Gjallerhorn. His decision to do this, however, prompts Mika's last stand, and what should have been a quiet end to McGillis's sad little rebellion turns into a nightmarish slaughter; dozens of Rustal's men die unnecessarily, Iok is butchered, Julieta is lucky to still be alive, and ultimately Iok's demise is a deathblow to the system Rustal was trying to uphold. He's forced to accept change he did not want because his decision to escalate and retaliate turned around and bit him. Maybe not as badly as Orga's decision to start a fight, but still.
So rustal is forced to make changes because there is no other way for 7 stars council to still working (kujan, Fareed, etc is ended) I though he really want to make democratic gjalahorn from the start
Two things. First, you failed to mention how the Barbatos became more monstrous as the series progressed. Sort of a mirror to what Tekkadan had become. Second, I never saw McGillis as a tyrant. McGillis is an idealist and a product of the corrupt system he wished to overthrow. His character is beautifully fleshed out. McGillis became merciless as a means of survival and his love for the legend of Bael came as a means to mentally cope with the abuse he was subjected to. The same can be said for Tekkadan. Both are products of their environment and both wished to change things for the better.
Barbatos and Bael are both named after demons and it's almost as if Barbatos is slowly beginning to possess Mika. Along with the design getting more monstrous Mika's actions and the amount of power Barbatos grants him until Mika can no longer move without being connected to the Gundam.
This. People tend to forget that McGillis is also a victim of the Space Debris system, buried under a mountain of trauma and surrounded by people who perpetuated his abuse (or are at least a symbol of it). Like Tekkadan, his entire life has taught him that the only way out is through force or manipulation, and in a way it's true. He can't be like Kudelia, who is a product of her privileged life and upbringing as a human being afforded actual human dignity. Choosing the peaceful option and "working within the system" requires trust, and we can't expect people like McGillis to have that trust in a system that trampled him underfoot and caged him with his rapist.
I completely agree. Although the 'protagonist' we follow in IBO are seen as the bad guys by the 'antagonist'? They are very much FORCED into that prospect due to both their environment and the situations they were pushed into by people from Season 1. They merely took the only path available to them in order to achieve their goal because quite literally? Every other path was cut off from them. So it was either "We stop what we are doing and go back to what we used to be" or "Keep going no matter what". The way I look at it? There are no good guys, or bad guys. No Heroes, no villains in this series. No side was without sin and everyone could only do what they could based on their given situations.
IBO was really a rollercoaster of an anime and is one of my favorite animes right now. I really love that it's getting a lot of attention now, Cause it definitely deserves it!
Agreed. I love IBO to this day and even after watching shows like 00, Unicorn and Narrative, I still love IBO to this day. The way the fights are done to the way it blends politics with action. I just love IBO the most.
@@muchluck7981 honestly dude agreed it was actually my first Gundam that I actually watched and paid attention to and I just loved it from the fact that they use really primitive tech (like bullets and bladed weapons) to the politics and conflicts the cast goes through it's just amazing!! ALSO AKIHIRO IS JACKED that basically does it for me lol (maybe I should make a vidoe on IBO)
If you look at it, Orga getting a bit more impulsive ever since Biscuit's (basically their "voice of reason") death in S1 kind of foreshadowed Tekkadan's inevitable doom at the end of S2 (which is full of rash moves by Orga). I love season 2 despite its imperfections, although I do agree that the same was a bit rushed.
@@muchluck7981 True. The only problem with Orga, and what basically led to Tekkadan's downfall at the end of S2, was his rashness as seen in him taking "the shortest route" possible without actually considering the possible consequences. Without Biscuit to serve as his voice of reason, no one else stood the chance to talk some sense to Orga before it was too late.
So what you’re saying is IBO is pretty much “you either die as the hero or you live long enough to see you’re self die as the villain.” But in this case are protagonist technically did become kinda the antagonist
Your quote is correct, and probably the best summation of what the plot of IBO is. I'm sure there's also a quote about being obsessed with power that would apply too. But just a small correction. a protagonist is just the leading character of a story and the antagonist is the character opposing them. There's not actually any requirement for being good or evil. Tekkadan, more specifically Orga and Mikazuki, are always the protagonists, even when they become the villains of the story.
@@Jaynesslessly True. But both sides can be considered villains. One doesn't have to be the hero. Both sides here make very questionable decisions. Whether we are talking about the manipulations of McGillis or the use of banned weapons like the Dainsleif
@@user-nv9vi9de8p but they do become villians, humans by all means but still villians. They seeked to impose their views over others, taking "the fastest route" as Orga calls it, and facing the consequences of it in way of their failures. This series works as a warning to the line of "the line between light and darkness is so thin yet so distant "
Man this show was such an amazing slow burn. The last fight always brings me to tears. The build up and pay off is some of the best I've seen in modern anime. They could not live in the world that they wanted to create and died for their sins. The ultimate martyrdom. Thank you for video essay of this show. It deserves it.
IBO was the first Gundam series I watched fully; imagine my dismay when I went on to discover the different timelines and universes wanting to watch the franchise from the beginning after that.
@@akou12 I didn't say they weren't I am just sad it isn't one continuous timeline. IBO is still my favorite but I am really enjoying the others as a catch up on the franchise
@@icheatinexam5606 I was powering through the UC timeline and got up to victory then I decided to start watching some of the AU timelines so watching 00 right now
Honestly I see this as a near perfect Gundam show. The themes are so strong and they feel as clear as any other Gundam series. The characters are complex and you can see when they're making a bad turn. Hell you can see which way Orga is going to go by the end of season one and it is entirely down to Biscuit's death. The fact that Mika feels such strong loyalty for him that he just follows blindly is so tragic and neither Orga or Mika fully understand that. And the show makes it clear that despite the bad things they do the rest of the cast do them because they don't see any other path.
one of my favourite parts about orga and mika's relationship is the fact that mika asserts himself for the first time in the series just before orga dies, and after the fact, he acts on his own accord until he dies, and asserts himself - hell, he even gains a degree of emotional awareness with the way he plays into hush's last wishes to be validated by him as he dies. orga and mika have such a beautifully illustrated codependant relationship where the two enable each others worst habits and i adore it
I think a better more exact way of seeing this is "Kids with too much power, get in way over their heads" Remember most of the characters here are between 12-16 years old and got ahold of Very powerful weapons, and it shows how Power can corrupt, even more so for children, plus it also shows how children/teens are easily manipulated by others into thinking 'Its the right thing to do" and Children/Teens think more emotionally than logically hence some of the brutal and dumb choices they make. Plus the ending could have been on Kill em all Tomino level, but luckly most of the people working on it protested and said that was too cruel. So we got possibly the best ending for Tekadan. I often call this series "The Berserk of MSG" As its dark and gritty as heck and deals with heavy materials like Berserk, heck some of the characters are similar to Berserk characters (HELL ONE OF THEM WE JOKINGLY CALL TEEN GUTS!) I personally Prefer IBO Over Build Divers any day honestly, Hot button topic I know
@@TheKing-qz9wd Yeah I could go over everything on Why I don't like the Build Divers series, Its a rather petty as crap reason too >n>; I was Actually fine with Build Fighters and I Adored Build Fighters Tri, but Divers and Especially Re:Rise Rubs me in all the wrong ways If I will complement the crap out of however its All the Gundam Designs they are 11/10 awesome and yeah I would like to get Gunpla of them.
@@lionheart1013 I actually disliked all of the build series. I will take advantage of the opprutunities provided though, as they can get us updated kits that are better than ever if we are lucky.
OK, so the fans may have IBO pretty hyped-up, but I still feel the series is underrated in the size o its fanbase relative to other Gundam. Personally I still feel it's of higher writing quality than more popular series like Wing, SEED, ect, but that's obviously subjective. I've always felt that Gundam's strength was at its more serious end, like in Zeta and 08th MS Team, hence why I like IBO's grittier and more grounded angle...
Beggining of season 2 is beautiful irony. They were so effective, everyone and their mother started reincorporating child soldiers into their ranks. One other thing you didn't mention, the 300 year old calamity war gets told through bits of dialogue and worldbuilding, no flashbacks. What do I mean? A few hints. AV system can only be done on children. The operation is faulty and wasn't developed for 300 years, so the 72 Gundam pilots stood atop a mountain of children. The way the machine makes you fight beyond death (final fight, when the 3 axes hit, Mika has his neck break and he continues operating), as well as seeing one of the mobile armors and why the Gundams here are what they are. Also, I always considered it a story of greys, Children fighting for their dreams, going by their broken logic, Tekkadan for a strange concept of a promised land seen by the broken eyes of an abused child soldier, as well as McGillis and his belief in legends, versus the cold realist Rustal Ellion (one of my fav characters), and the people who follow him to their grave, as well as the final realization of how pointless the fight was, as all 3 sides in this conflict were going for the same goal, just different roads. It's one of my top 10 of all time shows, so I'm a bit biased, but now you get your sub for talking about this underappreciated gem. :) Great analysis, and I was stunned that people find s2 bad for some odd reason.
I too was shocked to hear that people generally don't like season 2. It felt rushed and disappointing, but not bad. I can't agree with you on Rustal (he's a dick), but it's also one of my favorite shows.
I thought Rustal was 1 of the corrupt members of Gjallerhorn & his actions were definitely those of a villain. Keep in mind cutting off an enemy's chance to surrender is a huge war crime & he used outlawed weapons to slaughter child soldiers. I actually expect him to try awful things when working with Kudelia in the epilogue.
While I wouldn’t call season 2 bad, I would call it nothing more than a disappointment mascerating as a good story by using gundams “anti-war” message as meta to influence the series in such a stupid way. By giving the antagonists broken plot armor, failing to demonstrate why we should at all see Rustal and the other antagonists as “heroes” unless you look at it from an idiotic meta perspective. And if you think I’m wrong lemme ask you this. I have two questions. 1.) If iron blooded orphans was not a gundam series and instead was a stand alone mecha series, and if it was made in the exact same way, would you have enjoyed it? 2.) If iron blooded orphans was the first ever gundam series demonstrating gundams “anti-war” message and yet it was made the exact same way, would you still have enjoyed it? Personally I think not. Don’t use Meta to to drive the plot of your series and especially don’t use it to ruin the objective qualities of it so that you can demonstrate a messily gundam message about how broken plot armor is good as long as your going to kill the people who wanted to reform the corrupt system that brought so much hell to the world in the first place. There is no indication that Rustal ever wanted to change Ghallerhorn for the better as there is no indication that he even cares alittle bit about the public’s view and their opressive circumstances. He only changes because the past system of Gjallerhorn became broken by the hands of McGillis and Tekkaden, and therefore without them he would have never changed the system for the better. If the writers of the series really wanted to make the antagonists the heroes they should have made them morally superior in every way. Instead of simply giving them broken plot armor and a measly excuse to change the system for the better peacefully.
IIRC the AV system only works on children now because it’s dangerous and their bodies haven’t fully developed yet, meaning their bodies couldn’t fight the less effective AV system. However in the past the system was fully researched and could be done on adults (as shown by McGillis having a working AV system for use in Bael).
"The guy who wants to murder child slaves for defending themselves, and weaponized a murderous psychopath to do it, is better than the children trying to gain enough power to end child slavery." I get what you're trying to say, but the writing of IBO flopped hard if this is what they were going for. Becoming "kings of mars" was always about getting enough power to end the practice of using orphans as slave labor and cannon fodder. Their enemy in season 2 is the same corrupt organization that tried to kill them in season 1, led by a man who was every bit as tyrannical as McGillis. They were framed for crimes they didn't commit and cornered. It's hard to see that as anything other than a corrupt authoritarian regime doing everything possible to stay in power, and children being trampled on for that end.
And somehow Gjallarhorn just magically turns itself into a democratic government in the end after McGillis, the main figure behind the coup is killed while the rest of the corrupted Gjallarhorn higher-ups are still alive and kicking, that's not how it works man. Unless Rustal just decided to wipe them out as well with his mighty Dainsleif.
sounds pretty realistic, it's not the writing flopped but it's how you see it as unjustified and unfair which what i believe that what author aiming for, that's life also orga still a kid and naive he's paid the price for trying to achive "king of mars"
IBO represents the heros failing? Good in real life the "good guys" dont always win, sometimes bad choices lead to disastrous outcomes and smart people can go on to do dumb things when stuff finally starts going their way. Everything past Turn-A has had a really difficult time of not doing the old "Heros ride off into the sunset" thing even Turn-A for how few causalities and world ending events it had still ended on a somber bittersweet tone that was just so Gundam in the best possible way. Orga and Mcgilis were memorable characters because they were flawed human beings, and I certainly will remember them long after I forget the casts of shows like SEED or 00.
It's not them losing that's the problem. People can take bitter endings in Gundam, they're not something new and revolutionary. The problem is that this ending wasn't earned. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the ending. Granted, I enjoyed it because I never actually liked any of the fuckers except maybe Lafter and Space Guts (and even then, not that much), but I enjoyed it nonetheless. All the same, I can't call what happened realistic so much as a mid-season swap of plot armor and bullshit from Tekkadan over to Gjallarhorn.
@@laststrike4411 indeed, feels like it wanted to be zeta but didnt earned it before finding this video on recommended, i had forgotten about this series lol
Shino missing that shot was bullshit. Juliet threw a sword while fighting Mika that perfectly hit the target just enough to make the shot miss. That's like hitting a bullseye on a dartboard mounted on a bullet train while you fight Connor McGregor.
McGillis was supposed to be the 500IQ smartest guy ever lived in the series. His plan to conquering the world was, me got Freedom, me very strong, me is Jesus Yamato.
TBH, the series makes it pretty clear that, while that's how he views himself, his greatest success only became possible due to his patience, _despite_ how idiotically simplistic the actual plan was... The guy waited his whole life for a chance to betray his "father" and jumped at it the moment he saw the opportunity... which might also explain why he suddenly has zero patience by the second season.
