Episode list

In the 70th year of the Cosmic Era, mankind's reach for the stars has granted him great leaps and bounds into the unknown... and fatefully divided him into two camps. Those of humankind who have stayed on Earth and the Moon, those of the nations of the Earth Alliance, have grown jealous of their more ambitious space-faring companions. These explorers are known as the Coordinators, an elite group of humans who have had their genes altered to bring out superior performance. Living in specially designed space stations called PLANTs (Productive Location Ally on Nexus Technology), they have been free of the discrimination they faced on Earth at the hands of unmodified 'Naturals.' For a while, both sides shared an uneasy peace. Then, on February 14th, CE 70, day of the Bloody Valentine tragedy, the bonds of humanity were shattered and the blood of the innocents spilt. Militant leaders of the Earth Alliance on this day used nuclear weapons upon an agricultural PLANT, and since that time, full-scale civil war has broken out. Forming a militia known as ZAFT (Zodiac Alliance of Freedom Treaty), the Coordinators have fought against the vastly numerically superior Earth Alliance forces. For 11 long months, war has raged, both on Earth and amongst the stars. Now, in the neutral space colony of Heliopolis, a young boy named Kiro Yamato watches the war news and thinks of his friend Athrun Zala, who he parted with some time ago and is now with the PLANTs. Little does he know that the peaceful colony is about to become a war zone as ZAFT comes searching for a secret Earth Alliance weapon, and the horrors of battle threaten to replace the old memories of friendship with new nightmares of Athrun... carrying a gun, and dressed as an enemy.

In a flash of the blinding light brought forth by exploding hatred and burning anger, the old friends Kira and Athrun are reunited amidst the chaos of conflict. But this reunion is one of fear and confusion, not happiness, as each appears to the other as not friend, but foe. Before either can consider the situation or implications, Kira is forced by Earth Alliance agent Murrue Ramius into the cockpit of the Strike Gundam, one of the secret weapons that Athrun and his ZAFT strike force are after. Forced into combat not as a soldier but a helpless passenger, he can only watch as his home is transformed into a battlefield, and his class mates are threatened by the conflagration. But somewhere within young Kira's heart lies a secret known to no one else that can either save his friends and Helipolis, or further the war that dooms them all...

Through courage, luck, and a power that even he does not yet quite understand, Kira manages to save his friends and himself from the advances of ZAFT's invading mobile suits by piloting the Strike Gundam. But as the Earth Alliance warship Archangel enters the Helipolis colony in a flash of flame and destruction, and the mysterious and dangerous commander of the ZAFT forces Rau Le Creuset makes a dramatic entrance while engaged in lightning quick battle with Alliance top gun Mu La Flaga, it is abundantly clear that no one is truly safe. When both the Archangle and Mu come to Kira's aid, the situation seems to take a turn for the better, but with a revelation that stuns his newfound comrades, even the Earth Alliance ranks may not be safe for him. Kira, a Coordinator? But the mistrust and weariness of those around him becomes the least important thing on his mind when Le Creuset sends in another team of ZAFT mobile suits, with Athrun among them. Called upon to pilot again, Kira must fight against his will to protect his friends. But on the field of a battle that cannot be won without a price paid in blood, to escape the collapsing colony he called home, Kira must do what was unthinkable but an hour ago... kill.

Like a delicate leaf torn from its branch by the violent winds of a storm, the fragile flower that was Heliopolis fell from the sky amidst the flames of battle and the cries of friendship ending. The colony destroyed, Kira and the Archangel crew find themselves tasked with a desperate flight to Artemis, the Eurasian fortress asteroid that they hope will give them supplies and take them in until they can make a run for the Earth Alliance Headquarters on the Moon. In order to do this, Murrue Ramius, now captain of the Archangel, must guide the ship on a silent run, to try and sneak past Rau Le Creuset and his waiting duo of ZAFT ships. On his way back to the Archangel, Kira retrieves one of the Helipolis escape pods and brings it back to the ship, despite protests. Onboard is Flay Allster, one of Kira's friends who did not escape with him. Having rescued her and two dozen others from certain death in the depths of space should make him happy, but as he is once again approached by Mu La Flagga to pilot the Strike Gundam in future battles, Kira's thoughts are on the increasingly blurred line between civilian and soldier, and how close he has already come to crossing over it. Meanwhile, on Le Creuset's ship, Athrun tells Rau that Kira, his childhood friend, is the pilot of the lone Gundam that ZAFT could not capture in the battle at Heliopolis. Although sympathetic, Le Creuset tells Athrun that friend or no, as an enemy he must be shot. Certain that Kira is fighting for the Earth Alliance against his will, Athrun persuades Rau to let him try and talk Kira into joining ZAFT, the next time they meet. But if he is to fail, and Kira cannot be convinced, Athrun promises that he will be the one to deliver the fatal shot...

