| “ | But the things you are capable of doing, and the things you want to do... You should be the one who is most aware of the answers to those. | „ |
| ~ Gilbert to Athrun Zala. |
Gilbert Durandal is the secondary antagonist of the Cosmic Era timeline of the Gundam franchise.
He is the chairman of the PLANT Supreme Council and the supreme leader of ZAFT, Durandal seems to have the agenda of ending all conflicts between humans, especially the chasm between the Naturals and the Coordinators. He is the archenemy of Kira Yamato, Lacus Clyne and Athrun Zala.
He is voiced by Shūichi Ikeda, who is famous for the voice of Char Aznable of the original Mobile Suit Gundam.
In English he is voiced by Ted Cole in the Ocean dub who also played the Young Man in Theatre in Scary Movie. He is also voiced by Keith Silverstein in the NYAV Post dub who also shares the voice as Char along with Ikeda and also voices Johan Liebert from Monster, Hisoka Morow from Hunter X Hunter, Coyote Starrk from Bleach and Hawk Moth from the Miraculous Ladybug franchise.
History[]
Although there isn't much information abound Durandal’s past it is revealed that he once was working as a geneticist. He also was a friend of Rau Le Creuset and it appears that it was him who gave Creuset the pills to stop the pain from his genetic malfunctions. In the past he also had a relationship with later Minerva captain Talia Gladys but it seems that she left him because she wanted a child. Nevertheless it appears that in CE 73 they are still sleeping together (which is once shown when they were sharing quarters on the Minerva). In the new Gundam SEED Destiny Astray manga, he is shown with Kira's father Ulen Hibiki. This suggest that he not only knew of Hibiki's Ultimate Coordinator project, but may have also participated in it. This connection between Durandal and Hibiki was never clarified in the actual show, but may be expaned upon in future volumes. Years prior to the events of the Bloody Valentine War, as depicted in Gundam SEED X Astray, a mysterious black-haired man wearing sunglasses met the then-escaped young Canard Pars and instigated him against Kira Yamato. In CE 73 this man is revealed to be Durandal; However, his reasons for doing so are still unknown.. Also, at least one staff interview has suggested that during the time of the first SEED series Gilbert was involved in PLANT-funded experiments to deal with the reproduction problems appearing in later generation Coordinators.
A research notebook recovered by DaCosta on the abandoned Mendel space colony revealed that Durandal has something in his mind called the Destiny Plan, and it is related to his passionate speech to the entire world about defeating the warmongering LOGOS and creating a new world where war no longer exists. The Archangel's crew think his plan would be to implement a new world order where every human is given the role for which they are best genetically suited at birth, and this would fulfill Durandal's ideal of perfect genetic determinism, as this should be the ultimate goal of all Coordinators. Under this theory, humans will no longer fight against others for things that they wish, since each person's destiny are predetermined at birth. In this New World, genes would be the King, and Durandal would be the High Priest (in terms of chess). After Lord Djibril's death, Durandal revealed the Destiny Plan to the world. However, the only opposition towards it was Orb, the Kingdom of Scandinavia and the Atlantic Federation. Durandal authorized the use of a rebuilt Requiem to eliminate President Copland at the Arzachel base. But as he turned his eyes on Orb, the Terminal forces, along with dissident ZAFT ships and remnants Alliance forces gathered to destroy the Requiem. Durandal branded them, "enemies" of mankind, generally as remnants of Logos. Kira and the others destroy the Requiem and he was angry that he failed.
Gilbert dies at the last day of Second Bloody Valentine War, shot by Rey Za Burrel, formerly his most faithful follower. His lover, Minerva's captain Talia Gladys, stayed behind in the crumbling fortress to accompany him right till the end. The three of them are later crushed to death by falling debris.
Crimes[]
- He is believed to be responsible for starting the Second Bloody Valentine War.
- Allowed the 3 Gundams to be stolen by the Phantom Pain.
- Had the terrorists drop the colony to Earth.
- Try to have Lacus Clyne killed.
- Lying to everyone.
- Try to kill Kira and Athrun.
- Takes advantage of Shinn's anger.
- Used Lord Djibril as an excuse to attack Orb.
- Knew about the Gundam Destroyers and he allowed LOGOS to attack the Berlin in order get people in his side as well as omitting footage of the Archangel and Freedom assisting in the battle to help this image.
- Tries to use LOGOS' weapon the Requiem to destroy Orb.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- In some ways, Gilbert is a darker reflection to Siegel and Lacus Clyne: Both Siegel and Lacus are pacifistic individuals who value peaceful coexistence between Coordinators and Naturals, Lacus doesn't resort to killing enemies unless when pushed to the limit. Gilbert is no stranger to getting his hands dirty, willing to put innocent lives in harms way or outright sacrificing anyone he viewed as undesirables for the greater good. Lacus values the independence of people to bring out the best in them, while Gilbert manipulates people into becoming someone they are not or the worst versions of themselves to keep them in his good graces. Lacus embodies a progressive and democratic governance, whereas Gilbert seeks to impose an authoritarian rule based on genetic superiority. Gilbert is a perfect example of what Lacus could become if she embraced manipulation and control, as opposed to individual agency.
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 Villains
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ZAFT Blue Cosmos / Logos Kingdom of Foundation Other | ||