Mobile Suit Gundam

Plot Summary

The White Base Crew plead with the Luna II forces to be allowed into the base.

The episode opens with White Base initiating docking procedures at the Federation base at Luna II (an asteroid orbiting the moon). Upon exiting the ship and entering the hangar, the crew and civilians are accosted by the base's security and barred from entering the base. Bright Noa demands that his crew be allowed into Luna II to rest after their battles with Char Aznable's Zeon forces. After a few minutes of arguing back and forth, the head of Federation forces at the base, Commandant Wakkein, emerges from his office and explains that the civilians aboard White Base will be sent to Earth, while the crew will be detained and the mobile suits will be impounded.

Amuro and Fraw Bow are arrested by the Luna II soldiers.

Commandant Wakkein further elaborates, saying that because the soldiers aboard White Base (i.e. Bright) allowed civilians access to classified Federation technology, the crew was in violation of Federation law and will be held until a court-martial can be convened. As the soldiers begin deactivating Gundam and White Base, Bright continues to argue with the Commandant, warning him that Char is nearby and likely to attack the base. Wakkein dismisses Bright's protests, telling him that Char is an experienced commander and would never risk attacking a base so large with a force so small.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the asteroid, Char and his men plan their attack on Luna II. Due to the high density of Minovsky Particles in the area, Char's Musai can remain undetected by the Federation forces. But, because of the base's defense system, they cannot lead a direct attack with mobile suits. Char's plan is to lead a team of commandos in jet packs and infiltrate the base on foot. They will sneak into the base and attempt to destroy Gundam, White Base, and disable Luna II's defenses. Then, they will return to the Musai and attack with their mobile suits. After explaining the plan to his men, Char has a flashback to his earlier encounter with Sayla Mass on Side 7 and continues to wonder whether she really is his long-lost sister.

Even in space, flashbacks are always in sepia tone.

Back on Luna II, Bright, Amuro, and the rest of the White Base crew have been moved into detention cells until their trail. While they wait, Amuro explains to the others that the reason he has been able to hold his own against Char in combat is that Gundam has a self-learning computer system, which is able to anticipate the actions of the pilot and react faster. Soon after, Amuro and Kai get into a fight regarding the latter's relative calmness towards their situation. Their fight is only broken up by Ryu, who calms them both down and explains that bickering will not help their situation.

Char and his men infiltrate Luna II.

As the soldiers on Luna II continue to lock-down White Base and Gundam, Char and his men begin their attack on the base. They shoot the guards floating outside the hangar door and manage to evade the base's infrared security system. Once inside, Char begins planting explosive charges throughout the base while his men cut the power to the facility. Although the assault has the intended effect of crippling Luna II's defensive systems, the loss of power also allows the White Base crew to escape from their cells. While Fraw Bow and the orphans distract the guards, Bright and Amuro knock them out and rescue Sayla, Mirai, and the civilians.

In an effort to destroy Char's cruiser, Commandant Wakkein takes command of a Magellan-class ship and prepares to fly out of the hangar. But, as soon as the ship is near the exit, Char detonates his explosives, causing the ship to crash and block the hangar doors. Immediately following the crash, Wakkein receives a report stating that Amuro and the White Base crew have escaped and are attempting the retake Gundam and White Base. He immediately exits his now-useless ship and heads to the hangar where the confiscated machines are held.

Bright stares down the barrel of a gun to protect Amuro and the White Base crew.

When he arrives at the secondary hangar, he sees Amuro, Kai, and Hayato repairing the Gundam. But before he can stop them, Bright steps in front of him and, staring down the barrel of Wakkein's gun, demands that the Commandant allow the White Base crew to take control of their ships and fight back against Char. Although initially hesitant, Wakkein relents after the dying Federation Captain posits that the civilians actually have more experience piloting the Gundam and White Base than the trained soldiers do, and would therefore be better in a fight against Char's forces.

As soon as the repairs are finished, Amuro and Ryu take off in the Gundam and Core Fighter, respectively, while the rest board White Base and prepare for battle. As soon as Amuro exits the base, he is engaged by Char and two other Zaku II pilots. Amuro is nearly overwhelmed by the onslaught, but is able to impale one Zaku while simultaneously holding off Char.

Amuro destroys a Zaku II while fighting Char.

Inside the base, Bright attempts to fly White Base out of the hangar, but the entrance is still blocked by the crashed Magellan. After a brief argument, Bright manages to convince Wakkein to allow him to destroy the Magellan and clear the way. The blast from the explosion destroys the other Zaku attacking Amuro and nearly hit Char and the Musai as well. Seeing that he is now severely outnumbered, Char retreats to the Musai and escapes yet again.

Back on board White Base, Bright tells the dying Federation Captain the good news of their victory, only to realize that he has finally succumbed to his injuries. The crew holds a funeral for the fallen captain, pledge they will do everything in their power to save the Federation, and jettison his body in a space-coffin. Now in a much more somber mood, Commandant Wakkein allows Amuro and his friends to head to Earth unmolested and contemplates the existential nature of war as he watches their ship disappear into the distance.