Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann

Advent

Gainax's new series.

n the future, people are digging holes in the ground. They build houses and have domestic animals there. They have been living secretly fearing occasional earthquakes and roof-falls for hundreds years. Jeeha is one of such villages. One day, a boy, Shimon, is digging holes to expand their village. He happens to find a small shining drill. On the other hand, Kamina is a guy who believes there is the ground over the village, and he made a gangster to break the ceiling to get out from the hole.

In those days, the ceiling falls down due to an earthquake, and a big robot falls.

Kamina becomes sure that there is a world over them. Then, to be reckless, he begins to fight against the robot. At the moment, someone also comes from the above. It is a girl Yoko with a rifle in her hand. She is following the robot. However, only she can do is to keep the robot from going. Then, Shimon shows what he found in the ground to Kamina and Yoko. It is a mysteries robot whose body is only a face.

Intro: http://www.gametrailers.com/umwatcher.php?id=53165

Tokoro Ataru

Though I doubt I'll see it for a while, there's something I already like about the design of this. A super-robot series with a more FLCL/Abenobashi style than Evangelion could be my thing.

Advent

HEATXZ

I saw some pictures of episode 1 the series looks good

Advent

Gurren Lagann isn't getting the attention it deserves. Where the hell are my good subs?!? Not this Nyoro~n shit.

What? Fansubbers hate great manly anime?

Majek

That's the reason i'm not watching it yet. No good subs :(

Malintex_Terek

Anime version of Motherload/Dig Dig? Nice. Gainax artwork? FAIL.

…

Will not see.

Cap'n Carter

Looks interesting

Mog

Saw first two episodes. Pretty damn fun, with awesome animation and sound to carry it along.

If it doesn't start taking itself too seriously any time soon this could be a winner in my book.

Cap'n Carter

I want to see this because it seems like a fun robot series. I think I've come to the conclusion that the reason I disliked the mecha genre for a while is most of what's out there is boring, super-dramatic, miltary robot stuff. Stuff like Eureka, Eva and 90% of Gundam is what I mean.

I've watched a few of the SUPER ROBOT like series (G Gundam, Giant Robo) and really enjoyed them. I also want to check out the Tetsujin-28 series that was made a couple of years back.

Buccaneer

Ground the what now?

Well, if it's HQ animation + robots - "balancing the values of love and sacrifice in space," I guess I'll check it out.

Mog

The series does carry a fair bunch of obligatory clichés, like fanservice and cute MASCOT CHARACTERS (i.e. Gainax).

I liked it regardless, but just to issue a fair warning on what to expect.

Zongcai

@Malintex_Terek:

Anime version of Motherload/Dig Dig? Nice. Gainax artwork? FAIL.

…

Will not see.

Not enough expressionless long-nosed white-haired fags for you to write overly verbose fanfiction about, huh

Or maybe it's the lack of a board game as a central theme

Oh well, your loss. Anyone with half an eye for good direction and awesome animation is going to love this. Three episodes in and I'm totally hooked. Kamina is RAD, and the overarching plot (Simon, the kid, becoming the biggest badass in the universe by way of Kamina teaching him the ways of MANLINESS) looks like it is shaping up to be nothing short of epic.

And Carter's got it right; these super serious military robot shows like Gundam and Eureka 7 are just gigantic quasi-shojo yawnfests. I'm stoked to see the MANLY SPIRIT of the old 70s super robot shows coming back into vogue with stuff like this, Gaogaigar, the new Jeeg/Getter Robo, etc. It's more in line with shonen sensibilities, which I think a lot of folks on this board could definitely appreciate.

Captain Kaze

Hey, don't talk crap. Akagi was a great series, man.

anyway,
The first 3 episodes of this are great. I hope it remains as awesome as it's been.

Satsuki

None of the RAWs for this show are showing up on youtube, and that makes me sad.

@Cap'n:

I've watched a few of the SUPER ROBOT like series (G Gundam, Giant Robo) and really enjoyed them. I also want to check out the Tetsujin-28 series that was made a couple of years back.

Is it the one were it has a Von Fogler look-alike?

