Forum - View topicOverman King Gainer
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TranceLimit174
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I've watched the first 5 episodes, and I can't tell if I like it or not.
The Good: It's animated well, definitley above average as I don't see many shortcuts used during battles. The show is much more fluid than I expected (which really helps). It also has a very Saturday morning cartoon kind of feel to it. Not enough of an overall plot has kicked in to hook me on that level, but the battles are entertaining and I keep watching for that mostly (and I do want to see how this is all gonna turn out). My favorite character so far is Gain Bijou. He's basically a standard anime badass, but he's much more carefree than most so he sticks out. Plus he's just fun to watch in action. Oh, and that opening is just addictive both from a visual and audio standpoint even if the lyrics are downright silly (how can you argue with characters doing the monkey?). The Bad: They haven't really explained a whole lot. I had to read 3-4 different versions of the plot synopsis, the ANN review, and the backstory that scrolls in the opening just to get a grasp of what's really going on. Basically the members of this Exodus movement somehow managed to rig entire city blocks so that they could all be transported, and it seems like everyone except for Gainer was in on it (and I find it odd because if your entire house was being moved wouldn't you have something to say about it if you didn't know what was going on?). This is the exact opposite of Ideon. Ideon is extremely slow and things don't move fast enough. Overman King Gainer on the other hand doesn't stop for a second to just take a breather and let the viewer in on what's happening. There's also an issue of character inconsistency, particularly among the females. The first 2-3 episodes portrayed the women (at least in my mind) as being strong and independent. Well now (Adette to be specifc) they're...submissive isn't exactly the right word...but it does seem like their lives and actions revolve around the male of interest. Yassaba, who was up until ep. 5 portrayed as fairly evil individual, now suddenly has a heart. In Tomino's other works (that I've seen), characters were never so one way to begin with so to see a bit of good or evil in a character wasn't entirely out of character. In this case though it's incredibly contradictory to what we've seen and seems sudden. I don't see a real consistency among the mech designs (King Gainer is by far the most interesting), as these robots look lobbed together and each one looks like it belongs somewhere else. On that note with "Overskills" more or less being the gimmick it's a bit of a cop out that both King Gainer and Yassaba's mech could stop time. Initially I thought that's what Overskill meant but in episode 5 the new Overman's ability is it can become invisible. With that in mind I would have liked to see King Gainer have a different ability (although I don't know what Metal Full Coat or OverHeat are yet since they've yet to have been shouted outside of the opening and previews). Gainer's also an annoying main character and kind of falls flat. What annoys me the most is that he has a need to announce everything that happens (this is really the writers' fault). It's always "Oh no I'm hit!", "Ah I'm falling!", "He's turned invisible so I can't see him!" or something to that effect. Once in a while wouldn't be so bad, but it happens in every episode with frequency. These are things that can be seen and I don't need to be told it happened. Why there's not enough time to explain the plot but there's room to state what just happened on screen is beyond me. Looking back considering how much longer the bad side is compared to the good I oughta just leave the series alone. But what weighs big on me (which I said in the good part), is that the show feels like a Saturday morning cartoon to me. So therefore, a lot of these bad points while they do irk me to an extent I also dismiss on a certain level because I still have a lot of fun watching the show. The animation quality definitley saves the show, and as ADD centered as the show is (something new always happens in 2 min. tops) the breakneck pace adds to the entertainment. So far while the overall product is fairly sub-par, each episode itself is a fun new battle/adventure. I probably oughta eat some sugar cereal while I watch it. Has anyone else even seen this show? What were your thoughts? Do things level out and does the series redeem itself? I must admit my intreset in this show stemmed from wanting the Revoltech toy, and the show has at least succeeded in convincing me to finally get it. |
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bahamut623
 Posts: 1463 |
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I have all the dvds and love it (I even have the King Gainer revoltech figure on my bookshelf). It's like you said, it has a saturday morning kinda feel to it. It's very action packed and stays consistently entertaining the whole way through. The story eventually becomes a bit clearer as the show goes on, although that's not the show's main concern. And as for the difference in the robots, that's on purpose. The Silhoutte Machines are just supposed to be regular old military mechs so they look bland, and King Gainer, and all the other Overmen (there's quite a few throughout the series) are super robots with very strange designs.
