Newtype
Encyclopedia
A Newtype is theorized to be the next stage of human evolution in the fictional Gundam
universe. This minor but groundbreaking metamorphosis is usually expressed as a heightened mental awareness, the result of an evolutionary adaptation to life in space.
Newtypes are an integral part of the Universal Century
timeline (chronologically the first), but the same concept is also present in the After War timeline.
s; cannon fodder
for greedy politicians and violent militarists, creating even more war and destruction.
Various characters state that the exploitation of the Newtype is due to fear of them by the Oldtypes, as they represent humanity's next step of evolution and the Oldtypes are merely relics of the past. A great example of this is the signature Gundam pilot of the metaverse, Amuro Ray
. Although he is the hero of the One Year War
, the first great mobile suit war, he barely climbs the ranks above lieutenant commander
in his entire military career, and it is implied to be due to the Federation government's mistrust due to his Newtype status. Well into the very late incarnations of the Universal Century timeline, Newtypes remain as rare an occurrence as they were during the One Year War, facilitating a curious cycle of weapons development, in which highly specialized newtype-use weapons are developed, and repeatedly phased out, as fielding people capable of using such weapons in significant numbers remains consistently impossible.
was Lalah Sune
, introduced in the original series. Being one of the earliest and most successful known Newtypes, her powers are accompanied by a profound spiritual awareness. Like Amuro, she was born on Earth, as Char had found her in India
.
The most famous Newtype is Amuro Ray
, protagonist of the first series
. While Amuro develops into a powerful Newtype, he relies just as much, if not more so, on his superb proficiency with machineries, outstanding battle tactics and inherent piloting skill than on his Newtype abilities. Even regardless he is considered the most formidable pilot among the Newtypes because his own mobile suits are unable to keep up with his ability. Later into the U.C. history, even AI
systems designed upon Amuro's piloting data (such as Jupiter Empire's Amakusa mobile suit) presents a formidable opponent for many powerful Newtype pilots.
The Gundam metaverse's character Char Aznable
is implied to be not a particularly powerful Newtype at all. Char developed his formidable combat ability only after years of combat experience, and becomes recognized as a newtype after Amuro's own progression. Char is first and foremost a planner and strategist, fields he excels at without any relation to Newtype capabilities. Although his Newtype abilities were not as powerful as Amuro's, Char was one of the very few who posed a threat to Amuro.
The most powerful Newtype is Kamille Bidan, the pilot of the Zeta Gundam in Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam
. Many have considered Kamille to have the most powerful Newtype abilities in all of Gundam, as he has shown many remarkable abilities such as summoning the ghosts of dead characters and utilizing the Zeta Gundam's bio-sensor to power the MS to phenomenal levels. Unlike other characters, Kamille initially started out as a powerful Newtype, to the point Char thought of Amuro Ray
or Lalah Sune
when he first sensed Kamille at Green Noa 1. Kamille exhibits the highest amount of raw Newtype ability and energy of almost any U.C. protagonist, but he also experiences the most emotional vulnerabilities.
Another powerful Newtype pilot is Judau Ashta of Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ
, the pilot of the titular MS, who like Kamille is considered to be a powerful Newtype. Despite his inexperience and youth, Judau exhibits a high amount of raw Newtype ability, able to frighten off and demoralize Haman Karn, who was reduced to tears despite herself being a formidable Newtype.
The crew of White Base
are later revealed to be newtypes though at a primitive level; enough to be classified as a newtype, but not enough to actually augment their combat prowess.
, the founder of the space colony-based Republic of Zeon, created his philosophy: mankind was destined to leave the Earth for space, where they would evolve into a new stage of evolution, called the Newtype. Newtypes possess special abilities to understand others, hence promoting harmony and tolerance, and would be able to eliminate all wars and ensure peace.
This philosophy was accepted by many people to the point that it became superstition, and it became a name for those with strange and exceptional abilities. Hence when enhanced psychic potential manifested in certain individuals in the One Year War
, the idea that Newtypes were evolved humans with psychic abilities as a result of the movement to space began to stick. Unenhanced human beings, by opposition, became known by the retronym
Oldtype.
