of the strongest characters from the series; Tucker also said he was likable despite his angsty displays. Tucker also compared him with Amuro Ray from the first Gundam series, Mobile Suit Gundam, finding both likeable. Chris Beveridge from Mania Entertainment liked Kira's handling of the mobile suits and his ability to reprogram them, finding it as a new concept in the Gundam franchise. Also writing for Mania Entertainment, Kim Wolstenholme was worried about how much Kira's and Athrun's relationship would be focused in Gundam SEED, but liked that Lacus Clyne's introduction added tension to it. Ever Cheung from Animefringe who wondered about the future of Kira and Lacus because the two are about to embrace in the anime's opening sequence. He said, "If that's real, this story may be more interesting than I thought ..." Ross Liversidge from UK Anime Network enjoyed Kira's and Athrun's rivalry which resulted in well-done fight scenes from each of their mobile suits as well as intense drama due to how originally the two were friends. Liversidge praised the development from such rivalry as the two started hating each other and their battle. DVDTalk writer Don Houston considered Kira to be similar to other anime protagonists because he fights for peace and not glory, labeling him the "reluctant hero", but still praised his character arc in the series without overshadowing other character like Athrun and Cagalli. Due to the origins regarding Kira's original nature and his connections with Rau, UK Anime Network expected to see an intense final battle but was sightly disappointed despite enjoying Kira's anger displayed in the finale when engaging his enemy. Besides SEEDs television series, Kira's actions in the compilation films were commented. Due to the compilation films not carefully adapting the television series, both Anime News Network and the Fandom Post feel like Kira's struggle to keep up with his philosophy of not killing and his relationship with Athrun do not work in this format and thus only returning fans might enjoy the movies. While still praising the narrative originally provided in Kira's premise, IGN disliked how the game Locked and Rocked failed to portray Kira accurately as a result of lacking enough dialogue. In 2021, UK Anime Network writer Ross Locksly stated that despite several criticism the Western audience tends to give Kira to the point of calling him a Mary Sue, he still viewed Kira as an outstanding