Top wo Nerae! Gunbuster

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 ... wo Nerae! remains firmly rooted in a more realistic approach (figuratively speaking that is).

The plot for TwN pays homage to the classic tennis anime Aim for the Ace, something which is clearly reflected in the title. The hollywood movie Top Gun also influenced Anno with regards to how his characters should develop. The very simple and straightforward story is about a war between humanity and a mysterious alien civilization. Humanity is using every tool it can conceive of in an effort to win, however they are steadily being pushed back, and things look grim for Earth.

The story begins with Takaya Noriko, a 16 year old girl who attends a military training school in Okinawa. At first she seems rather clumsy and unreliable, however she possesses a steely determination as she desperately wishes to follow in the footsteps of her famous father Takaya Yuzo, an Admiral of the space fleet who went missing during the early days of the war.

The story then continues with the introduction of several other key characters, all of whom play a very big part in the development of Noriko's character, the most important being Kazumi Amano (the girl that Noriko idolizes), Ota Koichiro, and the young pilot Toren Smith.

I'll stop with the story there as this is only a 6 part OVA, and I don't want to spoil it for anyone who hasn't watched it.

The art for TwN is excellent, especially considering the time it was made. The anime is 20 years old now, yet many of the action scenes still stand up to more modern shows. The character designs are reflective of the time, however they are still distinctive for each character. There are two areas where the art and animation deviated from what would normally be expected though. The first was the introduction of "bouncing breasts" into the show (making it the first anime to include such things).

TwN's usage of jiggling breasts wasn't actually meant as fan service originally (although many now see it that way). The original reason why they were included was because Anno wanted the characters to move as a real life person would move. It's unfortunate that many viewers nowadays will automatically see bouncing breasts and base the worth of a show on their inclusion (because they don't like fanservice, or love it far too much), when the original intent was for some far more innocent and blatantly non-sexual.

The second deviation from "normal" anime practices was the final episode. This episode was made almost completely in black and white and, unusually for anime, the episode was produced by creating the art and animation in shades of grey from the start, rather than shooting colour animation using black and white film. The final battle is also memorable for it's usage of still images, something which heightens the dramatic effect of the scene.

The sound quality for TwN is also excellent, especially given it's age. The OP is extremely catchy (it's stayed with me for 20 years after all), and the music throughout the show is often inspired in it's usage. The effects are of a very high standard, and although there may be some off-kilter moments, these are easily missed, and very minor.

One of the strange things about TwN is that, even though there are several key characters, the story is effectively about a young girl who comes of age and finds her place in the world. The characters are generally excellent in their roles, but as with NGE, almost all of the development goes to the lead character. Unlike NGE however, this works because the show is only 6 episodes long, and events happen at a much more condensed rate.

Noriko is excellent as a lead character. There are some who find her annoying, whiney, etc, however those people are usually the ones who mark Ikari Shinji as one of the greatest anime characters ever (which begs the question of what drugs they're taking). Takaya Noriko, whilst being shy, somewhat nervous, more than a little unreliable (and she knows it), and constantly surrounded by people who really are better than her in many ways (we're talking geniuses in combat, piloting skills, etc), is understandably more than a little scared as to why she is part of such august company. The added pressure of having to match up to what other people can do naturally is telling on her development as a character. Although she does often become disheartened, she displays some of the best character growth seen in anime (in many ways far superior to that displayed by Shinji in NGE).

It's unfortunate that TwN was such a short series however, as the other characters are deserving of development. None of the characters were annoying in any way, and the relationships between them, especially between Noriko, Kazumi and Jung, are handled very well throughout the anime.

