History Characters / MobileSuitGundamSeed

* [[Characters/MobileSuitGundamSEEDKingdomOfFoundation Kingdom Of Foundation]][[note]]Foundation's Leadership, Black Knight Squad[[/note]] ('''Major Spoilers ''[[Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEEDFreedom SEED Freedom]]''''')

* [[Characters/MobileSuitGundamSEEDKingdomOfFoundation Kingdom Of Foundation]][[note]]Foundation's Leadership, Black Knight Squad[[/note]] ('''Heavy spoilers for ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEEDFreedom''''')

! Main Characters :

* [[Characters/MobileSuitGundamSEEDThreeShipAllianceTerminalCompass Three Ship Alliance/Terminal/Compass]][[note]]Crew of the ''Archangel'', Crew of the ''Eternal'', Crew of the ''Millennium''[[/note]]

* [[Characters/MobileSuitGundamSEEDOtherCharactersAndFactions Minor factions and other characters]]

%% PLEASE NOTE: To avoid spoilers, characters should be grouped with the faction that they are ORIGINALLY aligned with.

%% Administrivia/ZeroContextExamples are not allowed on wiki pages. All such entries have been commented out. Add context to the entries before uncommenting them.

%%
This is the character sheet for the ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'' series ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEED''. Due to the length of the page, entries have been moved to separate pages based on their original allegiance.

* [[Characters/MobileSuitGundamSEEDHeliopolis Heliopolis]] [[note]]Kira Yamato, Miriallia Haw, Sai Argyle, Tolle Koenig, Kuzzey Buskirk, Flay Allster[[/note]]
* [[Characters/MobileSuitGundamSEEDEarthAllianceOMNIEnforcer Earth Alliance (OMNI Enforcer)]] [[note]]Murrue Ramius, Mu La Flaga, Natarle Badgiruel, Arnold Neumann, Kojiro Murdoch, Muruta Azrael, William Sutherland, Biological [=CPUs=] (Clotho Bauer, Orga Sabnak, Shani Andras), Lewis Halberton[[/note]]
* [[Characters/MobileSuitGundamSEEDZAFT ZAFT]] [[note]]Patrick Zala, Siegel Clyne, Ezalia Joule, Rau Le Creuset, Fredrik Ades, Athrun Zala, Yzak Joule, Dearka Elsman, Nicol Amalfi, Miguel Aiman, Rusty Mackenzie, Andrew Waltfeld, Aisha, Martin Da Costa, Lacus Clyne, Marco Morassim[[/note]]
* [[Characters/MobileSuitGundamSEEDOrb Orb]] [[note]]Cagalli Yula Athha, Uzumi Nara Athha, Ledonir Kisaka, Merna, Erica Simmons, The Astray Girls[[/note]]
* [[Characters/MobileSuitGundamSEEDOthers Others]] [[note]]George Glenn, Reverend Malchio, Al Da Flaga, Ulen Hibiki, Via Hibiki, Caridad Yamato[[/note]]

* [[Characters/MobileSuitGundamSEEDOrb Orb]] [[note]]Cagalli Yula Athha, Uzumi Nara Athha, Ledonir Kisaka, Myrna[[/note]]

* [[Characters/MobileSuitGundamSEEDEarthAllianceOMNIEnforcer Earth Alliance (OMNI Enforcer)]] [[note]]Murrue Ramius, Mu La Flaga, Natarle Badgiruel, Arnold Neumann, Kojiro Murdoch, Muruta Azrael, William Sutherland, Boosted Men (Clotho Bauer, Orga Sabnak, Shani Andras), Lewis Halberton[[/note]]

* [[Characters/MobileSuitGundamSEEDEarthAllianceOMNIEnforcer Earth Alliance (OMNI Enforcer)]] [[note]]Murrue Ramius, Mu La Flaga, Natarle Badgiruel, Arnold Neumann, Kojiro Murdoch, Muruta Azrael, William Sutherland, Clotho Bauer, Orga Sabnak, and Shani Andras, Lewis Halberton[[/note]]

* [[Characters/MobileSuitGundamSEEDHeliopolis Heliopolis]]
* [[Characters/MobileSuitGundamSEEDEarthAllianceOMNIEnforcer Earth Alliance (OMNI Enforcer)]]
* [[Characters/MobileSuitGundamSEEDZAFT ZAFT]]
* [[Characters/MobileSuitGundamSEEDOrb Orb]]
* [[Characters/MobileSuitGundamSEEDOthers Others]]

[[/index]]

[[foldercontrol]]

This is the character sheet for the ''Franchise/{{Gundam}}'' series ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEED''.

[[/index]]








!Others

[[folder:George Glenn]]
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/HideyukiHori (Japanese), Creator/MichaelDobson (English)
->''"I have a body capable of greater strengths and a brain capable of acquiring greater knowledge than a human being who was born naturally."''
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/George_Glenn_5350.jpg]]

The original Coordinator, he gained international fame and fortune excelling at basically everything ever (from professional sports to cutting-edge scientific research); he eventually revealed that his spectacular success was largely due to having been genetically engineered. He released instructions for his enhancement process to the public, inadvertently coining the term "Coordinator" at the same time. Eventually assassinated by Blue Cosmos.

In the ''[[Manga/MobileSuitGundamSeedAstray Gundam SEED Astray]]'' side stories it is revealed that his brain was kept alive inside the "GG Unit", a device resembling a very large futuristic boombox, which eventually came into the possession of the Junk Guild. Equipped with a holographic avatar to interact with the living, Glenn now serves as the captain of the salvage ship/Gundam carrier Re-Home.
----
* TheAce: A brief overview of the man's accomplishments: earning a [=PhD=] from MIT at 17, winning a silver medal at the Olympics, becoming a football star, an ace air force pilot, and a world-renowned aerospace engineer (in that order), travelling to Jupiter and back in a ship of his own design (releasing the information on how to make Coordinators to the public as he left), and designing the [=PLANTs=] during his free time on the trip. George Glenn is TheAce ''UpToEleven''.
* AlliterativeName: '''G'''eorge '''G'''lenn.
* BornLucky: Because he was engineered to be the best at everything during birth, you could say that his creator effectively rigged the genetic lottery in his favour.
* BornWinner: A main reason why he and all subsequent Coordinators are hated by "Naturals", as they would be given a head start many people born naturally can never have.
* BrainInAJar: More like Brain in a Capsule. When his body was killed, his mind was preserved, deemed too valuable to lose. Fortunately, the capsule contains a holographic projector and the ability for him to speak and see, averting a AndIMustScream situation.
* BrokenPedestal: George Glenn was Earth's greatest hero and has won the admiration of everyone. After his confession that he was a genetically-engineered human, many people were disgusted and look at him with contempt.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: In the Astray series, Glenn expresses regrets over the events he started by revealing the process to make Coordinators. Resulting in racism, war and genocide. He also regrets that people took his term "coordinators" to name genetic engineered humans, since it was never meant to name a race but simply people who can lead humanity into a better future which is not related to their genes.
* PosthumousCharacter: In the main series, he has been dead for several years.
* RenaissanceMan: He was skilled at absolutely everything he tried, from Olympic level sports to [=PhD=] engineering to the no-doubt extremely complicated process that creates Coordinators like himself.
* RiddleForTheAges: Who were the scientists that created George Glenn and what happened to them after the revelation that he was a Coordinator?
* TooCoolToLive: An in-universe example. People were so pissed at how awesome he was that they ''assassinated'' him!
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: While he expected everyone to aspire to him and the subsequent Coordinator "race" as an example to lead into a better future, instead people resented him and all Coordinators for having a leg up in life that they, by their literal births, were denied.
* VirtualGhost: Though technically still alive, Glenn's only physical presence aside from the unwieldy life-support system containing his brain is an [[Series/RedDwarf Arnold Rimmer]]-style holographic projection of his old self in a captain's uniform, complete with goofy white skipper hat.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Reverend Malchio]]
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/KazuyaNakai (Japanese), Creator/BrianDrummond (English original series), Creator/EthanMurray (English HD remaster)

A blind monk who is one of the few individuals trusted by both the Earth Alliance and ZAFT, he acts as a mediator on the rare occasions that the two sides get along well enough to discuss anything. Among other things, he also maintains an orphanage on Earth. There is a fair bit more to him than meets the eye.
----
* EyesAlwaysShut: Is never seen without the look of serene bliss on his face.
* FriendToAllChildren: He took care of the orphans after all.
* GoodShepherd: He's one of many decent characters in the show and ran an orphanage on an island near Orb.
* HiddenDepths: In the exterior as a blind preacher, he is actually a powerful individual with connections and resources from all organizations (Junk Guild, PLANT, and EA).
* NonActionGuy: He never takes part in any battle and is often the first one to be hurried off if the conflict comes to him. This allows him to be one of the few mediators between the two sides, as everyone knows he does not have any violent motives.
* ParentalSubstitute: To a whole mess of orphans.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Al Da Flaga]]
!!!Voice Actors: Kozo Mito, Creator/ToshihikoSeki (Special Edition) (Japanese), Creator/MarkOliver (English)
->''"Laws can be broken after all. They're only made by humans."''
[[quoteright:180:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Al_Da_Flaga_5725.jpg]]

Mu La Flaga's deceased father. He considered his son too weak to be his true heir, and is later revealed to have cloned himself in an effort to gain a more worthy successor. He went on to deny said clone [[note]]which grew up to become Rau Le Creuset[[/note]] any sense of identity, which ended with his death in a "mysterious" fire. Whoops.
----
* AboveGoodAndEvil: How he saw himself. If the few quotes we have from him are a fair representation, he honestly seems to have thought he was something more than merely human.
* AbusiveParent: Anyone who effectively disowns his young son because said son ''has his mother's genes'' is not going to win any Father of the Year awards, to say nothing of [[spoiler:his treatment of Rau]].
* ControlFreak: To the point that he disowned his own biological son for not having the ''exact same genes'' as him.
* DomesticAbuse: Cut Mu out of the will for sharing his wife's genetics. That probably qualifies him.
%%%* FinancialAbuse: Of Mu and his wife.
* {{Jerkass}}: Not ''evil'' per se, but definitely a colossal douche.
* ManOfWealthAndTaste: Is dressed in a suit and tie in all of his few appearances, such as [[spoiler: twisting Dr.Hibiki's arm into illegal cloning through the promise of funding.]]
* {{Narcissist}}: In fact his abusive style of parenting is what psyciatrists terms "narcissistic abuse." He disowned Mu for daring to be something more than a vehicle for his own ego, and upon seeing his [[spoiler:clone, the first words out of his mouth are "this is me, right?"]] Al seems to have been incapable of viewing people as anything more than extensions of his own personality, and that's without getting into his [[AboveGoodAndEvil delusions of]] [[{{Ubermensch}} grandeur]].
* ParentalAbandonment: Of ''both'' his sons, one after the other. Jackass.
* PosthumousCharacter: Dies years before the series begins, but is nontheless an enormous part of the plot, given that he not only inadvertently created the BigBad, but also funded the Ultimate Coordinator project, the process that eventually led to [[spoiler:Kira and Cagalli's births]].
* {{Pride}}: In addition to being a textbook narcissist, Al's hubris knew no bounds. Le Creuset calls him out on it posthumously in a rant to Mu.
* ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney: [[spoiler:Cloning humans]] is illegal. Al doesn't care.
* SmugSnake: In contrast to his sons who are respectively TheAce and [[spoiler:one hell of a MagnificentBastard]].
* {{Ubermensch}}: He certainly ''thought'' he was one, but at the end of the day he's little more than a rich creep with an ego the size of a planet.
%%* TheUnfettered
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Ulen Hibiki]]
!!!Voice actor: EijiYanagisawa (Japanese), FredHanderson (English original series), Creator/CamClarke (English HD remaster)
->''"The urge to make things better has always driven progress, and then that is what brings about happiness."''
[[quoteright:200:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Ulen_Hibiki_1190.jpg]]

A very brilliant, very ambitious, and totally amoral scientist who was behind the Ultimate Coordinator project.
----
* AbusiveParent: How abusive? [[spoiler:When he needed a test subject for the project, he used ''one of his own soon-to-be-born twin babies''... Kira Yamato.]]
* DomesticAbuse: If you think that stealing your wife's unborn child for a science experiment qualifies you, then yes.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Whether it's this or PragmaticVillainy, he's still the one who points out to Al Da Flaga that [[spoiler:cloning him]] would be illegal. Implying that he only agreed to do so [[OnlyInItForTheMoney to receive the funding he needed]].
* EvilutionaryBiologist: Not only did he work on the Ultimate Coordinator project, but he is also the one who [[spoiler:cloned Rau le Creuset and Rey za Burrell.]]
* ForScience: His motivation is progress for its own sake.
%%* HotScientist
%%* MadScientist
%%* PosthumousCharacter
%%* SmugSnake
%%* TheUnfettered
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Via Hibiki]]
!!!Voice actor: Creator/HoukoKuwashima (Japanese), Creator/EricaSchroeder (English HD remaster)

Ulen Hibiki's wife, also implied to be his scientific partner. She ''does'' have standards, though, as she's horrified when he goes too far with his experiments.
----
%%* BrainyBrunette
* GiveHimANormalLife: [[spoiler:She tells her younger sister Caridad to take Kira and Cagalli in, before she dies alongside Ulen and Al Da Flaga.]]
* MotherlyScientist: Her scenes in the anime showcase her maternal concern for the subjects of the Ultimate Coordinator project, [[spoiler: beyond the one that happens to be her son. Incidentally, Kira was the only one to survive.]]
%%* PosthumousCharacter
%%* TenderTears
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Caridad Yamato]]
!!!Voice actor: Creator/KikukoInoue (Japanese), Creator/RebeccaShoichet (English original series), Creator/ErinFitzgerald (English HD remaster)

Kira's mother. Actually, his maternal aunt. She and her husband Haruma raised Kira, who has no idea.
----
* GoodParents: [[spoiler:Despite not being his real mother and father,]] Caridad and Haruma loved and treated Kira like their own and were understanding of his reluctance to see them during the ''Archangel'''s brief layover in Orb.
* ParentalSubstitute: [[spoiler:For Kira.]]
* YamatoNadeshiko: A very loving and caring mother for Kira, who doesn't seem at all stunned by the horrific war her boy goes through.
* YouGottaHaveBlueHair: [[spoiler: Which is one of the first tips she isn't Kira's biological mother. (Plus her husband's hair being black and neither of them having purple eyes.)]]
[[/folder]]
-----

!Orb
An island nation in the Pacific, Orb has a high-tech industrial base but little in the way of resources; they built Heliopolis primarily as a way to mitigate this strategic weakness. A very idealistic nation, their stance in international politics is one of aggressive neutrality; though they will not attack others, they will vigorously defend themselves against any attacks. The war between the Earth Alliance and ZAFT has strained this position to its breaking point, especially after the destruction of Heliopolis.

[[folder:Cagalli Yula Athha]]
!!'''Main mecha:''' FX-550 Skygrasper, [[spoiler:MBF-02 Strike Rouge]]
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/NaomiShindo (Japanese), VanessaMorley (English original series dub), Creator/CheramiLeigh (English HD Remaster dub)
->''"The things we can do, want to do, and should do... It's the same for all of us, right?"''
[[quoteright:264:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/untitled_705.png]]

The daughter and only child of Uzumi Nara Athha, former Chief Representative of the Orb Union, and head of one of the country's five ruling noble families, making her the equivalent of a princess in Orb. Also a rebel leader, guerilla soldier, and a capable, if brash, tactician. Hates ZAFT and distrusts the Earth Forces. She provides the military backbone of the Three Ships' Alliance.

