Top wo Nerae! Gunbuster (Gunbuster)

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Alternative Titles

Synonyms: Top wo Nerae!, Aim for the Top!

Japanese: トップをねらえ！ GunBuster

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Information

Type: OVA

Episodes: 6

Status: Finished Airing

Aired: Oct 7, 1988 to Jul 7, 1989

Producers: Studio Fantasia, Tohokushinsha Film Corporation

Licensors: Discotek Media, Manga Entertainment, Bandai Visual USA

Studios: Gainax

Source: Original

Genres: Action, Award Winning, Comedy, Drama, Sci-Fi

Themes: Mecha, Military, Space

Duration: 30 min. per ep.

Rating: R+ - Mild Nudity

Statistics

Score: 7.87¹ (scored by 53,715 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #850²

² based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #1728

Members: 128,804

Favorites: 2,795

Available At

Official Site

Resources

AniDB

ANN

Synopsis

In the near future, humanity has taken its first steps towards journeying into the far reaches of the galaxy. Upon doing so they discover a huge race of insectoid aliens known as "Space Monsters." These aliens seem dedicated to the eradication of mankind as they near closer and closer to discovering Earth. In response, humanity develops giant fighting robots piloted by hand-picked youth from around the world.

Shortly after the discovery of the aliens, Noriko Takaya, the daughter of a famous deceased space captain, enters a training school despite her questionable talents as a pilot. There, she meets her polar opposite, the beautiful and talented Kazumi Amano, and is unexpectedly made to work together with her as they attempt to overcome the trauma of war as well as their own emotions.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Background

Winner of the 1990 Seiun Award for Best Dramatic Presentation.

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Related Anime

Adaptation:	Comic Gunbuster, Top wo Nerae! Next Generation: Hakkutsu Senkan-hen, Top wo Nerae!
Sequel:	Top wo Nerae 2! Diebuster
Alternative version:	Top wo Nerae! & Top wo Nerae 2! Gattai Movie!!
Summary:	Top wo Nerae! Kagaku Kouza, Kaette Kita Top wo Nerae! Kagaku Kouza
Side story:	Top wo Nerae! Gunbuster Specials

More characters

Characters & Voice Actors

Takaya, Noriko

Main

Hidaka, Noriko
Japanese

Oota, Kouichirou

Main

Wakamoto, Norio
Japanese

Amano, Kazumi

Main

Sakuma, Rei
Japanese

Freud, Jung

Supporting

Kawamura, Maria
Japanese

Higuchi, Kimiko

Supporting

Fuchizaki, Yuriko
Japanese

Toren, Smith

Supporting

Yao, Kazuki
Japanese

Tatsumi, Tashiro

Supporting

Ooki, Tamio
Japanese

Announcer Woman

Supporting

Kishiro, Sakurako
Japanese

Engineer

Supporting

Oka, Kazuo
Japanese

Officer

Supporting

Nishimura, Tomomichi
Japanese

More staff

Staff

Watanabe, Shigeru

Producer

Sasaki, Shirou

Producer

Anno, Hideaki

Director, Storyboard, Key Animation, Screenplay

Masuo, Shouichi

Episode Director, Key Animation

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Opening Theme

"Active Heart" by Noriko Sakai (eps 1-3)

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Ending Theme

	1: "Try Again" by Noriko Sakai (eps 1-3)
	2: "Active Heart" by Noriko Sakai (eps 4)
	3: "Toki no Kawa wo Koete..." by Kohei Tanaka (eps 6)

Reviews

Jan 4, 2009

Archaeon

Recommended

There is an ongoing controversy about Neon Genesis Evangelion and it's status as an iconic anime. As much as I dislike the main characters, I have to agree that NGE is a classic anime for many reasons. However, many diehard fans of the show become blinded to NGE's superior onee-chan, the show which marked the directorial debut of Hideaki Anno in anime - Top wo Nerae!

In the simplest terms, if Top wo Nerae! didn't exist, the NGE would never have been made. Many of the themes from TwN are key themes of NGE, and although NGE took a more metaphysical route with it's story, Top ...

