Gurren Lagann

Even as a show with some problems, Tengen Toppa Gurenn Lagann manages to go beyond what i expected from it, with a really great journey to the end about wanting to fight back against the impossible, with its unique cast of characters and pure raw hype that won't be found in other series.

The Journey

Already from the first episode, it is quite clear that the show is not to be taken seriously with its ridiculious molepig section and the unexplained Lagann and the random power-up, but what motivated me to keep going? Well, thats an easy answer; the 2 brothers, Simon and Kamina. There was an inspiring dynamic between the two brothers that compelled me to move forward with it. The little brother Simon, which was weak, pathetic and shy was instantly removed from my mind the moment i saw Kamina for the first time; a confident, stylish young man with a heart of gold. The way Kamina was trying to inspire his little brother with conviction in his voice when Simon found a drill, it already made me understand what kind of journey i was about to head into; One filled with adrenaline, inconceivable logic and some kickass set-pieces.

That is not to say that the show doesn't have deep topics/themes like the loss of your loved ones, goverment policies that goes against your own vision, hope's power against negativity etc. Though, the main theme it explores is fighting against all odds, which it does excellently.

I wanted to see what the manly Kamina would go through, i wanted to see the character development for Simon would be which was teased in the first episode and most importantly; the bright future that was ahead of them. With a mech that was powered by pure feels and adrenaline, a new crewmate which was a perfect addition to the trio, and a fully rich world to explore, it was go time. Simon slowly develops as a character through the theme of giving it all you got no matter, which sounds pretty bad but develops in a way that is beautiful. Kamina's character shines like a bright star throughout the show, aiming to further push Simon forward to become the drill that will pierce the heavens.

Although this might be a criticism to other series, it is definetly the opposite for this show. The reason it works so well into this show compared to Naruto is because of the way it is incorporated; Already from the start, you KNOW you are not supposed to take it super seriously. At its core, it is a story about not giving up till the end and showing how far a great mix of adrenaline, some tenacity and alot of spirit can take a person. In Naruto, the way Naruto Uzumaki changes people by never giving up on changing felt forced, but here, TTGL changes the focus on the person itself, which makes it stand out much more. That is not to say that Naruto does it horribly ALL the time, as it also has its strength but the way it is incorporated in TTGL makes it feel much more natural and more interesting to watch.

It also makes it much more fun to watch when you know Simon is about to lose and somehow, he is always triumphant because of his spirit, because of his tenacity, because he believes he is the one that is going to change the world. Even if it comes with a few consequences, be it that his mech gets damaged or one of his comrades gets injured, it just all feels...natural. The more insane the action pieces become, the more hype is generated to the viewer which is reflected on Simon and makes it MUCH more awesome to watch.

As the episodes started rolling forward, so did the amount of characters we got introduced. While ALL of them definetly weren't the most well-written ones, they were the most entertaining ones to watch and all had their own goals to look forward to. What i love about the team is their perseverence to defy the universe with the amount of hurdles they went through toghether, whether it was Viral which had his own plans to destroy the team or going up against Lord Genom himself, they all never backed down against the threat that stood in their way. After all the constant battles and tough decisions they would go through that changed their lives like Rossiu leaving his village, constant battles with Viral that wore them down and finally, the death of Kamina, which hit Simon the worse seemed like the end for them. Although it felt just a taaaaaaad bit corny, i couldn't do anything but be extremly excited for the new Simon that was about to unfold as soon as we got his love interest; Nina Teppelin. With hope and inspiration from her, Simon battled his way to avenge his fallen brother and vowed to honour his legacy all the way to Lord Genome, which he took down with a mighty Drill explosion.

After a quick timeskip, we move forward onto a new capital Simon has built to the memory of his late brother which was named Kamina City. After a brief reintroduction to all the characters, we got to the final plot-point with the truth revealed about Nina. Although i liked it at first, i will definetly criticize it now; Nina really felt like a plot device to move the series forward after Lord Genome's death. It did not hinder my enjoyment of the series, but it definetly felt weird. Although we got some time with her, i would appreciate it if we had spend just a bit more time with her before they used her like that, but it was still alright.

As i said before, the side characters were re-introduced again, with the same personality we same them before the timeskip and lovable as always, although some of them changed, for better or worse, it all depends on how you look at it, which i think was a great thing.

After the reveal of Nina's true self, the series really expands on its idea of escalating its plot arcs. From going to decently large robots to mechas in the size of giant universes, it all felt believable with the amount of times the theme of the series was ingrained greatly into the viewers mind; Everything was possible in the world of Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann.

With the last few episodes of the show, we were getting to the climax; the final battle against the Anti-Spiral, which felt like a tough journey for Simon to pull through but with the help of his friends, the growth he has gone through as a character with the amount of tragedies, defeats and losses he has endured, it all felt very satisfying when opening played in the background as the final hit against Anti-Spiral was deployed.

The vibrant colour usage and the boldlines, the design of the characters which match the insanity that can happen sets a great atmosphere for what is about to happen. The design of the mechs later really are great and each character is unique to one another. The one thing i also love are the eyecatches in each episode, which all were very pleasing to look at and hope that more animes do the same!

It also very tough to bring up atmosphere without talking about the music. The music in the show is super great with the weird combination of violin, opra and....rap? It might sound weird but i promise you, after you take a listen to this song, you will understand exactly what i mean.

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Verdict:

All in all, Tengen Toppa Guren Lagann is genuinly one experience i won't forget. As much as i love series that dwelve on being deep stories and themes that keep me up at night thinking, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann is a testament on how meaningful a series can be without it trying to be deep. Even with some problems like animation quality in the first few episodes and Nina feeling like a plot-device, i would still go out of my way to reccomend this show to anyone willing to give in to the sheer hype the series can produce. Although this is my opinion, i truly believe it is probably my favorite opening of all time, with how upbeat it is and how it fits the main theme perfectly. Combine it with the fact that the OST is a straight up banger after banger, this is a journey that i am more then willing to rewatch any time of the week.

And remember; Don't believe in yourself, believe in the Kamina that believes in you.