Mobile Suit Gundam AGE

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.
Three destinies will make history.
"It is the space age, hundreds of years after people began to emigrate to space colonies. The wars that were once fought for control of the Earth Sphere had ended, and it seemed that an era of peace had arrived. But this fleeting peace collapsed. A colony was destroyed by a mysterious enemy that suddenly appeared. The curtain was rising on a new battle that would continue over 100 years."
—Opening Narration

Gundam AGE was a new addition to the Gundam Franchise, which began airing in October 2011 as part of Sunrise's autumn 2011 lineup. This revolves on three generations of pilots, namely Flit Asuno, his son Asem, and the latter's son, Kio. As part of a Level 5 multimedia franchising, a manga, several models, a card game, and a video game were quickly announced.

The sudden appearance of a hostile force know only as the UE (Unknown Enemy) prompted the Federation to hire Flit Asuno to build the ultimate weapon to beat back the UE: the Gundam AGE-1. As the Hundred Year War rages on between Earth and the UE, Flit, Asem, and Kio must use the Gundam to defend the Earth.

The first generation begins with Flit, who was allowed to pilot the Gundam when its intended pilot was injured during a UE attack. The destruction of his second home colony lands him on the Diva, piloted by a rogue captain who is determined to battle the UE in defiance of the Federation's sluggish response to the threat. Flit uses the Gundam to protect colonies from the UE and in general to be a savior for humanity. It ends with the young and idealistic Flit being shattered by the senseless death of a girl named Yurin, setting him on a lifelong path of vengeance. Meanwhile, the rest of the crew is horrified at revelation that the UE were humans all along, abandoned by the Federation after a failed attempt to colonize Mars.

The second generation starts twenty-five years later and follows Flit's son, Asemu. He is given the Gundam as a sort of coming-of-age present by Flit on his seventeenth birthday, befriends Zeheart Galette in his last year of school, and is devastated when Zeheart turns out to be a Vagan agent. Although he is kind-hearted by nature, Asemu joins the military to follow and impress his father. Their relationship becomes increasingly strained as Asemu sees the reality of war in his own way and Flit begins to treat him less like a son as the constant battles progress. Asemu eventually transfers his admiration of his father to his commander, Woolf Enneacle, who dies to save him not long after that. He and Zeheart reconcile while averting a Colony Drop, and Asemu decides to fight to protect rather than to avenge. Flit stages a coup one year later, ousting the Prime Minister and systematically purging any government officials found to be collaborating with Vagan. Meanwhile, the remains of that space fortress have landed hundreds of Vagan sleeper agents on Earth....

The third generation follows Kio, Asemu's son and Flit's grandson, who is only thirteen when he inherits the Gundam. The Vagan reveal their Earth-based sleeper agents on the anniversary of their first attack on the Federation and quickly turn Earth into a battlefield.

Two manga side spin-offs were also made: Mobile Suit Gundam AGE: Treasure Star (Set during the Flit Arc) and Mobile Suit Gundam AGE: Memories of Sid (Set after the Asemu Arc and before the Kio Arc).

An Action RPG for Gundam AGE developed by Level 5 was released August 30th 2012 in Japan for the PSP, and came in two versions, Universe Accel which features cameos and Mobile Suits from Universal Century Gundam series in it's sidequests, and Cosmic Drive which features cameos and Mobile Suits from Cosmic Era and Anno Domini Gundam series. The game follows the same plot as the anime for the main plot, but also features more content for the series's history and world through optional quests. It features many more Wears for the AGE suits other than the ones that have appeared in the anime. Interviews would later reveal the game was actually conceived first.

Despite its lofty ambitions of a megahit by chasing a younger audience, Age proved to be a flop for Sunrise that lost the original audience in pursuit of a new one. This low performance would be mitigated by an above expected success of Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn

Tropes used in Mobile Suit Gundam AGE include:
  • 108: A.G. 108 is the year Flit's mother dies. It's also the same year that Desil is born.
  • The Ace: Woolf "The White Wolf" Enneacle.
  • Ace Custom:
    • Woolf's Genoace Custom & G-Exes in Generation 1 and the G-Bouncer in Generation 2.
    • Largan Drace's Genoace count as well after it received some upgrades (better armor, Beam Rifle).
    • Obright's Genoace O-Custom and Abis's Clanche Custom in Generation 3
  • Alternate Calendar: Years are given in A.G., for Advanced Generation.
  • Animal Mecha: The Gafrans can turn into dragons and the Danazine has a dragon design as well.
  • Anyone Can Die: Oh yeah. Check Killed Off for Real below for the list.
  • Anti-Hero: Unfortunately, Flit descends into one after Yurin dies in front of his very eyes. Grodek also turns out as one in the end, only caring about getting his personal Revenge rather than working to solve the UE problem.
  • Art Style Dissonance: This series is notorious within the Gundam fandom for pairing a kiddy art style with a rather cynical and mature story.
  • Awesome Yet Practical: The tails on the UE mobile suits aren't there just to look badass and menacing. They sometimes act as lifesavers when a UE unit is outnumbered or cornered.
  • Badass
    • Badass Bookworm: Flit Asuno, his son Asem & grandson Kio all of them being skilled MS pilots & engineers. Especially Flit, with him being the original creator of the AGE Gundam, and later proving himself a skilled tactician.
    • Badass Normal: Woolf Enneacle. No psychic powers, not an X-Rounder, no Gundam to pilot. Just skill & talent when it comes to kicking ass & taking names in an MS.
      • Even more obvious example would be Largan Drace. This so-called Red Shirt manages to hold off a Baqto with just a plain-vanilla Genoace for awhile before he was overwhelmed. Cue Flit's Big Damn Heroes moment in the AGE Gundam Titus.
      • Asemu also ascends into one when angered by Woolf's death, kills Desil in a duel despite his inability to use X-Rounder powers.
    • Badass Grandpa: FLIT
  • Bash Brothers: After some initial friction, Woolf and Flit start heading towards this. By the time the former gets his hands on the G-Exes, they're a downright terrifying team.
    • Desil and Zehart are a villainous variant easily double teaming the Age-2 and G-bouncer. Subverted in that they do not get along that well -- Zeheart even let Desil die.
  • Betty and Veronica: Averted in the first generation, since both Yurin (Shrinking Violet) and Emily (Girl Next Door) are both Betties.
    • Gender Flipped in the Second Generation: Asemu is the Betty, while Zeheart is the Veronica.
  • BFG: Mukured's Mobile Suit has one.
    • The Age-2 Double Bullet has two shoulder-mounted ones.
    • The AGE-3 has one called the Sigmasis Rifle.
    • And the AGE-3 Fortress has FOUR.
  • BFS: The AGE-2 Double Bullet's shoulder cannons can also be used as V2 Gundam-esque Wings of Light.
  • Big Damn Heroes:
    • Woolf arriving in the G-Exes and pwning a UE suit with just one sword slash!
    • And then again in Episode 13, when Madorna and his friends showed up to stop a piece of the Fa Bose from ramming the Diva--and stop Ract from performing a Heroic Sacrifice.
    • Flit returns to the battlefield in episode 22 to to save Asemu and Woolf from Desil and Zehart in the good ol AGE one normal
  • Bittersweet Ending: The end of the Second Generation. Loads of characters die on both sides and the Earth suffered its first Vagan invasion. Nonetheless, Flit uncovers the moles within the government and Asemu has learned to be himself. Asemu winning over Romary Stone and marrying her just puts the icing on the cake.
  • Black and White Insanity: Flit sinks into this after Yurin dies; it is even more obvious after Yark Dole's shocking revelation of the true face of the UE. It is implied that the Big Bad, Lord Ezelcant, has this black-and-white mentality, too. Though so far the Vagans are the ones exterminating the people of earth first while Flit has yet to get the chance to attack the civilians of Vagan.
  • Blade Below the Shoulder: The Gundam AGE-3's beam sabers are mounted in its wrists.
  • Bloodless Carnage: Played straight in the first two episodes, but averted for the rest of the series starting with Bruzar in episode 3. If a character dies and you see their face, it will not be clean.
  • Boss in Mook Clothing: Despite the Genoace II looking nothing more than a recolored Genoace Custom, it has the same armor, armaments and specifications of the original AGE-1.
  • Butt Monkey: Desil Galette in the 2nd season, a rare Complete Monster example.
  • Call Back: In episode 28, the flight schedules in the background list flights to Fardain, Minsry, and Nora.
  • Calling Your Attacks: Done only once with the Gundam AGE-01 Titus. BEAM LARIAT!!
  • The Cavalry: Mukured and his Shaldoll forces who destroy a damaged UE warship attempting to ram the Diva.
  • Char Clone: Zeheart Galette.
  • Cheerful Child: Riria. Emily even says so using the exact same wording.
  • Cheshire Cat Grin: Grodek can't help but do this when his forces are about to attack the UE in Episode 13.
  • Childhood Friend Romance: Flit and Emily.
  • Child Soldier: Flit. It's perfectly clear he is turning himself into one; the first hint of that is the sight of the fiery battlefield right after his first kill that saddens him immediately in Episode 1. Understandably, Emily is not taking it well.
    • He also trains his grandson, Kio, into one, and Kio seems to be willing to join his company, too.
  • Colony Drop: in episode 27, although it was averted in time.
  • Color Coded for Your Convenience: Just in case anyone has noticed, the Earth Federation units are painted with bright colors, making them look like the "good" side, while the UE (Vagan) ones are generally darkly colored as the "evil" side.
  • Combat Pragmatist: In Episode 22, rather than fight Desil one on one, Flit brings a squad of Federation mooks along with him to guarantee a win.

This is war! I'll defeat you any way I can!