Regarding the overskills, even by the end of the show, I still wasn't 100% clear what Gainer's overskill was. small spoilers: spoiler[Every other Overman had a distinct overskill, but King Gainer didn't. In that first fight he also froze time, which made me think he could copy other overskills, which isn't the case. I'm not sure if he ever freezes time again though, it's been a while since I saw it. Later on, it just seems like his Overskill is a boost in strength and fighting ability (and maybe that somehow allowed him to copy Yassaba's move, I dunno)] I say go for it. Yea, your bad section was longer, but the good outweigh the bads. There are some loose ends and story points that could've been developed more, but for all of those, you can pretty much assume what they would've been (there's a Tomino interview in one of the middle dvds, which after watching the whole series, makes it clear that they kinda switched the story from what they originally had planned, i.e. spoiler[They chose to focus more on Cynthia than Meeya]). Again, the story isn't the main concern with this show. The main draw is the action and great animation. If you're looking for an all out action mech show, this is the one. Edit: I was rereading my post, and I'm realizing the "loose ends" I mentioned are really just referring to one thing, spoiler[Meeya]. That just seemed like it would play more into the story, but it didn't, for a reason I kinda explained in the second spoiler. |
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The Seventh Son
Posts: 380 Location: Where your missing socks end up. |
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i love this anime and i need to get more of it. im up to the 4th volume and i want more. the beginning is really fast, but the series rocks. i dont pick at this anime at all. i think its awesome, end of comment.
and this is a jewel that has gone completely unnoticed by a vast majority of anime fans. seriously, u people out there need to check this out. the first few episodes can turn you off, but keep watching and it just keeps on getting better. |
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bahamut623
Posts: 1463 |
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It's strange that alot of people don't seem to like the beginning. The first few episodes had me instantly hooked. I remember when I first saw it fansubbed I watched the first few episodes several times over because it's just so fun(which I almost never do with anime). |
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Vash024
 Posts: 16 |
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I think this overall was a good anime that doesn't get enough credit. It's a solid story that I think has only a few drawbacks(maybe getting a little slow in the middle). I think you will appreciate it more if you understand what kind of series Yoshiyuki Tomino was trying to make. This kind of series is the exact opposite of some of his older series (namely Zeta Gundam, Victory Gundam, and Space Runaway Ideon). I haven't seen it yet, but I hear the Turn "A" Gundam is very similar to King Gainer.
Basically, I'd say stick with this series. It's very solid in its delivery, has very likable characters, and is very creative with its mecha battles/designs. It's not epic by any means, but it's a very relieving show to watch in its lightheartedness at times. |
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TranceLimit174
Posts: 962 |
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Turn A Gundam is essentially Ideon rehashed. After watching Ideon (and even during) I got reminded of Turn A several times. So really Turn A is more of a "What if Ideon was a Gundam?" |
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bahamut623
Posts: 1463 |
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They're only similar because they have the same character designer, so the character's have a similar look about them. But they're two very different types of mecha anime. |
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TranceLimit174
Posts: 962 |
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That wasn't the only thing I noticed. There was the overall pacing of the series, as the focus was more on character drama. Also there's the mystery of each respective mecha that is slowly (and I do mean slowly) revealed as the series progresses, both having respectivley apocalyptic potential. Both shows also took their time, as plot heavy episodes were far and few between. To me it just seems like Tomino took his template for Ideon and used it for Turn A.
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Vash024
Posts: 16 |
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I haven't watched Ideon nor Turn "A" yet, but from my original conception, they are very different series. I would classify Ideon as being "angry and depressed" Tomino, whereas I would classify Turn "A" (and Gainer for that matter) as "happy Tomino." He created these two series when I think he was given more artistic freedom over his work, and thus created something he enjoyed very much to make. I think something that would make this case stronger is the clear differences between the Zeta Gundam TV series and the Zeta Gundam compilation movies. Tomino admitted in the interviews in Chicago that he made Zeta Gundam the way it was to try and get people to change their views on anime (more on drama than just robots). Now, he admitted being more lighthearted about it and wants to create things positive from now on. |
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bahamut623
Posts: 1463 |
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I don't know if you were responding to my comment, but to make it clear I was syaing that Turn A and Overman have the same character designer. I haven't seen Ideon but I would like to. |
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TranceLimit174
Posts: 962 |
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King...King...King Gainer! Metal Overma....sorry, that theme song's been stuck in my head all day since I finished this series. As it went on it truly became outstanding.
