With the new release of SD Gundam G Generation ETERNAL, the upcoming release of Mobile Suit Gundam Seed Battle Destiny Remastered, and the announcement of Super Robot Wars Y, many may be wondering what the Gundam Series is, and where to begin with it.
Well today we wanted to answer those questions, and help you get started with the world of anime, manga, novels, and of course, the Gundam video games! There is a lot to cover, but we will make this quick and right to the point.
Gundam Universal Century:
When people say the "original" Gundam, the Universal Century is what they are referring to.
The series originally began in 1979 and quickly made waves among its viewers. Rather than being a typical kid super-robot show, Gundam focused on the human side of war, and showed the world that not everything is black and white. It took many risks, and ultimately told a story that continues to resonate with viewers still to this day.
Moving past the original release, Gundam received many sequels and side stories that are all set within the Universal Century. Zeta was a direct sequel, ZZ was a sequel to that, and eventually the series originally ended with a movie titled Char's Counterattack. It was after this where OVAs, manga, and even novel releases went back to add to the story, which resulted in shows like Mobile Suit Gundam 08th MS Team, War in the Pocket, Stardust Memory, The Origin, Char's Deleted Affair, and more. The series would also go on to have additional sequels in the form of Unicorn, NT, F91, Hathaway's Flash, and Crossbone.
All of these entries are a part of a single continuation, and are meant to be viewed in either Release Order or Timeline Order. While Release Order is how it was originally intended, Timeline Order doesn't fully ruin the future of the series, but might not be as enjoyable to those are not already existing fans (The Origin is a prime example of this). Although some of the side stories can be watched without the context of the main series, in general Universal Century should be started at the beginning with Mobile Suit Gundam.
The Stand Alone Series:
When Bandai bought Sunrise, the studio behind Gundam, in the early 90s, a change was made to how Gundam was handled overall. Rather than just sticking with the main timeline that had been going for 15 years, they decided to have Sunrise take it in a new direction. While the main Universal Century would continue, new series were being produced for the new generation of fans.
This is where the stand alone entries entered the picture.
All stand alone titles are exactly as one might expect; they are original stories not connected to the original source material, and have the creative freedom to try something completely new. While themes and ideas from the Universal Century may get carried over, they are generally very different.
Mobile Fighter G Gundam was the first original title, and focused on tournament fighting with giant robots. It was completely over the top, but attacks like Shining Finger quickly became iconic. Moving past that series like Gundam SEED were designed to be the "Gundam for the New Generation," and more closely followed the original series, while also featuring a world and plot all its own. Gundam 00 in the mid 2000s focused on using conflict to eradicate war, and Iron Blooded Orphans went on to follow a rag-tag band of orphans who ends up going toe to toe with the government as they take their first job. The latter two series took a much darker and mature approach compared to something like G Gundam, but kids weren't completely left out of the loop when it came to these newer entries.
Besides the standard mecha series, the Gundam Build Fighters series all tell their own stories, but are focused on the plastic Gundam model kits known as Gunpla; something that is very popular in the real world as well. Here the plastic kits are brought to life to battle one another, and shown in a much more kid friendly way. This effectively helps make Gundam a series everyone of all ages can enjoy, and allows them to start nearly anywhere outside of the original Universal Century.
Unlike the UC, these series are not connected to one another, and any one of them can act as a perfect jump in point for new fans. Although not everyone will enjoy every version of Gundam, as they are all quite different, there is a very high chance that at least one of the stand alone entries will resonate with you. In this case it is best to pick one that looks interesting, try it out, and move on if it doesn't click.
The only time a side series cannot be started on its own is when the show is broken into multiple seasons or pieces of media. Gundam SEED has a direct sequel with SEED Destiny, and it also has side story manga titled SEED Astray. More recently a movie titled SEED Freedom released, and serves as a direct sequel to everything that came before it. The same can be said with Gundam 00 Season 1 and Season 2, as well as the movie A Wakening of the Trailblazer, which becomes pretty obvious that it should be watched in order like anything else with multiple seasons. Even so, Gundam 00 itself could be a starting point, or so could Gundam SEED; it is completely up to what the viewer is interested in.
So what is the best place to start Gundam?
For those who want the full Gundam experience and do not mind the old animation style, the original Mobile Suit Gundam is in fact the best place to begin this long journey.
On the other hand, those wanting a more modern single complete story that is easier to jump into, then look no further than Mobile Suit Gundam 00, Mobile Suit Gundam Iron Blooded Orphans, or the more recent Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury. All three of these entries are much more modern, feature great animation, and can be watched completely on their own as their own series. All three stories are vastly differently, and are worth watching in their own right.
Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX also began airing on April 9th of 2025, and offers an alternative take on the original Mobile Suite Gundam set within the Universal Century timeline. This one too is an original story, and can be viewed without prior knowledge of the massive original timeline.
Where to Watch Gundam:
Gundam can be watched over at Gundam.info, the official source of all things Gundam. Shows are rotated out throughout the year, and stays up to date with what is currently airing. Additionally the series can be found on Crunchyroll, and Hulu, with some Gundam series being exclusive to Netflix.
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