@@themercifulguard3971 He thought that if Barbartos was this strong, then Bael is a lot far stronger as it's the first Gundam Frame and piloted by Agnika Kaieru.
When Biscuit and Maze died, you can already sense that Tekkadan would fall or at least major characters from the group would. The final nail in the coffin was when they more or less partnered with McGillis.
Wow, you perfectly put into words what made this series so different, and gave me an epiphany about this whole series. I was a huge fan of 008 war in the pocket (oav) because of the striking contrast of the story and erasing the lines of what is good and what is evil, and reminds us we are all humans with human flaws, ambitions, ideas, egos and desires.
I love the critical fail moments of IBO, it hammers home the overall grittier and less forgiving tone that the series is going for. It fits with the overall theme, being that pure will and determination is not enough to solve all problems. Sometimes you gotta use a screwdriver instead of a hammer, but Tekkadan kept using a hammer to solve its problems. It's not a failure of Tekkadan, it's just all they know. They're a bunch of traumatized child soldiers doing the only thing they know, which is fight for their survival.
It;s kinda hard to describe what a gundam anime is when you have stuff like G-reco made by Tomino himself. Though I think IBO's biggest weakenss is actually McGillis' goal. Story wise it's a big deal but to us, its another gundam.
Tomino despite being the granddaddy director you can argue.... lost his way on meaning of a gundam series. He just hates what they stand for now (not just selling plastic model kits either)
Basically, IBO shows you how heroes eventually become what they hate if they lose their moral compass. And it was extremely refreshing to see brutal mecha fights that used melee weapons instead of overused / OP / eye-blinding beam weapons, and all the deaths were really gut-wrenching in a good way!
Thanks so much for explaining how I felt in words. I have been unreasonably emotional about ibo, but had no way of expressing it. You have given my feelings form.
The argument that Tekkaden are the villains in S2 and that Rustel's faction are the heroes falls flat when across the board Rustel and the old guard of Gjallarhorn are shown to be far more morally wrong than McGillis and Tekkaden. At best it's a conflict between two ethically wrong sides, but Rustel's faction of Gjallarhorn are not "heroes" they are not the good guys. Gjallarhorn was a corrupt authoritarian regime through and through. There's legal class discrimination allowed in the colonies. They armed the union workers with weapons that didn't work so they could have an excuse to kill them, which is also a war crime, they staged a bombing to fire on peaceful, if armed, protestors. They staged a proxy war between the SAU and Arbau, they interfered with Arbrau's elections, attempted to assassinate an innocent teenaged activist and committed war crimes such as the use of the deinsleifs and firing upon non combatants and they set up the Turbines for no reason other than petty revenge. Even Tekkaden, who are shown to be incredibly ruthless take prisoners. Gjallarhorn are by no means heroes and their actions were far worse than anything that McGillis and Tekkaden ever did. McGillis may have been making a grab for power, but he is absolutely correct that Gjallarhorn was a corrupt entity in need of reform. And Tekkaden wanting to be rulers of Mars isn't even that off base from what they were working towards in S1. What better way to gain Martian Independence than being given control of the planet by McGillis?
Rustal is "good guy" to the media. The media believed Rustal is the good guy and just find Tekkadan to be just a terrorist organization. Remember Rustal group controls the media, he is a dirty politician who use dirty tricks to achieve his goal
if tekkadan was allowed to actually become the kings of mars they would have started dropping colonies, this series is a perfect example of no matter who wins everything sucks.
Uh. . . . Anyone in their right mind would know that Tekkaden aren't that immoral to commit a hainous act like that. They arent even close. At worst they are Ammoral but not that bad. I have no idea where you got that idea from. What possible reason would they have to do that anyway? Tekkaden are quite noble if you ask me. Deposited the mistakes they've made. If anything Ghiallerhorn is more capable of something that devastating.
In my case that missed attack on season 2 make me liked even more IBO I rooted for them but it make a lot of sense that they missed. Till that point there was always a secret high risk high reward card that they pulled up and they always won because of that, so having them gamble everything for the win as always on that important battle and show that gamble fail it make sense.
A great video and retrospective; I always respected Season 2, but now I have a more concrete way of explaining why- thank you for this! And damn, older Ride reminds me of Sakaido from ID:INVADED!
I know right I relly want a sequel it has potential it would also be cool if we saw that pink gundam mcgi used in season 1 return almost like a mark of shame on it's current pilot who could be the best friend to mika the second
I felt some realism to this, man. The political scandals was just feels. Also I am feeling slightly isolated as the one guy who liked Miguelis. Abused, betrayed, calloused and trying so hard. I cannot help but sympathize with the boy. However, his pride was his downfall, and I make a point to be proud *after* I've won.
Oh hey, fellow McGillis fan! For me, I really feel his absolute frustration and anger at the establishment, and his desire to essentially just treat it like a shounen and save it by going apeshit.
@@0th_Law Well you can find a behaviour like that in many kinds of people far more nice or cruel than McGillis, so I feel compelled to ask if you happen to be fond of a lot of revolutionaries?
@@0th_Law I figured you'd be in Antifa or something, so anarchist would make sense. Monarchist. Having one head guy to blame makes things easier in a way.
The thing we forget about IBO is that it was in development hell for years and it shows. The core story would have hit hard when development started in 2008-9, but the ideas it picked up along the way feel more and more distant from the core premise, and the actual scripts feel like they were written by people who barely remembered who these characters were supposed to be beyond their archetype.
lol even the spinoff game is still stuck in the development hell right now. They announced an IBO mobile game years back and we still haven't heard anything from the dev team, maybe they are just trying to figure out how to write a descent story.
I think you're on the right track but "old ideas in a unique light" could be expanded on especially looking at common themes the different series. So many series feature child soldiers but IBO is the first (to my knowledge) to actually explore the ramifications. Many series also explore the post colonial dynamic between Earth and space; IBO looks at this in very different ways season to season. How the characters respond to violence and the purpose of conflict is also really important across series. You touched on this but IBO, again, really sets itself apart. If you really want to explore the interteztuality you need to really see what each series is saying about a common theme (or themes) and how IBO responds. It's very much a polemic piece directed at the established themes, and that is exactly what makes it so interesting.
Whoa... I honestly wasn't sure what I was getting into once I clicked your video. It helped me see the flaws in the second season but show me a new appreciation to the show compare to other series regarding its theme and symbolism. It bring something fresh to the series we don't see in other gundam shows. Thank for the video. To me at least IBO, has been a good series Sunrise produce in a long while compare some modern Gundam series.
I had to watch all my favorite characters die in vain one after the other, only to watch the princess shake hands with villains that killed them while they smiled. Fuck this show's ending.
I think the series really showcased how they described their characters way back episode 1. Even if a they have a different backstory from one another, they're a bunch of people who were lost in their own life. They were a bunch of people who don't know where to fit in. And when they acquired a considerable amount of power they got drown in it. To me it felt like they gave up on seeking the place they want to be but in reality they did found it but got lost again. That's why I really like when Naze Turbine (and his crew) became the sort of guardian/big brother to Orga and Tekkadan. For the first time there is someone giving them guidance and then when Turbine died Orga got lost again. When Akihiro found some kinda love interest on Lafter he kinda found a clear path after the death of his brother but when Lafter died, he got lost again. And when Orga died Mika land most of Tekkadan lost their compass. So to me it has its issues as an anime. But I really liked it. The Gundams looked cool as hell. Yeah, I think it really did a good job showing how this characters trying to find direction and happiness only to get fucked by their own poor decisions or became victims of bad circumstances. It just life ain't it. The cruel side of life.
This is a cool take, and I can see where you're coming from. Although I'm not sure if it excuses all the writing in season 2, I dig this interpretation. It also paints me a better picture of just why exactly the most fun I had with season 2 was indeed that mobile armor arc. It all makes sense now haha. I've been rewatching (or watching for the first time) every single Gundam series lately, and I'm looking forward to my rewatch of IBO a little more now.
Thank you for making this video BooFire. You reinforced and improved some of my feelings about this unique "Gundam series". At first I pretty much disagreed with other people that the "villians" (not Tekkadan) didn't have plot armor and it was just the reality of war and such. But after watching this it is really smart that Tekkadan are now the "villans". I also agree that IBO shouldn't be a persons first Gundam Series due to the fact that a lot people will misunderstand everything about the plot, characters, and Gundam as a whole. Side note: It still kinda annoys me that a lot people today which I'm assuming IBO is their first Gundam wanted to see the antagonists die. Yes I know they done horrible things and we want to see your favorite characters survive and kill them but in the end they end up changing the world to which Mcgilis and Tekkadan were aiming for. (Rustal makes a new more democratic gov't with the abolishment of the Seven Stars and with the help of Kudelia outlaws Human Debris) and also wanting Ride to take Akatsuki and kill Rustal which would be going against what Tekkadan/Mcgilis were fighting for before Biscuit died. Feel free to pick apart this paragraph as I want to make sure I'm not misunderstanding anything you said in the video.
I like what they did to Ride. They show that despite the peace that we can achieve from what Rustal and the remnants of Tekkadan have done, it will never be enough. Violence will still exist and people will still use any means to fight. Just because they outlaw the use of human debris doesn't actually mean it will stop. Nothing is ever simple. Ride is a perfect example of this in action. While there are people who are moving slowly, there will be people who wish to take the quicker route possible to their goals. When Ride shot up the fat man in the restroom for his involvement we did not see a look of content on his face nor sadness. It was just a look of disappointment. I would not be surprised if an IBO OVA was released with Ride being either the protagonist or antagonist. His terrorist group using the name Tekkadan and thus establishing the name itself not to mean as a name for a group of knights or demons but to symbolize something more as a symbol of change, a legend of it's own separate from the gundam frames.
@@muchluck7981 I mean it's not that disagree with that Ride scene. It's amazing and does get the point across that violence will never truly disappear. I just can't stand the people who don't see the greater meaning behind this scene (Mostly because this is their first mecha/gundam series) and say shit like "Hur dur Rustal is evil, Ride will get revenge for all of Tekkadan and will train Akatsuki who will then kill Rustal"
@@Zaffr3 I agree. It's very misunderstood and I hate that. I don't want to see Akatsuki fight in a way he has no reason to. he has the love of Kudelia and Atra and while his father may not be there, I doubt Mikazuki would want his kid to do what he did.
@@Zaffr3 I usually told those kind of guy to re watch the series a few more times cuz after 2-3 times watching you get more of a new perspective like how Rustal changing the whole things for the better.
I really thought they were the good guys cause like them in the series I got caught up In it all and I think it's good that the show is like that it relly shows how easy it is to take the wrong path if your not careful
the gundam frames themselves have a failsafe on them to protect the pilot, even the gundam frames themselve are made to protect not to fight just because, the failsafe is only removed when Mika has no choice but to save everyone from the Hashmal and briefly agains Ein in season 1 but it comes at a price; some see this as a way of Quote on Quote Dealing with the Devil but I see it more as the same way a parent disciplines their child, there has to be a punishment so you never think of doing the bad thing again, the final time it comes off is again when Mika is fighting for his life at the end of the show when the Barbatos knows MIka won't be able to fight again after this As much as I love IBO and Most Gundam series I don't think it glorifies death, if anything it shows how brutal and discusting killing can be, I truely IBO is more Gundam than most series showing how boths sides can be right or wrong what matters is the means rather than end goal, Death is given the right amount of grieving and time, no body feels safe, if you didn't get to Shino's death and go "NOOOOOOOO" then I don't know what to say after Orga I was praying no one else would die but nope IBO went where most shows let alone Gundam wouldn't dare to go and for that I will praise it for doing Gundam Justice
IBO is a Olympic All Star Runner that fumbles right at the finish line. Frankly I feel like the creative team didn't know how to pay off what they set up. Specifically with McGillis. Season 1 is spent portraying him as a mastermind that has a grand plan to reform Gjallerhorn and its super interesting. Fastforward to S2 and his whole plan hinges on a centuries old myth about a Gundam and its actually pretty fucking half baked. Rustal comes in as a new antagonist and it's just kinda like "McGillis knew about this guy and... didn't have any preformed plans to deal with him before getting the Bael?!"
What also urkes me is that people claim that he became less smart in season two purely because of his arrogance. But what people also forget is that Arrogance does not account for intelligence. You could be one of the most selfish men or women to ever exist, but if you're as intelligent or at least close to being as smart as persay Sunzu, you better believe that kind of person would be a very effective strategist. Both within politics and in War.
@@trazyntheinfinite9895 your describing a man, Rustal, who was heavily hinted at using mercenaries to start conflict to enrich his organization. Every major issue in the series was caused by corrupt adults. And child sexual abuse victims, like McGillis are known in RL to hate the society they grow up in and wish it's downfall. Art initiating life sucks at times. But damn it all this show had me upset at the parallels between life and fiction being close all too often.