During the One Year War
, Zeon Deikun's theory was manipulated by Gihren Zabi
in order to further his own ideals of Side 3 superiorism, which his father Degwin Zabi
described as being utterly fascist.
As time passed, despite the ongoing space migration, the number of new naturally occurring Newtypes remained fairly stable. However, as their destiny had been transformed from the "future of mankind" to living weapons forced to fight in war, artificially created Newtypes began to outnumber them. By the time of the second Neo Zeon movement (Char's Counterattack), it was somewhat doubtful whether these Newtypes were the same as the legendary ones found in Deikun's theory.
Furthermore, many ambitious warmongers, such as Paptimus Scirocco from Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam
and Crux Dogatie from Mobile Suit Crossbone Gundam
, are powerful Newtypes who have no intentions to promote peace. This greatly contradicts Deikun's theory that Newtypes are humanity's hope of eliminating wars. Another possible contradiction to Deikun's theory is that some famous Newtypes, such as Amuro Ray
, Paptimus Scirocco, and possibly Tobia Arronax (Crossbone Gundam
, Newtype level 5 confirmed in G Generation F), were born on Earth instead of space. It though should be noted that while both Amuro Ray and Paptimus Scirocco were born on Earth they did indeed spent most of their years in space. Paptimus residing with the Jupiter Energy Fleet, and Amuro being a resident of the Side 7 colony (but displaying his first Newtype ability while on Earth). So in retrospect, it could be possible that living in space during the developmental stages of their lives helped assist or had a distinctive effect in growth or the formation of their newtype abilities. However, the nature of Newtypes and the evolutionary cycle associated with the phenomena are still disputed. It is doubted by some as to if Newtypes are exactly the same as Deikun originally envisioned them.
The research into psycommu started when it was discovered that brainwaves can bypass radio interference created by Minovsky particles. The Principality of Zeon began researching into these phenomena, and developed the first psycommu system to be used exclusively by Newtypes.
In essence, a psycommu system works by passively scanning the brainwaves of newtypes, and then translating these brainwaves into raw machine codes. Since brainwaves are not affected by Minovsky particles, at first it was mainly used to mentally control remote weapons, usually mounted with a single beam gun. This enabled the resurrection of BVR engagements (which was thought to be abolished since the introduction of Minovsky particles), leading to the development of remotely controlled weapons capable of attacking targets without visual contact. Some mobile weapons, such as MSN-02 Zeong
and MAN-03 Braw Bro, used psycommu system to operate wire-controlled mega-particle cannons, while other later designs, such as MAN-08 Elmeth and AMX-004 Qubeley, utilized wireless weapons called bits and funnels. Later on, the psycommu system was also used to improve response time of the pilot.
The exact mechanism in how psycommu works has never been documented, spawning several theories surrounding it. One of which advanced by Dengeki Hobby Magazine
is that much of the bulk of the system are in fact containment and organic tissue support units for cloned brain tissues cultivated and tuned to specific pilot. This however conflicts with the description of Psycoframe where it is strongly suggested to be of non-organic in nature.
In U.C. 0087, the psycommu system was designed to interface the Newtype pilot with a mobile suit, called a bio-sensor. The bio-sensor amplified the power, speed and strength of the mobile suit for a short period of time, and in some cases used the psychic power as a weapon, when the pilot was mentally and emotionally distraught, usually when angry or upset.
NTT Communication
Gundam
The is a metaseries of anime created by Sunrise studios that features giant robots called "Mobile Suits" ; usually the protagonist's MS will carry the name Gundam....
universe. This minor but groundbreaking metamorphosis is usually expressed as a heightened mental awareness, the result of an evolutionary adaptation to life in space.
Newtypes are an integral part of the Universal Century
Universal Century
is the original timeline of the Gundam anime metaseries. The official English name U.C. is often used instead in recent production like MS Igloo and Master Grade model instructions and official pages is the original timeline of the Gundam anime metaseries. The official English name U.C....
timeline (chronologically the first), but the same concept is also present in the After War timeline.
