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Disambiguation:

Tem Ray (テム・レイ Temu Rei?) is a fictional character from the Mobile Suit Gundam television series. He is chief engineer of the Earth Federation's Project V and the father of mobile suit pilot Amuro Ray.

History[]

Tem Ray was born on Earth, where he lived with his wife Kamaria and their son Amuro. Sometime before the outbreak of the One Year War, Tem was called up by the Earth Federation to do weapons research under the guise of colony construction. He intended to move with his family to Side 7, a space colony, but Kamaria declined, and so only Tem and Amuro moved to Side 7.

During the One Year War, he became the chief engineer of Project V, a military armaments plan to create the Federation's first prototype mobile suits, and was to oversee their design, construction and transport to Earth.

However, the Principality of Zeon learned of the mobile suits within Side 7, and a small team was sent to destroy the mobile suits before they could be loaded aboard the White Base carrier. In the ensuing chaos and evacuation of the colony, Tem's son commandeered the second Gundam unit constructed in the colony and fought the Zeon's Zakus. The resulting explosion caused by one of the Zakus' reactors being destroyed blew a large hole in the body of the colony, and Tem, unequipped for extended time in outer space, was sucked out into the vacuum, apparently to his death.

Tem Ray managed to survive the accident and was taken to the neutral colony of Side 6; however, the extended period of time he was in space led him to suffer from oxygen deprivation, wrecking his mind and leaving him delusional and prone to mood swings. When Amuro meets his father on Side 6, he congratulates his son on a job well done and gives him a piece of circuitry that he claims will drastically increase the Gundam's power; however, Amuro recognized it as nothing more than a useless piece of junk.

Aftermath[]

Tem's final fate is left ambiguous. In the TV series, he watches the battle just outside of Side 6's space and celebrates his creation's victory over Zeon forces. In the third compilation film, he celebrates then stumbles head-first down the stairwell that lead to his apartment. It is unknown whether he died from the fall or was simply knocked out.

Gallery[]

Trivia[]

  • In Gihren's Ambition: The Menace of Axis V, Tem Ray establishes his own faction in a what-if campaign, composed entirely of engineers and scientists. The faction is able to build every single mobile suit (as a combination of Tem Ray's genius and the various scientists) in the game, including a unique unit, the Gundam Tem Ray Custom, but is heavily set-back by a lack of good pilots.
  • Many games play on Tem Ray's helplessness in the field of science and mobile suit development since his mental deterioration:
    • The piece of junk he built actually appears in Super Robot Wars Alpha and many other strategy-type Gundam games, however it usually has a negative effect on the stats of the mobile suit that equips it. In Super Robot Wars Alpha, this item, called "Tem Ray's Circuit", gives the equipped unit a penalty to mobility but reduces the repair cost of the unit if it is destroyed to nearly nothing. Ironically, when the item appeared in Super Robot Wars 30, it ditches the penalty and repair cost drop in favor of better stats, making it the second best non-purchasable item outside of the Haro. In the DLC mission where the players can obtain the RX-93-ν2 Hi-ν Gundam, Amuro does express the irony of how he dismissed the piece of junk then when, years later, part of his work came back to help him.
    • In Dynasty Warriors Gundam, Tem Ray is one of the scientists who can give the player upgrades for his/her unit. However, all of his upgrades only raise stats about 1-3 points, compared to the 10-20 points given by the others.
    • In Dynasty Warriors Gundam Reborn, he appears in the "Develop the Legendary Plan Upgrade" as the proprietor of the search, which required 100 plans. However, once given the plans, the supposed upgrade he develops appears far older than the modern plans and is suspected to be defective. He similarly appears in the DLC mission "1 Suit, 10,000 Enemies" where having survived the One Year War in this mission's story, he gives another of his defective circuits to Zeta-era Amuro. In the mission's end scene, Tem watches Amuro and his Gundam's battle on TV and celebrates the Gundam's power, the Federation's might and what he believes was his circuit's usefulness, little knowing that neither Amuro nor the Federation ever bothered using it.
  • In SD Gundam: Scad Hammers, he is obsessed with the Gundam Hammer and ignores every other weapon when developing the RX-78-2 Gundam. Ironically, this results in him managing to safely escape from Side 7 on the White Base. His relationship with Amuro is also portrayed in comical manner, a crazy scientist and a rebellious son.
  • Both appearance-wise and storyline-wise, Tem resembles Kentaro Goh, the father of the main character in Voltes V. Tomino worked on Voltes V as producer before he created Mobile Suit Gundam.

References[]

Earth Federation White Base Amuro Ray · Bright Noa · Sayla Mass · Hayato Kobayashi · Kai Shiden · Ryu Jose · Fraw Bow · Mirai Yashima · Sleggar Law · Marker Clan · Oscar Dublin · Omur Fang · Job John · Sunmalo · Tamura · Paolo Cassius · Vammas · Howard · Maximilian · Kal · Humrau
Jaburo Officers Gopp · Woody Malden · Kolin · Antonio Callas
Luna II Officers Wakkein · Robinson · Reed · Camilla
EFSF Officers Tianem · Elran
EFF engineers Tem Ray · Mosk Han · Seki
General Revil · Matilda Ajan · Shin
Principality of Zeon Char Aznable · Degwin Sodo Zabi · Dozle Zabi · Garma Zabi · Gihren Zabi · Kycilia Zabi · Lalah Sune · M'Quve · Jimba Ral · Black Tri-Stars · Cecilia Irene · Miharu Ratokie · Cucuruz Doan · Challia Bull · Simus Al Bakharov · Dren · Gadem · Darota · Butsham · Vice · Lang · Torgan · Smith Onizawa · Sagred · Madison · Ghien · Li Hwan · Jittal · Bamlo · Kom · Fix · Matthew · Bison · Beebe · Klink · Habe · March · Delamin · Godard · Goro · Hamble · Guevil · Joyce · Kamp · Keji · Mile · Miru
A Baoa Qu Garrison Asakura · Twanning · Rio Marini
M'Quve's subordinates Uragang · Judock · Barom
Dozle's subordinates Conscon · Lackoc
Ramba Ral's Corps Ramba Ral · Crowley Hamon · Clamp · Tachi · Cozun Graham · Acous · Zeygan · Stetch
Akahana's team Akahana · Ivanov · Callahan · Lasa · Marcy · Boraskyniv
Char's troops Denim · Slender · Gene · Crown · J.Q. · Kohm
Patrol corps Cuaran · Giyal · Sol · Ross · Magu
Mad Angler corps Flanagan Boone · Connolly · Carioca
Zanzibar soldiers Mulligan · Tokwan · Dimitri
Civilians Katz · Letz · Kikka · Kamaria Ray · Fam Bow · Cameron Bloom · Icelina Eschonbach · Eschonbach · Persia · Coaly · Smith · Pero · Rolland Chuan · Chiyo · Kum · Milly Ratokie · Jill Ratokie · Bergamino · Haro
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