It hadnt clicked in my head that in IBO Tekaden becomes the villains, but now that its in words it fits. The way I had always seen it was the message of IBO was always how the best of intents can be coopted, manipulated. It was in essence a distillation and condensation of what I had always understood Gundam to be: War is terrible, its unfair, and those who hope to make things better can always find themselves manipulated into doing terrible things. Tekaden's moral journey also being showcased in the designs of its lead fighters weapons, the Gundam's. I always felt that the Gundam Frames looked disgusting, grotesque even, this isnt a negative thing infact quite the opposite I feel. The Gundam Frames are named after demons and have inhuman proportions and skeletal sections poking out. The center under the chest looks like a spine, its unnerving. As they go on, the suits from Tekaden get more and more malformed, the Barbatos concludes its journey with a snaking tail and horridly long arms ending in claws, and the Gusion becomes a four armed face changing nightmare. The Graze looks more like a knight, and even the Man Rodi looks less like a monster and more like a frog or a beetle, but the Graze Ein, which is supposed to cause a fear of Gjallarhorn, shows up it looks like an upscaled Gundam, the space between its hips and chest is extended showing more of that spine, there are intestine like tubes hanging all over it, it has claws for feet and a head with four horns. The only one that escapes this really is the Flauros which (as MechaGaikotsu puts it) has Mr. Universe proportions, it looks like a hero, but it can also change forms between a monster and man, couple that with Shino's bravado and comradery, Shino is fun and puts a smile on your face. It's a subtle thing but I dont think its unimportant nor a misread that the Gundam Frame that looks most like a Superman with shoulder cannons, piloted by one of the most cheerful characters in Tekaden, is also the one that fails during a revenge mission, its a microcosmos of what S2 is about, that Heroes will fall when they lose their way. I feel that IBO's biggest note though is something that other gundam series have used but I dont think ever really capitalized on, and that is that most of the soldiers we follow are children being moved by adults like chess pieces. In most Gundam series, the only kids are the "lead character (though they are rarely visually much younger than others)" and anyone that the series wants hammer a point unsubtley across with, but in IBO, most of the cast is, Kudelia, Mikazuji, Biscuit, Ride Julietta,, the list goes on, and all are being manipulated by adults. Kudelia by her benefacts, Tekaden by Orga then by McGuillis, Jullietta by Rustel, etc. All these kids hope for a better world with that passion that only kids can, and each one of them has been taken in by someone older than them. In Tekadens case this is important to look at who they end up not listening to, Orga never listens to Naze nor McMurdo, people who have the understanding to temper their hope and have proven success, and instead listens to McGuillis, someone who has the same childlike hope but has been perverted by ambition, empty ambition at that, we never see anything in his past that shows why he has such a hatred for everything that makes him latch onto the saviors of his storybooks. I think it shouldnt be missed that Tekaden also cuts Kudelia from their lives more and more in S2, until at the end they cut all ties with her. Much like Biscuit, Kudelia is a tempering force for Tekaden, though in this case an external one. To use a boat as a metaphor, Biscuit was the oresman steering the ship, but Kudelia was a builder trying to keep the currents going the right way. Kudelia is the mother that the kids of Tekaden needed, she always cared for them even when she saw them going down the wrong path, and when they came back to her for help she welcomed them back with open arms. IBO teaches us that hope is powerful, the kids who have hope become Tekaden, who carves a name and legend for themselves for better or worse, the kids who dont have hope are the random Space Rats who Tekaden slaughters, even knowing that they themseves were once the same. IBO teaches us that hope is dangerous, that it can be manipulated and distorted, that you, much like Mikazuki, could give up your dream of opening a farm, because you have been led by the nose to someone elses dream. IBO teaches us that there is always someone who wants to help you back onto your path, you just need to go to them when you realize you lost your way. Ride leaves Kudelia's care and continues the path of blood, Mikazuki never came back to her and was killed. Everyone else who went back to Kudelia went on to have the happy peaceful life they wanted all along, and they all carry the memories of those that passed, Kudelia with the earring, a whole bunch starting a company that uses Shino's colors and emblem. This has been long and rambling I know and if you made it to here than you for taking the time. Please leave any suggestions in the comments, I'm genuinely trying to work on how to better translate the thoughts in my head to a form others can understand.
That was just wow my whole view on ibo is 180 I still love the show but to me the show is about what you notice it builds a story I find something new each time it’s a show I grow more to understand and I think that’s what makes the show greater idk how to say what I want to because I’m just…wow
Nice write up. I also think there's an underlying theme about simply thinking through about what are you doing, questioning your own motives and, more importantly, thinking about the consequences of your actions. Yukinojo the mechanic outright states it near the end, that you should never stop thinking, when that one guy with the pompadour starts rambling (correctly) about how dumb Orga was. At the very end, the ones who get to live to see another day are the guys who approached things level-headed instead of the ones trying to work some hot-blooded shonen magic to save the day at the last second like McGillis and his Bael lone assault. Great series IMO. Kinda underrated amongst long-time Gundam fans.
Just to add, I really feel like Biscuit's death was one of the events that really pushed things over to the wrong path. Biscuit was not only smart but he was also one of the guys who would stop and think "Yo, maybe this ain't right," or "Maybe we should look at things diff differently,". Losing him was a big hit to Orga, as now he only had Mikazuki who to be honest doesn't really question much of what Orga does. Orga has a powerful sword in his hands, an unstoppable Gundam pilot who would destroy anyone who opposes the family they have. But with Biscuit gone, no one else really had both a clear mind and weight in their words to encourage him to maybe actually sheathe the sword he has. This series is amazing and the ending was bittersweet, but realistic(but yeah, some parts of it was DUMB when nearing the end, IQ points were dropping left and right)
Tekkadan was doomed from the start. They were children. Their big "goal" from the start was "a place where they belonged". Of course they lost sight of it, of course they were misled by adults they shouldn't have trusted and of course they didn't listen to the adults they should have, they were children. In all actuality all they knew about was war, but what happens when that war goes away? They grew up so screwed up that they literally couldn't see the bigger picture. It's an idea that was touched upon in Wing EW. "What happens to the soliders when there is nothing left to fight, who only know how to fight?". 00 also somewhat touched upon it with Setsuna and Azadistan.
Iron Blooded Orphans was my first Gundam I’ve seen. It’s what got me interested in the Gundam Franchise. And I will say, despite the story not being like rest of the Franchise, it was a confusing, yet enjoyable entry into the Franchise
I feel like looking for the heroes and villains in this series would take away from the experience. For me this show was really about watching people who choose to live and die by the sword. Where Orga makes gambles people see as stupid, these are sometimes the risks in life we need to take to see how far we’re meant to go.
Honestly, I couldn’t watch any other gundam show. I tried many times but just couldn’t do it. I had a friend strongly recommend Iron Blooded Orphans and I decided to try it and man I fuckin love this show. Idk how anyone sat through any of the other gundam animes. But IBO did make me want to try and watch the other ones again cause there are things in the show that I would like to understand better.
You hit it on the T... After watching Gundam Unicorn and my favorite Gundam 00 it shook me to watch this Gundam it definitely on of the most unique animes ive watched
The problem I have isn’t so much the main cast losing, but of the bad guy. Based on how Rustal acted in the show, I find it hard to believe he would do all those things in the epilogue on the final episode. Gailio doing it seems somewhat believable, but not Rustal. Rustal was corrupt and evil. Because of that I don’t see the ending as viable. Remember the guy had an agent of his commit terrorism in the show to start a war, was willing to lie flat out and scapegoat people for his convenience, use illegal weaponry on his own men to lie about who use them first to justify his use of them. The main cast might not have been the heroes but the winner in the end was the bad guy. It would have been better if he had been killed in the show, exposed what he and Iok had done, and have that (along with what gailio exposed, and over half the 7 stars families being wiped out) be used as a catalyst for the reform the organization.
I think that might be down to how the show was originally going to end. As I understand it, the original ending was going to be that nothing changed and everyone in Tekkadan dies. But the main writer managed to get the director to change the ending to a more hopeful ending where things did change, and only the major players of Tekkadan were killed. And this began around episode 21.
Everything Rustal does makes total sense and advances his strategic objective. He wanted to ensure that Gjallerhorn kept its military monopoly, and that its status was seen broadly as legitimate. Give those objectives, look at his strategic situation at the end of the insurrection. 1. 3 of the Seven Stars families are extinct. Of the remaining ones, all of them sided against him in the war. Granted this was under duress. In any case, politically he commands the most resources at this point. The situation is going to be destablized if he restores the old system, because the others have every reason to undermine him at that point. There is an old saying that Triumvirates are unstable, and a tetrarachy is not much more stable. So reforming the old system is a must. He had to do this once Iok died. "More democratic" does not mean a full democracy. He clearly retains the power to nominate his successor and if anything is even more powerful as the new President 2. Regarding the Mars branch, it has demonstrated that it is too far from Earth to effectively control, and has demonstrated that it fosters an independence streak within the larger organization. It was run as more or less a personal fiefdom in season 1, and in season 2 ignores Rustal's orders. Therefore it needs to be reduced to minimize it's power and eliminate the possibility of developing into an independent military. It's this decision that allows the Martian Union government to form, as the Earth blocs lose the ability to enforce their mandates on Mars. It's really those two decisions that lead to everything else. None of this is due to any charitable intentions on Rustals part. It just makes sense given his position. He enhances his power, and is entirely consistent with his motivations as portrayed throughout season 2
thats what makes rustal the best, hes absolutly based and wins in the end, it makes you hate him even more which in turn makes him even better villian.
Rustal is such a bad character. He is no better than Stalin but the end they describe him as: "Oh yeah he set up a democratic party and fought corruption, good guy 10/10" Yeah if course a warmonger would do that.
You people don´t understand him. He is not evil, He is a realist. There were two things Rustal believed in: 1_Gjallarhorn are the peacekeepers of the Solar System, and they should stay in Power at all cost. 2_Using any means possible to achieve your objectives, while also being as conservative as possible of your resources. The reason why he did was he did was in order to keep Gjallarhorn in power. Do you want to know why he tolerated corruption? Because it worked out for him, he could easily manipulate the corrupted members of Gjallarhorn to do his bidding if he needed, by blackmail or other things, without compromising the organization integrity that much. Imagine if he tried to reform Gjallarhorn by his own initiative, it would have led to frictions between the several factions inside the organization that would have weaken their union in front of the public and earth blocks. Of course, once he finds an opportunity to make reforms in Gjallarhorn, in a way that ends up with a good note on them, he takes it. McGillis gave him that chance after he revealed a lot of the corruption of the Seven Stars Families, and the fact McGillis also acted like a power hungry sociopath gave Rustal the tools to paint himself as the one who tries to keep order in Gjallarhorn while McGillis is unreasonable, crazy. This is why he never chases after the survivors of Tekkedan. His main objective with them was eliminating any possible threats to his power, which why he only focuses on the Gundam pilots and their Gundams, the same ones that Gave Tekkedan so much power and gave them their victories over Gjallarhorn. Long story short, Rustal is basically a Machiavellianist that is able to understand changing of times, as in the anime is implied that he is glad that Julietta, when she choosen as leader of Gjallarhorn in a future election, isn´t as bad as him, understanding that diferent times need diferent leaders.
The big picture was showing that no matter how hard the less fortunate class works it can all be taken away by the rich for little to not reason and swiftly..
This was my introduction to the Gundam universe. And I have to say, I’m glad I started here. I loved the series and adored the amount of questionable decisions our protagonists had to make. It’s something that not many shows are ballsy enough to do now. I’ve since watched so many of the other shows, films, and spin offs and am so glad I stumbled upon them. Also, the music is amazing
I agree with you up until you say Tekkaden are in the wrong during their final conflict. They aren't anywhere near the villains in this situation, you're completely leaving out the fact that Rustal is not just a criminal but a war criminal in the real world his ass would've been dragged before the ICC and been given the gas chamber not only did he pull a Palpatine a fight a war as the leader on both fronts (remember Galan Mossa anyone), this mam continously orders people to ignore cease fires and people surrendering, framed Tundra for using weapons of mass destruction then uses them in mass AFTER implanting a mole into the Mcgillis forces to use said weapon first, his forces caused a ancient mobile armor to awaken and almost wipe out a densely populated area. Rustal is without a doubt the villain of season 2, Tekkaden failed in the end but they certainly didn't die villains. I also don't like how ppl just ignore the fact Mcgillis was raped by his adopted father and if the catholic church has taught us anything it's that something like that was definitely known by the higher ups in the 7 stars
It's hard to explain how much I disagree. Let me start with Gjallarhorn. Are most certainly still the villains. Galan Mossa under Rustal infiltrated Tekkadan and started the seed of them working with Mcgillis. Gjallarhorn fired on civilians and children using illegal weapons and faced no repercussions for it. Gjallarhorn claimed to reform but the new leader is the old leader's protege. This is far from not being a good person. Graham Aker is the perfect example of an antagonist not a villain. He is not a good person, but never did anything remotely like Gjallarhorn. Earth does not own Mars. And I'm not going to entertain the idea that all rebellions for sovereignty ought to be peaceful. Kings still represent their people else they very quickly no longer are kings. Mars isn't Tekaddan's, but it surely isn't Earth's either, trying to reach violent independence even if it is to have their own king is nowhere near as evil as fighting for the status quo of oppression we saw in S1 where food was being grown on Mars for pennies and most boys had to become child soldiers, were illiterate etc. Dangerous freedom > Safe bondage and fighting to be kings of Mars will result in an infinitely better Mars than fighting for the status quo. I also have never seen any media go after their characters like IBO did. It is one thing for villains to lose and heroes to get that last second win. It is another thing for Iok to survive stupidity that Tekkadan was punished for. It is another thing to go against characterization where Mcgillis who was brilliant in S1 now starts making colossal mistakes in S2. And I'll never forgive Mikazuki having to retreat because of an explosion after defeating Julieta only for her to survive and get picked up on the way back. That isn't plot armour or plot convenience. That is plot bending and insulting my intellect
This is the reality of things Sometimes good people get roped into bad ideas. Tekkadan lose their way when they joined Mcgills and tried to take the fast way. They became more of the villains because they were forcing their way on to the people. The series could have cut off parts like the mobile armor and the first half to better explained this.
I agree with most of this. But them losing to bullshit is the point. You can not like it, but i assure you this shit happens more often than not in the real world especially as you get more successful. That's probably the most v realistic thing about IBO, an incompetent petulant nepotism entitled prick like Iok keeps getting off for all his bullshit, meanwhile a group of demonized children keep dealing with ever-increasing hardship. Losing to bullshit because the world's not fair is the point. But at least they fought against it and got so close to winning too.
