Operation Meteor

Operation Meteor (referred to by OZ as Operation M) is the primary plot device in the anime "Mobile Suit Gundam Wing" and derivative works (referred to as the After Colony timeline). The events that make up Operation Meteor are depicted in the early episodes of the "Gundam Wing" anime, and the original nature of the operation is detailed in the OVA sequel, "Endless Waltz".

Operation Meteor is basically a colony drop event, a plot device common throughout the "Gundam" media franchise. The After Colony timeline is the only one thus far in which a colony drop event does not occur, though it is intended. [This may change depending on the resolution of "Mobile Suit Gundam 00", which is currently ongoing. There are some space colonies in the series, though much fewer than in other Gundam series.]

Original plan

The 'original' Operation Meteor, as revealed in "Endless Waltz", was conceived by Dekim Barton, leader of the Barton Foundation. It was intended to remove the rule of the United Earth Sphere Alliance over the orbital colonies, and establish the Barton Foundation as rulers of the Earth Sphere.

The plan involved the use of an orbital colony. The colony would be dislodged from its Lagrange point and dropped on Earth, where it would cause an extinction event on impact. At the same time, five mobile suits made of Gundanium alloy, created by a group of disgruntled scientists who left OZ following the completion of the prototype Tallgeese military mobile suit, would be sent to Earth to take control in the chaos following the colony drop. The five "Gundams", as they are called, would each be piloted by a young man specially trained for the operation, including Dekim Barton's son Trowa. It was stated in "Endless Waltz" that a predicted three billion people would have died in the event; whether that included the people on the colony itself is unknown.

"Gundam Wing"

As established in flashbacks in "Endless Waltz", the five scientists disagreed with the method and intention of Operation Meteor. They conspired to defy Barton and direct the efforts of the five Gundams against OZ itself. By removing OZ's behind-the-scenes leadership of the Alliance and its ability to manufacture mobile suits, negotiations between the Alliance and the Colonies could be opened.

Three of the Gundam pilots—Heero Yuy, Duo Maxwell, and Quatre Raberba Winner—accepted the change in the plan willingly. Duo, in particular, was directed to "steal" his Gundam, giving the scientists a cover story. Chang Wufei disagreed outright with the plan, as his home colony was the one to be dropped onto Earth; he took his Gundam to fight "injustice". Trowa Barton intended to go along with his father's plan, but was killed by one of the engineers working on that Gundam when he threatened to expose the doctors' betrayal. An anonymous mechanic took on the role of piloting, assuming the identity of "Trowa Barton" in the process.

Early into the "Gundam Wing" series, the political relationship between the Earth and the Colonies was altered, rendering Operation Meteor invalid. A similar event nearly occurred when the 3.5 kilometre long superweapon "Battleship Libra" was sent on a collision course towards Earth during the final episodes of the anime. The scientists responsible for creating the Gundams were able to shift the bulk of "Libra's" mass away from Earth, and Heero was able to destroy the remaining chunk using the Wing Gundam Zero, concluding the final episode of the anime.

"Endless Waltz"

In the OVA, Operation Meteor resurfaces, as Dekim Barton kidnaps Relena Darlian, and plans to invade Earth and install his granddaughter Mariemaia Khushrenada, the love child of revered Earth Sphere leader Treize Khushrenada, as ruler of the Earth Sphere. He uses the threat of dropping colony L3 X18-999 (on which much of "Endless Waltz" is set) to ensure that his takeover is completely unopposed. The ability to cause the drop was negated by the Gundam pilots near the end of the second episode, before they take to the streets of Brussels and engage Barton's mobile suit forces in the third episode.

The event is drawn to a close when Wufei leads a peaceful protest against Barton's militia and Heero attacks and nearly destroys the bunker in which Dekim is hiding. An unnamed soldier kills Dekim after the latter shoots Mariemeia.

References