Mu La Flaga and Kira launch a counteroffensive against the ZAFT ship Vesalius. The Strike's Phase Shift Armor runs out of power in the middle of the battle and Athrun uses this moment to grab the Strike so he can take Kira with him, but Kira frees himself with Mu's help.

The Archangel and its crew are held captive by the Artemis forces. Nicol Amalfi in his GAT-X207 Blitz attacks Artemis, using its Mirage Colloid armor to remain effectively invisible and destroys the Umbrella of Artemis, which protects the asteroid fortress. During the attack, the Archangel is able to escape.

The Archangel forages for water in the Debris Belt. They are shocked to find themselves in the ruins of Junius Seven, so the crew decides to hold a memorial. As they are excavating ice found around the ruin, a ZAFT mobile suit attacks, but Kira dispatches him. Kira finds a floating lifepod and takes it aboard.

Lacus Clyne, the daughter of PLANT Supreme Council Chairman Siegel Clyne, is found within the lifepod. Her presence causes tension within the crew, but when the crew receives a message from the 8th Fleet that they are being searched and rescued, they are overjoyed.

The escort led by the Archangel gets attacked by the Le Creuset Team. Flay sees the death of her father when Kira is unable to protect the ships and the Archangel reveals that Lacus is on the ship which causes them to withdraw.

Kira gets depressed after everything he has witnessed and seen, but Lacus comforts him.

Le Creuset launches an attack on the Archangel. Kira's desire to protect his friends awakens an unknown almost berserker ability. He single-handedly defeats the attacking Blitz, GAT-X103 Buster, and GAT-X102 Duel.

Kira and his friends are given permission to leave the Archangel, but after overcoming the initial shock of her father's death, Flay decides to enlist in the Earth Alliance Forces, prompting Sai Argyle, Kuzzey Buskirk, Miriallia Haw, and Tolle Koenig to do the same. Kira stays on board the Archangel as well to continue protecting his friends. Duel Gundam is upgraded with an Assault Shroud.

Le Creuset attacks once again as the Archangel and the 8th Fleet approaches Earth. The Archangel is able to descend to Earth, but not without the loss of the entire 8th Fleet. Yzak Joule, the pilot of the Duel, vents his frustration by destroying a spacecraft carrying Heliopolis refugees that Kira had rescued previously.

Rau Le Creuset reflects on the events that took place in episodes one to thirteen and the Coordinator's history starting from the birth of the First Coordinator, George Glenn.

The Archangel saves Kira as they enter the Earth's atmosphere. As a result, they land in ZAFT-controlled territory in the Sahara in northern Africa, far from their intended target, Alaska. Flay begins to take care of Kira and comforts him when he is tormented by the memories of the spacecraft that was destroyed in the previous battle.

The Archangel is attacked by multiple TMF/A-802 BuCUE units. Kira hastily takes off and fights the ZAFT forces, but he is unfamiliar with the desert environment. His ability to adapt amazes ZAFT's commander Andrew Waltfeld. When the Strike is about to run out of power, a resistance group comes to his aid and lures the remaining BuCUE units into an explosive trap.

Murrue Ramius thanks the resistance group for their help and agrees to be allies. The resistance group introduces themselves as the Desert Dawn who are fighting Andrew and the Lesseps. Kira once again meets with Cagalli Yula Athha, the mysterious young woman he first encountered at Heliopolis' Morgenroete factory, who is now part of Desert Dawn. Meanwhile, Andrew attacks the Desert Dawn's hometown, but evacuates the town first.

Though the Desert Tiger has spared the lives of civilians, Desert Dawn members brashly challenge the ZAFT forces, because of the devastation they caused. The attack ends in failure, but most are saved by Kira in the Strike.

Kira and Cagalli are sent into a nearby ZAFT-controlled city to gather supplies with Natarle and the Desert Dawn. The two teenagers get caught in an attack by the Blue Cosmos, and when Kira saves a man who happens to be Andrew Waltfeld, they are invited to the ZAFT base. There, Andrew reveals that he knows Kira is the pilot of the Strike and a Coordinator, but lets them leave safely.

Athrun and Nicol are given the day off; Athrun spends the day with Lacus and they talk about Kira. The PLANT Supreme Council debates on whether the attack codenamed "Operation Spitbreak" should be executed.

A battle between the Lesseps and the Desert Dawn commences. Kira and the Desert Tiger fight a battle where they realize the pain of having an enemy who is not an abstraction. With the Strike's power almost depleted, Kira has no choice but to destroy Andrew's TMF/A-803 LaGOWE or die himself.

After a final pitched battle in the desert, the Archangel must begin to make her way to the Federation base at Alaska. Cagalli and Kisaka decide to accompany them. En route, they are attacked numerous times by ZAFT maritime mobile suits. The Strike is at a distinct disadvantage. During the battle, Cagalli is shot down and lands on a deserted island. But Athrun has also crash-landed there. Cagalli takes an instant dislike to Athrun, who doesn't seem to care. The war just became personal. Finally, with an exhausted crew and a badly-damaged ship, the Archangel reaches the neutral nation of Orb. They think they're safe, but how long will it last?

