Review: Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann (TV)

Running time: 25 minutes
Number of episodes: 27
Vintage: 2007-04-01 to 2007-09-30
Age rating: ???
Genres: Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Mecha, Science Fiction, Slice of Life
Animation Production: GAINAX
Production: Aniplex, GAINAX, Konami
Director: Hiroyuki Imaishi (God)
Planning: Hiroyuki Yamaga

Source: Anime News Network

The burning passion — Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann. I really did not expect to be able to enjoy another mecha show on this level so soon. GAINAX knows their stuff, but Eureka SeveN proved that there’s other studios that can do mecha right. However, this one’s special guys — the kind of anime that transcends past all expectations and stays on your favorites list forever. Gurren Lagann is currently the epitome of epic mecha giant robot action shows. Not a single part of me doubts what I’ve just said. It’s the burning passion of hot-blooded action, it’s Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann!!

The show starts off introducing you to Simon and Kamina, two really distinct guys that live in an underground village. They’re not real siblings, but they’re close enough to refer to each other as siblings anyway. Kamina is the older tough-guy and loud-mouth that always gets off on excitement and adventure. Simon, on the other hand, is a very timid child typical of GAINAX anime. You could say he’s a dirty Shinji, if you will, for those of you that have watched Neon Genesis Evangelion, since he likes to dig the ground and find stuff.

Kamina and Simon’s village is forced to stay underground because of some strange fear for what’s on the surface of the Earth. Kamina, being the way he is, makes it clear that he will pierce the enclosure of the ground above and live to see the surface. His father supposedly once left to the surface and Kamina feels it’s his calling to do the same. Simon kind of just tags along, even though he doesn’t quite have the drive to make it to the top — yet.

If you’re still reading you might want to know why the hell am I calling this the epitome of mecha anime, when I haven’t even mentioned them yet. Well, I’m getting there, and much like the show, it won’t kick off for bit. One day as life remains the same underground, a giant mecha, called ‘Ganmen’ falls from above, just like that. Soon after a very foxy girl, who seems to be have been fighting the Ganmen that just came crashing down, falls into the underground village too. Kamina doesn’t let up and immediately lets his fiery personality take over and he begins to interfere acting as if he’s actually helping. Kamina even declares his participation as part of the “Gurren Brigade,” which at the time is composed of just him and Simon. A lot of comical moments ensue, and it leads the pretty girl, Kamina, and Simon to a spot where Simon had been digging earlier and found something strange. To everyone’s surprise it seems Simon found a small mecha buried in the ground and Kamina puts Simon in the spotlight when he tells him to pilot it since -he- found it. Kamina, being the smack talker he is promptly and aptly gives the little Ganmen they found a name — Lagann. You’ll have to find out about the ‘Gurren’ part on your own.

The fight that follows is sensational and at times downright silly. However, pay attention to Kamina’s words because he hints at what the show is going to be about. With shouts of only needing your spirit and guts to succeed in ass kicking, you know something just has to happen for this to make sense. Kamina and his essence, character, and personality is the backbone of the show; the very mold of the Gurren Lagann experience and the ultimate reward for sticking with the show.

Right then and there, the legend is born and the gang in Gurren Lagann begin their incredible adventure towards the top. When I say the top, I mean it, because the sense of scale in Gurren Lagann is ridiculous. I would love to come up with a better way to describe the way the show will rock your world, but it’s better experienced. Also, understanding the pacing in Gurren Lagann is crucial to enjoying the show. The slow start is just the calm before the storm begins. Keep going, because by the end of the third episode you will know that the show is special and if you stick with it you’ll be rewarded with many, many, many great moments of WOW.

It’s about time GAINAX made a full length mecha anime series of this type that isn’t Neon Genesis Evangelion. Top wo Nerae! Gunbuster, Top wo Nerae 2! Diebuster, and FLCL are all classics and each one added to the genre and GAINAX’s stronghold in mecha anime. However, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann mixes a little bit from every great GAINAX mecha and with a solid focus it is able to – literally, as the name implies – break-through the seemingly perfect mold the studio founded in its long history of anime production in the mecha genre.

