Relight of the Universal Century

Relight of the Universal Century 

The impetus of this whole project started with my ideas for a reworking of the original Gundam stories in the Universal Century with some Super Sentai/Power Rangers influences to take along with original concepts for the franchise that Yoshiyuki Tomino had originally planned in the early conception phases. What would a Gundam Force/Team arms race be like in future conflicts? Our first goal is to examine these potential roads not traveled as storytelling through fan art.

Amuro Ray pilots the Black Gundam of Shadow, Sayla Mass the Red of Fire, Kai Shiden the Blue of Water, Ryu Jose the Yellow of Earth, Fraw Bow the Pink of Sky, and Hayato Kobayashi the Green of Forest as the Earth Federation's own Gundam Force against the Principality of Zeon's forces.

We start with the One Year War and the attack on the Gaia Solar Energizer Station's space colonies that are positioned at Earth's L3 Lagrange Point with one being Side 7 and the twin O'Neill Cylinder colony Noa. The Principality of Zeon's forces under Char Aznable attack Noa and force six teens (Amuro Ray, Sayla Mass, Ryu Jose, Kai Shiden, Fraw Bow and Hayato Kobayashi) to take the Earth Federation's prototype RX-78-1 Gundam mobile suits to drive off Zeon and escape with the Earth Federation prototype ship the White Base. With the White Gundam still under assembly and a majority of the veteran crew and officers killed in the Zeons' attack, the Gundam Force and White Base escape to Earth and in doing so manage to drive Zeon forces out of occupied New York City. Having passed this trial by fire and survived using the Gundams, the Gundam Force under Captain Bright Noa and Mirai Yashima plan to free the Earth Federation's capital in Jaburo. In their having driven off Zeon, the kids discover they possess advanced ESP abilities as Newtypes and have garnered the increasingly close attention of Zeon's "Red Comet" Ace Char Aznable and Zeon rulers in the Zabi family.

After Amuro dies in battle alongside a defecting Garma and Icelina in saving a defecting Char and Lalah at the Battle of Jaburo, Char become the Black Gundam's new pilot and Lalah Sune takes up the role of piloting the completed White Gundam of Light as the temporary co-leaders.

At the Battle of Jaburo, the Principality of Zeon's best ace Char Aznable aka. the Red Comet, declares his intentions to defect to the Earth Federation with a Newtype woman sold into sex slavery by name of Lalah Sune. Sacrificing his own life to save Char, Lalah and his comrades while being too late to save a defecting Garma Zabi and Icelina Eschonbach; Amuro transcends beyond the mortal coil as a Newtype to defeat the Black Tri-Stars. This in effect reunites Char (the Prince Casval Rem Deikun) with his sister Sayla (the Princess Artesia Som Deikun) even as Amuro mentors his friends from beyond the grave. Gaining new friends from the Federation and Zeon, Casval seems to be getting some needed help for his many issues as he becomes the new co-leader of the Gundam Force through many battles up against the Zeon ruling family of the Zabis who ordered the murders of Casval and Artesia's dad King Zeon Zum Deikun and mother Queen Astraia Tor Deikun. In one battle; the team recovers the stolen prototypes for the RX-75-4 Guntank, the RX-77-2 Guncannon and the RGM-79 GM from Zeon capture. This comes in the wake of Artesia briefly confronting Degwin Zabi.

With Lalah killed by Zeon Newtypes and Ryu killed by Casval in his mad grief followed by betrayal of the Gundam Force, the four survivors must regroup for the Battle of A Baoa Qu which will result in Artesia tragically coming to blows with her older brother for the fate of Earth.

Zeon Newtypes attack the White Base on orders from Kycilia Zabi and Lalah in the White Gundam is killed saving Casval in the Black from these Newtypes. Sent over the brink in his mad grief, Casval turns on the Gundam Force and murders Ryu in the Yellow Gundam before he wrecks the others and escapes with the Black Gundam that was Amuro's which he has been slowly painting his trademark red. Using the salvageable parts of the Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, Pink and White Gundams to create the RX-78-2 Composite Gundam to pilot; Artesia takes over leadership of the Gundam Force for the remainder of the War with Fraw in the GM, Hayato in the Guntank and Kai in the Guncannon to lead the Side 3 (Munzo) Independents to help the Earth Federation overthrow Zeon and stop Gihren Zabi and Casval from crashing both the A Baoa Qu asteroid battle station and the Side 3 colony into Earth. At the Battle of A Baoa Qu, Side 3 is saved and Zeon's fortress is sabotaged and forced to crash into the far side of the Moon with Artesia's surviving FF-X7 Core Fighter and Fraw's GM bringing Kai and Hayato back home to live in exile on Earth after Artesia was forced to kill her own brother. 

