#Char's Counterattack-Beyond the Time

[slowlysointernet]

Another interesting moment in ''Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack - Beyond the Time'' where Char thinks Nanai's voice is his mothers :

I bet some people who read this will still be confused and say that he wants Nanai as a mommy 🙄😂.

[peterrrei]

[holmslice69art]

[youreaclownnow]

YOU CAN CHANGE YOUR DESTINY TOKI NO MUKOU 

YOU CAN CHANGE YOUR FUTURE YAMI NO MUKOU

WE CAN SHARE THE HAPPINESS SAGASHITE YUKU AISHI ATTA ANO HI O

[lesser-mook]

『BEYOND THE TIME (メビウスの宇宙を越えて) アクシズ阻止ver.』

Imagine making something so iconic, a statue along with it’s movie feature animation is featured on public display like it’s a historical monument.

Japan is really something. This is just great.

[ceddrawing]

[swashlyn]

rewatched Char's Counterattack

[daydreamycrustacean]

you cant just threaten me with narrative parallels to big boss and not deliver. i need this

AHEHEHEE....( •̀ ω •́ )✧ Ive spent all noon going insane over char and ive listened 3 times to beyond the time, so you chose the perfect time for this.... Okay. so basically,

meme comic aside, here's a more structured and elaborated version of these points, taken from something that I wrote in my notes app at 2 am, plus some other points. Sorry if this doesn't make sense. Im not good at putting my thoughts into words.

----------------------

-they are both soldiers who end up being idolized and turned into a symbol. this idolization makes people want them to be in a position of leadership.

-being better known for their nom de guerre, "the red comet/char aznable" (which also counts as this, since it's a fake name tied to his identity in the one-year war) and "big boss", adds to this idealization, and with it also comes depersonalization, as their identity becomes just an image of a war hero that exists in peoples heads. a legend, rather than a real person.

-the artificiality of this legend is brought home in the way that it is taken, replicated, and put into other people, showing that anyone can be "the red comet" or "big boss". that's right baby. clones! Be it The Patriots making supersoldier clones of big boss for war purposes or Sunrise making Char after Char for anime purposes. But Char does also have actual in-universe clones???

-And also phantoms... the much clearer example of the artificiality of these legends/identities. I don't know anything abt Gundam Unicorn and so the only things I know abt Full Frontal are from the wiki. but he's just Venom Snake. Hey, what if we took this random guy and altered his appearance and mind to be the red comet/big boss?

-Okay its time to talk about The Boss and Zeon Deikun. Their deaths turn them both into symbols that represent the ideals that they preached. Ideals that everyone else takes and misinterprets for their own purposes. Their deaths also kickstart Big Boss and Char´s...everything. In a way, both Big Boss and Char dedicate their lives fighting for the ideals that their mother/father represented. Are they any good at this? Or are they yet another person taking these ideals and twisting them beyond recognition? Let´s say that´s up for debate.

-"So both Char and Big Boss ended up being idolized just like The Boss and Zeon Deikun? Even though it's something that they did not want and tried to avoid?" YES! Unavoidable fate. Repeating mistakes of the past...Sins of the Father... one of the key themes of Metal Gear. THE theme of metal gear. Big Boss more consciously tried to avoid the fate of The Boss by leaving the US military and hated being seen as a hero/called Big Boss because of The Boss. Char never outright states that the reason he does not want leadership is because he does not want to suffer his father´s fate...but his choice of accepting leadership is tied into his father´s fate nonetheless, with "Maybe human sacrifices run in your family" and Char casting himself as that human sacrifice in Char´s Counterattack. Is the reason as to why thinking about Char makes me so insane because his narrative of not being able to escape his father´s shadow taps into one of Metal Gears main themes? who knows...

-I said that Char´s "The Boss" figure is Zeon Deikun...but I think Lalah is the emotional aspect of this. She is the more clear Mother Figure whose death scars and haunts Char the way The Boss haunts Big Boss. Yes, Char also lost his real mom when young but shes not as important as Lalah.

-They just miss their mom bro :(

-cue millions of jokes about Oedipus complexes (more prevalent in the gundam fandom. for some reason.)...not gonna comment on this but they are there. and I can't ignore it if I'm talking abt comparisons between them.

-Okay, mothers/fathers talk aside. Their relationship to war and conflict. Not much else to say that I didn't say in the image. Its all they know and and all they think themselves capable of. Though thinking about their similarities on this did remind me of something that Beltorchika said in Zeta about Char, about how she thinks he's someone who is incapable of living without war and how definitely similar things are directly said about big boss in metal gear. there's more to this and about whether this is true and why...but my eyes are starting to hurt. I need to finish this.