Top wo Nerae! is very enjoyable to watch for many reasons. The characters and their relationships, the dramatic tension, the taut storyline, all serve to whet one's appetite for more. It's truly unfortunate that, whilst NGE often receives plaudits from fans, this show is often overlooked or marginalised - even though it is better than NGE. Many fans of NGE dislike the fact that the TwN lacks NGE's symbolism and metaphysical elements, and blatantly ignore the fact that TwN was a landmark anime for several reason, not the least of which is the fact that it has a girl as the main character rather than a boy. This was almost unheard of at the time, especially as this show is very much action oriented. In addition, whilst Shinji is seen to suffer in NGE, many people automatically marginalise Noriko's suffering, partly because they perceive it as insubstantial, and partly because they believe that Shinji's trials and tribulations are "more believable" (pardon me while I laugh), than Noriko's.

It may seem odd, but it's easy to distinguish between fans of NGE who actually understood what was going on, and those who are simply emo fanboys/girls, by their reaction to TwN. The one's who do actually understand NGE actually like TwN, and can see where NGE has it's roots. The fanboys and girls will write off TwN as crap (which one are you I wonder?).

Humans versus aliens is not a new story, but what makes TwN unique amongst the many in the mecha/action genre is the fact that it very clearly shows the lengths to which humanity will go in order to survive. The only other show where this is highlighted is Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, which shows just how rare this theme is in anime. NGE wasn't so much about saving the world from aliens, but more about saving yourself. Another rarity is the fact that TwN also clearly shows the training that young people must go through before piloting a mech (something that is suspiciously glossed over in NGE and many other mech shows).

This is one of those shows that I would recommend to everyone. It's a rarity of an anime that combines a great story, great animation, and some excellent characters. Many NGE purists would have you believe that that show is Anno's greatest work, however this is not the case.

Anno's directorial debut remains, to this day, his finest achievement.

Gunbuster starts with a fairly simple formula. Monstrous alien life forms are threatening the Earth, a young and inexperienced pilot must rise to the occasion and use a super-powered mecha to lead humanity's counterattack against the enemy and save the planet. The execution of this premise, however, is among the best in the genre, and the seamless way this merely 6-episode OVA covers the main character Noriko's growth from student to hero while escalating both the stakes and scale of her battles is nothing short of masterful storytelling. From schoolyard bullying, to losing loved ones in battle, to shouldering the responsibility of the entire human ... race, we follow Noriko's development as a character, and the strengthening of her resolve to fight is likely better handled than in any other anime of this sort, relying on both subtlety and moments of sheer emotional power.

One impressive thing about Gunbuster is its general commitment to maintaining a setting based on hard science in many aspects that don't concern the Gunbuster itself. Ships travelling at sub-light speed undergo time dilation as per Einsteinian physics, meaning that time on a relatively stationary body like the Earth passes faster- many of the more emotional moments in the show are based on this difference in the passage of time between those fighting in space and those left behind on Earth. Furthermore, a good portion of the show centers not around the mechas but the space fleet, grounding the setting in procedure and a more realistic, wartime feel. This, in turn, makes the comparatively unrealistic mecha battles all the more triumphant for being special, unique among a setting dedicated to the relatively mundane. In fact, these moments have real power- not simply because it's cool to see a giant robot fight gigantic alien insects, but because every important fight is built up to, set up with real tension and high stakes while carrying the entire emotional weight of the characterization and conflicts. In other words, it's literally and physically exciting: something that can be said of very few things in the entire medium. Not only that, but the climax of the show along with its ending are incredibly powerful emotionally- the final episode is nothing short of moving on an inspirational, triumphant level.

Personally, Gunbuster is one of my all-time favorite series, and there are few things in anime that I ever enjoyed more. It's far from perfect though, most notable among its flaws being that there are moments when the budget of the show cannot catch up to its vision. Furthermore, the pacing in the first half is slower than the second, which allows for good and thoughtful characterization but alienates the first three episodes from the last three in terms of general quality- episodes 1, 2, and 3 only exist to build up episodes 4, 5, and 6. Being made in 1988, its style may put off some younger or newer viewers, and if you're not already somewhat familiar with the genre you may find it hard to suspend your disbelief in the initial episodes. In fact, it can only be fully appreciated by one already somewhat familiar with the super robot subgenre, Nevertheless, I implore anyone who considers themselves an anime fan to watch this short series. It might lack the artistic or literary value of a select circle of masterpieces, but it is a superb piece of work that does nearly everything better than almost anything out there.