Distinguishing characteristics
Newtypes have an extremely high degree of spatial awareness. Some but not all, are capable of empathically detecting other Newtypes, and are sensitive to the hostile intentions directed at them by others, allowing them to uncannily preemptively react to such dangers. This effect is often depicted in the anime series as a white bolt flashing across their forehead with an accompanying sound effect, a phenomenon referred to as a "Newtype flash".Newtypes and society
One of the Universal Century's greatest social conflicts is the exploitation of these advanced humans. Heralded by scientists and philosophers upon their discovery as a beacon of hope for the future of humanity, the various series of the U.C. timeline show that these humans have merely become pawnPawn (chess)
The pawn is the most numerous and weakest piece in the game of chess, historically representing infantry, or more particularly armed peasants or pikemen. Each player begins the game with eight pawns, one on each square of the rank immediately in front of the other pieces...
s; cannon fodder
Cannon fodder
Cannon fodder is an informal, derogatory term for military personnel who are regarded or treated as expendable in the face of enemy fire. The term is generally used in situations where soldiers are forced to deliberately fight against hopeless odds in an effort to achieve a strategic goal...
for greedy politicians and violent militarists, creating even more war and destruction.
Various characters state that the exploitation of the Newtype is due to fear of them by the Oldtypes, as they represent humanity's next step of evolution and the Oldtypes are merely relics of the past. A great example of this is the signature Gundam pilot of the metaverse, Amuro Ray
Amuro Ray
is a fictional character from the anime series Mobile Suit Gundam and its sequels, Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam and Char's Counterattack, voiced by Tōru Furuya , Brad Swaile , Michael Lindsay and Matthew Erickson is a fictional character from the anime series Mobile Suit Gundam and its sequels, Mobile...
. Although he is the hero of the One Year War
One Year War
The is a fictional conflict from the Universal Century timeline of the anime Mobile Suit Gundam metaseries. The One Year War is very similar to World War II, the major difference being that The One Year War is in a science fiction setting and some major battles occurred in space...
, the first great mobile suit war, he barely climbs the ranks above lieutenant commander
Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant Commander is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander...
in his entire military career, and it is implied to be due to the Federation government's mistrust due to his Newtype status. Well into the very late incarnations of the Universal Century timeline, Newtypes remain as rare an occurrence as they were during the One Year War, facilitating a curious cycle of weapons development, in which highly specialized newtype-use weapons are developed, and repeatedly phased out, as fielding people capable of using such weapons in significant numbers remains consistently impossible.
Notable Newtypes
The earliest Newtype to be introduced in Mobile Suit GundamMobile Suit Gundam
is a televised anime series, created by Sunrise. Created and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, it premiered in Japan on Nagoya Broadcasting Network on April 7, 1979, and lasted until January 26, 1980, spanning 43 episodes...
was Lalah Sune
Lalah Sune
is a fictional character from the anime series Mobile Suit Gundam.-Fictional Character Biography:Lalah is a young woman who is the "star student" of Professor Flanagan due to her strong Newtype abilities, and as such is also one of the key test subjects in the development of Newtype-related weaponry...
, introduced in the original series. Being one of the earliest and most successful known Newtypes, her powers are accompanied by a profound spiritual awareness. Like Amuro, she was born on Earth, as Char had found her in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.
The most famous Newtype is Amuro Ray
Amuro Ray
is a fictional character from the anime series Mobile Suit Gundam and its sequels, Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam and Char's Counterattack, voiced by Tōru Furuya , Brad Swaile , Michael Lindsay and Matthew Erickson is a fictional character from the anime series Mobile Suit Gundam and its sequels, Mobile...
, protagonist of the first series
Mobile Suit Gundam
is a televised anime series, created by Sunrise. Created and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, it premiered in Japan on Nagoya Broadcasting Network on April 7, 1979, and lasted until January 26, 1980, spanning 43 episodes...