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Jan 10, 2011

DirtyMidnighter

Mixed Feelings

This is a review of the 1988 OVA series Gunbuster. Be sure to also read my review of Diebuster, the second part of the Aim For The Top! series. I had never seen either before so I decided that watching both, one after the other, would be a great way to witness the progress of Gainax as a studio and perhaps to observe trends in the anime genre at large. After all, Gainax's productions has always had a certain effect on the industry. This is the one that started it all for this studio, so it's importance is inarguable.
I feel like the Aim For the ... Top! series fits into the category of media in which the original was a cult phenomenon that gained critical appreciation over time, and when the sequel finally came out much later, there was no way it could live up to the unrealistic expectations placed on it. Another recent example of this is the Tron sequel that was just released. For something like Tron or Gunbuster, their fandom has become something of an institution- something that has far reaching implications in the rest of the medium. They have been attributed with pioneering and shifting tropes that exist to this day. Like the more popular Evangelion, Gunbuster is seen by many anime appreciators as a series that was ahead of it's time, heavily nuanced and far deeper than it may seem from a glance. To what degree should we attribute this to actual quality, as opposed to nostalgia? As we know, nostalgia can cloud our perceptions of things. As a viewer with no sense of nostalgia, this should be an unbiased comparison of both Aim For The Top! series.
Gunbuster was Hideaki Anno's debut as a director and in many people's opinions, it is the first real reveal into the mind of a man who is one of the greatest ever to grace the anime genre (a sentiment I would agree with). I'll say right here that if you are looking for an expertly paced, beautifully twisted, life altering experience on par with Evangelion, you will probably be disappointed. Gunbuster does not set it's goals and stakes nearly as high. So, in a way, Gunbuster is the smaller, more simplistic prototype of the masterpiece which was yet to be told.
This is only a six episode series and there is very little time for the subtle character development found in Eva. However, it is very noticeable that Anno MAKES as much time as possible, even at the cost of much explanation of the setting and plot itself. Like Evangelion, it is very clear that while the story could easily focus on the stunningly rendered sci-fi world, it would rather spend time in the minds of the main characters, searching for what it is that makes them tick. I have absolutely no qualms with this approach but there are a couple nagging issues that don't work in it's favor. Length is one. There is simply not enough time to develop anyone other than Noriko. In Evangelion, we got to really get inside the heads of five or six characters. Here there is just one or two (you could maybe argue that Amano counts). The other thing is that the main character, Noriko is simply not as deep and multifaceted as some of Anno's later characters. Her motivations are pretty two-dimensional. That being said, she is still deeper than the majority of anime characters. She is almost a more simplistic representation of the themes that were later fleshed through Shinji Ikari in Evangelion. She is given a seemingly impossible task despite very little experience, the fate of humanity rests on her shoulders and she has a very hard time with this, she is desperate to be accepted and loved. She has deep insecurities about abandonment and self-worth. The only thing that is lacking is a sense of maturity in storytelling of knowing how a character would actually behave and react in given situations. You can see the raw emotion that went into this character but there is very little restraint and subtlety. So, Noriko is perhaps a perfect personification of this series- ambitious and filled with volatile emotion, displaying hints of some great untapped potential. Noriko is a great character to discuss. However, she is unfortunately the only really developed character in the series. The only one that even comes close is Amano, Noriko's idol. Her most discernible quality is the tendency to be utterly two-faced. A sort of Asuka Langley Soryu prototype shows up too, in the form of Jung Freud. (haha get it? Anno likes psychology) It would have been nice to see more of her too. There is nothing to set her apart from any other hot-headed pilot. It's hard to knock Gunbuster for it's characters though. After all, it is only six episodes long. Although better characterization can be seen in just as short a span of time (FLCL, much later), it is an admirable and impassioned early try.
Okay, so… art style. It looks dated. No way around it. Compared to the quality of animation in say, Diebuster, it looks pretty uneven. Where as Diebuster comes off as a culmination of everything Gainax had done up to that point, Gunbuster has the visual look of something in it's insecure infancy. You can see vague traces of what would come to be known as the Gainax style, (female character designs, jiggle, interesting robot ideas) but you really have to search for them. For the most part, the characters, animation and designs look generic. Not bad, just a lack of that certain exaggerated visual flair found in later productions. The music is notable for being far more produced and expertly done in many places than the visuals. The theme song for when the Gunbuster machine first makes an appearance is a relatively famous piece of music that is both instantly recognizable and invigorating. Other orchestral pieces are found throughout and are extremely effective at conveying the emotion of the series. The 80's style OP and ED just sound dated unfortunately- they remind me a bit too much of 80's montage music.
Gunbuster was Gainax's first take on the giant robot genre, originally made popular by the likes of Gundam and Macross. It serves as a unique and interesting take on the concept, with a heightened sense of personal drama and inner turmoil. I've said it already, but this series should really be longer. It is just too grand a story to be crammed down into six episodes. This problem could have been potentially solved had the sequel, Diebuster, been a continuation or embellishment of the story instead of an update… Stick around for that review.

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Jul 1, 2010

Lindle

Not Recommended

[Spoiler Warning]

Gunbuster, or Top Wo Nerae! (Aim For The Top, in English), is considered to be the first thing the in/famous studio Gainax put out that is still known of today, and is often credited for putting them on the map. There are many people who consider Gunbuster to be an unprecedented classic, and a shining example of how mecha anime should be done, even 22 years later. And as was the case with another immensely overrated, 6-episode OVA made by Gainax that I shall not name, I'm sure I will hear no end of flak for this review, but let's make this clear right ...

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Poll: Top wo Nerae! Episode 3 Discussion ( 1 2 ) naikou - Sep 29, 2008	69 replies	by Extremo888 »» Mar 18, 5:56 PM
Poll: Top wo Nerae! Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 ) naikou - Sep 28, 2008	78 replies	by VioletOlya »» Mar 3, 11:18 AM
Poll: Top wo Nerae! Episode 6 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 ) MK - Aug 10, 2008	192 replies	by jal90 »» Feb 4, 7:04 PM
Poll: Top wo Nerae! Episode 5 Discussion ( 1 2 ) Ston3_FreeN7 - Aug 19, 2009	77 replies	by Adriannitro »» Dec 19, 2023 9:21 PM
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Top wo Nerae! Gunbuster

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Oota, Kouichirou

Amano, Kazumi

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Higuchi, Kimiko

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Top wo Nerae! Gunbuster

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Synopsis

Background

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Characters & Voice Actors

Staff

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Ending Theme

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