I heard it has some of the same characters as Giant Robo too.

Cap'n Carter

That's because Giant Robo's character designs were taken from the other series by the original mangaka of Robo. In that sense, it was kind of an amalagram of his works.

For example, Mask the Red (one of the BF's Ten) had his own manga series, Sunny the Magician was from an old shoujo manga called Sally the Magician, Kenji Murasame comes from Tetsujin-28 as well, and a bunch of others I can't remember right now.

@Cap'n:

That's because Giant Robo's character designs were taken from the other series by the original mangaka of Robo. In that sense, it was kind of an amalagram of his works.

For example, Mask the Red (one of the BF's Ten) had his own manga series, Sunny the Magician was from an old shoujo manga called Sally the Magician, Kenji Murasame comes from Tetsujin-28 as well, and a bunch of others I can't remember right now.

Oh I knew that I remember reading about this.

Kinda like what Osamu Tezuka did with his characters.

So how long is this series gonna be?

Malintex_Terek

@Zongcai:

Not enough expressionless long-nosed white-haired fags for you to write overly verbose fanfiction about, huh

Graves have been dug. :|

@Zongcai:

Oh well, your loss. Anyone with half an eye for good direction and awesome animation is going to love this. Three episodes in and I'm totally hooked. Kamina is RAD, and the overarching plot (Simon, the kid, becoming the biggest badass in the universe by way of Kamina teaching him the ways of MANLINESS) looks like it is shaping up to be nothing short of epic.

GL follows in the steps of Code Geass by having a seductively original premise with nice animation, but ultimately turns out to be utterly commonstock by episode ten or so and eventually falls into a "had a lot of potential but ultimately fell flat on its face".

Of course, low-brow, appeal-all entertainment would usually get at least one view from me, but there's three reasons I'm abstaining from the show.

1. It looks ugly as heck. How "smooth" a show looks on television isn't really a factor for me, I just care about artwork. Sometimes animation is really important, as in OP Movie #6, to make a point of something, but usually animation and anime are oxymorons in my brain.

2. It's Gainax. I personally don't really have anything against the studio, but like a lot of companies I tend to dislike the fanbase that pisses me off with their overhyped, pristine praise of any show, no matter how "limited" the appeal may be. A good critic of anything should be able to point out the flaws in a show and not feel bad when something he/she likes gets criticized.

That's one of the reasons I get a ball out of bullying the so-called "One Piece fans" abroad; they can't take criticism of the show and automatically assume someone is trolling when they say something negative. It's like prodding a mad cow with a fire-hot poker in a corral!

3. Fanservice. I don't really like it, and GL sounds like it has a ton.

@Zongcai:

And Carter's got it right; these super serious military robot shows like Gundam and Eureka 7 are just gigantic quasi-shojo yawnfests. I'm stoked to see the MANLY SPIRIT of the old 70s super robot shows coming back into vogue with stuff like this, Gaogaigar, the new Jeeg/Getter Robo, etc. It's more in line with shonen sensibilities, which I think a lot of folks on this board could definitely appreciate.

SIGNED. Most modern mecha anime are utter false-philosophical, angst-ridden garbage.

Captain Kuro

@Cap'n:

I've watched a few of the SUPER ROBOT like series (G Gundam, Giant Robo) and really enjoyed them. I also want to check out the Tetsujin-28 series that was made a couple of years back.

I haven't seen it yet, but I think the more recent Tetsujin-28 series was also directed by Yasuhiro Imagawa (of Giant Robo and G Gundam fame). So I'm hoping it will be as good as those.

Cap'n Carter

Personally, Terek, I like the artwork that I've seen.

And fanservice can be irritating at times, but I don't think it necessarily breaks a series. Hell OP's fanservice has been almost unbearable at times in the past year or so, but I still love the series.

Malintex_Terek

Alright, alright, I've been shamed into watching the first episode. Let's see how it goes.

Malintex_Terek

HOLY FUDGING WOW.

…

I shat the Sierra Nevada, came the Mississippi, etc. Very, very impressive show; as predicted, the art is, erm, fugly, but it's so high-energy there's not enough time to pay attention to the details anyway. Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined a Gainax project to turn out like this; it's so radically different from FLCL and Eva (in a good way) it's earned my approval.