First and foremost, I should mention this is my first review for MAL.
Secondly, I am surprised it took me so long to see this Anime through to completion.

The story itself was well done. While the actual content can be summarized to "Giant Robot destroys an army of aliens," it is multitudes deeper than that. But just as important as the content itself, the pacing to this Anime is wonderful. It zips right along with just about nothing that seems like it could have been omitted, and yet never felt too fast. It was the perfect length to keep myself fully engrossed into the plot. ...

What really made the plot matter was its wonderful depiction of the characters it entangled. They were all well detailed, and I felt no character was robbed of screen-time despite the shows brevity. Again, like the plot, I also felt no character wasn't needed as well. Even the weakest of characters get returning air-time, and prove to be an adequate drive for the main-characters to perform their duty.

The art is outstanding for the 80's, in typical Gainix fashion no less. Even the direction taken in the final episode ended up being amazing to actually watch in motion. However, the sound, while good, seemed to have some balancing issues with the BGM. The voices were amazing, and the VAs conveyed a lot of emotion in their performance, but at very stressful times they seemed to overly shadow the BGM and even sometimes the SFX as well.

Overall, I'd say Gunbuster is easily one of my favorite Mecha Anime ever produced. If you are even in the least bit interested in this show, I'd say give it a shot. Its short enough that you can spend a single rainy night finishing it, like I just did today.

Anyways, thanks for reading my review of Gunbuster!

[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 ... now: Gunbuster is fucking awful.

There is so much wrong with this anime I don't even know where to start. But much like that other OVA series I don't care to mention, I am absolutely dumbfounded by the popularity it commands. There isn't a single good thing I can name about this show, aside from maybe the fact that Hideaki Anno learned from his mistake and made Neon Genesis Evangelion, which was obviously extremely flawed in of itself.

But let's begin with one of the most glaring faults this show has: the science. This show has so little respect for physics that it makes Newton cry. This is especially prevalent in the first three episodes, having such faults as training for space missions on normal earth conditions, using objects to increase the gravity on them (because obviously, increased gravity is going to be a big concern in space), several occasions of objects seamlessly entering and leaving space without any damage to the surroundings (for example, a mecha coming in from space and landing in a forest clearing, which would probably devastate a large portion of the forest in real life), sound in the noiseless vacuum of space (though this is by no means the only offender for this), as well as several other chunks of absolute scientific nonsense. There are also several logical mishaps not involving science, like how the girls' bathrooms are in clear view through a large glass panel for all to see. Which, of course, provides us with a [i]hilarious[/i] fanservice moment.

Next up for the chop, the characters. While the characterisation was shaky in Evangelion, here it is nothing short of awful. The main character, Noriko, stands in the tradition of Gainax in having their main characters be whiny, over-sensitive, and frequently completely useless. Noriko fits the bill for the most part, being a clear building block in Anno's later protagonist Shinji Ikari. And Noriko manages to give me a new appreciation for Shinji, because at least Shinji was well-written. Noriko is poorly written and completely unlikeable, and the rest of the cast is even worse. Her mentor is so worthless that I honestly can't even remember her name. You could replace her with a magical chipmunk that knows how to pilot a mecha, and the plot probably wouldn't change in the least, aside from the spousal abuse shifting to the animal variety. The worst character, however, is probably Jung Freud. I defy you to name a single thing she does in this show. She doesn't have the remotest significance, but Anno makes it clear we're supposed to know who she is. As far as her personality, she seems to flip from being the Action Girl to being The Rival, depending on what Anno wants her to be in whichever particular scene, but ends up completely insignificant regardless.