The show is easily described as the burning passion, a man’s fiery spirit that burns with every waking moment of his step. With the brothers and the brigade of ass kicking, Gurren Lagann, has no equal. A drill in an abstract sense is the fitting image of this sensation. The upwards spiral towards the concentrated single point. All the energy, all the thoughts, power, emotion, and feelings are all in that single point. Put aside logic, put aside reason, this is manly instincts infused with 100% determination and 0% chance of failure. Probabilities of success? MEANINGLESS. They CONTROL probability. They win. That’s it. It’s always do or die. If they miss, they shoot in every direction, then they can’t miss. Never falter, not even an inch. This is Gurren Lagann. Determination by proxy. Believe in me who believes in you. True determination. Not you believing in me, not me believing in you, but you believing in yourself. This show will say to you, who THE HELL DO YOU THINK I AM?!?

This is man versus beast! Or is it beast versus man? Or is it man-beast versus man! Or worse, BEAST VS BEAST!! The beast within the man, that is. Join the brigade where true men’s spirits live. Be a part of history. Watch this anime. Introductions. It’s all about your introduction. Hot-blooded speeches. Defeat your enemy before you lift a single finger by the power of your words. Enchant your populace, envigor your peers. You have the power to destroy -yet- also to create. Create hope in the hearts of men. Change despair into strength. Strength into spirit. Spirit into victory. Victory into ultimate victory. There is no limit for those with the spiral, the drill, the point of concentrated force that tears through the very fabric of time and space and bores through any and all obstacles. It’s within each and every one of us. It’s in our DNA. We are all potential energy waiting to be moved by the heart and soul of manly speeches. ROW ROW, FIGHT THE POWER!!

This is the burning passion in you, in me, in all of us. You’ll want your kids to see this. It’s that good.

Review: Afro Samurai (TV)

Running time: 25 minutes
Number of episodes: 5
Vintage: 2007-01-04 to 2007-02-01 (Canada & USA – Spike TV) 2007-05-03 (Japan)
Age rating: Mature (May contain sex, drugs, and extreme graphic violence)
Genres: Adventure, Science Fiction
Production: GONZO
Music: RZA
Starring: Samuel L. Jackson as Afro and Ninja Ninja

Source: Anime News Network

This isn’t quite your average anime, so it might be a good idea to describe Afro Samurai by what it’s not. It’s not Samurai Champloo, not even close. There, I said it. If you were vaguely attracted to Afro Samurai by proxy of Samurai Champloo you can forget about associating the two because they are completely different in style, approach, and execution.

Being only 5 episodes long, Afro Samurai ends very quickly but not before throwing a ton of concentrated action at you. With GONZO’s amazing talent, this anime produced for America looks and feels like a real Japanese animation like it should. The addition of Samuel L. Jackson’s voice talent gives the show some personality and helps it deliver a worthwhile experience.

There are some things that really stand out in this anime though. For example, Afro Samurai’s story is severely bare bones, so don’t expect anything to move you in any way. The comparisons to Samurai Champloo will usually neglect this very important fact.

The anime takes place in a fictional feudal Japan where an afro-headed black samurai is the strongest warrior in the world, aptly known as number one. To show his title he wears a headband with number one written on it. After his crowning headband is a gun-wielding-cowboy-esque-rugged guy known as number two, the second best warrior in the world who also wears a headband denoting his rank as number two. In the midst of all the fighting things will be clear. Those who wear the number one headband can only be challenged by number two. Those who wear the number two headband will be constantly in danger as every warrior he or she faces will want to wear the number two headband for the right to face number one.

As you can see, the story is simple and straightforward, so immersion and captivation was probably not on the director’s agenda. The whole thing is simply badass encounter after badass encounter, but in the context of what Afro Samurai is all about this formula works in its favor. In other words, the little bit of story is just enough to deliver on the premise of a black badass samurai fighting his way to the top of the mountain, so to speak.

Afro Samurai will not really make that much sense in terms of artwork, much like its story. Feudal Japan mixed with futuristic technology doesn’t quite feel right in my opinion, but this isn’t the first time GONZO has gone overboard with crazy art. On the plus side, the show animates beautifully, so there’s little reason to complain about the art when it’s in motion.

