Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann

[Virtigo]

"Just who the hell do you think I am!?"

Anime. Usually story driven with a penchant for philosophically ridiculous introspection when things should just be blowing up. Usually lacking the budget to match the animation quality seen in Western cartoons produced by Disney or Warner Bros. Currently lacking a sense of style, with every other shonen series being another beat-em-up, hour-long-side-lines-commentary DBZ clone and every other other shonen series making asinine emo trips into philosophical drama that's neither interesting nor original.

And then we'd be lucky to have character designs not be another copy-paste moe-blob or yaoi-fangirls' wet dream.


I remember when there used to be some testosterone in the genre. I remember when a main character would not become depressed and stay that way for more than two episodes. I remember now that this was last Thursday.


Que Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann (Heaven Piercing Gurren Lagann), the newest show from Gainax studios (creators of Evangelion and FLCL). Not another manga adaptation, GL is a show completely made for the animated screen, and it has a dream team behind each and every epic frame.


Imagine the animation quality of FLCL, but for 27 episodes rather than just 6. That is Gurren Lagann.



So, who here hasn't wasted their time watching anything else, and instead spent their meaningful effort manning up to watch this most epic of epic shows?

[Malachi Constant]

Haven't actually seen the show

but I've read plenty of this

[Virtigo]

The show is a robo, pseudo-mecha anime. Rather then get obstinately technical or arrogant about trying to fake realism, the motto of GL is pretty much, "do the impossible, kick reason to the curb."

I recommend waiting for the DVDs or watching high quality vids, because watching it through youtube or its clones does not do it justice. The series is sheer eye candy and you'll finally see just where Gainax spent all that cash they made whoring out their Eva franchising for the last ten years. It's hard to explain without spoilers, but the scale of the show is impressive. It starts out small and unassuming with robots the size of your average gundam or smaller, but by the end you see giant robot combat between two robos the size of several galaxies.

Originally Posted by Monty Burns

Haven't actually seen the show

but I've read plenty of this

"Instead of helping me... both of you have bulges in your groin... You two, that were watching in enjoyment... your words make me want to puke!!"


Was good, but there are better (though untranslated).

[Malachi Constant]

first, the fact that you've read that makes me smile

second, although I'm not a huge fan of mechs, I might have to check GL out

[Tsukie]

Best, manliest, most awesome anime ever. Even the tears you cry at the most sad scenes are manly. Gurren Lagann is win incarnate.

I don't need to say more.

[Virtigo]

You might like this then.

[Princess Tsunata "Amnya" of Pen Island]

Mmm, I've been trying to finish this anime for a little while. I've watched through episode nineteen, and I must say, it's damn epic. All the fights are exciting, and the characters are either likable, or love-to-hate-able (Rossiu <<).