Yuusha-Ou GaoGaiGar

In the year 2005, a race of alien monsters called Zonders emerge from underground and launch a series of attacks on the city of Tokyo. The only defense against these creatures is the secret agency known as the Gutsy Geoid Guard (or 3G) and their ultimate weapon, the awesome giant robot GaoGaiGar. GaoGaiGar's pilot, Guy Shishio, is a former astronaut who was nearly killed two years before when the Zonders first crashed to earth. Guy's life was spared when a mysterious robot lion called Galeon pulled him from the burning shuttle and brought him to Earth. Guy's father, Leo, then used Galeon's technology to rebuild his shattered son as a cyborg, in the hopes that he could stop the aliens when they appear. Now, with Galeon as its core, GaoGaiGar fights to protect Earth. He is aided by a team of transforming robots and by a young boy named Mamoru, who has the power to purify the Zonders' cores, and seems to be connected to the mysterious Galeon.

(Source: ANN)

Shishiou, Guy Main

Hiyama, Nobuyuki Japanese

Amami, Mamoru Main

Itou, Maiko Japanese

Soldat J Supporting

Madono, Mitsuaki Japanese

VolFogg Supporting

Konishi, Katsuyuki Japanese

Taiga, Kotarou Supporting

Ishii, Kouji Japanese

ChoRyuJin Supporting

Yamada, Shinichi Japanese

Mic Sounders the 13th Supporting

Iwata, Mitsuo Japanese

Utsugi, Mikoto Supporting

Hanba, Tomoe Japanese

Hatsuno, Hana Supporting

Yoshida, Konami Japanese

Pagliaccio Supporting

Yoshida, Konami Japanese

Yonetani, Yoshitomo Director, Episode Director, Script, Storyboard, Theme Song Lyrics

Takamatsu, Shinji Episode Director, Storyboard

Yamaguchi, Yuuji Episode Director, Storyboard

Mori, Kunihiro Episode Director, Storyboard

Reviews

Jul 5, 2008

Scallion

Recommended

GaoGaiGar is the kind of show that makes you want to climb out of your bed on Saturday mornings and plop down in front of your PC or TV with a bowl of cereal. It's nostalgic in a lot of ways, but brings a lot of new things to the table. While it could easily be classified as a typical "monster of the week' show, with gimmicky enemies, moral lessons (in the first episode, you almost expect to be lectured about recycling) and clever plans by the good guys ending in an explosive finishing move, it manages to break from the formula at the halfway ... point, and delve into serious territory. And by serious, I mean awesome. Like the newest gartastic super robot hit, Gurren Lagann, GGG grows from what you'd expect to see in a series with cyborgs and talking, transforming robots (giant toy ads) into something...epic-- and I use this word very deliberately.

The over-the-top characters play a big part in this. Guy Shishio is a badass without even trying. He's a man's man, who'll never give up, no matter how difficult the odds. While this kind of character is a staple for super robot shows, Guy takes hot-blooded to new levels with his ridiculous screaming, speeches, and Zonder-breaking. He's a static character, but he's so likable that you don't really mind. I don't usually faun over voice actors, but Nobuyuki Hiyama (you'll know him as Viral from TTGL and Link from the Zelda games) does an excellent job. His yells and dramatic speeches have real weight behind them-they'll blow you away. Guy's English voice, Michael Sinterhisnameistoocomplicatedtospell does a very commendable job filling out Guy's shoes-I'd send him a bottle of throat spray if I could.

The rest of the human characters are relatively stock as well, but none of them are forgettable-especially Taiga, the Commander of the Gutsy Geroid Guard's Japanese branch. You owe it to yourself to watch this show, if only to see his dramatic pointing. Really, that guy can point. Despite the male-oriented nature of the show, there are plenty of strong female characters who play their part in the GGG epic, and aren't just fanservice, either. Guy's girlfriend and technical support also plays a role that you won't expect. One of the few characters that gets some decent development is the magical boy protagonist Mamoru-a refugee from an alien civilization that is the key to victory on more than one occasion. I can hear you groaning already, but trust me-you'll learn to love him more than you ever thought you would.

Like Transformers before it, the robot members of the GGG (you're going to see that letter a lot, so get used to it) are characters as well. They're sentient, and have distinct (and cheesy) personalities, from the ninja police car intelligence agent Volfogg (yes, this is an amazing combination, and unlike vodka and soy milk, it will not give you a headache) to the American-made rock-and-roll bard-class bot Mic Sounders XIII. Even though they're stock characters and, well, robots, you end up feeling for them.