Next is the plot. Everything about it is very badly written. Everything about it is basically a cheesy 80's movie turned mecha, and the results are as bad as they sound. Noriko is a student at a school training mecha, and is chosen to go into space because her father saved the life of a man who wound up with authority on the matter. In short, he allows a girl with absolutely no piloting skill into a major military division.

...Yeah.

In space, Noriko meets a boy named Smith who she may or may not be in love with. I might be more clear about it if he hadn't spent all of 5 minutes, if even that, on screen. She then winds up completely depressed when he dies, despite them having known each other for like, 5 minutes. Not long after, we are introduced to the antagonising force, which mankind has somehow found out thinks that we are destroying the universe. Considering these alien creatures never show any sign of intelligence or communication whatsoever, it is a mystery how people came to this conclusion.

Not long after, in a climactic battle which sees Noriko go into Shinji-mode, angsting and staying away from the battle, she eventually comes to and winds up piloting the titular mecha for some reason. Again, why a talentless teenage girl would be allowed to pilot something like this is a mystery. Nonetheless, she goes out and kicks a large amount of ass. Also, as shallow as this may be, there is one compliment I can give this series: the Gunbuster looks pretty damn awesome.

Moving along, the last two episodes are commonly hyped up to be absolutely fantastic, but this is absolutely untrue: There's nothing remotely good about them. Annoyingly, they had the potential to be, especially the finale. The last episode is made in black and white for no particular reason. The only likely reasons I can give are that they were either trying to be artsy and pretentious, or it was to save animation budget. Seeing how this is Gainax, the latter is rather likely. And to add to the damning evidence, what should have been an amazing moment, a battle of epic proportions where robots explode, heroic sacrifices are made, and aliens die, winds up being compressed into a few animation-saving frames. To make this even more infuriating, those frames make it look like something you'd actually want to watch. It's like a friend going to a concert you weren't able to go to, who then raves about it to you, bragging about what you missed.

Add to all this the most pretentious, cheesy, godawful, and all-round irrational ending, and you have the formula for a truly terrible anime. I can't name a single thing I like about this, aside from it having spawned an infinitely superior sequel, Diebuster. I mean, for fuck's sake... as much as I hated FLCL, this has truly dethroned it as the worst thing Gainax have produced. At least FLCL had some good concepts and production values behind it. If anything, it was just horribly executed, whereas Gunbuster is just a weak, amateur production in every single way.

Final Words: Bad physics, bad logic, bad characterisation, bad writing, bad animation, bad plot, bad directing, bad concepts, bad everything.

Animation/Graphics: 2/10
Story/Plot: 1/10
Music/Background: 7/10

Overall: 1/10

For Fans Of: Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, Neon Genesis Evangelion.

I watch anime for many many years, i had stages of my life that i watch mostly anime and stages that i pass years without seeing any anime. And someday, when i was searching on the net, i found a recommendation for Gunbuster, Top wo Nerae! (Aim for the top).

It was aired on 1988, but on the first time i saw, i didnt noted, i think it was proposital to have old look style, and only later after seeing the first episode that i got to know that was from 1988. It only has 6 chapters, and in the first chapter, it is kinda cliche-style ... of the stupid-girl-discover-that-is-very-good-and-bypass-all-difficulties. But when the aliens pop in, and the main characters go to space, everything changes. And based in REAL teories from Einstein and other famous physics, it explains everythings that happen in the episodes.

The battle sequences are overpowered, it has tension, emotion, you start thinking how a anime with a cute opening song and a lame 1st ep turns to be tense like this. Pure Gainax style, one of the firsts animes of the studio, pure masterpiece.

It is so inteligent in the end that makes you feel like stupid, thinking in time-space-travel teories.

I recommend this classic to anyone that love animes, it has all the elements of anime in one:

Pretty girls, nudity, fight, mechas, love, death, science, sadness and happiness.

