Backstory…
Getter Robo is one of the OGs of all Mecha. Originally debuting in early 70’s in its own Manga by Ken Iwaksai and Go Nagai(Magzinger Z) It was the first combing and transforming Mecha piloted by humans. Its one of the most recognisable Mecha in Japan and was featured for many years in the Super Robot Wars Video game series. There have been several anime versions, most notable in the 70’s Getter Robo and Getter Robo G. G was one of earliest animes ever to be translated and packaged across the globe. In North America is became part of Jim Terry’s, 80’s Force five block ... where audiences knew it as Star Avengers, spawning a Mattel toy line as well. Diaclone, Robotech, the Transformers were all inspired by Getter and in recent times Gurren Lagen story takes heavily and is inspired from Getter. Many anime character types and other troupes started in Getter. There have been additional Getter animes such as the 90’s Go Getter Robo and Getter Armageddon(Shin Getter), a few one off’s and reimages but the manga is the keeper of the franchises continuity. Unfortunately, Ken, who was still writing the manga died in 2005, Getter Robo Arc concludes his final manga work in anime form.
I waited til the series concluded before writing this review because I was skeptical at first and also knew that CGI was involved in the series. It didn’t look good after the first few eps but after episode 4 or so things started to kick into high gear. It’s a hard series to just jump into because of the history but this series was made to conclude Getter. It would be just as hard jumping into the final Season of Attack on Titan or Death Note if you didn’t watch the previous seasons. So, I would recommend at least reading some manga first.
The Story - 10
The premise for Arc is the same as previous Getter Robo. Three different pilots with their own distinct personalities who pilot three different units, Getter Arc, Getter Kirik and Getter Khan. Each unit can take the lead when combining to form a new Robot with its own unique abilities, weapons and techniques. This version was invoked by Buddhist thought in naming the mecha. The three pilots are Takuma Nagare(Arc), son of Ryome Nagare the original pilot of Getter 1, Kamui Sho, the half human/half dinosaur empire(original series antagonist faction) hybrid and Baku Yamagishi (a Buddhist) the brother of one of Shin Getters pilots. The Mecha is powered by Getter Rays the most powerful energy in the universe and obtaining this energy was always the primary objective of the enemies in the series(think spiral energy from GL). As the series has evolved the mecha itself has it’s own mystic, for it seems to have its own consciousness, the shows alludes that this new generation of pilots are the children of Getter and were chosen by it. They are led by Jin Hayato, the original pilot of Getter 2, his character is the founder of the loner bad-ass anime character trope. He takes the place of, Professor Satome who has now passed on, the creator of Getter and the Getter energy that is stored at the Satome Laboratory. This new series follows the pilots and additional cast of characters in the universe at they battle the Andromeda Stelleration. A race of beings from the future who have come back to destroy the Earth and Getter. This story wise was pretty deep, simply because there is so much back story and source material to pull from. There were so many cameos and historic plot points that they weaved through the series that just made all the manga click, great fan service to close out Kennys legacy. Overall was very intriguing and kept me wanting to know more. Adding in lighting as the first few frames to some episodes were very nostalgic. Story was def a 9.5 for me but you gotta watch past episode 4 or so.
Characters & Mecha - 8
Some of the newer characters where a bit boneheaded and obtuse but when the light shone on the older characters (previous pilots and supporting cast) it showed tremendous growth and a sense of completion to their arcs. Kamui for example is one of the most frustrating characters to understand(he flip flops), where as Jin really holds down the series as the most consistent character, and seeing him through the series you can see how he has evolved from the loner to the leader. It was very satisfying watching this as a fan. There is so many different types of Mecha shown in the series and the anime reveals the story behind Getter Emperor the most powerful Mecha EVER. The emperor reveal and backstory is what I’ve been waiting for and it didn’t disappoint. Watching the D2s flying around( fleet version of Getter G) and the earth defence mecha reminded me of Robotech mecha. Seeing Shin Getter and enemy mecha showed just how much mecha anime like this have evolved. Its about the quantity over quality now which is good and bad depending on how you consume your anime. 8 on characters but primarily for the older ones, and I don’t want to spoil the ones they do bring back so not going into depth here.
The Animation - 8
The animation other than the CGI is based of Iwaksai 70’s Manga art style and would be difficult to enjoy if you are from a newer generation of Anime consumer. That being said it wasn’t that bad (although at some times it can be cringe) to look at. If you don’t like it, you should also throw away your Nintendo Switch because this series, like the Switch does not use the latest technology to deliver as compared to its contemporaries but heavily dependent on original art style, which was great at times. While I’m always skeptical about CGI in anime, tech has grown in the past few years and integrated much better. CGI was primarily used to tackle the Mecha scenes (not all) and at first look like a hot mess. But when we get to about episode 5, it looks waaay better, slick and seamless. By that point the D2’s looked so nice, so good in action with GCI, it’s the best CGI mecha I’ve seen in a SERIES. It got better as the series went on so I had to give kudos to the animators, they captured some good CGI mecha here.
MUSIC - 9
The themes were done by the legendary JAM project and also weaved through the series were the old themes and scene music. Heats was the theme from Shin and was a huge song theme song in the late 90s, look it up on Youtube. Again a lot of nostalgia.
Overall -9
If you’re a fan a must watch. If your new, read some source material you will be greatly surprised with the watch. Was really satisfying.
Alternative Titles Synonyms: Getter Robo Āḥ, Getter Robo Ah, Getter Robo Ark Japanese: ゲッターロボ アーク Information Type: TV Episodes: 13 Status: Finished Airing Aired: Jul 4, 2021 to Sep 26, 2021 Premiered: Summer 2021 Broadcast: Sundays at 21:00 (JST) Licensors: Sentai Filmworks Source: Manga Theme: Mecha Demographic: Shounen Duration: 24 min. per ep. Rating: PG-13 - Teens 13 or older Statistics Score: 6.331 (scored by 2,175 users) 1 indicates a . Ranked: #82802 2 based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded. Popularity: #7951 Members: 5,909 Favorites: 27 Available AtResources |
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