@@Thrdwrld32 it's one thing losing to bullshit, but like Antoine said, plot of S2 is often just insulting viewers intelect. Seriously I'm suposed to belive, that McGillis, the guy who was able to masterfully manipulate takkedan, teiwaz, Gjallarhorn and oposition inside gjallarhorn at the same time, did all of this just to get the bael, because that would crown him as the new emperor of earth? Or how Rustal, after speaking how he will destroy takkedan for political gains, was satisfied with destroying one barbatos and gusion? Or how nobody in the freaking town noticed group of 100 children in takkedan suits standing on the rooftop just after gjallarhorn broadcasted live footage of their "ultimate destruction"? It was even more stupid after you remember, that orga died near the entrance to this freaking tunel, despite the fact that nobody even knew he was in town. I didn't expect IBO to end well (tbh I was suprised how many people survived), but season 2 was almost a total disaster to me.
acidous because McGillis believed in a fairy tale and didn’t truly understand how Bael became a legend just like the video said. He was too ambitious without a real plan.Yes Rustal was satisfied because there was no in his way anymore. The only person who could’ve have stood up to him died in a failed uprising and the only military group was gone.In the end they played with fire and got burned. The show is a hard pill to swallow
Even only watching 2 full series of Gundam Iron Blooded Orphan's reversal in the end was very clear to me, as much as I hated some of the "antagonists" near the end their narrow misses and successes despite all odds had a weird sense of melancholy, the losses of the protaginists were good things. I kept hoping that Tekkaden would throw off McGillis and fight for their own cause again but in a way what did they have to fight for, they were fighting to secure their own place in the world not to better it. Everything was also driven home and reinforced in the epilogue, that Tekkaden losing at that moment was the right thing for the world, and that the paths the "antagonists" took as well as the survivors of tekkaden working under Kudelia made the world an objectively better place. They hadn't fought to save it from disaster, they fought to shape it to their will as you said. All in all Iron Blooded Orphans is genuinely among my favorite of the series I've watched so far, in themes, gundam design, the feel of combat, and atmosphere, I didn't realize that it was especially controversial and even unliked because I was really hoping for it to be expanded more, maybe future series will try to explore the concepts Iron Blooded Orphans touched on through different perspectives in a way that guides those who otherwise were just more annoyed by how it went in IBO.
The only reason gaelio survived because Mari okada likes the performance of gaelio's VA (if I remember correctly) it's kinda unfair though to the other characters in the series
I got the feeling that Julietta should've pilot the Vidar. With that she would be proper Gjallarhorn's equivalent to Tekkadan's Mika and Rustal's trump card.
Kinda shallow analysis. Tek was forced into action by betrayal, and murder. Lets also no forget that Orga is still a KID! He doesnt have decades of experience to draw upon. Fareed only launched his attack, when he did, as a way to help Tek. Least we forget that Fareed also helped Tek when they were attacked by Dawn. Another example of Tek being betrayed. Fareed was ultimately defeated BECAUSE he supported Tek, and allowed himself to be drawn out before he was ready. Fareed also failed to take into account that his opponent was completely immoral, and willing to break every rule in order to win. Orga didnt want to actually stay sovereign, but saw it as a way to help not only Tek, but the people of Mars. The real problem with the 2nd season, is that they brought some one BACK TO LIFE, and he fooled all of Fareeds plans. How LAZY is that? I mean seriously?! They secretly bring some one back to life, and a single speech by him convinces everybody that Fareed is bad? NOBODY even questioned how that happened. Should've had Fareed win, and the let him and Tek face off in a war a few years down the road. Season 3 could have been Tek vs TS, and then against Fareed. After Fareed goes full Char. The serious could have been SO much better.
I only saw a couple of Gundam series before IBO. I saw parts of Mobile Fighter G Gundam and a few episodes of that really weird series where all of the Mobile Suits were human sized and it was CG 3D. IBO was the first one I finally could finish on my own time and it was amazing. I was crying for the last handful of episodes during S2.
6:30, as a long time Tabletop RPG player, watching the second season felt pretty much just like a campaign run by a particularly nasty DM who made sure the situation would continue to stack against us as long as we were succeeding on rolls, he basically just had us keep on rolling until the nat 1 hit he could finally screw our plans over with for no reason other than, "Ha, nat 1, you all FAIL!"
IMO best gundam I’ve watched , the fact the people i was rooting for died for what they believed in no matter what happened , no matter how dark it got it made them human.
yeahhhh no how can you say Gjallarhorn are the "good guys" when they are shown to be the most ruthless, racist(against people not from earth) and corrupt organization in the solar system? their members hire child prostitutes and no one does anything about it , they are the main reason Mars is starving. The ending was a realistic "compromise" ending where not everything became better but some things did and it wasn't stratifying because throughout the series we are shown our MC's do amazing and incredible things so when we get the realistic ending of them getting wiped and their dreams shattered it just feels very left field. I think the main theme of IBO was capitalisms and its effect on war , politics and poor nations (Mars) and how it creates an elite class and leads to racism. It was an enjoyable series but that ending was really unsatisfying.
IBO has a strong theme that's being overlooked. Revolution Yes, the protagonists want to achieve power and status, but they also want a better world than the one they were given, specially Mcgillis. They didn't chose violence because they loved violence, or even because it was the shortest path. They did it because they were fighting a corrupt and insanely powerful system that wouldn't listen otherwise Yes, they were stupid, yes, they were too ambitious and yes they wanted a shortcut. But their morals weren't so far off And Rustal and his team were by no means the heroes of the second season. They represent the Status Quo of this tyrannical system, they cheated their way through victory by commiting war crimes, and they only changed because the actions of the protagonists forced them to, or they would've lost their power otherwise It's a great tale of ambition but mainly a history about revolution
The tragedy of season 2 is that Tekkadan, i.e. Orga, did not belong in peacetime. In season 2, Tekkadan found themselves being used as cannon fodder, and found their older sibling double crossed by so-called allies. If they did the right thing and politely waited for bureaucracy, would they still be Tekkadan? Was this really the place where they belonged? Going by this essay's logic, that the gundam universe makes the impossible possible for heroes, it's fitting that Mika and Akihiro miraculously "survive" the dansleif barrage up until they were sure their brothers were safe. Everyone who belonged to Tekkadan's wartime vanguard had to be sacrificed for everyone else to be renamed/reborn in a world that didn't need child soldiers.
Yet like a flower, the seeds have been sown. While an old guard died out, they left a new flower to bloom in it's place. the old guard may have passed but a new one picks up their mantle. While the old tekkadan dies, a new one is born. This new Tekkadan is Ride. Ride represents the passing of the torch per say. He is not like the others who chose peace. he chose to murder the man responsible for murdering his boss, he never let go of the hatred that was in his heart. by killing that man, he threw away the only chance of peace he may have had for one of the old Tekkadan.
@@muchluck7981 He might have lost his soul but he did take out a man that would drag Gjallarhorn down to further corruption. Rustal had no problems with businessmen hiring assassins to silence anyone they want. The reforms he instilled are paper thin at best. No child soldiers? So what? We've perfected the AV system for adults more or less. Willing adult cannon fodder like Ein are easy to come by. If they are lulled by the ruse of doing it for the good of Gjallarhorn. Take any of the brains of gjallarhorn soldiers that died in S2 and shove them in to frames.
I saw some comments of another video about IBO and it said that the gundams in this are named after demons and each character follows the description of said demons and it makes a lot of sense on why and how each gundam/tekadan fell.
For me it was the writing. I couldn’t get into it. As soon as the rich evil fops showed up is when it hit me “here we go again”. The dialogue of the characters makes me feel dumb for watching it by selling me the same old story without any realism to how the characters think. I wouldn’t say the shows bad, just... bland as an anime
That's exactly the problem with this show. The characters don't behave like thinking people because the script just sucks. Everything feels unnaturally scripted without any personality
Ah yes, the dilemma of defining the bad guys, of course it's the brats who didn't know any better and overestimated themselves over the noble imbecile who activated an AI that eradicated an entire settlement and most of all, the pedophile rapist with the weapon which use was equal to a war crime. Man I really hope you're not allowed anywhere near any underage kids if your mindset to talk about this series was non-ironic.
Where the fuck did any of this come from? You are seriously projecting a lot of intent that isn't there into the things he said (and inventing shit he didn't say) in this video.
This is how I felt when I watched IBO. I didn't notice the Orga Jacket part that is so cool. Great video telling how it is and why IBO is an awesome show!!!!
Please don't start the review by saying the second season is awful and then go on to explain why it's not. Your review almost misled me to not finish the series.
Dude, your description of why IBO S2 is frustrating hit so hard for me. You basically spoke all of my complaints out loud. Thank you sir, fantastic video
I gotta say season 2 writing is shittty af. Think about it, naze and amida couldve just surrendered themselves to galawhatevs and be brought to trial but no, the writer made them fought the whole fleet with just the two of them. Just so the writer could transition into the plot where tekkadan is destroyed. Because it was already episode 15 and they only had 10 episodes left to conclude the story.
I really liked how Guts stopped chasing Griffith and dedicated himself to space piracy.
But griffith is become mcgillis
@@rohan9018 Na-Naniii!? Who did he sacrifice this time?
@@leonardovenancio6096 gjallarhon with carta and Galileo
Best comment by far lmao
*GRIFFFFFIITTTHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!*
Iron blooded orphans in one line .
"In the end...they were just kids afterall"
A prequel for IBO set in the calamity war would be sick. Imagine seeing all 72 gundam frames in their prime.
Yup along with the Mobile Armors :3
Like prime warframes i guess?
Yeah, hopefully they'll be more open to it since we're done with the 40th anniversary of gundam and gunpla so Sunrise might be slowing down on UC projects (assuming there aren't some I'm just not aware of being made) and they finished their latest build series so they have schedule openings. Nevermind the prospect of Bandai selling close to 5 dozen gundam kits and who knows how many mobile armors. C'mon guys shit practically prints money!
Yeah, I am all for this! We only got to see a handful of the Gundams, so if anything else, it would give some mecha designers out there a really wide canvas to build some unique designs!
Also can't lie, it would be a giant underdog story to see the beginnings of Gjallahorn and their process of building 72 frames and naming them all after demons.
Then the actual campaigns and battles! Mikazuki had to injure himself significantly (partial paralysis) to beat one mobile armor alone. Did Gundams in that era end up 'eating' pilots??
Was there a list of people willing to pilot a Gundam that was getting harder and harder to find candidates for? We all saw how even one mobile armor was enough to send TWO nearby Gundams into shutdown!
Plus, 72 Gundams means 24 teams of 3 units each, so you have lots of character dynamics possible amongst Gundam pilots, their supporting team members, and any other non-Gundam pilots using more standard units.
Yeah, next IBO series NEEDS to be about Calamity War. Easiest win for Gundam ever, in my book!
I don't mind watching 72+ episodes of Monster of the week formula if it means we get to see the Calamity with all the 72 gundams and mobile armours
I thought a thing IBO was trying to do was similar to what Wing touched on but didn't dwell on; namely, while giant robot series tend to naturally have plucky teen pilots for the audience to relate to, being a child soldier messes you the hell up.
Mika is a once-in-a-century talent, able to awaken a legendary machine to its full potential in a way no one else can. He can do this not because he is genetically unique or spiritually superior, but because he has no regard for his own safety as a child soldier who was subjected to inhumane technology. Mika's life experience means he doesn't really have a conscience a lot of the time; he relies on Orga for a sense of right and wrong and Orga's own perspective is skewed because while he is a smart kid who wants to look after his found family, he was raised in a might-makes-right system where anything worth having must be taken-and defended-with violence. I feel like the fact Julieta tries to ask what cause Mika could possibly have that keeps him going when he should already be dead only to realize Mika doesn't understand the question is significant. McGillis and Julieta both try to establish some sort of rapport with Mika; McGillis is disappointed and repulsed by the realization the kid he's so interested in doesn't really have anything in common with him at all besides them both being traumatized, and Julieta understanding she's fighting someone who was never raised to view anything but violence as a valid choice turns victory to ashes in her mouth.
I thought it was also interesting that the antagonists, despite your framing of them as hero antagonists, are ALSO punished harshly for choosing to escalate violence rather than seek peace. Orga GIVES UP. He is willing to show his belly and surrender unconditionally to Rustal to keep his family alive; Rustal refuses because he's not done slaughtering them to make an example of anyone that picks a fight with Gjallerhorn. His decision to do this, however, prompts Mika's last stand, and what should have been a quiet end to McGillis's sad little rebellion turns into a nightmarish slaughter; dozens of Rustal's men die unnecessarily, Iok is butchered, Julieta is lucky to still be alive, and ultimately Iok's demise is a deathblow to the system Rustal was trying to uphold. He's forced to accept change he did not want because his decision to escalate and retaliate turned around and bit him. Maybe not as badly as Orga's decision to start a fight, but still.
Mediocre series
@tony what are your top 3?
Thank you very much, I knew something was left out, good analysis.
So rustal is forced to make changes because there is no other way for 7 stars council to still working (kujan, Fareed, etc is ended)
I though he really want to make democratic gjalahorn from the start
@@Tonyscasa Low effort bait XD
Two things. First, you failed to mention how the Barbatos became more monstrous as the series progressed. Sort of a mirror to what Tekkadan had become. Second, I never saw McGillis as a tyrant. McGillis is an idealist and a product of the corrupt system he wished to overthrow. His character is beautifully fleshed out. McGillis became merciless as a means of survival and his love for the legend of Bael came as a means to mentally cope with the abuse he was subjected to. The same can be said for Tekkadan. Both are products of their environment and both wished to change things for the better.
Barbatos and Bael are both named after demons and it's almost as if Barbatos is slowly beginning to possess Mika. Along with the design getting more monstrous Mika's actions and the amount of power Barbatos grants him until Mika can no longer move without being connected to the Gundam.
I agree but he does lightly touch on how Barbatos began to change.
@@zakkmylde1712 All Gundam suits in IBO are named after Goetia demons.
This. People tend to forget that McGillis is also a victim of the Space Debris system, buried under a mountain of trauma and surrounded by people who perpetuated his abuse (or are at least a symbol of it). Like Tekkadan, his entire life has taught him that the only way out is through force or manipulation, and in a way it's true. He can't be like Kudelia, who is a product of her privileged life and upbringing as a human being afforded actual human dignity. Choosing the peaceful option and "working within the system" requires trust, and we can't expect people like McGillis to have that trust in a system that trampled him underfoot and caged him with his rapist.