. While Amuro develops into a powerful Newtype, he relies just as much, if not more so, on his superb proficiency with machineries, outstanding battle tactics and inherent piloting skill than on his Newtype abilities. Even regardless he is considered the most formidable pilot among the Newtypes because his own mobile suits are unable to keep up with his ability. Later into the U.C. history, even AI
Artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence is the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it. AI textbooks define the field as "the study and design of intelligent agents" where an intelligent agent is a system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its...
systems designed upon Amuro's piloting data (such as Jupiter Empire's Amakusa mobile suit) presents a formidable opponent for many powerful Newtype pilots.
The Gundam metaverse's character Char Aznable
Char Aznable
, born is a fictional character from the Gundam franchise. He is originally one of the main antagonists in Mobile Suit Gundam and later becomes one of the protagonists of Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam. In his final appearance in Char's Counterattack, he assumes leadership of the Neo Zeon movement,...
is implied to be not a particularly powerful Newtype at all. Char developed his formidable combat ability only after years of combat experience, and becomes recognized as a newtype after Amuro's own progression. Char is first and foremost a planner and strategist, fields he excels at without any relation to Newtype capabilities. Although his Newtype abilities were not as powerful as Amuro's, Char was one of the very few who posed a threat to Amuro.
The most powerful Newtype is Kamille Bidan, the pilot of the Zeta Gundam in Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam
Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam
is a television anime, part of the Gundam series and a sequel to the original Mobile Suit Gundam. The show was created and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, with character designs by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko, while the series' mechanical designs is split amongst Kunio Okawara, Mamoru Nagano, and Kazumi Fujita...
. Many have considered Kamille to have the most powerful Newtype abilities in all of Gundam, as he has shown many remarkable abilities such as summoning the ghosts of dead characters and utilizing the Zeta Gundam's bio-sensor to power the MS to phenomenal levels. Unlike other characters, Kamille initially started out as a powerful Newtype, to the point Char thought of Amuro Ray
Amuro Ray
is a fictional character from the anime series Mobile Suit Gundam and its sequels, Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam and Char's Counterattack, voiced by Tōru Furuya , Brad Swaile , Michael Lindsay and Matthew Erickson is a fictional character from the anime series Mobile Suit Gundam and its sequels, Mobile...
or Lalah Sune
Lalah Sune
is a fictional character from the anime series Mobile Suit Gundam.-Fictional Character Biography:Lalah is a young woman who is the "star student" of Professor Flanagan due to her strong Newtype abilities, and as such is also one of the key test subjects in the development of Newtype-related weaponry...
when he first sensed Kamille at Green Noa 1. Kamille exhibits the highest amount of raw Newtype ability and energy of almost any U.C. protagonist, but he also experiences the most emotional vulnerabilities.
Another powerful Newtype pilot is Judau Ashta of Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ
Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ
is a TV series aired on Japanese TV from 1986–1987, was the third Gundam series, and a direct follow up to Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam. Director Yoshiyuki Tomino returned to lead the series, and he assembled a new team consisting of character designer Hiroyuki Kitazume, who had been one of Zeta...
, the pilot of the titular MS, who like Kamille is considered to be a powerful Newtype. Despite his inexperience and youth, Judau exhibits a high amount of raw Newtype ability, able to frighten off and demoralize Haman Karn, who was reduced to tears despite herself being a formidable Newtype.
The crew of White Base
White Base
The White Base is a fictional spaceship from the Japanese science fiction anime series Mobile Suit Gundam. It serves as the mothership of the protagonist crew members and the famous mobile suit Gundam...
are later revealed to be newtypes though at a primitive level; enough to be classified as a newtype, but not enough to actually augment their combat prowess.
Newtypes in the Universal Century
The word Newtype first came into being when Zeon Zum DeikunZeon Zum Deikun
is a philosopher and politician in the fictional Gundam stories, in which he developed Contolism, which was both about Ere-ism and Side-ism . This philosophy was welcomed by Side 3 , which made him leader of the Side...
, the founder of the space colony-based Republic of Zeon, created his philosophy: mankind was destined to leave the Earth for space, where they would evolve into a new stage of evolution, called the Newtype. Newtypes possess special abilities to understand others, hence promoting harmony and tolerance, and would be able to eliminate all wars and ensure peace.