* ActionGirl: Cagalli is a capable and determined fighter. She runs around, shoots things, leads a resistance cell and later [[spoiler:pilots a Gundam]]. She would love to be nothing more than this. Unfortunately her father and her duty to her home disagree...
* AllYourPowersCombined: [[spoiler:The Strike Rouge IWSP, notable for being the first 'Combined' Striker Pack. Subverted though as it doesn't make an appearance in the series, despite being repeatedly teased in the HD Remaster splash images.]]
* BadassAdorable: Just watch when she cries or gets angry. It's adorable. She also held her own in gun fights with Coordinators.
* BadassNormal: Despite being a Natural, she doesn't hesitate to take on Coordinators. Even when they're in mobile suits and the most heavily armed thing she has is a ''jeep''. [[spoiler:She is the only Natural seen going into SEED Mode.]]
* BatheHerAndBringHerToMe: A rare non-sexual example. Cagalli does end up being benevolently cleaned, put in a dress and having her hair fixed when she and Kira end up in the Desert Tiger's custody. She even accuses him of deriving some kind of perverse pleasure from it, but she did need a bath and he says the clothes were Aisha's idea. Mostly it's just to show SheCleansUpNicely.
* BathtubScene: Has one sitting in an elaborate bathtub in Waltfeld's residence blowing bubbles in the original series. It's changed to a ShowerScene for the compilation movies and Remaster.
* BerserkButton: She knows she's a girl, and she'll get hugely annoyed if you suddenly discover the fact. Or worse, do it more than once.
-->'''Cagalli:''' "That's right, I'm a girl! What ''is'' it with you guys?"
* {{Bifauxnen}}: Subverted. Cagalli is a {{Tomboy}} through and through, but she's not remotely elegant or stylish unless you stick her in a dress and make her behave. Many people thought she was a guy by sight alone, but no one swoons about how cool she is. Kira and Athrun manage to identify her as a girl after hearing her talk, which just annoys her. (Cagalli ''does'' have a developed, non-boyish figure, but the clothes hide it well.) It's flipped around by Waltfeld, who dubs Cagalli in a dress as "the perfect little lady... until she speaks".
* BigDamnKiss: With [[spoiler:Athrun just before Jachin Due]], as they'd been seen becoming steadily emotionally and physically closer before that. She manages to keep the promise she made prior to that, too. It's also both symbolic and very pretty with the juxtaposition of them floating in space in front of Earth.
* BoyishShortHair: Downplayed. Not even that short, but LongHairIsFeminine and she is not. Hers also has a lot of volume and tends to look quite messy, and it's highlighted when [[spoiler:she gets [[RomanticRain soaked in the rain]] in front of Athrun and her water-lengthened hair suddenly makes her look ''far'' more feminine]]. (Although Aisha being able to clip it up should have been a clue to Cagalli not playing this straight.)
* BrokenPedestal: Has a major case towards her father when she discovers the G-Weapon Project, believing he betrayed the ideals he upheld.
* ColorMotif: Under her red clothes, we see she wears green. The SimpleYetOpulent dresses she wears in show and the PimpedOutDress she wears in some ending sequences are also all pale green. The 3rd and 4th ED lampshade her switching from red to green.
* ComedicUnderwearExposure: PlayedForDrama, as she only drops the blanket she had covering her [[spoiler: to steal Athrun's gun, aiming to take the Aegis. Cagalli was so focused and full of adrenaline that she only realized what she had done ''after'' a very tense standoff, when Athrun then asked her to PleasePutSomeClothesOn.]] [[LuminescentBlush Turns out,]] she's ''not'' a ShamelessFanserviceGirl.
* CoolPlane: She becomes the (self-)designated pilot of the second Skygrasper until the ''Archangel'' reached Orb.
* CycleOfRevenge: Defied -- her father imparted this to her when she attempted to rejoin the ''Archangel'' and later passes it on to [[spoiler:Athrun]] after he confessed to (seemingly) killing [[spoiler:Kira]] because he killed his friend and comrade [[spoiler:Nicol]]. She gives [[spoiler:Athrun]] her Haumea amulet for his protection, not wishing for him to die even after what he did to [[spoiler:Kira]].
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: While not her first appearance, the first time she does anything meaningful within the series revolves around taking a man-portable weapon in a jeep against a ''lupine humongous mecha''. Things only ramps up when she actually gets a war machine of her own.
* {{Expy}}:
** Of Sayla Mass from the original ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam'', albeit with a healthy dose of Relena Darlian from ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing''. In short, she's the two best known CharClone sisters mashed together. Though, in a twist, [[spoiler: she's actually related to TheHero Kira rather than to any of the resident [[CharClone Char Clones]] so she has some [[Franchise/StarWars Princess Leia]] in her as well]].
** From fighting in the desert with a rebel force, to fighting with her father about peace, to [[spoiler:screaming and sobbing when he's later blown up and having a custom-made Gundam built after that, to becoming very close to a guy she initially tried to kill and who threatened her with "omae wo korosu", to being born naturally at L4 with genetically engineered siblings and being unaware of it all]], she's the seeming twin, or at least GenderFlip, of Quatre Raberba Winner from ''Wing'', and would fit exceedingly easily as one of ''his'' sisters.
* FlowerMotif: [[spoiler:Strike Rouge has an emblem of an animal's head with a flower in its jaws]], and her image song is called "Precious Rose".
* FlowersOfNature: She has these in her PimpedOutDress outfit, along with other greenery. They're the "orange flowers" from the song "Akatsuki no Kuruma", as well as symbolizing she's the one from Earth.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: Temperaments aside, Cagalli is unflinchingly kindhearted, best exemplified when she saw Kira grieving about having killed Waltfeld and gives him a CooldownHug -- a sharp contrast to most of their earlier more... ''abrasive'' interactions.
* HappilyAdopted: Her relationship with Uzumi is [[StealthPun turbulent]] but supportive, especially compared to what characters like Athrun and Mu have (had) to endure with their actual birth fathers. That being said, Cagalli had no idea she was adopted until [[spoiler:Uzumi tells her just before he dies]].
* HatesWearingDresses: Just this, although she has a pitched, physical battle with her old nanny Myrna about changing into one.
* HotBlooded: Cagalli is feisty, loud, passionate, and always ready to join in a battle. [[DeconstructedTrope Kira and Uzumi later call her out for thinking she can fight solely based on her emotions, or that violent combat is the answer.]]
%%%* JackOfAllStats: [[spoiler:The Strike Rouge]]
* TheLadysFavour: She gives [[spoiler:Athrun her Haumea pendant for protection, even after he snarks about wondering if she's destined to kill him. He later claims that it saved him from his father — which Cagalli ''herself'' certainly did after that]].
* LoveTriangle: Subverted. Despite ShipTease, there's nothing proving Cagalli's interest in and great concern for Kira was anything other than [[spoiler:sisterly. She has a rather different romantic relationship with Athrun, just to highlight it]].
%%%%* MadScientistsBeautifulDaughter: Averted. [[spoiler:See Kira's entry.]]
* MasculineGirlFeminineBoy: Tough, brash Cagalli and the much gentler, calmer, choker-wearing Kira. She has shades of this with [[spoiler: Athrun as well, given how he's also (usually) [[SavvyGuyEnergeticGirl much calmer and more levelheaded and logical]], but she also {{Crush Blush}}es around and clings to him and generally acts just a touch more restrained and girly]].
* MeetCute: Alone on a small island with [[spoiler:Athrun, she goes from desperately trying to kill him to desperately not wanting to, snarking, sniping, crabs, RomanticRain, and ComedicUnderwearExposure along the way]].
* MightyWhitey: Cagalli the blonde-haired foreign princess is not only one of the best fighters and leaders in Desert Dawn, she's nicknamed their "goddess of victory" and known and liked by their families, despite canonically only being there for a few weeks.
* MissingMom: No one speaks of Cagalli ever having a mother; Erica Simmons goes as far as to say that "Lord Uzumi raised you with such loving care...". It may have contributed to her {{Tomboy}} personality. She [[spoiler:finds out about her birth mother from Uzumi shortly before he dies, though she doesn't actually know who the woman in the photograph is]].
* NiceGirl: Violent tendecies notwithstanding, Cagalli is the ''first'' person to be unambiguously kind to Kira in the series, without professional distance or ulterior motives; notably in the form of a ''much'' needed hug when he was on the verge of a suicidal breakdown. She is also consistently considerate, warm hearted, compassionate, and ''openly'' expresses kindness without consideration to maturity or social appropriateness.
* NomDeGuerre: Only goes by "Cagalli" or "Cagalli Yula" for half the show, since she's desperate (and under instruction) to avoid her full name and true identity getting out.
* OfficialCouple: She falls in love [[spoiler:with Athrun and saves him from dying in GENESIS at the end]].
* PolarOppositeTwins: Despite [[spoiler:sharing emotional natures and soft hearts, Cagalli couldn't be much more different than Kira]].
* PoliticallyActivePrincess: Subverted. Uzumi yells and begs her to become this rather than running off to fight violently again, which he sees as a waste. She does stay home, but we only see her supervising Orb's troops, rather than doing anything political. This ends up [[spoiler:haunting her next series]].
* PrincessesPreferPink: Generally averted. She hates both being addressed as a princess and pink, [[PinkMeansFeminine given how she wears none and her room is entirely blue]]. Downplayed with [[spoiler:Strike Rouge. Cagalli didn't pick the color, but also doesn't seem to care]].
* ProneToTears: [[spoiler:Like her twin brother]]. Cagalli cries very easily and very loudly, though more effectively, no one ever calls her a crybaby, and it never bothers her.
* RebelLeader: Leads [[LaResistance a cell of Arab freedom fighters]] against the Desert Tiger.
* RebelliousPrincess: Her father and country as a whole are strict neutral isolationists. ''She'' ran away to join a resistance cell halfway around the world.
* RedBaron: "The Goddess of Victory", to the Desert Dawn fighters.
* RedIsHeroic: Cagalli overlaps this with RedIsViolent, wearing a red shirt both for her time as a guerrilla and in her Orb uniform. She and [[spoiler:Athrun wear [[SignificantWardrobeShift matching red Morgenroete jackets]] for the last quarter, the Haumea amulet she gives him is red, and so is her standard-issue Orb pilot suit for the Strike Rouge]]. However, she has a second ColorMotif...
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: [[DeconstructedTrope Deconstructed]]. Cagalli firmly believes in this trope, and after personally travelling to Heliopolis to confirm the existence of the Gundams she throws her support behind a group of freedom fighters and later the ''Archangel'', taking an active role on the battlefield. However once she returns to Orb her father immediately points out all she's done is help to fan the flames of war, and that if she really wanted to help bring and end to the war she should have stayed in Orb, continued to learn how to rule, and leveraged her political influence as Orb's heir.
* SavvyGuyEnergeticGirl: With [[spoiler:Athrun, who's startled and not too happy to learn she intends to take a mobile suit out to the final battle. Cagalli then shows some savvy with the page quote and by saving ''him'']].
* SeparatedAtBirth: [[spoiler:Kira is her brother and she never found out until the final stretch of the series.]]
* SheCleansUpNicely: Not that she was ever considered ''ugly'', mind you, but get her in a dress and not scowling about it and she goes from cute in a {{Tomboy}}-ish way to really beautiful (as the 3rd and 4th Openings show).
* SiblingSenioritySquabble: [[spoiler: When she tells Athrun she's glad to have Kira for a little brother, he teasingly asks her if he might not be her big brother instead. She grumpily insists that she was born first.]]
* SuperMode: [[spoiler:The only Natural to activate SEED mode.]]
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: The tomboy to Lacus' girly girl given her more masculine manner of dress, speech, and more violent manner of problem solving.
* TomboyPrincess: Cagalli HatesWearingDresses and simply does not give a damn about looking like a PrincessClassic. She instead chooses short, messy hair and simple and practical clothes, such as cargo pants and t-shirts or [[TanktopTomboy tank tops]]. She is also well-versed in weaponry and battlefield tactics and feels at home at the controls of a fighter plane [[spoiler:or a Gundam, at the very end]]. In addition, her manner of speech is both quite blunt and rather strictly gender-neutral for Japanese, meaning she can sound more like a guy than a girl.
* {{Tsundere}}: She tends to act like this. She worries about Kira one moment and slaps him the next.
* {{Twincest}}: Subverted. [[spoiler:The Yamatos invoke this and worry she's getting too close to Kira for this reason, but they're informed they're brother and sister before anything else happens.]]

[[folder:Uzumi Nara Athha]]
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/ToruOkawa (Japanese), John Novak (English original series), Creator/MichaelAlstonBaley (English HD remaster)
->''"We can't leave Orb, or this world, in the hands of those bastards."''
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Lord_Uzumi_3306.jpg]]

The leader of Orb and Cagalli's adopted father, Lord Uzumi is completely dedicated to maintaining Orb's neutral stance. This becomes ever more difficult as the war spirals out of control. Faced with increasing pressure to choose a side in the ZAFT-Earth Alliance conflict, he refuses to compromise his nation's ideals.

* AmbiguousSituation: What did he know about the G-Weapon Project? While Rondo Mina Sahaku initiated Morgenroete's involvement with the G-Weapon Project as established in Astray, how much he knew about it remains in question. Kisaka certainly claimed that Lord Uzumi was uninvolved but notably Uzumi himself never makes a definitive statement in private. He publicly claimed responsibility and stepped down as Orb's Chief Representative in any case. So whether he viewed the project as a NecessaryEvil to maintain Orb's neutrality in the face of ZAFT and the EA's technological advancement is left to the viewer.
%%* BadassBeard
%%* BigGood
* CycleOfRevenge: Expounds about this to Cagalli about how her belief in fighting enemies will bring unending hatred by others. [[spoiler: Also a {{Foreshadowing}} to the eventual deaths of [[TokenGoodTeamMate Nicol]] and [[NiceGuy Tolle]] that further fueled hatred between Athrun and Kira, and the escalation of the war in the show's last act.]]
* DefiantToTheEnd: When it became clear that Orb was going to lose its fight against the Earth Alliance, he chose to blow up the very resources the EA had come to the country to seize, rendering their invasion a waste.
* DyingMomentOfAwesome: [[spoiler: Igniting a self-destruct that blows up Orb's mass driver and himself in the process, effectively trapping the Earth Forces on earth.]]
* {{Expy}}:
** Uzumi bears a resemblance to [[Anime/MobilesuitGundamWing King Peacecraft]], with Orb playing a role similar to the Sanc Kingdom.
** In his active and explosive adherence to non-intervention and nonviolent solutions, his loving but abrupt approach with his wayward heir Cagalli, badass facial hair and [[spoiler:his ultimate fate]], he's a pretty close copy of Mr. Winner from the same show, although [[CastingGag the seiyuu there is now playing Patrick Zala]].
* FaceDeathWithDignity: [[spoiler:He shows no signs of panic or distress as he dies.]]
* FamousLastWords: ''"We can't leave Orb, or this world, in the hands of those bastards."''
* TheGoodKing: Or the Gundam Seed's equivalent; he kept the neutrality of the country even with the threat of invasion from Earth Alliance and actually treat his subjects--both Naturals and Coordinators--fairly.
* GoodParents: He is a loving and understanding father to Cagalli, but all the same knows when to be stern and upfront, especially when she gets particularly imprudent.
* MessianicArchetype: At times he's more this than Kira and Lacus put together because of his insistence on neutral, avoiding the cycle of revenge, preaching goodwill and understanding. [[UsefulNotes/{{Jesus}} He even looks the part]]. [[spoiler: He also makes a heroic sacrifice.]]
* NonActionGuy: Politician, not a soldier.
* ParentalSubstitute: He adopted Cagalli when she was a baby.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Considering the amounts of GeneralRipper and ANaziByAnyOtherName in this show, his benign nature stands out.
* SoProudOfYou: To Cagalli. "I feel very fortunate to have been your father."

[[folder:Ledonir Kisaka]]
!!!Voice Actors: Isshin Chiba (Japanese), Adam Henderson (English original series), Creator/TJStorm (English HD remaster)

An officer in Orb military and bodyguard to Cagalli.

* AmbiguouslyBrown: Though he may have been from North Africa, but his Japanese last name and Russian first name leave his ethnicity up in the air.
* BadassNormal: He is comparatively understated but nonetheless just as capable of holding his own against Coordinators.
* BodyguardingABadass: He may bodyguard Cagalli, but she's not your average helpless VIP.
* ColonelBadass: He actually holds the rank in the Orb army.
* {{Expy}}: He's got a lot in common with Rashid Kurama from ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing''.
* ImmigrantPatriotism: He is originally from North Africa but he is loyal to Orb.
* LaResistance: Part of Desert Dawn until he left for Orb.
* ShoutOut: His resistance outfit is based on Franchise/{{Rambo}}.

[[folder:Myrna]]
!!!Voice Actors:

Cagalli's nanny who has cared for her since she was a child.

* BrawnHilda: She's plump but quite strong; She one of the few people who can tame Cagalli.
* InsistentAppellation: "Cagalli-ojousama" ("Young Lady Cagalli") and "Hime" ("Princess"), much to Cagalli's annoyance and embarrassment.
* ParentalSubstitute: More or less the only mother figure in Cagalli's life, since there's nothing about Uzumi having been married.
* UndyingLoyalty: She is always ready to help Cagalli and her family overall.

!Others

[[folder:George Glenn]]
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/HideyukiHori (Japanese), Creator/MichaelDobson (English)
->''"I have a body capable of greater strengths and a brain capable of acquiring greater knowledge than a human being who was born naturally."''
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/George_Glenn_5350.jpg]]

The original Coordinator, he gained international fame and fortune excelling at basically everything ever (from professional sports to cutting-edge scientific research); he eventually revealed that his spectacular success was largely due to having been genetically engineered. He released instructions for his enhancement process to the public, inadvertently coining the term "Coordinator" at the same time. Eventually assassinated by Blue Cosmos.

In the ''[[Manga/MobileSuitGundamSeedAstray Gundam SEED Astray]]'' side stories it is revealed that his brain was kept alive inside the "GG Unit", a device resembling a very large futuristic boombox, which eventually came into the possession of the Junk Guild. Equipped with a holographic avatar to interact with the living, Glenn now serves as the captain of the salvage ship/Gundam carrier Re-Home.

* TheAce: A brief overview of the man's accomplishments: earning a [=PhD=] from MIT at 17, winning a silver medal at the Olympics, becoming a football star, an ace air force pilot, and a world-renowned aerospace engineer (in that order), travelling to Jupiter and back in a ship of his own design (releasing the information on how to make Coordinators to the public as he left), and designing the [=PLANTs=] during his free time on the trip. George Glenn is TheAce ''UpToEleven''.
* AlliterativeName: '''G'''eorge '''G'''lenn.
* BornLucky: Because he was engineered to be the best at everything during birth, you could say that his creator effectively rigged the genetic lottery in his favour.
* BornWinner: A main reason why he and all subsequent Coordinators are hated by "Naturals", as they would be given a head start many people born naturally can never have.
* BrainInAJar: More like Brain in a Capsule. When his body was killed, his mind was preserved, deemed too valuable to lose. Fortunately, the capsule contains a holographic projector and the ability for him to speak and see, averting a AndIMustScream situation.
* BrokenPedestal: George Glenn was Earth's greatest hero and has won the admiration of everyone. After his confession that he was a genetically-engineered human, many people were disgusted and look at him with contempt.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: In the Astray series, Glenn expresses regrets over the events he started by revealing the process to make Coordinators. Resulting in racism, war and genocide. He also regrets that people took his term "coordinators" to name genetic engineered humans, since it was never meant to name a race but simply people who can lead humanity into a better future which is not related to their genes.
* PosthumousCharacter: In the main series, he has been dead for several years.
* RenaissanceMan: He was skilled at absolutely everything he tried, from Olympic level sports to [=PhD=] engineering to the no-doubt extremely complicated process that creates Coordinators like himself.
* RiddleForTheAges: Who were the scientists that created George Glenn and what happened to them after the revelation that he was a Coordinator?
* TooCoolToLive: An in-universe example. People were so pissed at how awesome he was that they ''assassinated'' him!
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: While he expected everyone to aspire to him and the subsequent Coordinator "race" as an example to lead into a better future, instead people resented him and all Coordinators for having a leg up in life that they, by their literal births, were denied.
* VirtualGhost: Though technically still alive, Glenn's only physical presence aside from the unwieldy life-support system containing his brain is an [[Series/RedDwarf Arnold Rimmer]]-style holographic projection of his old self in a captain's uniform, complete with goofy white skipper hat.

[[folder:Reverend Malchio]]
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/KazuyaNakai (Japanese), Creator/BrianDrummond (English original series), Creator/EthanMurray (English HD remaster)

A blind monk who is one of the few individuals trusted by both the Earth Alliance and ZAFT, he acts as a mediator on the rare occasions that the two sides get along well enough to discuss anything. Among other things, he also maintains an orphanage on Earth. There is a fair bit more to him than meets the eye.

* EyesAlwaysShut: Is never seen without the look of serene bliss on his face.
* FriendToAllChildren: He took care of the orphans after all.
* GoodShepherd: He's one of many decent characters in the show and ran an orphanage on an island near Orb.
* HiddenDepths: In the exterior as a blind preacher, he is actually a powerful individual with connections and resources from all organizations (Junk Guild, PLANT, and EA).
* NonActionGuy: He never takes part in any battle and is often the first one to be hurried off if the conflict comes to him. This allows him to be one of the few mediators between the two sides, as everyone knows he does not have any violent motives.
* ParentalSubstitute: To a whole mess of orphans.

[[folder:Al Da Flaga]]
!!!Voice Actors: Kozo Mito, Creator/ToshihikoSeki (Special Edition) (Japanese), Creator/MarkOliver (English)
->''"Laws can be broken after all. They're only made by humans."''
[[quoteright:180:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Al_Da_Flaga_5725.jpg]]

Mu La Flaga's deceased father. He considered his son too weak to be his true heir, and is later revealed to have cloned himself in an effort to gain a more worthy successor. He went on to deny said clone [[note]]which grew up to become Rau Le Creuset[[/note]] any sense of identity, which ended with his death in a "mysterious" fire. Whoops.
----
* AboveGoodAndEvil: How he saw himself. If the few quotes we have from him are a fair representation, he honestly seems to have thought he was something more than merely human.
* AbusiveParent: Anyone who effectively disowns his young son because said son ''has his mother's genes'' is not going to win any Father of the Year awards, to say nothing of [[spoiler:his treatment of Rau]].
* ControlFreak: To the point that he disowned his own biological son for not having the ''exact same genes'' as him.
* DomesticAbuse: Cut Mu out of the will for sharing his wife's genetics. That probably qualifies him.
%%%* FinancialAbuse: Of Mu and his wife.
* {{Jerkass}}: Not ''evil'' per se, but definitely a colossal douche.
* ManOfWealthAndTaste: Is dressed in a suit and tie in all of his few appearances, such as [[spoiler: twisting Dr.Hibiki's arm into illegal cloning through the promise of funding.]]
* {{Narcissist}}: In fact his abusive style of parenting is what psyciatrists terms "narcissistic abuse." He disowned Mu for daring to be something more than a vehicle for his own ego, and upon seeing his [[spoiler:clone, the first words out of his mouth are "this is me, right?"]] Al seems to have been incapable of viewing people as anything more than extensions of his own personality, and that's without getting into his [[AboveGoodAndEvil delusions of]] [[{{Ubermensch}} grandeur]].
* ParentalAbandonment: Of ''both'' his sons, one after the other. Jackass.
* PosthumousCharacter: Dies years before the series begins, but is nontheless an enormous part of the plot, given that he not only inadvertently created the BigBad, but also funded the Ultimate Coordinator project, the process that eventually led to [[spoiler:Kira and Cagalli's births]].
* {{Pride}}: In addition to being a textbook narcissist, Al's hubris knew no bounds. Le Creuset calls him out on it posthumously in a rant to Mu.
* ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney: [[spoiler:Cloning humans]] is illegal. Al doesn't care.
* SmugSnake: In contrast to his sons who are respectively TheAce and [[spoiler:one hell of a MagnificentBastard]].
* {{Ubermensch}}: He certainly ''thought'' he was one, but at the end of the day he's little more than a rich creep with an ego the size of a planet.
%%* TheUnfettered
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Ulen Hibiki]]
!!!Voice actor: EijiYanagisawa (Japanese), FredHanderson (English original series), Creator/CamClarke (English HD remaster)
->''"The urge to make things better has always driven progress, and then that is what brings about happiness."''
[[quoteright:200:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Ulen_Hibiki_1190.jpg]]

A very brilliant, very ambitious, and totally amoral scientist who was behind the Ultimate Coordinator project.
----
* AbusiveParent: How abusive? [[spoiler:When he needed a test subject for the project, he used ''one of his own soon-to-be-born twin babies''... Kira Yamato.]]
* DomesticAbuse: If you think that stealing your wife's unborn child for a science experiment qualifies you, then yes.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Whether it's this or PragmaticVillainy, he's still the one who points out to Al Da Flaga that [[spoiler:cloning him]] would be illegal. Implying that he only agreed to do so [[OnlyInItForTheMoney to receive the funding he needed]].
* EvilutionaryBiologist: Not only did he work on the Ultimate Coordinator project, but he is also the one who [[spoiler:cloned Rau le Creuset and Rey za Burrell.]]
* ForScience: His motivation is progress for its own sake.
%%* HotScientist
%%* MadScientist
%%* PosthumousCharacter
%%* SmugSnake
%%* TheUnfettered
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Via Hibiki]]
!!!Voice actor: Creator/HoukoKuwashima (Japanese), Creator/EricaSchroeder (English HD remaster)

Ulen Hibiki's wife, also implied to be his scientific partner. She ''does'' have standards, though, as she's horrified when he goes too far with his experiments.
----
%%* BrainyBrunette
* GiveHimANormalLife: [[spoiler:She tells her younger sister Caridad to take Kira and Cagalli in, before she dies alongside Ulen and Al Da Flaga.]]
* MotherlyScientist: Her scenes in the anime showcase her maternal concern for the subjects of the Ultimate Coordinator project, [[spoiler: beyond the one that happens to be her son. Incidentally, Kira was the only one to survive.]]
%%* PosthumousCharacter
%%* TenderTears
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Caridad Yamato]]
!!!Voice actor: Creator/KikukoInoue (Japanese), Creator/RebeccaShoichet (English original series), Creator/ErinFitzgerald (English HD remaster)

Kira's mother. Actually, his maternal aunt. She and her husband Haruma raised Kira, who has no idea.
----
* GoodParents: [[spoiler:Despite not being his real mother and father,]] Caridad and Haruma loved and treated Kira like their own and were understanding of his reluctance to see them during the ''Archangel'''s brief layover in Orb.
* ParentalSubstitute: [[spoiler:For Kira.]]
* YamatoNadeshiko: A very loving and caring mother for Kira, who doesn't seem at all stunned by the horrific war her boy goes through.
* YouGottaHaveBlueHair: [[spoiler: Which is one of the first tips she isn't Kira's biological mother. (Plus her husband's hair being black and neither of them having purple eyes.)]]
[[/folder]]

!ZAFT
The Zodiac Alliance of Freedom Treaty, representing the Coordinators living in the newly independent PLANT nation at L5. As its military arm, ZAFT is the primary antagonist at the beginning of the series. Fighting for independence from the Earth nations that built the [=PLANTs=] they live in, their fight is far more complicated than an idealistic crusade against tyranny. Their presentation changes drastically during the course of the series, managing to become both more and less sympathic at the same time.

