Yamato took bigger role in the series as he was more likable. Still, the themes from the series have also been praised for being entertaining and debatable despite also sharing it with other Gundam series. Chris Beveridge from Mania Entertainment further commented on this, stating that while it brings parallels other series, Gundam SEED Destinys themes are "also done well enough that it stands firmly on its own." The last episodes were criticized for bringing situations similar to the ones from the ending of Gundam SEED. In contrast, the fight scenes occurring in these episodes were praised alongside the emotional impact brought by some scenes. The OVA repraising the events from the series' last episode was praised for explaining events from Gundam SEED Destiny such as Gilbert Durandal's discussions with Rau Le Creuset. It was also noted make a more satisfying ending, allowing to develop more of their characters with the emotional focus being more explored than in the television series' finale. The series' animation was highly praised for the coloring and character designs. The mobile suits' designs have been well-received despite the fact they transformed, something considered cheesy by Anime News Network's Paul Fargo. The fight scenes were also noted to be the main focus from the televisions series' last episodes, as they brought entertaining action scenes with the new mechas introduced. However, the OVA was noted to downplay these scenes, with some of them being hard to fully understand. Soundtracks also had praise for bringing enjoyable themes and the return from Nami Tamaki. Fargo stated that composer Toshihiko Sahashi notably improved his scores from Gundam SEED, with artists' opening and ending themes also being entertaining. The Japanese voice was noted to bring popular idols such as Maaya Sakamoto, resulting in an enjoyable one. On the other hand, response to the English casting was mixed with some actors making appealing portrayals while in other cases poor ones. Nevertheless, Don Houston from DVD Talk advised viewers to listen to the English dub rather than the original Japanese version, having noticed that some sound effects were remixed and thus improved the audio. In July 2021, media reporting on the wake of former Philippine President Benigno Aquino III noted that the song “Kimi wa Boku ni Niteiru” from the Gundam Suit Destiny series as military honor guards escorted his urn to the front of the Ateneo de Manila University's Church of Gesu