Ranked #294

Shin Mazinger Shougeki! Z-Hen

Shin Mazinger Shougeki Z Hen is not the average super robot show of this generation. First and foremost, it is a tribute to the bygone days of robots. It is a high quality hot-blooded, testosterone-loaded robot slugfest which will leave you begging for more.

True Mazinger combines a number of the Mazinger universe into one brand new reboot, giving some minor characters spotlighted roles, and reducing the less interesting ones, and is loaded to the brim with tributes and references to the old series. Or so I have been told. Truth be told, this was my first entry into the Mazinger universe, and it was well worth the trip.

The story is a bit of an interesting beast, managing to be convoluted, while not requiring a lot of thought. Imagawa writes by season, not by episode. The threads all come together at the end, and do so with incredible flair, however this means that not everything will be resolved in an episode.

The art is a tribute to the old style, with thick outlines and strong solid colors. The character/robot designs are hardly changed from the original 70s style. This absolutely looks like a 70s anime with today's production qualities, in a good way. While I was not a big fan to begin with, the style really grew on me, so do not let this be a deterrent to watching the show.

The music is absolutely fabulous as well. Kanjite Knight is one of the best OPs of recent memory, and is used to great effect throughout the show. The background music is strong throughout as well.

True Mazinger Impact! Z Chapter is one of the most fun shows I have ever had the pleasure of watching. However, I believe it will be one of those shows which you'll either love or hate, due both to the writing and art styles. For me, this was a marvelous trip to the classic style, while remaining in today's world of shiny animation.

SIDE NOTE: In an attempt to push the streaming Bandai channel, several minutes of scenes were cut out of each of the first 15 episodes of the TV broadcasts. I recommend Gattai subs, as they have added these scenes in. read more

True Mazinger is a very good, thoroughly entertaining super robot show.

Pretty much, Kabuto Kouji pilots the original badass super robot, Mazinger Z. Dr. Hell and his psychotic minions are constantly waging war, they want to stop Mazinger Z and get all the various powers and technology from the good guys.

For the most part, the show is dialogue driven, with all the eccentric characters going into great detail about how they feel and why they want what they do. The plot is more explained than actually shown, although this isn't necessarily a bad thing, as it keeps the intrigue going.

The oldschool super robot action is a lot of fun, pretty much our hero in his Mazinger Z whips out a few signature moves and that's all he needs for the most part. The great rockin' soundtrack helps fuel these scenes with burning passion though.

The show is very quirky, it pays homage to a lot of random Go Nagai comics that for the most part haven't been translated into English before. Lots of random nods to Go Nagai's past works, which admittedly can seem a bit out of place.

Pretty much, this show is very strong throughout, although I have to admit towards the end, after many plot twists, some of the characters motivations really didn't seem to add up.

All in all, this is a very memorable show paying tribute to the father of the genre, and I recommend checking it out. Hopefully it gets the sequel series it deserves. read more