2001-06-16 - 4:44 p.m.
#73: No Need for Giant Robo Review
Note to self: Maybe it's just me, but I seem to be encountering a lot of dead animals in recent days.... Well the count is only two, admittedly. But still, for a sissy city boy like myself, it's unusual to see dead animals before they're in their final beef pattie/SPAM form. On Wednesday, it was a dead rat, caught in the trap my mother had set up. Apparently we had more rats in the house than just the one we caught a few weeks back. O.o I had to take the rat trap and put the dead thing in a garbage bag and it was just really creepy. Rigor mortis had obviously set in as the rats tail was stiff as a board, but apart from that it almost looked alive.... I mean, discounting the fact that its back had been shattered by the traps spring, of course. Ick. I tell you, trying to carry that trap without touching any part of the rat is one of the more ridiculous things I've done in the name of fear.... I mean, it's DEAD. It's not going to hurt you if you touch it, right? Unless it were carrying some sort of flesh eating disease.... Nevermind. Anyway, the next dead animal I encountered was a sparrow (or one of those really small n' cute birds we see all the time around here) on the lawn while I was mowing it. I think it'd flown into the big set of windows we had in the front and cracked its skull, poor thing. I was briefly, BRIEFLY tempted to run over it with the lawnmower to see what would happen, but decided to pick it up and put it somewhere else out of the mowers range. Even then, I only dared pick it up by its tail feathers. ^^;;; Oh well, just thought I'd mention these little episodes.
Well, I did say I was going to do this review sometime and today is as good as any day.... I'm slightly nervous about writing something like this, though. I mean, this is one of my favourite anime OAVs, I HAVE to make it sound good. I have to be in the peak of my literacy skills in order to shower Giant Robo with all the praise it deserves! Actually, if I were to do that, I wouldn't be the one writing this at all, but I'd turn it over to someone who's had a lot more experience at this sort of thing.... Even so, I'll do my best here and try to convince everyone who reads this diary to try watching this series.... Well, at least once. Okay then.... Where to begin? I think I'll start with a mini review. Yes, that'll be nice. ^_^
Giant Robo as one may guess from the title, is about the mighty mechanical gargantuan of the same name. The name of the series brings to mind about similarly themed shows where a young boy commands the shows central giant robot, a nostalgic leftover from the days when anime was still young and Speed Racerish. Admittedly, there is that element of a spunky kid controlling such a bipedal weapon in Giant Robo.... But that's not all the show is about. If it was, I probably wouldn't praise it this much as there are way, way, WAY too many mecha anime series out there as it is. Yes, Giant Robo kicks much ass, and yes, he DOES face a variety of giant robots with "themed" powers; but in lieu with that is also integrated a cast of richly colourful and wildly overblown characters (with superpowers, to boot!), a complex storyline that twists and turns, deepening the overarching tragic nature of the plot instead of cheapening it, and all brought to life with a distinct retro-anime look that's unique even in todays titles, as well as a magnificent score that's as much a dream to listen to on its own as it is while the actual anime is playing along with it.
*puff puff puff* Okay, that sentence was WAY too long, but I had to say all that in one breath or I'd never be able to forgive myself for missing something out.... Oh wait, I forgot to mention that the entire show has a kind of vibrant, almost good natured energy that other shows WISH they could possess. DAMN! Oh, and also that the entire cast of characters are actually from the works of celebrated manga artist Mitsuteru Yokoyama.... Which is pretty damned amazing as the characters all hail from different time periods and settings: from giant robot themed (of course) to manga set in feudal Japan; all of them just pushed together into one animated feature and for some reason, not looking out of place at all. But maybe its because the setting is also rather unusual.... A future where steampunk-like machines are utilised and airships rule the sky in an almost Jules Verne-esque fiction. It is both at once comfortably familiar and yet at the same time completely alien, much the same way as Star Wars managed to give a "homegrown" look to its sets.
Basically, the entire production simply screams "imagination" from the characters to the story to the animation to the music.... This is one of the few times where I felt everything was working in harmony with the anime, where basically ANYONE can watch it and, as long as they appreciate a good story backed up by exciting, wild action, they can enjoy it simply as it is. Other anime features where I felt this to be true would be the works of Miyazaki (of course), but even then they don't have as good an English dub as Giant Robo. That last one is my own particular opinion, admittedly. A lot of people seem to actively dislike the dub.... There are definitely a few lapses in translation ("As predicted, the Eye is heading towards Saint Abbey!" "Oh no! Then our predictions were all wrong!" comes to mind. Like.... What? O.o Well, the VAs carry off the confusion very well, anyway) and some of the voices change from episode to episode (the voice of Daisuku, the boy wonder, comes to mind readily. He goes through 3 different VAs in the entire production) but overall, I'm quite happy with the dub. For the most part, they sound exactly as their characters should, wildly overblown and swept along in an adventure that's a larger scale than they can possibly handle. Shocking Albertos voice, for example, gives me the toe shivers of jooooy *said in a Stimpy voice as from Ren and Stimpy*.
*coughs* But enough of that. So far I've said how enjoyable the series is, but haven't even bothered to give the storys premise yet. This section will be much more difficult to do, because while I *can* describe what happens, I probably won't be able to inject it with the same kind of energy and pizazz as it occurs on screen. So basically, this will most likely sound a little cut and dried, but mark my words: It is very, very, very cool.
We begin with the introduction: "Earth, the marvellous world of our future!" the narrator presents grandly as it introduces the concept of the Shizuma drive, an energy system which for all intents and purposes is completely perfect: producing no waste matter and completely recyclable, and thus supplanting all other forms of energy in the worlds "third energy revolution". Into this world steps the sinister group known as Bigfire, "An underworld organisation whose only goal is absolute world domination! 'Together! Allegiance or Death! Bigfire!'" coming with an impressive cast of baddies and robots, with a group of warrior elites known as "Magnificent Ten" who are gradually introduced member by member as the story progresses. "Do not panic! For we are protected by the International Police Organisation, formed by the Experts of Justice!" and the good guys aren't no slouches either, coming with their own team of elites, as well as including Daisaku Kusama who commands the most powerful robot of the world.... GIANT ROBO!
So basically, from the introduction alone, you can almost tell what's coming. Almost. Many things happen in the first episode of seven to make us realise that not all is as it seems. First of all, the Experts of Justice have to rescue the inventor of the Shizuma Drive, Dr. Shizuma (how tacky, naming the invention after yourself) after three of his other colleagues have died under suspicious circumstances.... Actually they all died after being hung from the bell tower of Notre Dame in Paris, with the connection between all of them being that they all worked on the Shizuma Drive project with Shizuma, which is about as suspicious as one can get without being fact. It's clear that the ones after Dr. Shizuma are agents of Bigfire, or specifically, the attache case in Dr. Shizumas possession. The case contains a somewhat off colour version of the Shizuma drive, looking like an imperfect version of that drive. Why Bigfire wants the case is not completely clear to the main body of Expert agents located in Shanghai, but one lone agent in Paris makes an unwelcome discovery that explains all.... Bigfire is trying to make a superweapon, "The Eye of Folger", requiring three of those off colour Shizuma drives, that would effectively reenact the Tragedy of Bashtarlle. What tragedy is that, you may ask?
Well, (as the show stylishly renders in black and white) the Tragedy of Bashtarlle occured 10 years before the Shizuma Drive was fully realised, revolving the forgotten and cursed fifth member of the Shizuma grouop: Dr. Franken von Folger. Apparently consumed by a kind of mad scientist greed, Folger pushed the project ahead too soon against the wishes of the other scientists, trying to bestow upon the world his "beautiful night" (a concept that will pop up many a time in the series, its meaning warping with astonishing regularity). A beautiful night where mankind would be bathed in the new energy that he so kindly bestowed upon them, and that they no longer needed to hide from the night with fires of inefficient fuels: like oil, coal or animal fats as per the past.... Basic mad scientist babble. In any case, Dr. Folgers did not succeed as he had planned, as what he had were imperfect samples (a-ha!) which went out of control and destroyed the country of Bashtarlle. Now, 10 years later someone else plans to ressurect that tragedy and use it against mankind once more, using samples apparently modelled on those that caused that tragedy. But....
But I'm not going to say anymore. What I've already said sums up the first episode fairly well, but there is more, oh so much more.... Like the introduction action sequence involving Gynrei and Tetsugyu battling Bigfire forces on flying gyrocopters, or Giant Robos first battle against a Bigfire robot (pitched.... in his favour), or Bigfires retaliation later on in the episode in the form of the indominable Alberto and the silent warrior Ko-enshaku, which is quickly folllowed by a car chase scene that would put many other anime action sequences to shame with its enthusiasm.... Basically, all I've given is a bit of the storyline, which explains none of the characters relation to this (or their coolness) and really doesn't give the depth that this anime really deserves.... There's just so MUCH I could babble on about right now, but I think I'll just shut up and let people who haven't seen it find the anime for themselves and enjoy it the way I did: Full of skepticism at the review and then coming away totally flabberghasted at what can be done in animation. And then I'm going to tell you: "Told ya."
Whew.... Okay, I think that's enough from me today.... I'll do a plot synopsis later on cause my fingers are getting kinda tired. And for those of you who haven't experienced the full storyline: No looky at synopsis! Really! It'll just ruin everything for you! I mean it! NO LOOKY! Okay, I think you got the general idea. If you want to learn more about Giant Robos wealth of characters this article did a splendid job of researching about all the characters and what manga they came from. I'm still amazed at how the director managed to fit them so well into the frame of the storyline and still keep them fresh and exciting with each episode.... Oh damn, there I go again. Praising the anime when I'm not even reviewing it! ohohohohohohohoh! *naga-like laugh* So, anyway. Synopsis later. Maybe even after I finish Daikatana and decide to review it (two episodes down! Two to go!).