  • Combining Mecha: The Gundam AGE-3 heralds the return of the Core Block System.
  • Comes Great Responsibility: part of Commander Bruzar's Final Speech to Flit.
  • Compressed Adaptation/Adaptation Expansion: Depending on if one considers the first written PSP game or first released anime as the "original" in this case. Either way, the 49 episode anime has way less room to tell the story of three generations of characters.
  • Conspicuous CG: The AGE Builder sequence.
  • Crap Saccharine World: Fardain. In episode 5, we see the world inside the colony as a shiny, lavish, and seemingly peaceful commercial center. In episode 6, however, we see the ugly truth behind the mask: there is a war inside this colony that has raged on since the past history in spite of the peace treaty that apparently ended the slaughtering between the two sides, cue Universal Century, and there are also a mass of people living in poverty in an underground ghetto while enduring the rich people who keep being fooled by ideologies or even don't give a damn about the warfare, cue Gundam 00.
  • Crapsack World: Yark Dole reveals the entire story to belong to this trope, with its darkness competing with that of the Universal Century timeline all of a sudden.
  • Crazy Prepared: Flit made a battle simulation program for Kio to play, giving him adequate skills for his first sortie in the Gundam!
  • Curb Stomp Battle:
    • The first battle involving the G-Exes and Gundam AGE-01 Titus. Both of them curb-stomp a so-far invulnerable Gafran.
    • Happens again in Episode 10. When Gundam AGE-01 receives the Spallow upgrade, it has very little difficulty in tearing the Zedas piloted by Desil limb from limb.
    • Again in Episode 14 after Desil kills Yurin. Flit Flash Steps in the Spallow and curbstomps Desil in just a few moves despite it having lost an arm and a leg.
    • Once again in episode 26. The victim is the same as the one immediately above, only this time it's Flit's son serving out the curb stomping. And he does what his father couldn't: kill the bastard.
  • Cycle of Revenge
  • Dangerously Genre Savvy:
    • The UE seems to be this, at least in the first episode. One Gafran camps outside the hatch to a hangar, firing at the sortieing Genoace before it has a chance to get out. When the Gundam takes down one Gafran, rather than fight it, the rest retreat and start bombing the colony from outside, after destroying the one that Flit managed to down to prevent it from being analyzed.
    • And in the second episode, when Vargas sends the new Beam Rifle to the Gundam in a capsule, the Garfran immediately tries to shoot it down rather than wait and see what was in it.
    • In Episode 4, we get to see a huge mothership and dozens of purple Gafran, as they show up during a mock-battle between Flit and Woolf. They waited for the right time and launched an excessive force to deal with the Gundam and Genoace Custom, when they only carried non-lethal weapons.
    • For Episode 10, the UE knows that the Enemy Mine between the Euba and Zalam is already a strained one, so part of their strategy is to invoke friendly fire to cause infighting between the two sides.
    • In episode 19, after losing soldiers to the Gundam AGE-2, the Vagan take a soldier hostage to prevent the Gundam from shooting them. Additionally, the Vagan positioned themselves so that the Gundam would hit the Diva if he shot at them.
    • In episode 27, it appears all is well with the destruction of the Vagan flagship. However they'd planned and actually counted counted on that, using the explosion to disguise their drop pods down to Earth as wreckage.
    • In episode 30, when Kio receives an upgrade to his Sigmasis Rifle, Zeheart immediately recognizes the danger and orders all of his mobile suits to concentrate on the Gundam before the rifle can charge. One episode later, the Three Phantoms also try to prevent the AGE-3 from receiving its Fortress wear. In both cases, the Federation pilots are equally genre-savvy and successfully protect the Gundam.
  • Dangerous Seventeenth Birthday: On Asemu's 17th birthday, Vagan mobile suits infiltrate and attack his home colony.
  • Darker and Edgier: From Episode 15 onward.
    • Generation 3 seems to be the darkest yet.
    • The Novelization of the first generation. See here and here for details.
  • The Dead Have Names: Zeheart makes it a point to remember the name of every pilot under his command, especially the ones that are killed in action
  • Despair Event Horizon: Flit suffers a painful one when Yurin dies. This makes him reject the Vagans' humanity and swear revenge.
  • Disappeared Dad: Asem.
  • Doomed Hometown: Flit's birth colony as well as his current home colony.
    • Averted in the second generation. Although Asemu's hometown takes significant damage in a UE attack, neither it nor the colony is destroyed.
      • Played nearly straight in the third generation. Kio's hometown isn't totally destroyed, but it is subjected to a brutal attack on its civilian quarters.
  • Downer Ending: The final episode of the First Generation. Despite destroying the Ambat fortress, Grodek gets sentenced to life for committing treason and the Earth Federation covers up the evidence of the crew's findings about Vagan. Millais, Woolf, and Adams are all shell-shocked from finding out that the UE were people all along while the Earth Federation reveals genocidal motivations by renaming the first battles against Vagan as the War of Bat Extermination, and also showing they haven't learned a damned thing since the year they abandoned the Mars colonists. Moreover, Yurin's death instills an everlasting hatred for the Vagans in Flit and Emily is overhears him grieving over his inability to save anyone. Most importantly, however, Sir Ezelcant's forces are alive and well as they prepare for the next step of the war against Earth Federation.
  • Dual-Wielding: Asem's fighting style when he first deploys in the Gundam.
  • Dude, Where's My Respect?: Despite being a goddamn hero and the former commander in chief of the Federation, Flit is not taken seriously by the Federation commander stationed in Olivernotes.
