Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway’s Flash is set in U.C. 105, twelve years after Char’s Counterattack. What makes this film special is that it features the figure known as the “last big shot” in the Universal Century Gundam timeline.
What is Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway’s Flash?
Its Special Position in the Universal Century Gundam Lineage
To really appreciate Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway’s Flash, it helps to know the history of the Gundam series in the Universal Century.
The Universal Century series, beginning with the 1979 broadcast of ‘Mobile Suit Gundam’, is an epic saga connected by a consistent timeline. It starts with the First Gundam (UC 79), continues through Zeta Gundam (UC 87), ZZ Gundam (UC 88), and then the theatrical film ‘Char’s Counterattack’ (UC 93).
After this, the Universal Century entered a period of silence lasting about 20 years. Subsequent works like Gundam F91 (U.C. 123) and V Gundam (U.C. 153) shifted to stories set in different eras, no longer featuring the original Gundam characters like Amuro Ray or Char Aznable.
Hathaway’s Flash stands as the final chapter in the saga of the original Gundam heroes, signaling the culmination of their stories. This defining position in the Universal Century timeline is the primary reason fans have eagerly awaited its adaptation for over 30 years.
Key Differences Between the Original Novel and the Anime Version
The original novel “Hassay of the Flash” was published from 1989 to 1990. It was written by director Yoshiyuki Tomino himself. However, this anime adaptation features significant changes to the setting.
Original Novel Settings:
- It is a sequel to the novel version of “The Children of Beltorchika,” not the theatrical anime “Char’s Counterattack.”
- Amuro’s lover is “Beltorchika,” not “Chain.”
- There is no episode where Hasshawe kills Chain.
It’s interesting to see how the games handle this story. Both the ‘SD Gundam G Generation’ and ‘Super Robot Wars’ series have used the novel’s version of ‘Shining Hasshawe’ for years. In these games, Hasshawe is always voiced by Nozomu Sasaki, so fans strongly associate the character with this actor.
Theatrical Anime Version Setting:
Mobile Suit Gundam: Char’s Counterattack(Amazon Prime)
- The official sequel to the theatrical anime ‘Char’s Counterattack.’
- Amuro’s lover is “Chain Agi.”
- Hathaway feels deep guilt for killing Chain in a moment of emotion. This guilt shapes many of his actions, especially in the second installment, “The Witch of Circe.”
This difference is important. In this story, Hasshawe lives with the fact that he killed Amuro Ray’s lover, someone he deeply respected. This guilt is a big reason why he turns to terrorism.
Hasshawe Noa: Fighting Not as a Superhuman, but as a Human Being
In Mobile Suit Gundam UC (Unicorn), released from 2016 onward, the superhuman powers of Newtypes were central to the story. The Unicorn Gundam, piloted by protagonist Banagher Links, performed miracles through the power of its Psycho Frame, sometimes even causing supernatural phenomena such as reversing time.
However, Hathaway’s Flash draws a clear line from such supernatural-style storytelling.
Hathaway may have Newtype potential, but he depends on his own abilities—clear judgment, tactical thinking, and trust in his friends—to survive on the battlefield.
Particularly striking in this work is the depiction of Earth in U.C. 105, especially the city of Davao, where Hathaway lands. Once prosperous, this city has become a society of severe inequality due to the Federation government’s corruption and environmental degradation.
This work visually and narratively heightens the sense of social disparity in Davao, making clear why Hathaway resorts to terrorism as a response to the Federation’s corruption and the resulting inequality. The film’s depiction of two coexisting yet separate worlds makes Hathaway’s choices intelligible within the story’s moral framework.
The story shows the cruelty of the “manhunt,” where civilians are forced into space, and the unfairness of only the privileged staying on Earth. Showing these social issues makes the story feel more real.
Hathaway’s personal conviction bridges the philosophies of Char and Amuro. He seeks a pragmatic solution to Earth’s crisis—eliminating the privileged class to force humanity into space—straddling Char’s radicalism and Amuro’s idealism as he grapples with how to ensure true change.
