< Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny

Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny/Characters


A summary page for the various characters in Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny. Many are also characters from Mobile Suit Gundam SEED. Note that all spoilers concerning the previous show are left unmarked here.

NOTE: This series is particularly prone to Alternative Character Interpretation; please be conscious of such and remember that your take on a given character is not the only possible way to look at them. Do not remove tropes highlighting "opposing" intepretations unless they are flat-out factually incorrect.

Crew of the Minerva

Shinn Asuka

Voice Actors: Kenichi Suzumura (Japanese), Matthew Erickson (English)

"Do you people want another war?"

The show's (initial) protagonist. His family was killed attempting to flee when the Earth Alliance invaded Orb during the First Bloody Valentine War; he became a refugee and ended up in the PLANTs. He blames Orb (and the Athha family in particular) for their deaths, and carries a lot of hatred for both. He joined ZAFT and became a Redcoat alongside Rey Za Burrel and Lunamaria Hawke as the pilot of the Impulse, Minerva's flagship Gundam.

Shinn has a problem with authority figures in general; he tends to lash out at his immediate superiors and resents being given orders. Despite this, he relies heavily on his peers for support; Rey acts as his moral compass, while Lunamaria provides him with much-needed emotional support.

Pilots the ZGMF-X56S Impulse, a Combining Mecha with three Silhouette Packs which specialize in one combat aspect, and then the ZGMF-X42S Destiny, an all-around Gundam.