  • Enemy Mine: Zeheart and Asemu work together to stop the Colony Drop in episode 27.
  • Everything's Better with Spinning: The AGE's DODS Rifle fires a beam that spins, increasing its penetrating power.
  • Evolving Credits:
    • OP 1: The silohuette of AGE-1 Normal is replaced by Titus and Spallow after respective forms appeared.
    • ED 2: The Gundam AGE-2 Normal is replaced by the Double Bullet starting in episode 24.
    • OP 3: The Dark Hound is not shadowed and Captain Ash is added starting in episode 34.
    • ED 3: Captain Ash appears starting in episode 34.
  • Expy:
    • The Genoace MS is an expy of the GM. Woolf's Genoace Custom, meanwhile, is suspiciously similar to the RX-0 Unicorn.
    • AGE-1 Gundam looks similar to the RX-78-2 Gundam with its shield looking similar to the Gundam MK II .
    • Farsia is a mind-controlled equivalent of Elmeth, and Defurse is the UE's Big Zam.
      • Asemu Asuno is not unlike Kou Uraki for all the low self-worth in him at the young age, and he is also a straighter homage to Amuro Ray. In the Kio Arc, he is a Schwarz Bruder (or Vater?).
      • Kio Asuno bears a big resemblance to Uso Evin from the start, joining him as one of the youngest Gundam heroes in the franchise.
    • Yurin is a homage to Tiffa Adill and Lalah Sune as well as Anew Returner.
    • Emily is Frau Bau.
    • Woolf Enneacle acts like Bernard Monsha. He also takes the role of Slegger Law, Ryu Jose and Mu La Flaga.
    • The two warring factions in Fardain fight against each other, with Zalam using Zakus and Euba Gelgoogs. Even the Zalam space suits resemble strongly Zakus, too.
    • Desil Galette is a child version of Ali Al-Saachez or, depending on how you look at it, Yazan Gable.
    • X-Rounders are like Newtypes with a different name. No Gundam-series is complete without them.
    • Zeheart Galette, he is a CHAR (and to a lesser extent, an Athrun/a Gato as well).
      • And now he bears similar characteristics to Treize, by remembering each and every men killed in action.
    • The UE are revealed to resemble traditional villains in Super Robot Genre shows. By episode 15, however, their motivations for fighting uncannily resemble that for Zeon.
    • The Visidian Pirates are likely a nod to Crossbone Vanguard.
    • During the third generation, the Diva carries three children on it, much like Katz, Letz, and Kikka. And Wendy is assigned to take care of them, making her the Fraw Bow.
    • The Phantom 3 are expies of the Black Tri-Stars. They even have their own equivalent of the Jet Stream Attack.
    • We're even given an expy for a place. Roustroulan, the Federation's HQ on Earth, is one to Jaburo, down to the location.
    • The Gundam AGE-2 Dark Hound is painted mostly black, has a lance that doubles as a beam saber, grappling hooks, and an overall pirate motif. Sounds like the Crossbone Gundam X-2, doesn't it?
  • Falling Into the Cockpit: Surprisingly averted in a Gundam series. Even though Flit wasn't intended to be the pilot of the Gundam AGE-1, he built the suit and knows how to use it. In the second generation, Flit gives Asemu the AGE device for his birthday and Vargas leads him right to the Gundam when he needs it. Likewise, in the third generation, the first thing Kio thinks of to repel the Vagan is to the find the Gundam, and Flit brings it straight to him.
  • Fan Service: A controversially cartoonish art style doesn't stop this series from featuring this. Episode 18, for example, shows a photo of Romary in her swimwear.
  • Flash Step: What the Spallow can do.
  • Foregone Conclusion:
    • It's pretty much a given that neither Flit nor Asem will be able to end the war with the UE.
    • From the physical appearances of Flit's son and grandson, it's pretty obvious that Flit/Emily and Asemu/Romary become the Official Couples. (Though in the first case, it happened due to Yurin's death.)
  • Foreshadowing: Desil Galette was first introduced in episode 5 named "The Demon Boy." Guess what Desil turned out to be.
    • And one more featuring the same character in the second generation. Episode 22's Gundampedia noted that the Khronos (Desil's personal mobile suit) was rumored to have the ability of controlling allied mobile suits. He uses this ability in episode 26 to pin Asemu down.
  • Fire-Forged Friends: Flit and Woolf.
  • Generational Saga: The format of the series. In addition to the Asunos, the Gunhales have had a representative in each generation, and supporting characters from the generation previous often return.
  • Generation Xerox: The three protagonists. Specifically, Asemu and Kio are male xeroxes of their mothers.
    • Also, Dique and Wootbit Gunhale. The latter looks exactly like the former did at the same age, only with blond hair, and both fill the same role. Wootbit's just not as friendly to his Asuno counterpart.
  • Get a Hold of Yourself, Man!: Arisa snaps Asemu out of a funk by slapping him on the ass. It's as funny as it sounds.
  • Go Out with a Smile:
    • Yurin bears a sad smile just as her Farsha mobile suit explodes.
    • Yark Dole also bears a dignified smile as he dies in the hands of Grodek.
    • Woolf Enneacle follows Yurin's path as he dies a heroic death in his G-Bouncer.
    • Medel Zant smiles as he sees the Eden the Vagan long for.
  • Gratuitous English: Yurin actually says "Nice catch" in English. Unlike other examples of this trope in the Gundam franchise, however, it's NOT Played for Laughs nor is it considered to be Narm as this happens shortly before Yurin dies. It is more of Surprisingly Good English.
    • "Supah Pairotto!" Thanks for that, Woolf.
  • Grey and Gray Morality: The Federation versus Vagan. The Federation set the stage for war by abandoning their failed Mars colony. Several generations of corruption and editing of history in their favor have now been replaced with Flit's unflinching anti-Vagan sentiments. Vagan, while having a sympathetic cause, began the war without warning, targets civilian colonies, and refuses Federation efforts to negotiate peace.
  • Grievous Harm with a Body: Asemu in Gundam AGE-1 used a Dorados's severed arm with its beam saber still active to destroyed another Dorados.
