Jerid Messa

Jerid Messa (ジェリド・メサ) is a fictional character from the Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam series. A member of the Federation's counter-insurgent organization Titans, he is best known for being the archrival of the main character Kamille Bidan.

Personality & Abilities
Jerid has the typical traits of a Titan member: being ruthless, egotistical, overconfidant and an absolute disregard for the lives of civilians. Jerid has the ambition to one day lead the Titans as a leader, but wishes to do so my his own way without the help of others. However, despite his pride as an Earthnoid he would ask the help of Lila to better himself as a soldier. On a similar note, he is extremely arrogant to believe that the Titans have the power to deem what they do as right, despite that his arrogance only sparked hatred and mistrust to the public population. His rivalry with Kamille becomes bitter hatred when his comrades die one by one, and he blames Kamille's very existence for his loss. Ultimately, his arrogance and hatred brought forth his demise at the hands of his rival, and puts his ambitions to rest.

Background
Jerid Messa was born into a family of trained soldiers in U.C. 0063. After achieving high results on a military aptitude test, Jerid qualified to join the elite Federation unit, the Titans. He was sent to train at Green Noa I, where he first encountered Kamille Bidan. When Jerid made fun of Kamille's feminine name, Kamille punched him.



Later, as Jerid was training on one of the RX-178 Gundam Mk-II prototypes, he was responsible for crashing into a government building, and causing much damage. He abandoned his mobile suit, and it was later moved to a building where, after a confusing battle inside the colony, the AEUG was able to steal it.

Battle of Green Noa I
After Quattro Bajeena and Kamille Bidan escaped from "Green Noa I" with the two Mark II prototypes, they were retrieved by the AEUG flagship, Argama. In space, Titan's Commander, Bask Om launches Lt. Emma Sheen (with the last Gundam Mk-II) to the Argama with specific orders of retrieving the stolen prototypes. Nearby, Jerid waits in a Hizack and opens his orders, which are to destroy a capsule (that was released to space) if the AEUG attempts to retrieve it.

After the negotiations between the Titans and the AEUG are broken, Kamille launches from the ship with the Gundam Mk-II in a desperate attempt to rescue his mother, Hilda, revealed to be inside the capsule. When Kamille approaches, Jerid starts shooting at the capsule, believing that the capsule is a bomb that would destroy Kamille. Instead, the shots destroyed the capsule, killing Hilda.

Although Jerid later apologized to Kamille and explained what truly happened, their rivalry started once again, because Jerid did not forget Kamille's arrogant attitude in Green Noa I and because he didn't want to be disgraced by a kid. After a prolonged fight and the defection of Lt. Emma Sheen to the AEUG, Jerid is forced to retreat.

Quest for the Argama
Back in the Alexandria, Jerid meets Lila Milla Rira, an Earth Federation pilot. Titan's Commander Jamaican Danninghan decides that Jerid will lead the next attack on the AEUG. Shortly afterwards he asks Lila to teach him how to survive in space combat, holding back his previous pride for help. After he fails in his attempt to destroy the Gundam MK-II, Lila tells Jerid to feel the hostile intent of his enemy when fighting in space, since it is not the same as fighting on Earth. Lila defends Jerid from the wrath of Jamaican, stating that the crew of the Argama is composed of Newtypes. By doing this, Lila managed to earn Jerid's both respect and admiration.

In TV version, while pursuing the Argama, the "Titans" and E.F.S.F reach the Space Colony 30. Once there, Lila and the Federal Forces fought against Kamille and the AEUG. Jamaican, aware that Jerid was eager to join them and support Lila, refuses to accept any plead of help from the Federal Forces. Thus, Jerid is forced to watch the outcome of the battle from the bridge of the Alexandria; that is, Lila's death at the hands of Kamille.

In the movie version, after Lila's unit was destroyed by Kamille before atmospheric entry, Jerid could feel Lila's death, through he was not sure for that, he said he would get revenge for Lila in atmospheric entry, but he was trying to find Lila when he enter Jaburo.

Battle of Jaburo
After seeing Lila's death, Jerid swore to avenge her death by killing Kamille Bidan. He gets an opportunity when he is ordered to attack AEUG forces in satellite orbit. During this battle, he is unable to beat Kamille. Jerid is also shocked to see his good friend Kacricon Cacooler die when his ballute is destroyed by Kamille. This action causes Kacricon to meet a painful death in the Earth's atmosphere.

The battle continues when the AEUG forces landed on earth. They penetrated the defenses at the base, only to learn that a nuclear bomb is timed to explode. Jerid attacks Kamille inside the base, hoping to kill him. Again, he fails, and his Marsai is severely damaged. He is able to escape the base before it's destruction by comadeering a jeep with several Federation soldiers. He then fights his way onto an escape vessel, only surviving because a hand pulled him into the crowded ship. It belonged to another pilot from the Titans, Mouar Pharaoh.

Afterwards, Jerid is seen serving under Scirocco, where he is given the RX-110 Gabthley. During this time, he and Mouar become lovers, and the two of them launch attacks against the Argama. During a surprise attack against the Argama, Mouar is killed trying to protect him from Kamille, in his MSZ-006 Zeta Gundam. Jerid, cursing Kamille for killing people close to him, attempts to attack but gets damaged by Kamille. Mouar's spirit then gives him a Newtype vision, telling him that he is the only one that can lead the the people down the right path. After this, Jerid's renews his attack in pure rage, doing more damage to the Argama than he has ever done before his mobile suit is disabled by Kamille and Emma.

In TV version, he was then sent to the Earth base of Kiliminjaro. While being treated, he comes across Kamille, who had infiltrated the base and ran into Four Murasame. When Kamille begins to convince Four to get out of the Psycho Gundam and go with him, Jerid in his new model RX-160 Byalant charges toward them with his beam sabre drawn, but ends up killing Four when she blocks the strike with the Psycho Gundam. He follows the AEUG to Dakar and attacks the city, in hopes to shut down the communications tower, which Char was using for his address. He retreats when favor sways from the Titans and heads back into space.

In the movie version, he remain in the space after Mouar's death, and the Byalant was assigned to him afterwards.

Battle of Gryps
During the Battle of The Gate of Zedan, Jerid appears, exhibiting superb battle skills. When Axis is slammed into the Gate of Zedan, Jerid launches to protect the fleeing Titans in the Byalant. In the ensuing battle, Jerid shoots down Lieutenant Apolly Bay, who was protecting Fa Yuiry. An interesting note, is that during Jerid's charge towards the Gwadon, Haman Karn senses a psychic pressure from Jerid, which suggests that Jerid has begun to unlock his Newtype potential (In TV edition, he was just being shot and retreat in movies). This attest for his ability to later fight in a Baund Doc, a machine created especially for Newtypes. Jerid is seen using the Baund Doc on a raid against the Radish at the Battle of Gryps. He duels Kamille. Jerid has the misfortune of challenging Kamille as he goes to rescue Emma, which results in Kamille arriving seconds too late. Instead, the AEUG battleship Radish rescues Emma at the price of its destruction at the hands of Titan pilot Yazan Gable. Jerid then attempts to continue the duel, and Kamille quickly dispatches Jerid, sending him flying into the remains of the exploding Radish. With his last breath, Jerid curses Kamille's existence, as a barrier to his ascension in the ranks of the Titans.

Trivia

 * In SD G Generation DS, if you finish the entire Rival Route, including the Encore Sessions, Jerid Messa will lose his Newtype Ability. This could be an overlooked mistake in the game before publishing.