Top wo Nerae!, better known as Gunbuster, is the first notable work put out by Gainax. Directed by Hideaki Anno, who would later go on to head the ground-breaking Neon Genesis Evangelion, Gunbuster clearly exhibits ideas and characterizations similar to those featured prominently in Eva.

The problem is how they are delivered. Noriko, the main protagonist, is hesitant to pilot a mech (and later Gunbuster) due to her father's death in battle against the aliens. Almost every episode involves her bemoaning her losses, yet her despair doesn't give insight to her character as much as it makes her unlikable. Other characters share this flaw, with emotions ... intended to generate sympathy instead generating annoyance. This leads to a lot of

Gunbuster's saving grace, however, comes in its final two episodes. After enduring four episodes of mind-numbing pseudo-deconstruction, Noriko pilots Gunbuster and we get some masterfully directed fight scenes, as well as an incredibly well done final episode featuring only black and white.

Gunbuster is, in many ways, the prototype for Eva. Where Eva thrives, Gunbuster tends to struggle, so it's evident that Anno made some changes based on results. Gunbuster recently had a sequel produced, known as Diebuster, which far surpasses it. All in all, Gunbuster is worth a watch, but don't expect anything other than a way to kill three hours.

Let's take a trip back to the 80s. A time of MANLY men doing MANLY things such as Fist of the North Star, space operas in the vein of Legend of the Galactic Heroes, and mecha shows such as Gundam. It was a time where many genres were being shaped and moulded into what we see today, and, of course, by this time, the OVA was gaining large traction and popularity by anime fans and it allowed for plenty of creators to experiment and create their own shows cheaply and efficiently, allowing them to be break into the industry and be recognised by greater talent. ... Gunbuster is one such example, being that it was industry giant, Hideaki Anno's directorial debut, and still remains one of the greatest OVAs of all time, while also pioneering many of the tropes that we not only saw in later Gainax shows but in many others too. So, join me on a trip, back to a time in which everyone wears their trousers too high and yells out their super robot attack because doing so will apparently make it stronger!

The story of Gunbuster is relatively straightforward and linear and it, at its core, a coming of age story...IN SPACE! The show follows our main female protagonist, Noriko, as she is selected to fight against space monsters that are threatening humanity, despite her rather lacklustre piloting skills, as the coach at the school she attends, senses her potential or, some other spiritual element like that. People die at her incompetence as a result, during the battles, which does add some more narrative weight to the narrative and leads into moments in which Noriko questions her value, not only as a pilot but also as a person too, leading into Anno's signature physiological theme exploration, which is one of the things this OVA does extremely well. There is a good amount of time invested in Noriko's character and we spend enough time with her to properly understand all of the hardships she endures and the large pressure and weight that her fight for human survival entails. The driving force of the show is Noriko's character arc as she begins to grow in confidence and skill as the show progresses but there is a genuine sense of cathartic pay off as we see her win battles and receive credit and respect from her peers. Her backstory involving her father who was also a space pilot in war against these monsters but died, also adds more emotional attachment onto her character giving her more of a reason to fight against these creatures, not only on behalf of all humanity but as a means of avenging her father.

Noriko is, in essence, a prototype for Shinji from Neon Genesis Evangelion, as they go through the same mental hang-ups and dilemmas, although Evangelion did it on a bigger scale. The other characters also have their time to shine and go through their own respective story arcs to make them feel more human and real. Kazumi, an elite pilot at the same school as Noriko, who was also selected to fight against the monsters and acts as a sort of big sister character to Noriko, is also allowed a substantial amount of time to developed her character and the love she shares with the coach is interesting as a sub-plot to hold together, never feeling too forced or boring. There is a final character, a Russian chick by the name of Jung Freud, who becomes a rival to Kazumi, while at the same time, never seeming to be able to put her tits away. She doesn't receive as much development as either Noriko and Kazumi, and, while she does grow and come to respect the two, she doesn't really add anything onto the show as a whole. The OVA is not perfect, however. There were a few times in which I found the narrative to be a big too convent or ass-pully, but most of the time this really didn't take too much away from the overall experience. Also, the ending could of being a little better, and there is some controversy amongst fans into the decision made by the staff to make the final episode completely in black and white as a stylistic choice. This didn't really bother me too much but I would've still preferred it to be in colour.