  • Gundamjack: Grodek manages to do one better and battleship-jack the Diva.
    • Woolf tries this with the Gundam, and probably would've succeeded, had Flit not been present.
    • Done in Episode 5 by Desil. He does give it back at the end though after having some fun with it.
  • He Who Fights Monsters: Flit tumbles into this at the tender age of fourteen, after Yurin's death.
  • Happily Married: Flit and Emily in the twenty-five year timeskip between Generations 1 and 2. Asemu and Romary are married in Episode 28.
  • Heroic BSOD: Flit gets a major one when he finds out Yurin is imprisoned inside the pink UE mobile suit.
    • Asemu has had two so far. The first was upon finding out that Zeheart was a Vagan pilot, the second when Zeheart beat him in his new mobile suit.
  • Heroic Sacrifice: Bruzar sacrifices himself to get Nora's colony core free when it collapses.
    • Woolf dies taking the blow from Desil Galette meant for Asemu, saddening all his wingmen and enraging Asemu.
    • Remi dies shortly after putting her workloader between Mink's Zedas M and the Diva's bridge.
    • Shanalua Mullen's Clanche is crushed when she destroys a Wrozzo that would probably have taken out the Gundam, due to Kio's Heroic BSOD.
  • Hidden Agenda Villain:
    • Who are the UE? What do they want? No one is quite sure, although Grodek seems to figure it out midway through Generation 1. Not that he tells anyone.
    • Episode 15 finally showed us the truth about the UE. 150 years before the start of the series, the Earth Federation abandoned support from human colonies in Mars after an outbreak of a disease. Those who survived felt double-crossed by the Federation and formed the nation of Vagan. YMMV on whether or not their plight is sympathetic enough to warrant their atrocities.
  • History Repeats: Near the end of Flit's arc, Yurin is stabbed and killed by Desil, causing Flit to enter an Unstoppable Rage, and slices Desil's suit to pieces, but sparing him. 26 years later, Desil kills Woolf in a similar manner, followed by Asemu going berserk and slashing Desil's suit apart limb by limb and finishing the job by blasting the remains into molten space dust.
    • In episode 34, Kio is held by two enemy suits the exact same way that Asemu was by Decil. Asemu shoves him out of the way in the exact same way that Woolf saved him... only he turns around and guts Gratt before he can get stabbed in the back. Woolf would be proud.
  • Human All Along: The Unknown Enemy, also known as Vagan.
  • Humongous Mecha: Gundam series. Duh.
  • I Let Gwen Stacy Die: Flit will never get over the fact that he was unable to stop Desil from killing Yurin.
  • Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy: The guards who attack Woolf in the factory in episode 23.
  • Improbable Age:
    • Despite stiff competition from other series, Flit, the fourteen-year-old weapons designer on the military's payroll, may win the all-time achievement record for Gundam protagonists when it comes to this trope.
    • Flit is out done in his own series by the seven year old Desil who not only jacks the AGE-1 for a joyride, but is also the pilot of the UE MS Zedas and commands their forces in one battle.
    • Decil Galette turns out to be a pilot and battle commander, but he's an unpredictable brat who abandons a sure victory because he gets bored and kills Yurin L'Ciel, who the Vagan had gone to great lengths to conscript for her X-Rounder abilities. Notably, he lacks this authority in Generation 2.
    • Zeheart gets this, too. At age 18, he's put in command of the Earth Occupation Forces. He even outranks his older brother!
  • Irony: As the Third Generation rolls in, it's pretty clear that Vagan boasts a technologically advanced military. And then Episode 29 shows the actual capital city... which is a primitive, desert city that shares quite a few similarities to Cappadocia. To call the difference between civilian life and military within Vagan jarring would be an understatement.
    • Also at the beginning of the third generation, when Flit asks for the launch of the Diva (which is at that point in time an antique and Flit has also left the military, only holding merit as the former commander-in-chief of the Federation), another high-ranking officer puts together a ragtag crew of half-dead pilots and rookies, even giving a complete amateur Nice Girl the position of captain, for it out of pure spite. Genre Savvy viewers should know that the Diva's new crew will likely wind up turning the tide in the war.
  • I Was Quite a Looker: As of Generation Two, Flit has long since kissed his Cute Shotaro Boy days goodbye.
  • It's Personal: Flit and Desil. Twenty-five years later, the grudge is still going strong.
  • Jumping Off the Slippery Slope: Yurin's death caused Flit to do this. From age fourteen well into his sixties, his hatred for the Vagan is so strong that his main goal in life is to exterminate all of them. His words.
    • The UE/Vagan did this circa A.G. 108, when they started wiping out colonies full of civilians in their campaign to retake Earth.
  • Killed Off for Real: With all the homages AGE pays to previous entries of the franchise, it's only natural that it would be just as eager to kill off its cast.
  • Kill the Cutie: While stopping Desil from killing Flit, Yurin's UE mobile suit gets Impaled with Extreme Prejudice and explodes in front of Flit.
    • Remi Ruth is killed when Mink attacks her unarmed repair unit in Episode 27.
  • Kio, he is your father: Flit reveals that Captain Ash is actually Kio's father, Asemu Asuno, who was presumed dead after he went MIA.
  • Knight Templar: After Yurin's death, Flit proclaims that the Vagans are inhuman and devotes his life to wiping them out.
  • Laser-Guided Karma: Desil Galette suffers this big time starting from his defeat in the hands of an enraged Flit after his murder of Yurin. Since then, he never gets to surpass the rank of his younger brother, Zeheart, never gets respect from his fellow Vagan soldiers, always fails to kill Flit, and eventually -- a well-deserved death in the hands of Flit's son, Asemu, which is also set up by Zeheart himself.
