History Anime / MobileSuitGundam0080WarInThePocket

* CharClone: One of the few ''Gundam'' series to not feature one, though it does reference ''Zeta Gundam''[='=]s Quattro by having the blonde-haired Bernie disguise himself with [[PaperThinDisguise nothing more than a pair of sunglasses]] for the better part of the last two episodes.

** The series stars a young civilian child getting caught up in an espionage and conflict plotline that ultimately involves the Mobile Suits he adores so much, with Al being a stand-in for the audience akin to snagging a notable side-character role in a ''Gundam'' plot. Then it shows just how absolutely, horribly wrong all of this can go, and the harsh reality that WarIsHell, plain and simple.

Oh, let me love you so!'']]

The first {{OVA}} of the ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'' franchise, ''Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket'' is a six-episode series that offers a significant change from the standard ''Gundam'' formula. As suggested by its subtitle, ''War in the Pocket'' is a small, personal story; a side story focusing on the experiences of a eleven year old boy during the One Year War. Released in 1989, it served to commemorate ''Gundam'''s [[MilestoneCelebration ten-year anniversary]]. It was also the first time anyone other than creator Creator/YoshiyukiTomino was given a chance to direct a ''Gundam'' story. That director was Fumihiko Takayama, an alumnus of ''Anime/SuperDimensionFortressMacross'' also known for helming the 1982 version of ''Anime/TheWizardOfOz'' and who would later work on ''Anime/{{Patlabor}}''.

* NonstandardCharacterDesign: The Zeon MS featured in this OAV all have a much more detailed, "realistic" look than the lumpy, spiny, almost medieval fantasy armor-like designs from the original series (courtesy of ''Anime/{{Patlabor}}'''s Yutaka Izubuchi). [[AllThereInTheManual Sourcebooks explain this disparity]] as a result of the operation to capture the Alex were part of the "United Maintenance Plan", a planned overhaul of several major Zeon mobile suit designs to used standardized, interchangeable parts (so that, say, a Zaku and Dom could use the same joints or thrusters despite originally being made by competing defense contractors) in order to simplify logistics. Like all of Zeon's genuinely good ideas, it was yet another case of too little, too late.

* NonstandardCharacterDesign: The Zeon MS featured in this OAV all have a much more detailed, "realistic" look than the lumpy, spiny, almost medieval fantasy armor-like designs from the original series (courtesy of ''Anime/{{Patlabor}}'''s Yutaka Izubuchi). [[AllThereInTheManual Sourcebooks explain this disparity]] as a result of the operation to capture the Alex being used as a field test of the "United Maintenance Plan", a planned overhaul of several major Zeon mobile suit designs to used standardized, interchangeable parts (so that, say, a Zaku and Dom could use the same joints or thrusters despite originally being made by competing defense contractors) in order to simplify logistics. Like all of Zeon's genuinely good ideas, it was yet another case of too little, too late.

** Most of the mobile suits in this OVA were originally meant to be updated redesigns of the same mobile suits from the original series. However, since the design changes were considered too drastic, they were later retconned to be more advanced models of those mobile suits. In particular, the Zeon suits were retconned to be products of the United Maintenance Plan, a plan to streamline mobile suit production and equipment drafted by M'quve.

[[quoteright:258:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Gundam00800OVA.JPG]]
[[caption-width-right:258:''Can't you see that you are sweet?\\

** The Gelgoog J has a beam machine gun, which eventually became standard-issue mobile suit weapon for Neo Zeon in Anime/MobileSuitGundamCharsCounterattack.

* CosmeticallyAdvancedPrequel: 0080's mecha design attempted to bridge the gap between [[Anime/MobileSuitGundam the original series]] and Anime/MobileSuitZetaGundam by introducing design elements from the latter (see CallForward above). Considering the two series took place eight years apart in-universe, the mechanical designer may have went a little overboard with this.

* CosmeticallyAdvancedPrequel: 0080's mecha design attempted to bridge the gap between [[Anime/MobileSuitGundam the original series]] and Anime/MobileSuitZetaGundam by introducing design elements from the latter (see CallForward above). Considering the two series took place eight years apart in-universe, the mechanical designer may have went a little overboard with this.

* CosmeticallyAdvancedPrequel: 0080's mecha design attempted to bridge the gap between [[Anime/MobileSuitGundam the original series]] and Anime/MobileSuitZetaGundam by introducing design elements from the latter (see CallForward below). Considering the two series took place eight years apart in-universe, the mechanical designer may have went a little overboard with this.

* BigBad: Killing.

* FourIsDeath: Bernie's cargo ship entered the colony through gate number four.

* GlobalIgnorance: An in-universe example. During the Cyclops Team's covert attempt to steal the Alex, Bernie (posing as a Feddie grunt) claims to be from Australia and chats with a superior officer about how much he used to love the snow around Christmastime. A few minutes later, the officer [[EurekaMoment realizes]] that the Southern Hemisphere has ''warm'' weather in December, blowing Bernie's cover (not to mention, at the time of this show's release it hadn't snowed in Sydney ''at all'' in over 150 years). To say nothing of [[ColonyDrop what happened to Sydney]] earlier that year.

* FourIsDeath: Bernie and the Cyclops Team entered the colony through gate number four.

* SwordFight: Subverted in episode 4, where the Kämpfer closes in to have one with the Alex, only for the Alex to [[CombatPragmatist shred it with one of its gatling guns]]. Bernie gets into one(well, Sword ''and Axe'') for real after he sets up decoy balloons specifically to trick the Alex into wasting its gatling ammo.

* SwordFight: Subverted in episode 4, where the Kämpfer closes in to have one with the Alex, only for the Alex to [[CombatPragmatist shred it with one of its gatling guns]].