The battle continues to heat up on earth in third volume of Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Team. The story takes place just as the Zeon forces are struggling to protect their main supply base on earth; if it falls, the Zeon will have to abandon the planet.

At the end of the last disc, Shiro, in his Gundam, was hanging onto the seriously damaged Apsalus, piloted by Aina - a Zeon pilot Shiro first met in space. The first episode concerns the survival of the two as they crash into a high mountain range. The bitter cold would be deadly, except the two choose to work together (as they once did before). However, they both admit their feelings are stronger than simply the bond of two survivors.

The second episode begins with Shiro being accused of espionage in his assistance of Aina. At the same time, Kiki's (the young girl who has helped the 08th team in the past) village is invaded by three hungry Zeon soldiers. The final outcome is dark for all parties involved, and Shiro finally comes to the realization that there are no winners in war.

The Apsalus, an experimental Zeon weapon piloted by Aina which preempts the fateful reunion of Shiro and Aina.	In a cruel twist of fate, cheerful Kiki must come to face the bitter consequences of war.

The final episode on this disc finds the 08th assigned with the task of locating the secret Zeon base where the Apsalus is based. Aina's brother, and creator of the Apsalus, has finally lapsed into madness, destroying both Zeon and Federation troops who stand in his way.

This is by far the strongest disc of the three so far. The horrors of war finally come to the forefront. Its portrayal of the powerlessness of love before the war machines is bitter, but even more so are the deaths which never should have been. The second episode is incredibly dark. To be blunt, it is everything that Gundam Wing wasn't. Before this, the last Gundam episode released in the US that captured the real feel of the craziness of war was the last episode of War in the Pocket.

The animation still hovers at the good level - never excelling, but telling the story well. The battles are always exciting, while still exposing the limitations of the mobile suits. Overall, the entire transfer is well done: sounds are clear, colors are bright, and the lines and art are without distortion. However, the menu is still really slow. I've given up any hope of it being fixed, but I will continue to deduct points from the presentation for it.

In my review of volume two, I suggested that if the storyline tightened up into a complete campaign rather than focusing on episodes that the series would turn out to be excellent. After this disc, I would have to say that is the direction the 08th is headed. While the first two discs were fun, this one gets meaty and begins to tell a real war story with both tragedies and heroics.

Note: Before I get lots of hate mail from otaku out there, I realize that the 08th was originally released in 1995 and isn't the newest Gundam, but it is the newest in the U.S. and that is what I'm reviewing. Second, I'm not trying to bash Gundam Wing - I love it, bought all the discs. However, it is very different from the original Gundam and the tragic stories of love and war that were told.

Video Quality: A
Audio Quality: A-
Presentation: B
Content: A
Overall: A-