  • Lensman Arms Race: Thanks to the AGE Builder, the Diva is pretty much a one-ship Lensman Arms Race, developing massively powerful new weapons after receiving only a single battle's worth of combat data.
    • Likewise, the Vagan seem to be able to produce newer and more powerful mobile suits at a faster pace than the regular Federation forces.
  • Lightning Bruiser:
    • The G-Exes. Fast and maneuverable, can take it and dish it out pretty good thanks to good armor, a strong shield and two hideously powerful beam-sabers.
    • Gundam AGE-1 Spallow too can be considered one thanks to it's very strong performance in combat & the ability to Flash Step. If it was not for it's armor being as thick as tofu...
    • The bad guys have the Zedas, piloted by psycho-child Decil Gallete which is as fast & strong as the AGE-1 Spallow.
    • And now they also have the Zeydra, the first mobile suit that can keep up with Zeheart's X-Rounder abilities.
    • The Gundam AGE-2 Normal can be considered one due to being fast & strong. But the one that takes the prize would be the Mid-Season Upgrade of AGE-2, the Double Bullet.
    • The Gundam AGE-3 Normal is shaping up to be this. Despite being the physically largest of the three regular Gundams, it has surprising agility and maneuverability (able to glide around melee strikes on a city street) and excellent speed thanks to its massive thrusters, and is also armed with a miniaturized version of the Diva's Photon Blaster Cannon.
  • Lighter and Softer: Averted. The "kiddy" art style doesn't stop the show from featuring its fair share of deaths or depict the Federation as still a corrupt organization. The scenes of large-scale battles throughout the series are no more sanitized than those in other Gundam shows either.
  • Love At First Sight: Flit and Yurin.
  • Love Hurts: Flit and Yurin, and good God does it hurt.
    • Second Generation: Obright and Remi, AND HOW.
  • Love Triangle:
    • Flit with Emily and Yurin. Emily wins. Though it's doubtful she'd revel in the victory...I mean, is it really winning when your love rival--the one Flit seemed to have more romantic feelings for--is killed? And considering the scene with Flit and Yurin's pink ribbon, the girl's very aware of it, and not exactly happy? Something of a Pyrrhic Victory, really.
    • For the Second Generation, Romary with Asemu and Zeheart. In Episode 24, Romary seems to have chosen Zeheart despite the fact that he's a Vagan. By Episode 28, Asemu wins, with Romary and him getting married.
  • Meet Cute: Yurin for Flit. Romary for Asemu.
  • The Messiah: Flit aims to become one throughout much of the first generation. Yurin's death kills his idealist views and triggers his dark descent into becoming a Dark Messiah.
  • Mid-Season Upgrade: Woolf replaces his nearly out-dated Genoace Custom during the middle arc of the first generation with the G-Exes.
    • Asemu gets an example of this, too, when he switches from the Gundam Age-1 to the Age-2.
    • And on the villains' side, Zeheart upgrades from the Zedas R to the Zeydra.
  • The Mole: Over the course of the war, the Vagan have infiltrated countless moles and sleeper agents into the Federation. Zeheart initially started as one, and it is heavily implied in Episode 31 that Shanalua is one as well.
  • Multiform Balance: The Gundam AGE-1's Normal, Titus and Spallow modes.
  • My Greatest Failure: See I Let Gwen Stacy Die.
  • Narrator All Along: Flit.
  • Ninja: Gundam AGE Sparrow.
  • Not Worth Killing: Despite the Zedas outpacing Gundam Titus, Desil gets bored and orders the UE to retreat.
    • The same thing happens in episode 20 when Zeheart defeats Asemu.
  • Older Hero vs. Younger Villain:
    • Probably the most twisted example ever with Flit versus Desil. The former is a maturing fourteen-year-old kid aware of his own limits; the latter is an arrogant and selfish seven-year-old Ax Crazy Blood Knight Complete Monster.
    • Averted with Asemu and Zeheart in the Second Generation. They are exactly the same age.
    • Inverted with Kio vs Zeheart.
  • Ominous Latin Chanting: In the opening crawl for the third generation.
  • "On the Next Episode of..." Catchphrase: "Three destinies will form history..."
  • Psychic Powers: The X-Rounders, which at first seem to be a fairly basic and near identical Newtype equivalent. And then people start talking about it being a regression in humanity, rather than the next step in their evolution.
  • Punny Name: The Adders have the ability to use the AGE-1's add-ons. Unless you're one of those people who thinks they're named after a famous singer.
  • Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: The 3rd-generation Diva crew.
  • Ramming Always Works:
    • Narrowly averted. Madorna's Shaldolls destroy the fragment of Fa Bose left, stopping it from ramming the Diva.
    • Also averted for Ract, who was actually going to ram his own Mobile Suit into the fragment's engine, to stop it so it wouldn't hit the Diva.
  • Rescue Romance:
    • Flit's and Yurin's meeting leads to this.
    • This is played with in the Second Generation, as Romary is saved by both Asemu and Zeheart at different times. Asemu rescues Romary when she's injured during a Vagan attack, and Zeheart rescues Romary from getting hit by a wrench. She distinctly blushes at the latter.
  • Rule of Three
  • Secret Keeper: Romary to Asemu.
  • Shallow Love Interest: Emily, and to a lesser extent, Romary. Emily's only concern seems to be Flit, and she barely even interacts with her grandfather. Romary has more screentime, but her role is overshadowed by the rivalry between Asemu and Zeheart. Their absence in subsequent generations makes it painfully obvious that they were only included for their ovaries.
  • Shell-Shocked Veteran: Grodek, Flit as of episode 14, Woolf in Generation 2, Obright and Shanalua in Generation 3.
  • Shoulders of Doom: The Gundam AGE-1 Titus has those. Notice the 4 holes in each of its shoulder-pads? Those are actually Beam Spikes stored in the shoulders, placed ideally for tackling the enemy.
  • Shout-Out: What good is an anime if it doesn't have them?
    • In episode 13, Woolf quotes Kamina.