Unshakable Trauma
Yet Hathaway, who seems like a cold-blooded terrorist, has a major weakness: he cannot escape his past trauma.
He meets the mysterious Gigi Andalusia on the luxury shuttle “Hounzen.” Her bold words, sharp insight, and especially her aura remind him of Quess Paraya, his first love.
As leader of the Maftei, he should sever all unnecessary human ties. Yet Hathaway cannot leave Gigi alone.
To make matters worse, Gigi finds favor with the enemy, Colonel Kenneth, and ends up staying by his side. Kenneth intends to use Gigi to uncover Hathaway’s true identity.
Hathaway has to hide his identity, protect Gigi from danger, and keep leading Maftei’s operations. Handling all of this at once slowly pushes him to his limits.
Bright once hit Amuro after he yelled, “My own father never hit me!” Now, Bright’s own son fights as a terrorist, haunted by the guilt of killing the woman Amuro loved—a man he once looked up to. Hathaway rebels against the same Federation government his father serves.
This complex humanity is the greatest charm of the protagonist, Hathaway Noah.
Overwhelming Visual Beauty and Civilian-Level Terror
Gigantic Weapons Emerging from Darkness
The greatest appeal of this work is undoubtedly its overwhelming visual beauty. Director Shuuko Murase’s previous work, ‘The Killing Organ’, also featured impressive depictions of darkness, but ‘Hathaway’s Flash’ takes this expression even deeper, allowing viewers to savor an exquisite darkness where “things are barely visible yet stand out sharply.” However, it’s also true that, depending on the display used, many scenes can be too dark to make out what’s happening.
Particularly striking is the nighttime Mobile Suit battle in Messner’s city streets. In the darkness, the monoeye glows eerily, and a colossal shadow tramples the city—this sense of oppression is unlike anything experienced in Gundam works.
In earlier Gundam series, battles were usually shown from the pilot’s point of view. This time, the story focuses more on what people on the ground experience.
The sheer size of the mobile suits, viewed from below, and the terror of that single eye glowing in the darkness. The protagonists act from the same perspective as the people fleeing in panic as the mobile suits rampage through the city.
The film combines realistic lighting, detailed backgrounds, and natural character acting. All of this comes together to make Gundam feel more real than ever.
The terror of citizens caught in urban warfare
What sets this film apart is how realistically it shows the effects of urban warfare on regular people.
As mobile suits fight in the city, buildings fall, roads collapse, and people panic, with nowhere to go. The film makes this terror feel very real.
This depiction evokes the urban warfare scenes in Gundam F91. In F91, the story showed civilians being struck directly by spent shells fired from mobile suits, their lives lost in an instant. This work portrays the terror of human powerlessness when caught in the crossfire of giant-weaponry battles, with an even more refined visual expression.
Showing civilians running in fear under giant mobile suits is a big step forward for robot anime. Earlier Gundam shows included urban warfare, but this film’s realistic visuals make the impact much stronger.
It’s also interesting that Hathaway, the main character, is actually on the terrorist side. People are split on whether his assassination missions as Maftei are justified.
“Mafty is just,” “No, he’s just a terrorist,” “But the Federation government is corrupt too”—the way these voices naturally reach Hasshawe’s ears is truly masterful.
Debates about justice are a classic part of the Gundam series. This kind of complex realism fits perfectly with the show’s realistic approach to robot anime.
A Complexly Entwined Love Triangle
The core of the story revolves around the relationship between Hathaway, Gigi, and Kenneth.
Hathaway Noah is ostensibly a trainee botanical observer, but secretly operates as the leader of the anti-Federation organization Maftei, known as “Maftei Nabiyu Erin.” He carries the scars of a tragic first love experienced in Char’s Counterattack, walking a dangerous path while still wounded.
Gigi Andalusia is a mysterious young woman. Though presented as the mistress of a major insurance company executive, her unrestrained words and actions, coupled with her sharp insight, suggest the potential of a Newtype. Reina Ueda’s performance is superb, fully expressing her human, edgy charm.