Since Afro Samurai is produced for America the voice acting is in English. I’ll be honest and say that Samuel L. Jackson as Afro is just awesome, but since Afro is mostly mute or repeats a lot of the same lines it’s almost a waste to cast Samuel L. Jackson. Samuel L. Jackson also voices the very energetic “Ninja Ninja,” the sidekick that can never be absent from a black comedy.

The soundtrack is really good for the most part. The RZA did a good job of giving the show some hip hop influence, but it’s no where near as deep as the stuff in Samurai Champloo. It doesn’t sound bad, but it doesn’t have the same communication of urgency and style that the riffs and beats in Samurai Champloo have.

To summarize, I’d say Afro Samurai is a worthy anime aimed at America with superb Japanese animation talent backing it up. It’s no Champloo, but it’s got its own stuff to strut. If the target audience has never seen anime before, this will surely open up their eyes as to what animation can provide as a form of entertainment. I’ll probably check out the Japanese release if there are any significant changes, but this is one of the few times where the dub is fine in english.

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Review: Initial D: First Stage (TV)

Running time: 25 minutes
Number of episodes: 26
Vintage: 1998-04-18 to 1998-11-28
Age rating: Teenagers (May contain bloody violence, bad language, nudity)
Genres: Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Romance, Shounen, Slice of Life, Sports (Auto Racing)
Animation Production: Studio Gallop

Source: Anime News Network

I’ll be honest right from the outset. Initial D is praised by a lot of people for being a very good anime. That is far from the truth when you consider the major shortcomings that plague Initial D’s storyline. However, even with the terrible story Initial D is the anime that made cars and drifting cool.

The animation in Initial D is mostly cheap 3D car renders that don’t look that great, even for the time when the show first aired. The character designs are terrible, especially what are supposed to be women, which look ugly as hell. The “slice of life” in between the main attraction, the racing, is stale and forgettable. There’s some things to learn about the characters, but it’s all just fluff and not necessarily all that meaningful.

So if Initial D is so terrible why do so many people like it? Well, even though it does a lot of things very poorly it does one thing so well that you tend forgive the shortcomings of everything else while expecting to see some of the best drift racing anime can offer.

Initial D is all about car racing. Not only that, Initial D’s races have an effect on people, whether you’re a car buff or not. There’s a lot of cool stuff happening while the cars are being driven, but of course the animators make it all look so simple. Using heel-toe and clutch throws, changing gears at the precise moment, and steering and counter–steering in and out of corners performing the best high-speed drifts can be really very fun to watch. It’s very much about the skill of the driver and not about how flashy the ricer looks. Drifting is a lot more than showing off a car take on a corner with style, it can truly allow for a fluid high-speed motion through a corner that a grip technique would not be able to catch up with, especially on a downhill race.

In addition to all of the over-the-top drift action, Initial D has yet another layer of immersion — the soundtrack. As stupid as it sounds, cars and the super crazy EUROBEAT genre are the ingredients for making one of the most exciting racing anime you’ll ever see. Even if you’re not into the genre of music, the way the action and the songs are choreographed together alongside the sound effects of skidding tires and roaring engines really gets your heart pumping. By the end of the show you will probably want to start a EUROBEAT collection for your own driving. It’s great concentration music for racing games too.

It’s amazing how this simple mix can produce so many goosebumps and make you restless at every corner. The commentary during the races helps a lot too since it’s always over-the-top and over exaggerated but it flows well and builds anticipation for the next feat. A race that is supposed to last a few minutes may drag on for two or three episodes, but you’re not bored as long as they keep throwing new music and build the tension.

So while the characters unnaturally speak to each other to explain technical details about a race in a way that makes them seem overly condescending, when they do it in the middle of a race with the formula in place for high tension, you’ll get pulled in no matter how corny it is.

When you’re done with Initial D, you’re done with the races pretty much. You won’t remember who or what really happened, heck you may not remember any character’s name, but you sure as hell will remember drifting and EUROBEAT. Initial D’s story is forgettable, but the racing is down right a classic. I wouldn’t be surprised if everyone who’s seen Initial D is suddenly a better driver too — or not.

“No one sleep in Tokyo,” “Tokyo is on fire!” “Running in the 90’s,” “Night of Fire,” are just a few of the lines you may get stuck in your head after watching this show. Even if it can be considered a very long music video, this anime delivers all kinds of exciting moments when at the top of its game.