  • Anti-Hero: Type III at first, gradually shifting to Type IV. He's not a bad kid, he just has a lot of issues.
  • Anti-Villain: One of the best examples in the Gundam franchise. No one does all the wrong things for all the right reasons like he does. Starts as a Type IV then moves up to Type III.
  • Badass
  • Bash Brothers: With Rey, after acquiring the Destiny and the Legend, respectively; Shinn fights head-on, while Rey provides long-range support.
  • The Berserker: Shinn's anger is his driving motivation. Throw in a love of close-combat, a huge ego, and little consideration for his own safety, plus access to SEED Mode and you have a recipe for some serious face-wrecking.
  • BFS: Shinn is fond of them, on both the Impulse and the Destiny.
  • Bigger Stick: The Destiny is superior to any mech the Earth Forces have, and allows Shinn to run rampant for a while. It thus comes as a rather nasty shock to him when the equally powerful Strike Freedom and Infinite Justice arrive on the battlefield.
  • Black and White Insanity: He's not insane per se, but his obsessive belief in Black and White Morality is certainly unhealthy, and is portrayed that way.
  • Black and White Morality: Shinn's biggest problem is his inability to see anything in shades of grey. He and his friends are right, everyone else is wrong, and away we go.
  • Break the Haughty: Compare his attitude after disobeying orders to return Stella to Neo to that after her death an episode later. And there's his reactions once Kira and Athrun make their comeback.
  • The Brute: Shinn really wouldn't know what "subtle" means even if it slapped him in the face. He's far from stupid, but favors brute force over anything else, and only resorts to tactics when he absolutely has to, making him this to the Chairman, post-perspective flip.
  • Byronic Hero
  • Character Development: Gets the most of any character in the series, all of it negative. He starts out as a relatively sympathetic Jerk with a Heart of Gold with anger and depression issues. But as the series progresses his personality conflict with Athrun, war-trauma, stress from his relationship with Stella, and inability to see beyond moral absolutes slowly eat away at his sanity. He becomes increasingly convinced of his own self-righteousness, even as he grows more unstable by the minute, and has to rely on Rey to justify his actions and Lunamaria to keep him from being completely consumed by rage. Stella's death and Athrun's defection finally break him, leaving him more susceptible to Rey and Durandal's manipulations than ever. When he loses his Sympathetic POV, he is eventually shown the way the Archangel crew sees him: an Anti-Villain with lots of issues.
  • Combining Mecha: His Impulse is composed of three parts—Core Splendor, Chest Flyer and Leg Flyer, as well as the Silhouette Packs that change its combat capability.
  • Corporal Punishment: Shinn gets punched by Athrun twice—after disobeying orders, and after apparently killing Kira. Bragging about killing someone's best friend to their face is neither intelligent nor kind, Shinn.
  • Dead Little Sister: Most of his character can be traced back to his family's -- and in particular his little sister Mayu's -- death.
  • Decoy Protagonist: We follow Shinn for the first half of the series, learning to sympathise with him and his point of view. Than Durandal is outed as the villain, the POV shifts, and Kira and Athrun become the protagonists.
  • Emo Teen: He's often accused of this by the fanbase and he certainly is very angsty. Then again, he has reasons for it and no one around him is helping him get over it.
  • Expy: Shinn owes a lot to Kamille Bidan of Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam, and more or less shows what the latter might have become without proper guidance.
  • Foil: Shinn is what Athrun would've become had he chosen loyalty over conscience. There's also some parallels to how Kira could have become if he'd chosen emotion over reason or allowed himself to obsess over the past.
  • Freudian Trio: One of the only consistent group dynamics in the series; Shinn is the Id, Luna the Ego, and Rey the Superego.
  • Genius Bruiser
  • Good-Looking Privates: In a Troubled but Cute sort of way.
  • Heel Face Turn: Whatever one thinks of his motivations or whether he was right or not, he ends up on Kira, Athrun, and Lacus's side at the end of Final Plus, after Kira, whom he met earlier at the very same place -- a memorial to the victims of the OMNI invasion that killed his family -- shook his hands and said that he's willing to forgive him and even invites him to fight alongside him.
  • Heroic Wannabe: He's a good kid and he means well, but he's far too screwed up to ever be The Hero.
  • Hero with an F In Good: God knows he tries, but he just can't seem to get anything right. He seems to realize this, as well, which only adds to his frustration.
  • Hot-Blooded
  • Hypocrite: He's outraged by what the Earth Forces have done to Stella, and is enraged when Kira—who had no other options available—cuts her down in the middle of a fight, going so far as to try and get revenge on him for it. He himself does the exact same thing to Auel and Sting (who he is fully aware are Extended) without batting an eye.
    • He also got his start with his family dying in a war. What does he do? Fight in wars. Especially bad once his side invades the country that his family died in essentially making a cycle of pain.
  • I Let Gwen Stacy Die: Mayu was already this; then Stella bites the dust as well.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Approaches being a full-fledged Jerkass as the series progresses, especially after Stella's death.
  • Lightning Bruiser: The Destiny—it has a BFS and a BFG, as well as "Voiture Lumiere" system, which allows it to grow wings of light and create disorienting aftereffects with its high-speed movement.
  • Mecha Expansion Pack: The Impulse's Silhouette Packs—Force (flight), Sword (melee) and Blast (long-range).
  • Mid-Season Upgrade: The Destiny.
  • Military Maverick: Displays no respect for the chain of command, and frequently disobeys orders, yet is allowed to get away with it due to his skill.
  • Mood Swinger: Like you would not believe. He shifts from almost catatonically depressed to berserker rage to cheerful and back at a frightening rate. Gets worse as he suffers his Sanity Slippage.
  • Moral Myopia: Shinn has a lot of trouble understanding or sympathising with the actions of anyone outside his small group of friends. When a ZAFT pilot is killed, it's the actions of an EA monster. When an EA pilot is killed, even if it's just some poor bastard doing his job, it's heroism. This is especially obvious with regards to the Extended—it isn't okay for Kira to kill Stella, who Shinn was in love with, but his own take downs of Auel and Sting (whom he very clearly recognises) were entirely necessary.
  • Multiform Balance: The Impulse's Silhouette Packs. Force has good mobility but its offense isn't particularly impressive, Sword has little long-range firepower but carries a BFS that dominates in melee, and Blast trades speed for power.
  • One-Man Army: Once he gets the Destiny.
  • Parental Abandonment: His mom, dad, and sister were all killed in the previous war.
  • Reality Is Unrealistic: Shinn keeps Mayu's cell phone, occasionally listening to her "leave a message after the beep" recording. It's really not that uncommon for survivors of tragedies to hold onto keepsakes, but try telling that to some of the fandom.
  • Red Eyes, Take Warning
  • Replacement Goldfish: Some see his relationship with Stella as romantic. Others believe that she's a substitute for his deceased sister, Mayu.
  • Rescue Romance: If you interpret his relationship with Stella as a romantic one. He not only saves her from drowning during their first meeting, he later prevents her from dying on the Minerva by returning her to Neo.
  • Revenge: He makes it very clear when he goes after the Freedom that he sees it as a way of paying Kira back for Stella. One could argue that revenge on the EA was what motivated him to sign on with ZAFT in the first place.
  • Rummage Sale Reject: Off duty, Shinn more or less dresses like a homeless guy, mixing and matching scarves, sleeveless shirts, and you name it. Likely justified by his standoffish personality and living as an orphan on a military salary.
  • Sanity Slippage: His mental health takes a dramatic turn for the worse over the course of the series. It's not until the epilogue that he even starts to recover.
  • Screaming Warrior: Usually while hacking things to bits with his BFS.
  • Second Love: Lunamaria, after they each lose their respective first choices.
  • Skilled but Naive: It would be hard to find anyone in this show who's more Badass than Shinn. It would also be hard to find anyone who's more gullible or easy to manipulate.
  • Star-Crossed Lovers: A possible interpretation of his relationship with Stella. It certainly ends tragically enough.
  • Super Mode: Like Kira, Athrun, and Cagali, Shinn has access to SEED mode, entering it in almost every battle he participates in. Unlike Athrun and Kira's, which seems to be activated at will, his is is entirely rage driven.
  • Survivor Guilt: Shinn's clearly suffering from a bad case of this in regards to his family; the situation with Stella only makes it worse.
  • Sympathetic POV: Though he starts the series as the viewpoint character, he eventually loses it—first to Athrun, and then to Kira.
  • Sympathy for the Devil: One of the few people to express any sympathy for the Extended. Not that this stops him from cutting down two of them without a second thought...
  • There Are No Therapists: Kira and Athrun's lives would have been a lot easier had someone taken the terminally depressed kid who just watched his entire family die to see a shrink. Or at least anger-management. Then again, Durandal needs him to be that screwed up for his plans to work.
  • Tragic Keepsake: Mayu's cellphone.
  • Unstoppable Rage: His best weapon in a fight. He increasingly slips into bouts of this as his experiences in the war slowly gnaw into his sanity.
  • Unwitting Pawn: Shinn has no idea of the extent with which Rey and Durandal are pulling his strings and encouraging his madness, and he trusts the two of them to the very end.
  • Used to Be a Sweet Kid: The enraged berserker and the kid we see playing with his sister in the flashbacks don't really have a lot in common.
  • With Us or Against Us: Starts expressing this kind of attitude as the war progresses.
  • Would Hit a Girl: Shinn makes a pretty determined effort to kill Cagali when she confronts him in the Akatsuki. He also tries to go through Luna when she gets in the way during his final confrontation with Athrun.

Lunamaria "Luna" Hawke

Voice Actors: Maaya Sakamoto (Japanese), Maryke Hendrikse (English)

One of the Minerva trio of ZAFT Redcoats. Relatively little is known about her backstory, compared to Shinn and Rey. She's cheerful and outgoing, which balances out Shinn's frequently-wrathful disposition and Rey's nigh-disturbing calmness. Her sister, Meyrin, is one of the Minerva's Bridge Bunnies. After Athrun joins the Minerva, she develops a slight crush on him, but it goes away after he deserts the crew and she ends up in a relationship with Shinn instead.

She is the pilot of a red ZGMF-1000 ZAKU Warrior and later inherits the Impulse after her ZAKU gets trashed and Shinn upgrades to the Destiny.

