Anavel Gato (アナベル・ガトー Anaberu Gatō?) is a character who appears in Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory. A Zeon ace pilot, he serves as the series' main antagonist.
Personality and Character
Although Gato is the series' nominal antagonist, he is a man of honor and a soldier through and through who cares for his comrades, and seeks to vindicate the memory of his friends and family who died at the hands of the Earth Federation. He is a charismatic leader, doing his part to rally the Zeon remnants, both in and outside the Delaz Fleet, to support Operation Stardust and fight one last crusade against the Federation (even if it meant dying in the process). The fact he is willing to fight alongside others on the frontlines only endears his men further, and while he holds nothing but hatred for the Federation, he still respects those who fight for it; in fact, he demonstratively sees his opponents simply as misguided, believing that they are sacrificing their lives for a corrupt regime, rather than objects of hatred. Along with this, Gato also recognized skilled and/or determined opponents as equals, as shown with his treatment of Kou Uraki after their duel at Solomon.
History
One Year War and Aftermath
Anavel Gato was a member of the Principality of Zeon's elite palace guard unit, the 302nd Patrol Squad. During the One Year War, at the Battle of Solomon, Gato earned the nickname "Nightmare of Solomon" for singlehandedly holding off an Earth Federation pursuit force while Zeon forces retreat; among his actions was coming to the aid of the Zeon regiment Marchosias when they were about to be overwhelmed by Federation ships. Rumor has it that Gato was lured away from the main battle due to the misconception that the Gundam had been destroyed. During the Battle of A Baoa Qu he joins Aiguille Delaz's fleet, and withdraws with Delaz after Gihren Zabi's assassination.
At some point after the war, he became lovers with Nina Purpleton.
Operation Stardust
Gato returns to the Earth in October of 0083 U.C. as a part of Operation Stardust. He infiltrates Torrington Base to seize the RX-78GP02A Gundam "Physalis", one of the Federation's two new Gundam prototypes, and its equipped nuclear warhead. Though pursued by Federation forces, Gato is able to escape back to space and rendezvous with the Delaz Fleet.
Gato returns to Solomon, since captured by the Federation and renamed Konpei Island. There, the Federation is conducting its Naval Review. Armed with the GP-02's nuclear weapon, he fires upon the Federation fleet, destroying two-thirds of it.
| “ | For the rebirth of the ideals of Zeon. For the success of Operation Stardust! Solomon, I have returned! | ” |
—Anavel Gato, Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory | ||
Throughout Operation Stardust, he repeatedly clashes with the Federation pilot Kou Uraki. At first Gato views Kou as insignificant, but develops a grudging respect for him after their second battle at Konpei Island. During this confrontation, the GP-02 is destroyed. Shortly thereafter, Gato meets with Yuri Hasler of the Axis Advance Fleet, and receives the AMX-002 Neue Ziel.
Gato plays a key role in the ultimate colony drop, as he reprograms the thrusters to enable the colony to fall on North America. In the midst of this he is confronted by Nina, who pleads with him to stop; and then Kou, who shoots him. Gato is mortally wounded by the shot, but is able to return the Neue Ziel. Rather than escape, however, he waits for Kou to emerge in his RX-78GP03 Gundam "Dendrobium" and engages him in a final duel. Their duel is interrupted when they are fired upon by Bask Om, using the new Solar System II.
Gato survives the blast, but finds himself surrounded by Federation Forces. Rather than surrender, Gato orders the remaining Zeon troops to charge for the Axis Advanced Fleet. Although they fight bravely, most of the Zeon pilots attempting to break through Federation lines are killed, including Gato, who chooses to kamikaze the Neue Ziel into one of the Federation's Salamis-class cruisers.
During Operation Stardust, Gato has command of his own fleet, which is centered around Gato's flagship, the Musai-class cruiser Peer Gynt. His fleet is destroyed at the conclusion of the operation.
