I had heard good and bad things about Gundam Wing before I watched all 49 episodes. I loved it. Sure, it had its flaws, but it was an enjoyable series with an awesome plot and excellent character sub-plots. When I heard about there being a follow-up movie I was excited, but slightly apprehensive considering many series follow-ups have been sub-par. I was going to watch it regardless...

So, what did I think of this movie? To put it simply, I think that this movie did the series justice. We were thrown back into the Gundam world with some familiar faces. The story was great, with the daughter of Treize trying to pick up where her father left off. She was slightly annoying at times, but she didn't get that much face time! There were some other interesting turns in the plot that I will not spoil. Needless to say, it made the movie great to watch and was certainly better than some of the other Gundam movies.

The Gundams themselves look like they got serious upgrades since we last saw them. They looked awesome! DeathScythe looked more....deadly. Gundam Zero looked truly majestic. I could go on, but you really have to see it to understand what I mean. The battle scenes were as I had expected - crazy and full of explosions. The only thing that annoys me is that the Gundams are just so powerful that they make the mobile suits they face look like storm troopers from Star Wars.

So, do I think you should watch this movie? Yes. However, in order to understand the movie I also recommend you watch the series beforehand. It makes you understand more about the characters and why they act in certain ways. Taken together, this was a movie that was a worth follow-up to the series.

Let's get one thing straight. I enjoyed this movie, it had some great action sequences. But it definitely had its weak points, namely its characters. The characters are alright, better than characters in DragonBall Z (but that isn't saying to much), but the writers obviously tried to make the characters appear deeper than they actually are by having them say and do things that really don't make a whole lot of sense (they did this much more in the show, the movie wasn't nearly as bad on this subject). They also have the characters spew out lines that sound philosophical, but are really just common sense. But overall the movie was pretty decent, but it shouldn't be portrayed as more than it is; a good action movie (and it often is made up to be more). The last thing that really bugged me (and if this were different I might have given this an 8) is that none of the good guys die. They all survive and live happily ever after. There needs to be sacrifice and heartache in a story like this to make it more effective.

To be honest, the ending of the Gundam Wing series was so anti-climactic that it was horrible. It did not fit with what the entire series had going for it throughout its run. The mecha are beautifully brought back again for one final hurrah. The story is engaging, the characters (though textbook heroes) are still well-written, and that's it. The series ends, and what a way to end it. Top notch.