The titular robot, while not sentient itself (or is it), has a character all its own. In the beginning of the show, GaoGaiGar moves like a creaky, slapped together bucket of bolts-it's been hastily built to defend the earth from the approaching threat from space, and it shows. The signature combination sequence barely works, and the finishing move, Hell and Heaven, damages GaoGaiGar and is slowly killing its pilot. Even until the end, GaoGaiGar cannot handily defeat any enemy without the help of the other members of the team, and the clever way the writers find a way for it to win despite its limitations serve as a handy way to break up the monotony that usually plagues shows like this.

The silly-looking design aesthetic that permeates GGG (the robot) and the show doesn't detract from how brutal it can be. GaoGaiGar breaks its enemies in the most literal fashion every episode. Even with the over-the-top antics, the show separates itself from other super robot shows, and the other Yuusha/Brave series by grounding it with a sense of plausibility and strict continuity that you don't see in a lot of anime. One look at the gorgeously animated stock transformation sequence is proof of the ridiculous attention to detail in GaoGaiGar. While most super robots are known for their "unpossible" transformations, GaoGaiGar is covered in tiny vents, treads, panels and blinking lights that you'll only catch for a glimpse. Even the inside was completely drawn out in the concept art, and you can see the mechanical designs (even for a pink VW van!), along with fictional specifications in the eyecatches. All of this comes to a frothy, delicious head with the few plot twists and "keys to victory" scattered through the series. When you see some of them, you'll gasp, and want to go back and look for them in every episode. It gets even more ridiculous when a seemingly useless and innocuous prop becomes the key to victory in the spectacular OVA GaoGaiGar Final! (Seriously, you'll shit a brick.)

The music is nothing short of a triumph. There's an amazing leitmotif going throughout, from the "Final Fusion" gattai scene to the GGG's theme, and of course, Mic Sounder's amazing power up songs. You'll be humming them on the way to work or school.

All of the pieces of the show coalesce into something both familiar and wonderful. You know a series is worth watching when you wonder what you ever did before you'd seen it, and GGG is one of the rare anime titles that I'd put up on that lofty pedestal. It's a true labor of love, filled with fanservice for every stripe. Like the show itself, the message of courage and perseverance might seem cheesy at first, but it not only grows on you, but envelops you, in a way that few other shows can.

It's must see for super robot fans, and I'd encourage everyone to buy the DVDs. If you know me well, you know that I don't like paying for anime. Fuck Luffy, I'm the true Pirate King. If you see an anime DVD on my shelf, then you know I think it's not only worth the money, but one worth celebrating. It's probably the highest praise I can give any series.

Any effort this grand deserves to be compensated for. I highly recommend it.

Reviewer’s Rating: 10

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Sep 10, 2010

Darklonestrife

Mixed Feelings

I had high hopes that I would be sinking into another EPIC mecha-anime because of all the reviews I read about this beforehand. They all said before "Gurren Lagann," there was GaoGaiGar. What I sunk into, no I mean drowned into was a predictable and "Neon Genesis Evangelion-like" story downgraded for kiddies. At least now I assuringly know which audience this was targeting, so I'll give the fairest and most unbiased review I can.

STORY... The plot of GaoGaiGar is your typical "save the world one day at a time," except it's with robots. You've got your evil mastermind sending his minions to do his bidding; ... you've got your typical "monster of the week" or in terms of GaoGaiGar, "Zonder of the week." And with each enemy encounter, the question isn't if GaoGaiGar will win, it's HOW GaoGaiGar will win. You can expect power-up, after power-up, after power-up, after power-up, after power-up... (Hence, the "typical cycle"). And just like the sentence before this one, (not the one in parentheses), GaoGaiGar is repetitive... Too repetitive for it's own good... It attempts to put in some suspense at times by displaying that some actions of one of the heroes does has negative repercussions, but you can easily tell they will find a solution to fix this problem. And so, the "typical cycle" repeats itself with the introduction of new characters joining the fight. Predictable, right?

For me, the only good points of the plot was with each enemy encounter, you really can sense the degree of difficulty on how to defeat the enemy getting higher and higher or the degree of danger getting higher, however you want to say it. That could possibly spark your interest. The second good point is it's twist- just when you thought the enemy was defeated, guess again... But that too, was unfortunately it's downfall because repeating the "typical cycle" for 49 episodes just got a bit boring towards the end. Also, I thought that if the exact opposite thing happened to the heroes (don't worry, I won't spoil anything, keep reading) in episode 30 and in the final episode, then GaoGaiGar could have been a candidate for an EXCELLENT series or maybe even EPIC.