Gallery
Manga
![Anavel Gato as seen on Gundam: Char's Deleted Affair [C.D.A] ~ Portrait of Young Comet](/wiki/File:Qpage120.jpg "Qpage120.jpg (206 KB)")
Notes & Trivia
- Gato's call sign "Walfisch" is the name of an uninhabited German island, in the Bay of Wismar in the Baltic Sea. Walfisch also means 'whale' in German.
- Gato's Japanese voice actor, Akio Otsuka, also voiced Elmer Snell in Mobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOO 2: The Gravity Front.
- Gato appeared as an NPC in Dynasty Warriors Gundam, piloting his custom Gelgoog. He returns as a playable character in Dynasty Warriors Gundam 3, piloting the RX-78GP02A Gundam "Physalis".
- Kirk Thornton reprises his role as Gato in the game's English dub, though he is credited using the pseudonym "Clair Ramsay".
- In the PS2 video game Mobile Suit Gundam: Encounters in Space, Gato's Gelgoog is depicted as using a unique prototype beam rifle which is longer and more powerful than the standard Gelgoog rifle.
- The prototype beam rifle also appears in various SD Gundam G Generation games.
- In Mobile Suit Gundam: Encounters in Space, in Mission 2 in Gato's Ace Pilot story, Char Aznable will offer support in the MSN-02 Zeong. Gato will poke fun of the fact that the Zeong has no legs, and Char will simply reply, "According to the engineers, the legs were just for show."
- Gato is one of the two Zeon Pilots who stole a Gundam from the Earth Federation; the other one is Nimbus Schterzen.
- In a "what-if" scenario in Mobile Suit Gundam: Encounters in Space, Gato engages Amuro Ray during the Battle of Solomon. Although the battle between the two ends in a stalemate, Amuro comments that Gato could have finished him off if their battle had gone on longer.
- In the Super Robot Wars games, Gato is always introduced via the GP-02 hijack. However, his role in the plot is sometimes altered or expanded, and he can even become an ally.
- In SRW3, it's possible to have Gato not only as a temporary ally, but also as a permanent cast member. To have him as a temporary ally, the player must come to his aid when Gates Capa attempts to kill him. Gato will acknowledge the courtesy and leave without further incident. Later, when he discovers the that Divine Crusaders are secretly planning to ally with the alien invaders known as the Inspectors, he will fire the nuclear warhead of the GP-02 into their ranks, substantially thinning them out for the player before disappearing, citing disgust with how the DC has abandoned its ideals. He can later join permanently, as while he's still loyal to the ideals of Zeon, he cannot abide how the DC has corrupted them, though this route is not canon.
- He can be eligible as a guest reinforcement but not playable in SRW Alpha 1. However, he returns as an antagonist in Alpha 2, working with Char Aznable to drop Axis, and canonically dies in this game.
- The much reviled scene towards the end of 0083 involving Nina betraying Kou for Gato is always averted in some manner, often with Gato assuring Kou that his and Nina's relationship was in the past.
References
External links
Stardust Memory characters
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|---|---|---|
| Earth Federation | Albion | Kou Uraki | Chuck Keith | South Burning | Eyphar Sinapus | Alpha A. Bait | Bernard Monsha | Chap Adel | Mora Boscht | Akram Harida | Ivan Paserov | Jacqueline Simone | Peter Scott | William Morris |
| John Cowen | Alloys Mozley | Dick Allen | Raban Karcs | Kalent | Green Wyatt | Hawkins Marnery | Gene Coliny | Nakohha Nakato | Y. Bicock | Jamitov Hymen | Bask Om | ||
| Zeon Remnants | Anavel Gato | Aiguille Delaz | Cima Garahau | Neuen Bitter | Gaily | Adamski | Bob | Karius Otto | Bily Glardle | Draize | Heintz | Bergman | Deatroaf Kocsel | Kult | Wolfgang Wall | Yuri Hasler | |
| Anaheim Electronics | Nina Purpleton | Kurena Hacksell | Lucette Audevie | Nick Orville | O'Sullivan | Poral Guilish | |
| Von Braun | Kelley Layzner | Latuera Chapra | Peter Purpleton | Joshua Purpleton | |
Template:Universal Century characters