This philosophy was accepted by many people to the point that it became superstition, and it became a name for those with strange and exceptional abilities. Hence when enhanced psychic potential manifested in certain individuals in the One Year War
One Year War
The is a fictional conflict from the Universal Century timeline of the anime Mobile Suit Gundam metaseries. The One Year War is very similar to World War II, the major difference being that The One Year War is in a science fiction setting and some major battles occurred in space...
, the idea that Newtypes were evolved humans with psychic abilities as a result of the movement to space began to stick. Unenhanced human beings, by opposition, became known by the retronym
Retronym
A retronym is a type of neologism that provides a new name for an object or concept to differentiate the original form or version of it from a more recent form or version. The original name is most often augmented with an adjective to account for later developments of the object or concept itself...
Oldtype.
During the One Year War
One Year War
The is a fictional conflict from the Universal Century timeline of the anime Mobile Suit Gundam metaseries. The One Year War is very similar to World War II, the major difference being that The One Year War is in a science fiction setting and some major battles occurred in space...
, Zeon Deikun's theory was manipulated by Gihren Zabi
Gihren Zabi
is a fictional character, and antagonist from the universe of the Gundam anime series. He was voiced by the veteran seiyu, Banjo Ginga in the original Japanese version. In the English dubbed series and movie adaptations the character was voiced by Hiro Kanagawa and Doug Stone respectively.American...
in order to further his own ideals of Side 3 superiorism, which his father Degwin Zabi
Degwin Sodo Zabi
is a fictional character in the anime Mobile Suit Gundam universe. He was the absolute dictator of the Principality of Zeon and came to power in UC 0068 after the suspicious death of Zeon Zum Deikun.- Rise to Power :...
described as being utterly fascist.
As time passed, despite the ongoing space migration, the number of new naturally occurring Newtypes remained fairly stable. However, as their destiny had been transformed from the "future of mankind" to living weapons forced to fight in war, artificially created Newtypes began to outnumber them. By the time of the second Neo Zeon movement (Char's Counterattack), it was somewhat doubtful whether these Newtypes were the same as the legendary ones found in Deikun's theory.
Furthermore, many ambitious warmongers, such as Paptimus Scirocco from Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam
Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam
is a television anime, part of the Gundam series and a sequel to the original Mobile Suit Gundam. The show was created and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, with character designs by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko, while the series' mechanical designs is split amongst Kunio Okawara, Mamoru Nagano, and Kazumi Fujita...
and Crux Dogatie from Mobile Suit Crossbone Gundam
Mobile Suit Crossbone Gundam
is a six volume manga written by Yoshiyuki Tomino and illustrated by Yuichi Hasegawa.-Overview:Crossbone takes place ten years after Mobile Suit Gundam F91, and multiple characters from that movie return as main characters within the manga. The manga has never been officially distributed outside of...
, are powerful Newtypes who have no intentions to promote peace. This greatly contradicts Deikun's theory that Newtypes are humanity's hope of eliminating wars. Another possible contradiction to Deikun's theory is that some famous Newtypes, such as Amuro Ray
Amuro Ray
is a fictional character from the anime series Mobile Suit Gundam and its sequels, Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam and Char's Counterattack, voiced by Tōru Furuya , Brad Swaile , Michael Lindsay and Matthew Erickson is a fictional character from the anime series Mobile Suit Gundam and its sequels, Mobile...
, Paptimus Scirocco, and possibly Tobia Arronax (Crossbone Gundam
Mobile Suit Crossbone Gundam
is a six volume manga written by Yoshiyuki Tomino and illustrated by Yuichi Hasegawa.-Overview:Crossbone takes place ten years after Mobile Suit Gundam F91, and multiple characters from that movie return as main characters within the manga. The manga has never been officially distributed outside of...
, Newtype level 5 confirmed in G Generation F), were born on Earth instead of space. It though should be noted that while both Amuro Ray and Paptimus Scirocco were born on Earth they did indeed spent most of their years in space. Paptimus residing with the Jupiter Energy Fleet, and Amuro being a resident of the Side 7 colony (but displaying his first Newtype ability while on Earth). So in retrospect, it could be possible that living in space during the developmental stages of their lives helped assist or had a distinctive effect in growth or the formation of their newtype abilities. However, the nature of Newtypes and the evolutionary cycle associated with the phenomena are still disputed. It is doubted by some as to if Newtypes are exactly the same as Deikun originally envisioned them.