Largan: "Woolf, do you...Do you have a girlfriend?"
Woolf: "A girlfriend? Of course I do. She's a pure white princess (probably referring to his G-Exes here)."
Largan: "Then, make sure she won't get hurt."
Woolf: "Who the hell do you think I am?" (also translated as "Who do you think I am?"; He actually says "Ore wo dare datto omotteiru?" meaning "Just who the hell do you think I am?")

  • Space Pirates: Visidian.
  • Spell My Name with an "S": Depending on who you ask, the protagonist's name is either Frite or Flit (the official translation seems to be the latter).
    • Also, fans are having trouble deciding if the antagonists' nation is named Vagan, Veigan, or Vegan.
    • The Second Generation's protagonist has conflicting spelling as well. Some say it's Asem, others say it's Asemu.
    • Adeles/Adders.
    • Sparrow/Spallow.
    • Farsia/Farseer.
    • Visidian/Bisidian.
    • Wendy's last name is either Hearts or Hertz, depending on who you ask.
  • Stealth Pun: All that talk about aliens in the series. Well turns out the UE really are Martians.
  • Stock Sound Effects
    • The Gundam AGE-01's Beam Spread Gun uses the laser-firing sound effect from Star Wars.
    • The Gafrans wield beam vulcans that fire with the same sound as the plasma pistols in Halo.
    • For once, Sunrise actually didn't reuse the same few sound effects from the original series.
    • The Photon Blaster Cannon makes the exact same noise as GENESIS.
  • The Stoic: Grodek
    • Obright, too. Especially in the third generation.
  • Super Prototype: The Gundams, of course, as well as Woolf's G-Exes.
  • Surprisingly Good English: For once, a Gundam series has this. Some examples of this could be seen in Episode 14 (when Yurin says "Nice catch"), as well as most of the written English text in Episode 18.
  • Taking You with Me: Daz attempts to do this to Flit in Episode 27 after having his mobile suit split in two. He almost succeeded.
  • Teen Genius: Flit Asuno.
  • There Are No Therapists: Young Flit, Asemu, and Romary (among others) seem in desperate need of one. Too bad this is Gundam.
  • This Is Unforgivable!: Flit declares that he will never forgive the UE for using and killing Yurin.
  • Three Amigos: Flit, Emily, and Dique. Asemu, Romary, and Zeheart are strongly implied to have been this during their last years of school, with the photo montage in the second ED.
  • Throwing Your Sword Always Works: Asemu throws a beam saber to distract a Dorado before finishing the said Vagan mobile suit with his other beam saber.
  • Trailers Always Lie: At the end of Episode 8, we are shown a new UE model hiding in the factory that builds customized mobile suits including G-Exes, leading the audience to suspect that it has been working for the UE all along. In the next episode, however, it is revealed that the crew has been UNKNOWINGLY working for the UE until they realize something is dead wrong in the combat record of the UE model. They get better after this.
  • Transforming Mecha: The Gafrans.
    • The Gundam AGE-2 as well.
    • The Gundam AGE-3 too, sort of. It doesn't transform as much as the AGE-2, rather the arms and legs fold up into a flight-mode, stretching out to become the body which the Core Fighter then transforms into the Head and Cockpit for.
    • The Federation's new Clanche is a straighter example, being developed directly from the AGE-2.
  • The Purge: The second generation ends with one of Vagan collaborators within the Federation as part of a coup. To be fair, they had it coming.
  • The Uriah Gambit: When Desil disobeys orders during the battle at Nortrom and engages the Gundam, Zeheart deliberately withholds reinforcements, which leads to Desil's defeat and death. His subordinates then accuse him of invoking this trope in order to conveniently get rid of him, but he points out that they probably would have ended up as Canon Fodder if he'd allowed them to assist.
    • In Episode 30, the Olivernotes commander deliberately assigns the worst crew he can find to the Diva, as well as promoting an inexperienced lieutenant into captaincy long before she is ready for such responsibility. He seems to this all for the purpose of spiting Flit.
  • The Usual Adversaries: The UE.
  • Unstoppable Rage: Flit after Yurin is killed by Desil.
    • And Asemu after Woolf is killed by Desil.
  • Unfortunate Names: From Wootbit Gunhale to Netora Einus, Generation 3 is a major offender.
  • Villainous Breakdown:
    • Desil Galette does not take losing well at all. Just look at the mess he made in his room after losing to Gundam Spallow in episode 10!
    • Even worse after Desil killed Yurin; he brings out Flit's full potential in the Spallow. Meaning he gets curbstomped. Especially worth noting because he's an Ax Crazy Blood Knight Complete Monster, and Flit's counterattack reduces him to a sobbing mess.
  • War for Fun and Profit: Desil Galette's motivation for fighting. He thinks that war is a game and that the soldiers are toys at his disposal.
  • The War of Earthly Aggression: Once the Gundam became the Diva's ace-in-the-hole, the Earth Federation rebranded their war against the UE (aka Vagan) as the War of Bat Extermination.
  • Was It All a Lie?: Asem demands this of Zeheart, who wishes they could have remained friends.
