Amuro Ray

Amuro Ray (アムロ・レイ) is the main protagonist of Mobile Suit Gundam and a major character in its sequels, Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam and Char's Counterattack. He is the benchmark of all Gundam pilots that came after him, being most famously known for piloting the powerful RX-78-2 Gundam during the Universal Century's One Year War.

Personality & Character
Amuro's habits indicate him being a 'nerd' in some ways. Throughout the war, Amuro's mental stress and his growing Newtype powers distance him further away from the crew members of the White Base. Through all of Amuro's development, he then begins to lose many people he had cherished, most importantly Lalah Sune, the only person he could telepathically communicate with. At the end of the war, Amuro realizes that the crew of the White Base is the family he belongs to.

In Zeta Gundam, Amuro has become more of a reclusive person due to being isolated after the OYW. Through his guilt over accidentally killing Lalah, Amuro also has a fear of going into outer space, as told by Mirai Noa. However, Fraw Bow manages to re-ignite his fighting spirit to help the crew of the Argama during their time on Earth. In Char's Counterattack, Amuro has grown into much more of a leader, willing to sacrifice himself for a brighter and more hopeful future.

Skills & Abilities
It is seen in the original series that Amuro has a certain knack for mechanics, including building a talking ball shaped robot named Haro, which would become a Gundam mascot. Initially, when Amuro pilots the Gundam, he is barely able to fend off aces such as his main rival Char Aznable and Ramba Ral, mostly relying on the sheer incredible power of the Gundam. However, over time, Amuro manages to hone his skills to the point where a mobile suit he pilots needed a field upgrade and tuned to even able to match up to Amuro's immense piloting skill.

On board the first mobile suit he piloted, the RX-78-2 Gundam, he is able to use and fight with it by just looking in the piloting manual for the first time, and destroyed two Zakus at the same time. Amuro is adept at any combat situation he is in, whether in close-combat, middle-range, or even long range encounters at multiple enemies, he is able to fight them in his way without any prior training that makes him earn the title "White Devil". Also, in UC 87(Timeline in Zeta), his skill never fades, in fact, leading the Karaba (AEUG's earth-bound ally) at successful missions. At UC 93, Amuro is at the peak of his piloting skill, using an inferior mobile suit, the RGZ-91 Re-GZ, and critically damaging Gyunei Guss' MSN-03 Jagd Doga, which was more advanced that time, and is noted that the Re-GZ is not suited for Amuro's expectations until Anaheim Electronics soon delivers to him the RX-93 ν Gundam, which is designed by Amuro himself for the use of his Newtype powers, Thus, utilizing his full piloting potential.

Escaping from Side 7
On what seemed an ordinary day in September UC 0079, Amuro was fixing some electronics as he usually did, when Fraw Bow came over and got him to evacuate to the shelter. However, while they were in the shelter, there was a series of explosions. Two Zeon soldiers, Denim and Gene, were on a reconnaissance mission to find what Project V's mobile suits were. But Gene disobeyed orders and started to attack Side 7.

Amuro went outside of the shelter to find his father. He asks two passing Federation officers where his father is before they die from missiles. The manual of the RX-78-2 Gundam landed next to him. Quickly skimming through the Gundam's flight manual, Amuro decided to defend the colony by activating the Mobile Suit. He managed to destroy Gene's MS-06 Zaku II with the Gundam's beam saber. Unfortunately, the resulting explosion created a hull breach in the colony that sucked his father into deep space. Amuro then disabled Denim's Zaku by running the beam saber through the cockpit to avoid an explosion.

Shortly after, he is commanded by (then) Ensign Bright Noa. Because Captain Paolo Cassius was injured during the battle with the two Zakus, Amuro was the only pilot available to provide cover for the White Base's escape from the colony. The Musai-class light cruiser that kept its distance from the colony attempted destroy the White Base by firing several missiles at the it, but Amuro managed to shoot them down. After escaping Side 7, the White Base crew went to Luna II, but were detained by Admiral Wakkein for having civilians controling the V Project mobile suits. Eventually the White Base crew was freed thank to the dying words of Paolo Cassius, but this lead Amuro into his third encounter with Char Aznable (aka The Red Comet), piloting a MS-06S Zaku II Commander Type A seasoned veteran, Char proved more than a match for Amuro while the legendary ace was unable to shoot down the Gundam due to its technology. After the encounter with Char, the White Base attepted to re-enter the atmosphere and head for the Federation HQ in Jaburo, South America. However, Char attacked the ship during reentry and Amuro was once again called to defend the ship with the Gundam. Though he successfully warded off Char, the Gundam was being pulled into Earth's atmosphere and was unable to return to White Base. Amuro then discovered that the Gundam had a reentry system so it could survive the atmosphere. Landing on Earth safely, Amuro became the first mobile suit pilot to survive reentry.