Newtypes as soldiers
Not long into their discovery, the combat potential of the Newtype is quickly exploited by various military factions. With mechanical sensors equipped on their mobile suit, the newtype pilots' ability allows them to directly control their own mobile suits with their mind, so that the machine 's movement and dodging ability will not be limited by the pilot's two hands. Various technologies allowed these Newtypes to operate remotely controlled weapons known as "bits" and "funnels", which would be far too complicated to be operated by hand (until computer assisted versions come to play in the future). Some systems even allow Newtypes to control entire Mobile Suits or Armors just with the power of their mind, although this would require an exceptionally powerful Newtype, with significant risks. Many types of interfaces have also been designed for Newtype use, such as psycommu, psycoframe, bio-sensor and bio-computer.Psycommu system
A psycommu (psychic communicator) is a device able to directly interpret the user's thoughts by picking up their brainwaves. When coupled with adequate computerization, the user can manipulate various equipments using his/her mind alone.The research into psycommu started when it was discovered that brainwaves can bypass radio interference created by Minovsky particles. The Principality of Zeon began researching into these phenomena, and developed the first psycommu system to be used exclusively by Newtypes.
In essence, a psycommu system works by passively scanning the brainwaves of newtypes, and then translating these brainwaves into raw machine codes. Since brainwaves are not affected by Minovsky particles, at first it was mainly used to mentally control remote weapons, usually mounted with a single beam gun. This enabled the resurrection of BVR engagements (which was thought to be abolished since the introduction of Minovsky particles), leading to the development of remotely controlled weapons capable of attacking targets without visual contact. Some mobile weapons, such as MSN-02 Zeong
MSN-02 Zeong
The MSN-02 Zeong is a fictional mobile suit designed by Kunio Okawara for the anime Mobile Suit Gundam. It has also appeared in many video games and other media, including, but not limited to, the PlayStation 2 titles Federation vs...
and MAN-03 Braw Bro, used psycommu system to operate wire-controlled mega-particle cannons, while other later designs, such as MAN-08 Elmeth and AMX-004 Qubeley, utilized wireless weapons called bits and funnels. Later on, the psycommu system was also used to improve response time of the pilot.
The exact mechanism in how psycommu works has never been documented, spawning several theories surrounding it. One of which advanced by Dengeki Hobby Magazine
Dengeki Hobby Magazine
is a Japanese magazine published by ASCII Media Works centering around information relating to plastic models. It first went on sale on November 25, 1998...
is that much of the bulk of the system are in fact containment and organic tissue support units for cloned brain tissues cultivated and tuned to specific pilot. This however conflicts with the description of Psycoframe where it is strongly suggested to be of non-organic in nature.
In U.C. 0087, the psycommu system was designed to interface the Newtype pilot with a mobile suit, called a bio-sensor. The bio-sensor amplified the power, speed and strength of the mobile suit for a short period of time, and in some cases used the psychic power as a weapon, when the pilot was mentally and emotionally distraught, usually when angry or upset.
Cultural influence
The new DACS (Divert & Attitude Control System) created by the Japan Self Defense Forces in December, 2006 was quoted as an attempt to create the funnel system in real life.NTT Communication
- NTT Communication research centre is currently researching real-life psycommu system and have set up a New Type Technology Lab sub-titled Flanagan Agency (named after the agency of the same name set up by ZeonZeonIn the television anime Mobile Suit Gundam universe, Zeon can refer to the Republic of Zeon, the Principality of Zeon or Neo Zeon. It is also referred to as the Duchy of Zeon or the Zeon Dukedom...
in Mobile Suit GundamMobile Suit Gundamis a televised anime series, created by Sunrise. Created and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, it premiered in Japan on Nagoya Broadcasting Network on April 7, 1979, and lasted until January 26, 1980, spanning 43 episodes...
).