I completely agree. Although the 'protagonist' we follow in IBO are seen as the bad guys by the 'antagonist'? They are very much FORCED into that prospect due to both their environment and the situations they were pushed into by people from Season 1. They merely took the only path available to them in order to achieve their goal because quite literally? Every other path was cut off from them. So it was either "We stop what we are doing and go back to what we used to be" or "Keep going no matter what". The way I look at it? There are no good guys, or bad guys. No Heroes, no villains in this series. No side was without sin and everyone could only do what they could based on their given situations.
IBO was really a rollercoaster of an anime and is one of my favorite animes right now. I really love that it's getting a lot of attention now, Cause it definitely deserves it!
Agreed. I love IBO to this day and even after watching shows like 00, Unicorn and Narrative, I still love IBO to this day. The way the fights are done to the way it blends politics with action. I just love IBO the most.
@@muchluck7981 honestly dude agreed it was actually my first Gundam that I actually watched and paid attention to and I just loved it from the fact that they use really primitive tech (like bullets and bladed weapons) to the politics and conflicts the cast goes through it's just amazing!! ALSO AKIHIRO IS JACKED that basically does it for me lol (maybe I should make a vidoe on IBO)
I had to beef up security in my house when I watched IBO. Damn onion cutting ninjas kept breaking in.
go watch older gundam series too,
@@carlsberg-gs6rl dude same !!
If you look at it, Orga getting a bit more impulsive ever since Biscuit's (basically their "voice of reason") death in S1 kind of foreshadowed Tekkadan's inevitable doom at the end of S2 (which is full of rash moves by Orga). I love season 2 despite its imperfections, although I do agree that the same was a bit rushed.
Why Orga ever thought being king of mars was a good idea will forever be a mystery to be
@@danielnolan8848 If you are the King of something, you can make things better for the people you love.
@@muchluck7981 True. The only problem with Orga, and what basically led to Tekkadan's downfall at the end of S2, was his rashness as seen in him taking "the shortest route" possible without actually considering the possible consequences. Without Biscuit to serve as his voice of reason, no one else stood the chance to talk some sense to Orga before it was too late.
Soran Tanjili and when Naze died shit hit the fan because he was Orga’s last voice of reason
ruclips.net/video/iicnyJUWpAo/видео.html
IBO is more grounded..... that's life, sometimes you plan for things to happen and it just doesn't work out. It sucks but its life.
@McBeef That's so true
Indeed
Yet, living mobile armors and Gaelio coming back from the dead say otherwise.
its life.. and death
That's why IBO is probably my fave Gundam series, b.c it plays to reality more than others.
So what you’re saying is IBO is pretty much “you either die as the hero or you live long enough to see you’re self die as the villain.” But in this case are protagonist technically did become kinda the antagonist
Your quote is correct, and probably the best summation of what the plot of IBO is. I'm sure there's also a quote about being obsessed with power that would apply too.
But just a small correction. a protagonist is just the leading character of a story and the antagonist is the character opposing them. There's not actually any requirement for being good or evil. Tekkadan, more specifically Orga and Mikazuki, are always the protagonists, even when they become the villains of the story.
well i think thats how a real war is, no side is a good side, in my opinion ibo is a real war animated and thats why its plot is good
i dont think tekkadan can be villains when galajorn indiscriminately fucks over anyone in its path with a dansleive barrage
@@Jaynesslessly True. But both sides can be considered villains. One doesn't have to be the hero. Both sides here make very questionable decisions. Whether we are talking about the manipulations of McGillis or the use of banned weapons like the Dainsleif
@@user-nv9vi9de8p but they do become villians, humans by all means but still villians. They seeked to impose their views over others, taking "the fastest route" as Orga calls it, and facing the consequences of it in way of their failures.
This series works as a warning to the line of "the line between light and darkness is so thin yet so distant "
Man this show was such an amazing slow burn. The last fight always brings me to tears. The build up and pay off is some of the best I've seen in modern anime. They could not live in the world that they wanted to create and died for their sins. The ultimate martyrdom. Thank you for video essay of this show. It deserves it.
i cant forgive that we were never able to see orga pilot his mobile suit :')
IBO was the first Gundam series I watched fully; imagine my dismay when I went on to discover the different timelines and universes wanting to watch the franchise from the beginning after that.
i mean the other timelines are just as good imo. Even G gundam is up there.
@@akou12 I didn't say they weren't I am just sad it isn't one continuous timeline. IBO is still my favorite but I am really enjoying the others as a catch up on the franchise
@@lycanbroadcastingnetwork What have you watched so far?
@@icheatinexam5606 I was powering through the UC timeline and got up to victory then I decided to start watching some of the AU timelines so watching 00 right now
@Waifu Kun Thunderbolt was my second and just because of that soundtrack it will always be one if my favorites
Honestly I see this as a near perfect Gundam show. The themes are so strong and they feel as clear as any other Gundam series. The characters are complex and you can see when they're making a bad turn. Hell you can see which way Orga is going to go by the end of season one and it is entirely down to Biscuit's death. The fact that Mika feels such strong loyalty for him that he just follows blindly is so tragic and neither Orga or Mika fully understand that. And the show makes it clear that despite the bad things they do the rest of the cast do them because they don't see any other path.
one of my favourite parts about orga and mika's relationship is the fact that mika asserts himself for the first time in the series just before orga dies, and after the fact, he acts on his own accord until he dies, and asserts himself - hell, he even gains a degree of emotional awareness with the way he plays into hush's last wishes to be validated by him as he dies.
orga and mika have such a beautifully illustrated codependant relationship where the two enable each others worst habits and i adore it
I think a better more exact way of seeing this is "Kids with too much power, get in way over their heads"
Remember most of the characters here are between 12-16 years old and got ahold of Very powerful weapons, and it shows how Power can corrupt, even more so for children, plus it also shows how children/teens are easily manipulated by others into thinking 'Its the right thing to do" and Children/Teens think more emotionally than logically hence some of the brutal and dumb choices they make.
Plus the ending could have been on Kill em all Tomino level, but luckly most of the people working on it protested and said that was too cruel. So we got possibly the best ending for Tekadan.
I often call this series "The Berserk of MSG" As its dark and gritty as heck and deals with heavy materials like Berserk, heck some of the characters are similar to Berserk characters (HELL ONE OF THEM WE JOKINGLY CALL TEEN GUTS!)
I personally Prefer IBO Over Build Divers any day honestly, Hot button topic I know
Looking pretty shaded, welcome and chill for a hot button.
Berserk? So would the Moble Armor count as the Rape Horse?
ruclips.net/video/iicnyJUWpAo/видео.html
@@TheKing-qz9wd Yeah I could go over everything on Why I don't like the Build Divers series, Its a rather petty as crap reason too >n>;
I was Actually fine with Build Fighters and I Adored Build Fighters Tri, but Divers and Especially Re:Rise Rubs me in all the wrong ways
If I will complement the crap out of however its All the Gundam Designs they are 11/10 awesome and yeah I would like to get Gunpla of them.
@@lionheart1013
I actually disliked all of the build series. I will take advantage of the opprutunities provided though, as they can get us updated kits that are better than ever if we are lucky.
IBO was and still is chronically underrated.
If 00 deconstructed the idea of Gundam, IBO rebuilt in it all its gritty, bloody glory.
Both deconstructed Gundam but in different ways.
I don't know, IBO gets hyped up so much. It's just that the fanboys and haters come in equal intensities
IBO? Underrated?
I wish.
Underrated? Lol no
OK, so the fans may have IBO pretty hyped-up, but I still feel the series is underrated in the size o its fanbase relative to other Gundam.
Personally I still feel it's of higher writing quality than more popular series like Wing, SEED, ect, but that's obviously subjective. I've always felt that Gundam's strength was at its more serious end, like in Zeta and 08th MS Team, hence why I like IBO's grittier and more grounded angle...
Beggining of season 2 is beautiful irony. They were so effective, everyone and their mother started reincorporating child soldiers into their ranks.
One other thing you didn't mention, the 300 year old calamity war gets told through bits of dialogue and worldbuilding, no flashbacks.
What do I mean? A few hints. AV system can only be done on children. The operation is faulty and wasn't developed for 300 years, so the 72 Gundam pilots stood atop a mountain of children. The way the machine makes you fight beyond death (final fight, when the 3 axes hit, Mika has his neck break and he continues operating), as well as seeing one of the mobile armors and why the Gundams here are what they are.
Also, I always considered it a story of greys, Children fighting for their dreams, going by their broken logic, Tekkadan for a strange concept of a promised land seen by the broken eyes of an abused child soldier, as well as McGillis and his belief in legends, versus the cold realist Rustal Ellion (one of my fav characters), and the people who follow him to their grave, as well as the final realization of how pointless the fight was, as all 3 sides in this conflict were going for the same goal, just different roads.
It's one of my top 10 of all time shows, so I'm a bit biased, but now you get your sub for talking about this underappreciated gem. :)
Great analysis, and I was stunned that people find s2 bad for some odd reason.
I too was shocked to hear that people generally don't like season 2. It felt rushed and disappointing, but not bad. I can't agree with you on Rustal (he's a dick), but it's also one of my favorite shows.
@@grammaton6leric rushed?? What??? Lmao
I thought Rustal was 1 of the corrupt members of Gjallerhorn & his actions were definitely those of a villain. Keep in mind cutting off an enemy's chance to surrender is a huge war crime & he used outlawed weapons to slaughter child soldiers. I actually expect him to try awful things when working with Kudelia in the epilogue.
While I wouldn’t call season 2 bad, I would call it nothing more than a disappointment mascerating as a good story by using gundams “anti-war” message as meta to influence the series in such a stupid way. By giving the antagonists broken plot armor, failing to demonstrate why we should at all see Rustal and the other antagonists as “heroes” unless you look at it from an idiotic meta perspective. And if you think I’m wrong lemme ask you this. I have two questions. 1.) If iron blooded orphans was not a gundam series and instead was a stand alone mecha series, and if it was made in the exact same way, would you have enjoyed it? 2.) If iron blooded orphans was the first ever gundam series demonstrating gundams “anti-war” message and yet it was made the exact same way, would you still have enjoyed it? Personally I think not. Don’t use Meta to to drive the plot of your series and especially don’t use it to ruin the objective qualities of it so that you can demonstrate a messily gundam message about how broken plot armor is good as long as your going to kill the people who wanted to reform the corrupt system that brought so much hell to the world in the first place. There is no indication that Rustal ever wanted to change Ghallerhorn for the better as there is no indication that he even cares alittle bit about the public’s view and their opressive circumstances. He only changes because the past system of Gjallerhorn became broken by the hands of McGillis and Tekkaden, and therefore without them he would have never changed the system for the better.
If the writers of the series really wanted to make the antagonists the heroes they should have made them morally superior in every way. Instead of simply giving them broken plot armor and a measly excuse to change the system for the better peacefully.
IIRC the AV system only works on children now because it’s dangerous and their bodies haven’t fully developed yet, meaning their bodies couldn’t fight the less effective AV system. However in the past the system was fully researched and could be done on adults (as shown by McGillis having a working AV system for use in Bael).
"The guy who wants to murder child slaves for defending themselves, and weaponized a murderous psychopath to do it, is better than the children trying to gain enough power to end child slavery."
I get what you're trying to say, but the writing of IBO flopped hard if this is what they were going for. Becoming "kings of mars" was always about getting enough power to end the practice of using orphans as slave labor and cannon fodder. Their enemy in season 2 is the same corrupt organization that tried to kill them in season 1, led by a man who was every bit as tyrannical as McGillis. They were framed for crimes they didn't commit and cornered. It's hard to see that as anything other than a corrupt authoritarian regime doing everything possible to stay in power, and children being trampled on for that end.
And somehow Gjallarhorn just magically turns itself into a democratic government in the end after McGillis, the main figure behind the coup is killed while the rest of the corrupted Gjallarhorn higher-ups are still alive and kicking, that's not how it works man. Unless Rustal just decided to wipe them out as well with his mighty Dainsleif.
sounds pretty realistic, it's not the writing flopped but it's how you see it as unjustified and unfair which what i believe that what author aiming for, that's life also orga still a kid and naive he's paid the price for trying to achive "king of mars"
IBO represents the heros failing? Good in real life the "good guys" dont always win, sometimes bad choices lead to disastrous outcomes and smart people can go on to do dumb things when stuff finally starts going their way. Everything past Turn-A has had a really difficult time of not doing the old "Heros ride off into the sunset" thing even Turn-A for how few causalities and world ending events it had still ended on a somber bittersweet tone that was just so Gundam in the best possible way.
Orga and Mcgilis were memorable characters because they were flawed human beings, and I certainly will remember them long after I forget the casts of shows like SEED or 00.
It's not them losing that's the problem. People can take bitter endings in Gundam, they're not something new and revolutionary. The problem is that this ending wasn't earned.
Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the ending. Granted, I enjoyed it because I never actually liked any of the fuckers except maybe Lafter and Space Guts (and even then, not that much), but I enjoyed it nonetheless. All the same, I can't call what happened realistic so much as a mid-season swap of plot armor and bullshit from Tekkadan over to Gjallarhorn.
killing protagonists dont make a plot better by default dude
@@laststrike4411 indeed, feels like it wanted to be zeta but didnt earned it before finding this video on recommended, i had forgotten about this series lol
@@alwaysangry2232 Didnt say it did, I said I liked how IBO handled it's ending. Also not a "dude".
@@alwaysangry2232 I think your reaching there.
Shino missing that shot was bullshit. Juliet threw a sword while fighting Mika that perfectly hit the target just enough to make the shot miss.
That's like hitting a bullseye on a dartboard mounted on a bullet train while you fight Connor McGregor.