  • Wave Motion Gun: The Diva's Photon Blaster Cannon is definitely one.
    • Big Ring's Photon Ring Ray is a Wave Motion Gun powered by the Photon Blaster Cannon.
    • The AGE-3's Sigmasis Rifle is a smaller, MS-mounted version of the Photon Blaster Cannon.
      • And then the AGE-3 Fortress tops it by combining all four of its SigMaxiss Cannons to form a shot similar to the Satellite Cannon.
      • And because that just wasn't enough, it gets a one-shot upgrade into an even bigger gun to kill a Vagan battleship.
    • Vagan reveal one of their own in episode 29, which decloaks and vaporizes the Big Ring in about two seconds to kick off their invasion of Earth.
  • Well-Intentioned Extremist: Both Flit and Ezelcant can be considered these. Ezelcant is willing to do anything to take Earth for the Vagan, while Flit is certain the only way to protect Earth is the complete extermination of all Vagan.
  • "Well Done, Son" Guy: Asemu enters mobile suit contests and excels in school so he could attract his father's attention. When he joins the Federation, he focuses on being just as good of a mobile suit as his father in order to impress him. Woolf tries to teach Asemu to be his own man and not to be confined by his father's accomplishments.
  • Wham! Episode:
    • Episode 8's last scene of showing a UE being built in a facility was but an appetizer to how big episode 9 would be. A UE Zedas outclasses the Titus, making a new Gundam obsolete in record time. Moreover, the episode reveals that Desil's calling the shots for the UE and, most importantly, Grodek convinces his crew to break off from the Federation's forces. Talk about a dramatic buildup!
    • After much tension of the first part of the battle, Episode 13 gives the audience one more sudden shock by revealing Yurin as a manipulated X-Rounder soldier by the UE at the end.
    • Two words: Episode 15. We finally not only realize that the UE are actually people belonging to the nation of Vagan, but also learn the reasons why they are fighting against the Earth Federation. After watching this episode, you may find yourself sympathizing with those from Vagan.
    • Episode 29. First, Big Ring is destroyed. This signals the Vagan forces sent to Earth in Episode 27 finally reveal themselves, rapidly turning Earth from a peaceful paradise into a battleground.
  • What Happened to the Mouse?: Some characters seem to have been completely forgotten about after every generation change, such as Largan...unless you read Memories of Sid.
  • What Measure Is a Mook?: Episode 15 has a heartbreaking example when Woolf runs into a dying Vagan soldier. Learning the truth about his people and befriending him, Woolf is given a Vagan necklace just before the soldier dies in his arms. Sorry, I got something in my eye...
    • In Generation 3, Zeheart makes a point of knowing the names of soldiers who die under his command.
  • White-Haired Pretty Boy: Woolf and Zeheart Galette.
  • Worf Effect: While Asemu is perfectly capable of handling Vagan mooks, the early 2nd generation episodes show him continually getting curbstomped by Zeheart.
    • A lot of Federation mobile suits that aren't the Gundam or piloted by Woolf fall victim to this too, though they're not as hopeless in the second generation.
    • The "Magicians' Eight", a squadron of elite Vagan X-Rounders, spend most of the episodes they show up in getting continually and rather easily picked off and killed by the protagonists.
    • By the point of the 3rd generation, the Defurse, which was able to give the Gundam AGE-1 a tough fight, is easily one shotted by the AGE-3.
    • Big Ring, which is the lynchpin of Earth's final line of defense, easily holds off a massive Vagan offensive in the 2nd Generation. However, come the 3rd Generation, the station is quickly destroyed in the opening minutes of Episode 29.
  • World Half Full: Subverted like whoa from Episode 15 onwards.
  • World of Cardboard Speech: Happened during Episode 14 after Flit lost it when Yurin dies in the hands of Desil.

Flit: Desil....Why did you.....Why did Yurin have to die?
Desil: There was no reason! It just means I've lost one of my playthings!
Flit: Lives...ARE NOT TOYS!!! ((Cue an MS-sized Extreme Melee Revenge by Flit on Desil))

  • Wrestler in All of Us: The Gundam AGE Titus's weapons loadout is specifically built around giving wrestling moves that little extra kick, making it perhaps the only Humongous Mecha in existence to utilise the 'beam lariat'.
  • You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: Arabel's fate. Shortly after he stabs Grodek he is shot by unknown people as part of their cover-up of something within the Federation. The one that shoots him tells him they don't need him anymore.
  • You Killed My Family: Flit's (initial) hatred of the UE comes from watching his mother die during an attack on their colony.
    • Grodek's wife and daughter were killed in the very first UE attack, and he has no other purpose in life but to avenge them.
    • Arabel's attitude towards Grodek. Grodek is also Genre Savvy enough to know that Arabel will ruin his own life in order to pursue revenge, which he eventually does in Episode 24.
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