North America
Both the White Base and the Gundam were severely outnumbered. Amuro by this time was exhausted to the point of collapse. As he exited out of the Gundam to rest, Zeon forces led by Captain Garma Zabi, son of Degwin Sodo Zabi, gathered a force to capture or destroy the White Base and the Gundam. Garma attacked the White Base with a numerical superiority of HT-01B Magella Attack Tanks, Dopps, and several Zakus. He personally went into the battle with his own personal customized Dopp. Amuro was soon called back to duty, but Amuro refused to fight, believing that he earned a break with what happened from the time of Side 7 to the current battle. Bright attempted to persuade Amuro to launch in the Gundam immediately, but his words fell on deaf ears. When words ran out, Bright resorted to slapping Amuro for his cowardice. As the battle increased in intensity, Bright gave up on persuading Amuro. Bright left with saying "I would have thought you would want to settle your score with Char but, I underestimated you." Frau Bow was witnessing Amuro's cowardice and told Amuro to give her the flight manual. When this happened, Amuro came back to his senses and went back into the fight. The Gundam was launched in a rapid response to the battle.

During the battle, Amuro managed to destroy numerous Magella Attack Tanks as well as Dopps. It was also during this battle that Amuro had the Gundam jump up into the air to engage the Dopps, making him the first mobile suit pilot to engage in aerial combat. Garma himself attempted to take down the Gundam during this battle Char launched from a Komusai capsule from the Musai and engaged Amuro in aerial combat in his Zaku. Garma called for an immediate retreat to review their situation. The White Base was able to avert destruction and for the moment was safe.

Medea Supply Corps
Sometime after the battle, a convoy of Medea supply transports arrived to resupply the White Base and take on as many passengers that were refugees from Side 7. Lieutenent Matilda Ajan, the commanding officer, spoke of the troubles Jaburo was having at the moment and the need for good officers were needed if they were to win the war. It was also at this point that Amuro became enamored with Lt. Matilda. After the resupply she advised Bright to head west, but for reasons unknown, he ordered the White Base to head for New York City.

New York City
The White Base crew knew that if they could break through the city, they would be able to escape Zeon territory. This would turn out to be their most difficult battle yet, as they were enroute to New York. Meanwhile, Char attends a party which Garma organized as he was engaged to Icelina Eschonbach, the daughter of the former mayor of New York City; an engagement her father disliked since he believed the Zeon were their enemies.

It was during the party that Char and Garma were alerted of the White Base's position and responded on a moments notice. As the White Base was entering the city, Amuro believed the situation to be too dangerous and asked permission from Bright to have the Gundam be used as a decoy. This plan was to draw off Zeon forces as the White Base makes their escape. However, Bright dissaproved of this idea because he felt it was too risky. However, the White Base finds a sports dome that they were able to hide in and decide not to launch any mobile suits.

Garma and Char carpet bombed the area to draw out the White Base, but to no avail. Char then volunteers to personally search for the White Base along with two other pilots. As the Zakus launch, the White Base launches the Gundam as a decoy to lure the mobile suits away from the ship and subsequently, the main fleet. Soon afterwards, Char engages the Gundam in combat, noting that the pilot is getting better.

This did not prevent Char from discovering White Base's position. However, Char, seeking vengance on the Zabi family, instead of telling Garma that the White Base is in the sports dome, tells Garma that it is in front of his forces. Garma's fleet is quickly obliterated and Char admitted to Garma his betrayal. Garma then attempts to ram the Gaw into the White Base, but is unsuccessful. The White Base escapes from Zeon territory afterwards.

Family Reunion
The White Base lands on a beach and decide to take a short leave. While repairing various damages on the ship, Amuro takes a Core Fighter to find his mother who stayed on Earth while him and his father migrated to Side 7, years ago.

As he enters his old home, he only finds drunk Federation soldiers lying in the living room. The soldiers tell him the house had been empty for some time. The only thing left is a doll that Amuro once had. As Amuro remember his past, he spots Federation soldiers harassing an elderly woman. As Amuro attempts to stop the soldiers from harassing her, Amuro is beaten down. The old lady recognized Amuro and told the soldiers to stop. Amuro told her how he found the house empty and the old lady tells him that his mother had been working as an assistant in a field medical hospital. Amuro heads there quickly in his Core Fighter. As he lands, the civilians ask him why he is here (seeing his uniform) and tell him that there is a Zeon base on top of a mountain nearby.