  • Ace Custom: Her ZAKU Warrior is a standard Mook unit, except painted red.
  • Action Girl: While not as over-the-top badass as the other main characters, Luna holds her own against Extendeds and Gundams, despite piloting a ZAKU for most of the series.
    • Faux Action Girl: On the other hand, some consider her this because, while competent, she never really does anything particularly impressive, like conclusively defeating another main character. See also the Never Live It Down entry, on the YMMV subpage.
  • BFG: On her ZAKU Gunner.
  • BFS: On the Impulse. She actually seems better with it than she was with her ZAKU's BFG.
  • Celeb Crush: On Athrun. She seems a tad dissapointed when she meets the real him.
  • The Chick: To Shinn's The Hero/The Big Guy and Rey's The Lancer/The Smart Guy.
  • Custom Uniform of Sexy: Her uniform consists of a standard ZAFT redcoat on top...
    • Zettai Ryouiki: ...and a pink miniskirt with thigh-high socks on bottom.
  • Freudian Trio: One of the only consistent group dynamics in the series; Shinn is the Id, Luna the Ego, and Rey the Superego. She seems to have trouble mediating between the other two though.
  • Genki Girl: At first, she's cheerful and energetic, and fawns shamelessly over Athrun. Later on... less so.
  • Good-Looking Privates
  • Idiot Hair
  • Lady in Red
  • Mid-Season Upgrade: The Impulse may be an older Gundam, but it's a huge cut above her Zaku.
  • Overshadowed by Awesome: Luna's a perfectly competent pilot, capable of holding her own with Stella's Gaia using only a ZAKU Warrior. Unfortunately for her, she's on the same team as Shinn and Rey, has yet to register a major kill, and ends up going up against Neo and then Athrun in the finale.
  • Plot Induced Stupidity: Given her spying mission on Athrun, she's within a hairsbreadth of realizing the truth of their situation. She proceeds to do nothing with this information for the rest of the series (though it seems to color her attitude somewhat).
  • Second Love: Shinn, after they each lose their respective first choices.
  • Shorttank: While undoubtedly attractive, Luna isn't nearly as feminine as other female cast members.
  • Token Good Teammate: Post-perspective flip. It's not like any of her teammates are truly evil, but Luna's the only one who manages to keep her sense of perspective and avoid going totally over the line.
  • Tomboy and Girly Girl: The tomboy to Meyrin's girly girl.

Rey Za Burrel

Voice Actors: Toshihiko Seki (Japanese), Kirby Morrow (English)

"I am Rau Le Creuset!"

The third of the Minerva's pilot trio. He is calm, stoic, and loyal to Durandal—his adoptive father—as well as a mentor to Shinn, providing some much-needed stability to offset Shinn's volatile emotions. When the others are confused, questioning, or doubtful, it's Rey who brings them back to focus on their mission. Eventually revealed to be Rau Le Creuset's clone "brother". At the finale, he chooses to die with Durandal and Talia.

He pilots a white ZGMF-1001/M Blaze ZAKU Phantom, performing the same function as Lunamaria (standing atop the Minerva and providing fire support). Eventually he gets his own Gundam—the ZGMF-X666S Legend—and begins to demonstrate exactly what he is capable of; he and Shinn provide most of the muscle for ZAFT in the later battles.

Athrun Zala

Voice Actors: Akira Ishida (Japanese), Samuel Vincent (English)

"The enemy? And who are they?"

A veteran of the first Bloody Valentine War, and an old friend (and enemy) of Kira Yamato's. He rejoins ZAFT when war breaks out once again and is assigned to the Minerva. His accomplishments and fame earn him the adoration of much of the crew, apart from the surly Shinn. He initially opposes his old friends on the Archangel, citing their actions as doing nothing but make the conflict worse, but he ultimately defects back into Kira's side when he discovers Durandal's scheme and, along with Meyrin, is nearly killed by Shinn.

He pilots the ZGMF-X23S Saviour while onboard the Minerva, a Transforming Mecha just like his Aegis from two years ago, and eventually obtains the ZGMF-X19A Infinite Justice, a melee-oriented Gundam and the Justice's Spiritual Successor.

Meyrin Hawke

Voice Actors: Fumiko Orikasa (Japanese), Nicole Bouma (English)

A Bridge Bunny on board the Minerva, and Lunamaria's little sister. Like her sister, she crushes on Athrun. She doesn't have much of a significant role in the story until she gets pulled into Athrun's escape and defection to the Three Ship Alliance, where she becomes a Bridge Bunny onboard the Eternal, placing herself in direct conflict with her sister.

Talia Gladys

Voice Actors: Mami Koyama (Japanese), Venus Terzo (English)

Captain of the Minerva and Shinn's commanding officer. Tries very hard to be a fair commander, despite her authority being constantly ignored by Shinn and occasionally subverted by Durandal and Rey. Her second in command doesn't help any. Later revealed to be an old flame of Durandal's, she remains loyal to him and to ZAFT despite her doubts until just before the very end.

Arthur Trine

Voice Actors: Hiroki Takahashi(Japanese), Jonathan Holmes (English)

Talia's second-in-command, Arthur is a likeable and competent, if remarkably panicky officer. Totally loyal to Captain Gladys, he has a good rapport with Shinn and the other pilots.

Earth Alliance Forces

Stella Loussier

Voice Actors: Houko Kuwashima (Japanese), Lalainia Lindbjerg (English)

"Shinn... protect Stella..."

One of the Extended (a group of drug-enhanced Naturals who can fight on par with Coordinators), Stella is first seen participating in the Armoury One raid. While in battle she behaves like a berserker, off-duty she is childlike and innocent, curious over even the most mundane of things. She also sees Neo as a father-figure. She has a huge fear of death—she fights so aggressively because she's afraid of her enemies, and so lashes out at them. She develops a relationship with Shinn, and is briefly held captive by ZAFT before Shinn returns her to the Earth Forces. Soon afterwards she is killed by Kira while piloting the Destroy.

She is at first the pilot of the ZGMF-X88S Gaia Gundam (re-coded as RGX-03), a Transforming Mecha that can turn into a fox-like mobile armor suited for ground combat, and later is placed in the cockpit of the first GFAS-X1 Destroy Gundam, which is a humongous Gundam of mass destruction.

Captain Neo Roanoke

Voice Actors: Takehito Koyasu (Japanese), Trevor Devall (English)

"Sometimes I wonder when I crossed the line and became a wicked man."