#閃光のハサウェイ TVエディション📺
— 機動戦士ガンダム 閃光のハサウェイ (@gundam_hathaway) January 12, 2023
1月15日・日曜午後5時～放送開始‼️
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ギギ・アンダルシア
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1/4「ランディング・グラウンド」放送まで、あと3⃣日#閃光のハサウェイTVエディション pic.twitter.com/QaudPjmW4T
Kenneth Sleg is a captain in the Earth Federation Forces and the new commander dispatched to subdue Maftei. A playboy, he develops feelings for Gigi and actively pursues her. Junichi Suwabe’s performance brings out this character’s complex charm.
いよいよ #閃光のハサウェイ TVエディション📺
— 機動戦士ガンダム 閃光のハサウェイ (@gundam_hathaway) February 3, 2023
最終話4/4「テイク・オフ」
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放送まであと2⃣日
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2月5日・日曜午後5時～放送‼️
お見逃しなく✨#ケネス・スレッグ#閃光のハサウェイTVエディション pic.twitter.com/PxTT62k0sS
These three characters end up on the same shuttle and meet during a hijacking. This chance encounter sets the story in motion.
Hathaway hides his identity as the leader of Mahfouz, the group Kenneth is trying to stop, and starts to get close to him. Their relationship becomes a tense game of deception, akin to the dynamic between Light and L in Death Note.
The situation grows even more complex with the addition of Gigi, an unpredictable element. Realizing she knows something about Hathaway, Kenneth tries to keep her close to extract information.
Though Hathaway should be coldly executing his mission as Maftei’s leader, he cannot abandon Gigi. She resembles Quess Paraya, his first love, whom he lost long ago.
This lasting trauma clouds Hathaway’s judgment, making it easier for others to catch up to him. The psychological tension adds depth to the story.
The Pinnacle of Mobile Suit Design
The Mobile Suits appearing in this work represent the culmination of evolution, termed the “Fifth Generation.”
The Ξ (Xi) Gundam piloted by protagonist Hathaway and the Penelope operated by his rival, Lane Aim—these two units are equipped with Minovsky Craft anti-gravity systems, enabling them to fly and engage in combat independently.
Conventional Mobile Suits only “appeared to fly” by hovering via jet propulsion. However, the Q and Penelope can literally defy gravity and dance through the air.
This new technology allows for fast aerial battles, making the action scenes much more intense. In the dark, huge mobile suits move quietly through the air and take out enemies in seconds. The visuals are truly stunning.
Interestingly, mobile suit evolution stalls for a time in the subsequent Universal Century. About 20 years later, in ‘Gundam F91’, development instead moves towards miniaturization and weight reduction.
So, the mobile suits in ‘Hathaway’s Flash’ are the peak of bigger and more advanced designs. That’s one reason this film is seen as a turning point for Gundam in Universal Century.
Summary: A Gundam of the New Era, Where Idealism and Despair Collide
Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway’s Flash is a special film, finally adapted into anime after more than 30 years. It’s the first part of a trilogy, so the story is just getting started.
The film combines stunning visuals, realistic battles, and deep human drama, opening up new possibilities for the Gundam series.
The rivalry between Hathaway and Kenneth, his relationship with Gigi, the inner workings of Maftei, and the Federation’s schemes are just starting to develop. There are still many mysteries left for Parts 2 and 3.
From the opening hijacking to the psychological battles and human drama in the middle, and the final city Mobile Suit fight, every part of the film is tightly paced. The 95 minutes fly by without a dull moment.
Part 2, “Hathaway’s Flash: The Witch of Circe,” was released in January 2026. After about 4.5 years, the story finally moves forward again. With many original elements added not found in the source material, both fans of the original and first-time viewers alike can look forward to it with equal anticipation.
We highly recommend this film not just to Gundam fans, but also to anyone new to the series. The powerful images of giant Mobile Suits in the dark, the fear of war seen through civilians’ eyes, and the mix of ideals and despair in the story will leave a lasting impression.