-Lets go back to leadership. despite the fact that they both do not initially want this position of power, they do eventually give into it to help soldiers/Spacenoids respectively. Big Boss wants soldiers to not be used by governments like he was used (but he does end up using them nonetheless. oops) and Char wants Spacenoid independence from the Federation, although Char´s motivations in cca are more complex than just this, I do believe part of him does genuinely see helping spacenoids as his "duty" and something he needs to sacrifice himself for.Okay that was my last big point. finally this is done. more stuff:

-the_man_who_sold_the_world.mp3

-I don't know. all war criminals know these days is be bisexual and lie. <- all there is to say abt their heavy homoerotic subtext. which yes they also both individually have. although big boss´ is stronger bc he's in metal gear. I also can't ignore it. It's still a character aspect.

-forgot abt Quess...use of child soldiers ig. awesome.

[ninthprime]

mildly arbitrary rating of every gundam i have watched so far

in order of me starting them

witch from mercury: 7.5/10. we’re never gonna get confirmation of people’s various theories that this show was originally planned for 50 episodes and i’ve also heard that the showrunner’s series tend to be kind of just Like This, but gwitch has a lot of missed potential mostly focused on 1. its seemingly incomplete worldbuilding and 2. the fact that the arcs of much of its secondary cast (guel, nika, shaddiq) appear to jump over a few steps or just are missing something. on the other hand, the arcs of its primary cast (particularly suletta) are great, suletta herself is a top-tier protagonist, the tertiary cast is one of the best i’ve seen in gundam (i love earth house), and sulemio is probably objectively the best gundam romance even if i’m pretty sure it’s not my personal favorite.

gundam 0079: 9.5/10. the GOAT. you know how it is. every single person who got into gundam via gwitch like i did but still hasn’t gone back to watch 0079 is doing themself a total disservice. you watch this show and both everything about mecha and everything about modern anime in general suddenly clicks completely in your brain. everyone who has been obsessed with char aznable and amuro ray for the last 40+ years has been completely right. i think its only big flaws are some of its treatment of women (though later shows like ZZ have way more glaring issues there) and its shortened length, but frankly if you hadn’t told me it got cut short seven episodes early i would not have noticed, because its finale may be one of my all time favorite television finales ever. just go watch it. i’m sitting you down right now

zeta gundam: 8.5/10. a really ideal sequel in a lot of ways that are remarkable considering the gap of time between it and 0079. focuses on new characters who reflect on the last show while still being their own things, and brings back the cast of the last show in ways that feel like they make sense while still being unexpected and making you look at things in a new light. deeply iconic and atmospheric in ways that are a little overwhelming at times; it is a dour show. has way more glaring flaws for me than a lot of the fandom brings up though, mostly in its pacing and its villains. this show has an entire middle section i barely remember and do we need both the four and rosamia storylines? and frankly i do not care about the titans that much (other than sarah).

zz gundam: 8.5/10. zz defender crop is here. please ignore everyone who tells you that you can skip zz. zeta’s other half in ways that aren’t just “it started two weeks after zeta in real life”- it also fixes zeta’s pacing, provides a welcome counterpoint to its dire tone, and its villains are literally just improved versions of zeta’s (glemy is better scirocco! haman is a top tier gundam villain in general!). i think the middle section of this show- the entire time they are on earth- is my favorite section of UC gundam, or at least tied with 0079’s ramba ral and finale arcs. i do think the dip in quality people say it has in the last arc is true. also probably has the largest Woman Problem in any gundam i’ve seen so far (i have a threshold for bad women writing so high it is practically antifeminist but unfortunately emary breaks that threshold, what the hell is up with everything about emary) even though i love some of those women very much. secretly has the boldest and most thematically interesting gundam finale so far. ple forever

char’s counterattack: 8/10. as i’ve said before: a gorgeous film about two men being so divorced that thousands of people die. genuinely iconic and also very bold but i often find myself torn as to whether i want tomino to be more explicit about what he’s saying here. we could have saved ourselves years of “was char right??” debates but then again, it’s the spirit of cca to claim that only you have the right take about cca. beyond the time is a good song

gundam unicorn: 7.5/10. politics here are often confusing and messy, and i think it suffers from its core characters (banagher and mineva) and their relationship not getting the time they need. on the other hand, i’m interested in what it says about the worldbuilding of UC (even if i think it didn’t execute it that well) and its secondary cast is great; i did nearly cry about marida and zinnerman so that sure works. full frontal does not bug me nearly as much as he bothers most people although i think he has the same “needs more time to cook” issue banagher and mineva have. i even kind of like what they do with riddhe and i usually dislike that archetype. in other words: i would have been nuts for the forty episode (and properly paced) version of this show. marida forever

gundam hathaway: 7/10?? hard to tell here without having the next two movies. was a bit hard to get invested in the conflict near the end as we met many characters who are not developed yet. but the relationship between the core trio here is intriguing and i like hathaway as a protagonist a lot.