Yeah she went Kirito mode. I use that phrase as reference to bad writing when Kirito was just given god mode
Well, thats what we call plot armor. Which was given to a character that doesn't even deserve it
She has that freedom justice aimbot
I love IBO. It helped me realize that I wanted to go back and finally watch the entirety of the franchise. And it's still one of my fave entries.
McGillis was supposed to be the 500IQ smartest guy ever lived in the series. His plan to conquering the world was, me got Freedom, me very strong, me is Jesus Yamato.
Laughs in lack of aimbot beam spam.
TBH, the series makes it pretty clear that, while that's how he views himself, his greatest success only became possible due to his patience, _despite_ how idiotically simplistic the actual plan was... The guy waited his whole life for a chance to betray his "father" and jumped at it the moment he saw the opportunity... which might also explain why he suddenly has zero patience by the second season.
Ever since Mika beat the Mobile Armor by himself he got very simple-minded
@@themercifulguard3971 He thought that if Barbartos was this strong, then Bael is a lot far stronger as it's the first Gundam Frame and piloted by Agnika Kaieru.
MUH BAEL
When Biscuit and Maze died, you can already sense that Tekkadan would fall or at least major characters from the group would. The final nail in the coffin was when they more or less partnered with McGillis.
R.I.P Mikazuki, Orga, Bicuit, Akihiro
Don't forget Shino 😭
@@daxsama yeah
@@fullarmorpp_2404 just got done watching damn
@@johnyaruki734 huh
@@fullarmorpp_2404 I meant I just finished the show right now and those deaths hit me
Wow, you perfectly put into words what made this series so different, and gave me an epiphany about this whole series. I was a huge fan of 008 war in the pocket (oav) because of the striking contrast of the story and erasing the lines of what is good and what is evil, and reminds us we are all humans with human flaws, ambitions, ideas, egos and desires.
I love the critical fail moments of IBO, it hammers home the overall grittier and less forgiving tone that the series is going for. It fits with the overall theme, being that pure will and determination is not enough to solve all problems. Sometimes you gotta use a screwdriver instead of a hammer, but Tekkadan kept using a hammer to solve its problems. It's not a failure of Tekkadan, it's just all they know. They're a bunch of traumatized child soldiers doing the only thing they know, which is fight for their survival.
It;s kinda hard to describe what a gundam anime is when you have stuff like G-reco made by Tomino himself.
Though I think IBO's biggest weakenss is actually McGillis' goal. Story wise it's a big deal but to us, its another gundam.
Tomino despite being the granddaddy director you can argue.... lost his way on meaning of a gundam series. He just hates what they stand for now (not just selling plastic model kits either)
McGillis goal isn’t weak at all...
@@Matanumi Considering people genuinely seem to idolize Zeon, I can't blame him.
Basically, IBO shows you how heroes eventually become what they hate if they lose their moral compass. And it was extremely refreshing to see brutal mecha fights that used melee weapons instead of overused / OP / eye-blinding beam weapons, and all the deaths were really gut-wrenching in a good way!
Thanks so much for explaining how I felt in words. I have been unreasonably emotional about ibo, but had no way of expressing it. You have given my feelings form.
Same, when I finished the second season something felt off and this video helped me understand why
Season 1: connect with everyone.
Season 2: get kicked in the nuts.
"Characters die"
Patrick Colasour : 👀
The argument that Tekkaden are the villains in S2 and that Rustel's faction are the heroes falls flat when across the board Rustel and the old guard of Gjallarhorn are shown to be far more morally wrong than McGillis and Tekkaden. At best it's a conflict between two ethically wrong sides, but Rustel's faction of Gjallarhorn are not "heroes" they are not the good guys.
Gjallarhorn was a corrupt authoritarian regime through and through. There's legal class discrimination allowed in the colonies. They armed the union workers with weapons that didn't work so they could have an excuse to kill them, which is also a war crime, they staged a bombing to fire on peaceful, if armed, protestors. They staged a proxy war between the SAU and Arbau, they interfered with Arbrau's elections, attempted to assassinate an innocent teenaged activist and committed war crimes such as the use of the deinsleifs and firing upon non combatants and they set up the Turbines for no reason other than petty revenge. Even Tekkaden, who are shown to be incredibly ruthless take prisoners.
Gjallarhorn are by no means heroes and their actions were far worse than anything that McGillis and Tekkaden ever did.
McGillis may have been making a grab for power, but he is absolutely correct that Gjallarhorn was a corrupt entity in need of reform. And Tekkaden wanting to be rulers of Mars isn't even that off base from what they were working towards in S1. What better way to gain Martian Independence than being given control of the planet by McGillis?
Rustal is "good guy" to the media. The media believed Rustal is the good guy and just find Tekkadan to be just a terrorist organization. Remember Rustal group controls the media, he is a dirty politician who use dirty tricks to achieve his goal
if tekkadan was allowed to actually become the kings of mars they would have started dropping colonies, this series is a perfect example of no matter who wins everything sucks.
Uh. . . . Anyone in their right mind would know that Tekkaden aren't that immoral to commit a hainous act like that. They arent even close. At worst they are Ammoral but not that bad. I have no idea where you got that idea from. What possible reason would they have to do that anyway? Tekkaden are quite noble if you ask me. Deposited the mistakes they've made. If anything Ghiallerhorn is more capable of something that devastating.
Calling Mcgillis a tyrant is such a woeful misread of his character it's funny.
Finally someone says it.
In my case that missed attack on season 2 make me liked even more IBO I rooted for them but it make a lot of sense that they missed. Till that point there was always a secret high risk high reward card that they pulled up and they always won because of that, so having them gamble everything for the win as always on that important battle and show that gamble fail it make sense.
When I first saw Biscuit I couldn't help but think of him as a Musashi/Benkei from Getter Robo, then he died and my thoughts were confirmed.
*Me being 7 minutes in*
"It feel's contrived"
"Bad story writing"
"Needs to have build up"
Me: So...it was good?
It is not bad story writing
Second season was frustating and with a bad exercution tô what they wanted
A great video and retrospective; I always respected Season 2, but now I have a more concrete way of explaining why- thank you for this!
And damn, older Ride reminds me of Sakaido from ID:INVADED!
I shed a year when I saw little Mika at the end.
I know right I relly want a sequel it has potential it would also be cool if we saw that pink gundam mcgi used in season 1 return almost like a mark of shame on it's current pilot who could be the best friend to mika the second
Yeah they could easily change the ending and have them kings of Mars
I felt some realism to this, man. The political scandals was just feels.
Also I am feeling slightly isolated as the one guy who liked Miguelis. Abused, betrayed, calloused and trying so hard.
I cannot help but sympathize with the boy. However, his pride was his downfall, and I make a point to be proud *after* I've won.
Oh hey, fellow McGillis fan! For me, I really feel his absolute frustration and anger at the establishment, and his desire to essentially just treat it like a shounen and save it by going apeshit.
@@0th_Law
Well you can find a behaviour like that in many kinds of people far more nice or cruel than McGillis, so I feel compelled to ask if you happen to be fond of a lot of revolutionaries?
@@TheKing-qz9wd Well, I *am* an Anarchist. Go figure, I suppose.
@@0th_Law
I figured you'd be in Antifa or something, so anarchist would make sense.
Monarchist. Having one head guy to blame makes things easier in a way.
The King Like, actually? Can you elaborate on your logic for Monarchism? I’m genuinely baffled.
The thing we forget about IBO is that it was in development hell for years and it shows. The core story would have hit hard when development started in 2008-9, but the ideas it picked up along the way feel more and more distant from the core premise, and the actual scripts feel like they were written by people who barely remembered who these characters were supposed to be beyond their archetype.
that, explains a lot
lol even the spinoff game is still stuck in the development hell right now. They announced an IBO mobile game years back and we still haven't heard anything from the dev team, maybe they are just trying to figure out how to write a descent story.
That would explain why I kept waiting for Orga to shout "believe in the me that believes in you."
IBO season 2 feels like if Jared had won Zeta Gundam -_-
Ibo I can't see a Gundam series coming close too it this was elite
The original 80s Gundam stuff is better
I recently finished the series. Had me in tears more than the ending of Gurren Lagan.
I think you're on the right track but "old ideas in a unique light" could be expanded on especially looking at common themes the different series.
So many series feature child soldiers but IBO is the first (to my knowledge) to actually explore the ramifications.
Many series also explore the post colonial dynamic between Earth and space; IBO looks at this in very different ways season to season.
How the characters respond to violence and the purpose of conflict is also really important across series. You touched on this but IBO, again, really sets itself apart.
If you really want to explore the interteztuality you need to really see what each series is saying about a common theme (or themes) and how IBO responds. It's very much a polemic piece directed at the established themes, and that is exactly what makes it so interesting.
Whoa... I honestly wasn't sure what I was getting into once I clicked your video. It helped me see the flaws in the second season but show me a new appreciation to the show compare to other series regarding its theme and symbolism. It bring something fresh to the series we don't see in other gundam shows. Thank for the video. To me at least IBO, has been a good series Sunrise produce in a long while compare some modern Gundam series.
I had to watch all my favorite characters die in vain one after the other, only to watch the princess shake hands with villains that killed them while they smiled.
Fuck this show's ending.
I feel ya that was painful to see
PREACH!!
I think the series really showcased how they described their characters way back episode 1. Even if a they have a different backstory from one another, they're a bunch of people who were lost in their own life. They were a bunch of people who don't know where to fit in. And when they acquired a considerable amount of power they got drown in it. To me it felt like they gave up on seeking the place they want to be but in reality they did found it but got lost again. That's why I really like when Naze Turbine (and his crew) became the sort of guardian/big brother to Orga and Tekkadan. For the first time there is someone giving them guidance and then when Turbine died Orga got lost again. When Akihiro found some kinda love interest on Lafter he kinda found a clear path after the death of his brother but when Lafter died, he got lost again. And when Orga died Mika land most of Tekkadan lost their compass.
So to me it has its issues as an anime. But I really liked it. The Gundams looked cool as hell. Yeah, I think it really did a good job showing how this characters trying to find direction and happiness only to get fucked by their own poor decisions or became victims of bad circumstances. It just life ain't it. The cruel side of life.
May i say something, when he mentions about the gundam and it’s names, it reminds me how setsuna talks about gundam and what an actual gundam is
This is a cool take, and I can see where you're coming from. Although I'm not sure if it excuses all the writing in season 2, I dig this interpretation. It also paints me a better picture of just why exactly the most fun I had with season 2 was indeed that mobile armor arc. It all makes sense now haha. I've been rewatching (or watching for the first time) every single Gundam series lately, and I'm looking forward to my rewatch of IBO a little more now.
I started with IBO too. I was really conflicted about how it panned out... however I still loved it. And you analysis was nothing short of incredible.
Thank you for making this video BooFire. You reinforced and improved some of my feelings about this unique "Gundam series". At first I pretty much disagreed with other people that the "villians" (not Tekkadan) didn't have plot armor and it was just the reality of war and such. But after watching this it is really smart that Tekkadan are now the "villans". I also agree that IBO shouldn't be a persons first Gundam Series due to the fact that a lot people will misunderstand everything about the plot, characters, and Gundam as a whole. Side note: It still kinda annoys me that a lot people today which I'm assuming IBO is their first Gundam wanted to see the antagonists die. Yes I know they done horrible things and we want to see your favorite characters survive and kill them but in the end they end up changing the world to which Mcgilis and Tekkadan were aiming for. (Rustal makes a new more democratic gov't with the abolishment of the Seven Stars and with the help of Kudelia outlaws Human Debris) and also wanting Ride to take Akatsuki and kill Rustal which would be going against what Tekkadan/Mcgilis were fighting for before Biscuit died. Feel free to pick apart this paragraph as I want to make sure I'm not misunderstanding anything you said in the video.
I like what they did to Ride. They show that despite the peace that we can achieve from what Rustal and the remnants of Tekkadan have done, it will never be enough. Violence will still exist and people will still use any means to fight.
Just because they outlaw the use of human debris doesn't actually mean it will stop. Nothing is ever simple. Ride is a perfect example of this in action. While there are people who are moving slowly, there will be people who wish to take the quicker route possible to their goals. When Ride shot up the fat man in the restroom for his involvement we did not see a look of content on his face nor sadness. It was just a look of disappointment.
I would not be surprised if an IBO OVA was released with Ride being either the protagonist or antagonist. His terrorist group using the name Tekkadan and thus establishing the name itself not to mean as a name for a group of knights or demons but to symbolize something more as a symbol of change, a legend of it's own separate from the gundam frames.
@@muchluck7981 I mean it's not that disagree with that Ride scene. It's amazing and does get the point across that violence will never truly disappear. I just can't stand the people who don't see the greater meaning behind this scene (Mostly because this is their first mecha/gundam series) and say shit like "Hur dur Rustal is evil, Ride will get revenge for all of Tekkadan and will train Akatsuki who will then kill Rustal"
@@Zaffr3 I agree. It's very misunderstood and I hate that. I don't want to see Akatsuki fight in a way he has no reason to. he has the love of Kudelia and Atra and while his father may not be there, I doubt Mikazuki would want his kid to do what he did.
@@Zaffr3 I usually told those kind of guy to re watch the series a few more times cuz after 2-3 times watching you get more of a new perspective like how Rustal changing the whole things for the better.
