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no1ryomafan · 5 months

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So I finished mazinkaiser awhile ago after months of procrastination on it and for one reason or another I’m not gonna give my solid thoughts on it but there is one specific thing I wanna point out, not as a critique but more so a confusion. That being: I find it weird how Mazinkaiser isn’t the turning point for Mazinger where they finally go “hey the robot is sentient” because it’s not yet near the end literally EVERYONE talks to Venus A as if shes actually a person:

I’m not saying this as a criticism for the reason of my already biased to vaguely sentient robots-because as much as I prefer this angle with mecha, I understand not every and all mecha can approach this because sometimes the robot is JUST a narrative tool and not a character, which is fine-however I’m confused with Mazinger of all things didn’t take this approach when there’s already so much emphasis on Mazinger being tied to gods. I mean, apart from the fact the robots are based off Greek Mythology and there is a constant message of “will it become God or Devil” which feels like it warrants this enough, it would start to make sense if the robot grew sentient because Mazinkaiser is treated as the ULTIMATE Mazinger. (And where have we heard a case where the “ultimate” form of a robot starts to be the one that displays more self awareness *cough* GETTAH🗿)

Especially also within this ova- it seems to do stuff on its own accord to PROTECT Koji, like going on auto pilot as he’s knocked out and somehow keeping him safe from being burned alive in magma, but I cannot tell if this IS a indicator Mazinkaiser is actually sentient or if it’s just all auto pilot. Oh and it’s a more minor thing but also just- the human poses Kaiser and Venus take during the beach episode… I cannot tell if that’s something they wanted or if their pilots just posed them comfortably because lines seem to blur with the robots just being treated as the extensive of the pilots. (Venus is literally based off of Sayakas appearance after all)

It’s just weird Nagai never went this route and just stuck to metaphorical stuff, when it feels like SOMETHING he would do given the nature of his stories and yet the only fully sentient Mazinger media I know is Zero. Of course I still have such a limited window on Mazinger so if this is me actually being wrong please feel free to correct me, but I still will never not find it weird Mazinkaiser lacks this aspect asides from maybe vague allusions to it that may or may not be implying it. Maybe if I ever rewatch it or find more Mazinkaiser content specifically I’ll be able to piece things together a bit more.

#meg text #mazinkaiser #mecha rambles #also before any asks I have also seen SKL and let me tell ya despite how off the rails it already is it makes Kaiser even WEIRDER #SKL!Kaiser is like- supposed to metaphorically be fucking satan and your telling me that robot ISN’T sentient?#the manga straight up implies it drives its pilots INSANE which just proves Kaido and Magami are that off their rockers to handle it #oh and just the fact Kaiser pops out the ground for them whenever… that’s either a very specific auto pilot or its sentient #granted the fact I know mazinkaiser originated from SRW from it being “born from getter rays” does not make my ordeal any less conflicting #obviously they retcon that out but like-#your gonna have a mazinger be born from a getter- SHIN GETTER no less and NOT be sentient?#and again I’m not even mad it’s not the getter approach bc not all mecha’s need to become cosmic horrors (even if it be sexy ngl I mean)#but it’s weird go fucking nagai never once considered in his crazy ass mecha already to make his robot LITERALLY sentient #and there being consequences for that on top of all the dangers Koji has to face being in this damn robot #again maybe I’m just a idiot and some of this is true bc I’m not the most knowledgeable on mazinger aside from the basics and it’s impact #but sure as hell never seen anyone mention this and I doubt it’s just a factor of “it’s niche” when it’s fucking mazinger

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everydaydg · 4 months

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Some thoughts on Mazinkaiser! (2001)

I was expecting a fun time and I sure got one.

Mazinkaiser is short 7 episode mecha OVA animated by Brain's Base (Well known for their works on Getter Robo, Natsume's Book of Friends, "Durarara!!" and so on) that is an absolute love letter to Go Nagai's work, bringing an beautifully animated thrill ride of a series.

Mazinkaiser is just... a joy to watch. Its not too deep, its not too complicated, its just... koji kabuto gets his ass beat and then finds a robot with the power to become a god or a demon. While I do enjoy when my mecha delves into deeper themes using the big robot as a narrative device... its fun seeing when the robot is just a big robot and just a simple simbol of hope.