the rest of my “gundams i am most interested in list” is victory -> turn a -> 00 -> iron blooded orphans so that’s the next four shows. after…who can say

[slowlysointernet]

Char mumbling Amuro and Lalah's names in his sleep is because Lalah visits Amuro in his dreams and somehow Char also is able sense the two in his dreams.

Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack PS1 Game:

Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack - Beyond the Time Nanai's POV:

The scene also happens in Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack - Beltorchika's Children Chapter 6 with Amuro waking up but theres no Char moment mumbling their names.

[hibiscus-ships]

Jenni would jokingly ask Fang if she could add Beyond The Time from Char's Counterattack to their wedding playlist and he'd take her request seriously 🌺

[rtgame]

also ive been having this really weird issue where i'm in bed and dozing off and then suddenly something related to char's counterattack flashes in my brain and jolts me awake

anyways what the fuck did they mean when they chose beyond the time as the song for that movie

[femboyyuri]

crazy that they kept making music after TM Network released their hit Beyond the Time that served as Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack theme

[astrarobotica]

20 years ago...

20 years ago, Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack premiered on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim block, on January 4, 2003 at 11PM, and I was a distraught ten year old.

My bedtime... was 11PM.

About half a year earlier, Mobile Suit Gundam had become my favorite thing. My friends in school were becoming obsessed with anime like Dragon Ball Z and Yu-Gi-Oh!, but they didn't really pique my interest, and Pokemon was essentially the only anime I had watched regularly before. But I remember seeing the box art for Mobile Suit Gundam: Journey to Jaburo behind the case at Walmart on multiple occasions. It reminded me of the Armored Core demo I had played on the PS1. I thought mechs were cool, but never really got into any sort of mech media. I convinced my parents to buy me the game, and became obsessed with it.

Around the same time, a Gundam anime began airing on Toonami. It was... Mobile Fighter G Gundam.

And well... I watched it. I even enjoyed it. Some of my friends watched it, and I could talk with them about it at school. But even then, I knew it was ridiculous, and even downright inferior, compared to Mobile Suit Gundam, whose story I only knew from Journey to Jaburo, which spans about the first two-thirds of the plot of the anime. One of my friends had the Federation VS Zeon game, which doesn't really have a campaign with a story, but is set during the anime and contains content from the last third of the series. I was enamored with the world of Mobile Suit Gundam, specifically the Universal Century timeline. Yet beyond a couple of PS2 games, I had no way to properly experience it.

I grew up in a rural area where the closest mall was a forty minute drive from our house. No matter where I went, I never found any Gundam DVDs. I had no way to watch the original series. Or 08th MS Team. Or 0083: Stardust Memory. Or 0080: War in the Pocket. All of which I only knew of because trailers were included on the Journey to Jaburo disc. Walmart sold figures from all of those series, but there was a wealth of Gundam content I desperately wanted to experience and just couldn't.

Then, 20 years ago, I saw this promo for the Char's Counterattack film on Cartoon Network, and it was torturous. I knew I wasn't going to be able to watch it. My parents weren't strict, but staying up until 1AM to watch a movie was out of the question at that point. I didn't have access to the satellite tv in my bedroom, and the tv in the living room was right on the other side of the wall of my parents' bed. There was no way I could watch it without getting caught. I was able to watch the first ten minutes or so, and then it was off to bed. My memory of this is so vivid.

Only a few months later, while at the mall that was a forty minute drive from my house, I saw it. Right there on the shelf at FYE, the DVD for Char's Counterattack. My mom told me she couldn't buy it then, but my dad said he would check to see if it was still there on his way back from his out-of-town job later in the week. And he brought it home with him. My parents watched it with me, and I think they were perplexed at how not-for-children the movie was. Not that it's graphically violent, although a lot of people die. But rather, it had mature themes that I didn't fully understand at the time; manipulating children to fight in wars, propaganda and the grey-ness of conflict... I remember them laughing at the part where the space colony residents give flowers to Char and sing a song dedicated to him on the train while he's accompanied by Quess Paraya, a runaway teenage girl who he intends to exploit in battle. They had watched G Gundam with me, but that was like a Saturday Morning Cartoon compared to this.