The beginning of that first episode was probably one of the best introductory sequenes in the history of anime. Seriously.

Kei

There is only one thing I have to say in a situation like this.

Zongcai

@Malintex_Terek:

DUDE FUCK YES

SEE I TOLD YOU SO GODDAMMIT

Glad you MAN'D UP and checked it out. It only gets exponentially better (thus far, anyway).

And 1000% agreed on the opening sequence. GURREN LAGANN! SPIN ON

Cap'n Carter

Where can I get it? Is it subbed anywhere?

Yoska

Since Mog liked it too I figured to check it out and it came out to be pretty, uh… normal. Granted the subs weren't working but it wasn't that hard to figure out what was going on - they even used the basic anime vocabulary so even I could pick few words from here and there :happy:.

Mog

@Yoska:

Since Mog liked it too I figured to check it out and it came out to be pretty, uh… normal. Granted the subs weren't working but it wasn't that hard to figure out what was going on - they even used the basic anime vocabulary so even I could pick few words from here and there :happy:.

Hey, I'm younger than you, so my taste for mindless entertainment hasn't quite left me yet.

Sounds like you downloaded ADTRW's sub of the series, which allows you to switch subtitles on or off. Same thing happened to me.

Carter, you can just run a search on Animesuki.com for torrents. I recommend the aforementioned ADTRW's sub for the first episode (though it does have an annoying clock in the corner), which is a completely groundless recommendation because I haven't actually checked out any of the other subs. I hear Nyoro something subs are pretty bad though and I went with AiA I-Z's sub for the second episode.

That's probably more information than possibly necessary.

Cap'n Carter

Do they have an IRC channel, because I'm still at college and torrents are BANNED!

Mog

Whelps, I checked for you and ADTRW has IRC at #adtrw@irc.pyoko.org. AiA IZ can be found at #anime-in-action@irc.zirc.org. I'm sure you can figure things out from there. AiA IZ subbed both episodes so you could just go with that one and spare any hassle.

Buccaneer

This post is deleted!

Ruwyn

I was skeptical at first with this show as well since my roommate recommended it and he only gets hard-ons for Legend of Galatic Heroes and anything involving Firefly. I'll give a little credit, Gurren Lagann is mindless fun at its best, back when mecha was all about GUTS and DRILLS.

! So who'd think that Kamina's dad was the corpse in episode 2? If that really is his dad, but still I was surprised. Wow

Malintex_Terek

@Cap'n:

Where can I get it? Is it subbed anywhere?

404. They're down for today, but that should hook you up - there's nothing for ep. #2, though, except for that trashy "nyoro~n" sub. I downloaded three but it looks like it's just a RAW.

Advent

@Cap'n:

Where can I get it? Is it subbed anywhere?

You can watch ep 1-3 on veoh.com

It's like Youtube.

Malintex_Terek

Found something interesting on Yotsuba; apparently, the phenomenon Carter was talking about have names.

Super Robot.
Real Robot.

Eureka 7 and the various Gundam shows qualify as "Real Robot" shows, focusing on drama, the characters, and the mechs as tools used to express the emotions of the characters.

"Super Robot" shows are the over-the-top, crazy, mayhem-inducing entertainment that a lot of us grew up with.

For the most part, "Super Robot" shows are largely extinct, and for the past thirty years "Real Robot" shows have dominated because they attract older viewers who consider them more mature and less childish than "Super Robot" shows. They are exceptions, though, like Gurren.

Effectively, Gurren is FLCL meets GaoGaiGar - a space opera super robot show.

Leaf Cable

No offense guys, but this seems too… generic. Nonetheless, I will at least watch one episode to see what it's like. Seems like a cool variation on the mech genre though.

Kei

@Malintex_Terek:

For the most part, "Super Robot" shows are largely extinct, and for the past thirty years "Real Robot" shows have dominated because they attract older viewers who consider them more mature and less childish than "Super Robot" shows. They are exceptions, though, like Gurren.

