Should Captain Anderson or Ambassador Udina be the human representative for the Council in Mass Effect Legendary Edition?

When the battle is finally over, and you’ve saved the galaxy from the first Reaper threat in Mass Effect Legendary Edition, you have one final condition to make. Humanity has proven it is ready to step in and become a leader in the Galactic Community, and you have the chance to pick which human leader it should be. Your only two options include Captain Anderson or Ambassador Udina.

Captain Anderson

When asked, and you choose Captain Anderson, you’ll be picking a man who does not want the job and would rather be out doing something. But that’s exactly why he’s among one of the better people for the position. He’s not a practiced politician, and prefers his time in the field. He thinks about the lives of Humanity, and how they should be in the Galactic Community. Anderson’s trust in you carries over to Mass Effect 2 and 3.

Ambassador Udina

Ambassador is a man motivated by how he looks, and if chosen, he can politically provide Humanity with a staple role in the galaxy. However, he has never trusted Shepard the same way as Anderson does, and while he might be more experienced for this role, he keeps a distance from Shepard. The wedge between Shepard and Udina will grow, and continue to appear in Mass Effect 2 and 3.

Consequences

For those who picked Anderson as the representative, and you saved the Council in Mass Effect 1, in Mass Effect 2, he’s able to connect a meeting between the Council and Shepard. The council will not agree with Shepard’s choice of joining Cerebus, but they will give them their Spectre status once again, so long as Shepard remains out of Council space and in the Terminus System. Should Shepard choose to let the Council die in Mass Effect 1, the new Council will not see Shepard, but Anderson can give them back their Spectre status. In Mass Effect 3, Anderson will choose to remain on Earth and resign his role with the Council regardless of your choice.

If Udina is picked as the Human representative, and you saved the Council in Mass Effect 1, Udina can give you your Spectre status back in Mass Effect 2. However, if the Council dies, and Udina is the human representative for the Council, you cannot regain your Spectre status. In Mass Effect 3, Udina will assume Anderson’s role regardless of Shepard’s choice to make him a human representative or not because Anderson will remain on Earth.