Lord Djibril's mysterious, masked right-hand man and Phantom Pain's field leader. Neo and his team are the major antagonists for the first half of the series. Though a skilled pilot himself, he mostly acts as commanding officer. Quite the Manipulative Bastard, he generally uses his abilities in that field to keep his subordinates as stable and sane as possible. He's eventually shot down and captured by the Archangel, where it's revealed that he's actually Mu La Flaga with false memories implanted to make him loyal to the Earth Federation.

Ian Lee

Voice Actors: Tadahisa Saizen (Japanese), Lee Tockar (English)

Neo's second-in-command, Ian usually runs the ship while Neo takes care of strategy. A capable officer, he seems to get along well with his boss, despite the latter's eccentricities.

Auel Neider

Voice Actors: Masakazu Morita (Japanese), Brad Swaile (English)

Another Extended member of Phantom Pain. Auel is usually easygoing and cheerful, which translates into mocking arrogance (and at times outright sadism) in battle. His blockword is "mother", apparently because one female scientist was kind to him during his days as a test subject. He is the first of the Phantom Pain to be killed -- in his case, by Shinn.

He pilots the ZGMF-X31S Abyss (re-coded as RGX-02), a Transforming Mecha which can turn into a stingray-like mobile armor that enhances its performance in amphibious combat.

Sting Oakley

Voice Actors: Junichi Suwabe (Japanese), Brent Miller (English)

The oldest and most stable member of Phantom Pain. Lacking Auel's bloodlust and Stella's childishness, he comes off as the most well-adjusted of the group, which is probably why he acts as the trio's unofficial leader. Following Stella and Auel's deaths, he starts exhibiting Ax Crazy tendencies, and is killed by Shinn at the Battle of Heaven's Base.

He's the pilot of the ZGMF-X24S Chaos (re-coded as RGX-01), a Transforming Mecha capable of transforming into a bird-like mobile armor, giving it an edge in aerial combat, and later another Destroy.

Lord Djibril

Voice Actors: Hideyuki Hori (Japanese), Alistair Abell (English)

"And now, Gilbert Durandal, I will play a Requiem for you and all your kind!"

Azrael's successor as the leader of Blue Cosmos, and a major antagonist throughout the show, Lord Djibril is best described as a total bastard. Vicious, cruel, arrogant, and not especially bright, he wants to slaughter all Coordinators while simultaneously establishing his own control over the world. Responsible for the creation of the Extended, Mu's brainwashing into Neo, and much of the misery in-series, he is slain by Rey while attempting to escape a losing battle.

  • Bad Boss: He uses drugs to control the Extended and brainwashing on Neo. He regularly leaves his men behind to die while he escapes, fully believes in We Have Reserves, and treats his subordinates like imbeciles. Pretty much the worst boss ever.
  • Big Bad: Of the Earth Forces, Blue Cosmos, and Phantom Pain's Five-Bad Band. While he's not the only contender for the title of series' Big Bad, he's the only one that everyone—in-series and out—agrees is an irredeemable psycho with no good qualities.
  • Card-Carrying Villain: Seriously, this guy makes Skeletor look complex...
  • Diabolical Mastermind: He's got the secret lair, hordes of minions, Ominous Multiple Screens, an Evil Plan, and a Right-Hand-Cat that this trope seems to demand. While intellectually he's no Lex Luthor, he still has the resources, influence, technology, and total disregard for human life to be a serious threat.
  • Dirty Coward: Granted he's a politician and not a soldier, but every time things go south, he's quick to bail and leave his troops in a lurch.
  • Evil Is Hammy: Of all the characters in show, he's easily the one who chews the most scenery. Somehow it just makes him all the more disgusting.
  • Eviler Than Thou: With Durandal. He's certainly the more evil of the two, but not the more competent.
  • Fantastic Racism: Against Coordinators. Like his predecessor Azrael, he wants to see them all exterminated, no matter what it takes.
  • Final Solution: Djibril has a vision for the future, and it doesn't include Coordinators.
  • General Failure: While he generally leaves the tactical decisions to Neo, Djibril's involvement in overall strategy frequently screws his own side over. See the business with the Destroy for a good example.
  • A Glass of Chianti
  • Green Eyes
  • Hair-Trigger Temper: There's a lot of rage inside Djibril, and it's not particularly difficult to bring it out.
  • Lack of Empathy: The only person who matters to Djibril is Djibril.
  • The Man Behind the Man: To the Atlantic Federation and this particular incarnation of the Earth Sphere Alliance.
  • Meaningful Name: "Djibril" is the Arabic of "Gabriel", one of God's angels. It fits in nicely with his status as successor to Azrael, who was named for the Angel of Death.
  • Muggle Power
  • No Indoor Voice
  • Non-Action Guy
    • Non-Action Big Bad: Of the Earth Forces. Unlike Azrael, Djibril prefers to stay behind the lines, where it's safe.
  • Nuke'Em: Tries to nuke the colonies right at the start of the war. The use of the Destroy could be seen as another example of this.
  • Obviously Evil: We first see him in a secret underground lair, surrounded by televisions, having A Glass of Chianti and stroking his Right-Hand-Cat.
  • Oh Crap: When he spots the Legend through his battleship's window, mere seconds before it reduces him to ashes.
  • Ominous Multiple Screens: Surrounds himself with TVs, through which he views the world and communicates with his subordinates.
  • Politically-Incorrect Villain: He seems to lack Azrael's misogyny, but makes up for it in terms of how intense his Fantastic Racism is.
  • Psychotic Smirk: His usual expression.
  • Right-Hand-Cat
  • Sissy Villain: Subverted. He has the look certainly, but none of the attitude.
  • Smug Snake: He's sneeringly arrogant, none-too bright, void of redeeming qualities, and completely unlikeable.
  • The Sociopath: With his explosive temper, impulsiveness, and total Lack of Empathy, Djibril's a very good example of a low-functioning sociopath.
  • Stupid Evil: Djibril is very bad at keeping his violent tendencies in check, typically responding to any percieved threat or betrayal with overwhelming destructive force. This generally hurts his cause far more than it helps.
  • There Is No Kill Like Overkill: Between the nukes, the Destroy, and the Requiem, it's clear that he, like Azrael, is a firm believer in this trope.
  • Unwitting Pawn: Possibly of Durandal's, though it's never made clear whether the Chairman is using Djibril, or he is actively seeking his destruction.
  • War for Fun and Profit: If Durandal is to be believed, Djibril's real objective is to make as much money off of the conflict as he can. Given that Djibril was willing to nuke the colonies (which would presumably cost him half his clientele), it's worth questioning the veracity of this statement.
  • Weapons of Mass Destruction: Loves these as evidenced by the nuclear weapons, the colossal, city-killing Destroy, and the Requiem Wave Motion Gun.
  • We Have Reserves: Lives don't mean much to Djibril. He'll gladly throw away his troops if he thinks it'll let him win.
  • Younger Than They Look: He's only thirty-one. That makes him a year younger than Durandal and only three years older than Ramius.

