Aphrael (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
silverthunder) wrote2008-10-04 05:23 pm
silverthunder) wrote2008-10-04 05:23 pm
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Gurren Lagann: Believe in the me who believes in you
Normally when I start a post about a series, I have fairly well planned out the way I want to organize it. In this case, I just know I want to say some things. I know that this series was awesome in a way that words can't express. I know it played with my emotions, and drew out my tears and my laughter and my spirit like nothing else I've seen in any kind of story, ever. I would recommend this series to anyone, and if they didn't like it, their loss.
We'll see where it goes from there.
Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann is a series I kind of disregarded when Cody started watching it. I figured it would be a huge mesh of fanservice and mecha, clearly and strongly aimed at males. I was totally right about that. I won't deny it.
But somehow, it was incredible.
Somehow, a series that has its main female in a string bikini top, that has a big red mecha suit that has a face on its stomach wearing gaudy black shades... is a one-of-a-kind story with unforgettable characters, well-paced plot, and hilarity.
How does it accomplish this feat? Well, I'll try to explain. I'll probably not do it any kind of justice, but I'll do my best.
Gurren Lagann starts in space. A seemingly fearless captain announces he's going to take on all the stars in heaven as his multitude of enemies, demanding with a cocky grin, "Who the hell do you think I am!?" And then...
... then suddenly we're underground, and a boy is digging a tunnel through the earth.
This boy is Simon, the main protagonist of the series. Throughout the course of the series, Simon, accompanied by his self-proclaimed "soul brother" Kamina and the gun-toting scantily-clad Yoko, leaves his underground village and ascends to a surface and eventually out into space and across the galaxy.
Wait, what? It starts in space, then underground... then back into space?
Short answer: yes. Yes it does. And it makes complete, logical sense. Trust me.
Soul Brothers
Simon begins the series as a quiet, timid boy who has to be prodded along by the much more outspoken Kamina. In fact, throughout the first section of the anime, Simon is more a sidekick to Kamina than anything. Hardly anyone notices him, including the audience. One gets the feeling he even prefers it that way - except when it comes to Yoko. But I'll get to that.
I'm fairly sure most people really got into the series because of Kamina. He's a character of extremes. "Who the hell do you think I am!?" is his most popular phrase. You really kind of have to watch this guy in action or you won't get it. He won't run away no matter the odds against him, and has succeeded in a number of rash and ill-thought-out plans simply because he won't abandon them until they work.
Just about everyone but Kamina overlooks the fact that the reason Kamina's plans work out every time is because of Simon. And when Simon doubts himself, Kamina pushes him from behind. "Believe in the me who believes in you." Much of the reasoning behind Kamina's bravado centers around bringing out Simon's ability. And Simon pushes himself to live up to Kamina's expectations. Soul brothers, indeed.
Romance
Simon's first love is Yoko. In a peculiarly shoujo-ish way, Yoko falls for Kamina instead, who reciprocates. Their first kiss is on the evening before a major battle, volcanos smoking in the background, her gun around her shoulders, and a promise from Kamina to return the kiss a hundred times over when the fight is over. Very dramatic.
Kamina and Yoko is one of my favorite pairings. I was inclined against Yoko at the start (because of her costume), but she's definitely not a bad character. She holds it together quite well when she has to. This pairing is a spirited one - one might say it's a typical "fight until you make out" but their personalities are compatible enough and their interactions have enough chemistry for me to like it.
This pairing has four stages that I was able to determine, and I have a picture for each one (spoilerish):
Stage one: Clash of wills
Stage two: Feelings realized
Stage three: The unfortunate inevitable (two pictures)
Stage four: All regrets left behind
The last picture is something of a dream sequence. I won't explain beyond that. Watch the series.
Yoko never noticed Simon's love for her, which ended badly for both of them. In point of fact, she didn't notice Simon much at the start, except as a sort of extension to Kamina. It isn't until after Nia makes an entrance that Simon's real value comes to light.
I feel I should give the creators a kudos for being clever enough to bring Nia into the series in such a way that she would never meet Kamina. She is unlike him in all aspects of her personality, a sweet, somewhat airheaded girl with a wide-eyed, innocent optimism being the contrast to Kamina's go-get-em muleheadedness. Nia and Kamina are the same only in one important way, and that is their inherent trust in Simon. Both of them believed in him right from the start.
Nia is the ultimate love of Simon's life, and her romance with him is nothing like Kamina and Yoko's. It is slow-paced and sweet. They clicked right at the beginning, and I think anyone with any kind of perception at all saw right from the first meeting that they would end up together. Again, the chemistry is just beautiful. Nia is a funny character, and often has Simon off-balance, but her constant optimism and unwavering belief in him gives him the confidence in himself that he needs.
