Giant Robo: The Day the Earth Stood Still (1992)

Such a frustrating disappointment

Tells a fascinating and unsettling true story, and does so well, without pretending to have all the answers.

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

Giant Robo should have really sucked. It had a retro-futuristic style (think Astro-Boy), it has some really cliched characters and the story doesn't start out in any exceptional way. Except... as the story progresses, these things start to change. Characters lose their one dimensionality and start to have human motivations. Plot twists drive shake everything the narrative has led you to believe. There are times when it appears the story just can't get any bigger, but it does! What makes this series great is giant cast of characters (each with unique abilities, some of which are very original), the twisting of convential anime plot lines and that it doesn't rely purely on shock value or huge explosions to keep you interested. Having seen a lot of the MD Geist-style anime (read: very very bad anime in regards to plot or characterisation), it is great to see a series that doesn't insult my intelligence.There are some negatives to this series - the whiny boy who controls Giant Robo, the voice acting for some of the characters (I saw a dubbed version), there are some really cheesy moments and some anime conventions are still followed religiously (eg the girl (Ginrei sp?) is mostly useless... except when she isn't). A big let-down is the additional episode on the final tape - because there are 7 one-hour episodes, a filler episode called "Barefoot Ginrei" was after the final episode. It doesn't really add anything to the story, and the fact that Ginrei's feet aren't the only things that are bare may have been the reason it was included.Despite this, Giant Robo deserves any accolades it gets. Go out and see it.

WARNING MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS The Short Version-Giant Robo is one of the Greatest Anime Works ever.The Long Version-Giant Robo is a 90's Anime with a 70's Heart. Everything apart from the Story is Retro in some way, the Shizuma Drize-the Ultimate Enegy Source could be from the old Pulp Sci-Fi Magazines of the 40's. The Characters themselves are the set in the Good/Evil Archtypes of Star Wars and Japanese Shows such as 'Gigantor' (who also created the original Giant Robo Comic back in the 70's, which is more Gigantor.) Archtypes such as Young Boy with Special Responsibilities, Father Figure, Genius Scientist, Big Tough Guy who has little respect for the Young Boy etc, we've seen them all before.The Titlelar Robot-Giant Robo is a good example of Retro Designs, unlike the Giant Streamlined, sleek Piloted Robots of Go Nagi's oeuvre, with their Rocket Punches, and the gritty realism and more scientificly probable Robots from the 'Gundam' Series. GR looks like it was built in a factory with it's rivited together steel and muscular power, even better is that the Young Boy Daisaku controls Robo with his watch (again shades of Gigantor!)But with all these elements making GIANT ROBO seem like a cut 'n' paste effort, let me tell you-IT ISN'T! The Animation is mind blowing and an obviously hard working creative team, (The Final Episode no 7 took several years to complete and it shows.) The Story improves with each episode and makes us care for the Charecters, we like/hate them, feel sad when the Heroes die (which happens several times)all this makes for a defining animation point of the 90's. A True ClassicLOOK JUST WATCH IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I fell in love with this series from the very first opening frames. After having seen countless animes with interchangeable characters, plots and visual styles, Giant Robo was an unexpected masterpiece. At first glance it looks retro, but nothing can be further from the truth. If anything, Giant Robo is ahead of its time (or perhaps one of the only ones on time). Highly stylized (to say the least), Giant Robo eeks every scrap of possibility out of its animated format. There is no attempt to recreate reality here. Characters have incredibly long, thin legs (and--in one case--nose), run faster than cars and have super powers way cooler than anything else I've ever seen. The soundtrack is outstanding in an original sort of way (opera!) and the pacing keeps viewers on the edge of their seats.My biggest gripe with the anime is with the characters. While I found many of them to be interesting and likable a few of the main characters were a bit too typical for my tastes The protagonist boy, female lead and the master villain all seemed to be characters I had seen before. However, nearly all of the secondary characters make up for this single flaw.What Giant Robo does have is great style and enough audacity to try something new. In each of the seven episodes there are numerous breaks from anime convention that set this anime apart from most others. Unfortunately, to go into details would spoil just about everything. Plot twists abound and Giant Robo does feature one of the most powerful endings I have ever seen.I could go on and on about this anime, but that would be pointless. If I haven't convinced you by now to see it, I'm not going to. And if you've already seen it, you'd just agree with me.Personally, it ranks as my second favorite anime (following the flawless Mononoke Hime).

Right in the beginning you can tell Giant Robo is different. Set in a retro-future where the heroes and villians fight it out in tailored suits, and the robots look like 50s atomic toys, this series is my all-time favorite Japanese animation - in the company of Akira, Evangelion, Mononuke and Ghost in the Shell - where each episode is better than the last, and for those of you who watch all 7, the end comes far too soon..