A battle with ZAFT submarine forces led by Commander Marco Morassim prevents Kira from fighting alongside Mu and Cagalli in their FX-550 Skygraspers. Cagalli's Skygrasper sustains damage and is forced to turn back, but she encounters Athrun's transport plane; her Skygrasper is shot down, but not before shooting down his transport plane, forcing Athrun in his Aegis to eject from the transport plane. By chance, they are both stranded on the same deserted island.

Cagalli is surprised to find Athrun on the same deserted island. She attacks him, but she is overpowered and captured. When everything settles down, the two discuss the war and the reason why they are fighting. At sunrise, they are rescued by their respective comrades.

The Archangel is attacked by the Zala Team which consists of the Le Creuset Team members. They take heavy damage, but when they enter the waters of the neutral nation of Orb, ZAFT is chased away and is told that the Archangel has been chased away. The Zala Team sneaks into Orb with the belief that Orb's official statement is false.

A recap of the first 25 episodes.

Erica Simmons reviews the Strike's combat logs and thinks that Kira may be superior then the other Coordinators. Shen then shows Kira the Mobile Suit that be being developed by Orb.

Kira and his friends get the opportunity to meet with the parents who are in the refuge in Orb.

The Archangel leaves the Orb territory without Cagalli and Ledonir and heads to Alaska.

The Zala Team try again to to destroy the Archangel, Kira and Athrun suffer anger over the death of a friend and they fight.

The Archangel seem to think that Kira and Tolle are dead and Cagalli searches for Kira but finds Athrun and accuses him of killing Kira.

The Archangel ship arrives to Alaska but a grief-saddened Miriallia attacks Dearka who is now a prisoner on the ship but gets to save his life when Flay tries to murder him.

The Archangel limps toward Alaska, having lost contact with both the Strike Gundam and Tolle's Skygrasper. Cagalli, meanwhile, discovers a wounded Athrun, and is shocked to learn what happened. In Alaska, the Archangel crew are told to stand by for further orders, and tensions continue to mount. Elsewhere, Kira awakens and finds himself in the care of Lacus Clyne. ZAFT launches Operation Spit Break, and the Federation is caught completely by surprise. Now, the Archangel is one of a handful of ships left at Alaska to defend JOSH-A from a massive ZAFT offensive. And beneath the base lies a secret that will destroy them all!

Flay, Mu, and Natarle are being transferred off the Archangel, but Mu thinks that something is wrong as the base gets evacuated.

The ZAFT and the Earth Alliance think they have outsmarted each other but the Archangel gets left behind and will be destroyed in a plan that will kill everyone on the battlefield unless Kira arrives.

Lacus, who is now considered a traitor too the PLANTs for handing the Freedom over to an unknown pilot, has decided to challenge him and see what he is actually fighting for.

Kira and the Archangel ship make their way finally to Orb and the Panama driver gets destroyed by ZAFT because of the hit they took at Alaska.

The Earth Alliance has demanded that Orb concede with them or attacked for choosing to side with ZAFT.

Athrun helps Kira fight against the Forbidden Raider and Calamity. The three Earth Alliance leaders are hit with extreme pain.

The Earth Alliance has attacked again but the same results happen as before. The Archangel and Orb ship go out to space but the leaders of Orb stay behind.

Cagalli who is sad about her father's death, confronts Kira with a photograph that was given to her by Lord Uzumi.

Athrun returns to speak with his father about but he gets shot and arrested, also Lacus and Andrew Waltfeld have joined forces to steal the ZAFT support ship.

The newly formed Three Ships Alliance decides to take shelter at the Mendel colony, but they get tracked down by ZAFT and the Earth Alliance.

The Dominion decides to retreat so the pilots can get the medicine they need and Mu and Dearka enter the Mendel colony so they can confront Rau and Yzak.

Kira and Mu face the terrifying revelations with Rau, and the Dominion and the Earth Alliance attack again.

Flay who is being held captive by Rau gets put into a lifepod and she is given a disk that has the important data about Neutron Jammer Canceller.

The Earth Alliance gets a hold of the disk that has the information about Neutron Jammer Cancellers and they launch an attack on the PLANTs.

Genesis, a huge gamma ray destroys a large portion of of the Earth Alliance's forces, and the Earth Alliance have to withdraw so that they can regroup.

The second attack by Genesis cripples the Earth Alliance and destroys the Ptolemaeus base, also, Mu fights Rau in the ZGMF-X13A Providence and Kira and Athrun fight the Forbidden, Raider, and Calamity.

The Archangel, the Eternal and Kusanagi go deep in battle as they try to keep both of them from using their mass destruction weapons.