PixlBit

I think I've mentioned on here before that my desire to watch anime greatly outpaces my ability to do so. But, over the last few months, I did slooooowly watch through Gurren Lagann. I went into it knowing almost nothing about it, to wit, it is a well-loved mecha anime, and I expected it to be a monster/adventure of the week kind of show with zany characters. Well, it quickly gave me zany characters but not long after that the story had a definite arc and endpoint in mind.

Humanity lives underground. Anyone who ventures up is quickly slaughtered by the beastmen—humanoid monsters—and their giant mecha, called gunmen. But when Simon, the best digger in his village, and Kamina, perhaps the most outlandishly charismatic person ever, try digging to the surface, they accidentally bring a giant beastman gunman crashing down into their village. All looks lost until a girl from the surface, Yoko, swings in to repel the gunman. That doesn't go so well but Simon is able to activate a miniature gunman he discovered while digging and together they destroy the large enemy and break through to the surface. From there Kamina rallies all who will listen to rise up against the lord of the beastmen, the Spiral King.

And the story really goes some places. There are funny parts and sad moments—it does not pull its punches—and a lot of over-the-top fighting. I appreciated the fact that the story knew its goal and never dragged things out. And in true Japanese fashion, things get existential at the end! But it was good stuff. The characters really go a long way in making the anime as a whole memorable. Speaking of which —SIDEBAR—Yoko Littner: Best Boobs in Anime? I would never presume to try and definitively answer that question because, honestly, has there ever been a more contested race? But the creators of this show definitely know what they're working with and are not afraid to use them. Yoko is a great character, though, so that helps a lot.

On the whole I would definitely give Gurren Lagann a recommendation. It's a fun show that knows where it is going and doesn't get sidetracked on the way there, and there are a bunch of neat characters along for the ride.