..half empty or half full..

This is my latest addiction, Mobile Suit Gundam 00. I liked Gundam, but I never really followed them before, but now that I have the chance, its very2 cool. The timeline is like ours, only 300 years later. Turmoil in earth energy resources has made rich Middle Eastern countries now very poor, since oil is no longer the major need at that time, but huge solar power is. The world is divided into 3 major blocs, containing 300 or so countries.

AEU, Advanced European Union,the equivalent of today's European Union, is the most underdeveloped of the 3 blocs. Indeed, the flag is almost the same as NATO's.Most of the European countries govern this union, but it also includes nations of the African continent.

HRL, the Human Reform League, is the equivalent of former communist nations such as USSR and today's People's Republic of China. The whole Asia, Siberian Russia and Australia is under its control and indeed it is the second most advanced of the 3 world powers. Its military strength is almost parallel to the Union.

Union, or World Economic Union, is the most advanced of the 3. The USA and all the countries in the American continent is in its power, including Japan. They are technologically more advanced and reputably the most civilized.


Now I'm watching until season 2, the robot battles are very cool and the hero is a Middle Eastern dude, codename Setsuna F. Seiei, real name Soran Ibrahim, a native Krugis (some sort of place in modern day Iraq) and the bad guy is a war-crazed terrorist, Ali Al-Saachez, who kinda looks like Osama Bin Laden but for his red hair. My friend Radzi, an original Gundam enthusiast says that the robot battles aren't really that good, but the excellent storyline makes up for it.