a sample model kit at the 1987 Japan Hobby Show). Bandai did not take action to defend the issue. The then-editor of Newtype was displeased with this turn of events, and added Gundam Sentinel into its August 1987 issue, with a Gundam Saga II cover special. Six pages of a brief, detailed introduction to the story was inserted, with the words This is REAL!! added to confirm its authenticity. The six pages include detailed schematics of the titular machine, the MSA-0011 Superior Gundam, Hideaki Anno's artwork of a battle between a MSA-007 Nero and a RMS-141 Xeku Eins Type-1 mobile suit, and Hajime Katoki's design of the Superior Gundam. Once the fan community built up the anticipation of Gundam Sentinel, Bandai decided to go ahead with the serialization of Sentinel, beginning with the September issue of Model Graphix. While Model Graphix would hold the rights to the story, characters, and mobile units, Bandai would have the sole copyright of releasing its models. Wanting to hold onto their partnership, Bandai displayed all five of the sample model kits for the Gundam Sentinel line with full descriptions at the 1988 Japan Hobby Show. The Model Graphix team regarded that year's event as a "Victory", compared to the previous show in 1987, where only a lone Superior Gundam was displayed without any descriptions. Plot Earth Federation Space Force (EFSF) officers stationed at the asteroid fortress Pezun rebel against the Federation leadership, which has allied with the Anti-Earth Union Group (AEUG). They self-claim themselves "New Desides" and swear to uphold the Titans' ideology of Earthnoid supremacy. The EFSF assembles Task Force Alpha, a force of EFSF, AEUG, and Karaba veterans equipped with the most advanced mobile suits, and sends them to Pezun to suppress the rebellion before it gets out of hand. The most powerful of them, the MSA-0011 S Gundam, is equipped with an artificial intelligence named ALICE (Advanced Logistic and Inconsequence Cognizing Equipment). Task Force Alpha, consisting of four Salamis Kai cruisers ships and the flagship Pegasus III, arrives at Pezun and prepares to attack. In the midst of the action, the rebels launch a volley of guided missiles that destroys two cruisers. A week after the encounter, the Earth Federation sends the Tenth Divisional Fleet to reinforce TF Alpha. However, fleet commander Brian Aeno - who was approached by a New Desides representative days before - announces that his force will