Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.0

Mobile Suit Gundam Iron-Blooded Orphans: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie Review

A fun and thrilling entry in the Gundam franchise.

Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans is a compelling addition to the ever-expanding universe of the Gundam franchise. Created by Hajime Yatate and Yoshiyuki Tomino, Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans is a unique entry in the storytelling mythos. Fans of the franchise will want to take note.

Featuring animation produced by Sunrise (Mobile Suit Gundam, Cowboy Bebop), Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron- Blooded Orphans has fascinating art. Produced by Masakazu Ogawa (Gundam Build Fighters, Mobile Suit Gundam AGE) and Toshihiro Maeda (Attack on Titan, Release the Spyce), Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans delivers a new chapter for Gundam enthusiasts to explore.

The Gundam journey never ends as history repeats itself throughout time. A new dawn has arrived three centuries following the Calamity War and its aftermath. The new era has led to a changed battlefield and new stakes. A new order in the world has arrived: the military command group Gjallarhorn is ushering in an era of war with the planet Mars.

Yet a private security group helps step in to the picture: helping to transport revolutionaries and their leader back to Earth. Now the fate of the future resides on the youth who stand up for themselves and rebel against the perilous traitors. One of those warrior leaders is none other than Mikazuki Augus, pilot of Gundam Barbatos. Can Mikazuki lead a revolution?

The animation on the series is one of the strengths of the production. The artistry is compelling and one of the core reasons for anime fans to check out the installment in the franchise. The series features art direction from Ayu Kawamoto (High School of the Dead, Waiting in the Summer) and the animators involved on the production deliver excellent results. The use of color on the series is compelling: showcasing a nice range of colorful aesthetics with an artistic tone.

Fight for tomorrow.

The character designs were a key reason behind the success of the production. The original character designs by Yu Ito helped to usher in the excellent efforts by the animators necessary for the anime adaptation to flourish. Likewise, the anime character design efforts by Michinori Chiba (Diamond Daydreams, Someday's Dreamers) similarly provide the production with compelling aesthetics.

The cinematography by Haruhi Gotō (Attack on Titan, Arakawa under the Bridge × Bridge) and Yousuke Motoki (The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, Fairy Tail the Movie: Phoenix Priestess) is perhaps the best component of the entire production aesthetic. The cinematography highlights vivid and deep colors, contrasting, and enhancing the look of the series. There are some standout visuals with the Gundam mechas and these scenes are enhanced by the cinematographic approach.

The action sequences are one of the most essential key components of the series. Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans features plenty of action-packed elements and the big mecha robots make an impression to-be-sure. These elements certainly are a key reason why many fans of the Gundam franchise continue to return to the saga time and time again. The spectacle of the action takes flight. Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans understands how important these aspects are to the fan community.

The original score composed by Masaru Yokoyama (Arakawa Under the Bridge, Fruits Basket) is engaging and uplifting. The score provides a compelling backdrop to the production and brings excitement to the forefront. The score aids the visual elements while helping to provide some paint-strokes for the animators.

Written by Mari Okada (A Lull in the Sea, anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day), Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron- Blooded Orphans is a compelling concept for the Gundam storytelling universe. The series has an abundance of suave cool and fans of the anime saga will cherish these qualities. A solid effort by Okada.

Tatsuyuki Nagai (anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day, Toradora!) directs. Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron- Blooded Orphans is a well-directed series with an ambitious approach to filmmaking. The series has a outstanding sense of scope and scale. These components are mesmerizing. Nagai delivers a solid and compelling entry in the Gundam universe.

Mobile Suit Gundam Iron-Blooded Orphans: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Arriving on Blu-ray from Funimation Entertainment, Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high definition in the original television broadcast aspect ratio of 1.78:1 widescreen. The presentation quality is excellent and showcases the wonderful animation style extremely well. Colors look lush and vivid. The animation is well reproduced. The animation showcases the strong efforts of the animators involved on the program. The Funimation encode does have some occasional slight banding but it otherwise impressive, crisp, and engaging.

Mobile Suit Gundam Iron-Blooded Orphans: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release includes a selection of audio options: the original Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0 stereo (with English subtitles) and English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround sound. The surround sound option provides some extra ambiance to the experience and helps to enhance the soundstage. Though the original language audio is only in standard stereo, the soundstage sound clear and impressive. Dialogue is exceptionally crisp and easy to understand.

Mobile Suit Gundam Iron-Blooded Orphans: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The release includes a selection of textless opening songs, textless closing songs, and trailers promoting other anime releases available on home media from distributor Funimation Entertainment. The set is packaged in a nice collector's box (containing the entire collection).

Mobile Suit Gundam Iron-Blooded Orphans: The Complete Series Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans is an entertaining and action-packed mecha anime within the expanded Gundam storytelling universe. Fans of the Gundam anime franchise will want to consider checking out the series. The Blu-ray release features a solid video-audio presentation. Unfortunately, the release contains a slim supplemental package. The collector set includes the complete saga in a collectible package. Recommended.