ZAFT Forces

Chairman Gilbert Durandal

Voice Actors: Shuichi Ikeda (Japanese), Ted Cole (English)

"Power is necessary because there will always be conflict."

Durandal, the new ZAFT Supreme Council Chairman, is a moderate who believes Naturals and Coordinators can live in peace. He is a mentor figure towards the crew of the Minerva, and often talks about his plans for a better tomorrow. He also seems to be a bit of a fatalist, is somewhat mysterious, rarely explaining things directly, and his motives are unclear for most of the series. Turns out he plans to unify the world by direct force and impose genetic determinism to avert more wars. He's also an old friend of the late Rau Le Creuset, who clearly influenced his thinking. He dies at Messiah Base after being shot by his Dragon, Rey.

  • Affably Evil
  • Anti-Villain
  • Big Bad: Of the Minerva's Five-Bad Band, ZAFT, and the entire show. He's certainly The Man Behind the Man to a lot of the worst events in-show, and is the last of the contenders for the title left standing following Djibril's demise.
  • Broken Ace: He's a successful doctor and lawyer turned politician, a Manipulative Bastard seen as The Messiah by much of the world, a Well-Intentioned Extremist whose plans just might work, and a Villain with Good Publicity poised to gain everything. Whatever angle one looks at him from, Durandal has got it all. And he is deeply, deeply depressed, frustrated over his rocky relationship with Talia, unable to see any good in the world, and coping very badly with his inability to save Rau.
  • Broken Pedestal: To Athrun and the ZAFT pilots who defect to the TSA.
  • The Chessmaster: Durandal is really good at getting people to do things that benefit him.
  • Char Clone: Channelling Char Aznable's extremism to a more plausible (but no less sinister) level than his friend Rau Le Creuset, as well as serving as a relatively-benevolent mentor for his army. And come on, THAT VOICE.
  • Chess Motifs: The guy loves 'em.
  • Dark Messiah: Although he certainly doesn't think of himself that way.
  • Dead Person Conversation: With Rau Le Creuset
  • Didn't See That Coming: Lacus interrupting Meer's interruption of Cagalli's first worldwide broadcast since being "kidnapped" by Kira. Of course, he's quick to work around on this, but his shocked expression (if just for a moment) clearly showed that Lacus caught him off-guard.
  • Evil Genius: Absolutely.
  • Eviler Than Thou: With Djibril, his rival for the title of Big Bad. Djibril is more evil, Durandal more competent.
  • The Evils of Free Will: While not addressed as such directly, the Destiny Plan would certainly get rid of it.
  • Fantastic Racism: Of the unintentional sort, as he himself is not racist, but in his attempts to try and solve the problem he came up with a plan that could lead to Coordinators becoming the dominate in this "utopia" he wishes to create.
  • The Fatalist: With all his talk about destiny and how things that happened were "meant to be" he definitely gives off this vibe.
  • Good Eyes, Evil Eyes: Has narrow, serpentine eyes.
  • Graceful Loser: A rare exception to the standard fare of screaming and raving antagonists in the Cosmic Era.
  • Hazel Eyes
  • Humans Are the Real Monsters: Shares Le Creuset's belief that people are inherently selfish, uncaring beings. The difference is that he wants to do something about it.
  • I Let Gwen Stacy Die: A rare, villainous example. A major part of Durandal's motivation stems from his guilt over his inability to save Rau Le Creuset from his madness, as evidenced by his "chess match" with the creep, whose ghost is still haunting him.
  • I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: In the backstory. It actually helped to screw him up even more than he already was.
  • Long-Haired Pretty Boy
  • The Man Behind the Man: Durandal is certainly the driving force behind many events in the series. Exactly how much he's responsible for is still debated by fans. Contested events range from the Armoury One raid, the Break the World incident, and the assassination attempt on Lacus to the formation of Logos itself.
  • Manipulative Bastard: He does a number on Rey, Shinn, Meer, Athrun in the first half, and most of the planet via Meer.
  • Nietzsche Wannabe: Tries very hard to avoid becoming one, with limited success. It's fairly obvious in flashbacks that the reason he could never win his arguments with Rau was because he had already accepted Rau's belief that people are inherently evil and the universe is a cold, unfeeling place. Despite this, he doesn't believe in giving up on them, and thus is out to inject some meaning into the world whatever the methods and cost.
  • Non-Action Guy
  • Parental Substitute: To Rey.
  • The Philosopher: Like Le Creuset and Lacus, Durandal spends a lot of time contemplating the life, the universe, and everything.
  • President Evil
  • Putting on the Reich: It's not immediately apparrent, but dye his trenchcoat and jackboots black, and voila!
  • Reasonable Authority Figure: Subverted. Shinn believes the Chairman is one—he always listens to him, wants to make the world a better place, etc., etc., but it's all an act, designed to get Shinn on his side.
  • The Reveal: Happens slowly, but here goes—he's playing on Shinn's emotional fragility through his adopted son Rey, is conning the world with both his charm and the support of Lacus... er, Meer, was an old friend of Rau (whose disillusionment with humanity has rubbed off on him), and intends to Take Over the World and impose a Social Darwinist utopia. God help you if you get in his way.
  • Social Darwinist: A different type than normal for the trope; he believes that people are genetically suited to certain roles, and therefore society should use genetic analysis to assign people their "proper" place in life.
  • Sympathy for the Devil: Or at least the Omnicidal Maniac. Along with Mu La Flaga and Rey, he's the only person in-series to express any sympathy for previous Big Bad, Rau Le Creuset.
  • Tall, Dark and Handsome
  • Ubermensch: Seeks to completely change the world and impose his own vision of morality upon it.
  • Utopia Justifies the Means: Believes that by creating a society where people's lives are determined for them at birth he will end all conflict and usher in a perfect world.
  • Villainous Friendship: Has a father/son relationswhip with Rey, and a complicated friendship with the previous Big Bad, Le Creuset.
  • Well-Intentioned Extremist: His ultimate goal is, in a nutshell, to make people's lives better. His plan for accomplishing that, though...
  • With Us or Against Us: People who don't support the Chairman's utopian goals are not long for this world.
  • Xanatos Speed Chess/Gambit Roulette: The series remains vague on which one definitely applies to him. Whether or not he is responsible for the Armory One raid, "Break the World", and the attempt on Lacus's life, or is simply letting fate take its course and then work around them to further his goal, is left to viewer debate.
  • World Domination: He's got more complicated reasons than most megalomaniacs, but his plan still requires this in order to work.

