>>1416404Gundam is a beast to get into since it's mostly interconnected with the UC. But Gundam does not represent all of mecha. There are other mecha series such as Patlabor, Gunbuster, the Getter series, VOTOMS, that all have their differences
Mecha is divided into two main factions. Super robots and military/realistic mecha. And space mecha. Gundam is kind of a blend of all three since the main setting is in space but it's not FULLY super robo compared to Getter but leans into the military aspect. Well, I mean, until the psychommu system gets introduced. And newtypes but that's space magic but also not space magic
If you want more realistic/grounded mecha, VOTOMS and Patlabor are good places to start. If you want more super robo, Gundam Wing, G Gundam, and Getter are good places to start
The UC is its own thing and you'll need time if you want to get into it