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Review: Naruto (TV)

Running time: 23 minutes
Number of episodes: 220
Vintage: 2002-10-03 to 2007-02-08 (Japanese)
Age rating: Teenagers (May contain bloody violence, bad language, nudity)
Genres: Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Shounen
Animation Production: Studio Pierrot
Broadcaster: TV Tokyo
Music Production: Aniplex, SME Visual Works
Production: Studio Pierrot, TV Tokyo

Source: Anime News Network

For most anime fans out there the shounen genre is probably one of the most enjoyable aspects of anime that they can associate with. Many of us grew up with some kind of highly successful and grossly commercialized anime that we just couldn’t get enough of. There was the Dragonball series, Hunter X Hunter, Rurouni Kenshin and many others, but now there’s Naruto.

Naruto, brought to life by Masashi Kishimoto, assimilates all that is good about its largest inspiration, the Dragonball series, and takes it to a new level. Like all good things, it builds upon its main inspiration while injecting its own flavor. Take everything you know about ninjas and throw it away because Naruto changes ninjas forever. From design to application, Naruto is a full-on recreation of ninjas and really pulls it off with its own style and flavor.

The story, for the two of you who don’t watch Naruto — shame on you, is incidentally about a young boy named Naruto. He lives in Konoha Village, a ninja village that forms part of the five great ninja villages. In the world of Naruto peace is upheld by the five great nations with their military power that is manifested in the form of ninjas and consequently their ninja villages that train them. Naruto is scorned by others in the village for reasons unknown to him so most of his childhood was rough. He doesn’t let it get him down, however, because his personality is more explosive and energetic than anyone else’s. He’s determined to become a real ninja and protect the village of Konoha some day, thus becoming acknowledged by the village and be allowed to hold the position of the village’s Hokage. A Hokage is the leader of the village upheld for his strength, wisdom, and protection that he or she must bestow upon the people of Konoha. Naruto dreams to take that very spot in order to fill the void in his heart and to give back to the village even after his wretched experience as a young orphan child.

Of course, things aren’t that easy and you’ll quickly be taken through a wild ride where many other characters have their own objectives and motives to do better and become stronger. Joining Naruto early on are Sasuke and Sakura, two other ninja candidates that form part of Naruto’s team in the academy. Sakura is a lively girl with a crush on Sasuke while Sasuke is the number one student with more than a conceited genius. While rivaling Naruto, Sasuke hides a dark past that becomes more evident in later episodes.

Naruto may be the main character, but there’s a large amount of characters in the story that makes everything much more interesting. The diversity of characters goes beyond different faces and sizes thanks to the divisions of power and strength in the show which are essential to the drama. All the ninja are divided in classes, and starting from the bottom are the kids in the academy. Graduating from there will make them a Genin which is the rank Naruto, Sakura, Sasuke, and others, attain early on in the story. Beyond that is the Chuunin, Jounin, ANBU (comprised of both Chuunin and Jounin ninjas), and the Hokage. It can get even more complex when you consider the divisions of power outside of the village.

Aiding the story is Naruto’s soundtrack which is a crucial piece of the experience and really helps immerse viewers into the show. The upbeat remixed Japanese music sticks in your head and fits the theme of the anime perfectly. Every character’s individual theme is memorable and communicates who they are. The music helps transcend beyond words and delivers meaningful aural information about the personality of the characters. In addition, the high points in the story really shine when every major fight or event is scored by a truly complementing melody or riff that will keep your blood boiling.

Naruto’s first arc is a little slow but it does well to teach the nuances of ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu — the three basic ninja techniques. The highs and lows of the action are all excellent and give way to a good array of episodes. The show becomes increasingly dark and convoluted as the characters become stronger and attain more skills. From individual skills to ninja military tactics, there’s a certain level of intelligence that really pleases the mind when you’re sailing through watching it. At times it will get a bit too sensational with little return, but when it’s good, it’s really good. If you’re not quite sure why people watch Naruto I would point you towards Naruto’s second arc. It’s one of my favorites and it really pulls off what the show is all about.