His mother, Kamaria Ray, arrived to see what the commotion was about and saw her son for the first time in years. Both were relieved to find each other alive. Amuro and his mother shared stories as well as Amuro telling of how his father went missing after the incident in Side 7. Suddenly, two Zeon soldiers burst in the room. Amuro hid under a blanket so he would not get caught. The Zeon soldiers attempted to persuade the people to give them information on the Core Fighter that landed through bribery but did not succeed. As they were about to leave, Amuro's communicator went off as the White Base was attempting to contact him. As the soldiers went over to the bed, Amuro's mother told them that he was very sick. As the soldier got closer, Amuro shot him through the blanket. Amuro fired his gun at the escaping man until his bullets ran out. The civilians were upset since Zeon forces would believe the field hospital was nothing more than a Federation hide out.

Amuro then reported to the White Base which reported Zeon forces in the area and ordered him to return. Amuro's mother did not understand why he shot the man. Amuro harshly tells his mother that's what war is, though his mother believes that's no excuse for his actions. As Amuro was about to take off in his Core Fighter, his mother expressed her complete shame of being his mother. Amuro discovers the airfield belonging to the Zeon base and begins attacking it immediately. Although his mother's words begin to affect him, Amuro shrugs it off and continues his attack on the airfield. Unfortunetly, Lt. Matilda, who was in the area, had plans to raid the air base of it's supplies. Lt. Matilda saw what Amuro was doing and ordered him to stop. Almost all the supplies were destroyed during Amuro's attack in his Core Fighter, so Amuro & Matilda head to the White Base. During this time Bright recieves a promotion to Lieutenent Junior Grade.

Matilda also speaks to him about Operation Odessa, the planned Federation counter-offensive in Europe and the term "newtype" which the Zeon forces were looking into. Matilda told Bright that "Newtypes" were supposebly the next step of human evolution; a theory that was part of the philosophy of Zeon Zum Deikun, the former leader of the Republic of Zeon. Before take off, Amuro visits his mother again. With Bright standing next to him, Amuro tells his mother that he has obligations and responsibilities now and cannot abandon the White Base. His mother reluctantly accepts this and Amuro salutes her. Bright then salutes her as well and promises Amuro's mother that he will look after Amuro like a brother. As the White Base takes off, Amuro's mother collapses and wonders what happened to the boy she once raised.

First Encounter with Ramba Ral
The White Base then headed toward the European continent. During this time Amuro begins to exhibit signs of combat fatigue. As Fraw Bow and Haro go into Amuro's quarters to give him lunch, Haro observes that Amuro is not feeling well, but he tells Haro he's fine. Amuro takes a break, but his combat fatigue remains. Meanwhile a Zanzibar-class mobile cruiser follows the White Base and begins attacking it. The person in the Zanzibar is Lieutenent Ramba Ral. Ramba Ral was ordered by Vice-Admiral Dozle Zabi, commander of the Space Attack Fleet stationed in Solomon Asteroid Base. His orders were to destroy the Gundam and the White Base which came following the death of Garma Zabi. Ramba soon chases the White Base through a thunder storm but loses the White Base in his chase.

The White Base was soon able to land on a nearby island, however they were soon found by a recon unit launched by Ramba Ral. As they were caught, Bright ordered Amuro to launch immediately, but Amuro's combat fatigue worsened. Ryu had to personally come get him and attempt to force him to come back to reality. Ryu was unsuccessful in the attempt and hoped Amuro would come to as he strapped him in the Gundam cockpit. As the Gundam, Guntank and Guncannon launched, they faced three adversaries: Cozun and Acos in regular Zaku IIs, but one unfamliar, MS-07 Gouf prototype which was piloted by Ramba Ral. As Ramba Ral attacked Amuro more aggressively, Amuro committed himself fully to the battle but Ral pushed Amuro back and retreated. His wife, Crowley Hamon, aboard the Zanzibar cruiser releases blinders to cover their escape and Amuro is left wondering if he let them escape or they let him live.

Gihren's Speech
Against his father's wishes, Gihren erects a state funeral to commemorate Garma. As the speech progresses, Amuro is amazed by Gihren's words; Bright however is disgusted by it as he believes that the Zabis are nothing more than dictators.

Using Guncannon
During the White Base's stay on the Asian continent, communications officer Sayla Mass deployed in the in the midst of battle between them and Ramba Ral with hopes of contacting Zeon forces for information on her brother, who may have joined the Zeon. Amuro decides to sortie in Guncannon to save both Sayla and the Gundam. Amuro manages to destroy Acos's Zaku, disable Cozun's Zaku, and force Ral to retreat.

