TV-Series
Description
Haman Karn is a central antagonist in the Universal Century timeline, first appearing in Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam. She is the de facto leader of Axis Zeon, a faction composed of remnants from the Principality of Zeon who retreated to the asteroid Axis after the One Year War. Officially, she serves as the regent and guardian of Mineva Lao Zabi, the young heir to the Zabi family, which gives her rule a veneer of legitimacy. In reality, she holds the true political and military power over the faction, which she later renames Neo Zeon.

Born in U.C. 0067, Haman is the daughter of Maharaja Karn, the admiral who led the Zeon exodus to Axis. Her childhood was shaped by the harsh conditions of life on the asteroid and the lingering resentment toward the Earth Federation. This troubled upbringing instilled in her a cold and pragmatic worldview. She is described as having a sweet and innocent disposition in her early teens, but the hardships of exile and the pressures of leadership transformed her into a hardened and ambitious leader. At the age of sixteen, following her father's death, she assumed control of Axis at the recommendation of Char Aznable, with whom she was romantically involved during this period.

On the surface, Haman presents herself as a cool, collected, and charismatic leader who commands the loyalty of her soldiers. She is highly articulate and politically shrewd, capable of playing rival factions against each other for her own benefit. However, beneath this composed exterior lies a deeply manipulative and power-hungry individual. She desires to establish a new order in the Earth Sphere under an aristocratic, monarchist system with herself as the supreme ruler, using the legacy of the Zabi family as a vehicle for her own ambitions. Haman harbors a strong contempt for Earthnoids, viewing them as corrupt and weighed down by gravity, and believes that Spacenoids are destined to rule. Her personality is further defined by a ruthless pragmatism; she is willing to use and discard anyone to achieve her goals, showing no genuine remorse for the sacrifices of even her most faithful subordinates.

Within the story, Haman's role is that of a major antagonist and a third-party power broker during the Gryps Conflict. She positions Axis Zeon as a pivotal force between the two warring factions, the Earth Federation's Titans and the Anti-Earth Union Group. Through careful political maneuvering, she sows discord and weakness among both sides, ultimately allowing her forces to emerge as the dominant power after the conflict concludes. Following the war, she launches the First Neo Zeon Movement, a full-scale campaign to conquer the Earth Sphere. Her ruthless tactics include using a colony drop on Dublin to force the Earth Federation's surrender, demonstrating her willingness to cause mass casualties for strategic gain.

Her key relationships are complex and deeply influence her actions. Her history with Char Aznable is a defining element of her character. She was once in love with him and recommended him as her successor, but their relationship soured as her ambitions grew, leading to his departure from Axis. Throughout Zeta Gundam, she harbors lingering, conflicted feelings for him, oscillating between a desire for him to return to her side and a bitter resentment that manifests in their final duel. In Mobile Suit Gundam ZZ, she becomes fascinated with the young and idealistic pilot Judau Ashta. She sees something in his untamed spirit and powerful Newtype abilities that reminds her of her former self. She repeatedly attempts to convince him to join her, and this connection begins to reawaken the kinder, more vulnerable person she once was, creating a strange and significant bond between them.

Haman Karn is a very powerful Newtype, possessing exceptional spatial awareness and psychic abilities. She is also a highly skilled mobile suit pilot, considered to be on par with or even surpassing ace pilots like Char Aznable. Her signature mobile suit is the AMX-004 Qubeley, a machine equipped with a psycommu system that allows her to control numerous remote weapons called funnels with great precision. Beyond her combat abilities, she is a capable politician and military strategist, adept at leading her faction through the complex political landscape of the Earth Sphere.

Haman's character undergoes subtle yet significant development, particularly in Gundam ZZ. While she remains a formidable and ambitious antagonist, her interactions with Judau Ashta reveal a longing for the innocence and idealism she lost. Her tough, manipulative exterior begins to crack as she is confronted by his unwavering refusal to yield to her worldview. In her final battle, she admits to being glad to have met him, acknowledging the possibility of a different path she might have taken. Faced with the collapse of her army due to internal rebellion and the arrival of the Earth Federation fleet, she chooses to fight to the end. After a climactic duel with Judau, she rejects his offer of surrender and meets her end in the battle, cementing her legacy as a tragic figure whose potential for good was ultimately consumed by her lust for power and a universe shaped by endless war.