With some lessons being learned wrongly from the One Year War, Paptimus Scirocco hijacks a Titan RX-178 mk. II Gundam to lead his Axis Zeon Titans against the Federation colonies raging that both the Federation and Zeon are too ill and corrupt to be left around anymore.

The Gryps Conflict occurs just years later after Artesia has gone into exile as Sayla Mass having been forced to kill her brother Casval at the Battle of A Baoa Qu and bringing his body to be burned away on Earth unable to live publicly with the guilt she carries. In a bid to take over the Solar System starting with the double McKendree cylinder colony Gryps, Paptimus Scirocco of the Earth Federation's Titans peacekeeping movement hijacks their black RX-178 mk. II Gundam and assembles his own Titan Force of RMS-117 Galbaldy Beta mobile suit pilots including Rosamia Badam, Yazan Gable, Haman Karn, Jerid Messa, Mouar Pharaoh, Gates Capa and Sarah Zabiarov. But even as the Earth Federation and the military-industrial complex are repentant for their crimes that enabled the One Year War to happen, they know only a Gundam Force can possibly be able to stand against the tyranny the Titans and the Axis Zeon movement are inflicting. Calling up Sayla, they give her both the white RX-178 mk. II Gundam to round up her own Gundam Force to lead. 

Under the mysterious mentorship of Sayla Mass in her white RX-178 mk. II Gundam with the ship Nahel Argama - Four Murasame pilots the White Zeta, Roberto the Blue, Reccoa Londe the Green, Kamille Bidan the Black, Fa Yuiry the Pink, Apolly Bly the Red, and Emma Sheen the Yellow.

Helping a former Titans pilot Emma Sheen escape along with two Ex-Zeon pilots named Roberto and Apolly Bly in their rescuing a Cyber Newtype named Four Murasame, Sayla recruits Newtype classmates of the Gryps (Green Noa) colony Kamille Bidan and Fa Yuiry. The seven main pilots are all given the Anti-Earth Union Group's own MSZ-006 Zeta Gundam prototypes as they fight back against the Titans and the emerging Axis Zeon movement spearheaded by both Paptimus Scirocco and Haman Karn. Guided by the spirits of the fallen Amuro Ray, Lalah Sune and Ryu Jose; Sayla from the white RX-178 Gundam mk. II with the Earth Federation ship Nahel Argama leads the AEUG Gundam Force to victories with the post-battle communiques urging the peoples of the Solar System that humanity must stop the ways of war and at last come together. Whereas Paptimus sees Newtypes as the true rulers that must overthrow the refuse "Earthnoid" humans in domination, Sayla sees Newtypes as the ones to show they both will and can be friends by Spacenoid and Earthnoid humans protecting and lifting each other up to peace - "Those with the greatest powers, protect those without." 

As one of the few survivors of the Gryps Conflict, Haman Karn hijacks a Psycho Gundam mk. II for her own Neo Zeon army to use in their Neo Zeon War upon the Federation while also carrying on her plans for the Full Frontal Project of Cyber Newtype clones of Char Aznable.

With the Titans defeated and peace seemingly ready to return to the Solar System, Haman Karn was being quite a busy woman rounding up the best Earthnoid and Spacenoid pilots (regular and Newtype alike) to start building up for attacks on Earth outposts on and around the other planets of the Solar System. She would lead one Rakan Dahkaran, Elpeo Ple, Mashymre Cello, Ple-2, Glemy Toto and Chara Soon in prototype AMX-101 Galluss mobile suits while Chara's lieutenant Nee Gylen (a twin with his comrade Lance Gylen) tests the Psycho Gundam as the Neo Zeon movement. Causing havoc and terror across the Outer Solar System's great colonies, it will not be too long until their terror and tyranny reach Earth. With Sayla off on a personal mission, the Earth Federation and the Solar System's colonies arrange for Kamille Bidan to be given as much latitude as he needs including a refurbished MSZ-006 Zeta Gundam to round up his friends from Karaba as well as a few new arrivals to come into their own and end the tyrants' perversion of the Zeon ways. 