The explosion of anime accessibility over the past decade is insane. 20 years later, I can legally stream The Witch from Mercury on the same day it airs in Japan. Throughout middle and high school, I didn't watch much anime because I was worried I would be made fun of for it. Then I stopped giving a shit about that in college, and only got back into anime properly six or seven years ago. And I'm so glad I didn't just grow out of it. I'm glad I can now experience and enjoy Gundam as much as I wanted to 20 years ago. The PS2 games don't hold up especially well control-wise (I still prefer them to the modern attempts that feel compelled to cram every Gundam series into one game rather than actually try to produce a cohesive story), and it's difficult for me to view G Gundam as anything but absurd. But Char's Counterattack is still one of my favorite anime films.

[peterrrei]

I know it’s controversial, but how do you feel about Origin? I always see it as Tomino and Yas having such different takes on Char’s character.

i am a origin hater first and human second 😐

actually my gundam watch order is a mess and origin was one of the first things i watched i think.

it went like this:

(boyfriend watches all of 0079 and tells me stuff about it, mostly about char and how i will love him) -> (he watches zeta, zz and gets to CCA) -> “oh i’ll watch it with you who cares if i barely know anything about it. its called char’s counterattack and i want to see this char you tell me about (smiles) -> credits start rolling, beyond the time plays in the bg, i go insane

after that i started over with a proper watch order from the 79 series, and i think halfway through i watched some of the origin ovas to pass the time. im sorry for this elaborate explanation about how i got into gundam but it’s basically to say: i only had vague ideas about char when i watched origin and i still hated it a lot! i feel like it’s char aznable for marvel bros, a caricature… 🫤 i just also cant with the identical guy thing and char making people shit themselves just by staring at them. what was that!!! oh and also char saying “bow before me god” is bad. just bad. (no that is not solid snake voice) NO THAT IS NOT CHAR AZNABLE!!!

also amuro with blue eyes is so. how can you do that to him. and the fact that he’s not the one who built haro is so!!! evil….

[octoboltflash]

Once setting foot upon her path, Acheron had long since accepted that there was no escape for her. Those who ventured upon it had no recourse to turn back, as the road behind her had simply ceased to exist-- in the past, only memories of bloodshed remained, and the people who once held her in their hearts had long since faded from existence.

What was the purpose of it all? She didn't have an answer, and she was quite certain that she never would.

As her chest heaved with exertion, the echoes of clashing weapons and cries of wounded allies filled the air; but in a brief moment of weakness, her mind drifted to a different time and place.

A stoic woman with silver hair curled into pigtails, the quiet but steadfast companion that always stepped forward to support her. Normally silent, yet remaining a comforting presence.

A fearless warrior whose convictions made her into a wise and unwavering leader, her dusty grey hair her most defining trait. The last time they had spoken, their conversation had been filled with hopes of a future beyond their struggles-- now, a dream laid to rest.

Her closest friend, her dearest ally. A girl with snow white hair, her bright smile capable of lifting spirits even in the darkest of hours. She had fallen last, her laughter now a distant echo that haunted Acheron's thoughts. In their final moments, their shared memories flashed before her eyes: training sessions at dawn, evenings spent playing silly games together, and the bond forged in the flames of war.

Their legacy had been entrusted to her. As it always was in eras past, the victor writes the tale, and the vanquished becomes its villain.

Flames lick at her heels and her arms are raised in a reflexive movement, as if the attempt will shield her from any of it. Her ears ring from the deafening roar of the blast, the deafening roar shattering her world into a chaotic maelstrom of pain and disorientation. Though she remained on her feet, the expanse of her exposed skin had been singed into a painful red, brows furrowing and a hiss escaping her as the smoke began to clear.

One by one, bit by bit, the carnage stretched on before her. A thud to signify that one comrade was gone, and a wail of pain to mark the loss of another.

Amidst the blood and fire, a primal rage seared through her veins like poison, and her fingers dug into the wraps surrounding the hilt of her blade. Her jaw set in determination, crimson eyes flashing with a burning desire to maim the source of suffering-- revenge for a sister forced to watch her brother fall, vengeance for those whose light was snuffed far before their time.

For those you had lost; for those you could yet save.

With bloodied hands and a roar torn from the deepest pits of her lungs, her blade is brandished for what Acheron knows to be the final time. Long before the killing blow is struck, and long before she takes her last breaths.

