Mobile Suit Gundam Seed, Volume 2

My son, now 13, has been a Gundam finatic for years and it continues to grow. He has a major collection of action figures, books, and videos; the books have been a great boost in his reading desires.

The art has definitely improved from the first (the art in the first seemed as if the artist was trying to get comfortable with drawing the characters). Iwase-sensei, through the series, does a great job making the characters subtly age, and that aging can be seen here. However, the story hasn't really improved. It seems that it's condensed from the original, and that makes it hard to understand. All in all it's a pretty good volume of manga. I don't recommend it for those who're perfectionists about their manga.

Masatsugu Iwase-sensei is back! And none too soon. The Archangel, a state-of-the-art battle carrier, has managed to wend its way through perilous war zones thanks to young stud pilot Kira Yamato and his sidekick robot, the Strike Gundam. However, the never-ending battles take their toll on the young pilot Kira-who also suffers from horrific nightmares. While scavenging for desperately needed supplies deep in a graveyard of space colonies, the crew stumbles upon Lacus Clyne, the knock-out daughter of a high official of the Zaft Empire. Is this a good omen? Or not? When a return trip to the Earth-controlled district of Alaska goes terribly wrong, the Archangel winds up in an African desert attacked by new Zaft craft, one of which is piloted by Kira's best friend and most dangerous enemy, Athrun! Fasten your seat belts; you are in for a ride.