Under the mentorship of Kamille Bidan in his MSZ-006 Zeta Gundam - Judau Ashta pilots the Black MSZ-010 ZZ, his sister Leina the Pink, Beecha Oleg the Blue, Roux Louka the White, Iino Abbav the Yellow, Elle Vianno the Red, and Mondo Agake the Green against Haman Karn's Neo Zeon.

With help from the Earth Federation flagship Argama's captain Bright Noa, Kamille arranges to have all seven of the MSZ-010 ZZ (Double Zeta) Gundam prototypes fall into the hands of scruffy kids living in the Bernal Sphere colony of Shangri-La located near Zahn (Side 1), the Earth Federation's new orbital HQ. Judau Ashta and his sister Leina; their four friends Beecha Oleg, Iino Abbav, Mondo Agake and Elle Vianno; and a young test pilot named Roux Louka are all brought together under Kamille's leadership to take the fight to Neo Zeon and restore peace to colonies and planets. As the Neo Zeon War rages on, both the Earthnoid and Spacenoid humans of the Solar System realize their struggles don't have to be between each other or within themselves - but instead be a chance to stand up for what's right and against the opportunists who hijack good-intentioned movements for their own power. What they uncover about Sayla Mass's own personal mission leads to them joining her once Haman Karn initiates the Full Frontal gambit as a suicide note. 

Sayla must help two Cyber Newtype clones of her brother in Edouard Mass with a Rick Dias and Quattro Bajeena with a Delta Gundam to stop Full Frontal in a Sinanju, Casval Rem Deikun in a Sazabi and Red Comet in a Perfect Zeon from destroying Earth with the Axis asteroid colony.

Project Full Frontal as initiated by Haman Karn involves creating Cyber Newtype clones of the former Principality of Zeon's greatest warrior Char Aznable and using them to destroy the Earth if Neo Zeon is to be destroyed too. Helping the Edouard Mass and Quattro Bajeena clones escape in customized Rick Dias and Delta Gundam mobile suits, Sayla uncovers the Full Frontal plan's ultimate objectives - track down the weapon Laplace's Box and use it along with the Axis asteroid colony to destroy the Earth and plunge the Earthnoid and Spacenoid colonies into war. With the help of the ZZ Gundam Team, Sayla and her brother's two loyal clones take on the evil clones in Red Comet piloting a Perfect Zeong, Casval Rem Deikun in the Sazabi and Full Frontal in the Sinanju. When the secrets of Laplace's Box are finally broadcast to the Solar System; Quattro manages to end Casval, Red Comet and Full Frontal's plans at the costs of both his life and Edouard's memory as peace returns and Sayla earns a second chance to raise her brother right this time.

In this timeline Relight!Universal Century (UCRL), could Sayla Mass have worked as the ultimate hero of Gundam being a female Luke Skywalker with decoy protagonist Amuro Ray as her Newtype spiritual advisor a la Obi-Wan "Old Ben" Kenobi?

I always thought the Gundam Team storylines as pioneered by Gundams ZZ and Wing could work well with The Original Series/0079/The One Year War all the way up through Char's Counterattack with some Super Sentai/Power Rangers influences (using the colors black - mentor, red - leader, blue - lancer, pink - heart, yellow - big guy, green - smart guy, white - additional hero) while also giving implications of a Mobile Suit/Gundam arms race with certain evil factions at various points getting their own Gundam to use against the heroes. At least, this is my approach to how a Real Robot Sentai/team mecha anime franchise's stories could work if someone wanted to take up this idea as a fanfiction novel series, a web blog and or a doujinshi manga and audio drama podcast. I got the name Relight from trying to tie in with the Neon Genesis Evangelion franchise's own Rebuild of Evangelion and Yoshiyuki Tomino's own Reguild Century created for Gundam: Reconguista in G. Let me know in the comments if this works for you or even gives you ideas.