Effectively, Gurren is FLCL meets GaoGaiGar - a space opera super robot show.

See, thats why I like shows like Gurren Lagann, GaoGaiGar, G Gundam, etc. They harken back to the time where a hero was a hero, not some whiny punk. Ok, sure we have Simon who fills out the aprehensive mecha pilot archetype, but Kamina's hot-blooded manliness really balances that out.

Shows like this are always a good pick-me-up.

Silve

VERY very awesome series. It has a really unique feeling to it and Kamina is just about the coolest bastard ever. Yoko's insanely too hot for words. Drills are awesome.

Malintex_Terek

@Kei:

See, thats why I like shows like Gurren Lagann, GaoGaiGar, G Gundam, etc. They harken back to the time where a hero was a hero, not some whiny punk. Ok, sure we have Simon who fills out the aprehensive mecha pilot archetype, but Kamina's hot-blooded manliness really balances that out.

Kamina's awesome goes beyond 'hot-blooded manliness' - he's Gar, pure and simple.

…

I totally agree - the whole "real robot" movement can rot in heck, it's a superficial substitute for people who don't have real lives anyway.

Taleran

this series has intrigued me, and I liked GGG and G Gundam…..hmmmmm goes off to irc

Malintex_Terek

I guess TTGL #4 has already been released, but fourzerofour got 'bandwidth raep'd' by the rabid 4channers so I won't be able to get it. :(

Japan apparently didn't like the art style switch for this episode…and I say to that, 'lol drama'. Fudgin' otaku.

Captain Kaze

Yeah, I recall reading about how episode 4 'sucked'. But I'll bet it's still great. :(

Yoska

Terek often scares me.
@Mog:

Hey, I'm younger than you, so my taste for mindless entertainment hasn't quite left me yet.

Sounds like you downloaded ADTRW's sub of the series, which allows you to switch subtitles on or off. Same thing happened to me.

Well, you know, I'm basicly twelve year old boy trapped in the body 21 year old so I could still give it yet another chance.

But how do I turn on the subtitles :unsure:? It sounds stupid but I watch anime so rarely that I just I don't know about this kind of stuff.

Mog

I just open it with VLC media player, right click the screen and choose the subtitles on that menu. If you can't, that means your version hasn't got any.

In all honesty, though, I think this just might not be your kind of series. If you didn't like the first episode much it's probably a pretty good indicator, though I suppose the lack of subtitles might have impeded a positive impression. I'm at episode 3 now and safe to say it doesn't change much in its overall presentation.

I'm actually looking forward to episode 4 now that I heard Osamu Kobayashi toyed with it, though. All of the negative response just fuels the fire.

Malintex_Terek

Studio 4°C is supposed to be some really awesome animation group, but for some reason praise in other shows isn't translated to to Gurren?

@Yoska:

Terek often scares me.

How so? D:

Yoska

It's your passion, I say. The passion of Terek. But Studio 4°C! Wow, now I'm interested. I could just skip the episode 2 and 3 because of it.

I use VLC too so let's see if I'm able to do the magic with it.

Cap'n Carter

Back to the Super Robot/Real Robot thing… I thought Big O was good for combining Super Robot goodness with good and interesting ideas.

I still haven't DLed this series yet. I went on IRC sometime last week and for whatever reason the bots wouldn't send me the eps... and now i have exams and everything. So yeah.

Radical jack

Found some direct downloads from this guy at another forum

http://forums.narutofan.com/showpost.php?p=7983957&postcount=202

Zongcai

@Cap'n:

Back to the Super Robot/Real Robot thing… I thought Big O was good for combining Super Robot goodness with good and interesting ideas.

I totally agree, and I think the reason for that is the serious side of Big O didn't concern itself with SOMBER POLITICAL DRAMA like all those other "real robot" shows; instead, it brought up some pretty neat points about memory and identity and LOVE and all that good stuff. Plus, like you said, that core Super Robot ideal of ridiculous over-the-top action and asskicking helped it from ever getting TOO serious.

Man, I love that show. I think i'm gonna break out the dvds and start watching it again (for like, the fourth time haha).