I have no idea if anyone is reading these posts, but I may as well stick with them. Tengen Toppa Gurren-Lagann is a very good anime, and it’s at this point where it starts to get really good, I think. Episode 17 is the second full-on reset button (#16 was a recap episode, for the record, though I guess you can’t complain with an episode count of 27). Every time you thought you had a handle on what this show was, it moved the goalposts – and it managed to get more interesting every time it did so.
The block of episodes in the first timeframe had many great moments, but I could see where they might come off a bit dated at times. But the stuff after this seven-year timeskip is another matter. It’s much more cerebral and frankly complex, almost like an in-series switch from shounen to seinen. That Nakashima Kazuki is capable of writing this sort of material just makes it that much more frustrating that he doesn’t do it more often (for anime at least). He’s playing with some very interesting ideas here, stuff you’d have no way to see coming based on the first two major arcs.
One of those themes that’s quite relevant to the real world is the whole idea of what happens after insurgencies win. Transitioning from revolutionary to government is historically difficult to say the least, and history is littered with tragic examples. Simon isn’t really cut out for it – his heart is in the battlefield and in a tunnel. Another option is to go full-on treacherous cad like Rossiu, who’s unfortunately cut out for this life all too well. Looking back the seeds of this were already planted during the first two arcs – there were clues that Rossiu was capable of taking this path. But this is only a sampler of what’s to come in that department.
There are other problems to worry about, though – namely the Spiral King’s dying warning about what will happen when one million apes are on the surface. Rossiu has been terrorizing anyone who wants to keep living underground so that no one escapes his attention (they’ve turned to Viral as their savior, ironically), but he hasn’t managed to do a very good job keeping track. Admittedly humanity has colonized the surface unrealistically quickly, but Kiyoh and Dayakka’s new baby is apparently the millionth. And then all hell breaks loose, just like Lordgenome said it would.
It would be interesting to watch this stretch of episodes again not knowing how things turn out – impossible of course, but interesting. I feel like I can see the direction things in every twist, but that could just be because I know what I know. It’s a really fascinating process this – almost like a relationship drama devoting the third act to what happens after the main couple actually get together, and their relationship turns sour. It’s really sophisticated and smart writing, and fundamentally different from the first two arcs in both tone and substance.
Anchen
June 29, 2020 at 9:50 pmI’ve still been reading them periodically, but I haven’t been following along on a rewatch so trying to remember exact details of some of the stuff is pretty hard save for some of the big episodes. I do agree that while slightly jarring, the way the writing and story evolved in this series was something really special. I never would have really guessed from where it started that it would turn out like it did, both from plot points and from just the sheer scale that it would get to.
Ryan
June 29, 2020 at 10:24 pmI have also been reading periodically and I appreciate the level of detail in these articles.
You may want to add some analytics to your blog so you can get a better handle on your audience .
Guardian Enzo
June 29, 2020 at 10:34 pmI mean, I have analytics so I know more or less who’s reading what, but when no one ever comments it makes you wonder.
Collectr
June 29, 2020 at 11:12 pmAs the others have said, silence is not indifference.
The final arc won’t lack its GAR moments, but it is, as you noted, tonally different. The first two arcs, even with Kamina’s death, had a fairly archetypal shounen feel – plucky boy discovers hidden powers, defeats a foe, collects nakama, powers up, runs into a more powerful enemy, defeats it, powers up… stir and repeat until the Final Boss. Except… there is no Happily Ever After. Some shounen series may provide a cursory epilogue to show the characters’ futures (Sonic Soldier Borgman, for example, in its AMV), but TTGL is the only one I know that explores the idea of consequences so deeply and thoroughly.
Toni
June 29, 2020 at 11:18 pmNot a lot to say. I’d just rewatched this for the first time in a decade o so last fall. Unlike you, I didn’t remember anything except that Kamina was going to die and that for some reason my favorite character was the one with the banana robot.
slazer
June 29, 2020 at 11:19 pmThey’re being read!! Thanks so much for doing these, Enzo—between this and Baccano and Moribito it’s a great (albeit replacement) season of anime.
Guardian Enzo
June 30, 2020 at 10:23 amBittersweet, given what the upcoming schedules look like.
ibtachi
June 30, 2020 at 1:07 amI’d never watched TTGL and it had been on my watch-list for ages. You blogging it was the perfect excuse to dive in so thanks for that, Enzo.
I was watching it alongside your blog posts, but after last episode I just HAD to binge the rest on my own time. This is definitely a watershed episode, and catapults the narrative to undeniably greater heights. I’ve finished the series now, and I’ll keep coming back to your posts — but I was floored by how grand the scope and vision of the series was. Meticulously planned, excellently paced and impossibly epic in scope… its really quite a gem of a series and well deserving of all the lavish praise that its received over the years.
Guardian Enzo
June 30, 2020 at 10:25 amThat’s pretty much my take on it, and thanks for posting. Doesn’t it make you frustrated, though, that Imaishi and Nakashima have never come close to it since? Nakashima also write Oh! Edo Rocket (same season as TTGL, ROFL) which was likewise very deep and complex.
ibtachi
June 30, 2020 at 2:37 pmAbsolutely, Kill La Kill was a waste of time and P&S was serviceable at best. I dunno if you heard but Nakashima’s signed on to be the lead writer for the Cyberpunk 2077 anime tie-in, which… has the potential to be, both great, or a disappointment. Though, with the uptick in Netflix’s anime quality and needing to please CDPR (for whom good writing is basically a brand image at this point) — I’m cautiously optimistic he’ll bring his A-game.
I’ll probably check out Oh! Edo Rocket at some point as well, another one that has been on my radar for a while.
Rita
July 1, 2020 at 8:04 amI think the problem is your site seems to be home to a lot of lurkers like me. I’ve been reading basically every single one of your posts, even the ones for series I had no interest in – and yes, I have picked up several series because of them – but I rarely have anything to add. There’s only so many times I can think of saying ‘I agree with you and that was an entertaining take and analysis’ before I feel like it’ll get old haha.
But if it helps, that’s how I feel most of the time.
Guardian Enzo
July 1, 2020 at 8:35 amHeh, lurkers are fine (and you comment pretty often, actually) – always welcome. I think that’s just part of the dealio.
ruicarlov
July 2, 2020 at 7:25 amLurking and appreciating this throwback. TTGL is one of those memorable shows that stuck in the collective fandom. I Lost count how many times I came back to watch specific scenes that always brigthened my day. There’s so many larger than life caracters and speeches that this is a true world of ham, and I love it for this.
Princess Usagi
July 3, 2020 at 10:05 amThis is my first time watching TTGL and I am so glad you are covering it; I might otherwise not have picked it up to watch, and I am enjoying the show and the posts! I was definitely surprised by yet another shift in tone/plot, I didn’t expect the time-skip; I really love how there are so many shifts brilliantly and smoothly made and I can’t wait to finish watching the series!
Guardian Enzo
July 3, 2020 at 11:06 amBuckle up, you’re in for a wild ride. And don’t forget to watch the movies after. The first is mostly recap but “Lagann-hen” is awesomeness.