I really thought they were the good guys cause like them in the series I got caught up In it all and I think it's good that the show is like that it relly shows how easy it is to take the wrong path if your not careful
This is a strange case of a show I'll never watch again because that first viewing is so precious to my favorite show ever
the gundam frames themselves have a failsafe on them to protect the pilot, even the gundam frames themselve are made to protect not to fight just because, the failsafe is only removed when Mika has no choice but to save everyone from the Hashmal and briefly agains Ein in season 1 but it comes at a price; some see this as a way of Quote on Quote Dealing with the Devil but I see it more as the same way a parent disciplines their child, there has to be a punishment so you never think of doing the bad thing again, the final time it comes off is again when Mika is fighting for his life at the end of the show when the Barbatos knows MIka won't be able to fight again after this
As much as I love IBO and Most Gundam series I don't think it glorifies death, if anything it shows how brutal and discusting killing can be, I truely IBO is more Gundam than most series showing how boths sides can be right or wrong what matters is the means rather than end goal, Death is given the right amount of grieving and time, no body feels safe, if you didn't get to Shino's death and go "NOOOOOOOO" then I don't know what to say after Orga I was praying no one else would die but nope IBO went where most shows let alone Gundam wouldn't dare to go and for that I will praise it for doing Gundam Justice
IBO is a Olympic All Star Runner that fumbles right at the finish line. Frankly I feel like the creative team didn't know how to pay off what they set up. Specifically with McGillis. Season 1 is spent portraying him as a mastermind that has a grand plan to reform Gjallerhorn and its super interesting. Fastforward to S2 and his whole plan hinges on a centuries old myth about a Gundam and its actually pretty fucking half baked. Rustal comes in as a new antagonist and it's just kinda like "McGillis knew about this guy and... didn't have any preformed plans to deal with him before getting the Bael?!"
What also urkes me is that people claim that he became less smart in season two purely because of his arrogance. But what people also forget is that Arrogance does not account for intelligence. You could be one of the most selfish men or women to ever exist, but if you're as intelligent or at least close to being as smart as persay Sunzu, you better believe that kind of person would be a very effective strategist. Both within politics and in War.
They should make an alternate timeline for IBO, perhaps one where the ending isn’t so tragic.
its not tragic.
Rustal quickly decimated a madman and his dumbass friends, before they could set up a dictatorship.
@@trazyntheinfinite9895 your describing a man, Rustal, who was heavily hinted at using mercenaries to start conflict to enrich his organization. Every major issue in the series was caused by corrupt adults. And child sexual abuse victims, like McGillis are known in RL to hate the society they grow up in and wish it's downfall. Art initiating life sucks at times. But damn it all this show had me upset at the parallels between life and fiction being close all too often.
I knew it that the Demon names in their Gundams were the foreshadow of what they became at the end.
IBO was so good I rewatched it 5 times across 2 years.
I need a life
We had already made it, right Orga?
I got it dirty again, Atra is going to be mad again, I hope Kudelia will help me apologize
It hadnt clicked in my head that in IBO Tekaden becomes the villains, but now that its in words it fits.
The way I had always seen it was the message of IBO was always how the best of intents can be coopted, manipulated. It was in essence a distillation and condensation of what I had always understood Gundam to be: War is terrible, its unfair, and those who hope to make things better can always find themselves manipulated into doing terrible things. Tekaden's moral journey also being showcased in the designs of its lead fighters weapons, the Gundam's.
I always felt that the Gundam Frames looked disgusting, grotesque even, this isnt a negative thing infact quite the opposite I feel. The Gundam Frames are named after demons and have inhuman proportions and skeletal sections poking out. The center under the chest looks like a spine, its unnerving. As they go on, the suits from Tekaden get more and more malformed, the Barbatos concludes its journey with a snaking tail and horridly long arms ending in claws, and the Gusion becomes a four armed face changing nightmare. The Graze looks more like a knight, and even the Man Rodi looks less like a monster and more like a frog or a beetle, but the Graze Ein, which is supposed to cause a fear of Gjallarhorn, shows up it looks like an upscaled Gundam, the space between its hips and chest is extended showing more of that spine, there are intestine like tubes hanging all over it, it has claws for feet and a head with four horns.
The only one that escapes this really is the Flauros which (as MechaGaikotsu puts it) has Mr. Universe proportions, it looks like a hero, but it can also change forms between a monster and man, couple that with Shino's bravado and comradery, Shino is fun and puts a smile on your face. It's a subtle thing but I dont think its unimportant nor a misread that the Gundam Frame that looks most like a Superman with shoulder cannons, piloted by one of the most cheerful characters in Tekaden, is also the one that fails during a revenge mission, its a microcosmos of what S2 is about, that Heroes will fall when they lose their way.
I feel that IBO's biggest note though is something that other gundam series have used but I dont think ever really capitalized on, and that is that most of the soldiers we follow are children being moved by adults like chess pieces. In most Gundam series, the only kids are the "lead character (though they are rarely visually much younger than others)" and anyone that the series wants hammer a point unsubtley across with, but in IBO, most of the cast is, Kudelia, Mikazuji, Biscuit, Ride Julietta,, the list goes on, and all are being manipulated by adults. Kudelia by her benefacts, Tekaden by Orga then by McGuillis, Jullietta by Rustel, etc. All these kids hope for a better world with that passion that only kids can, and each one of them has been taken in by someone older than them.
In Tekadens case this is important to look at who they end up not listening to, Orga never listens to Naze nor McMurdo, people who have the understanding to temper their hope and have proven success, and instead listens to McGuillis, someone who has the same childlike hope but has been perverted by ambition, empty ambition at that, we never see anything in his past that shows why he has such a hatred for everything that makes him latch onto the saviors of his storybooks.
I think it shouldnt be missed that Tekaden also cuts Kudelia from their lives more and more in S2, until at the end they cut all ties with her. Much like Biscuit, Kudelia is a tempering force for Tekaden, though in this case an external one. To use a boat as a metaphor, Biscuit was the oresman steering the ship, but Kudelia was a builder trying to keep the currents going the right way. Kudelia is the mother that the kids of Tekaden needed, she always cared for them even when she saw them going down the wrong path, and when they came back to her for help she welcomed them back with open arms.
IBO teaches us that hope is powerful, the kids who have hope become Tekaden, who carves a name and legend for themselves for better or worse, the kids who dont have hope are the random Space Rats who Tekaden slaughters, even knowing that they themseves were once the same.
IBO teaches us that hope is dangerous, that it can be manipulated and distorted, that you, much like Mikazuki, could give up your dream of opening a farm, because you have been led by the nose to someone elses dream.
IBO teaches us that there is always someone who wants to help you back onto your path, you just need to go to them when you realize you lost your way. Ride leaves Kudelia's care and continues the path of blood, Mikazuki never came back to her and was killed. Everyone else who went back to Kudelia went on to have the happy peaceful life they wanted all along, and they all carry the memories of those that passed, Kudelia with the earring, a whole bunch starting a company that uses Shino's colors and emblem.
This has been long and rambling I know and if you made it to here than you for taking the time. Please leave any suggestions in the comments, I'm genuinely trying to work on how to better translate the thoughts in my head to a form others can understand.
Excellent
That was just wow my whole view on ibo is 180 I still love the show but to me the show is about what you notice it builds a story I find something new each time it’s a show I grow more to understand and I think that’s what makes the show greater idk how to say what I want to because I’m just…wow
Nice write up.
I also think there's an underlying theme about simply thinking through about what are you doing, questioning your own motives and, more importantly, thinking about the consequences of your actions.
Yukinojo the mechanic outright states it near the end, that you should never stop thinking, when that one guy with the pompadour starts rambling (correctly) about how dumb Orga was. At the very end, the ones who get to live to see another day are the guys who approached things level-headed instead of the ones trying to work some hot-blooded shonen magic to save the day at the last second like McGillis and his Bael lone assault.
Great series IMO. Kinda underrated amongst long-time Gundam fans.
Just to add, I really feel like Biscuit's death was one of the events that really pushed things over to the wrong path. Biscuit was not only smart but he was also one of the guys who would stop and think "Yo, maybe this ain't right," or "Maybe we should look at things diff differently,". Losing him was a big hit to Orga, as now he only had Mikazuki who to be honest doesn't really question much of what Orga does. Orga has a powerful sword in his hands, an unstoppable Gundam pilot who would destroy anyone who opposes the family they have. But with Biscuit gone, no one else really had both a clear mind and weight in their words to encourage him to maybe actually sheathe the sword he has. This series is amazing and the ending was bittersweet, but realistic(but yeah, some parts of it was DUMB when nearing the end, IQ points were dropping left and right)
Tekkadan was doomed from the start. They were children. Their big "goal" from the start was "a place where they belonged". Of course they lost sight of it, of course they were misled by adults they shouldn't have trusted and of course they didn't listen to the adults they should have, they were children. In all actuality all they knew about was war, but what happens when that war goes away? They grew up so screwed up that they literally couldn't see the bigger picture. It's an idea that was touched upon in Wing EW. "What happens to the soliders when there is nothing left to fight, who only know how to fight?". 00 also somewhat touched upon it with Setsuna and Azadistan.
Iron Blooded Orphans was my first Gundam I’ve seen. It’s what got me interested in the Gundam Franchise. And I will say, despite the story not being like rest of the Franchise, it was a confusing, yet enjoyable entry into the Franchise
You either die a Hero, or Live long enough to become the villain.
IBO is honestly my favorite show above all others. Loved the video. It's always great to see more layers of this amazing show discussed
I feel like looking for the heroes and villains in this series would take away from the experience. For me this show was really about watching people who choose to live and die by the sword. Where Orga makes gambles people see as stupid, these are sometimes the risks in life we need to take to see how far we’re meant to go.
Honestly, I couldn’t watch any other gundam show. I tried many times but just couldn’t do it. I had a friend strongly recommend Iron Blooded Orphans and I decided to try it and man I fuckin love this show. Idk how anyone sat through any of the other gundam animes. But IBO did make me want to try and watch the other ones again cause there are things in the show that I would like to understand better.
You hit it on the T... After watching Gundam Unicorn and my favorite Gundam 00 it shook me to watch this Gundam it definitely on of the most unique animes ive watched
Man, that final Gaelio scene with McGillis is so amazing.
Well written, but wow, Matsukaze Masaya really sells the scene as Gaelio.
The problem I have isn’t so much the main cast losing, but of the bad guy. Based on how Rustal acted in the show, I find it hard to believe he would do all those things in the epilogue on the final episode. Gailio doing it seems somewhat believable, but not Rustal. Rustal was corrupt and evil. Because of that I don’t see the ending as viable. Remember the guy had an agent of his commit terrorism in the show to start a war, was willing to lie flat out and scapegoat people for his convenience, use illegal weaponry on his own men to lie about who use them first to justify his use of them. The main cast might not have been the heroes but the winner in the end was the bad guy. It would have been better if he had been killed in the show, exposed what he and Iok had done, and have that (along with what gailio exposed, and over half the 7 stars families being wiped out) be used as a catalyst for the reform the organization.
I think that might be down to how the show was originally going to end. As I understand it, the original ending was going to be that nothing changed and everyone in Tekkadan dies. But the main writer managed to get the director to change the ending to a more hopeful ending where things did change, and only the major players of Tekkadan were killed. And this began around episode 21.
Everything Rustal does makes total sense and advances his strategic objective. He wanted to ensure that Gjallerhorn kept its military monopoly, and that its status was seen broadly as legitimate. Give those objectives, look at his strategic situation at the end of the insurrection.
1. 3 of the Seven Stars families are extinct. Of the remaining ones, all of them sided against him in the war. Granted this was under duress. In any case, politically he commands the most resources at this point. The situation is going to be destablized if he restores the old system, because the others have every reason to undermine him at that point. There is an old saying that Triumvirates are unstable, and a tetrarachy is not much more stable. So reforming the old system is a must. He had to do this once Iok died. "More democratic" does not mean a full democracy. He clearly retains the power to nominate his successor and if anything is even more powerful as the new President
2. Regarding the Mars branch, it has demonstrated that it is too far from Earth to effectively control, and has demonstrated that it fosters an independence streak within the larger organization. It was run as more or less a personal fiefdom in season 1, and in season 2 ignores Rustal's orders. Therefore it needs to be reduced to minimize it's power and eliminate the possibility of developing into an independent military. It's this decision that allows the Martian Union government to form, as the Earth blocs lose the ability to enforce their mandates on Mars.
It's really those two decisions that lead to everything else. None of this is due to any charitable intentions on Rustals part. It just makes sense given his position. He enhances his power, and is entirely consistent with his motivations as portrayed throughout season 2
thats what makes rustal the best, hes absolutly based and wins in the end, it makes you hate him even more which in turn makes him even better villian.
Rustal is such a bad character.
He is no better than Stalin but the end they describe him as:
"Oh yeah he set up a democratic party and fought corruption, good guy 10/10"
Yeah if course a warmonger would do that.
You people don´t understand him. He is not evil, He is a realist.
There were two things Rustal believed in:
1_Gjallarhorn are the peacekeepers of the Solar System, and they should stay in Power at all cost.
2_Using any means possible to achieve your objectives, while also being as conservative as possible of your resources.
The reason why he did was he did was in order to keep Gjallarhorn in power. Do you want to know why he tolerated corruption? Because it worked out for him, he could easily manipulate the corrupted members of Gjallarhorn to do his bidding if he needed, by blackmail or other things, without compromising the organization integrity that much. Imagine if he tried to reform Gjallarhorn by his own initiative, it would have led to frictions between the several factions inside the organization that would have weaken their union in front of the public and earth blocks.
Of course, once he finds an opportunity to make reforms in Gjallarhorn, in a way that ends up with a good note on them, he takes it. McGillis gave him that chance after he revealed a lot of the corruption of the Seven Stars Families, and the fact McGillis also acted like a power hungry sociopath gave Rustal the tools to paint himself as the one who tries to keep order in Gjallarhorn while McGillis is unreasonable, crazy.
This is why he never chases after the survivors of Tekkedan. His main objective with them was eliminating any possible threats to his power, which why he only focuses on the Gundam pilots and their Gundams, the same ones that Gave Tekkedan so much power and gave them their victories over Gjallarhorn.
Long story short, Rustal is basically a Machiavellianist that is able to understand changing of times, as in the anime is implied that he is glad that Julietta, when she choosen as leader of Gjallarhorn in a future election, isn´t as bad as him, understanding that diferent times need diferent leaders.
The big picture was showing that no matter how hard the less fortunate class works it can all be taken away by the rich for little to not reason and swiftly..
This was my introduction to the Gundam universe. And I have to say, I’m glad I started here. I loved the series and adored the amount of questionable decisions our protagonists had to make. It’s something that not many shows are ballsy enough to do now. I’ve since watched so many of the other shows, films, and spin offs and am so glad I stumbled upon them.