Mazinkaiser doesnt really go too deep on the idea of becoming a god or demon thing as much as Mazinger Zero, and it doesnt really have to honestly, but the theme is kinda present.

So in a runtime of arround 210 minutes (This is just a rough estimate assuming that every episode is 30 minutes long, most hover arround the 25-27 minute mark so that number is pretty off), how does it fare? pretty damm well

Its really enjoyable, kinda episodic in a way. It doesnt really shoot for a sequencial story like that of "Change! Getter Robo!" but there are elements that carry over from one episode to the next.

It is mostly a monster of the week type of deal which is neato!

Ya get to see this big hulking robot defeat things with increasing stakes with some jawdropping animation.

I know saying Brain's Base animations are fantastic has a similar energy to saying water is wet but god damm it, Water IS wet

Its a treat to the eyes

Fantastic use of color, particularly black. Using strong shadows while not shying away from beautifully vibrant reds.

Its all fantastic. Heres a small clip of it in action.

Beautiful.

Another thing I have to give to Mazinkaiser is its great sense of scale on the robots.

The mechabeast are bigger than buildings, alot of damage is done to houses, hotels, towers and so on.

Mazinkaiser is often presented as this huge hulking beast of a robot and I LOVE IT! They give it great presence and an amazing silouhette that is often used to create some of the best shots of the OVA.

I might as well go ahead and talk about one of my favorite parts of the OVA while im at it... Mazinkaiser itself.

Absolutely striking design, Brain's Base did slight tweaks to its SRW F design in order to create this machine with a menacing presence, you can feel the power it has by the way it looks

and I feel the way its portrayed in the OVA itself is great! Working towards making it feel like an unbeatable beast in an exiting way that does not make the entire thing boring.

Lemme give a different example so you have an idea of what I mean.

Getter Robo. Most Getter OVAs portray the titular robot as a glass cannon that recieves mayor damage but can in turn dish out insane damage and that is very clearly seen in the multiple shots dedicated to the damaged robot. This often creates desperate scenes where the main characters have to fight in dire situacions as the machine is falling appart. This is quite engaging for the viewer as the result of the fights is often uncertain with this in mind.

Well Mazinkaiser goes ahead and showcases... a robot with no weaknesses

This in paper might create a boring experience where the viewer will always expect the invincible robot to win. Brain's Base had to walk a fine line of making the unbeatable robot beatable and unbeatable at the same time... yet they somehow did it... by not making the robot beatable

Koji being a human makes for some scenes where its not about the survival of the robot... but its pilot

and thats how they get the element of uncertainty and the exitement of the viewer.

The power of the robot is often too much to handle for him, the fact that a ship has to be inserted at the top of the machine to work leaves him vulnerable for prollonged periods of time, electric attacks get to the cockpit, Koji passes out in the damm robot like twice.

Koji being the only pilot for such a machine and him being so vulnerable adds stakes to everything and the OVA uses this idea to its fullest, presenting ordeals with Koji outside of Kaiser that are incredibly tense (the bike fight against the androids come to mind)

Sidenote: A smart choise that I apreciate is the fact that the only visible sign of mayor damage done to Kaiser is on the final battle. It makes the final beast even more threatening, setting the scene. "Oh god this thing can actually damage the robot, it even broke Koji's manual controls!"

I love it! its a great way to make the experience thrilling while not sacrificing the concept of a robot with no weaknesses

The story itself is not much to talk about. As I said, is as deep as Koji blowing up and getting a cool new robot. While it does have serious moments, its often lighthearted and hopeful with some great touches of comedy, mazinkaiser can be a really funny OVA some times... emphasis on sometimes, some jokes dont hit (Not a big fan of EP.4) but it has more hits than misses imo

Imo what trully makes the simple premise click is the characters.

Koji is such a fun guy to have as your protagonist, arrogant and passionate in the best way possible, very much inline with his other appearances in media.

Its an absolute joy seeing his chemistry with Boss and Sayaka! who are also an absolute joy here.

Boss, despite mostly being comic relief, is a great character! He is being a bit of an ass at times, you can genuinely tell he cares for his friends.