[[folder:Rau Le Creuset]]
!!'''Main mecha:''' ZGMF-515 CGUE, AMF-101 DINN, ZGMF-600[=GuAIZ=], [=ZGMF-X13A=] Providence Gundam
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/ToshihikoSeki (Japanese), Creator/MarkOliver (English), Kevin T. Collins (English HD Remaster dub)
->''"Suspicion, ignorance, prejudice, the dark emotions directed at those who can be loved. If love is the brightest light, then are these emotions created from the shadow it casts? Things that are different, things we don't understand, differences that foster anxiety, leading to hatred, and ultimately...confrontation."''
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Rau_Le_Creuset_3030.jpg]]

Athrun's commanding officer and Patrick Zala's right-hand man, Le Creuset is a feared ZAFT ship captain and mobile suit pilot, renowned for his ability and his ruthlessness. He is assigned to hunt down the ''Archangel'', and is later given command of the assaults on Alaska and Panama, and the defence of Jachin Due. Always masked, Le Creuset is an enigmatic figure with a grudge against Mu La Flaga, and his own agenda, which he keeps entirely to himself. A very dangerous man.

Le Creuset is a spoiler-heavy character, so read with caution.

* AccentAdaptation: Gets a nice transatlantic one in English from Creator/MarkOliver to go with his formal manners and theatrical tastes (and a very fine dub performance).
* AceCustom: Flies several high-end mass production mobile suits, all of them painted silver. These include a GINN High Maneuver Type, a CGUE command suit, a flight-capable DINN, and one of the new production [=GuAIZ=]'s, which had just come off the line, and incorporates an OS based on the one in the stolen Gundams. The only exception to the rule is the SuperPrototype Providence Gundam.
* AcePilot: One of the few snipers in ''Gundam'', he fights all of his battles from a distance to lethal effect, and unlike other pilots who seem to focus solely on ranged battles, Rau is fully capable of taking on very strong Coordinators like Kira in close range combat provided his mobile suit could keep up.
* AffablyEvil: His courteous and thoughtful nature is real. [[spoiler: Considering he was likely raised to be exactly the opposite, it's both innate and his ''choice''. The darkness he throws himself into and the damage he causes are equally real.]]
* AlertnessBlink: Experiences a Newtype Flash whenever Mu La Flaga is within a few kilometers. It is one of the few things that point to their having newtype-like abilities. Interestingly he also receives it under other circumstances than Mu's arrival, suggesting that his Newtype powers are stronger than Mu's.
* {{Archenemy}}: To Mu [[spoiler:and later Kira.]]
* ArchnemesisDad: [[spoiler:Rau was cloned from La Flaga's father, and meant to serve as a replacement son, he could easily be seen as fullfilling either trope]].
* {{Attack Drone}}s: The Providence features the DRAGOON System, which is basically this trope. The Gundam possesses 3 large pods and 8 smaller ones, the former equipped with 9 beam guns each for a wideshot, the latter with 2 beam guns each for a normal shot. Together, the Providence carries a total of ''43'' beam gun nozzles.
* AxCrazy: [[spoiler:Post SanitySlippage. Given that his series-long plan of destroying all life is about to come into fruition, why hide it anymore?]]
* BadassNormal: [[spoiler:He may be a clone of Al Da Flaga, but that doesn't give him any special abilities- aside from the hints that he and Mu may be Newtypes (see AlertnessBlink above). Yet he is still good enough to fake being a Coordinator.]]
* BeamSpam: The Freedom's BeamSpam is so famous that it's easy to forget that Rau's Providence is the true king of spam in SEED. The suit itself has one oversized beam rifle and a pair of beam guns built into its shield, and is fitted with a DRAGOON system that lets it remote-control eleven {{Attack Drone}}s - three large, eight small. The small ones have two beam guns each, while the large ones have nine, giving the Providence a grand total of ''forty-six'' beam guns that it can fire from a dozen different directions at once. Most of the FinalBattle consists of Kira trying to find a way through Rau's curtain of beam fire without losing too many important parts of his suit's anatomy in the process.
* BerserkButton: Do not try to take off ([[spoiler:or ''shoot off'']]) his mask. [[spoiler:We're looking at ''you'', Mu.]]
* BetaTestBaddie: [[spoiler:He is essentially a byproduct of the Ultimate Coordinator project, created by Dr. Hibiki in order to secure the funding needed to produce Kira.]]
%%%%* BewareTheSuperman: Makes some comments to this effect where Kira is concerned.
* BigBad: [[spoiler: He's the one pulling both the strings of both Azarael and Patrick Zala, to drive them against each other in war of mutually assured destruction because he believes all life is meaningless and thus should be wiped out.]]
* BiggerStick: The Providence, which is from the same line as the Freedom and the Justice.
* BilingualBonus: It's very subtle, but there are a couple of linguistic things in Japanese that point to [[spoiler:Mu and Rau being related, even with the totally different personalities and without the bigger hints: they still both "Oi, oi" and "yare, yare" a couple of times, and there's Rau's "ojousan" versus Mu's "jouchan"]].
* {{Biseinen}}: His mask obscures it, but he is quite the pretty boy.
* BladeBelowTheShoulder: The Providence's [[LaserBlade beam saber]] is built into its arm-mounted shield.
* BreakThemByTalking: Rau makes a habit of this -- particularly with Flay, Mu, and Kira. His effectiveness varies.
* BrokenAce: A villainous example, to say the least.
* BunnyEarsLawyer: He is not so much "quirky" as he tends to act on his own initiative more than his superiors might wish. There is also the whole "constantly wearing a mask" thing. Damned if he doesn't get results, though.
* CharClone: A blond AcePilot with an agenda, alias, and CoolMask who is also TheRival? Check! Gundam contractual obligations fulfilled.
* TheChessmaster: He beautifully orchestrates events so that the Earth Alliance will fire [[spoiler:nuclear weapons]] and ZAFT will fire [[spoiler:GENESIS]].
* CloneDegeneration: [[spoiler:Rau's telomeres are too short, leaving him effectively dying of old age at 25 years old. He is forced to take increasingly large doses of drugs to stabilise this, and is subject to seizures at irregular intervals as his body breaks down.]]
* CloningBlues: [[spoiler:More psychological than anything else, though see above. He believes that he has no real identity, and a result his sense of self-worth is more than a little damaged.]]
* CommandingCoolness: Like most ZAFT officers he holds the generic rank of "commander".
* CoolMask: He is a CharClone, after all.
* CulturedWarrior: Rau philosophizes like crazy, has the most skilled rhetoric in the show, and states he doesn't want to be mocked by future historians. He has a fierce intelligence and is clearly interested in more than being a soldier.
* CynicalMentor: To Athrun and Yzak. He's the opposite of idealistic, yet still rather sympathetic to unhappy, cynical Athrun and also saves hotheaded Yzak [[spoiler:from getting killed at Alaska]].
* DarthVaderClone: Well, aside from the [[spoiler:TrulySingleParent]], poor health, lethality, constant face covering, DragonWithAnAgenda and the fact that it means "dark father" (and the LukeIAmYourFather moment)... Both Rau and Anakin were perfectly willing to acknowledge, respect, and even love the good in the world. They just both ultimately believe that hatred is stronger. This even manages to spill over into the next series. Militarily, Le Creuset's commanding authority (and political position) is also comparable to Vader's zenith as Supreme Commander as of ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack''.
* DarkIsEvil: As an iconic 'evil Gundam', his Providence uses a much darker version of the traditional red, white, and blue colour scheme (the red and blue stick, but the white is replaced a ''very'' dark grey). It makes a striking contrast with his earlier silver-gray suits, too - the fact that he starts piloting it shortly after being revealed as a [[spoiler:nihilistic OmnicidalManiac is almost certainly not a coincidence.]]
* DeathSeeker: [[spoiler:Wants to die, with the caveat that [[SuicidalCosmicTemperTantrum everyone else goes first]].]]
* {{Dehumanization}}: An extension of his [[spoiler: CloningBlues above]]. [[spoiler: He's physically, mentally, and emotionally suffering from the consequences of the war as well as his own body breaking down — the scene where he needs his pills after Mendel makes him seem more animal than human — and in the end claims not to believe people will ever stop trying to kill each other. He also loathes Kira for several reasons, two major being getting to live without any comparable consequences and also that Kira's true existence IS likely to set off waves of greed and violence, just like George Glenn's — not to mention the dehumanizing and philosophically horrifying ramifications of being born "exactly how someone else wants you to be". It takes Lacus's countering kindness to keep Rau's initial BreakingSpeech to Kira from sticking]].
* DoubleAgent: Both Patrick Zala and [[spoiler:Muruta Azrael]] think he is working for them. [[spoiler: He is manipulating both to his own ends]].
* DissonantSerenity: Rau is perfectly happy to dole out cheerful {{Breaking Speech}}es in the midst of battle. [[spoiler:Particularly jarring in the last episode, but this may be due to his [[SanitySlippage questionable sanity]]]] at the time. Mu is fond of [[LampshadeHanging sticking lampshades]] ''all over'' this.
* DragonInChief: He acts as Patrick Zala's right hand man, though [[spoiler:he's really the series' BigBad]] and Patrick wouldn't have gotten anywhere without Le Creuset pulling his strings.
* DroneDeployer: The Providence's main feature are its numerous DRAGOON remote weapons.
* EleventhHourSuperpower: Upgrading to the Providence in time for the finale.
* EnigmaticMinion: To Patrick Zala. From the beginning it is clear that Le Creuset has his own agenda, but just what that agenda is remains a secret until the end of the series. He actually remains with Zala for a surprisingly long time, only leaving [[spoiler:after asking if he should kill Athrun, and [[TheUnfettered being told it didn't matter]]]].
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: He's a complex guy so he gets a few.
** First is when he orders anti-fortress equipment used on Heliopolis, showing that he is both fine with and actively willing to destroy things.
** Then there's the point where he talks about Athrun returning sobbing with Lacus's dead body. Not only does it flash his dark side, [[spoiler:Athrun ended up doing exactly this in the sequel with ''Meer,'' [[ExactWords who certainly counts as "Lacus's" body]]]] -- Rau tends to be right about a lot of things...
** And then there's the famous moment he stops going after the ''Archangel'' after [[MoralityPet Lacus yells at him and tells him off,]] even though someone like him could (apparently) have easily brushed her aside. Even he has limits and a continued willingness to listen, however surprising those might be.
** Finally, the ClipShow he originally narrates has him thinking ''way'' more about [[ThePhilosopher people and why they are doing what they're doing]] than (possibly barring Lacus and certainly onscreen) any other character in the show. It's worth noting that [[WhatYouAreInTheDark unmasked and alone here,]] he is very sane and rather fond of the truth, despite later appearances.
* EvilCounterpart: To no fewer than ''three'' characters: Mu (as his [[spoiler:cloned "brother" and fellow {{Mentor}}]]), Kira (they're both results of [[spoiler:GeneticEngineering experiments]], with Le Creuset showing how badly Kira could have turned out if he hadn't been raised by the right people), and Lacus (on a purely philosophical level).
* EvilIsBigger: While it is the standard height for a military mobile suit, his Providence is the bulkiest Gundam in the show, with a backpack to emphasise its imposing build. Even its other weapons such as beam rifle and beam saber are larger than the standard, with [[{{BFG}} a beam rifle the size of a beam ''bazooka'']] and [[{{BFS}} an arm mounted beam saber that is as long as an anti-''ship'' sword]]. Even the Freedom and the Justice, which comes from the same line of Gundams, look positively delicate next to it.
* EvilIsHammy: Rau is rather understated at the beginning of the series; it is not until his real plans come out that he starts ChewingTheScenery.
* ExactWords: Overlapping with CassandraTruth, Rau is fond of these, seemingly because his Newtype abilities come with some unspecified level of PsychicPowers. Among others:
** Talking about Athrun's engagement at the beginning, he tells him "the blood of Committee Chairman Zala and the blood of Chairman Clyne will create a bright light for the future. I'm counting on you." By the end of the show, [[spoiler: Siegel and Patrick have both been murdered and GENESIS has created a very bright light thanks to exploding by Athrun self-destructing his Gundam, killing Rau]].
** Lacus tells ''him'' with a knowing look that "war results may be very important, but please do not forget about all the people who die along the way". He promptly and sincerely promises her that he will not.
** "Earth is going [[spoiler:to burn. And the tears and screams of the survivors will fuel the next war." Consider what happens post-ColonyDrop in the [[Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEEDDestiny next show]]]].
** "The Chairman is having a hell of a time trying to get Lacus Clyne under control." Again, [[spoiler:see the following series]].
* {{Expy}}: So there's a guy. Constantly wearing a mask, having issues with his health and identity and the rest of the world since birth. Manipulating a couple of jerks, perfectly willing to use threats, psychological pressure, and violence, and the only thing that seemingly has ''any'' hold over him is a little soprano ingenue with a Scandinavian father... oh, yeah, and there's also the reasonably decent guy she's engaged to. Rau's dislike of copying is [[Literature/ThePhantomofTheOpera probably the only reason he didn't change his name to ''Erik''.]] He still makes a hell of a chandelier crash [[spoiler:shooting a light fixture at Mendel]]. [[note]]It's also worth noting "Christine" takes several levels of badass in this show and is more than a match for him. Also that ''her'' fiancé's name was ''Raoul''...[[/note]]
* FauxAffablyEvil: With Patrick Zala, [[spoiler:yet he ''still'' doesn't betray him to his face. To always speak so highly of "His Excellency" and only show infrequent internal signs of displeasure, means the former may not have been entirely an act. Also that Rau is a superlative StepfordSmiler. Downplayed]].
* FoeRomanceSubtext: Rau spends an awful lot of time privately thinking about or publicly praising (or actually listening to) Lacus, who has nothing to do with any of his work, goals, or machinations (and even very publicly stops him once). There's even a moment near the end of the show when Ezalia Joule calls upon "the people who love her" in Japanese, and the person we see... is Rau. Considering their characters have strong analogues to Erik and Christine Daäe in ''Franchise/ThePhantomOfTheOpera'' or ''Franchise/StarWars''' Anakin Skywalker and Padmé Amidala, or Char Aznable and Lalah Sune from the original series, it's not even that strange.
* {{Foil}}: He shares a few things with [[Characters/GundamCharAznable Char Aznable]]: masked blond aliasing villainy. However, their personalities, goals, and methods are so different that it's ColorCodedForYourConvenience with a complete and total lack of Char's infamous red around Rau. [[spoiler: The sequel is both a surprise and another story, yet still foiling him against [[Creator/ShuichiIkeda the original Char]]]]. He and the [[spoiler:[[Anime/AfterWarGundamX Frost brothers]] would also have [[StrawNihilist a lot to talk about]]]].
** Mu. Rau's negative skepticism constantly plays off Mu's easygoing willingness not to question much. It's almost a case of [[spoiler:SiblingYinYang]].
** Athrun. Patrick Zala treats ''him'' like the favored son and shows Athrun what amounts to zero kindness. Due to his [[AbusiveParent own]] past and probably because of this, Rau's generally quite sympathetic to Athrun. He's also [[MoralityPet somewhat more interested in Athrun's fiancee]] than Athrun is...
** Both he and Lacus are ThePhilosopher with a knack for good manners and BreakThemByTalking. She's accused of being a traitor and a spy; he really ''is'' a DoubleAgent. Neither of them is at all happy with the current state of the world and each looks for channels outside conventional government and warfare to deal with it. Rau even [[ColorCodedForYourConvenience ends up with a pale-purple and white pilot suit]] that's very similar to her general color scheme. However, Lacus wants people to stop killing each other -- Rau no longer [[spoiler:believes they're capable of it]].
* FreudianExcuse: [[spoiler:Rau was illegally cloned by an [[ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney irredeemable rich jerk]] of a businessman whose first words upon seeing his new son were "This is me, right?" Said biological template went on to [[ParentalAbandonment abandon]] and possibly abuse him. Add in his CloneDegeneration, and the fact that he is a dying man at twenty-five, and his actions become much more understandable, but not excusable.]]
%%* IcyBlueEyes: Beneath the mask.
* HatesEveryoneEqually: [[spoiler: As much FantasticRacism there already is with one side wanting to destroy the other, his hatred is focused on all sides of the conflict. In his own perspective, both Natural and Coordinator alike deserve what he believes to be their inevitable fate for all the crimes that they're capable of. [[StrawNihilist This is by no means a positive example.]]]]
* HeroKiller: Even when he doesn't pull the trigger he racks up quite a body count. [[spoiler:His manipulations lead to the deaths of both Mu La Flaga ([[OrwellianRetcon at the time]]) and Natarle and he directly kills Flay. He'd have killed Lacus and Dearka had Kira and Yzak not been able to intervene in time.]]
* InYourNatureToDestroyYourselves: [[spoiler:Part of his philosophy; he believes he is just speeding up the process]].
* InsaneAdmiral: [[spoiler:He masks it well, but at the end Le Creuset is either this or doing a damn fine imitation.]]
* {{Keigo}}: Not constantly like Lacus, but Rau is essentially the runner-up; still a very formal person who uses a good bit of this, especially around or in reference to His Excellency (Committee) Chairman Zala, and who tends to default to proper speech, frequently.
* KickTheDog: He [[spoiler:kills Flay just to hurt Kira, though it's highly ambiguous as to whether he knew she was on the shuttle or was just trying to destroy the thing Kira was protecting. He's also the person mainly responsible for the gruesome Cyclops incident at JOSH-A, [[ALighterShadeOfBlack although that's de-emphasized due to the sadism, racism, and indifference of OMNI high command.]]]]
* KillAllHumans: [[spoiler:His goal is to destroy humanity, be it Natural or Coordinator.]]
* LargeHam: It's partly Mark Oliver's accent and performance in the Ocean Group dub, but considering Rau is basically Franchise/ThePhantomOfTheOpera InSpace, he is fond of theatrical gestures and dramatic lines and monologues right from the get-go, with Mendel probably his best performance.
* TheLastDance: [[spoiler:The entire plot of the series is revealed to be winding down to his.]]
* LightIsNotGood: He [[VillainInAWhiteSuit wears white]], pilots mostly white mobile suits, has a name meaning "The Crucible", and eventually pilots The Providence. ''Definitely'' not a good guy.
* LukeIAmYourFather: Or rather, [[spoiler:Mu, I am your father's clone; Kira, this is all ''your'' father's fault for getting involved with the guy and you're the lab experiment my existence paid for]].
* MalevolentMaskedMan: Constantly wears a mask and is one of the worst people in the series.
* ManipulativeBastard: [[spoiler:Beautifully manipulates ''everyone'', from his subordinates to his superiors to his enemies, to further his goals.]]
* MaskOfSanity: [[spoiler:Throughout the series seems to be a calm, efficient ReasonableAuthorityFigure who just happens to be working for the bad guys. This made the revelation of how seriously twisted he really is all the more shocking when he started ranting and raving in front of Kira and Mu. And then he goes right back to being calm and collected in public after said confrontation. Bonus points for actually wearing a mask all the time, and it only comes off when he's at the height of his crazy episode.]]
* MeaningfulName: "Le Creuset" is French for "crucible". [[spoiler:Doubly meaningful, as he chose the name himself once he discovered what he was.]]
* MercyKill: [[spoiler:Seems to believe he's performing one on the human species as a whole]].
* MidSeasonUpgrade: Le Creuset upgrades his suits throughout the show, starting with a Ginn High Maneuver Type, than flying a CGUE, a DINN, and the first of the new [=GuAIZs=]. It's not until the finale, however, that he gains a Gundam, in the form of the Providence.
* MightyGlacier: The Providence is pretty bulky and thus not as agile when compared to the Freedom and Justice, but the DRAGOON AttackDrones move with enough speed to counterbalance this defect, and as his sword fight with Mu and Kira shows, the suit's still quick where it counts.
* MisanthropeSupreme: [[spoiler:Firmly believes that HumansAreBastards, and therefore, need to die.]]
* MoralityPet: Lacus. He praises her effusively without an obvious reason, remembers words she said months later, and she's the only one he's ever shown to listen to, even when she does it by playing dirty and threatening a ThisIsUnforgivable in front of his whole command. [[spoiler:Her status to him as a sort of BarrierMaiden means he still tries to kill her to usher in the apocalypse, but even while in a manic state of homicidal rage, he also says he enjoyed her songs (even loved, if you go by the original Japanese)]].
* NiceJobFixingItVillain: At Alaska, Rau tipped off Mu [[spoiler:to the Cyclops System; Mu promptly went running to save the ''Archangel'' crew. Without Le Creuset, they would have been painfully vaporized]]. What keeps this from being straightforward is Rau later saying "I dearly hope the legged ship will make it out," meaning he wasn't just taunting Mu about a horrific realization, but ''did it deliberately''.
* OmnicidalManiac: [[spoiler:His life, such as it is, has left him thoroughly convinced that we've all got to go. He may only be trying to KillAllHumans, but it's quite omnicidal in context]].
* ParentalAbandonment: Briefly hinted at in the anime; brought up explicitly in the adaptations.
* ParentalSubstitute: Downplayed with Athrun, but he's still a more reasonable alternative to Patrick. Played straight and invoked on him by [[spoiler:Flay, who claims he has her father's voice at their RescueIntroduction. He ends up protecting her and looking after her for quite a while, before subverting this by using her as a courier of chaos and finally killing her at the end]].
* PetTheDog: He's kinder, more appreciative, and more understanding to Athrun than Athrun's father is, and saves both [[spoiler:Yzak's and Flay's lives in the battle of JOSH-A, even managing to restore Flay's equilibrium to a point where she's more stable than she ever was on the ''Archangel''. Subverted when he nonchalantly shoots her escape shuttle just to cause Kira grief, though it's unclear if he noticed she was inside the shuttle.]]
* ThePhilosopher: See StrawNihilist + BreakingSpeech + EstablishingCharacterMoment.
* PlayingBothSides: [[spoiler:Sells information to the EA while acting as one of ZAFT's top commanders.]]
* RageAgainstTheReflection: Catching sight of his reflection is enough to send Le Creuset into a murderous breakdown. [[spoiler:Seeing the face of the man you hate most does that kind of thing to you.]]
* RescueIntroduction: With [[spoiler:Flay. Since the choice was "bring her" or "leave her to die", it's not really a kidnapping. Despite still being quite afraid, her time with ZAFT is the first time in the entire show Flay begins to show things like calm, propriety, and concern for others, as well as getting over the worst of her FantasticRacism, so it doubles as an emotional rescue. Even Rau being responsible for her death doesn't change the fact that without him, she would have been equally dead without having accomplished anything]].
* TheResenter: Towards La Flaga[[spoiler:, Kira, and the entire human race.]]
* TheRival: To Mu at first, though Kira gets added eventually.
* SanitySlippage: [[spoiler:In the last six episodes.]]
* SelfMadeOrphan: His flashbacks rather heavily imply that [[spoiler:the fire that burned down Al Da Flaga's home was ''not'' an accident]].
* StepfordSmiler: Rau's as polite and concerned as they come. While he ''does'' [[spoiler: give frequent vent to his internal pain and dark side, it's hard to know just how much he's really screaming unless you are Mu and Kira and trapped in a creepy lab.]] Lampshaded by this, when he goes from full-throttle rage and breakdown to smiling at [[spoiler:Flay]], in seconds, and earlier, when he goes from full physical breakdown to speaking pleasantly on the phone with Patrick, almost instantly.
* StrawNihilist: [[ZigZaggingTrope It's complicated]]. [[spoiler: His life has more or less convinced him that all existence is fundamentally meaningless, but he still sees that there are virtues in humanity such as kindness and loyalty. However, as would be shown in the sequel, Rau's disappointment in and hatred of humanity kept increasing because they kept proving his worldview correct until he decided [[OmnicidalManiac to do something about it.]]]]
* SuicidalCosmicTemperTantrum: [[spoiler:He wants to die, but he wants everybody else to go first]].
* TalkingYourWayOut: [[spoiler:Flay]] is once again pointing a gun at his head. Rau coolly shrugs it off, points out she'll die if she does do it, points out she's not really living much at the moment anyway, questions whether it's even loaded, and finishes [[BreakThemByTalking breaking her]] by gently and correctly pointing out that she's not really a soldier (so guns and killing aren't really her thing). It's so effective, it not only keeps him alive, her attitude begins to improve afterwards. Compare Lacus with Athrun the following episode.
* TallDarkAndSnarky: Tall blonde and snarky anyway.
* ThirteenIsUnlucky: The ZGMF-X'''13'''A Providence.
* TheUnfettered: He wishes for [[spoiler:the extinction of the human race, and manipulates both sides of the war to do so.]]
* TheUnreveal: Done in the televised show whenever he's shown maskless, even when the protagonists get to see his face. Even in the CompilationMovie, his face is only ever shown in one shot, and for just a few seconds at that. There isn't even anything odd about his face, which is the point. [[spoiler:He only wears the mask to cover the face of the man he was cloned from, the man he despises most in the world.]]
* VillainousBreakdown: Inverted. [[spoiler:Previously calm and collected, Le Creuset suffers from some ''serious'' SanitySlippage in the final episodes, due to his belief that his plan has ''succeeded''. After all, if it's all going to end, why pretend to be sane anymore? It's also implied that his degeneration is causing him to break down biologically.]]
* VillainInAWhiteSuit: His uniform is white, he flies pale mobile suits and there's something very off about him.
* WhiteMaskOfDoom: That white mask doesn't signify anything good.
* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: [[spoiler:Le Creuset's been hurt so badly that he's convinced that we all gotta go.]]
* YoungerThanTheyLook: [[spoiler:Quite possibly. We don't know how much his condition has sped up his aging and maturation]].