Also, the music is amazing
I agree with you up until you say Tekkaden are in the wrong during their final conflict. They aren't anywhere near the villains in this situation, you're completely leaving out the fact that Rustal is not just a criminal but a war criminal in the real world his ass would've been dragged before the ICC and been given the gas chamber not only did he pull a Palpatine a fight a war as the leader on both fronts (remember Galan Mossa anyone), this mam continously orders people to ignore cease fires and people surrendering, framed Tundra for using weapons of mass destruction then uses them in mass AFTER implanting a mole into the Mcgillis forces to use said weapon first, his forces caused a ancient mobile armor to awaken and almost wipe out a densely populated area. Rustal is without a doubt the villain of season 2, Tekkaden failed in the end but they certainly didn't die villains. I also don't like how ppl just ignore the fact Mcgillis was raped by his adopted father and if the catholic church has taught us anything it's that something like that was definitely known by the higher ups in the 7 stars
It's hard to explain how much I disagree.
Let me start with Gjallarhorn. Are most certainly still the villains. Galan Mossa under Rustal infiltrated Tekkadan and started the seed of them working with Mcgillis.
Gjallarhorn fired on civilians and children using illegal weapons and faced no repercussions for it. Gjallarhorn claimed to reform but the new leader is the old leader's protege.
This is far from not being a good person. Graham Aker is the perfect example of an antagonist not a villain. He is not a good person, but never did anything remotely like Gjallarhorn.
Earth does not own Mars. And I'm not going to entertain the idea that all rebellions for sovereignty ought to be peaceful. Kings still represent their people else they very quickly no longer are kings. Mars isn't Tekaddan's, but it surely isn't Earth's either, trying to reach violent independence even if it is to have their own king is nowhere near as evil as fighting for the status quo of oppression we saw in S1 where food was being grown on Mars for pennies and most boys had to become child soldiers, were illiterate etc. Dangerous freedom > Safe bondage and fighting to be kings of Mars will result in an infinitely better Mars than fighting for the status quo.
I also have never seen any media go after their characters like IBO did. It is one thing for villains to lose and heroes to get that last second win.
It is another thing for Iok to survive stupidity that Tekkadan was punished for. It is another thing to go against characterization where Mcgillis who was brilliant in S1 now starts making colossal mistakes in S2. And I'll never forgive Mikazuki having to retreat because of an explosion after defeating Julieta only for her to survive and get picked up on the way back.
That isn't plot armour or plot convenience. That is plot bending and insulting my intellect
This is the reality of things Sometimes good people get roped into bad ideas. Tekkadan lose their way when they joined Mcgills and tried to take the fast way. They became more of the villains because they were forcing their way on to the people. The series could have cut off parts like the mobile armor and the first half to better explained this.
I agree with most of this.
But them losing to bullshit is the point. You can not like it, but i assure you this shit happens more often than not in the real world especially as you get more successful. That's probably the most v realistic thing about IBO, an incompetent petulant nepotism entitled prick like Iok keeps getting off for all his bullshit, meanwhile a group of demonized children keep dealing with ever-increasing hardship.
Losing to bullshit because the world's not fair is the point. But at least they fought against it and got so close to winning too.
@@Thrdwrld32 it's one thing losing to bullshit, but like Antoine said, plot of S2 is often just insulting viewers intelect. Seriously I'm suposed to belive, that McGillis, the guy who was able to masterfully manipulate takkedan, teiwaz, Gjallarhorn and oposition inside gjallarhorn at the same time, did all of this just to get the bael, because that would crown him as the new emperor of earth? Or how Rustal, after speaking how he will destroy takkedan for political gains, was satisfied with destroying one barbatos and gusion? Or how nobody in the freaking town noticed group of 100 children in takkedan suits standing on the rooftop just after gjallarhorn broadcasted live footage of their "ultimate destruction"? It was even more stupid after you remember, that orga died near the entrance to this freaking tunel, despite the fact that nobody even knew he was in town.
I didn't expect IBO to end well (tbh I was suprised how many people survived), but season 2 was almost a total disaster to me.
Hard disagree. But ok.
acidous because McGillis believed in a fairy tale and didn’t truly understand how Bael became a legend just like the video said. He was too ambitious without a real plan.Yes Rustal was satisfied because there was no in his way anymore. The only person who could’ve have stood up to him died in a failed uprising and the only military group was gone.In the end they played with fire and got burned. The show is a hard pill to swallow
Everything you said is why this is one of my favorite gundam animes.
Even only watching 2 full series of Gundam Iron Blooded Orphan's reversal in the end was very clear to me, as much as I hated some of the "antagonists" near the end their narrow misses and successes despite all odds had a weird sense of melancholy, the losses of the protaginists were good things. I kept hoping that Tekkaden would throw off McGillis and fight for their own cause again but in a way what did they have to fight for, they were fighting to secure their own place in the world not to better it. Everything was also driven home and reinforced in the epilogue, that Tekkaden losing at that moment was the right thing for the world, and that the paths the "antagonists" took as well as the survivors of tekkaden working under Kudelia made the world an objectively better place. They hadn't fought to save it from disaster, they fought to shape it to their will as you said.
All in all Iron Blooded Orphans is genuinely among my favorite of the series I've watched so far, in themes, gundam design, the feel of combat, and atmosphere, I didn't realize that it was especially controversial and even unliked because I was really hoping for it to be expanded more, maybe future series will try to explore the concepts Iron Blooded Orphans touched on through different perspectives in a way that guides those who otherwise were just more annoyed by how it went in IBO.
The only reason gaelio survived because Mari okada likes the performance of gaelio's VA (if I remember correctly) it's kinda unfair though to the other characters in the series
I got the feeling that Julietta should've pilot the Vidar. With that she would be proper Gjallarhorn's equivalent to Tekkadan's Mika and Rustal's trump card.
It is though. Gaelio survived because Okada loves him which results S2 plans got changed largely as well giving Rustal plot armor
Oh god the second I heard lord of the flies I was like damn oh jeez my brain blew up
Iron blooded orphans got me into gundam. I love it to bits and subsequently, ive loved everything else about it.
Kinda shallow analysis. Tek was forced into action by betrayal, and murder. Lets also no forget that Orga is still a KID! He doesnt have decades of experience to draw upon. Fareed only launched his attack, when he did, as a way to help Tek. Least we forget that Fareed also helped Tek when they were attacked by Dawn. Another example of Tek being betrayed. Fareed was ultimately defeated BECAUSE he supported Tek, and allowed himself to be drawn out before he was ready. Fareed also failed to take into account that his opponent was completely immoral, and willing to break every rule in order to win. Orga didnt want to actually stay sovereign, but saw it as a way to help not only Tek, but the people of Mars.
The real problem with the 2nd season, is that they brought some one BACK TO LIFE, and he fooled all of Fareeds plans. How LAZY is that? I mean seriously?! They secretly bring some one back to life, and a single speech by him convinces everybody that Fareed is bad? NOBODY even questioned how that happened. Should've had Fareed win, and the let him and Tek face off in a war a few years down the road. Season 3 could have been Tek vs TS, and then against Fareed. After Fareed goes full Char. The serious could have been SO much better.
I only saw a couple of Gundam series before IBO. I saw parts of Mobile Fighter G Gundam and a few episodes of that really weird series where all of the Mobile Suits were human sized and it was CG 3D. IBO was the first one I finally could finish on my own time and it was amazing. I was crying for the last handful of episodes during S2.
i think i spoiled myself with this being the first gundam series i watched. the rest just seem kind of bland. but i havent been looking hard either
You are young man. I’m glad you figured it out by the end. I guess I knew what they were doing all along with this.
6:30, as a long time Tabletop RPG player, watching the second season felt pretty much just like a campaign run by a particularly nasty DM who made sure the situation would continue to stack against us as long as we were succeeding on rolls, he basically just had us keep on rolling until the nat 1 hit he could finally screw our plans over with for no reason other than, "Ha, nat 1, you all FAIL!"
IMO best gundam I’ve watched , the fact the people i was rooting for died for what they believed in no matter what happened , no matter how dark it got it made them human.
I spent most of last night thinking about how good IBO is. A painful series that I appreciate a lot.
yeahhhh no how can you say Gjallarhorn are the "good guys" when they are shown to be the most ruthless, racist(against people not from earth) and corrupt organization in the solar system? their members hire child prostitutes and no one does anything about it , they are the main reason Mars is starving. The ending was a realistic "compromise" ending where not everything became better but some things did and it wasn't stratifying because throughout the series we are shown our MC's do amazing and incredible things so when we get the realistic ending of them getting wiped and their dreams shattered it just feels very left field. I think the main theme of IBO was capitalisms and its effect on war , politics and poor nations (Mars) and how it creates an elite class and leads to racism. It was an enjoyable series but that ending was really unsatisfying.
IBO has a strong theme that's being overlooked. Revolution
Yes, the protagonists want to achieve power and status, but they also want a better world than the one they were given, specially Mcgillis. They didn't chose violence because they loved violence, or even because it was the shortest path. They did it because they were fighting a corrupt and insanely powerful system that wouldn't listen otherwise
Yes, they were stupid, yes, they were too ambitious and yes they wanted a shortcut. But their morals weren't so far off
And Rustal and his team were by no means the heroes of the second season. They represent the Status Quo of this tyrannical system, they cheated their way through victory by commiting war crimes, and they only changed because the actions of the protagonists forced them to, or they would've lost their power otherwise
It's a great tale of ambition but mainly a history about revolution
I NEVER thought about the lord of the flies parallels
Thats brilliant
The tragedy of season 2 is that Tekkadan, i.e. Orga, did not belong in peacetime. In season 2, Tekkadan found themselves being used as cannon fodder, and found their older sibling double crossed by so-called allies. If they did the right thing and politely waited for bureaucracy, would they still be Tekkadan? Was this really the place where they belonged?
Going by this essay's logic, that the gundam universe makes the impossible possible for heroes, it's fitting that Mika and Akihiro miraculously "survive" the dansleif barrage up until they were sure their brothers were safe.
Everyone who belonged to Tekkadan's wartime vanguard had to be sacrificed for everyone else to be renamed/reborn in a world that didn't need child soldiers.
Yet like a flower, the seeds have been sown. While an old guard died out, they left a new flower to bloom in it's place. the old guard may have passed but a new one picks up their mantle. While the old tekkadan dies, a new one is born. This new Tekkadan is Ride. Ride represents the passing of the torch per say. He is not like the others who chose peace. he chose to murder the man responsible for murdering his boss, he never let go of the hatred that was in his heart. by killing that man, he threw away the only chance of peace he may have had for one of the old Tekkadan.
@@muchluck7981 He might have lost his soul but he did take out a man that would drag Gjallarhorn down to further corruption. Rustal had no problems with businessmen hiring assassins to silence anyone they want. The reforms he instilled are paper thin at best. No child soldiers? So what? We've perfected the AV system for adults more or less. Willing adult cannon fodder like Ein are easy to come by. If they are lulled by the ruse of doing it for the good of Gjallarhorn. Take any of the brains of gjallarhorn soldiers that died in S2 and shove them in to frames.
Binged both seasons in week still think about series. Thanks for this video got some of my thoughts together.
Having finally watched the series in full I can safely say that the series has grown on me.
I saw some comments of another video about IBO and it said that the gundams in this are named after demons and each character follows the description of said demons and it makes a lot of sense on why and how each gundam/tekadan fell.
Violence or brute force is ultimately the universal language of extreme conflict.
For me it was the writing. I couldn’t get into it. As soon as the rich evil fops showed up is when it hit me “here we go again”. The dialogue of the characters makes me feel dumb for watching it by selling me the same old story without any realism to how the characters think. I wouldn’t say the shows bad, just... bland as an anime
That's exactly the problem with this show. The characters don't behave like thinking people because the script just sucks. Everything feels unnaturally scripted without any personality
Mari okada can't write for shit
@Peter Bergania Shin from Seed Destiny(2004) also lost. I guess bad shows have that in common
Seriously, not that I hate the guy or anything, but Boofire's really losing me with all these shit takes.
Ah yes, the dilemma of defining the bad guys, of course it's the brats who didn't know any better and overestimated themselves over the noble imbecile who activated an AI that eradicated an entire settlement and most of all, the pedophile rapist with the weapon which use was equal to a war crime.
Man I really hope you're not allowed anywhere near any underage kids if your mindset to talk about this series was non-ironic.
Where the fuck did any of this come from? You are seriously projecting a lot of intent that isn't there into the things he said (and inventing shit he didn't say) in this video.
Well said. I really can't believe he had the gall to call Tekkadan villains and conquerors while calling Rustal a hero. Absolutely ridiculous...
This is how I felt when I watched IBO. I didn't notice the Orga Jacket part that is so cool. Great video telling how it is and why IBO is an awesome show!!!!
This series will always have a special place in my heart as my first Gundam series and what envigorated my love for Gundam as a whole.
Omg I'm happy people are posting about this show it might not be a big anime but it should be among the best
I'm so glad IBO is getting a spot in the limelight. Definitely one of my favorite anime
Even if some things in the anime where pretty rushed.
Please don't start the review by saying the second season is awful and then go on to explain why it's not. Your review almost misled me to not finish the series.
Thank you
He just compares it to other series when it's completely unique. No way in hell were Tekkaden ever the villains
Dude, your description of why IBO S2 is frustrating hit so hard for me. You basically spoke all of my complaints out loud. Thank you sir, fantastic video
You either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become a villain.
I gotta say season 2 writing is shittty af. Think about it, naze and amida couldve just surrendered themselves to galawhatevs and be brought to trial but no, the writer made them fought the whole fleet with just the two of them. Just so the writer could transition into the plot where tekkadan is destroyed. Because it was already episode 15 and they only had 10 episodes left to conclude the story.
I am glad I’m not the only one that connected this to lord of the flies