The Best Fights In Gundam Anime

Key Takeaways

• Gundam
  series evolve over time with expanded timelines and media, offering elevated visuals and emotionally weighted encounters.
• Build Fighters, Build Divers,
  &
  Iron-Blooded Orphans
  showcase memorable battles with engaging storylines & stunning animation.
• 00, Hathaway,
  &
  Thunderbolt
  depict intense final battles, highlighting emotional stakes and superbly animated combat sequences.

Mobile Suit Gundam started as a single series that told a masterful story about the horrors of war and how there is no victory, only more pain, when peace is not an option. Since then, Gundam has evolved over the years and expanded into multiple timelines, and even branched out into different mediums apart from manga and anime. In addition, countless new series and animated movies have been released that tell new stories and introduce new conflicts.

Each series brings more to the table, with elevated visuals and enhanced mobile suit concepts. With every iteration, the action intensifies, with Mobile-suit-on-Mobile-suit combat being more thought out and better animated. The emotional weight also matches the visual prowess of encounters, making for more memorable moments. Here are some of the best fights in Gundam anime, ranked.

10 Build Strike Vs. Zaku Amazing, First Battle

The Long Awaited Match Of The Series

• Series: Mobile Suit Gundam Build Fighters
• Episode 6

The Build universe and the series that came from it bring Gundam fighting to the forefront of the franchise without the loss of life and terror of war-torn civilizations. In Mobile Suit Gundam Build Fighters, the focus is on the popular hobby of thousands who build their favorite model kits based on the machines in their favorite Gundam anime.

In the first series, Sei Iori and Reiji team up to take on Tatsuya Yuki using their Build Strike Gundam against his Zaku Amazing. The entire series had been building up to this moment, as all three young men share a passion for Gunpla. The animation and setup of the battle was perfect, as both units went through their entire arsenal before a victor emerged. The vibrant colors and emotional banter between Reiji, Iori, and Tatsuya added a fair amount of weight to their first encounter as well.

9 Gundam Astray No-Name Vs. Gundam 00 Diver

Heroes In Their Own Story Clash Beam Sabers And Ideals

• Series: Mobile Suit Gundam Build Divers
• Episode 13

Mobile Suit Gundam Build Divers is another spin-off series that explores the Gunpla side of Gundam without the heavy themes of war and conflict. Gunpla Battle has evolved into an online game where millions of players can build their machines and play along with fans all around the world. As a cyber threat begins to exploit the online game, Riku Mikami must face off against the source in a head-on battle.

Utilizing his 00 Diver Gundam, Yuki must go all out against the Astray No-Name built by Tsukjasa Shiba, with the fate of the Gundam Build universe on the line. Both pilots are skilled, but the time and attention to detail that Tsukasa has given his machine shows, and the fight seems to be on his side. However, Yuki’s determination and constant growth pull through. The animation in this episode in particular shines, and both mecha designs parallel their pilots perfectly.

8 Gundam 00 Raiser Vs. Reborns Gundam, Final Battle

The Fate Of The Future Comes To A Close

• Series: Mobile Suit Gundam 00
• Episode 50

Mobile Suit Gundam 00 is one of the most popular anime series in the franchise and is filled to the brim with action-packed encounters between multiple different mobile suit designs. The ongoing conflict between Celestial Being and the facilitators of war slowly climbs to its peak as once rivaled forces now join together to put an end to Celestial Being’s goal of ensuring peace by using the threat of force.

Ribbons Almark, a narcissistic warmonger with delusions of becoming the god of humanity, stands waiting for Setsuna so that he may strike him down and prove his divinity. Chaos ensues as multiple pieces scatter across the board, and an all-out battle kicks off. The climactic result of this battle emboldens the moments that occurred in the series up to this point and serves as a well-deserved ending to the story.

7 Wing Zero Vs. Epyon

The Masked Pilot And The Stoic Ace Clash For The Final Time

Mobile Suit Gundam Wing won over the hearts of fans in the West for its dark and gritty story, where several Gundam pilots sought to end the conflict between warring nations and open a pathway for a peaceful future. Each pilot did things their own way, and when it came to Heero Yuy, he was a dedicated tool who obeyed his orders no matter the cost.

Utilizing the Wing Zero, Heero was nearly unstoppable on the battlefield, sporting firepower that outgunned all modern technology. It wasn’t until the masked man, Zechs Merquise, rose to face him in a newly modified mobile suit called the Epyon that he encountered his first real challenge. The bitter rivalry between Zechs and Heero echoed throughout the entire series, with each desperate character seeking to wipe out the other. In one of their final clashes, the battle took to the stars and was a prominent moment in the series.

6 Grassley House Vs. Earth House

Against All Odds, The Oddball Pulls Through

• Series: Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury
• Episode 9

Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury was a controversial release that blew away all expectations with its detailed story, marvelous animation, and unique characters. While bait and switching with a somewhat carefree opening, the series quickly revealed its adult themes and heavy tones of war, corruption, and discrimination. Suletta Mercury, the show’s main protagonist, begins attending a private school based around piloting and engineering mobile suits.