[0 energy, 4 Slashed Dream] ACHERON 1.5/10 HP uses Slashed Dream Cries in Red and hits BETRAYAL TRANSCENDENT. BETRAYAL TRANSCENDENT 42/50HP. Half of total damage is dealt to ALL ENEMIES. BETRAYAL TRANSCENDENT 40.5/50HP. BETRAYAL TRANSCENDENT 40.5/50HP counterattacks with Sword of Season's End and hits ACHERON. (1d20, 10, -3HP) ACHERON 0/10 HP. ACHERON IS DOWN.

Life's fleeting existence ends as quickly as it is brought into creation, and as her katana clatters to the ground from her hands, the weight of her wounds dragged her inexorably closer to the edge that claimed so many others that came before her. Each step an agonizing journey, focused only on putting one foot in front of the other.

The ground beneath her boots seemed to shift and sway, the charred landscape blurred by eyes that wanted nothing more than to close-- she stumbled forward, her strength ebbing with every heartbeat, yet propelled by steadfast resolve to see this final march through to its end.

Yet determination alone is not enough. Acheron sank to her knees, hands balling into fists as the bile rose into the back of her throat.

Again. Despite everything, history repeats itself-- over, and over, and over again. Her best efforts are not enough, and she feels the sting of tears at the corners of her eyes before slumping forward.

"Mei! Meiiiii! Wake up, sleepyhead!" "Huh...?" Standing before her, radiant and familiar, the girl that owned so much of her soul that Acheron could hardly call it her own. A smile of recognition stretched across the friendly face, mirroring the joy and warmth that settled deep within Acheron's soul. "You can't give up yet, you know that, right?" The warmth of her palm settled against Mei's cheek, slender fingers brushing a few stray strands of hair away from her face. "I'll see you again sometime, silly. But not now." Acheron's gloved hand rose to slide over her companion's, eyes fluttering shut at the sensation she hadn't felt in so long. A bond from what felt like lifetimes ago. The lump in her throat only grew larger by the second, her bottom lip trembling ever so slightly. "I'm sorry. You'll have to wait for me a bit longer." A peal of bright laughter and a grin that stretched from ear to ear, her vibrant blue eyes sparkling with happiness. "I'll wait for you for as long as it takes."

@phantomiaou @spidergourmet @iustitians @feliscus @sedena

"Everything will be fine, stay back and remain focused.”

There was stability in these words, one that Sedene clings onto as the world erupts into chaos. There are newcomers, heralding brimstone and fire, one of them she remembers speaking to on the beach. But she only has a moment to react, ducking away from a wave of flames that quickly ignites upon something (or someone). She hears a hiss, and uncertain of the origin, tosses her gun aside. It may be powered by her own mechanisms and not that of a human’s, but she wouldn’t risk it exploding while fire was flung around her.

BETRAYAL ARISEN 0/50HP uses Divine Judgement and Misses SEDENE (Roll: 1d20 = 1) SEDENE 2/2SP, 10/10 HP Overload activates! SEDENE 0/2SP, 8/10 HP

Pyro stings, but not so much as the following explosion, a mix of angry Electro and the betrayed flames that would tear through hell and high water. She watches as the woman bursts into more multicolored flames, darkening the world around her through sheer might-

And then it is blocked with a far more familiar sight. Arms lock around her, a flash of the familiar form of the Chief Justice before the world turns far too bright. By human’s standards, he had never been emotive, though that had never bothered her. 

But this was an expression she didn’t recognize.

BETRAYAL TRANSCENDENT 50/50 HP uses Divine Fire and crits SEDENE (Roll: 1d20 = 20) SEDENE 0/10 HP BETRAYAL TRANSCENDENT 50/50 HP uses Celestial Blessing and hits NEUVILLETTE (Roll: 1d20 = 18) NEUVILLETTE 0/10 HP

She reaches out to hold him in return. It felt right. Thoughts go back- unconsciously, to her desk back in the Palais. Her routine, carefully maintained day after day, broken only by her going on this ‘vacation’. His expression would be out of place there, as would hers, she’d imagine. Maybe she should have stayed there.

Scarlet dyes the edges of this dream- but it wasn’t a dream, her eyes still drawn to the stains of blood that she had so consistently searched for in the temple. She knew who it belonged to, but she didn’t want to. Pulling herself closer to him as the heat grows greater, Sedene closes her eyes.

Everything will be fine.

SEDENE and NEUVILLETTE are down!