Naruto isn’t without major faults, as any self-respecting person who enjoyed the show would have to admit to. Naruto was plagued with the very disease that a lot of shounen anime face at some point in their lifetime — catching up to the manga. Once Naruto caught up its source material, Studio Perriot was faced with very few choices. They could have stopped airing Naruto, but that would of slowed down the momentum the show had and could have destroyed the marketability of the show later on. So instead we endured the pain and suffering of the studio diverging from the main story and inserting “filler” that is irrelevant to the greater story by mangaka Matashi Kishimoto. To be honest not all of the filler is terrible, a few episodes were good enough to watch, but a year of filler is hard to digest regardless. I skipped over a lot of it since it was, for the most part, pretty forgettable. This review only covers from the first episode to episode 135. Episodes 136 to 220 are a bunch of nonsense that ends with a remixed version of episode 135.

We should be thankful, however, because it could have been worse. Whether this was planned or not, I don’t know, but the filler came in at just the right spot with just the right twist to make it negligible. Dragonball Z also faced the same problem by catching up to its manga but not only did they employ filler (that thankfully wasn’t as bad as Naruto’s) they purposely made an arc longer than it needed to be just because they needed more time to get more story out of the manga. For those of you who’ve seen Dragonball Z, those 5 minutes on Planet Namek were the longest 5 minutes ever for a reason.

Ignoring the downhill catastrophe of filler episodes, for all the good stuff Naruto has brought to us in bountiful doses I can’t complain overall. The show was fun and entertaining with a good mix of action, suspense, and cool new ninja antics. Let’s hope Naruto Shippuuden, the sequel, is every bit as good and more in the vein of Dragonball to Dragonball Z.

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Review: Eureka SeveN (TV)

Running time: 25 minutes
Number of episodes: 50
Vintage: 2005-04-17 to 2006-04-02
Age rating: Teenagers (May contain bloody violence, bad language, nudity)
Genres: Adventure, Drama, Mecha, Romance, Science Fiction, Shounen
Animation Production: BONES
Production: Bandai Entertainment, MBS, Project Eureka

Source: Anime News Network

“Don’t ask for it; go win it on your own. Do that and you’ll succeed.” Truer words were never spoken by characters in this anime that reflect the real reception that Eureka SeveN has garnered. As many of you know, Neon Genesis Evangelion has become a staple in mecha anime and is largely acclaimed for its influence and success in the anime industry. Eureka SeveN, on the other hand, may be one the more recent mecha anime to cultivate and evolve beyond the Evangelion formula allowing it to present us a very special blend of mecha storytelling.

The story begins when the main character, Renton Thurston, a 14 year old kid, is stuck in a fairly boring and crappy town. His father was a hero that conducted advanced scientific research but he died in a strange event that changed the world. Consequently, his sister went on a journey because of what happened to their father and Renton hasn’t seen her since. Thus, for a very long time Renton has been stuck in Bellforest with his grandfather, Axel Thurston, who’s a top notch mechanic. Renton spends his time trying to learn to ride trapar waves with his ref board, a sport that became popular due to the changes the world endured after what Renton’s father helped create. He also idolizes Holland, a so-called genius at ref boarding who’s also in charge of ‘Gekko State,’ a rebel group that is against the military. Renton and the rest of fans get their information by reading, Ray=Out, a magazine that anonymously publishes the things that Holland and his ‘Gekko State’ accomplish.

Soon enough circumstances will take Renton out of Bellforest and onto a journey that will not only change his life but the rest of the world too. One day he meets a very special girl named Eureka who’s a member of Gekko State. As the story unfolds Eureka and Renton will grow and become entangled in a series of events that lead to the very end where their choices are what will make or break the very existence of humanity. Eureka and Renton eventually develop a mutual need for each other and that goes beyond any responsibility to the rest of the world. They bond on many levels emotionally and try their hardest to close the gap that keeps them apart in an effort to fulfill not only their desires, but the desires of the entire planet.

The comparison to Evangelion isn’t necessarily a comparison on a structural level of its narrative, but rather the breath and scope of the storytelling. Eureka SeveN actually leaves behind the mecha to a secondary position and focuses more on the characters in a way that’s easy to understand. The mecha are only a means to an end, but the people are the reason behind that end. There’s plenty of abstract scenes with confusing interpretations, but unlike Evangelion you can understand what’s going on without getting a headache. At its core it’s still about kids finding their way into the cockpit of a giant mecha, but the way the rest is told and constructed is refreshingly different and simpler in comparison to Evangelion.