[[folder:Fredrik Ades]]
!!!Voice Actors: Yasuhiko Kawazu (Japanese), Creator/MichaelDobson (English original series), Creator/RayChase (English HD remaster)

The captain of the ''Vesalius'', Ades is Le Creuset's right-hand man and a capable officer in his own right. Sometimes taken aback by Le Creuset's penchant for acting without orders, Ades nevertheless follows his superior's instructions loyally. Despite his secondary role on the ship, he seems to command the respect of the Le Creuset team's pilots.

* TheCaptain: She serves as the captain of the ''Vesalius''.
%%* CommissarCap
* FaceDeathWithDignity: [[spoiler:Stands on the bridge, saluting Athrun, Yzak, and Dearka as the ''Vesalius'' is engulfed in flames.]]
* GoingDownWithTheShip: Stays aboard the ''Vesalius'' while the rest of his men make their escape.
* TheGoodCaptain: Ades seems like a pretty good guy, despite who he's working for, and gets along well enough with his crew.
* NumberTwo: Ades may command the ship, but it's Le Creuset who determines how the missions progress.

[[folder:Athrun Zala]]
!!'''Main mecha:''' GAT-X303 Aegis Gundam, [=ZGMF-X19A=] Justice Gundam
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/AkiraIshida (Japanese), Creator/SamuelVincent (English original series dub), Creator/ChrisHackney (English HD Remaster dub)
->''"I can't exactly fight a war with a big smile on my face."''
[[quoteright:290:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/untitled_835.png]]

Kira's ForgottenChildhoodFriend and one of ZAFT's elite pilots, he spends the first half of the show trying to capture Kira and the Strike. Much more cynical than Kira, he considers himself the realist of the two, and believes Kira is being manipulated by the Naturals. He too grow progressively darker and more bitter as the series progresses, culminating in a [[TheGlovesComeOff brutal fight]] between he and Kira in the middle of the series.

* AcePilot: Like Kira, he quickly reaches this status, he is in fact the only one who can match Kira toe to toe for most of the series. It's also worthy to note that he is the pilot with ''the'' most potent [[SuperMode SEED Factor]], being the only one who can activate it at will in ''SEED'', and has never even been defeated ''once'' he activates it.
* AntiVillain: Though not a bad person by any stretch, he's still trying to capture Kira and destroy the ''Archangel'', [[spoiler:until he joins the heroes later in the story]].
* ArmedLegs: In addition to the [[BladeBelowTheShoulder ones on his arms]], the Aegis has a beam saber mounted on each foot.
* ArrangedMarriage: With Lacus Clyne, as set up by their respective fathers. They both seem okay with the arrangement, even if it does [[spoiler:end up becoming a moot point when they both fall for other people]].
* AttackDrone: The Justice's Fatum-00 can be detached and function as an unmanned support unit.
* BattleBoomerang: The Justice has one mounted on each shoulder.
* BestFriend: Despite ending up on the opposite sides of the barricades, Athrun remains the closest friend Kira has ever had. [[spoiler:Whenever they team up, they move mountains together.]]
* BewareTheNiceOnes: Le Creuset comments that Athrun is too soft for his liking and indeed it shows because Athrun never tried to fully engage Kira trying to talk with him to join the Coordinators instead. Until after the battle when [[spoiler:Kira kills Nicol, Athrun is able to effectively ground the ''Archangel'' and go one on one with Kira, and actually destroys the Strike.]]
* {{BFG}}: The Aegis's MA Attack Mode is essentially the Gundam's whole body transforming into a large cannon.
* BigDamnKiss: After being rather hesitant to kiss Lacus earlier in the show (and nicely doing it on the cheek), he initiates a zero-gravity one of these [[spoiler:with Cagalli, just before the final battle at Jachin Due]]. It's so damn big, it's gorgeously lampshaded with Earth in the background behind them.
* BladeBelowTheShoulder: Rather than hand-held, the Aegis's primary beam sabers ignite direct from its forearms.
* CharClone: Shares the other attributes of [[Anime/MobileSuitGundam ''MSG''-era Char]] Le Creuset doesn't have, like piloting red mobile suits and a rivalry with the hero. [[spoiler: Until he switches sides that is.]]
* CombiningMecha: The Justice is comprised of two units - the main Gundam and a glider unit backpack, which gives it full-flight capabilities in Earth's atmosphere. It is armed with two beam cannons and two pairs of machine guns and can be remotely deployed to attack enemies on its own. The Justice can ride on it for high-altitude flight, and Athrun loves to ram it directly on his opponent's face in combat.
* ConflictingLoyalty: His status as a ZAFT soldier and doing as his father wishes conflicts with his friendship with Kira and his desire of actually ending the war peacefully. [[spoiler:He sides with Kira when he saves the Freedom with BigDamnHero moment during the battle of Orb.]]
* TheCynic: Bitter, unhappy, and convinced things are only going to get worse.
* DeadSidekick: [[spoiler:Nicol, the only member of Team Athrun to show respect towards it's commander and a personal friend of his.]]
* DeathFromAbove: The Justice's backpack allows it to fly under Earth's atmosphere, and if it is riding on it, it can fly at even higher altitudes.
* DeceasedParentsAreTheBest: From the little we know of Lenore, she was apparently lovely, kind, intelligent, and supportive, with the only criticism from her son while she was alive being that she worked too much (which let him spend plenty of time at Kira's house). In contrast with the very-much-alive, cold and brutal Patrick, it's no wonder Athrun remembers his mother so fondly.
* {{Deuteragonist}}: Easily the most important character after Kira.
* DisposableFiance: Ends his engagement to Lacus himself when he thinks she prefers Kira. Of course, he's had more chemistry with [[spoiler:Cagalli]] the entire time, and they become an OfficialCouple.
* DoubleWeapon: Although the Justice carries two beam sabers like other Gundams, Athrun almost always combines them together into a double-bladed beam saber.
* TheDragon: Is NumberTwo to Le Creuset for most of the series' first half.
* DualWielding: The Aegis features beam sabres in both wrists and both ankles, enabling it to not just dual-wield but also ''quad-wield''. Averted with the Justice as Athrun prefers to [[DoubleWeapon combine its beam sabers]].
* {{Expy}}: The purple haired son of the Zeon-expy dictator? He's clearly one for [[Anime/MobileSuitGundam Garma Zabi]] with some elements of Char thrown in such as a predilection for red mobile suits and status as TheRival.
* ForeheadOfDoom: The [[BonusMaterial omake]] SuperDeformed Character Theatres even poke fun at it, in them he doesn't seem to mind though.
* ForgottenChildhoodFriend: Kira, downplayed. Athrun still has a bulletin board full of photos of Kira, but despite being his Childhood BestFriend, they haven't been in touch at all since Athrun returned to PLANT from the Moon a couple of years before. Kira doesn't know about Athrun's engagement or the death of his mother, let alone that Athrun's in an elite part of ZAFT. It causes some nasty shocks and drives much of the initial plot.
* GadgeteerGenius: Created the Haros and Birdy.
* GiantSquid: The Attack Mode Aegis vaguely resembles a mecha-cephalopod and its only accessible weapon in this mode, the "Scylla" Multi-phase Energy Cannon, is named after a Greek mythological sea monster.
* TheGlovesComeOff: Against Kira after [[spoiler:Nicol dies.]]
* HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler:After Lacus plants some doubts about ZAFT's (and, more to the point, his father's) end goals and practices in his head, he decides to see for himself what the proper course of action is to take. This ends with him joining Kira and the crew of the ''Archangel''.]]
* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:Athrun ''attempts'' to do this when he plans to use the Justice's self-destruction to destroy GENESIS, but Cagalli talks him out of it. It's implied there's a bit of SinsOfTheFather in his actions.]]
* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy: Downplayed. He makes no protest when Lacus apparently chooses Kira. However whether it's Lacus he wants to be happy or ''Kira'' is another story.
* JadeColoredGlasses: Athrun has [[MeaningfulAppearance meaningful]] bright green eyes and a very hard time seeing the best in other people. His father is a rather odd subversion, where Athrun desperately ''wants'' to believe Patrick is better than the monstrous GeneralRipper he seems to have become, and [[spoiler: ends up taking a bullet from him]] just to disprove his faint hope.
* KnightInSourArmour: Big time. He's bitter, cynical, and depressed, but he really does want to make the world a better place.
* TheLadysFavor: Cagalli bestows [[spoiler:her Haumea pendant on him, and he seemingly wears it for the rest of the series, as well as claiming that it saved him]].
* TheLancer: To [[spoiler:Kira, post-HeelFaceTurn]]
* LightningBruiser: With the Justice, which is optimized for close range combat, with two beam boomerangs to complement its arsenal.
* LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe: Both the Aegis and Justice have large shields. The Justice's shield is a bit more practical as its laminated coating makes it's more effective in protection against beam weapons.
* MeaningfulName:
** Athrun is Arabic, derived from the Greek erythron, which means red. [[CharClone He is a CHAR]] after all.
** His surname is a pun of "Zara", the first heavy cruiser of its own class.
** "Zara" also means "dawn".
* MeetCute: With [[spoiler:Cagalli, alone on an island, despite the fact that ''they try to kill each other several times.'' He initially doesn't notice she's a girl, she accidentally flashes him to even ''more'' embarrassment, and they basically end up noticeably liking each other despite all the bickering, weapons, and violence. Even more noticeably, [[KnightInSourArmor Athrun]] [[WhenHeSmiles actually]] [[OOCISSeriousBusiness laughs]]]].
* MidSeasonUpgrade: The Justice.
* MilitaryBrat: His dad is the head of the ZAFT military.
* MissingMom: Killed in the Junius 7 incident. Her death forms a major part of his motivation.
* MoralMyopia: Athrun goes on a RoaringRampageOfRevenge on Kira after he [[spoiler:killed Nicol in self-defense]]. Kira had repeatedly told Athrun that he has friends and people he cares for aboard the ''Archangel'', the ship that ''he's'' been pursuing and had been trying to sink. He gets better after [[spoiler:Cagalli]] calls him out for it.
* MrFanservice: Makes the most of the shower and shirtless scenes that he's given.
* MutualKill: Narrowly averted during his and Kira's midseason throwdown.
* MyCountryRightOrWrong: [[spoiler:Subverted. He thought he could just continue following orders until the war was over then realized that wasn't going to happen unless he made an effort to seek it out, which is why he joined Kira.]]
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: [[spoiler: Though he "wins" the final fight against Kira and the Strike]] he was very shaken up by the event and it caused him to begin questioning what he was really fighting for. [[spoiler: Eventually, this leads to his HeelFaceTurn]].
* OfficialCouple: He ends up [[spoiler:falling in love with [[LoveRedeems and being saved by]] Cagalli]].
* PerpetualFrowner: Athrun rarely smiles.
* PleasePutSomeClothesOn: Said word-for-word [[spoiler:to Cagalli. Not because he's offended or upset, just highly embarrassed — like Cagalli immediately is]]!
* ProHumanTranshuman: Eventually comes around to this viewpoint.
* RammingAlwaysWorks: With the Justice's Fatum-00. A feint tactic Athrun likes to use is to charge the subflight unit at an enemy to briefly stagger them before derailing the backpack to let him or Kira follow-up with another attack.
* RedemptionEarnsLife: Survives the war after switching over the Three Ships Alliance.
* ReluctantWarrior: The quote says it all really. Though it needs to be said that in contrast Kira's vocal protests, Athrun generally opts to suffer in silence.
* RomanticFalseLead: For Lacus. ''Rau'' (of all people) lampshades this by being a lot more enthusiastic about her and calling him cold.
* TheRival: Kira's.
* SayMyName: Like Kira, he does this a lot.
* SkySurfing: When not attached to its back, the Justice rides its subflight unit like this.
* ShellShockedVeteran: He's quieter about it than Kira, but yeah. The war slowly wears away at the better aspects of Athrun's personality, and by the time the sequel comes along he is [[BrokenAce pretty damn broken]].
* ShootTheDog: [[spoiler:He reasoned that he had to kill Kira because he couldn't convince him to join his fellow Coordinators and Kira was killing his comrades.]]
* ShoutOut: He and Kira issue a plethora of IneffectualDeathThreats to each other in the first half of the show, [[spoiler:but it's Cagalli]] he coldly tells [[IllKillYou "Omae wo korosu"]], in [[Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing Heero Yuy's]] famous {{Catchphrase}}.
* SillyRabbitIdealismIsForKids: Repeatedly accuses Kira of being impressionable and idealistic, and refuses to believe that his and Lacus' idealism will solve anything in the long run. [[spoiler:This changes after the revelation that he's the one being used]].
* SuperMode: SEED mode, which he can even activate at will. Athrun is effectively invincible with it active.
* TearsOfRemorse: [[spoiler:When he cries over killing Kira because Kira killed Nicol.]]
* ThrowingYourShieldAlwaysWorks: During his final battle against the Strike, Athrun does this to destroy the Skygrasper [[spoiler:(and [[OffWitHisHead beheading its pilot, Tolle]])]] when it attempted to intervene.
* TransformingMecha: The Aegis can turn into a cruiser and attack mode because of its special frame.
* TrueCompanions: [[spoiler:With Kira.]]
* UsedToBeASweetKid: Shown in flashbacks and invoked by Lacus. The bitter and cynical Athrun we all know and love is rather different from the nice kid who believed Earth and the PLANTS would never go to war.
* WellDoneSonGuy: While he sincerely wishes to end the war with as few victims as possible, he also fights to earn the approval of his father, whose own agenda is [[FinalSolution much less benevolent]]. This clouds his judgement from time to time. [[spoiler:Lacus]] calls him out on it towards the end of the series.
%%* WhenHeSmiles
* WouldntHitAGirl: Athrun has killed a bunch of people as an elite ZAFT soldier, but [[spoiler:he can't stab Cagalli... or shoot his fiancée Lacus, although [[BreakingSpeech there's a bit more at work with the latter]]]].
* YouGottaHaveBlueHair: Athrun's hair is blue.

[[folder:Yzak Joule]]
!!'''Main mecha:''' GAT-X102 Duel Gundam
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/TomokazuSeki (Japanese), Creator/MichaelAdamthwaite (English original series dub), Daman Mills (English HD Remaster dub)
->''"Come out and fight, Strike! Or else this pain I feel will never go away!"''[[quoteright:295:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/untitled_367.png]]

A member of the Le Creuset team, he's the most bloodthirsty and callous of the group. He has little respect for anyone he considers weak, and absolutely ''zero'' respect for Naturals as a consequence. He's close friends with Dearka, who shares many of his views, and has a developing rivalry with Athrun. He has no particular hate for the Earth Alliance (just contempt) until he's wounded during a battle with the Strike. After the resulting [[PhysicalScarsPsychologicalScars scarring]], he develops a massive [[ItsPersonal hate-on]] for Kira. Extremely temperamental and impulsive, he's the member of the group most loyal to ZAFT as a whole and Le Creuset personally.

