Short Answer: Gurren Lagann is considered to be a breather and a must watch with its new concept of storyline, action, and adventure, a touch of romance-comedy and politics, and overall dedication to the future of humankind. The story catersto both the old and new viewers’ experiences. Let’s check out some of the details of this mecha anime that you may get interested in.
Homage to the previous and current animation style
Over the years, anyone can distinguish that Japanese animation, in general, has improved a lot. From the frame-to-frame sequencing, model designs, and colors, everyone can agree that these differences can be distinguished already. However, Gurren Lagann still pays homage to the previous years of Japanese animation touch. There are scenes in which you can feel as if you are still in the 80s or 90s – some of these scenes are when a character is shown or looking at a screen.
If you compare both of the animated images, you can definitely see a difference in Japanese animation touch.
We cannot totally say that this is what the original author/mangaka would have wanted however, this animation style was done by studio Gainax and you can clearly see that it would fit well with the series. By the way, studio Gainax also did Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995) hence, there may be similarities despite the differences in when each of the animated series was made. Nevertheless, each anime is good at its overall result.
What makes Gurren Laggan unique?
Any mecha anime enthusiast would, in a way, be familiar already that a mecha anime has giant robots for warfare. The typical design or idea would be a robot having its core as its power source. In the case of Gundam, a generator is used so that electricity is produced in the robot’s systems. The generator is usually located in the middle part (chest) of the suit.
With Gurren Lagann, the case may be different. Their robots are generally called gunmen and none of them have a base or reference design. Each Gunmen has no particular indicator on where the power source is located.
And in terms of size, it does not matter in Gurren Lagann. A mecha can be shorter than a human being or it can be larger than galaxies. In the image above, we seeing galaxies being thrown like Frisbees. Even Captain America would be surprised if a disc that size would be thrown at him.
A variety of soundtracks which is just right for the anime.
Gurren Lagann has a number of soundtracks for its viewers to enjoy the show. The range of this soundtrack would be from an uprising/upbeat theme, solemn, fast-paced chase, even to a victory finisher. Each soundtrack and theme would have the viewer feel like they are in the story.To entice you a bit, you can listen to some of them:
This is the opening theme that gets you that last song syndrome (LSS) hype:
There is a Gurren Lagann soundtrack that may catch you off-guard. You may have listened to a similar soundtrack like this in a different anime genre.
There is also a Gurren Lagann soundtrack which is a mix of its mentioned range – it would sound like a culmination of everything.
Would you get bored?
In general, an season for an anime would last around 11-13 episodes. These episodes are released weekly however, there may be some instances in which there are fewer or more episodes fitted in a timeslot. Some possibilities may be due to holidays that have lower viewership than usual, irregular or awkward timeslots, or special days where other events may replace the supposed release of the episode
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With Gurren Lagann, thetwenty-seven-episode series would be just right. The story starts at a steady pace. Then as you go along, it gradually would get exciting and fast as newer characters, obstacles, and settings would take place. There would be great hype and down moments in the middle of the serieswhereby the viewers can take a breather. After which, the pacing would continue to rise along the way, reaching its peak after everything has been revealed and then gradually slowing down to a successful and meaningful end. Hence, you would not get bored.
The Story itself
As the story progresses, they formed new bonds of friendship and alliances. Here, you can enjoy adventure, action, romance-comedy,politics,and even experience some heartache(s) along the way. Later, they all realized that the new incoming threats were way bigger than expected despite what they have gone through already. Do these threats stop them? Definitely, not. At some point, there is a mix of anime genres in Gurren Lagann in which you will succeed or inherit the will of others, there is always the power of bonds and friendship, and your will and determination can get you through even the hardest of battles and obstacles, and a bit of plot-armor to add a final touch to it.
What better way to close a good anime` is by having that middle climactic scene that gradually goes down along the way with a solemn “period” of events.What also makes its story good is its consistency with the main character. A bit of spoiler, you can see this in the first and last episode.
You might also like: Is Darling in the Franxx Good?
Definitely. Why settle with mecha anime having similar (if not the same) plots and concepts when you can have a different approach? Darling in the Franxx (DITF) also has its way of making a story interesting in which viewers would want to know more.If you have watched Pacific Rim, you may get an idea of how they are piloting their Franxx work. But it may also surprise you at the same time.
We actually have an article about this specific topic. If you are interested, you can click here to read more about it.
If you want to know more about Darling in the Franxx, you can click here to check out our articles about Darling in the Franxx.
You might also like: Why is Neon Genesis Evangelion so Popular?
We all know how enjoyable a mecha battle between two robots is. With Neon Genesis Evangelion though, you are in for a different treat. Imagine a world where humans have to use mechas in defending themselves from “Angels”. A seemingly peaceful Japan (Earth) but at the same time encounters random encounters of emergencies. A bit of viewer’s advice though, you may need to keep your mind open for the plot as it may probably haunt you a bit.
Our Final Thoughts:
There are indeed a number of mecha anime already released nowadays. At this time, you would probably wonder if Gurren Lagann is still worth watching. What I can describe, the same as when I asked a friend of mine also, is when you are looking for an anime that this over-the-top, non-sensical but has good substance, and you want to watch just to have fun, then Gurren Lagann is for you.
Thank you for reading!
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