Eureka SeveN is riddled with all kinds of inspiration from sea life and part of that makes the show special. Rather than mush together a bunch of similes, the inspiration goes a step further and integrates into the overall presentation and story. Trapar waves, ref boarding, sky fish, and more. These things may be foreign to you, but once you watch the show and understand their meaning you’ll soon understand that Eureka SeveN mimics a vast ocean in the air and goes even further in the second half of the story.

The length of an anime can really hurt it if there is not a balance between the episodes and the amount of plot. Thankfully, Eureka SeveN is not too long and not too short either. The first season takes a plot device and expands it until an end is reached, or rather, a change that begins the next season which expands even further and develops a new angle from which to view and understand Eureka SeveN. This means the characters will change and grow on the show revealing more about themselves and tearing apart the veil of mystery in the beginning all the way until the loose but effective end.

The end of Eureka SeveN is subtle but complete in its own way. Hopefully there’s something in the works to flesh out the ending, but what was used is effective. In contrast to Evangelion, the end will not make your head hurt since it’s a little more explicit about what is going on and how the characters feel. However, there’s no denying that for those of us that enjoyed Eureka SeveN until the end it would of been nice to have the show leave a bigger footprint in history rather than take it a little safe. Whether there’s an OAV, a movie, or even a sequel planned to expand the story, a fairly complete narrative was paved on a path towards a pleasant conclusion.

If there is an anime that can be compared on equal footing to Evangelion this is it. It’s longer and may drag on a few times, but in the end it can stand almost as empowering and compelling as Evangelion.

Review: Top wo Nerae 2! Diebuster (OAV)

Running time: 27 minutes
Number of episodes: 6
Vintage: 2004-10-03 (Episode 1 AT-X broadcast)
Age rating: Teenagers (May contain bloody violence, bad language, nudity)
Genres: Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Mecha, Military, Science Fiction, Shounen
Production: GAINAX, Bandai Visual, Victor Entertainment
Director: Kazuya Tsurumaki
Storyboard: Hideaki Anno (Ep. 4), Kunihiko Ikuhara (Ep. 2), Masayuki (Ep. 5), Matsugu Higuchi (Ep. 1), Tadashi Hiramatsu (Ep. 3)

Source: Anime News Network

Diebuster, also called Gunbuster 2, is the sequel to Gunbuster, an awesome mecha series of serious ass kicking fun. It also goes by the longer name Top wo Nerae 2! Diebuster (Aim for the Top 2! Diebuster), but I’ll stick with Diebuster. In the beginning of the show I couldn’t see any relationship to the original Gunbuster in any form. What did jump out at me was the art style, which felt very similar to the art in FLCL and Neon Genesis Evangelion. This comes as no surprise after further investigation since Diebuster’s character design was also done by Yoshiyuki Sadamoto who worked on the aforementioned projects. The beautiful art style is accompanied by quality animation that I feel would make even the pickiest otaku smile with approval.

Diebuster stars Nono, a girl who runs away from home with a dream to become a space pilot much like main character in Gunbuster. Things don’t go exactly like she planned and she ends up in a dump working as a waitress. For some reason though, no matter how bad things appear, she remains optimistic that she will reach her goal. One day a mysterious girl walks into the shop where Nono works and stops some perverted guys from going too far with her on her shift. The girl who helps Nono ends up to be Lark Melk Marre, none other than a Topless — a real space pilot. Nono runs after the girl in order to say thanks and ask for help on how to become a space pilot. Lark immediately refuses and tells Nono she doesn’t have a chance. Despite this, Nono remains optimistic and energetic about meeting Lark and goes as far as label her as “onee-sama.” In Nono’s mind Lark is high upon a pedestal and she looks at her as the epitome of justice and righteousness.

Shortly after these events all hell breaks loose when the characters come face to face with a space monster, the same fearsome enemies that the characters in the first Gunbuster fought. You will immediately appreciate the much more modern animation, and all of the over-the-top action that seamlessly blends together. It’s a lot more frantic than the original Gunbuster, and if you’ve seen FLCL before you will appreciate the similarity in art and presentation. Lark shows off what she’s got and commands her Buster Machine, Dix Neuf, into battle to save the day. Nono surprisingly gets involved with the battle and she slowly eases her way into the world of space pilots.