Meer Campbell

Voice Actors: Rie Tanaka (Japanese), Chantal Strand (English dialogue), Jillian Michaels (English singing)

"I am Lacus Clyne. I'm Lacus! I'd rather be her!"

A Girl Next Door and Lacus Clyne Fan Girl, and strongly implied to be a war orphan. She is chosen to get plastic surgery and replace Lacus after she goes into hiatus, as she shares her idol's abilities and voice. While she appears naive and somewhat less than brilliant, it's uncertain how much of this is real, how much is part of her impersonation of Lacus's Incorruptible Pure Pureness, and how much is self-serving Obfuscating Stupidity designed to deny responsibility for her actions. As the series progresses, she becomes less and less sure of herself and her role.

  • Anti-Villain: She tells Athrun that she knows what she's doing is wrong, but still does it because she wants to continue being Lacus instead of a nobody like Meer Campbell.

"Miss Lacus is so beautiful, so kind, so adored! [...] But me? I'm not needed by anyone."

  • Ascended Fangirl: She gets the chance to become her idol! It... doesn't turn out well.
  • Becoming the Mask: Zig-Zagged; Meer seems to have initially thought that she'll be Lacus's proxy until she comes out of "retirement" (because Lacus will obviously support the Chairman), then realizes she'll have to "be" Lacus permanently but understands she's not really Lacus (especially once she—and the rest of the world—found out that the real Lacus would have none of Durandal's schemes), then she starts to convince herself that she's literally become Lacus, but in the end she puts the real Lacus over herself, even Taking the Bullet for her.
  • Belated Backstory
  • Celeb Crush: On Athrun Zala, whom she still believes is Lacus' boyfriend. Boy is she misinformed.
  • Heroic Sacrifice
  • Idol Singer
  • Gainaxing: She's rather stacked compared to Lacus, which is particularly noticeable when she's jumping around during performances. Her fans do take notice, but either dismiss it or consider it an improvement.
  • Hotter and Sexier: What she did to Lacus' "sweet and pure" image. Also, compare her Girl Next Door past self to her current one.
  • Meaningful Name: Her name has two meanings: first, it means "lake" in Dutch, which symbolizes her as Lacus's (whose name also means "lake", this time in Latin) doppelganger. Second, her name is a phonetic spelling of the English word, "mirror", to symbolize her as Lacus's Body Double.
  • Ms. Fanservice
  • Non-Singing Voice: As with Lacus, Jillian Michaels is Meer's singing voice in the English dub.
  • Propaganda Machine: Durandal's.
  • Redemption Equals Death
  • Sanity Slippage: She eventually seems to believe—or at least tries really hard to convince herself—that she really is Lacus.
  • Stepford Smiler: Type A. She's all smiles on the outside, but the reality is, she's a deeply disturbed young woman who hated herself enough to try and become someone else.
  • Stripperiffic: Her outfits!
  • Taking the Bullet: She shields Lacus from an assassin sent with her by Durandal, who apparently has had intel that Lacus, Kira, Athrun and Meyrin are taking a break in Copernicus.
  • Talking To Herself: She and Lacus share the same voice actresses. Also in-universe when she speaks to Lacus.
  • Tall, Dark and Bishoujo: Her real hair color was black.
  • Villainous Breakdown: In the last couple of episodes, for a certain definition of "villain".
  • "Well Done, Fangirl" Gal: Her self esteem is so low that she deeply wants to be noticed and loved, especially by her beloved/hated "Lady Lacus".
  • What the Hell, Hero?: Tries to pull this on Lacus upon their encounter, saying she has been helping people while Lacus was staying out of sight, ignoring the world's problems (unaware that she's busy unraveling Durandal's Destiny Plan).
  • Zettai Ryouiki: Wear a nice Grade A (long socks plus frilled pleated miniskirt) in the same episode she dies.

Yzak Joule

Voice Actors: Tomokazu Seki (Japanese), Michael Adamtwaite (English)

"Dearka and me? We probably should have died a long time ago."

A member of the Le Cresuet Team along with Athrun and Dearka in the first Bloody Valentine war, he was the only member of the team to remain loyal to ZAFT throughout the conflict. Now commanding his own forces as a Whitecoat, he does his best to defend the PLANTs without repeating the mistakes of his past. A relatively minor character in most of Destiny, he spends most of the series Out of Focus.

Dearka Elsman

Voice Actors: Akira Sasanuma (Japanese), Brad Swaile (English)

Another veteran of the Le Creuset Team, he defected to the Three Ships Alliance near the end of the first Bloody Valentine war. Though accepted back into ZAFT, he was stripped of his red coat, and now acts as Yzak's Number Two. Like Yzak, he's only a minor character in Destiny, remaining mostly Out of Focus.