While yes I am not too happy about how much boss gets shit on at times... he does deserve it sometimes ngl and he does get a huge role in episode 6 which works as a bit of a redemption for him. (I absolutely love what they did with boss in ep.6)

Sayaka is a bit of the straightman of the group, keeping Kouji and Boss in check and giving them crap at times (for good reason most of the time).

Despite it, all that you can tell that she deeply cares for these two and wants to see them safe.

Confident and bold always wanting to help in battle, shes great

(also Its always fun seeing when Koji and Sayaka hang out as a couple, they are cute.)

The three have always had alot of chemistry together and Mazinkaiser does a good job with em

The background characters are also a joy! The scientists, Lori and Loru, Prof. Yumi, Mucha, Nuke, they are all great.

The whole thing goes to great lenghts to create a genuinely enjoyable cast of characters that are all brought to life by an incredible cast of voice actors

We have:

Hiroya Ishimaru who gave a great performance as Koji (This was his last role as the character and what a great way to go out on), Ai Uchikawa as Sayaka, Fumihiko Tachiki as Boss (Voice of Gendo Ikari from Evangelion), Haruko Kitahama and Hidekatsu Shibata as Baron Ashura and it goes on and on.

They all give a fantastic performance (ASHURA SPECIALLY LIKE GOD DAMM- THEY WENT OFF.

May you rest in peace Haruko)

Only complain here is that Tetsuya kinda just leaves for... most of the story which makes me sad, I wanted to see what they did with him but I understand how it would be hard to fit him in (specially without great mazinger)

Alright, lets move on to another aspect I quite enjoyed! The Soundtrack!

Kazuo Nobuta (Composer for Shin Getter Robo vs Neo Getter Robo and New Getter Robo) and JAM Project made the soundtrack for this and they went above and beyond for this!

Creating a score that perfectly compliments every scene... they did it again god damm it.

I became an absolute fan of their work after Shin vs Neo and my god... Mazinkaiser is right next to Shin vs Neo in terms of score and mayor themes.

Lets start with the Opening and Ending themes and then move on to the score

"FIRE WARS" is a FANTASTIC opening theme

I absolutely love the small period of time JAM Project had were they were leaning hard into rock, it lead to some killer songs. Id say Fire Wars is the poster child of this period.

"TORNADO"... fantastic ending theme, starting with a fantastic piano, then hitting you with a sudden rise followed up by a beautiful acoustic guitar... and then it hits ya with the drums and violins that go along with the hopeful lyrics.

Even if the future is uncertain, even if the night is ever restless, there is reason to fight on. Fight for those that you love.

With bonds as strong as steel, we will fly again. Spirit as strong as a Tornado.

The entire thing is amazing and it feeds into Mazinkaiser being a symbol of hope, emphasing Koji's endless fight for everything he loves.

Fantastic

While this isnt an OP or Ending theme... Its still necesary to bring up:

"THEME OF MAZINKAISER"

HooHOOO... this song is used as the backdrop to some of the best fights. What a wonderful theme

Ichiro was KILLING it in the studio for this soundtrack!!

They killed it with the three mayor themes!

And it just keeps going with the score!

Take a listen!

You can easly hear Nobuta's style come through in all of the mayor compositions.

Distress, Passion, Hope.

Perfectly encapsulating the feelings of each scene... even the goofy ones!

Its a total treat to the ears!

I could keep going and going on some aspects I thoroughly enjoyed but I think you get the idea.

My only mayor problem with it is the Episode 4 in leaning too hard on beach tropes and... well the escape scene... eghhhh I dunno

Maybe Getter Robo conditioned me into expecting great hand to hand combat (especially New Getter) so seeing Koji just use Sayaka- eghhhh thats a no for me chief.

If you know you know.

Anyway.

Mazinkaiser is another hit by Brain's Base! Creating a fantastic action OVA that pays respect to its source (Mazinger Z) by mainting good character writting and by creating greatly choreographed mecha fights.

A thrilling ride that any fan of mecha has to check out!

Trully amazing! I don't regret checking it out one bit

Not even gonna proof read this, its just a whole lotta hoey from me as per usual and its like 12 am in the morning lmao. Apologies if some things are hard to read, english aint my first language and I often go by how some words are pronounced instead of how they are actually written so some errors slip by. Thank you for reading.

#Mazinkaiser #Mazinger Z #Mecha

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