In an Era where Gundams are outlawed, she sticks out like a sore thumb, so much so that she earns the attention of those who wish to steal the power of the Gundam for themselves. A duel is held between Sulletta and her new friends and a rival faction with secret motives. Suletta is ambushed and outnumbered, which pushes her to elevate her skills and utilize the full power of her Gundam Aerial. This animation sequence is a masterful dance from start to finish, with a climax fitting for the stakes on the line.

5 Gundam Xi Vs. Gundam Penelope

Hathaway Noa Takes Off The Kid Gloves

• Movie: Mobile Suit Gundam Hathaway
• Animated Film

One of the Gundam franchise’s most recent feature-length film releases is Mobile Suit Gundam Hathaway. The series takes place in the Universal Century timeline, where twelve years have passed since the events of Char’s Counterattack. Hathaway Noa is now a grown man and has been bathed in the injustices of the world. While charading as a bodyguard to a socialite, Hathaway is secretly the leader of a rebel group fighting against the Earth Federation. Having turned against the once great organization his father fought for, Hathaway now seeks to tear it down.

In the final act of the film, Hathaway emerges from the shadows and must face off against a member of an elite unit. The battle is fierce with two state-of-the-art mobile suits, the Gundam Xi, piloted by Noa, and the Gundam Penelope, piloted by Laim Aim. The artistic direction throughout the entire film is spectacular, but the shifting paths of the massive machines prove how much time and effort went into animating this climactic fight.

4 Gundam Barbatos Vs. Hahsmal

Mikzuki Puts His Body On The Line To Defeat A Monster From The Past

• Series: Mobile Suit Gundam Iron-Blooded Orphans
• Episode 36

The Mobile Suit Gundam Iron Blooded Orphans series is arguably one of the best shows released in the modern age of Gundam. Set in a new universe where an interstellar war with Gundams and Mobile weapons has left the Earth barren and nearly uninhabitable, a small portion of the human race remains to survive however they can.

Mikazuki Augus is a child soldier who becomes the ace pilot of Tekadon, a group of child soldiers who break away from their captors to earn their freedom. Mikasuki pilots the Gundam Barbatos, an extremely powerful machine that he controls like an instrument. In the later half of the second season, Mikasuki and his friends are put at risk when a WMD mobile weapon awakens and threatens to wipe out their compound. Mikazuki must face the machine alone, and either push his body to the limit or lose everything. The pressure of watching Mikazuki barely doge lethal blow after lethal bow leaves all viewers on the edge of their seats.

3 Gundam Ez8 Vs. Gouf Custom

Shiuro Gives It His All For Love

• Movie: Mobile Suit Gundam 08th MS Team
• Animated Film

Perhaps the most celebrated animated film by diehard Gundam fans, Mobile Suit Gundam 08th MS Team is one of the best offshoot stories in the franchise, and tells a perfect story of survival. Shiro Amada is a fledgling commander who must lead his squad through treacherous terrain and accomplish his mission. While still a bit green behind the ears, Shiro seems ill-prepared for his first encounter against a seasoned veteran who appears to be piloting a blue Gouf Custom.

At first glance, Shiro is outmatched in his Ez8 model Gundam, but with his life on the line, he throws caution to the wind. The battle is tactical and savage, as both Shiro and Norris Packard have one of the most memorable duels in Gundam history and immortalize the phrase “This is no Zaku, Boy!”

2 Gundam Gp01 Vs. Gundam Gp02

Soldiers Leave It All On The Battlefield

• Movie: Mobile Suit Gundam 0083 Stardust Memory
• Animated Film

No other timeline has as much weight as the Universal Century timeline, home of the One-Year War. The spark that ignited the entire Gundam franchise was the declaration of war by the Principality of Zeon, and the rise of the underdog, Amuro Ray. However, there are many encounters throughout the bloody conflict between Zeon and Earth. Gundam 0083 Stardust Memory is one such side story that has some of the best writing and fights in the entire timeline.

Anavel Gato, a Zeon ace pilot, pulls off the heist of the century when he infiltrates an Earth forces base and steals the model Gp02 Gundam. This sparks a series of events where Kau Uraki must step into big shoes and fight Gato halfway across the universe to prevent him from using the Gundam to influence the course of the war. Gato and Uraki’s rivalry is red-hot in every clash, but the final battle is one of the best-choreographed battle animations in Gundam’s long history.

1 Full Armor Gundam Vs. Psycho Zaku, Final Battle

The Most Visceral Mobile Suit Combat To Date

• Series: Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt
• Episode 3

Lo Flemming was a hot-shot ace for the Earth Federation during the One-Year War. He was gifted the Full Armor Gundam due to his exceptional piloting ability. For months, Flemming terrorized enemy forces, leaving nothing behind but scrap metal and the slight hint of Jazz over the radio. On one mission, a sniper pilot survived his attack, and Flemming gained a permanent rival who sought vengeance for the death of his comrade, Daryl Lorenz.

Vowing to meet each other on the battlefield again, Flemming and Lorenz would get their wish in an abandoned colony where they went all out, with no worry for their own lives. This fight in Mobile Suit Gundam Thunderbolt is a permanent fixture among the top fight discussions, as these two pilots showed their skill and determination to destroy one another no matter the cost. The animation and graphic quality were on an entirely different level compared most Gundam installments.