Leaving White Base
Shortly afterwards the White Base ran into one of M'Quve's mines. Bright ordered Amuro to deploy in the Gundam but Amuro went against orders and deployed in the Guntank with Hayato. He managed to destroy the base but was forced to retreat when Ral arrived. As a result Bright felt that Amuro's piloting of the Gundam has made him both more self-centered and overconfident in his abilities. He shares this information with navigator Mirai Yashima in private. However, Amuro, sleeping in the control room, overhears their conversation and impulsively launches with the Gundam into the night.

Battle with M'Quve
Amuro, having taken Gundam from White Base, stumbled upon a small mining base which he believed to be the mine which was the target of Operation Odessa. After taking out some buildings and gun turrets, he is attacked by a hovering mobile armor, the MAX-03 Adzam piloted by Kycilia Zabi and her right hand man M'Quve. The two gain the upper hand on Gundam when they deploy the Adzam's leaders, but Amuro manages to shake off the dust in time and slice off the top of the mobile armor. M'Quve immediately destroys the base under pressure from Kycilia due to it being a major source of solium and her refusal for the Federation to get their hands on it. Amuro later found out that this was not the target of Operation Odessa.

Confrontation in Sodom
Burying Gundam in the heavy sand dunes, Amuro travels into a small town, Sodom for food. At the same time, the crew of the White Base looks in disgust at the base Amuro recently destroyed. Both Ryu and Bright agree that Amuro's careless actions have put the Zeon forces on alert. Fraw in frustration, departs White Base in a buggy to search for Amuro.

While in Sodom, Amuro eats alone in the restaurant until a group of Zeon forces, led by Ramba Ral and Hamon, enter the bar. While Hamon flirts with Amuro, one of the Zeon soldiers grabs Fraw, who immediately says Amuro's name. Ramba orders his men to let Amuro and Fraw leave the bar, but not after telling Amuro, "You've got the eyes of a soldier." and telling him that they will fight as enemies on the battlefield. While Amuro rests in the sand, he sees the Gouf and a Zaku fly overhead. Realizing that the Zeons followed Fraw back to White Base, Amuro sorties in the Gundam to save his comrades. He is able to resolve the situation but Bright imprisons him for going AWOL. Nonetheless he is released and is allowed to continue piloting the Gundam.

Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam
Amuro was placed under house arrest shortly after the war due to the government's mistrust of Newtypes. While he lived in a luxurious mansion (possibly paid for by either royalties from patenting his Haro design as popular toys, or abundant war pensions for his military service) and was officially free to come and go as he pleased, Amuro's house servants were actually government agents assigned to keep track of his movements. Amuro worked as a trainer/adviser in the Cheyenne Mobile Suit Academy up until the time of the Gryps Conflict. He suffered from chronic combat fatigue, as commented by Emma Sheen and Beltorchika Irma, likely from his traumatic experience during the One Year War and the sense of guilt over killing Lalah Sune.

During the Gryps Conflict, a pregnant Fraw Bow, with her three adopted children, came to visit Amuro. They managed to re-ignite Amuro's fighting spirit and helped him escape from his government handlers. After joining the Karaba (AEUG's earth-bound ally), Amuro became a key figure within the group, leading several crucial missions, including the attack on the Titan's base in Mount Kilimanjaro and the seizing of Federation's Congress Building in Dakar. After the operation in Dakar, and the AEUG's return to space, Karaba receives their new shipment of mass produced Zeta Gundams, the MSZ-006A1 Zeta Plus A1's to enhance their fighting strength. Amuro was given a Zeta Plus in his custom colors and was made commander of the 18th Tactical Fighter Aggressor Squadron (18TFAS) as part of the Karaba Air Force, and would be of great use in fighting both the remaining Titans on Earth, and the newly emrged Neo-Zeon.

Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ & Gundam Evolve
With the defeat of the Titans and subsequent end of the Gryps Conflict, both the AEUG and Karaba turned thier attention towards the new threat that appeared during the war, Neo Zeon and its leader Haman Karn. As the AEUG had been greatly weakend in the previous battle, Karaba, whose strenght remained mostly intact, sent a good amount of thier pilots to into Space to back up the AEUG.