The Topless end up becoming a big part of the world of Diebuster. The Buster Machines in Diebuster are quite different from the ones in Gunbuster. This time Buster Machine pilots require a special latent power that is only found in young people. This power allows them to sync with their Buster Machine and fight the space monster menace. When these “Topless” are found they are allowed into the “Fraternity” where all of the Topless combat space monsters to defend humanity.

The musical score in Diebuster is a great mix of modern ambient music, but taking the spotlight is the same classic drums and horns that has become iconic of Gunbuster. It’s used in the same fashion as it was used in Gunbuster and introduces the next big scene where the ultimate ass kicking is sure to occur. I had my hopes up for a little more music diversity like what was done with FLCL and The Pillows, but my bias aside it stays true to the spirit of the Gunbuster.

Diebuster is no where near as technical as Gunbuster, and thus eliminates all of the jargon for more free-form surprises. The Buster Machines are different this time and in some ways resemble EVA’s (from Neon Genesis Evangelion) because they’re sentient and need to be “awakened” before they can function. They can move on their own, but they sync with the Topless in order to bring forth their full potential.

Simply put, Diebuster is the ultimate treat for Gunbuster fans. Each episode is somewhat self-contained, so you’ll reach some sort of conclusion at the end of each one until the finale. To be honest, if you watch Diebuster without watching Gunbuster you’ll miss out on a lot of the experience. Although in the beginning it doesn’t seem like Diebuster has anything to do with Gunbuster, later on you learn key story details that blend the two together. You will only come to appreciate them if you get into Diebuster with knowledge of some of Gunbuster’s details. Basically, Diebuster pounds you non-stop with action plus sprinkles some Gunbuster story for the fans. This all leads to a great ending that can only be fully understood by those who’ve seen Gunbuster.

It’s difficult to explain why you need to watch Gunbuster without spoiling the end, but if you are a fan of Gunbuster it’s a requirement that you watch Diebuster to get the full experience. It’s one of those special moments that remind you how expressive anime can be.

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Review: Top wo Nerae! Gunbuster (OAV)

Running time: 30 minutes
Number of episodes: 6
Vintage: 1988
Age rating: Teenagers (May contain bloody violence, bad language, nudity)
Genres: Adventure, Comedy, Drama, Mecha, Military, Science Fiction, Shounen
Production: GAINAX, Bandai Visual, Victor Entertainment
Director: Hideaki Anno
Storyboard: Hideaki Anno, Shinji Higuchi

Source: Anime News Network

This anime goes by many names such as Top wo Nerae! (Aim for the Top!), Top wo Nerae! Gunbuster (Aim for the Top! Gunbuster), or just Gunbuster. I’ll stick with Gunbuster.

Gunbuster is Hideaki Anno’s first work as a director, and for that reason alone it deserves a special spot in anime history. Anno is best known around the world for directing Neon Genesis Evangelion, but his work in Gunbuster is at least equally as transcending. In many ways I’m willing to argue that Gunbuster is even more compelling than Neon Genesis Evangelion. Something interesting to note is t hat Gunbuster was the first anime to feature animated bouncing breasts, so you can thank Anno for that!

A good way to describe Gunbuster is to just say it’s about the largest mecha in anime history and their pilots beating the crap out of huge space monsters that want to destroy the human race. The space monsters attack in impressive numbers so humanity has to literally destroy them by the billions at a time. This, albeit an accurate description, isn’t quite enough to fully convey what you will get out of watching Gunbuster. It is truly an escapade into a time where we have to decide how we’re going to save ourselves from the greatest threat ever imagined.

The anime stars Takaya Noriko, a young girl studying at a Space Pilot High School for girls in Okinawa, Japan. She enrolled in that particular school with the goal to become a space pilot. Her father, Takaya Yuzo, was an admiral commanding the Luxion, a ship that was destroyed early on in the war against space monsters. A few crew members survived the attack but unfortunately Noriko’s father went down with the ship. Noriko had dreamed to become a space pilot long before this incident, and when she heard of her father’s death it was hard for her. She was only 10 at the time when she got the news, but now she’s 17 and once again is determined to become a space pilot.

