The is a fictional line of "Mobile Suits" or mecha (human-piloted giant robots) from Mobile Suit Gundam, part of the fictional universe of the Universal Century, where they are the Principality of Zeon's most commonly fielded Mobile Suits. The most widely known model is the MS-06 Zaku II series. It is redesigned by Kunio Okawara based upon the earlier draft by the series director Yoshiyuki Tomino, in which only the name was kept. The Zaku II has seen various redesigns and variants for hundreds of pieces of merchandise, and the Japanese post office has two stamps with Zaku IIs on them.The 20th Century Stamp Series 15Animation Hero and Heroine Series II "Gundam" The Zaku's aesthetic can be seen in more symbolic homages in the Gundam mythos, such as the GINN and ZAKU Warrior from Mobile Suit Gundam SEED, the Busshi from Mobile Fighter G Gundam, and the Jenice from After War Gundam X.
After the original show's run, Okawara and other designers created several variants of the Zaku. Many of these modified configurations never appeared in animation, but they are official Mobile Suit variations, appearing instead in plastic model form and various Gundam video games. The MS-06 Zaku II is still a major force in Gundam, with almost every new side story in the Universal Century adding a new variant to the basic frame.
Concept and development
The original concept of the Zaku was a disposable underling, with its name derived from the sound of a huge man (or many soldiers) marching and the Japanese term (referring to mediocre-quality fish meat considered unsuitable for fine dining, also signifying expendable grunts).アニメック(Animec) 16th issue special volume, 機動戦士ガンダム大事典 (Mobile suit Gundam Encyclopedia), 1 March 1981, Yoshiyuki Tomino Interview, そうですね、ザクなんかでも.........大きい人が歩いてくると地面がザクッザクッと音をだしますね、それからとったんですよ。(笑), Yes, Zaku whatever... is when a huge man walking the ground will make Zaku, Zaku sound, and it took that (for its name) (laughter)ガンダム･エイジ (Gundam Age), 洋泉社, 敵のモビルスーツのザクは、もともとは、雑兵っていうか、雑魚(ザコ)なのね。でも、ザコじゃあんまりだ。やつら軍隊だから、軍団でザクザクやってくるでしょ。だからザクにしようって, Enemy's Mobile suit Zaku is originally (designed as) a common soldier, disposable underling (Zako). However, saying it is an underling is too extreme, they are a military force and flanks of army make the Zaku Zaku sound, thus it was named Zaku.
The Zaku later became better known as a common military machine. While in previous manga and anime giant robots tended to be the tools of protagonists or villains (often in a monster of the week format), the Zaku was portrayed as another weapon, such as a tank or fighter plane, assigned to pilots.
The Zaku is the first mobile suit to feature its parts (a damaged head) and is shown in three of the four box arts in the 1/35 U.C. Hard Graph line of plastic models made by Bandai, which resemble actual battlefields.U.C. Hard Graph products This militaristic development started with the release of Gundam series models in 1980, when military modellers at that time took a liking to placing 1/144 scale Zaku model when placed next to World War I and World War II 1/144 models, because they liked the visual appeal, and modellers started to build them like AFVs.Dengeki Hobby Nov 2006 issue, Gundam Military
The popularity of the first batch of models spawned the "Mobile Suit Variations," where the mecha designer Kunio Okawara started designing variant mobile suits that could perform different tasks or adapt to different combat zones (for example, a Zaku specialized for underwater operations).
The MS-06 Zaku II unit then became the unit with most variantsDengeki Hobby June 2007, MG Zaku Ver. 2.0 Interview of the 12 year anniversary of the Master Grade Zaku (22 alone in the first MSV all having its model compared to titular machine RX-78-2 Gundam's 3 variants). The Zaku also had redesigns and variants created by other mecha designers, like Hajime Katoki, who designed the MS-06F2 Zaku II Type F2 for Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory and redesigned the Zaku II Ground Type and Char's Commander type Zaku for the MG (Master Grade) number 97 and 98 Zaku Ver. 2.0, Yutaka Izubuchi.
The design of the Zaku II influenced the later designs of the RMS-106 Hizack in Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam and AMX-011 Zaku III in Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ. The RMS-116H Hobby Hizack, not a military-use but a personal entertainment suit, which appeared in Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack was also influenced by the Zaku. Its descendants continue to appear even in manga, like the OMS-06RF RF Zaku used by the Mars Zeon faction in Mobile Suit Gundam F90.機動戦士ガンダム MS-06解体新書 (MS-06 Anatomy), ティーツー出版, ISBN：4-88749-055-0
Role in plot The Zaku II is the most common Zeon mobile suit at the show's beginning. Although a threat to unskilled characters, the Zaku is ultimately cannon fodder that comes in plentiful numbers for the Gundam.
In the Gundam timeline, the Zaku appears as one of the series' first units created for battle. At the start of the One-Year War, the Zaku II was the mainstay of Zeon's military but quickly became inferior to newer and more powerful mobile suits as the war progressed. By the later stages of the war, the Zaku II is antiquated. Because the Zaku II is the basic military unit of the Zeon forces and it is a mass-production mobile suit, many units are left by the war's end. These suits survive only to be destroyed en-masse to show the power of the newer models.July 2007 edition Dengeki Magazine
By the time of Gundam Unicorn, over fifteen years after the One Year War, Zaku II's are shown as museum pieces. Upon seeing a display model of an old Zaku II, some characters remark upon how outdated it is. In contrast, others highlight its historical significance as an early example of widely mass-produced Mobile Suits.