In Gundam ZZ Hayato Kobayashi reveals that Amuro was among those who were sent to Space fight the Neo-Zeon (episode 35), though Amuro himself never appears in the series. In Gundam Evolve, it is revealed that after his transfer Amuro was made part of a special team of pilots that were to pilot three new Zeta Gundam units, with Amuro as the team leader. So to hide his identity from the enemy, thereby taking them by surprise, Amuro was given the code name White Unicorn and was assigned the MSZ-006-3A Zeta Gundam 3A Type to pilot. He and his team, consisting of Red Snake (Yurii Ajissah) and Grey Wolf (Shin Matsunaga), would be critical in repeling the Neo-Zeon forces throughout the First Neo Zeon War (though they did not participate in the final battle).

Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack
After the First Neo-Zeon War, Amuro joins the Earth Federation's Londo Bell group led by Bright Noa, and served as the combat squad commander. During the Second Neo-Zeon War, Amuro is assigned to the battleship Ra Cailum, Londo Bell's flagship, as the leader of the ship's mobile suit squads. Amuro initially pilots the RGZ-91 Re-GZ, but Anaheim Electronics soon delivers to him the RX-93 ν Gundam, a highly advanced mobile suit largely designed by Amuro himself. It is widely believed that his relatively low status in the Earth Federation is a sign of the government's continued mistrust in Newtypes.

At the end of the Second Neo-Zeon War, after defeating Char's MSN-04 Sazabi in the duel and capturing Char's escape pod, Amuro attempted to singlehandedly stop the asteroid Axis from colliding with the Earth by pushing the asteroid with his ν Gundam. His action inspired other mobile suit pilots to join in, even Neo-Zeon soldiers. Although he eventually succeeded, the act overloaded Nu Gundam's psychoframe construct. Both he and Char disappeared in a magnificent aurora, thus ending his long-time legacy of combat since the One Year War and concluding the most famous Mobile Suit Gundam rivalry at last.

Fate
Amuro's fate differs between the novelization of Mobile Suit Gundam and official timeline. In the novels, Amuro is killed by Char's 300th Autonomous Newtype Corp before the Battle of A Baoa Qu even ends. The official timeline mark Amuro's death 13 years later in the Second Neo Zeon War, which is reflected in the original novels Hi-Streamer and Beltorchika's Children. However, in the animation and in the related games, both Char and Amuro are listed as MIA.

Lalah Sune
Amuro first met the artificial Newtype girl on the lakeside of Side 6, and immediately developed a bonding. He later sensed Lalah Sune's Newtype ability when fighting Char's Gelgoog in Side 5's Texas Colony, and came back to White Base in an abnormally different mood. Their encounter ended tragically when Amuro accidentally killed Lalah when she flew in and blocked Amuro's critical strike towards Char with her Elmeth mobile armor.

Amuro and Lalah's relationship is an ambiguous one. Being an emerging Newtype, Amuro often felt lonely and struggled to achieve real understanding from his fellow crews. Lalah, also a Newtype, was the first person Amuro could truly relate himself to. As a result, Amuro hated Char deeply for sending Lalah into war. He often reminisced over Lalah's death, feeling guilty to the point he refused to return to space in the fear of seeing Lalah's ghost. It is said by other White Base members her death affected him greatly, and Lalah is considered by many to be Amuro's first great love. After he finally got over his guilt, they on occasions had spiritual conversations, which left a personality influence and disrupted Amuro's relationships with other female admirers such as Beltorchika Irma, Chan Agi and Quess Paraya. Amuro apparently is the only individual who has such a profound bonding to Lalah, as Char is never shown to have such level of spiritual connection in the TV series or the movie.

Sayla Mass
Though not explicitly stated in the series, it is implied that Amuro develops a close relationship with fellow crew member Sayla Mass. Both have been thrust into the One Year War and both come to learn that they are Newtypes. At the end of the series, Amuro and Sayla discover that they have the ability to communicate telepathically to each other. When Amuro and Char engage in vengeful combat at A Baoa Qu, Sayla openly shouts for them not to continue fighting, worried that either or both of them will be killed.

The novelization of Mobile Suit Gundam is even more obvious about a romance between Amuro and Sayla. Some time after they are both assigned to White Base, Amuro asks Sayla out to dinner. The two of them eat and chat, and discuss what it's like to be Newtypes. Later, Sayla visits Amuro in his quarters after-hours and the two of them have sex, thus starting a very intense relationship between them. When Amuro is killed by Char's mobile suit forces at the end of the story, Amuro's mind takes one last moment to reach out to Sayla's and expresses his love for her, along with his regret at not being able to spend his life with her. Sayla returns the affection and later tells her brother that he killed the man she loved. At the end of the war, Sayla communicates to Amuro's consciousness, and he tells her that he is with her.