* AcePilot: Understated, but Yzak remains one of the best pilots in whole series (mostly held back by his lack of BiggerStick), particularly following the finale.
* AlwaysSecondBest: Back in his days in the military academy, he was this to Athrun. Implied to be the root of his hostility to him.
* AntiVillain: He's a {{Jerkass}}, but his worst KickTheDog moments aren't intentional, and he ''does'' really [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold care about his friends]].
* ArmourIsUseless: Averted. The Armour Shroud [[spoiler:saves Yzak's life during his final run-in with [[SuperSoldier Shani Andras]]]].
* TheBrute: Of Le Creuset's FiveManBand: he's the most aggressive and bloodthirsty of the team.
* CloseRangeCombatant: Subverted. The Duel is spec-wise a MasterOfNone, but Yzak's headstrong and aggressive nature means it sees a lot of melee action and was the most prone to engaging the Strike in beam saber-to-beam saber combat early on. After acquiring the Assault Shroud, which gave it ''far'' more weapon options, the Duel primarily shifted to mid-range combat until purging the armor in the final battle.
* DisappearedDad: In line with the rest of the Supreme Council kids (excepting Nicol), we only see one parent. We never see his father, and he's never mentioned.
* TheDragon: To Le Creuset, following [[spoiler:Athrun and Dearka's defections]].
* DualWielding: Didn't engage in this as often as one might think, but when he does, ''hoo boy'', Yzak is ''beast.''
* EleventhHourRanger: Though he remains loyal to ZAFT for the longest of the Gundam pilots he starts growing disillusioned and horrified by ZAFT's increasing fanaticism and genocidal intent as early as the Battle of Port Panama. In the FinalBattle [[spoiler:he eventually chooses to aid the Three Ships Alliance and starts fighting alongside Kira and Dearka rather than ZAFT]].
* EvenEvilHasStandards: While not very high standards, he still has them. He is ok with shooting down a fleeing enemy shuttle (after all, the enemy that runs away will come back to fight you another day), but shooting down the enemy when they are helpless and trying to surrender? That makes him frown.
* {{Expy}}: His character design bears a striking resemblance to Henri Claytor from another one of Fukuda's series ''Anime/FutureGPXCyberFormula'' (sans the red streak on the strand of the bangs). He's also got a lot in common with ''[[Anime/MobileSuitZetaGundam Zeta Gundam]]''s Jerid Messa, in terms of his characterisation as a HotBlooded pilot who CantCatchUp, and has the personality of a stereotypical JerkJock. Also like Jerid, Yzak initially serves to remind us that his side are the villains with his aggressive, vicious behaviour, only for the situation to change so much that by the end, he's serving as a reminder that some of them are human beings.
* FantasticRacism: Probably the most racist of the Le Creuset team at the beginning, but starts to grow out of this near the end, especially after [[spoiler:Dearka's defection.]]
* [[GiveMeASword Give Me A Gun]]: [[spoiler:In the final battle, Yzak loses his beam rifle while protecting the disabled Buster and Dearka from a completely manic Clotho. Just as the Raider closes in to finish them both, Yzak grabs the Buster's {{BFG}} and, just under the wire, puts the crazed pre-Extended out of his misery.]]
--> '''Yzak''': ''Gimme that damn thing!''
* GrenadeLauncher: The Duel's beam rifle has a single-shot grenade under the barrel.
* HairTriggerTemper: He can go from calm to extremely angry at even the slightest provocation. He starts calming down after the Battle of Panama shows him the cost of war.
* HeelFaceTurn: Downplayed. He [[spoiler:aids the Three Ships Alliance]], but only against the Earth Alliance.
* HeterosexualLifePartners: With Dearka. This gets sorely tested [[spoiler:after Dearka defects and Yzak finds out]], but endures.
* HiddenHeartOfGold: Much of his attitude towards the rest of the team is this, especially as the show progresses.
* HotBlooded: Of a particularly vicious sort.
* HowDareYouDieOnMe: Towards [[spoiler:Nicol]]. Despite not having much respect towards him, he is still outraged that his comrade was killed.
* ItsPersonal: With Kira and the Strike.
* KeepingTheHandicap: He [[ScarsAreForever gets a rather nasty scar fighting against Kira and swears to keep it until he defeats the Strike Gundam]].
* KickTheDog: He has a few, such as mocking Nicol as a coward early in the series. His biggest is undoubtedly when he [[spoiler:destroys a shuttle full of refugees during atmospheric reentry]] for ''being in his way'', though in his (partial) defense, he didn't know [[spoiler:it was filled with civilians]]. WordOfGod is that he was [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone horrified]] when he learned the truth.
* LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe: The Duel features a shield. Yzak's not a big fan of it but [[spoiler:it saves his life during his encounter with Shani]].
* MagneticWeapons: The railgun attach on the Duel's shoulder. ''Astray'' supplementary material reveals that the Duel was also suppose to be equipped with a 350mm "Gáe Bulg" Rail Bazooka, but this weapon was taken from it during the Heliopolis raid and ends up being used by the Astray Gold Frame.
* MasterOfNone: The Duel Gundam has no specialized features and is the most ill-equipped of the GAT units because of it. ZAFT developed the [[MechaExpansionPack Assault Shroud]] to help improve its performance.
* MechaExpansionPack: The Duel is later equipped with an "Assault Shroud" armor that greatly increases its combat versatility.
* MightyGlacier: While the Assault Shroud gives the Duel more weapons and protection, there's a trade-off in decreased mobility, especially under Earth's gravity.
* MilitaryBrat: His mother Ezalia is a member of the PLANT Supreme Council.
* MurderByMistake: The reason behind his biggest KickTheDog moment. He thought the military shuttle he shot down was filled with fleeing OMNI personnel, not [[spoiler: civilians]].
* MyBelovedSmother: To a slight degree, though mostly {{justified|Trope}} by the fact that the few interactions we see between them is just after Yzak has returned from the front lines and will be heading back into combat soon.
* PragmaticVillainy: A possible interpretation of his EvenEvilHasStandards. After all, if you kill surrendering enemies, the rest will fight to the death, making your job much harder and costing you more casualties.
* PetTheDog: His reaction to [[spoiler:Nicol]]'s death helps to humanize him. He later yells at the Freedom and the Justice to [[spoiler:get out of the way of GENESIS's blast]].
* PhysicalScarsPsychologicalScars: He keeps his disfiguring facial scar to remind himself of his need for {{revenge}} on the Strike and its pilot.
* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: He's certainly picked up some of his mom's FantasticRacism. Unlike Ezalia, however, Yzak's manifests more as contempt for the Naturals than out-and-out hatred, and when [[spoiler:he finds out about the FinalSolution she and Patrick Zala have cooked up]] he's less than happy.
* RedemptionEarnsLife: In ''Destiny''.
* ScreamingWarrior: Most often, epic instance when he defeats [[spoiler:Shani]].
* ShedArmorGainSpeed: [[spoiler:After immediately ejecting the Assault Shroud in the final battle, the Duel was able to disarm and impale the Forbidden before Shani even had a chance to react]].
* SociopathicSoldier: A borderline Type I. He TookALevelInKindness by the end.
* SourSupporter: Of Athrun. He hates the guy's guts, but he did accept Athrun's transfer to a more elite unit after defeating the Strike with an approving, if begrudging, handshake.
* TeensAreMonsters: Early on, before he realizes the true horrors of war.
* TookALevelInKindness: Seeing the horrors of war at the Battle of Panama shocks Yzak, at which point he starts noticeably calming down. Despite remaining loyal to ZAFT for most of the series he becomes far less hotheaded and impulsive, reacting to problems with annoyance rather than the outbursts that he was known for earlier in the series.
* UnknownRival: To both Athrun and Kira. The former seems to be unaware that Yzak heckles him out of jealousy, the latter knows him only as the pilot of the Duel.
* WeakButSkilled: Played with: The Duel on paper looks like the lowest-spec Gundam in the series, lacking any special role (Artillery, Stealth, Agility, Multi-Role), and its normal weaponry is basically the Aile Strike minus the maneuverability boost. However, the lack of gimmicks is due to the fact that it's the first of the Gundams ever produced, and is in fact Seed's version of the RX-78-2, and as a result of lacking special features and being a testbed for the other 4 suits, it both carries no weaknesses overall and is incredibly physically powerful in comparison to its siblings. [[note]]And the reason for it's limited armaments? It's main weapon (an incredibly powerful bazooka) was stolen by the pilot of the Gold Frame (who fired the aforementioned bazooka and not only tore open a hole in the colony, but tore off the Gold Frame's right arm in the process. Note this is something the Duel is built to be able to withstand firing repeatedly). And when the unit is upgraded with extra armor, it barely gets slowed down by the excess weight.[[/note]] Despite that it's clearly outclassed by its sibling units and becomes woefully underpowered during the course of the series, Yzak gives Kira no end of trouble in the first half of the series, and takes out two of the Alliance's {{Super Soldier}}s (the very same ones that could fight Kira and Athrun on even footing). The Duel eventually becomes the only one of the original five Gundams to survive the war in one piece.

[[folder:Dearka Elsman]]
!!'''Main mecha:''' GAT-X103 Buster Gundam
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/AkiraSasanuma (Japanese), Creator/BradSwaile (English original series dub), Creator/JohnnyYongBosch (English HD Remaster dub)
[[quoteright:223:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/untitled_59.png]]

A member of Athrun's team, he, along with Yzak Joule, formed the crueler half of the foursome. Nearly constantly snarky and condescending, Dearka still often has to act as his more impulsive best friend Yzak's conscience. An artilleryman at heart, he prefers to engage his opponents at range, while mocking their inability to touch him.

* AmbiguouslyBrown: We don't see Dearka's mom, and as a second-gen Coordinator he wouldn't have been deliberately engineered. We can presume she's a DarkSkinnedBlonde like him, since all his colleagues seem to resemble their mothers, but his dad Tad is unambiguously white.
* AntiVillain: Like the rest of his team. His main problem seems to be that he's forgotten that Naturals are people too. [[spoiler:When he's [[WhatTheHellHero reminded of this]], he makes a HeelFaceTurn]].
* {{BFG}}: The Buster is an artillery mech after all.
* TheBrute: He shares this role with Yzak in Le Creuset's FiveManBand (although he's more cocky rather than temperamental) [[spoiler:and later becomes [[TheBigGuy the heroic version]] in the Three Ships Alliance]]. With his {{BFG}} and heavily armoured mecha, Dearka is set to do some ''serious damage''.
* ComboRifle: The Buster Gundam is equipped with a beam rifle and a railgun, either of which can be powered up by plugging the other gun into its back -- the beam rifle becoming a beam SniperRifle and the railgun becoming an [[ShotgunsAreJustBetter anti-armor shotgun]].
* DarkSkinnedBlond: Dark skin, bright blond hair.
* DeadpanSnarker: Unfailingly surly and sarcastic, especially early on. He's still this after his HeelFaceTurn but it loses its edge.
* DidNotThinkThisThrough: Makes a cruel jibe about a boyfriend dying in war in front of Miriallia, whom he'd already specified was "always crying", without bothering to think that she might not be stable or what came out of his mouth ''might be true''.
* EndearinglyDorky: Surprisingly enough for such an [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold abrasive jerk]]. Once he and Miriallia become more cordial with each other he awkwardly stutters whenever he's around her. It seems all of Dearka's time in the military left him unsure of how to deal with girls.
* EveryoneHasStandards: When he realizes that Miriallia's boyfriend ''had'' just died even he's rather ashamed at how tasteless his crack about the "stupid Natural getting himself killed" was.
* FantasticRacism: He and Yzak were the blatantly racist ones of the Le Creuset team, though compared to his friend, Dearka seemed to have just forgotten that Naturals are people too. [[spoiler:He starts to realize this after Mirillia's FreakOut.]]
* HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler:He joins Athrun in his desertion of ZAFT, having similar doubts about ZAFT when he's told what they've been up to.]]
* HeelRealization: [[spoiler: Seeing Miriallia's FreakOut followed by her saving him from Flay makes him realize what a tool he had been and that he doesn't really know what he's fighting for.]]
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: It wasn't Dearka fighting on the front lines that almost got him killed, it was [[spoiler: his tasteless manners, inability to keep his mouth shut, and disregard for other people]].
* HeterosexualLifePartners: With Yzak.
* JerkJock: With his high opinion of himself, low opinion of everyone else, willingness to make fun of everything, and tight partnership with fellow "mean guy" Yzak, was basically this before [[spoiler:his HeelFaceTurn]].
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He's pretty nasty until [[spoiler: he almost dies not in battle, but in enemy captivity as a direct result of his big mouth]]. [[CharacterDevelopment Then he gets better]].
* LongRangeFighter: The Buster is basically a blunt instrument. [[CripplingOverspecialization It can obliterate opponents from a distance with its powerful long range weaponry but it suffers in close quarters combat or direct engagement with other mobile suits.]]
* AMatchMadeInStockholm: His relationship with [[spoiler:Miriallia has shades of this. She tried to stab him with a knife, but then seconds later had a MyGodWhatHaveIDone and saved him from getting shot by Flay. Once Dearka makes it clear that he wasn't the one who killed Tolle, they start warming up to each other.]]
* MightyGlacier: With the heavily armored, heavily armed, but slow-moving Buster, which often makes him an easy target for Mu in his more mobile Moebius Zero and Skygrasper.
* MilitaryBrat: His father is a member of the ZAFT Supreme Council.
* OhCrap: When [[spoiler:Miriallia almost stabs him when he's restrained, also when Rau turns all of the Providence's cannons on the Buster]] in the final battle. He lives through both, despite the Buster's extensive damage.
* OpenMouthInsertFoot: He has a hard time reading the situation and knowing when to keep his mouth shut. It nearly [[spoiler:gets him killed when he unknowingly insults the recently-deceased Tolle in front of a grieving and unstable Miriallia, prompting her to attack him with a surgical knife]].
* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: Though his racism largely extends to agreeing with Yzak's remarks. Once he meets some Naturals he starts to get over it.
* ProHumanTranshuman: After losing the worst of his racism.
* ShoulderCannon: The Buster has missle launchers on its shoulders.
* TallDarkAndSnarky: He's one of the tallest characters on Athrun's initial team and one of the tallest teen-aged characters. He's also always got a quip ready.
* {{UST}}: One possible interpretation of his relationship with [[spoiler:Miriallia post-HeelFaceTurn]].

[[folder:Nicol Amalfi]]
!!'''Main mecha:''' GAT-X207 Blitz Gundam
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/MamiMatsui (Japanese series), Creator/RomiPark (Japanese {{Compilation Movie}}s), Creator/GabeKhouth (English original series dub), Casey Mongillo (English HD Remaster dub)
->''"Mother... my piano..."''
[[quoteright:269:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/untitled_498.png]]

The youngest and most sensitive member of the Le Creuset Team. He looks up to Athrun, but is often bullied by Dearka and (especially) Yzak. He pilots the Blitz, and pulls his weight in combat despite the fact that he's not as skilled as the rest of the team. A genuinely NiceGuy, Nicol's only real character flaw seems to be his belief in MyCountryRightOrWrong.

* AntiVillain: More so than the rest of the Le Creuset Team, even.
* BloodFromTheMouth: Gets a bad case while [[spoiler:being cut in half]] during the WhamEpisode. Ouch.
* TheDarkChick: On a team consisting of a ManipulativeBastard, a cynical [[TheStoic stoic]], a HotBlooded {{Jerkass}}, and a DeadpanSnarker, Nicol's a genuinely NiceGuy. Moreover, his caution, use of the Mirage Colloid, and reliance on planning and technology (which would normally make him the EvilGenius) leave him the odd man out on a team that isn't noted for its sense of tact.
* EvilCounterpart: Serves a very similar role to Athrun as Tolle does to Kira, though he's not "evil" in any meaningful sense.
* GeniusBruiser: Between the rest of his teammates, Nicol is easily the most rational and collected. His Gundam, the Blitz, was also constructed specifically to handle special equipment and [[MeaningfulName blitzkrieg tactics]] that require more strategic thinking and level-mindedness to be effectively utilized.
* GrapplingHookPistol: The Blitz is equipped with a large grapple launcher on its left forearm.
* HalfTheManHeUsedToBe: [[spoiler:The Sword Strike's sword slices through the Blitz's cockpit and cuts Nicol in half at the waist.]]
* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:He is killed attempting to draw away the Strike from finishing off Athrun.]]
* InvisibilityCloak: His Gundam's Mirage Colloid system.
%%* InTheBack: Tries it on Kira.
* KillTheCutie: [[spoiler:''Oh boy'' does he qualify as this. It's a particularly gruesome example of it too.]]
* LuckilyMyShieldWillProtectMe: Along with protection, the [[SwissArmyWeapon Blitz's shield houses a beam rifle, a beam saber, and three spear missiles]]. It's a borderline case of CripplingOverspecialization though, as losing this shield will deprive the Blitz of nearly ''all'' of its weapons.
* MeaningfulName: A somewhat convoluted example. His name comes from an obscure UsefulNotes/NintendoEntertainmentSystem game called ''Ai Senshi Nicol''. ''Ai Senshi'' is also the title of the second CompilationMovie of the original ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam'', which features several characters [[spoiler:making a HeroicSacrifice or otherwise dying in the Earth-arc]].
%%* MilitaryBrat
* NiceGuy: He lacks Yzak's brutality, Dearka's surly nature, and Athrun's bitterness, generally presented as the most even-tempered, pleasant kid on the team.
* RedAndBlackAndEvilAllOver: Subverted. The Blitz has a red-and-black color scheme with its Phase Shift on, but Nicol is very much an AntiVillain.
* StuffedIntoTheFridge: [[spoiler:Athrun decides that Kira must die after he kills Nicol.]]
* TheSoCalledCoward: Yzak calls him a coward and he's mostly quiet, self-effacing and unsure of himself as well as more reliant on technology than the others, but he soloed Artemis ''by himself''. Yes, he earned that red uniform.
* TokenGoodTeammate: He lacks Athrun's cynicism, Dearka's [[HiddenHeartOfGold snark]], and Yzak's anger issues, making him the only member of the team who's even remotely capable of being objective.
* TooGoodForThisSinfulEarth: [[spoiler:How Athrun thinks of him afterward.]]
* VillainsOutShopping: Nicol is an avid piano player and wishes to perform in a symphony one day. [[spoiler:It'll never come to pass.]]
* YouGottaHaveBlueHair: Green hair.

[[folder:Rusty Mackenzie]]
One of the elite pilots of Athrun's team, he only has a few minutes of screen time as he is killed in the first episode.

* BoomHeadshot: How he is killed.
* WeHardlyKnewYe: He goes in with several ZAFT Commandos and Athrun's team which he is a part of during their raid on the Colony of Heliopolis. He only has a few minutes of screen time and is killed by an Earth Alliance soldier, Athrun does avenge his death by killing said soldier however.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Lacus Clyne]]
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/RieTanaka (Japanese), Creator/ChantalStrand (English dialogue, original series Dub), Creator/JillianMichaels (English singing, original series dub), Creator/StephanieSheh (English HD Remaster dub)
->''"I'd like you to inform them: from now on, Lacus Clyne will be singing the song... of peace."''

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/a290abd3_8293_418e_86bd_ffa7c93161c4.gif]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Her classic look, with Pink-chan.]]

The civilian daughter of PLANT Supreme Council Chairman Siegel Clyne, Lacus is an extremely popular singer and ceremonial figure for her country, and is Athrun's fiancée. Early in the series she is picked up by the ''Archangel'' and meets Kira, an event which will come to define the entire course of the war. The eventual leader of the "Clyne Faction" (those moderates who support her father's policies), Lacus is a pleasant, friendly, idealistic girl, who is a heck of a lot smarter than you'd think.

