Reception
Kira's character has been well received by anime viewers, appearing various times in the Anime Grand Prix popularity polls for the favorite male characters category. He ranked first in 2002, second in 2003 and 2004, first in 2005, and second in 2006. In a Newtype poll, Kira was voted as the second most popular male anime character from the 2000s. In another poll focused on all the characters appearing in the Gundam franchise, Kira was voted as the most popular out of all of them. In a poll organized by Sunrise regarding which was the best couple in the Gundam franchise, Kira and Lacus were second, and in another regarding the best team ups between former enemies, Kira and Athrun were second. In another poll from the same site that asked fans which character would they would want to meet, Kira was at the top. Two other polls asked what was the most memorable characters from Gundam SEED and from Gundam SEED Destiny; Kira was at the top in both polls. Kira, along with five other notable mecha and pilots from the various Gundam series, were recognized in the second set of "Anime Heroes and Heroines" stamps, released in Japan in 2005. In the 2007 Seiyu Awards, Sōichirō Hoshi was a nominee in the category "Best Actors in supporting roles" for his portrayal as Kira in the Gundam SEED Destiny OVA, but lost to Akira Ishida and Kōki Miyata.
Publications for manga and anime have commented on Kira's character, and he received mainly positive critical response. IGN's Andy Patrizio found Kira's character likable and the only problem he found was how he often repeated Athrun Zala's name in some of the series' first episodes. He was found as one of the strongest characters from the series by THEM Anime Reviews' Derrick L. Tucker who also noted him as a likable one despite his angsty displayed. Chris Beveridge from Mania Entertainment liked his handling of the mobile suits mainly due to how he is able to reprogram them, finding it as a new concept in the Gundam franchise. Writing for the same site, Kim Wolstenholme was worried about how much would Kira's and Athrun's relationship would be focused in Gundam SEED, but liked how Lacus Clyne's introduction also added tension to it, because of how she and Kira started relating. A similar comment was made by Ever Cheung from Animefringe who wondered about the future regarding Kira and Lacus as he noticed the two about to embrace in the anime's opening theme. He commented if his doubts may be right, he would find the story more interesting that he thought. Moreover, Ross Liversidge from UK Anime Network enjoyed Kira's and Athrun's rivalry as it resulted in well done fight scenes from each of their mobile suits. Liversidge also praised the development from such rivalry as the two started hating each other and their battle. On the other hand, DVDTalk writer Don Houston considered Kira to be similar to other anime protagonists because he fights for peace and not glory, labelling him as the "reluctant hero".
Reviewers have also commented on Kira's role in the sequel Gundam SEED Destiny. Initial reviews have mentioned his lack of appearances during its first episodes and whether the new characters could be as apppealing as him. He was also expected to return in the series to fight the new lead character Shinn Asuka. While writing an article for later episodes, Liversidge found Kira's actions more appealing than the ones from Shinn, and was looking forward to them. Luis Cruz from Mania Entertainment found that a large expansion of depth occurred to his character, pointing one of Kira's discussions with Athrun about the relation between people's dreams and conflicts. In such series' OVA finale, Kira was also noted to have been highly developed as commented by Anime News Network writer Carl Kimlinger. Kimlinger stated that Kira had "grown into a martial leader of Buddha-like calm and compassion" with the last OVA allowing viewers to enjoy his actions. Matt Hill's performance as Kira's English voice actor in the OVA was criticized by Kimlinger in comparison with other voice actors from the series who were praised.
Read more about this topic: Kira Yamato
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