When I first asked my friend to describe this anime to me, he attempted to make the shape of an exponential curve with both his arms, accompanied by barely human but very triumphant noises coming from his mouth. After watching the series, though, I've found myself doing more or less the same thing whenever I recommend Hiroyuki Imaishi's acclaimed anime to other people.
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| Kamina, Simon, Yoko and the Gurren Lagann mecha (Background) |
Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann (or Gurren Lagann for short) tells the story of human-kind's resurgence to power on an Earth set in the distant future. On this Earth, the surface is dominated by wildlife and half human 'beast-men' who are hellbent on oppressing the human race by forcing them to live in underground mining settlements. It is in one of these settlements that our protagonist, young Simon the driller, comes across a mysterious 'Core Drill' that unlocks an even more mysterious robot buried in the soil beneath his home. Edged on by his over-the-top, in-your-face brother (from an ambiguous mother), Kamina, Simon and his newfound mecha (dubbed the 'Lagann') become the catalyst for a human revolution of gargantuan scale.
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| Simon and the Core Drill |
This is one of my favourite anime for three reasons: the story, the characters, and what it says about the human spirit.
The most appropriate word to use to describe this particular anime is an adjective that is perhaps overused in our current internet generation: epic. The series becomes more epic in epically increasing amounts with every single passing moment in every single passing episode. From a meager existence underground, we are taken on a journey that starts with a boy fighting only to protect his overzealous older brother, and ends with a man defending universe in the preservation of hope and passion for all intelligent beings who inhabit it. The progression and suspense of the plot is such that it is difficult to give any detail at all without ruining some major plot reveals (which, by the way, start from episode two and do not stop).
The scale of this series surpasses that of all modern speculative fiction that I have ever come across (save for a select few, such as Dune and all its sequels). And I do not make that statement lightly. The ever increasing scale of the plot is represented quite literally in the expansion of the size of the robots in this series. Simon's initially modest 'Lagann' combines with other robots which fit into each other like Matryoshka dolls. It makes for some very fun and very entertaining transformation sequences. Admittedly, the anime starts out somewhat slow. The first few episodes leave a little to be desired. But the series gains momentum. Fast.
More importantly, though, this anime does most television shows are only able to do superficially - it affects your emotions in a truly profound way. The characters are vivid, detailed, tangible and each relatable in a very real sense. As the stakes in the plot become higher, so does your emotional investment in each of the characters. On their journey they meet and recruit a host of other characters, including the iconic Yoko - a top grade marksman with little desire for clothing. Each character is given adequate attention and detail, and it never feels crowded on the screen.
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| From the left: Kamina and Simon (left and centre) as they see the surface for the first time after escaping the underground with Yoko (right) |
Such is the skill of veteran screenwriter Kazuki Nakashima's characterisation, that not only do you find yourself on the verge of tears at Simon's struggles, but you find yourself in the odd position of feeling sorry for the show's supposed villains as well. This anime is not a simple good-guy, bad-guy story. The characters on both sides are surprisingly complex and fleshed out in such a way that the struggles of all are laid out to bare.
And finally, the message that this anime sends out about the human spirit. Though somewhat naive and idealistic, it is delivered in a deftly subtle but breathtaking way. Ultimately the story and the characters in Gurren Lagann serve as metaphors for the nature of perseverance and willpower. The very premise of the anime - having mecha that are somehow powered by the personal impetus and willpower of the pilot - further that particular purpose.
What sets Gurren Lagann apart from other, much cheesier Super Robot Anime, though, is that the discourse provided on the nature of modern apathy is presented in quite a meaningfully sophisticated manner. Over the course of the series we are shown how standing up and saying no to injustice is a step towards a more hopeful future. In this framework, the anime subtly and intelligently explores the nature of revolution and its need in a stagnant and apathetic society.
Those who have been through the same education on English Literature as I have will groan, but to describe this series, I will fall back on an outdated cliche: this anime is a triumph of the human spirit. It is rare to find a science fiction story that works in so many fantastical elements whilst maintaining a close link with your emotions. Too often do other shows try to do the same things and make us scoff and roll our eyes cynically. It is singularly impossible for any audience to bear a cynical grudge against this series. Nakashima and Imaishi have managed to find that rare balance between inspiring idealism and naive foolishness.
Gurren Lagann has almost everything. It is comedic and it is tragic. It has love and it has heartbreaking loss. It takes you to the heights of triumph, only to plunge you back into the depths of despair where it seems like there is no hope - until Simon decides that it's not over and spins his drill even faster.
I challenge you to watch the final scene of the series and not shed manly tears.
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