* OneHundredPercentAdorationRating: Lacus is so beloved in PLANT [[spoiler:that people are in agonies of confusion when she appears to be an OMNI spy and traitor. Rau discusses this when he points out how difficult she's making the lives of Patrick and Ezalia, telling Yzak and the rest of the team that's exactly why the opposition has her. In English he explicitly says "people believe she can do no wrong". It all ends up as quite a bit of {{Foreshadowing}} for the next series.]]
* AdrenalineMakeover: Twice. Her outfit at the theater to confront Athrun and her [[spoiler: ''Eternal'' commander look for the last act]] are completely different than her earlier, "normal" look, and both are done when she and everyone around her are in great danger.
* AllLovingHero: She holds no grudges and instead shows compassion to everyone.
* ArrangedMarriage: With Athrun Zala, only child of her father's best friend, before the war broke out, though in the end [[spoiler:it's rendered moot when they end up with different people]].
* ArmorPiercingQuestion: She uses these the way the rest of the cast use physical weapons -- equally devastating. ''"Is it your intention to make this a battlefield in front of me, the national memorial representative? Can you not hear me?"'' does the trick with Rau.
-->'''Lacus:''' "What is it that you believe in and fight for, [[spoiler:Athrun? Is it that medal you received? Or your father's orders?" Also "If I am your enemy, ''will you shoot me,'' Athrun Zala, soldier of ZAFT?"]]
* BadassLongRobe: She wears a sleeveless [[GoldAndWhiteAreDivine gold-trimmed white one]] [[spoiler: over her PurpleIsPowerful wrap minidress when commanding ''Eternal'', a foil to ZAFT's {{Badass Longcoat}}s]].
* BeautifulSingingVoice: As seen in InformedAbility, it's on display more than her actual career as a performer.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: She prefers to be friends with everyone, because you do not want to make an enemy out of her. See BreakThemByTalking. [[spoiler:Given how the show establishes her ability to engineer the collapse of murderous dictatorial regimes]], Rau was probably wise to be seen putting this into practice.
* BigFancyHouse: It's especially a sign of high status in the [=PLANTS=] which are man-made habitats.
* BigGood: Inherits the position after [[spoiler:her father is assassinated and she uses his power base combined with Orb's to TakeAThirdOption in the war between OMNI and ZAFT]].
* BreakThemByTalking: Does this to Athrun, very dramatically, and to the other master of this, Rau, in a much earlier and shorter fashion.
* CelebrityResemblance: Mitsuo Fukuda [[WordOfGod said in a 2003 interview]] that Lacus was based on Creator/AudreyHepburn.
* CommandingCoolness: She [[spoiler:hijacks and runs the ''Eternal'' in the last arc, and debuts [[DressCodedForYourConvenience her own purple outfit and white-and-gold long coat to go up against ZAFT]]]], as Rau's analog, though [[spoiler:Waltfeld is actually TheCaptain]].
* CryIntoChest: After [[spoiler:her escape from ZAFT and her father's demise]], she collapses in tears into Kira's chest.
* DangerousSixteenthBirthday: A slight variant. In PLANT, the age of majority is 15, and Lacus's 15th birthday prior to the series is also what's known as ''The Tragedy of Copernicus'' — a massive bombing on the Moon that killed most of the UN, would have killed her father if not for a delay, and generated OMNI. It kickstarted the war and provided the basis for the Bloody Valentine nine days later. Downplayed with her 16th birthday, which she spends in Earth Alliance custody onboard the ''Archangel'' — far from an ideal situation, although the day itself is uneventful.
* DisposableFiance: She becomes very close to Kira despite being engaged to Athrun, though it's shown her relationship with Athrun was friendly, but awkward and strained due to his misplaced patriotism and their general lack of chemistry.
* DissonantSerenity: Her calm and unruffled nature becomes this at a couple of points, notably [[spoiler:at White Symphony when people are being shot all around her, and she doesn't blink or flinch]].
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: A few early on.
** First, asking Mu if he knows who her father — a world leader — is because he mentioned his name, giving us the impression she is ditzy and a little ''too'' innocent. While persistently wandering around the ''Archangel'' may have also appeared ditzy and innocent, it also showed a subtle willingness to continually and casually break rules — and get away with it.
** [[StealthPun More revealingly]] is when she strips in front of Kira, showing that she also intimidates others with ease and basically produces the unexpected no matter what anyone thinks of her.
** Which means reprimanding ''Rau'' of all people later in the same episode for trying to start a battle isn't really surprising, since she already showed us that she [[ObfuscatingStupidity is more than she appears.]]
* ExcellentJudgeOfCharacter: She proves to be this despite her young age, in addition to being an inspirational political figure. Throughout the series, she has entrusted power to several unlikely individuals (most notably, Kira, a soldier who had fought against her country and her people), but has yet to experience a serious betrayal of her trust.
* ExpositoryHairstyleChange: Lacus wears her normal RapunzelHair in giant pigtails [[spoiler: to [[BreakThemByTalking confront Athrun]] at the White Symphony theater, complete with a different hairclip[[labelnote:*]]though banners indicate this is a stage outfit she's worn at least once before[[/labelnote]]. Her command outfit for ''Eternal'' involves an elaborate ponytail with a braided crown, and we don't see her hair down again for the rest of the series]].
* {{Expy}}: The daughter of a high-ranking government official who espouses her family's pacifist beliefs, has a strong relationship with the lead character, and is an inspirational figure to the general public? She's a more idealized, active, and cunning [[Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing Relena Darlian]], if Relena were also a popular singer instead of an actual princess.
** She's also the daughter of the local leader, tends to explore and "float" around a lot, has a BeautifulSingingVoice, something permanently in her hair, dresses which feature "fins" (as seen above), a big dramatic moment sitting on a rock, and another one after which we see ShesGotLegs. She has strong shades of ''Franchise/TheLittleMermaid'', and it continues in the sequel. She's basically a Franchise/DisneyPrincess in a Gundam show.
** It should be pretty obvious that her status as an idol-singer is more or less inspired by Lynn Minmay from ''Anime/SuperDimensionFortressMacross'', something Fukuda attested to.
** She's also the slightly mysterious military-outsider with the strongest emotional abilities in the show, who appears to be thinking of anything but war. Her introduction is a ShoutOut to Lalah Sune from the original series. Unlike Lalah, though, [[spoiler:Lacus is no follower and in fact quite the independent ringleader. She also survives]].
* FoeRomanceSubtext: Although he seems to think more highly of her than... anyone, how Lacus and Le Creuset know each other well enough for him to take orders from her (and be on a no-honorifics basis) is never elaborated. It's also noteworthy that unlike Zala or Azrael [[spoiler:or Djibril or Durandal in the sequel]], she actually speaks to him, which is a mark of favor. She also [[spoiler: has one of her only OhCrap moments when she deduces he's come after her at Mendel and ends up looking completely shocked and crying when he dies]].
* {{Foreshadowing}}: Orders Le Creuset of all people to stand down during her rescue, providing an early hint as to just how much steel she has in her.
* FriendToAllLivingThings: Birds flock to her hands, both in her music video and while she's having tea.
* {{Geisha}}: Along with her YamatoNadeshiko side, as a highly-trained "arts person" who occasionally dresses sexy with her UnlimitedWardrobe, spends a lot of time in an otherwise all-male environment being persuasive, counseling, or convincing, or does other "daring" things outside ''yamato nadeshiko'' scope, she's this.
* GirlySkirtTwirl: Combines this with some AirplaneArms in the EyeCatch for some SpectacularSpinning.
* GivingThemTheStrip: Has to put on a spacesuit in order to escape the ''Archangel''. Which requires removing her elaborate multilayered dress. Which she nonchalantly does... [[ShamelessFanserviceGirl in front of Kira]]. Taking her clothes with her ended up getting her MistakenForPregnant.
* GracefulLadiesLikePurple: It tends to be overlooked in all the pink, but her iconic first outfit has multiple shades of this, her resistance dress appears purple-trimmed in dim light while she's broadcasting, she wears a purple hooded cape while she's in hiding, and [[spoiler:her Commander wrap mindress on ''Eternal'' is a pastel shade or two]]. Certainly also a case of PurpleIsPowerful.
* GuileHeroine: Lacus isn't a fighter, but she doesn't have to be. With her political connections, oratorical ability, and flawless public image she's set to completely upset Patrick Zala's agenda.
* HiddenDepths: She appears innocent, unfailingly kind, and a bit naive. [[spoiler:She really is that kind, but that naive exterior hides a sharp mind and an iron will that few see coming from her. The depths start when she has no problem taking her clothes off in front of a relative stranger, working the communications in a mobile suit she's never seen before, or ''exercising military authority'' [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking she isn't even faintly entitled to,]] and her hits just keep coming. She's less full of surprises than consists of them.]]
* HiddenEyes: Happened to her in the original version, when she told Kira [[spoiler: that her father was killed]]. Subverted in the HD Remaster.
* IdolSinger: Very popular in the PLANTS and she uses that popularity to her advantage.
* InformedAbility: Downplayed. She's said to be the most popular singer in PLANT. Although she does have a beautiful, professional, influential voice, she never performs for an audience, despite speaking of the first time she sang in public. [[spoiler: This gets defied to heck and deconstructed in the sequel with her imitator Meer]].
* TheIngenue: She ''seems'' sheltered and none-too-bright, at least at first, but [[SubvertedTrope there's more to her than that.]].
* {{Keigo}}: She's kind and has a noticeably offbeat and quirky side, but Lacus speaks incredibly formally, distantly, and deferentially in Japanese, period. The one exception is her brief monologue in her head at the end of the show. The first English dub attempted some of the same distant effect between her and other people by making her sound much younger.
* LadyAndKnight: She's the Bright Lady to Kira's White Knight. She's his chaste relationship and inspiration. She provides him [[spoiler:with a shiny new mobile suit like a medieval romance counterpart might distribute plate mail, although she calls it a "sword"]]. See MeaningfulName.
* TheLadysFavour: She gives Kira her mother's ring before the final battle.
* TheLeader: Charismatic Type to the Clyne Faction and [[spoiler:Three Ships Alliance.]]
* MagicSkirt: Despite having a ''very'' short skirt (in ''space'') at the end of the series, she only has a PantyShot in the CompilationMovie.
* MartialPacifist: She wants this war over ''now'', and if that means leading [[spoiler:her own army against ZAFT and the Earth Forces]], so be it.
* MeaningfulName:
** "Lacus" means "lake" in Latin, and she talks about giving Kira "a new sword". More than just a LadyAndKnight, she's Myth/TheLadyOfTheLake — and just an EmpoweringLakeLady, in general.
** If you romanize her last name as "Klein", it means little or small... as in ''Literature/TheLittleMermaid''.
* MissingMom: Unlike Athrun's, hers is simply never mentioned. Lacus does bring her up when consoling Kira in the compilation movies.
* MistakenForPregnant: An inadvertent PillowPregnancy, as a result of needing to stuff her clothes in her spacesuit. Sai makes the obvious "how far along is she?" bad joke.
* MythologyGag:
** In episode 20, Lacus draws a ''Anime/TurnAGundam''-like moustache on her navy-blue Haro.
** [[HomageShot Her exit from her escape pod]] at the end of episode 7 and the beginning of episode 8 was a nod to [[http://imgur.com/m6Zzm0u Lalah Sune's exit from Char's shuttle]] in episode 34 of ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam''. Given how both characters appeared eccentric only to be ''far'' more than they appeared, this may have been foreshadowing.
* NervesOfSteel: She's perfectly calm and tranquil when she's introduced having wound up with the enemy forces after being shoved into a one-person life pod without a spacesuit, and she's not fazed [[spoiler:when Athrun tracks her down in her outlaw period with a DramaticGunCock, or when a rain of gunfire subsequently starts]]. Lacus is a ''very'' cool customer, especially for a civilian teenager with no apparent military training.
* NiceGirl: A pleasant and friendly girl, but BewareTheNiceOnes. She manages to be strikingly gracious and kind almost without exception.
* NiceJobBreakingItHero: She certainly can make mistakes. [[spoiler:She wasn't wrong to take a stand against Patrick, but her life as an outlaw and, perhaps, never exonerating her father from it, inadvertently got him killed. Lacus is incredibly upset Siegel was killed, but we never really learn how she feels to have paid such a heavy price for her actions, or be directly responsible for provoking Zala's murderous rage. Even her ExactWords, "My father died", rather than "was killed" or "murdered" are a bit vague and distant.]]
* ObfuscatingStupidity: More like "Obfuscating Innocence", her biggest advantage is that virtually everyone underestimates her. While it's never stated, it's hard to believe that she didn't deliberately cultivate that image.
* TheOjou: Despite being the daughter of a democratically elected leader, she lives on an enormous fancy estate and is treated as if she were royalty, never using anything but {{Keigo}} herself. It helps that she's also a national celebrity in her own right.
* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: The only time Lacus is ever shown as angry in this series, she's about to get Rau to back off the ''Archangel'' (and not use her as a pawn, incidentally).
* PhantomThief: Fitting for her GuileHeroine status, Lacus is a kind, sweet, ''very'' well-bred young lady [[spoiler:who manages to mastermind the theft of ZAFT's newest mobile suit, a warship, and her ex-fiancé, surviving weeks of a nationwide dragnet in-between the first two. Unfortunately, her father was not so lucky]].
* ThePhilosopher: Her question "What ''is'' it that one should be fighting [for]?" is picked up by a number of other characters, and becomes largely the ArcWords of the series. She also has a very serious internal monologue brooding about humans, conflict, and bloodshed just before the end, which prompts her to go into SuperMode.
* PluckyGirl: Going into exile doesn't dampen her spirit. Though she understands the severity of the situation, she doesn't give up.
* PoliticallyActivePrincess: The ''de-facto'' princess of PLANT who can influence social events and high level politics with her voice.
* PrincessesPreferPink: So much that Mu La Flaga even calls her "The Pink Princess".
* ProHumanTranshuman: Lacus wants a peace treaty that's good for Natural and Coordinator alike.
* RapunzelHair: She has the longest hair of any major character. It changes a bit DependingOnTheArtist and medium, but usually starts below her hips. As you can see from the picture, she can easily sit on it.
* RescueRomance: Her relationship with Kira developed from this. In fact, both traded roles of ''rescuer'' and ''rescuee'' in some points.
* LaResistance: Fights the Zala dictatorship in PLANT and continues to coordinate the opposition when her homeland is no longer a place she can either recognize or accept. She's also the VoiceOfTheResistance, quite naturally.
* RobotBuddy: Her pink Haro, nicknamed "Pink-chan"/"Mr. Pink". In episode 20, Lacus has a collection of different colored Haros in her house, including the aforementioned navy-blue Haro. She refers to Pink-chan as her friend, and like Lacus herself, there's a bit more to him than meets the eye — he can unlock doors and later serves as a HastilyHiddenMacGuffin for Athrun.
* RomanticFalseLead: For Athrun. She's a lovely girl, they like each other fine and they're an important genetic match, but they both have stronger and easier feelings for other people.
* RoseHairedSweetie: She's innocent and naive (at first), and she's definitely nice and sweet. Bonus points for being engaged to blue-haired Athrun before the war.
* SecondLove: Unaware of Kira's relationship with Flay, Lacus expresses great affection for him, but [[spoiler:Kira is ultimately too traumatized to do anything other than gently return her earlier cheek kiss]]. Subverted.
* SexyBacklessOutfit: The animation opted not to focus on it, but merchandise makes it quite clear her "Mizu no Akashi" performance dress is this. It also has large slits in the skirt that foreshadow ShesGotLegs.
* ShamelessFanServiceGirl: While GivingThemTheStrip, she does it in front of Kira with absolutely no hesitation. Kira (on the other hand) is quite embarrassed.
* ShesGotLegs: After wearing long or relatively-long skirts for most of the show, she [[spoiler:breaks out a minidress to lead ''Eternal'' and the Three Ships Alliance]].
* SignatureHeadgear: Lacus has her distinctive and famous barrette.
* SilkHidingSteel: Despite her initially seeming to be TheIngenue, she's made of sterner stuff than most of the rest of the cast.
* SingleWomanSeeksGoodMan: Her relationship with Kira, the knight in gundamium armor.
* SuperMode: [[spoiler:SEED Mode, though the seed-burst animation for her isn't shown, implying that it might be something even more mysterious.]]
* TakeAThirdOption: Runs the Clyne Faction and later [[spoiler:The Three Ships Alliance]] as a counter to Patrick and Azrael.
* TalkingYourWayOut: [[spoiler:Athrun]] once had her at gunpoint and she convinced him not to shoot or capture her.
* ThisIsUnforgivable: Point-blank tells Rau Le Creuset (and everyone else assembled there, using an open channel) [[AllLovingHero she will not forgive him]] attacking the ''Archangel'' "in front of" (and by using) herself, the national memorial representative. [[RefugeInAudacity It works.]] See OOCIsSeriousBusiness.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: The GirlyGirl to Cagalli's {{Tomboy}} because of her feminine style of dress and desire to talk things out peacefully if possible.
* TomboyishName: Despite her GirlyGirl image, ''lacus'' is an unequivocally ''masculine'' word in Latin.
* {{Ubermensch}}: Begins her trek towards this status in ''SEED''. While everyone else tries to play by the cynical, realpolitik of the Cosmic Era, Lacus flat out rejects the premise, choosing instead to overhaul the series' morality and try for something better.
* UnlimitedWardrobe: Lacus has at least half-a-dozen outfits in the show. Not necessarily more than anyone else, but her style flair makes it seem like more. [[spoiler: It's really notorious when ''she changes on her way to hijack Eternal'']].
* VoiceOfTheResistance: Under the Zala regime, she sends out messages of hope and defiance. She's seen ushered to and from safe houses by subordinates a couple times.
* TheWonka: A female version. She's the only civilian in a cast full of military in a world at war, and tends to constantly astound, startle, and baffle everyone around her. While she operates almost entirely idiosyncratically and quite enigmatically, Lacus does make a lot of sense to people... [[spoiler:eventually. She actually becomes the voice of reason and the show's moral compass, if not quite the OnlySaneMan]].
* YamatoNadeshiko: Unfortunately for the villains, the Clyne family business that Lacus was very devoted to was not singing, but ''politics''. And Lacus '''will''' dare to use her wits if you are a warmonger like the leaders of both sides are.
* YouAreBetterThanYouThinkYouAre:
** She does this every time Kira hits an emotional breaking point in her presence. First when she encounters him wailing and screaming on the ''Archangel'' because of his difficult and loathed position as an OMNI soldier, and she reveals she knows Athrun and sympathizes that he and Kira are both good people and it does make the situation very sad, then after [[spoiler: recuperating at her mansion after his duel to the death with Athrun, and again after Rau reveals Kira's dehumanizing origins as the Ultimate Coordinator and his and Kira's NotSoDifferent status as indifferent and mistaken lab products from the same funding stream]]. The last is made more explicit in a scene in the compilation movies, where she expresses that [[spoiler:he has a right to exist and be himself, and she's been made happy by his existence and presence, thus he's his own person and more than Rau's negative summary]]
** This is also the gist of her [[BreakingSpeech Breaking Speeches]]. She gets both [[spoiler: Rau and Athrun to reconsider what they're doing and temporarily or permanently choose the more moral alternative]].
** She also does this with some success to the entirety of PLANT, repeatedly urging forgiveness and coexistence with the Naturals in speeches while she's underground.

[[folder:Patrick Zala]]
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/KinryuArimoto (Japanese), AndrewKavadas (English original series), Creator/MarcDiraison (English HD remaster)
->''"We Coordinators are very different. We should view ourselves as a completely new species. There's no reason to coexist with Naturals."''
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Patrick_Zala_2689.jpg]]

Athrun's father, Patrick Zala was one of the founding members of ZAFT alongside Siegel Clyne. At the beginning of the series, he's the head of ZAFT's armed forces. Patrick is a stoic but driven man, throwing himself into the execution of the war to the exclusion of all else -- including his son. Patrick's fanaticism comes from the loss of his wife Lenore in the Bloody Valentine tragedy, which has left him with a deep-seated hatred of Naturals. He believes that Coordinators are a new species, distinct from (and superior to) Naturals.

* AbusiveParent: [[spoiler:He shoots Athrun and tries to have him arrested.]]
* ArchnemesisDad: To Athrun by the end of the series.
* AlasPoorVillain: It's possible to feel some pathos for Patrick as he dies, unable to let go of his hate even in the end.
* BadBoss: Don't question Patrick's orders. It won't end well.
* BigBadWannabe: He's the leader of ZAFT and appears to be in a BigBadEnsemble opposite Blue Cosmos leader, Muruta Azrael but they're both really [[spoiler: being played by Rau Le Creuset]].
* BloodFromTheMouth: After being shot in the back.
* BrokenPedestal: For Athrun, as the full extent of his madness becomes clear.
* CastingGag: Arimoto was Mr. Winner in ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing'', and here he gives a master class in "How ''Definitely'' Not To Treat Your Only Son After His Mother Dies". Athrun even calls him the rarer and extremely formal ''chichi-ue'', just to drive the point home.
* CycleOfRevenge: Throws himself into the war effort because of a nuclear attack that killed his wife, only to ultimately become desperat enough to order construction of technology to undo anti-nuclear defenses [[spoiler:and create a gigantic nuclear-powered doomsday weapon.]]
%%%* EvilerThanThou: With the Coordinator-bashing Muruta Azrael.
* {{Expy}}: He's a slightly more sympathetic [[Anime/MobileSuitGundam Gihren Zabi]], right down to the [[PuttingOnTheReich outfit]], the [[ANaziByAnyOtherName politics]], and [[RousingSpeech oratorical skill]]. The only real difference is that Gihren's MasterRace philosophy is a facade, while Patrick's paranoia and bigotry is very real.
* FantasticRacism: He ''really'' hates Naturals.
* FinalSolution: He intends to fire Genesis at Earth, wiping out all the Naturals.
* {{Foil}}: Against his former BestFriend, the much calmer and more pragmatic NiceGuy Siegel Clyne.
* FounderOfTheKingdom: Started ZAFT as a political organization with Siegel Clyne and helped establish PLANT's breakaway.
* GeneralRipper: What happens when one of them becomes Supreme Council Chairman. Ironically, Patrick was less bloodthirsty and somewhat saner when he was ''just'' Defense Committee Chairman/in charge of ZAFT.
* TheGeneralissimo: He continues to appear in his uniform as Chairman, and effectively transforms ZAFT into a military dictatorship, using the army to suppress all dissent.
* GloriousLeader: He becomes closer and closer to the archetype as the show progresses and he becomes convinced that only he can save his people.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: When his BadBoss tendencies backfire on him. [[spoiler:He shoots one of his underlings for questioning his orders. Said underling, wounded but alive, draws his own sidearm and kills Zala with it.]]
* {{Hypocrite}}: He rages at Naturals as barbaric monsters after Blue Cosmos orders a nuclear attack destroys the Boaz space fortress. ''Hours later'' he kills thousands of Naturals using the GENESIS cannon and was more than willing to fire it at Earth, which could have potentially wiped out all life on the planet. Furthermore Zala admitted previously that they had developed N-Jammer Canceller technology specifically to use Genesis against Naturals in the first place.
* InsaneAdmiral: CINC of the army and a genocidal GeneralRipper.
* InTheBack: Shot from behind by a man he failed to kill.
* JadeColoredGlasses: Like Athrun, literally. Patrick's green eyes and worldview are both much, much darker, however.
* JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: They keep setting you up to think that Patrick's going to show his nice side, only to promptly disappoint you.
* JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope: First he runs against, and defeats, his old friend and former political ally for the position of PLANT Supreme Council Chairman. Then he [[spoiler:has said friend executed for believed treason]]. It only gets ''worse'' from there.
* KarmicDeath: Shot in the back by a wounded man he's just tried to murder.
* KnightOfCerebus: What we see of both sides of the war made both of them look sympathetic early in the series. When Patrick shows up, we start to see both sides are being led by genocidal lunatics who will settle for nothing less than the complete destruction of the other.
* KnightTemplar: Genuinely believes that only the most extreme methods can save his race.
* TheLostLenore: His appropriately named wife was killed in a nuclear attack. He is not over it.
* LoveMakesYouCrazy: He keeps a picture of Lenore and a younger Athrun on his desk while he destroys everything around him in a search to regain some peace, [[{{Irony}} including his relationship with Athrun]]. Lenore would probably not be pleased by this, to say the least.
* LoveMakesYouEvil: His StartOfDarkness was his wife Lenore's death.
* MasterRace: UpToEleven. Patrick views Coordinators as a full on SuperiorSpecies, and sees the Naturals as deserving only of extermination.
* ANaziByAnyOtherName: Brags about Coordinators being a MasterRace that deserves to rule the world? Plots the genocide of his Natural adversaries? Wins an election and then promptly suspends the democratic process? Why yes, he is a Nazi. Being Gihren Zabi's expy will do that.
* NeverMyFault: He blames Lacus and her father for his strategy to end the war failing, because he can't admit that Naturals outsmarted him. His pride won't even let him just blame the Naturals themselves.
* NonActionBigBad: Of ZAFT. Patrick may be a military man, but he's never in combat, is only ever shown in a command role and [[spoiler:fails to do a proper job the one time he tries to kill someone]].
* NotSoDifferent: He is just as bad as Azrael, the anti-Coordinator Natural. This is Lampshaded by Uzumi Nara Athha.
* TheParanoiac: From his birth and upbringing as a "hidden" illegal Coordinator in the Atlantic Federation to what we see of him on-screen, everything about Patrick seems to fuel this. From a character only needing three criteria to qualify (and revenge, suspiciousness and being a {{Jerkass}} are there from the start), Patrick may hit ''all seven'' by the end of the series. Unfortunately, one of the only people he trusts IS betraying him, [[spoiler:but it's Rau, not Siegel]]. So much for those secret late-night meetings...
* PerpetualFrowner: More so even than Athrun. In his time on screen Patrick never genuinely smiles. Not even once.
* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: He is basically foaming at the mouth when he talks about the Naturals, and how terrible they are as a whole, and why all of them must pay for the crimes of a handful.
* PresidentEvil: The voters wanted a [[FourStarBadass hardline military leader]]. They got a [[GeneralRipper genocidal madman]].
* PropagandaMachine: He has one that's engaged in a constant battle with Lacus' VoiceOfTheResistance.
* PuttingOnTheReich: All of ZAFT does this, but it's most noticeable on Patrick.
* RememberTheAlamo: Invokes the Bloody Valentine on multiple occasions to justify his extreme militarism. That he lost his own wife in the attack only lends his arguments more gravitas.
* RousingSpeech: Gives a great one on the anniversary of the Bloody Valentine.
--> "Who exploits the Coordinators?!"
* SmugSnake: Fueled by his FantasticRacism and belief that Coordinators are a SuperiorSpecies.
* StartOfDarkness: He was Siegel Clyne's BestFriend for two decades prior to Lenore's death at Junius 7.
* SuperiorSpecies: He's convinced that Coordinators are far superior to "unevolved" Naturals.
* UnwittingPawn: Though less of a pawn than most, [[spoiler:Rau Le Creuset]] is using him to [[spoiler:help drive humanity to extinction]].
* VillainHasAPoint: Prior to the show and at the start of the war, Chairman Clyne already swore to resist the Alliance to the death. When Patrick reminds the Supreme Council members with a RousingSpeech that PLANT was oppressed, then attacked, innocent people died, they need to protect themselves, and they can't do that without fighting, even beleaguered Siegel has nothing to say.
* WeUsedToBeFriends: Foils to Athrun and Kira, Patrick and Siegel were {{Best Friend}}s of more than twenty years. This is AllThereInTheManual because they fall out so fast in the actual show, this is nearly all that remains, and it's because of this that Patrick takes Siegel's perceived "betrayals" so hard [[spoiler:that he has him executed]].

