You've already put many of my questions in your column, so I wouldn't mind if this one didn't make it... Anyway, one anime fan to another, I have a Gundam question. I watched Gundam Wing a long time ago, and lately I've been thinking of picking up another one. Great twisty plots mixed in with action that has reason. Which series would you recommend next if I enjoyed that one, especially for its deep political plot and twists?

-Daniel

Yay! A Gundam question! As anyone that knows me can tell you, I can talk for hours about Gundam. I see that you have started off with a pretty good one with Wing. It's a personal favorite of mine as well, and I don't think it's just because it was the first one I saw. But I will admit there's a bit of nostalgia to it. Even I'll admit that the Gundams and Gundam Pilots are just too strong in that series. I don't see how Hiro can jump in a busted MS and pilot it as if it were a new suit...

As for different series, none are quite as political as Wing, but they're all pretty political. My top two recommendations are going to be SEED and Zeta Gundam in that order. SEED is a really solid Gundam series with plenty of cool plot twists. It takes the 'Newtype' story in a totally different direction with Kira and Athrun. The visuals are also pretty good, and the suits are really impressive. I have a Master Grade Freedom in my loft. It also has a really solid sound track, and I really like the opening and closing songs. If you like it, you can follow it with Destiny, which is kind of like the UC century in one 50-ep series. There are SOOOO many throwbacks to the old series that it's really cool if you can catch each and every reference, and unless they are referencing Turn A or V Gundam, I'm catching just about everything. Those are the only Gundams I've not seen yet.

As for Zeta, it's really really really good, but to make sense of it all, you need to watch MS Gundam first. And that's not an easy task. MS Gundam was really advanced for its time, but the plot moves in kind of a jerky fashion. You get a lot of plot, then no plot, then suddenly you're back into plot with the explanation of how it happened left to narration. Instead of showing battles, you just have the narrator tell you that they happened. Plus, the show is old. It's only for hardcore fans, but there's good stuff in it if you can stand it.

If you CAN stand it, it is directly followed by Zeta Gundam which is one of the best Gundams out there. The plot has a LOT of twists, and the suits are interesting. None are as good as the cool ones in SEED, but the plot is better in my opinion. You also have the direct sequel of ZZ Gundam that is so-so, but does add to the plot. There's also Gundam 0083 which comes between MS Gundam and Zeta, and it's pretty good. I'd recommend you watch it too if you go for the MS Gundam and Zeta Combo. Watch them in order of the UC century, not actual release date.

I suppose I'll also throw in Gundam X as an afterthought. It's not bad. I enjoyed it, but it's pretty different too. It's another of the alternate universes like Wing, and it doesn't tie into any other series. (Not counting Turn A that ties them all together in one scene...)

Honestly, it's hard to go wrong with Gundams. Even G Gundam's not awful. I think it'd be a LOT better in Japanese without the terrible US translation. It makes a lot more sense when you realize that G Gundam stands for God Gundam. I knew something was up because no gundam had a G in its name. Naming convention states that at least ONE gundam needs to be the G Gundam. Cartoon Network should remember that when they translate the next one.

Hope this was helpful. Send me another if you want!

konnichiwa! I hope I sent this to the right place. I read in your column about the whole christianity thing and was wondering... if the Japanese are roughly 1% Christian as you say, did you notice that a lot of entertainment(games,music,movies,anime,etc.) always portrays Christian Religion(including God, I hear "Kami-sama" alot too) and they have this thing about angel wings... anyway don't the japanese ever wonder where these things ever came from in the first place? They should be at least 25% christian after seeing all these things.

another question is, do you play your games japanese version? can you really enjoy a game you don't understand?

Alfonso Caballero

As is pointed out in the next letter, I think a lot of this symbolism is mainly due to an interest in it something akin to the way Americans are interested in ninja and samurai. They're just cool. I think they look at these things as something interesting and don't really care for the full background behind them. They know where they come from, but that's all they care about.

As for playing games in Japanese, it depends on the game. I was able to play Paper Mario 2 in Japanese and understand most of it. I'd say if I played it again, my Japanese is even better, and I'd understand even more. There's also translations available online that can help. But you also have to consider games like Lumines. That's simple enough in ANY language. The same applies to fighters and games like DDR.

But there have been a few games that have burnt me. Xenosaga II was over my head, and so was Metal Gear Ac!d. It mainly depends on the vocabulary and the amount of furigana they put over kanji. I can make my way through if there's furigana.

So yeah, it just depends on the game. Thanks for writing!

You stated in your reply to Lyall:
"Honestly, I don't see a lot about religions like Buddhism that conflict with Christianity."

One of my classes here at Meiji Gakuin discussed religion, and there's one important factor that practically ensures that Christianity is never going to become a big thing here - the fact that it's exclusive. Christianity calls itself the one true faith and demands that converts abandon other religions. That has been hard to accept in a culture where it is thought quite healthy to turn to different religions for different purposes, like Shinto rites for purification and Buddhist rituals for things having to do with death. The Japanese love Christian weddings because they're trendy and fun, but they don't actually believe in Christianity when they do these weddings. My professor said that a good part time job for foreigners here would be to conduct these weddings, even without being a real priest.

I hate to sound all gloomy and negative, but Lyall would probably have a much easier time of things and would definitely have more of an impact in another country. With the way Japanese religion is, I don't see the current situation changing anytime soon.

Further references: /Packaged Japaneseness: Weddings, Business, and Brides/ by Ofra Goldstein-Gidoni, /Religion in Japanese Culture: Where Living Traditions Meet a Changing World/, ed. Noriyoshi Tamaru and David Reid

~Kiwi

You bring up a very valid point. Christianity is exclusive in most cases. When I answered that question, I was thinking of my situation. My fiancee is Buddhist, and she's going to halfway convert to Christianity, and I'm going to halfway convert to Buddhism. If you're open-minded about religion, it's possible to have both, or at least I think so. It depends a lot on the person.

As for whether or not he should go, it's up to him. If he feels led to go, then by all means, he should go. It won't be easy, but if he has even one success, then I think it was worth it. I don't think people change religions easily. If he makes a person convert, it's because they want to. There is a thriving Christian community here, I've just not had much contact with it. Some people will truly enjoy the Bible and wish to follow it. That'll be true most anywhere.

Thank you for the interesting point though. Readers are ALWAYS welcome to write letters such as this.

This may sound odd, but it is very important...

I like wearing pants.. Do you also like pants?

- Louie.

Umm... since you say it's important, I'll take a stab at this. It depends on the weather as to whether or not I like pants. Right now, I hate them. It's too hot for my Nike running shorts, and I think pants would be unbearable. In winter, I wear pants two pairs at a time. It totally depends. Despite my dislike of pants, I don't go around naked though.

Thanks for the interesting question.

Another week, another column finished. What an interesting way to finish a column. Hope you all have a good week and stay dry. The rainy season has hit Japan, and it's raining every day. I wouldn't mind so much if I had a car. Bikes suck in the rain. Enjoy your fireworks. I'll get my dose of pyrotechnics at Hanabi Matsuri, litterally 'Fireworks Festival' later this month.

Catch you on the flip,

Jordan "I don't care, just get him some pants!" Jackson