Heine Westenfluss

Voice Actors: Takanori Nishikawa (Japanese), Brian Dobson (English)

A ZAFT Redcoat and member of FAITH, he's assigned to the Minerva partway through the war. A survivor of the First Bloody Valentine conflict, he maintains a more optimistic attitude than Athrun, and tries his best to balance his fellow veteran's cynicism, while making friends with Shinn, Rey and the rest of the crew. He's eventually killed by Stella at the Battle of the Dardanelles. He pilots a Blaze ZAKU Phantom, and then a ZGMF-X200 GOUF Ignited.

Orb Union

Cagalli Yula Athha

Voice Actors: Naomi Shindo (Japanese), Vanessa Morley (English)

Kira's twin sister, Athrun's on-again off-again love interest, and leader of Orb. She seems to be struggling with her position when the show begins, and is eventually forced to abandon the country. Given that she's more of a Damsel in Distress now compared to her Rebellious Princess Action Girl status two years ago, she pretty much suffered from a case of Chickification. She plays a background role for much of the rest of the plot, before returning to take back her country by force late in the series and reclaiming Orb's best-kept secret -- the ORB-01 Akatsuki.

  • Action Girl: Returns to this role after getting the Akatsuki, and proceeds to massacre the ZAFT forces attacking her country. She even tries taking on Shinn, who is fully in Berserker territory at this point.
  • Attack Drone: With the Akatsuki
  • Authority Equals Asskicking: Once Cagalli starts fighting she's Orb's most effective soldier barring only Kira & Athrun. Having access to top of the line tech probably helps her here.
  • Badass Normal: She's a Natural, but fights against Coordinators on pretty even footing. Her ride probably helped.
    • Four-Star Badass: She's Orb's Commander-in-Chief, as well as its First Representative, complete with gold-braided uniform.
  • Bigger Stick: The Akatsuki, which is a huge cut above the Strike Rouge.
  • Bling Bling Bang: Akatsuki
  • Chickification: The Hot-Blooded Rebellious Princess... getting pushed around politically and generally acting like a Damsel in Distress. It's not pretty... at least until she finally comes back in action.
  • Curtains Match the Window: Has Hair of Gold and Eyes of Gold.
  • Damsel in Distress: For the early half of the show.
  • Lightning Bruiser: The Akatsuki. It's fast, well-armed, and nearly indestructible.
  • Love Hurts: Whatever the status of thier relationship is by the end there's no arguing that most of her interactions with Athrun after his return to the Archangel are pretty painful to watch.
  • She's Back: Regains some of her Action Girl status after returning to Orb and retrieving the Akatsuki.
  • Took a Level in Badass: When she gets her hands on the Akatsuki, Cagalli, who until then remained a Damsel in Distress, returns to her old form from two years prior.
  • Zen Survivor

Yuna Roma Seiran

Voice Actors: Kenji Nojima (Japanese), Brian Drummond (English)

A high-ranking Orb politician, he's a former friend of Cagalli's and a total jerk to boot. In her absence he leads Orb from one disaster to another, most notably the alliance with Neo and Djibril, both of whom he is terrified. Ultimately, Cagalli has him arrested when she returns to Orb and gets crushed by a ZAKU soon afterwards.


Crew of the Archangel

Kira Yamato

Voice Actors: Soichiro Hoshi (Japanese), Matt Hill (English)

The protagonist for the previous series, Kira returns to action following a botched assassination attempt upon Lacus. His general dissillusionment and inability to trust both sides of the conflict put him at odds with Athrun, Shinn and the rest of the new cast. He eventually regains his position as the main character, and leads an independent faction (a collection of Orb soldiers loyal to Cagalli and various defectors from both OMNI and ZAFT) against Durandal. Compared to the angsty teen prone to emotional fits two years ago, this time he's much more emotionally stable.

Pilots the ZGMF-X10A Freedom, a long-range specialist Gundam, repaired by Murrue after being badly damaged in his fight against Rau and his Providence at the end of the First Bloody War, and later, the ZFMG-X20A Strike Freedom, the Freedom's more buffed-up Spiritual Successor, after the former was destroyed beyond repair by Shinn and his Impulse.