[[folder:Siegel Clyne]]
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/YosukeAkimoto (Japanese), Creator/DonBrown (English original series), Creator/ChristopherSabat (English HD remaster)
->''"You still fail to grasp the underlying truth, Patrick. We [Coordinators] didn't evolve."''
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Siegel_Clyne_620.jpg]]

Siegel Clyne is Lacus's father. He helped found ZAFT with Patrick Zala, and is the PLANT Supreme Council Chairman at the beginning of the series. Leader of the moderate faction of Coordinators, he and his allies believe in coexistence with the Naturals, but they're steadily losing ground to the radical faction that favours all-out war. Eventually voted out of office and replaced by Patrick Zala, he attempts to remain a voice of reason, earning him the enmity of the radicals.

%%* BadassMoustache
* CharacterDeath: [[spoiler: Patrick's goon squad guns him down]].
* BeleagueredBureaucrat: Unlike Patrick Zala, he's a pure politician, not a soldier. His contribution to the war effort is to try to ride herd on the PLANT Supreme Council's rather quarrelsome members.
%%* BigFancyHouse
%%* CoolOldGuy
* FounderOfTheKingdom: Of the original ZAFT organization with Patrick Zala and the newly independent PLANT nation.
* TheHeart: Of ZAFT as a whole since he insists on diplomacy, cooperation and rational thinking as opposed to hatred.
* NoHistoricalFiguresWereHarmed: Well, as far as harm goes. [[spoiler:The execution-style hit put out on him by Patrick is a little too similar to the killing of [[KosherNostra gangster Ben "Bugsy" Siegel]], who is loosely considered the founder of modern UsefulNotes/LasVegas. His best friend Meyer Lansky may or may not have been the one who ordered it]].
%%* NonActionGuy
* OnlySaneMan: The main representative of the Supreme Council faction that realizes how the war is escalating, how costly it has already become, and who are trying to moderate its foreseeable course.
* ProHumanTranshuman: Actually, he swore PLANT would fight the Naturals to the death after the Bloody Valentine. But a year on, he sees what escalating the war will cost the living Coordinators, and he's not interested in Patrick's FinalSolution, looking to TakeAThirdOption and co-exist in peace. He is, after all, the one that Lacus got it from.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: He's the leader of the ''moderate'' faction for a reason.
* TheScapegoat: Patrick blames Siegel for [[spoiler:the theft of the Freedom. And has him shot without trial. Although Siegel fled with his daughter, we only see Lacus's part in the matter, and her resistance speeches which only fueled paranoid Patrick's hatred for his "traitorous" best friend more. Siegel's part in everything is quite murky, which makes him very much this trope and probably the SacrificialLion too]].
* SuperiorSpecies: Averted. He's not sure the Coordinators should even be there, and points out their falling birth rates to Patrick. Patrick isn't listening.
%%* TooGoodForThisSinfulEarth
* WeUsedToBeFriends: Siegel is both depressed and eventually angry about the steep decline of his relationship with Patrick, but he's not willing to go along with genocide and not afraid to stand up to Zala about it. [[spoiler:[[HonorBeforeReason It costs him his life]]]].

[[folder:Ezalia Joule]]
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/KotonoMitsuishi (Japanese), Alison Matthews (English original series), Creator/CindyRobinson (English HD remaster)
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Ezalia_Joule_1373.jpg]]

Yzak's mother, and a member of Patrick Zala's faction on the ZAFT Supreme Council, Ezalia is his [[NumberTwo second-in-command]], and is even more ardent than Patrick in her belief that Coordinators are a new, superior species. Proud of her son's military service, Ezalia nevertheless worries about his safety, and can be quite controlling -- if well-meaning -- in her interactions with Yzak.

* DissonantSerenity: Patrick rants and raves about how the Naturals have to be exterminated. Ezalia takes it as a simple fact.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: It's her love for her son Yzak that humanises her and makes her less of a monster than her boss.
* EvilMatriarch: Her status as Yzak's mom is her one redeeming quality. It doesn't make her beliefs or plans a jot less evil, though.
* FantasticRacism: At times she's scarier than Patrick.
* FinalSolution: She fully endorses Patrick's plans for a Natural genocide.
* IcyBlueEyes: Ezalia's eyes are as cold as her personality.
* KnightTemplar: Only a Natural genocide can save the Coordinators!
* MasterRace: Fully endorses Patrick's agenda believing the Coordinators are this.
* MyBelovedSmother: To Yzak. Which makes her a damn sight better than Patrick.
* ANaziByAnyOtherName: Her politics are of the same radical bent as Patrick's and she supports his policies wholeheartedly.
* NumberTwo: To Patrick Zala. From a political standpoint she's practically TheDragon.
%%* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain
* RousingSpeech: Gives one to the troops during Boaz, exhorting them to show the Naturals who the true MasterRace is.
* StrongFamilyResemblance: She's a GenderFlip of Yzak, without the scar.
* SuperiorSpecies: Share Patrick's belief that Coordinators are inherently superior to Naturals.
* UnwittingPawn: Like Patrick, she's a pawn of [[spoiler:Rau Le Creuset]].

[[folder:Andrew Waltfeld]]
!!'''Main mecha:''' TMF/A-802[=BuCue=], TMF/A-803 [=LaGOWE=]
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/RyotaroOkiayu (Japanese), Creator/BrianDrummond (English original series dub), Creator/MattGiroveanu (English HD remaster dub)
->''"At what point do we put an end to [war]? When every single one of your enemies has been destroyed? Perhaps then."''
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Andrew_Waltfeld_603.jpg]]

Known as "the Desert Tiger", Waltfeld is a feared ZAFT commander operating in the Libyan desert. He serves as the first major opponent Kira faces other than Athrun and his team, and poses a serious threat to the ''Archangel'' and her crew, despite being a pretty decent guy. Meeting him forces Kira to further reevaluate his moral stance on the war.
----
* AcePilot: His piloting skills make him a feared ZAFT commander.
* AffablyEvil: It helps that he's more affable than evil.
* AnArmAndALeg: [[spoiler:After his fight with Kira, he returns in the final arc of the series missing his right arm and left eye. He has a [[ArtificialLimbs prosthetic arm]] attached later on in ''Destiny''.]]
* AnimalMecha: Only pilots the nonhumanoid [=BuCue=] and [=LaGOWE=].
* AnimalMotifs: He takes his "tiger" nickname to heart, complete with orange and black striped pilot suit.
* AntiVillain: He treats all his enemies and opponents with tact and respect, has many interests outside of war, and is both genial and a fan of doing the right thing. He's just not on the protagonist's side...
* BattleCouple: He and Aisha are this in the [=LaGOWE=].
* BunnyEarsLawyer: He takes his food and especially his coffee very, ''very'' seriously. He is however, most effective.
* TheCaptain: He runs [[spoiler:''Eternal'' for Lacus and serves as her executive officer after helping her steal it. She calls him "Captain Waltfeld", so it's a definite switch from his former Commander title]].
* CommandingCoolness: Another ZAFT Commander, like his [[{{Expy}} model]] [[Anime/MobileSuitGundam Ramba Ral]], he has many deeply loyal subordinates, including his ADC Martin [=DaCosta=], who is simultaneously baffled by and would do anything for him. Waltfeld's clever ''and'' easygoing manner ratchets him up to Very Cool.
* CoolOldGuy: Despite not being that old, he's this when compared to others in the cast, who are mainly teenagers. He has experience, wisdom and steel nerves that they lack.
* {{Expy}}: Of Ramba Ral, fulfilling a very similar role in terms of story and personality.
* EyeScream: [[spoiler:His battle with Kira cost him an eye.]]
* GoodScarsEvilScars: [[spoiler:After he turns up alive]], he has a very visible scar where his left eye used to be.
* HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler:He joins Lacus after his apparent death. It helps that he was shown to have a similar, or at least compatible, outlook on war to her own.]]
* ItGetsEasier: He discusses it with Kira and Cagalli. Unlike Mu, he considers it to be a negative thing.
* LastNameBasis: Only subverted by Aisha, who calls him Andy. No one else even calls him Andrew.
* MustHaveCaffeine: He is regularly seen drinking and/or brewing coffee. The only exception is inside his mobile suit.
* NobleDemon: Burns down a town ''after'' letting the civillians evacuate, leaves the areas he's conquered in relative peace, lets Kira and Cagalli escape when he could have captured them... it's no wonder he [[spoiler:couldn't stomach the Zala regime]].
* NoOneCouldSurviveThat: What [[spoiler:Kira does to his mech kills Aisha but not him]].
* ProHumanTranshuman: He's not very prejudiced, and ends up siding with the Three Ships' Alliance.
* RedBaron: The Desert Tiger.
* ShoutOut: To [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII Erwin Rommel]]. Has a nickname similar to "The Desert Fox", not to mention being courteous and honorable to his enemies. Bonus points for the fact he even gives the civilians of a town time to evacuate before leveling it, which is something Rommel would have done.
* SpellMyNameWithAnS: There were many variations such as "Bartfeld" before the official romanization was clear.
* TrademarkFavoriteDrink: Coffee. Trying new brews is a running gag with him.
* TurnTheOtherCheek: When he meets with Kira again after their battle, he tells him he doesn't hold any ill will against him at all.
* VillainsOutShopping: He's constantly experimenting with different coffee brews.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Aisha]]
!!'''Main mecha:''' TMF/A-803 [=LaGOWE=]
!!!Voice Actors: Music/VivianHsu (Japanese series), Creator/FumiHirano (Japanese {{Compilation Movie}}s), Creator/SaffronHenderson (English original series), Creator/MichelleRuff (English HD remaster)
->''"You're taking this rather well. This is difficult for you, isn't it? I can tell you're really fond of him."''
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Aisha_Gundam_Seed_370.jpg]]

Girlfriend of Andrew Waltfeld, the Desert Tiger, and a capable gunner in her own right. Just as sympathetic a character as Andy, she's rather friendly toward Kira and Cagalli when they encounter each other.
----
* ActionGirlfriend: Waltfeld's gunner in their unique two-seater [=LaGOWE=]. Aisha isn't even in ZAFT, but she still wants to fight together with the man she loves. She explicitly says that [[spoiler:she's okay with dying for it]].
* BattleCouple: With Andy, fighting with him in their own mobile suit.
* CharacterDeath: [[spoiler: She died in the battle with Kira.]]
* ColorCodedForYourConvenience: She has orange streaks in her black hair because Waltfeld is the Desert Tiger.
* DeadpanSnarker: When she's not being sweet and understanding, she's making full use of her snarking abilities. Her best moment is probably her response to [[HotBlooded Yzak]]'s claim that he and Dearka have more experience against the Strike than she and Waldfeld do: "Losing experience doesn't count."
%%%
%%%
%%%%%% "Played for tragedy." is not context.
%%* DisposableWoman:
* {{Expy}}: She's the [[Anime/MobileSuitGundam Crowley Hamon]] to Andy's Ramba Ral - though [[spoiler:he ends up outliving her in a reversal from the original series]].
* ForeignFanservice: Subverted. Aisha is played by a non-native Japanese speaker, and looks appropriately 'exotic' as a Coordinator from PLANT [[note]]Vivian Hsu hails from Taiwan, and mastered Japanese as part of breaking out on the Japanese idol pop scene, big enough to still land this role ''years later''[[/note]], but the odds of Waltfeld finding a girlfriend who can pilot ZAFT mobile suits in the impoverished desert as opposed to bringing her from home are rather low.
* HimeCut: Long hair, sidetails and even bangs; yes she looks the trope and her sweet and understanding personality goes along with it.
* OnlyOneName: If she has one other than "Aisha", we don't hear about it.
* SatelliteCharacter: Her presence in the show revolves entirely around the Tiger.
* SexyBacklessOutfit: Aisha's regular outfit basically cuts out to the bottom of her ''spine'', although no one says anything or even stares.
* SheCleansUpNicely: The one doing the cleaning; she personally picks out a nice dress and jewelry for Cagalli and re-styles her hair. Waltfeld comments how much the temporary makeover suits her.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: A "natural" GirlyGirl, especially when compared to Cagalli, [[UnwillinglyGirlyTomboy who isn't thrilled to be stuck masquerading as one]], although Aisha is so skillful that Cagalli suits her changed look well.
[[/folder]]
[[folder:Martin DaCosta]]
!!!Voice Actors: Akira Sasanuma (Japanese), Brian Dobson (English), Robbie Friedman (English HD Remaster dub)

Waltfeld's ADC and second-in-command.
----
* BigDamnHero: He saves [[spoiler:Athrun from being arrested after confronting his father and essentially initiates him into the Clyne Faction. Prior to that, he also shows up leading a counterstrike force when Athrun and the outlaw Lacus are under heavy fire from a plainclothes unit sent for her by Patrick]].
* HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler:Joins the Clyne Faction along with Waltfeld.]]
* NumberTwo: To Andrew Waltfeld.
* UndyingLoyalty: Again, to the Desert Tiger. And also seemingly to [[spoiler:Siegel and Lacus]].
[[/folder]]

!Orb
An island nation in the Pacific, Orb has a high-tech industrial base but little in the way of resources; they built Heliopolis primarily as a way to mitigate this strategic weakness. A very idealistic nation, their stance in international politics is one of aggressive neutrality; though they will not attack others, they will vigorously defend themselves against any attacks. The war between the Earth Alliance and ZAFT has strained this position to its breaking point, especially after the destruction of Heliopolis.

[[folder:Cagalli Yula Athha]]
!!'''Main mecha:''' FX-550 Skygrasper, [[spoiler:MBF-02 Strike Rouge]]
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/NaomiShindo (Japanese), VanessaMorley (English original series dub), Creator/CheramiLeigh (English HD Remaster dub)
->''"The things we can do, want to do, and should do... It's the same for all of us, right?"''
[[quoteright:264:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/untitled_705.png]]