I really think Tomino is a master of characterization. It's part of the reason why I think Gundam is so successful, because he always manages to assemble a crew that all have very different personalities and rarely do they fall into stereotypes. The strength of the characters is what really carried this show for me and because of that I don't really care about some of the plotholes (there are some, but they're rather minor and not all that consequential). One character who really amazed me was Adett Kissler. She transformed from an outright b**** into a likeable one. At first I thought she was nothing more than a fanservice villain character, but once she spoiler[switched sides] and we saw more of a comical/childish side to her I think she really got fleshed out and added a very nice level of energy to otherwise low key moments. I don't really give a damn Princess Ana was around for nothing more than having her pets and the sake of being cute. That girl is just plain adorable. Gain still holds up as being my favorite character in this series. I was so glad that he got his own final battle (and he even got to be the star) which was given just as much attention and care as King Gainer's. He deserved it and boy does he shine. Even though he still gets on my nerves, I found myself liking Gainer later on in the series. Sure he still announces everything that's happening, but he truly is an unlikely hero and I think his appeal is the fact that he's that geek hero a lot of us (males at least) dream of being. I wouldn't call him weak but at the same time he was stil quite vulnerable (as a character). His will to fight and help the people on Exodus really helped in establishing that balance. The creators of Eureka 7 must have seen this series and taken a page from it because Anemone is Cynthia. They even have the same VA in English. Only difference is Anemone is extremely ugly in my opinion and much more annoying with her constant screaming. Cynthia is much more calculating and doesn't instantly get all psychotic which I think makes her more deadly. I also loved the rest of the characters as they all helped color this series and are what make it such a joy to watch. While this series obviously just reeks of Tomino, for some reason I drew a ZZ Gundam comparison in particular. I don't really know of any upbeat and fun Tomino series outside of this and ZZ so I think that's why. Given how bad ZZ was, I really think he learned from his mistakes which helped with Gainer. For one the gags actually work and to me I think Keijinan and Enge are who Beecha and Mondo were supposed to be. Maybe it was the fact that ZZ had to work within the continuity of the Universal Century is what bogged it down. But if ZZ is what it took to make King Gainer I'm happy for the trade. I was shocked at the consistency in the animation. There isn't one episode where this series series slouches, and near the end it only gets better. Visually it really is a treat. Any CG work doesn't look out of place and everything has a great fluidity to it which strengthens the intensity of each battle. While i'm on that note the Overmen themselves truly are impressive. Each one has a real organic feel to them. It's an effect that hasn't really been mimmicked since Eva and I almost want to go so far as to say that Gainer does it just as well and possibly even better due to the animation. All of the Overmen are incredibly flexible and move seamlessly (just look at Dominator's transformations) and it makes me want to get my hands on that Gainer Revoltech much more. Incredible ending too. Maybe I'm a sucker for this particular type of ending, but to me it works and I love it. The whole cast joining together to fight an unstoppable power, love confessions, intense battles, and to top it all off the theme song playing. I swear that aspect is not used enough. It could be my personal taste but when a theme song kicks in during a battle (especially a final one) I think it really adds to the mood and gets me choked up. Then again it could be attributed to how catchy the theme song is. To top it all off at the end Princess Ana even spoiler[sings the theme song and does the dance too (technically she 'invents' the dance to the song)! During the opening is one thing, but in the actual show is just icing on the cake.] Tomino also never looses sight of the lighthearted tone he set forth at the begining even during the most dramatic moments. He always found ways to inject humor, and it always got at least a chuckle and was probably needed. The show never takes itself too seriously which adds to how wonderful it is. Oh and one of the best parts in the ending is when you FINALLY find out about/meet spoiler[Karen and find out that her whole relationship with Gain was nothing more than a one night stand. "A wild man is only good for night of lovin." A classic line and I cracked up when I heard it.] A prime example of how the series never looses it's sense of humor. By the way Bahamut I think I figured out King Gainer's Overskill. The Overskill of the plot device! In all seriousness though it's probably the fact that King Gainer's type isn't limited to one Overskill. If anything it's Overskill is probably the fact that it can manipulate Photon Max Energy which would kind of explain why it can do as much as it can. It's unfortunate that this series was and is going to be overlooked by many. A great show that really refreshes the mecha genre while keeping it old school. It's a shame I didn't pick this up on it's initial release as it deserves to do better than it probably did. I hope more people check it out as it really is worth the viewing. That way more people can sing with me. King...King...King Gainer....[/spoiler] |
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The Seventh Son
Posts: 380 Location: Where your missing socks end up. |
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people really need to watch this series. like mentioned, its like how mech used to be, before all the f***ing angst. and how it should still be. but damn Gundam SEED is hogging all of the attention right now, that and EVA comming back, somewhat. i saw some small box figures at a small con i went to in october and i saw gainer figures and i was shocked to hell. didn't buy them cause i wanted to preserve my money supply, but if i had the money, i wouldve bought them all.
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