While training she finds out she has a lot of problems piloting the RX-7 Machine Weapon, which is the standard mass-produced mecha used to fight the alien drones. Many of her schoolmates tease her for her lack of skill and exceedingly joke that if she is ever promoted to a pilot it’s due to her late father’s position. All of these events eventually trigger her encounter with Amano Kazumi, the top student at the school and the most likely candidate to become a space pilot. Kazumi gives Noriko a few words of encouragement which help Noriko boost her spirit and advance towards her goal. This scenario introduces the much bigger drama of the story following alongside Noriko and Kazumi as they strive with personal matters and the responsibility of protecting humanity.

Although Gunbuster is quite old, it has aged almost too well and rivals many of the anime I’ve seen come out in recent years. The first episode is merely an introduction to a much larger and engrossing plot, so don’t let it become a barrier when approaching the show. Once you get passed the school setting you will see how much deeper the story becomes.

The characters are all convey feelings deep inner thoughts in a very convincing way, and if you’ve seen Neon Genesis Evangelion you will start to see similarities between the characters of both series. Gunbuster is a tad realistic and contains a lot of space-age jargon that won’t quite make sense to you unless you’ve been exposed to sci-fi stories with complicated physics and the like. The characters in the anime will experience time dilation, which means time slows down for those who travel at sub-light speed. This becomes a core element in the drama and it’s presented in such a very realistic and gritty fashion that I was amazed. It really makes you doubt that Gunbuster was made in 1988.

The technology in the show is incredible, especially when you consider the small scope of its proposed time-frame. In Gunbuster, the Luxion is one of the earliest ships known to be capable of warp-speed space travel, and its intended purpose was to explore the outer reaches of the Milky Way. According to the anime, the construction of the Luxion begins in 2006 and is completed by 2013. This entails that the jump in technology from 1988 to 2006 is huge and far different from reality. Anno did not have the luxury of knowing exactly when such a leap in technology would make sense way back in 1988. Even today we’re far away from most sci-fi dreams and we can’t warp across the galaxy. He did, however, have the luxury of dealing with a fiction story and having little repercussions whether or not he was even close to being accurate. It’s been at least 18 years since the first release of Gunbuster, so many of the people (including myself) who watch Gunbuster today will consider it more of an alternate reality than a far look into the future. This means we lose the veil of mystery that makes us ponder off into a far future if we consider the hard facts the anime is based on. We are now living in part of the time-frame of the story, so it can feel a little distracting. However, everything else about the show far surpasses this small setback. It hardly takes you completely out of the experience, but there’s no denying Gunbuster should have been much more effective back in 1988.

The enemies in Gunbuster are called space monsters and without giving too much away they are giant insect-like beings that roam the universe killing all life. They search and destroy any sentient beings they find. They are also referred to as the “anti-bodies” of the galaxy. All things considered, they truly are humanity’s greatest threat and aiding them is their tendency to attack in giant swarms that number in the billions of units. This creates situations where animated mecha combat can really shine since there’s explosions and dodging maneuvers non-stop, units calling out for support, and the inevitable loss of human lives. All of this creates a lot of tension in the fighting, but the powerful mecha drive a sense of excitement since you’ll always want to know what’s going to happen next.

The musical score is quite dated, so it probably won’t be as effective as it would of been in the 80’s. It consists mostly of horns and drums of differing pace depending on the situation and they’re used quite often to introduce the next big thing to appear on the screen. It’s literally how you know something is going to die. While this quickly becomes a predictable pattern, it’s still quite effective. When you hear drums you’ll get excited and not necessarily prone to be disappointed as it is always something amazing that happens. Gunbuster is all about kicking alien ass and the classic music works in driving anticipation of the action.

The end of the anime is spectacular to say the least. If you decide to stick with the show long enough to see it, trust me, you will enjoy it. It’s truly a touching moment and for anyone who enjoyed it back in the 80’s I’m willing to agree it’s a timeless moment and a definite classic in anime. For those worried, it’s completely different from Anno’s more famous attempt at ending a story with Neon Genesis Evangelion. Contrary to Neon Genesis Evangelion, Gunbuster ends well — you will be satisfied.

I’d like to thank The Gunbuster Index for providing a huge amount of information that helped me write this review.

Opening:

Ending: