Forgotten mecha shows?

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AceWhatever
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

Gun x Sword was...okay. I felt like it cribbed too much stuff from other works to let any of its original ideas shine through. Van in general was a pretty one note and unlikable protagonist and his supporting cast aside from the El Dorado 5 were forgettable to downright annoying (Joshua). The show also treats the revenge plot as a matter of course rather than something to comment about or develop which ends up killing any form of catharsis you might have gotten out of its resolution.

Your enjoyment of the mecha action will depend mostly on how much you like Dann of Thursday's design (which wasn't much for me).
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

Galvion and Srungle
Mafty
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

Would Schwarzesmarken count? It's a Muv Luv spin off set during the 80s; basically think a cold war spy thriller, with alien invaders and giant robots. It's a pretty interesting story that does still have alot of harem elements. I'm not sure how popular Muv Luv is to being with (though apparently there will be another sequel this year), but Schwarzesmarken seems to be kinda forgotten.
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Chris
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

Mafty wrote: Fri Feb 26, 2021 11:20 am Would Schwarzesmarken count? It's a Muv Luv spin off set during the 80s; basically think a cold war spy thriller, with alien invaders and giant robots. It's a pretty interesting story that does still have alot of harem elements. I'm not sure how popular Muv Luv is to being with (though apparently there will be another sequel this year), but Schwarzesmarken seems to be kinda forgotten.
It might....it definitely flew way more under the radar than Total Eclipse did when it got a Western release. As far as I remember, I don't even think Schwarzesmarken has gotten a home video release in the West.
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yazi88
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

Correct, Schwarzmarken never got a western release. Kind of a shame, it was quite darker and also got to the point more than Total Eclipse did. And it was hinted to be more related to Total Eclipse as the main character of Schwarzmarken is hinted to be the evil mastermind of the end events of Total Eclipse anime, given its the same voice actor and have very similar features/characteristics.
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

Two more examples both by Kawamori

Nobunaga The Fool: set in a universe with two Stars(really earth like planets): The East resembling the Sengoku Period, and the West the Middle Ages, each populated by various historical and mythological characters. They do battle in Escaflowne esque giant war armours for control over the planets destinies. Even for Kawamori the premise is a bit unusual,but still very engaging. It seems to be way more popular in Japan (where it was a full Multimedia project) than in the West (though that might be due to people not being as familiar with the historical figures).

Unit Pandora(aka Last Hope) set in a post apocalyptic world where biomechanical creatures attack humanity, it follows and eccentric scientist, his adopted sister, and a group of quirky pilots, as they fight against the creatures and try to get the world back to normal. Like a lot of other Kawamori works it focuses more on the story and characters than outright mecha action( a bit of a shame cause the mechs do look pretty cool), it aired on Netflix , and sort of seems to have faded away after it’s run.
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MythSearcher
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

I think we have pretty much answered the reason about this question by now.
Most Mecha shows, like any other anime, movie, drama, etc. are forgotten after a few years of its release.
Only a small portion of shows gathered enough of a popularity to have sequels or is remembered.
Some shows will get some kind of revival in a decade or two, or get some kind of decade late merchandise, likely because of the technological advancement which made it easier to make better looking goods nowadays and the IP holder understands that is the time when the audience of the show are now grown up and has the financial capability to buy expensive goods.
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

Well, I doubt that any of us here recognize every shows in this video (ok, we aren't as active as before, but still...). Here clips from various ero OVA that feature mech or robot (mostly SFW, there're few heavily-censored nudity that you won't see anything).

It isn't like anyone expect these titles to have lasting legacy...
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MythSearcher
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

Kuruni wrote: Tue Mar 09, 2021 8:59 am Well, I doubt that any of us here recognize every shows in this video (ok, we aren't as active as before, but still...). Here clips from various ero OVA that feature mech or robot (mostly SFW, there're few heavily-censored nudity that you won't see anything).

It isn't like anyone expect these titles to have lasting legacy...
Hmm, I've actually watched the one around the 5:00 mark. I believe it was a few years ago when people say that it is the equivalent of Laputa in the porn anime genre.

Thinking of which, since the title is show, I guess games also count?
Baldr Force actually has some pretty good game play where you can customize your own mecha and fight in the top view 2D map. Well, bits are the brainless weapon of choice because you can then just focus on dodging enemy fire.(by running around randomly and stay as fall from the enemy as possible.)
There's also the POWER DoLLS series by Kogado, which got its OVA adaptation, also featuring customization of your own mecha and I played 5 or 6, where you control a team of 3 units in a 3rd person shooter mode, kinda like Zeonic Front or Rainbow 6, but the other games of the title are Real time tactics SLG.
And then there is the similar RTT SLG Blue Flow and Blue Blaster.
Kogado has(had?) pretty good mecha design for these.
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DragoMaster009
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

It may not strictly qualify for the purpose of this thread, but how were either Armored Police Metal Jack or Sonic Soldier Borgman?
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

DragoMaster009 wrote: Tue Mar 09, 2021 1:39 pm It may not strictly qualify for the purpose of this thread, but how were either Armored Police Metal Jack or Sonic Soldier Borgman?
I don't recall the plots, but somehow Borgman gave me very strong memories of another, non-mecha show, Zillion, which I remember at least the background story and a few main plot points(like they changed weapons mid story).

Yes, I know they look totally different in style, and the only resemblance is like both have a team of 3 with 2 males and 1 female and the blonde male uses a rifle as oppose to the brown haired male uses a handgun.
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

I guess that pretty much everyone here have watched Venus War, so how do you guys think of it? After finishing Origin, I suddenly wanted to go back to Yasuhiko's other works. I like Giant Gorg, but find Crusher Joe a let down. I wonder if I should continue with Venus War?
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Chris
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

I like Venus Wars the anime, but it's a majorly reimagined story from the original manga, which in my opinion was better. The manga is longer and has plenty of characters and arcs that weren't in the anime. It's long out of print, but it can be obtained through....methods. If you really dig the 80s aesthetic, soundtrack, the great animation, etc., you'll probably enjoy the Venus Wars anime.
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Mafty
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

I don't know if this would count but Mai-Hime? It involves a group of schoolgirls who have the power to summon animal themed Mini-Mecha, who get drawn into a conspiracy. It's sort of a Mahou Shojo for Mech Otaku's; as the story gets darker it even has similarities to Madoka Magica, which it predates by several years. However the show has it's issues; fanservice takes over the entire show at times, at the expense of the plot. The darker parts of the story only really start well over halfway through the show, and a result parts of the conspiracy angle don't really make sense. It had a sequel which also messed around with comedy and fanservice till it got darker, but the franchise seems to be rather obscure now.

Revisions it streamed on Netflix a few years back. It has a group of kids who form a Quasi- Sentai team with piloted robots, to defend part of Tokyo after it gets dragged into the future. The story gets a lot darker, and begins to subvert how a show like this might typically go. (SPOILER) the end seemed to leave an opening for a sequel, but I don't know how successful this show actually was, so it might not get one.

Also what does everyone think of Mars Daybreak and Zone of the Enders? They both seem to be more comedy focused, so how is the Mech design/action?
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

Mafty wrote: Fri Mar 12, 2021 8:05 pm STUFF
i watched all of the mentioned shows. havent finished revisions though.

Sunrise's Mai franchise- i say its more along the lines of Tech based(or in this case techno organic looking) magical girls. the girl's Child look like mechs but are clearrly magical in nature. being tied to the HiME's most important person is another big indicator. Otome also runs on except that one has the Master and Otome life link.
and i will say the fanservice and drama mix doesnt bother me that much. and i've watched both HiME and Otome 2 times.

the anime Sora Kake Shoujo, iirc made by the same peeps who made the Mai animes, is an actual mecha show. and also combines fanservice and drama later on(it does have a quite literal COLONY DROP!!! a colony voiced by Fukuyama Jun no less)

Mars Daybreak and ZOE i mentioned a few pages back. i like enough. Dearest Mother also liked it.
the mecha in Drabreak is interesting because they only work underwater. complete with oxygen wire attached to their flagship iirc.

Dolore IS PINK! a pink mecha with an AI of a woman but has the mentality of a young girl(voiced by Kuwashima Houkou at that) and her pilot is an old man whose family is as broken as his wallet.

but..i cant recall the quality/type of mecha action for both shows..been a long time since i saw both shows.
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Mafty
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

Would Rideback count? It's one of the few publications from its underground Manga to get a Anime adaptation (the other is Bokurano). It has people in a futuristic transforming motorcycle club form a resistance against the corrupt government. Funimation licensed it, but it doesn't seem to be mentioned much.
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Chris
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

I think Rideback would count. I liked it a lot at the start but was ultimately quite disappointed by it. I think it would've worked better if it had a smaller focus as just a mecha sports story and the global military angle.
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

Heroic Age?

Basically it concerns a war between several tribes made up of Humans who use Mecha and Spaceships, Giant Insect Aliens, and beings who can transform into Giant Robot Kaiju Hybrids. The animation by Xebec is very well done, and there are a lot of great battle scenes.
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

Would Dai Guard count? It's a Super Robot parody Anime; that manages to work both in being funny, and also have some great actions scenes. Basically it's about a group of Salarymen piloting a public security company giant robot against invading monsters, and they end up spending more time fighting bureaucracy than the monsters at times. The animation by Xebec(who seems to have a knack for ending up with high quality animated yet forgotten/underrated Mech Anime) is mostly very well done, and it holds up well over 20 years later.
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Re: Forgotten mecha shows?

Hades Project Zeorymer
I found the DVDs at a Goodwill in perfect condition. I had never heard of this anime but I am enjoying it. I have never heard of people talk about this series before.

Bonus: This is not a mecha show but a mecha game for the Saturn with amazing digital anime cutscenes from the 90s. It is called Quo Vadis 2 (first game is a ship game). The animation is amazing and the mecha designs are made by gundam and macross veterans. Sadly the studio spent so much money on the anime cut scenes they went under a short time after the game came out. go to youtube and check it out
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