Simon and Nia went through five stages that I could see, and again I have pictures (spoilerish):
Stage one: We'll move forward, facing tomorrow
Stage two: Because we are different, we can live together
Stage three: I'm right here...
Stage four: I've come, just like I promised.
Stage five: I will never forget
This pairing, I think, is my ultimate favorite from the series. I don't know what it was I loved about it, but I really adored watching them together.
Politics
You don't see a lot of this in the first half of the series, but it really comes out after the seven-year gap. Simon isn't really suited to be a leader, and it shows. He tries very hard, but ultimately Rossiu is the one dealing with the majority of the issues at hand. I won't say a lot about Rossiu. I understand his motives, but he's too much of a politician. His lack of faith in those around him leads him into crucial errors. Everything he does makes logical sense, but in this series the basic fact of the matter is that if it's logical enough for you to realize it, your enemy has probably already realized it as well.
Spirals
The main theme of this series is the spiral - as represented by Simon's drill at the beginning. Spiral energy is the power of evolution, the ability of human beings to change as circumstances require and adapt from one minute to the next. The series spirals up from the underground to the surface, and eventually out into space. Simon the Driller, the main character of the series, is someone who will patiently dig his way out of any trouble, and it is the spiral shape of his drill that allows him to break through. It is the strength of his spiral energy that wins the day in every battle.
I love symbolism, don't you?
Fighting Spirit
You can call it spiral energy if you want, but the thing that really makes this series what it is has to be the unquenchable spirit of its characters. Following in Kamina's brilliant tradition, not one will be brought down by whatever is thrown at them. Team Dai-Gurren has always been able to do the impossible, and at the head of the team are Kamina and Simon, who never turn away from a seemingly hopeless situation.
There is always a way to do it, if you look hard enough. Human beings are capable of so much more than we give ourselves credit for.
Ultimately, it is taking the difficult and dangerous path that gets results. Nothing worth having is easy to obtain. You have to stand up and fight for what you believe in or you're moving in a downward spiral.
"Who the hell do you think we are!?" becomes Team Dai-Gurren's motto, and it seems that Kamina's legacy will live on forever. In the end, though, I think it is the last thing he says to Simon in the first team battle that is the most significant:
"Believe in the *you* who believes in yourself."
And all this without mentioning the kickass soundtrack! But don't take my word for it... go and watch this show. I mean it - do it. Now.
Here are the first and second opening themes (same song, different verse and sequence):
First Opening Theme
Second Opening Theme
We'll see where it goes from there.
Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann is a series I kind of disregarded when Cody started watching it. I figured it would be a huge mesh of fanservice and mecha, clearly and strongly aimed at males. I was totally right about that. I won't deny it.
But somehow, it was incredible.
Somehow, a series that has its main female in a string bikini top, that has a big red mecha suit that has a face on its stomach wearing gaudy black shades... is a one-of-a-kind story with unforgettable characters, well-paced plot, and hilarity.
How does it accomplish this feat? Well, I'll try to explain. I'll probably not do it any kind of justice, but I'll do my best.
Gurren Lagann starts in space. A seemingly fearless captain announces he's going to take on all the stars in heaven as his multitude of enemies, demanding with a cocky grin, "Who the hell do you think I am!?" And then...
... then suddenly we're underground, and a boy is digging a tunnel through the earth.
This boy is Simon, the main protagonist of the series. Throughout the course of the series, Simon, accompanied by his self-proclaimed "soul brother" Kamina and the gun-toting scantily-clad Yoko, leaves his underground village and ascends to a surface and eventually out into space and across the galaxy.
Wait, what? It starts in space, then underground... then back into space?
Short answer: yes. Yes it does. And it makes complete, logical sense. Trust me.
Soul Brothers
Simon begins the series as a quiet, timid boy who has to be prodded along by the much more outspoken Kamina. In fact, throughout the first section of the anime, Simon is more a sidekick to Kamina than anything. Hardly anyone notices him, including the audience. One gets the feeling he even prefers it that way - except when it comes to Yoko. But I'll get to that.
I'm fairly sure most people really got into the series because of Kamina. He's a character of extremes. "Who the hell do you think I am!?" is his most popular phrase. You really kind of have to watch this guy in action or you won't get it. He won't run away no matter the odds against him, and has succeeded in a number of rash and ill-thought-out plans simply because he won't abandon them until they work.
Just about everyone but Kamina overlooks the fact that the reason Kamina's plans work out every time is because of Simon. And when Simon doubts himself, Kamina pushes him from behind. "Believe in the me who believes in you." Much of the reasoning behind Kamina's bravado centers around bringing out Simon's ability. And Simon pushes himself to live up to Kamina's expectations. Soul brothers, indeed.
Romance
Simon's first love is Yoko. In a peculiarly shoujo-ish way, Yoko falls for Kamina instead, who reciprocates. Their first kiss is on the evening before a major battle, volcanos smoking in the background, her gun around her shoulders, and a promise from Kamina to return the kiss a hundred times over when the fight is over. Very dramatic.
Kamina and Yoko is one of my favorite pairings. I was inclined against Yoko at the start (because of her costume), but she's definitely not a bad character. She holds it together quite well when she has to. This pairing is a spirited one - one might say it's a typical "fight until you make out" but their personalities are compatible enough and their interactions have enough chemistry for me to like it.
This pairing has four stages that I was able to determine, and I have a picture for each one (spoilerish):
Stage one: Clash of wills
Stage two: Feelings realized
Stage three: The unfortunate inevitable (two pictures)
Stage four: All regrets left behind
The last picture is something of a dream sequence. I won't explain beyond that. Watch the series.
Yoko never noticed Simon's love for her, which ended badly for both of them. In point of fact, she didn't notice Simon much at the start, except as a sort of extension to Kamina. It isn't until after Nia makes an entrance that Simon's real value comes to light.
I feel I should give the creators a kudos for being clever enough to bring Nia into the series in such a way that she would never meet Kamina. She is unlike him in all aspects of her personality, a sweet, somewhat airheaded girl with a wide-eyed, innocent optimism being the contrast to Kamina's go-get-em muleheadedness. Nia and Kamina are the same only in one important way, and that is their inherent trust in Simon. Both of them believed in him right from the start.
Nia is the ultimate love of Simon's life, and her romance with him is nothing like Kamina and Yoko's. It is slow-paced and sweet. They clicked right at the beginning, and I think anyone with any kind of perception at all saw right from the first meeting that they would end up together. Again, the chemistry is just beautiful. Nia is a funny character, and often has Simon off-balance, but her constant optimism and unwavering belief in him gives him the confidence in himself that he needs.
Simon and Nia went through five stages that I could see, and again I have pictures (spoilerish):
Stage one: We'll move forward, facing tomorrow
Stage two: Because we are different, we can live together
Stage three: I'm right here...
Stage four: I've come, just like I promised.
Stage five: I will never forget
This pairing, I think, is my ultimate favorite from the series. I don't know what it was I loved about it, but I really adored watching them together.
Politics
You don't see a lot of this in the first half of the series, but it really comes out after the seven-year gap. Simon isn't really suited to be a leader, and it shows. He tries very hard, but ultimately Rossiu is the one dealing with the majority of the issues at hand. I won't say a lot about Rossiu. I understand his motives, but he's too much of a politician. His lack of faith in those around him leads him into crucial errors. Everything he does makes logical sense, but in this series the basic fact of the matter is that if it's logical enough for you to realize it, your enemy has probably already realized it as well.
Spirals
The main theme of this series is the spiral - as represented by Simon's drill at the beginning. Spiral energy is the power of evolution, the ability of human beings to change as circumstances require and adapt from one minute to the next. The series spirals up from the underground to the surface, and eventually out into space. Simon the Driller, the main character of the series, is someone who will patiently dig his way out of any trouble, and it is the spiral shape of his drill that allows him to break through. It is the strength of his spiral energy that wins the day in every battle.
I love symbolism, don't you?
Fighting Spirit
You can call it spiral energy if you want, but the thing that really makes this series what it is has to be the unquenchable spirit of its characters. Following in Kamina's brilliant tradition, not one will be brought down by whatever is thrown at them. Team Dai-Gurren has always been able to do the impossible, and at the head of the team are Kamina and Simon, who never turn away from a seemingly hopeless situation.
There is always a way to do it, if you look hard enough. Human beings are capable of so much more than we give ourselves credit for.
Ultimately, it is taking the difficult and dangerous path that gets results. Nothing worth having is easy to obtain. You have to stand up and fight for what you believe in or you're moving in a downward spiral.
"Who the hell do you think we are!?" becomes Team Dai-Gurren's motto, and it seems that Kamina's legacy will live on forever. In the end, though, I think it is the last thing he says to Simon in the first team battle that is the most significant:
"Believe in the *you* who believes in yourself."
And all this without mentioning the kickass soundtrack! But don't take my word for it... go and watch this show. I mean it - do it. Now.
Here are the first and second opening themes (same song, different verse and sequence):
First Opening Theme
Second Opening Theme