Other Gundam series The Zaku II design has also been included in storylines outside of the Universal Century, in the Cosmic Era series of Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny where the director Mitsuo Fukuda requested the mecha designer Kunio Okawara to add his Zaku into the story.Kunio Okawara interview, Newtype Magazine SEED Destiny special edition, December 2004 The ZAKU (ZAFT Armed Keeper of Unity) Warrior designed became a high-end model in the plot. The ZAKU Phantom is a commander unit. The Zaku series of Mobile Suits also appears in the CC Era of Turn A Gundam as the MS-06 Borjarnon and MS-05 Borjarnon Gavane Gooney Custom, which are excavated MS-06F Zaku II's and a slightly modified MS-05B Zaku I, respectively.
Naming history This mobile suit's original name was Zaku.Original model box set, Mass Production type Zaku released before Gundam Century. In the non-official publication Gundam Century (which was later endorsed by Bandai as a semi-official guidebook), it was named the Zaku II to separate it from the MS-05 Zaku I (initially referred to simply as "Old Zaku" in the original series). The name was then officially endorsed, and all subsequent publications by either Sunrise or Bandai were referred to as Zaku II.MSV model box set, MS-06R Zaku II
Variations
The variants of the Zaku started the later militaristic variation boom of the Universal Century Gundam series, with many units having their own variant designs.MSV's origin = Zaku, Dengeki Hobby July 2007 Most of these units can be classified by the code given to it. There are Type A, B, C, D, E, E-3, F, F2, Fs, FZ, G, H, J, K, M, R-1, R-1A, R-2, RD-4, S, T, V, W, Z and various colour scheme featuring different pilots' colouring like World War I flying aces. Also, an official parody version called Saku is featured in a few games and manga.
Saku First appeared online as a fan parody, later officially in the Gundam Ace magazine. The unit was a parody of the original Zaku II, but is much cheaper and was mass-produced in a much greater number than the original Zaku II. Its head has the katakana sign "Zi", the original word for "Zeon". It was a single pill-shaped body and head with a drawn mono-eye, with rope-like limbs and a "mouth" like an octopus. A red "Char Custom" version saku with a horn (antenna) is the leader of a large squad of green saku, and unknown named horned blue ones are a parody of the MS-07 Gouf.
MS-06F Zaku II
First appearing in Mobile Suit Gundam, the Zaku II Type F is by far the most common variant of the Zaku II seen in the One Year War. It saw action both on Earth and in space. Overall, more than 3000 units are known to have been manufactured and deployed during the war.
MS-06F2 Zaku II Type F2
First appeared in Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory, design by Hajime Katoki. Near the end of the One Year War, the Zeonic Company introduced an upgraded version of the MS-06F Zaku II, called MS-06F2 or Type F2. This upgraded model featured improved armor around the cockpit and a new Minovsky fusion reactor approximately 4% more powerful than the regular F-type's. It was also lighter than the previous model, making it more fuel efficient and giving it a longer flight time and overall improved performance. After the One Year War, F2s were still in use. Some were retained by Zeon remnants and units captured by the Federation, which were usually used as aggressor units in squadrons conducting pilot training and mobile suit field testing.
MS-06FZ Zaku II Last Mass Production Type (Zaku Kai)
First appeared in Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket, designed by Yutaka Izubuchi. Developed very late during the One Year War as part of the "United Maintenance Plan", the MS-06FZ Zaku II Kai () was an improved and redesigned version of the Zaku II. The United Maintenance Plan was an effort by the Zeon military to simplify the production of their different types of mobile suits by standardizing parts and systems where possible.
Due to the MS-06FZ Zaku II Kai's late introduction into the One Year War, only a handful of the units were produced. Few, if any, of the mobile suits survived the war. Originally, the OVA staff for Gundam 0080 intended for the FZ to be a retcon revision to the Zaku II. The Toy arm of Bandai came up with a separate backstory in order to keep selling both the 1979 and the new Zaku as model kits. The picture book MS Era illustrated by the same team still depicts the original concept.M.S. Era - The Documentary Photographs Of The One Year War - Mobile Suit Gundam 0001~0080 (1990.3.30, Bandai, )
MS-06S Zaku II Commander Type
Design by Kunio Okawara, the MS-06S Zaku II Commander Type (also known as the Zaku II Custom in some sources) looks very similar to the normal Zaku: so much so that the Earth Federation can generally only tell the difference from color schemes most pilots apply to their units and the increased performance of this version.
The S-Type Zaku II features a squad-leader "horn" that is mounted on the head of the Zaku II, which is used to distinguish squad leaders or higher-ranking pilots from other squad members or lower-ranking pilots. It also featured a more powerful fusion reactor. In turn, the S-Type Zaku II had greater thrust and acceleration. This allowed them to move at speeds 1/3 faster than an average Zaku II (in the original TV series, it was stated to be three times faster, but this was retconned in the movie trilogy to the more reasonable figure). This made it incredibly dangerous in the hands of the ace pilots it was handed out to, such as the "Red Comet" Char Aznable, who sank five warships during the Battle of Loum during the One Year War and whose mobile suit was painted in a fade tonality of red and pink.
Land Type variations
MS-06J Zaku II Ground Type