Operation Christmas (クリスマス作戦?) is a military operation featured in Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket.
Prelude[]
At the last ends of the One Year War, Zeon had now vacated Earth, but during one of its last operations, the elite Cyclops Team was sent to intercept a valuable parcel being transported at the Arctic. When this failed, the team was subsequently able to pinpoint the location of the transport to the neutral colony of Ribo at Side 6. In the ensuing Operation Rubicon, the team successfully infiltrated the colony and built an MS-18E Kämpfer in secret.
This led to a battle at December 19 which saw the defeat of the Kämpfer and the deaths of all members of the Cyclops Team save for Bernard Wiseman. Aware of the Cyclops Team's failure, Killing assassinated Major General Rugens, usurped his command, and prepared a nuclear attack on Side 6. Von Helsing's fleet was ordered to perform the launch at 12:00.[1]. Unbeknownst, to him, however, Wiseman believed he could still prevent the nuclear strike by continuing Operation Rubicon by himself and prepared an ambush against the Gundam "Alex".
Battle[]
Bernard Wiseman attempted to prevent the launch by destroying the RX-78NT-1 Gundam NT-1 alone. He repaired his damaged MS-06FZ Zaku II Kai in a forest park with the help of Alfred Izuruha and prepared to lure out Gundam "Alex".
At 10:55, Von Helsing's fleet was intercepted by a Federation patrol and surrendered. Bernard was unaware of the fleet's surrender and the calling off of Operation Christmas.
At 14:00, Bernard Wiseman, the last remaining member of the Cyclops Team, engaged the Gundam "Alex" in his Zaku II Kai. Bernard would successfully guess Christina Mackenzie's weariness of collateral damage as had occurred at December 19 and lured her to the forest's rugged terrain, where her unit would have less of an advantage. Once Mackenzie reached the forest, Wiseman detonated several Christmas balloons he had stolen prior to distract her as she used the Gundam "Alex"'s 90mm Gatling Guns. Through this, at the cost of his cockpit being grazed by stray fire, he was able to cut off the Gundam's right gatling gun and parts of its hand, before detonating several incendiary balloons as he tackled the Gundam down the mountain.
Though his Zaku II Kai lost its left arm during the scuffle, he had weakened the Gundam and attempted to rush at it with his heat hawk while Mackenzie did the same with her beam saber. While Wiseman successfully decapitated the Gundam, Mackenzie stabbed the Zaku through its cockpit, and hit the unit's backpack, causing the Zaku to explode and incinerate Wiseman.
Aftermath[]
Mackenzie escaped the battle, injured but alive, but, more importantly, the Gundam was too damaged for operational use, and could not be sent to Amuro Ray for the final battle at A Baoa Qu, which would end the war only about a week later. As a result, the repaired Gundam "Alex" would never see battle again and was eventually sent to Augusta Labs where its Newtype-related technology was used for the testing of Cyber Newtypes. Ultimately, the entire operation proved to be completely pointless due to its close proximation to the end of the war.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Operation Christmas appears in several game titles such as the SD Gundam series, occasionally merged with Operation Rubicon. In some of these scenarios, the players are given the opportunity to spare or rescue Bernard Wiseman.
- An alternate Operation Christmas appears in SD Gundam Battle Alliance, where a time distortion replaces the Alex with Pluma that infest the colony and Julieta Juris attempting to stop them. Players are soon ordered to reinforce Wiseman and Juris before having to defeat the rampaging EB-AX2 Graze Ein.
- Operation Chrismas is referenced by Mosk Han at Mobile Suit Gundam Pulitzer -Amuro Ray Beyond the Aurora-, when he speaks to Kikka over how he failed to send Amuro the upgrade of his unit.
- Although the One Year War would end within a week, there is still much speculation over the long-term aftermath of Operation Christmas had Amuro received the Gundam "Alex" without issue such as the ultimate fate of Char Aznable, whom Amuro fought most of A Baoa Qu evenly against, as well as Amuro's own ability to escape A Baoa Qu without the FF-X7 Core Fighter.
Appearances[]
- OVAs and ONAs
- Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket
- Episode 5, Say it Ain't So, Bernie!
- Episode 6, War in the Pocket