ANIMATION... The animation is a bit dated, but I won't hold that against it. The robot designs are neatly drawn, and great detail goes into when they perform their transformations. However, a lot of stock footage transformation was used for most of the episodes and you could get bored after seeing it too many times. But you will find yourself amused on how exaggerated characters perform their actions even if it's just for the simplest things like- Mr. Chief's jacket wildly blowing in the wind as he gives approval for certain battle actions and how Mikoto Utsugi has to break glass with her fist just to press a button. Now, this works for the first few times, but after a while, it just gets annoying. As for the enemy designs, I can't help, but think if the designers got lazy towards the end. Watch it for yourself, you'll see what I mean.

SOUND... The soundtrack of GaoGaiGar isn't terribly bad, but it isn't terribly good either. The opening theme may be annoying to some, but after 8 episodes in, I found myself smiling, thinking to myself, "I'm actually listening to this. Haha..." The ending theme is just okay or should I say "meh?" As for the background music, what can I say? It's typical of the 90's? All in all, the soundtrack shouldn't be too much of a bother while watching.

CHARACTERS... Now, this is what I consider to be the "saving grace" of GaoGaiGar. The main characters are likeable, despite the lack of depth. You've got Guy Shishio, your main super hero who displays a fiery courage, along with a boy named Mamoru Amami whose got special powers that help defeat the Zonders, alongside them you've got the team 3G whose cast is also entertaining to a certain extent. However, it's the robots that steal the show, mainly GaoGaiGar's comrades. GaoGaiGar's robot comrades were each given distinct, unique human personalities, and seeing them interact with others and their environment will either put a smile on your face or make you laugh. You might even have favorite robots by the time you're done with the whole series. As for the villains, they are totally one dimensional, just a bunch of dudes always planning to wreak havoc on humanity in whatever way they can. You know, a mastermind wanting to rule the world or universe, something along those lines. Only one villain undergoes character development, but I won't say who that it is. I don't like being a spoiler. Haha...

OVERALL SCORE: 6/10= Above Average

STRENGTHS
+ Likeable characters, despite lack of depth
+ Introduction of new characters is what keeps the show entertaining somehow.
+ Different types of enemies keeps challenges for the heroes fresh.

WEAKNESSES
- Predictable plot.
- Too much repetition in some scenes.

Note: The target audience of this series is obviously kids because kids don't tend to notice character development, plot twists, or other details that serious anime watchers look at. I recommend this series only and ONLY to a younger audience and for people who really love mechas. As for the other viewers, you'll be better off not watching this one.

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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Mar 12, 2024

ProxyLain

Not Recommended

This is one of the worst mecha of all time.
There is no character development, their relationships are vague. It's 49 episodes of nothing but the monster of the week. Background stories are told through poorly executed flashbacks or rushed in a way that doesn't make sense, considering that 49 episodes are enough to develop a story.
Besides, there are even huge plot holes, as we can see in episode 43. The episodes ago the robots were thrown into space time on Jupiter, but in ep 43 they show them coming to earth in the era of dinosaurs (when they existed) and they were underground for all ... this time. What's the point? Look at the size of the plot hole...
How did they end up in the age of dinosaurs in the same timeline as everything is happening? They wrote this episode with their asses and didn't think.
The ending is stupid. The protagonist simply leaves Earth because a threat can appear at any time in the universe. Couldn't he just stay on Earth? Where did he go? Are you going to be wandering the universe inside a robot? They simply did it to make it look sadder, but it's just poorly written.

The author of this work also made Brigadon and Betterman, I don't know how I expected any quality from this.

The animation is good, but every episode repeats the same transformation and that annoys me. There are episodes where the same transformation happens twice.

The penultimate episode is just a shitty recap episode. Seriously?

There's really nothing to praise about this anime. It wastes time just being the monster of the week instead of wanting to tell something. Like I said, when it tries to tell something, it's rushed and vague. Even the villains themselves were created with a stupid and poorly made excuse. They say this anime is the Gurren Lagann of the 90s, now I understand why it's so horrible (it manages to be worse than Gurren Lagann).

Reviewer’s Rating: 1

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