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Rating: 4 out of 5 Original Title: Tengen toppa gurren lagann Release Date: 2007-2009 Netflix Link IMDb Link |
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Hmmmm. Gurren Lagann starts off like a Japanese animation series like any other. The first volume is comprised of elements that could be in any other mecha anime series; an unwitting main character bestowed with powers, an over the top smart ass character who spurs him along on a quest, other characters added along the way, and even a love interest, but then it just keeps going. Gurren Lagann has a dozen different places where it could end, but it just refuses to die. Oh, that’s the end, right? No, it’s still going. That’s gotta be the end, right? Nope. The plot just doesn’t stop, but morphs into something bigger every time you think it’s over, until eventually they’re battling the whole damn universe and beyond.
The difference is, that unlike an American show where they drag things out after the ending for ratings and more money, this one seems intentional. It seems as though they want you to think it’s all nicely wrapped up only to sucker punch you with something else. The only annoyance with this series was the clip episode stuck somewhere in the middle. I don’t need a wrap of of what’s already happened, thanks. Gurren Lagann is not spectacularly great, but it’s certainly fairly original as far as mecha anime goes.
October 2, 2010 at 7:58 am
Ptero–have you ever watched the old school anime called Star Blazers? It’s space opera. I don’t remember if you like SF or not, but still enjoyable. There’s something about that older anime that I find charming. I’m not sure what it is, but in Star Blazers I enjoy the characters, coloring, etc. Glad to see your blogging, and protesting Netflix doing away with the friends features, reviews, etc. I called them, and talked to a woman about my complaint, she was as blaise about it as can be…so goes large corporations, eh? Sad, I know.