The daughter and only child of Uzumi Nara Athha, former Chief Representative of the Orb Union, and head of one of the country's five ruling noble families, making her the equivalent of a princess in Orb. Also a rebel leader, guerilla soldier, and a capable, if brash, tactician. Hates ZAFT and distrusts the Earth Forces. She provides the military backbone of the Three Ships' Alliance.
----
* ActionGirl: Cagalli is a capable and determined fighter. She runs around, shoots things, leads a resistance cell and later [[spoiler:pilots a Gundam]]. She would love to be nothing more than this. Unfortunately her father and her duty to her home disagree...
* AllYourPowersCombined: [[spoiler:The Strike Rouge IWSP, notable for being the first 'Combined' Striker Pack. Subverted though as it doesn't make an appearance in the series, despite being repeatedly teased in the HD Remaster splash images.]]
* BadassAdorable: Just watch when she cries or gets angry. It's adorable. She also held her own in gun fights with Coordinators.
* BadassNormal: Despite being a Natural, she doesn't hesitate to take on Coordinators. Even when they're in mobile suits and the most heavily armed thing she has is a ''jeep''. [[spoiler:She is the only Natural seen going into SEED Mode.]]
* BatheHerAndBringHerToMe: A rare non-sexual example. Cagalli does end up being benevolently cleaned, put in a dress and having her hair fixed when she and Kira end up in the Desert Tiger's custody. She even accuses him of deriving some kind of perverse pleasure from it, but she did need a bath and he says the clothes were Aisha's idea. Mostly it's just to show SheCleansUpNicely.
* BathtubScene: Has one sitting in an elaborate bathtub in Waltfeld's residence blowing bubbles in the original series. It's changed to a ShowerScene for the compilation movies and Remaster.
* BerserkButton: She knows she's a girl, and she'll get hugely annoyed if you suddenly discover the fact. Or worse, do it more than once.
-->'''Cagalli:''' "That's right, I'm a girl! What ''is'' it with you guys?"
* {{Bifauxnen}}: Subverted. Cagalli is a {{Tomboy}} through and through, but she's not remotely elegant or stylish unless you stick her in a dress and make her behave. Many people thought she was a guy by sight alone, but no one swoons about how cool she is. Kira and Athrun manage to identify her as a girl after hearing her talk, which just annoys her. (Cagalli ''does'' have a developed, non-boyish figure, but the clothes hide it well.) It's flipped around by Waltfeld, who dubs Cagalli in a dress as "the perfect little lady... until she speaks".
* BigDamnKiss: With [[spoiler:Athrun just before Jachin Due]], as they'd been seen becoming steadily emotionally and physically closer before that. She manages to keep the promise she made prior to that, too. It's also both symbolic and very pretty with the juxtaposition of them floating in space in front of Earth.
* BoyishShortHair: Downplayed. Not even that short, but LongHairIsFeminine and she is not. Hers also has a lot of volume and tends to look quite messy, and it's highlighted when [[spoiler:she gets [[RomanticRain soaked in the rain]] in front of Athrun and her water-lengthened hair suddenly makes her look ''far'' more feminine]]. (Although Aisha being able to clip it up should have been a clue to Cagalli not playing this straight.)
* BrokenPedestal: Has a major case towards her father when she discovers the G-Weapon Project, believing he betrayed the ideals he upheld.
* ColorMotif: Under her red clothes, we see she wears green. The SimpleYetOpulent dresses she wears in show and the PimpedOutDress she wears in some ending sequences are also all pale green. The 3rd and 4th ED lampshade her switching from red to green.
* ComedicUnderwearExposure: PlayedForDrama, as she only drops the blanket she had covering her [[spoiler: to steal Athrun's gun, aiming to take the Aegis. Cagalli was so focused and full of adrenaline that she only realized what she had done ''after'' a very tense standoff, when Athrun then asked her to PleasePutSomeClothesOn.]] [[LuminescentBlush Turns out,]] she's ''not'' a ShamelessFanserviceGirl.
* CoolPlane: She becomes the (self-)designated pilot of the second Skygrasper until the ''Archangel'' reached Orb.
* CycleOfRevenge: Defied -- her father imparted this to her when she attempted to rejoin the ''Archangel'' and later passes it on to [[spoiler:Athrun]] after he confessed to (seemingly) killing [[spoiler:Kira]] because he killed his friend and comrade [[spoiler:Nicol]]. She gives [[spoiler:Athrun]] her Haumea amulet for his protection, not wishing for him to die even after what he did to [[spoiler:Kira]].
* EstablishingCharacterMoment: While not her first appearance, the first time she does anything meaningful within the series revolves around taking a man-portable weapon in a jeep against a ''lupine humongous mecha''. Things only ramps up when she actually gets a war machine of her own.
* {{Expy}}:
** Of Sayla Mass from the original ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam'', albeit with a healthy dose of Relena Darlian from ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing''. In short, she's the two best known CharClone sisters mashed together. Though, in a twist, [[spoiler: she's actually related to TheHero Kira rather than to any of the resident [[CharClone Char Clones]] so she has some [[Franchise/StarWars Princess Leia]] in her as well]].
** From fighting in the desert with a rebel force, to fighting with her father about peace, to [[spoiler:screaming and sobbing when he's later blown up and having a custom-made Gundam built after that, to becoming very close to a guy she initially tried to kill and who threatened her with "omae wo korosu", to being born naturally at L4 with genetically engineered siblings and being unaware of it all]], she's the seeming twin, or at least GenderFlip, of Quatre Raberba Winner from ''Wing'', and would fit exceedingly easily as one of ''his'' sisters.
* FlowerMotif: [[spoiler:Strike Rouge has an emblem of an animal's head with a flower in its jaws]], and her image song is called "Precious Rose".
* FlowersOfNature: She has these in her PimpedOutDress outfit, along with other greenery. They're the "orange flowers" from the song "Akatsuki no Kuruma", as well as symbolizing she's the one from Earth.
* HairOfGoldHeartOfGold: Temperaments aside, Cagalli is unflinchingly kindhearted, best exemplified when she saw Kira grieving about having killed Waltfeld and gives him a CooldownHug -- a sharp contrast to most of their earlier more... ''abrasive'' interactions.
* HappilyAdopted: Her relationship with Uzumi is [[StealthPun turbulent]] but supportive, especially compared to what characters like Athrun and Mu have (had) to endure with their actual birth fathers. That being said, Cagalli had no idea she was adopted until [[spoiler:Uzumi tells her just before he dies]].
* HatesWearingDresses: Just this, although she has a pitched, physical battle with her old nanny Myrna about changing into one.
* HotBlooded: Cagalli is feisty, loud, passionate, and always ready to join in a battle. [[DeconstructedTrope Kira and Uzumi later call her out for thinking she can fight solely based on her emotions, or that violent combat is the answer.]]
%%%* JackOfAllStats: [[spoiler:The Strike Rouge]]
* TheLadysFavour: She gives [[spoiler:Athrun her Haumea pendant for protection, even after he snarks about wondering if she's destined to kill him. He later claims that it saved him from his father — which Cagalli ''herself'' certainly did after that]].
* LoveTriangle: Subverted. Despite ShipTease, there's nothing proving Cagalli's interest in and great concern for Kira was anything other than [[spoiler:sisterly. She has a rather different romantic relationship with Athrun, just to highlight it]].
%%%%* MadScientistsBeautifulDaughter: Averted. [[spoiler:See Kira's entry.]]
* MasculineGirlFeminineBoy: Tough, brash Cagalli and the much gentler, calmer, choker-wearing Kira. She has shades of this with [[spoiler: Athrun as well, given how he's also (usually) [[SavvyGuyEnergeticGirl much calmer and more levelheaded and logical]], but she also {{Crush Blush}}es around and clings to him and generally acts just a touch more restrained and girly]].
* MeetCute: Alone on a small island with [[spoiler:Athrun, she goes from desperately trying to kill him to desperately not wanting to, snarking, sniping, crabs, RomanticRain, and ComedicUnderwearExposure along the way]].
* MightyWhitey: Cagalli the blonde-haired foreign princess is not only one of the best fighters and leaders in Desert Dawn, she's nicknamed their "goddess of victory" and known and liked by their families, despite canonically only being there for a few weeks.
* MissingMom: No one speaks of Cagalli ever having a mother; Erica Simmons goes as far as to say that "Lord Uzumi raised you with such loving care...". It may have contributed to her {{Tomboy}} personality. She [[spoiler:finds out about her birth mother from Uzumi shortly before he dies, though she doesn't actually know who the woman in the photograph is]].
* NiceGirl: Violent tendecies notwithstanding, Cagalli is the ''first'' person to be unambiguously kind to Kira in the series, without professional distance or ulterior motives; notably in the form of a ''much'' needed hug when he was on the verge of a suicidal breakdown. She is also consistently considerate, warm hearted, compassionate, and ''openly'' expresses kindness without consideration to maturity or social appropriateness.
* NomDeGuerre: Only goes by "Cagalli" or "Cagalli Yula" for half the show, since she's desperate (and under instruction) to avoid her full name and true identity getting out.
* OfficialCouple: She falls in love [[spoiler:with Athrun and saves him from dying in GENESIS at the end]].
* PolarOppositeTwins: Despite [[spoiler:sharing emotional natures and soft hearts, Cagalli couldn't be much more different than Kira]].
* PoliticallyActivePrincess: Subverted. Uzumi yells and begs her to become this rather than running off to fight violently again, which he sees as a waste. She does stay home, but we only see her supervising Orb's troops, rather than doing anything political. This ends up [[spoiler:haunting her next series]].
* PrincessesPreferPink: Generally averted. She hates both being addressed as a princess and pink, [[PinkMeansFeminine given how she wears none and her room is entirely blue]]. Downplayed with [[spoiler:Strike Rouge. Cagalli didn't pick the color, but also doesn't seem to care]].
* ProneToTears: [[spoiler:Like her twin brother]]. Cagalli cries very easily and very loudly, though more effectively, no one ever calls her a crybaby, and it never bothers her.
* RebelLeader: Leads [[LaResistance a cell of Arab freedom fighters]] against the Desert Tiger.
* RebelliousPrincess: Her father and country as a whole are strict neutral isolationists. ''She'' ran away to join a resistance cell halfway around the world.
* RedBaron: "The Goddess of Victory", to the Desert Dawn fighters.
* RedIsHeroic: Cagalli overlaps this with RedIsViolent, wearing a red shirt both for her time as a guerrilla and in her Orb uniform. She and [[spoiler:Athrun wear [[SignificantWardrobeShift matching red Morgenroete jackets]] for the last quarter, the Haumea amulet she gives him is red, and so is her standard-issue Orb pilot suit for the Strike Rouge]]. However, she has a second ColorMotif...
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething: [[DeconstructedTrope Deconstructed]]. Cagalli firmly believes in this trope, and after personally travelling to Heliopolis to confirm the existence of the Gundams she throws her support behind a group of freedom fighters and later the ''Archangel'', taking an active role on the battlefield. However once she returns to Orb her father immediately points out all she's done is help to fan the flames of war, and that if she really wanted to help bring and end to the war she should have stayed in Orb, continued to learn how to rule, and leveraged her political influence as Orb's heir.
* SavvyGuyEnergeticGirl: With [[spoiler:Athrun, who's startled and not too happy to learn she intends to take a mobile suit out to the final battle. Cagalli then shows some savvy with the page quote and by saving ''him'']].
* SeparatedAtBirth: [[spoiler:Kira is her brother and she never found out until the final stretch of the series.]]
* SheCleansUpNicely: Not that she was ever considered ''ugly'', mind you, but get her in a dress and not scowling about it and she goes from cute in a {{Tomboy}}-ish way to really beautiful (as the 3rd and 4th Openings show).
* SiblingSenioritySquabble: [[spoiler: When she tells Athrun she's glad to have Kira for a little brother, he teasingly asks her if he might not be her big brother instead. She grumpily insists that she was born first.]]
* SuperMode: [[spoiler:The only Natural to activate SEED mode.]]
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: The tomboy to Lacus' girly girl given her more masculine manner of dress, speech, and more violent manner of problem solving.
* TomboyPrincess: Cagalli HatesWearingDresses and simply does not give a damn about looking like a PrincessClassic. She instead chooses short, messy hair and simple and practical clothes, such as cargo pants and t-shirts or [[TanktopTomboy tank tops]]. She is also well-versed in weaponry and battlefield tactics and feels at home at the controls of a fighter plane [[spoiler:or a Gundam, at the very end]]. In addition, her manner of speech is both quite blunt and rather strictly gender-neutral for Japanese, meaning she can sound more like a guy than a girl.
* {{Tsundere}}: She tends to act like this. She worries about Kira one moment and slaps him the next.
* {{Twincest}}: Subverted. [[spoiler:The Yamatos invoke this and worry she's getting too close to Kira for this reason, but they're informed they're brother and sister before anything else happens.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Uzumi Nara Athha]]
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/ToruOkawa (Japanese), John Novak (English original series), Creator/MichaelAlstonBaley (English HD remaster)
->''"We can't leave Orb, or this world, in the hands of those bastards."''
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Lord_Uzumi_3306.jpg]]

The leader of Orb and Cagalli's adopted father, Lord Uzumi is completely dedicated to maintaining Orb's neutral stance. This becomes ever more difficult as the war spirals out of control. Faced with increasing pressure to choose a side in the ZAFT-Earth Alliance conflict, he refuses to compromise his nation's ideals.
----
* AmbiguousSituation: What did he know about the G-Weapon Project? While Rondo Mina Sahaku initiated Morgenroete's involvement with the G-Weapon Project as established in Astray, how much he knew about it remains in question. Kisaka certainly claimed that Lord Uzumi was uninvolved but notably Uzumi himself never makes a definitive statement in private. He publicly claimed responsibility and stepped down as Orb's Chief Representative in any case. So whether he viewed the project as a NecessaryEvil to maintain Orb's neutrality in the face of ZAFT and the EA's technological advancement is left to the viewer.
%%* BadassBeard
%%* BigGood
* CycleOfRevenge: Expounds about this to Cagalli about how her belief in fighting enemies will bring unending hatred by others. [[spoiler: Also a {{Foreshadowing}} to the eventual deaths of [[TokenGoodTeamMate Nicol]] and [[NiceGuy Tolle]] that further fueled hatred between Athrun and Kira, and the escalation of the war in the show's last act.]]
* DefiantToTheEnd: When it became clear that Orb was going to lose its fight against the Earth Alliance, he chose to blow up the very resources the EA had come to the country to seize, rendering their invasion a waste.
* DyingMomentOfAwesome: [[spoiler: Igniting a self-destruct that blows up Orb's mass driver and himself in the process, effectively trapping the Earth Forces on earth.]]
* {{Expy}}:
** Uzumi bears a resemblance to [[Anime/MobilesuitGundamWing King Peacecraft]], with Orb playing a role similar to the Sanc Kingdom.
** In his active and explosive adherence to non-intervention and nonviolent solutions, his loving but abrupt approach with his wayward heir Cagalli, badass facial hair and [[spoiler:his ultimate fate]], he's a pretty close copy of Mr. Winner from the same show, although [[CastingGag the seiyuu there is now playing Patrick Zala]].
* FaceDeathWithDignity: [[spoiler:He shows no signs of panic or distress as he dies.]]
* FamousLastWords: ''"We can't leave Orb, or this world, in the hands of those bastards."''
* TheGoodKing: Or the Gundam Seed's equivalent; he kept the neutrality of the country even with the threat of invasion from Earth Alliance and actually treat his subjects--both Naturals and Coordinators--fairly.
* GoodParents: He is a loving and understanding father to Cagalli, but all the same knows when to be stern and upfront, especially when she gets particularly imprudent.
* MessianicArchetype: At times he's more this than Kira and Lacus put together because of his insistence on neutral, avoiding the cycle of revenge, preaching goodwill and understanding. [[UsefulNotes/{{Jesus}} He even looks the part]]. [[spoiler: He also makes a heroic sacrifice.]]
* NonActionGuy: Politician, not a soldier.
* ParentalSubstitute: He adopted Cagalli when she was a baby.
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Considering the amounts of GeneralRipper and ANaziByAnyOtherName in this show, his benign nature stands out.
* SoProudOfYou: To Cagalli. "I feel very fortunate to have been your father."
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Ledonir Kisaka]]
!!!Voice Actors: Isshin Chiba (Japanese), Adam Henderson (English original series), Creator/TJStorm (English HD remaster)

An officer in Orb military and bodyguard to Cagalli.
----
* AmbiguouslyBrown: Though he may have been from North Africa, but his Japanese last name and Russian first name leave his ethnicity up in the air.
* BadassNormal: He is comparatively understated but nonetheless just as capable of holding his own against Coordinators.
* BodyguardingABadass: He may bodyguard Cagalli, but she's not your average helpless VIP.
* ColonelBadass: He actually holds the rank in the Orb army.
* {{Expy}}: He's got a lot in common with Rashid Kurama from ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamWing''.
* ImmigrantPatriotism: He is originally from North Africa but he is loyal to Orb.
* LaResistance: Part of Desert Dawn until he left for Orb.
* ShoutOut: His resistance outfit is based on Franchise/{{Rambo}}.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Myrna]]
!!!Voice Actors:

Cagalli's nanny who has cared for her since she was a child.
----

* BrawnHilda: She's plump but quite strong; She one of the few people who can tame Cagalli.
* InsistentAppellation: "Cagalli-ojousama" ("Young Lady Cagalli") and "Hime" ("Princess"), much to Cagalli's annoyance and embarrassment.
* ParentalSubstitute: More or less the only mother figure in Cagalli's life, since there's nothing about Uzumi having been married.
* UndyingLoyalty: She is always ready to help Cagalli and her family overall.
[[/folder]]

!Others

[[folder:George Glenn]]
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/HideyukiHori (Japanese), Creator/MichaelDobson (English)
->''"I have a body capable of greater strengths and a brain capable of acquiring greater knowledge than a human being who was born naturally."''
[[quoteright:225:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/George_Glenn_5350.jpg]]

The original Coordinator, he gained international fame and fortune excelling at basically everything ever (from professional sports to cutting-edge scientific research); he eventually revealed that his spectacular success was largely due to having been genetically engineered. He released instructions for his enhancement process to the public, inadvertently coining the term "Coordinator" at the same time. Eventually assassinated by Blue Cosmos.

In the ''[[Manga/MobileSuitGundamSeedAstray Gundam SEED Astray]]'' side stories it is revealed that his brain was kept alive inside the "GG Unit", a device resembling a very large futuristic boombox, which eventually came into the possession of the Junk Guild. Equipped with a holographic avatar to interact with the living, Glenn now serves as the captain of the salvage ship/Gundam carrier Re-Home.
----
* TheAce: A brief overview of the man's accomplishments: earning a [=PhD=] from MIT at 17, winning a silver medal at the Olympics, becoming a football star, an ace air force pilot, and a world-renowned aerospace engineer (in that order), travelling to Jupiter and back in a ship of his own design (releasing the information on how to make Coordinators to the public as he left), and designing the [=PLANTs=] during his free time on the trip. George Glenn is TheAce ''UpToEleven''.
* AlliterativeName: '''G'''eorge '''G'''lenn.
* BornLucky: Because he was engineered to be the best at everything during birth, you could say that his creator effectively rigged the genetic lottery in his favour.
* BornWinner: A main reason why he and all subsequent Coordinators are hated by "Naturals", as they would be given a head start many people born naturally can never have.
* BrainInAJar: More like Brain in a Capsule. When his body was killed, his mind was preserved, deemed too valuable to lose. Fortunately, the capsule contains a holographic projector and the ability for him to speak and see, averting a AndIMustScream situation.
* BrokenPedestal: George Glenn was Earth's greatest hero and has won the admiration of everyone. After his confession that he was a genetically-engineered human, many people were disgusted and look at him with contempt.
* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: In the Astray series, Glenn expresses regrets over the events he started by revealing the process to make Coordinators. Resulting in racism, war and genocide. He also regrets that people took his term "coordinators" to name genetic engineered humans, since it was never meant to name a race but simply people who can lead humanity into a better future which is not related to their genes.
* PosthumousCharacter: In the main series, he has been dead for several years.
* RenaissanceMan: He was skilled at absolutely everything he tried, from Olympic level sports to [=PhD=] engineering to the no-doubt extremely complicated process that creates Coordinators like himself.
* RiddleForTheAges: Who were the scientists that created George Glenn and what happened to them after the revelation that he was a Coordinator?
* TooCoolToLive: An in-universe example. People were so pissed at how awesome he was that they ''assassinated'' him!
* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: While he expected everyone to aspire to him and the subsequent Coordinator "race" as an example to lead into a better future, instead people resented him and all Coordinators for having a leg up in life that they, by their literal births, were denied.
* VirtualGhost: Though technically still alive, Glenn's only physical presence aside from the unwieldy life-support system containing his brain is an [[Series/RedDwarf Arnold Rimmer]]-style holographic projection of his old self in a captain's uniform, complete with goofy white skipper hat.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Reverend Malchio]]
!!!Voice Actors: Creator/KazuyaNakai (Japanese), Creator/BrianDrummond (English original series), Creator/EthanMurray (English HD remaster)

A blind monk who is one of the few individuals trusted by both the Earth Alliance and ZAFT, he acts as a mediator on the rare occasions that the two sides get along well enough to discuss anything. Among other things, he also maintains an orphanage on Earth. There is a fair bit more to him than meets the eye.
----
* EyesAlwaysShut: Is never seen without the look of serene bliss on his face.
* FriendToAllChildren: He took care of the orphans after all.
* GoodShepherd: He's one of many decent characters in the show and ran an orphanage on an island near Orb.
* HiddenDepths: In the exterior as a blind preacher, he is actually a powerful individual with connections and resources from all organizations (Junk Guild, PLANT, and EA).
* NonActionGuy: He never takes part in any battle and is often the first one to be hurried off if the conflict comes to him. This allows him to be one of the few mediators between the two sides, as everyone knows he does not have any violent motives.
* ParentalSubstitute: To a whole mess of orphans.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Al Da Flaga]]
!!!Voice Actors: Kozo Mito, Creator/ToshihikoSeki (Special Edition) (Japanese), Creator/MarkOliver (English)
->''"Laws can be broken after all. They're only made by humans."''
[[quoteright:180:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Al_Da_Flaga_5725.jpg]]

Mu La Flaga's deceased father. He considered his son too weak to be his true heir, and is later revealed to have cloned himself in an effort to gain a more worthy successor. He went on to deny said clone [[note]]which grew up to become Rau Le Creuset[[/note]] any sense of identity, which ended with his death in a "mysterious" fire. Whoops.
----
* AboveGoodAndEvil: How he saw himself. If the few quotes we have from him are a fair representation, he honestly seems to have thought he was something more than merely human.
* AbusiveParent: Anyone who effectively disowns his young son because said son ''has his mother's genes'' is not going to win any Father of the Year awards, to say nothing of [[spoiler:his treatment of Rau]].
* ControlFreak: To the point that he disowned his own biological son for not having the ''exact same genes'' as him.
* DomesticAbuse: Cut Mu out of the will for sharing his wife's genetics. That probably qualifies him.
%%%* FinancialAbuse: Of Mu and his wife.
* {{Jerkass}}: Not ''evil'' per se, but definitely a colossal douche.
* ManOfWealthAndTaste: Is dressed in a suit and tie in all of his few appearances, such as [[spoiler: twisting Dr.Hibiki's arm into illegal cloning through the promise of funding.]]
* {{Narcissist}}: In fact his abusive style of parenting is what psyciatrists terms "narcissistic abuse." He disowned Mu for daring to be something more than a vehicle for his own ego, and upon seeing his [[spoiler:clone, the first words out of his mouth are "this is me, right?"]] Al seems to have been incapable of viewing people as anything more than extensions of his own personality, and that's without getting into his [[AboveGoodAndEvil delusions of]] [[{{Ubermensch}} grandeur]].
* ParentalAbandonment: Of ''both'' his sons, one after the other. Jackass.
* PosthumousCharacter: Dies years before the series begins, but is nontheless an enormous part of the plot, given that he not only inadvertently created the BigBad, but also funded the Ultimate Coordinator project, the process that eventually led to [[spoiler:Kira and Cagalli's births]].
* {{Pride}}: In addition to being a textbook narcissist, Al's hubris knew no bounds. Le Creuset calls him out on it posthumously in a rant to Mu.
* ScrewTheRulesIHaveMoney: [[spoiler:Cloning humans]] is illegal. Al doesn't care.
* SmugSnake: In contrast to his sons who are respectively TheAce and [[spoiler:one hell of a MagnificentBastard]].
* {{Ubermensch}}: He certainly ''thought'' he was one, but at the end of the day he's little more than a rich creep with an ego the size of a planet.
%%* TheUnfettered
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Ulen Hibiki]]
!!!Voice actor: EijiYanagisawa (Japanese), FredHanderson (English original series), Creator/CamClarke (English HD remaster)
->''"The urge to make things better has always driven progress, and then that is what brings about happiness."''
[[quoteright:200:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Ulen_Hibiki_1190.jpg]]

A very brilliant, very ambitious, and totally amoral scientist who was behind the Ultimate Coordinator project.
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* AbusiveParent: How abusive? [[spoiler:When he needed a test subject for the project, he used ''one of his own soon-to-be-born twin babies''... Kira Yamato.]]
* DomesticAbuse: If you think that stealing your wife's unborn child for a science experiment qualifies you, then yes.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Whether it's this or PragmaticVillainy, he's still the one who points out to Al Da Flaga that [[spoiler:cloning him]] would be illegal. Implying that he only agreed to do so [[OnlyInItForTheMoney to receive the funding he needed]].
* EvilutionaryBiologist: Not only did he work on the Ultimate Coordinator project, but he is also the one who [[spoiler:cloned Rau le Creuset and Rey za Burrell.]]
* ForScience: His motivation is progress for its own sake.
%%* HotScientist
%%* MadScientist
%%* PosthumousCharacter
%%* SmugSnake
%%* TheUnfettered
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Via Hibiki]]
!!!Voice actor: Creator/HoukoKuwashima (Japanese), Creator/EricaSchroeder (English HD remaster)

Ulen Hibiki's wife, also implied to be his scientific partner. She ''does'' have standards, though, as she's horrified when he goes too far with his experiments.
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%%* BrainyBrunette
* GiveHimANormalLife: [[spoiler:She tells her younger sister Caridad to take Kira and Cagalli in, before she dies alongside Ulen and Al Da Flaga.]]
* MotherlyScientist: Her scenes in the anime showcase her maternal concern for the subjects of the Ultimate Coordinator project, [[spoiler: beyond the one that happens to be her son. Incidentally, Kira was the only one to survive.]]
%%* PosthumousCharacter
%%* TenderTears
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Caridad Yamato]]
!!!Voice actor: Creator/KikukoInoue (Japanese), Creator/RebeccaShoichet (English original series), Creator/ErinFitzgerald (English HD remaster)

Kira's mother. Actually, his maternal aunt. She and her husband Haruma raised Kira, who has no idea.
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* GoodParents: [[spoiler:Despite not being his real mother and father,]] Caridad and Haruma loved and treated Kira like their own and were understanding of his reluctance to see them during the ''Archangel'''s brief layover in Orb.
* ParentalSubstitute: [[spoiler:For Kira.]]
* YamatoNadeshiko: A very loving and caring mother for Kira, who doesn't seem at all stunned by the horrific war her boy goes through.
* YouGottaHaveBlueHair: [[spoiler: Which is one of the first tips she isn't Kira's biological mother. (Plus her husband's hair being black and neither of them having purple eyes.)]]
[[/folder]]