Gai Gai Gar Review

When all the great giant robot anime we know and love like Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann and Gunbuster were growing up, they would huddle at the knees of their grandfather and listen to tales of the old days with wide eyes. They soaked in the tales of the Gutsy Geoid Guard and their war with the alien Zonderians, and resolved to be just like old grandpa. That grandfather is the show known as The King Of Braves Gao Gai Gar, the giant robot anime that brought back the over-the-top, attack-calling, hot-blooded shonen madness of shows like G Gundam. In the wake of the soul-crushing Neon Genesis Evangelion, it took a show like Gao Gai Gar to remind us all why giant robots were so awesome.

The show follows two primary characters. The first is Mamoru Amami, a fairly ordinary elementary school boy who lives with his beloved adoptive parents… who found him when a giant robot lion from space appeared with him in its giant robot jaws. Oh, and he

turns into a glowing green fairy with the power to reverse the process that turns people into giant robots. So, not so normal. Acting as a surrogate big brother brother for him, as well as protector of everything, is Guy Shishioh, aka Cyborg Guy (yes really). A former astronaut who was rebuilt as a cyborg after an alien attack, Cyborg Guy is powered by alien technology and the mysterious G-Stone, a glowing green rock that gives off power proportional to it’s users courage (or how loud they scream, either one). Since he’s made from the same technology as Galleon, the giant robot lion that delivered Mamoru to Earth, he can fuse with the giant lion to become the giant robot GaiGar. When this, invariably, is not enough to defeat a foe, his allies back at HQ go through a pointlessly dramatic button-pushing sequence to initiate Final Fusion, allowing him to fuse with three more robots to become the giant robot GaoGaiGar. He then proceeds to defeat aliens, occasionally fusing with or fighting beside other giant robots.

Yeah, it’s that kind of a show.

Earth is being invaded by robotic aliens called the Zonderians, although it’s not much of an invasion – there’s only five of them, and they mostly stay hidden. Instead, they attach “Zonder Metals” to the foreheads of angry humans, using their negative energy to convert them into giant robot monsters called Zonders. These Zonders proceed to fight and lose to the Gutsy Geoid Guard, a group of unbelievably manly men and absurdly hot women who build giant robots for the defense of Japan and the world. In addition to Guy and his various forms, they also field a small team of intelligent, Transformers-like robots to serve as his sidekicks and allies, and they prove fairly effective at helping with large-scale problems, clearing out minions, and evacuation civilians while Guy tears out the heart of the Zonder for Mamoru to convert back to human. It’s a fairly simple but effective plot that’s gets surprisingly more complicated after a big twist halfway through the series, altering everything and providing a much larger scope to the conflict. New allies and enemies appear at a good pace to keep things fresh without overloading the viewer, and every character is given a chance to be important without overrunning the show like a giant robot Wesley Crusher.

If you haven’t figured it out by now, Gao Gai Gar is an utterly ridiculous show that’s so far over the top it can’t even see the ground anymore. The main protagonist is a cyborg a super mode he activates by tugging on his hair. He turns into a giant robots and swings around glowing hammers and dimensional jackhammers (yes really) to defeat alien robots. The primary power sources for

all characters draw power from emotions, such as the heros’ own G-Stones, which are powered by Courage/Shouting Really Loud. Alien fairies and sentient robots are scattered everywhere. We even have a major character whose primary weapon is a guitar, and he fights with music (he’s the American robot). What GGG is not, however, is bad or boring. It’s entertaining and awe-inspiring, and just listening to the music alone will get your blood pumping. After a couple episodes, you’ll be shouting the names of finisher attacks along with Guy and cheering with glee at each new mindblowingly awesome feat. Feeling sad because the show finished? Don’t worry; there’s an even more over-the-top mini series sequel called Gao Gai Gar FINAL, where attacks strong enough to destroy planets are the order of the day.

GGG is a show all about pure fun, unfettered by petty concerns like logic, physics, or science. It’s about watching giant robots punch each other, saving the world, and never giving up because despite how badly you’re losing, if you scream loud enough on your next attack you can turn it around. It has a good story and better action, and enough bright colors to give you an epileptic seizure. It reminds us all why we like giant robots so much, and it still stands as an inspiration to every great giant robot anime that’s come after it.

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