  • Arch Enemy: Shinn and later Rey see him as this. Initially, Kira doesn't notice these a lot; he eventually clues in, culminating in his final battle and inverse Hannibal Lecture against Rey.
  • Asskicking Equals Authority: He's an Orb Admiral by the end of the series. Given that he's also willing to turn on anyone who disturbs the world's peace, this makes sense: if he's going to act on his own, why not make it legal for him?
  • Attack Drone: The Strike Freedom has a few.
  • Badass: Now sans the angst.
    • Four-Star Badass: Holds the rank of Admiral in the Orb military, and is revealed to have become a ZAFT commander in the finale.
    • Retired Badass: For two years, living with Lacus, Murrue, Andrew, Caridad Yamato (his adoptive mother), Father Malchio and his orphans in the Solomon Islands. He was forced to come back to service after an attempt on Lacus's life.
  • Beam Spam: With the Freedom, and especially the Strike Freedom, which now uses the very same DRAGOONs that gave him so much trouble two years ago against Le Creuset and his Providence.
  • Bigger Stick: The Freedom and the Strike Freedom, the latter being totally superior to any Gundam save perhaps the Infinite Justice, the Legend, and the Destiny.
  • Born Winner: Being a Coordinator and having access to SEED mode is a good place to be.
  • Good-Looking Privates
  • The Hero: Quickly resumes this spot post-perspective flip.
    • Hero Antagonist: Before the perspective flip, when his need to end the conflict quickly puts him in direct confrontation with Athrun and Shinn.
  • He's Back: His return aboard the Strike Freedom, having been thought of as KIA by Shinn and the Minerva left Shinn in utter shock, more so once he watches Kira wreck twenty-five ZAFT mobile suits and battleships in a couple of minutes.
  • Honour Before Reason: Right up until Shinn used it against him to destroy the Freedom. In subsequent fights he's more active in getting rid of Shinn, frequently aiming for his cockpit. Even then, he refuses to pursue Shinn whenever the latter backs down, and passes up a few killshots.
  • Lady and Knight: The Knight to Lacus Clyne's Lady.
  • Lightning Bruiser: The Freedom and especially the Strike-Freedom.
  • Martial Pacifist
  • Messiah Creep
  • Mid-Season Upgrade: The Strike Freedom.
  • Official Couple: With Lacus.
  • Older and Wiser: And just a little burnt out.
  • Purple Eyes
  • Real Men Wear Pink: Averted when he pilots the Strike Rogue. He changed its specs so its PSA would display the Strike Gundam's original white/blue/red colours. His pilot suit, however, does have pink stripes on its shoulder boards.
  • Rogue Protagonist: He knows Durandal's got an agenda. Shinn and Athrun don't. This causes problems.
  • Shell-Shocked Veteran: If the Thousand-Yard Stare, constant flashbacks, and stoic personality are any indicator.
  • The Stoic: He's certainly more serene compared to two years ago, but that doesn't stop him from showing a look of horror at the sight of the ruins of Junius Seven falling upon Earth, Shinn slicing his Freedom in half, and Rey explaining how he was meant to become another Rau Le Creuset.
  • Take a Third Option: He again refuses to pick a side, targeting both ZAFT and the Earth Forces.
  • Technical Pacifist: His new fighting style involves severing the enemies' limbs...
    • Shoot the Dog: ...unless a Destroy wrecking Berlin was involved, in which case he was forced to impale the cockpit, mortally wounding Stella.
  • Thousand-Yard Stare: He's developed a pretty significant one since SEED. In his early appearances, he's usually on the beach or at the window, staring off into space.
  • Ubermensch: He and Lacus are a messianic pair of them, rejecting the cynical, violent, racially motivated politics of the Cosmic Era in favour of their own inclusive, technically pacifistic idealism.
  • The Unfettered: Which really sucks for political leaders with unethical agendas. He's more than willing to turn his Gundam on anyone who disturbs the peace, and he's got the allies, intel, technology and skills to make them think twice before messing with him.
  • Would Hit a Girl: Just ask Stella about that...
  • Zen Survivor

Lacus Clyne

Voice Actors: Rie Tanaka (Japanese), Chantal Strand (English dialogue), Jillian Michaels (English singing)

Kira's girlfriend and an important political figure, Lacus essentially dropped off the radar following the end of the First Bloody Valentine War. Forced back into the political spotlight by an assassination attempt against her, she assumes leadership of the Three Ships Alliance, pitting them against ZAFT and the Earth Forces alike. She is shown to have become the new leader of the PLANT Supreme Council following the end of the series.

Murrue Ramius

Voice Actors: Kotono Mitsuishi (Japanese), Lisa Ann Beley (English)

The captain of the Archangel, and Kira's commanding officer from two years ago. Initially working as an engineer (which was, after all, her original job) in Orb, she answers Kira's call to action and reprises her role as the Archangel's captain once they enter the conflict.

Andrew Waltfeld

Voice Actors: Ryotaro Okiayu (Japanese), Brian Drummond (English)

A former ZAFT ace, who defected near the end of the previous war. Still has the scars from his battle with Kira.

Miriallia Haw

Voice Actors: Megumi Toyoguchi (Japanese), Anna Cummer (English)

An old friend of Kira's, and an Archangel crew member in Mobile Suit Gundam SEED. She's a photojournalist covering the war when we first see her in Destiny, but she ends up back on the Archangel after running into her old crewmates again.

  • Bridge Bunnies
  • Demoted to Extra: Although she was with Kira and Cagalli during their secret meeting with Athrun.
  • Green Eyes
  • Hot Scoop: She apparently became a freelance photojournalist after the end of the First Bloody Valentine War.
  • Mythology Gag: Her post-war profession and the nature of her reintroduction is rather reminicent of Kai Shiden in Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam.
  • Ship Sinking: When she returns to the Archangel, chief mechanic Murdoch asks what happened to Dearka; she responds "I dumped him". Unlike countless instances of this trope, however, fans were happy to a degree since it confirms that they were an Official Couple, even if that's no longer the case.
  • Zen Survivor


Other

Rau Le Creuset

Voice Actors: Toshihiko Seki (Japanese), Mark Oliver (English)

"Everything is born into this world, and eventually, dies. That's the pure and simple truth of it."

The (late) Big Bad of the previous war, Rau makes several appearances in Kira's, Durandal's and Rey's flashbacks, many of which expand upon his life and philosophy, helping to further explain his actions in SEED, while also showing his legacy two years later.

"People like you walk your path believing something you desire is waiting for you. I walk it to confirm that there is nothing there."

  • Omnicidal Maniac: And the world is more or less living in his shadow now.
  • Pet the Dog: His interactions with Rey, and to a lesser degree Durandal, are retroactive examples of this, and help to humanize him, if just a bit.
  • The Philosopher: An especially deranged one. He spends his few appearances contemplating life, the world, and why people are scum.
  • Posthumous Character: But for a dead guy, his influence on the plot is pretty significant.
  • The Reveal: His face is finally revealed during one of Durandal's flashbacks.
  • Smart People Play Chess: Definitely one of the smartest people in the series, and as his flashbacks demonstrate, he was capable of checkmating Durandal, both literally and philisophically.
  • Stronger Sibling: Inverted. He was far more dangerous than Rey, and continues to influence both he and Durandal.
  • Villainous Friendship: Actually seems to have had a Type I with the Chairman and Rey. It helps to humanise him somewhat.


Stargazer characters

Sven Cal Banyan

Voice Actors: Daisuke Ono

Shams Couza

Voice Actors: Hiroshi Kamiya (first two episodes broadcast), Mamoru Miyano (all other appearances, including redubbed DVD release)

Myudi Holcroft

Voice Actors: Rina Sato

Selene McGriff

Voice Actors: Sayaka Ohara

Sol Ryuune L'ange

Voice Actors: Jun Fukuyama


Edmond Du Clos

Voice Actors: Joji Nakata

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