The pacing for this OVA is also pretty good, and the first several episodes are dedicated to establishing the world and the technology of said world, and the fact that we don't even see what they're fighting against, adds this great sense of mystery and suspense to the series, and, by the time the monsters are revealed, it's definitely not disappointing. This entire OVA is just oozing with so much personality and style, and style it certainly has! It feels very much like a Gainax show with constant posing, explosions and lots of rule-of-cool. This is easily one of the greatest things about this OVA. The frame by frame animation is damn amazing, the character designs, as well as the mecha designs, are very well done and memorable and the Gunbuster fight still remains one of my favourite moments in any anime ever. This OVA was also one of the first, if not, THE first to have the infamous boob physics in anime. Every time the characters moved, their breasts would also move as well, which was new for the time and blew minds back then, but it's also not insane. The breasts don't bounce about twenty thousand times and it is logical how they bounce because of the scantily clothes the girls may wear when they're just lazing around at home. I can't believe I just defended and complimented a show for having boob physics. In addition, the music is also great and never fails to get me pumped, and the opening track is also great.

In conclusion, this OVA is great. It's full of charm, personality, style and is simply a blast to watch with great characters, an interesting lore and technology, and great animation and fight choreography. There are a few trappings that do date this show and may alienate newer viewers accustomed to the more modern ascetic, and while it has certainly aged better than others in its time period, some of the tropes may feel tired, even when this OVA was the first one to create many of them. Despite that, this show is highly recommended as well as its quite different, but equally as fun sequel, Diebuster!

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.

Well, since my last 3 anime reviews have all been negative, I think I'll write a positive review. And since I'm currently watching Diebuster as of writing this, why not review it's prequel? Since the 2 halves are very different, I'm going to be averaging out the score on most of them.

Story - 7/10 (first half gets a 5/10; second half gets a 9/10)
In a way, Gunbuster is basically half NGE and half Gurren Lagann - in that order. The story is basically what would happen if a female version of Shinji got chosen to pilot a robot to defend humanity, and ... had to go to a training school - at least, the first half is pretty much like that. Episode 4 comes along, however, and Noriko (our heroine) apparently started reading either FoTNS or JJBA, because she takes not one, not two, but THREE levels in badass, and pilots the titular mech to destroy the alien forces that are pursuing the Exelion (the ship that Noriko is stationed on). Afterwards, the story keeps on getting more and more epic - the ending, while bittersweet, is easily one of the best I've seen in an anime.

Art - 9/10 (it's consistent, so I'm giving both halves the same score)
The art has aged BEAUTIFULLY. It's really colorful, very fluid, and pleasant to look at. The animation is almost all I could ask for in an anime from this time period.

Sound - 10/10 (just like the art, it's consistent)
If you can think of a reason why I shouldn't give a perfect score in the sound department to a show which literally has the most hot-blooded J-Pop song ("Fly High") I've ever heard (and probably of all time), I would like to hear it. Oh, and the voice acting is great.

Character - 8/10 (really hard to score each half separately, so I'm giving both halves the same score)
Noriko undergoes HUGE character development. Remember how I said she takes 3 levels in badass in episode 4? If you want a comparison: She starts off basically being the female version of Shinji Ikari. By the time this show is over, she's become a female version of Ayato Kamina - except more hot-blooded. Kazumi is a really nice character - in fact, I'm somewhat convinced that she was an influence on the creation of Misato Katsuragi when NGE was conceived. And in my mind, Coach is the trope codifier for the "grizzled old mentor" in the super robot shows - and he deserves that role.

Enjoyment - 10/10
While RahXephon was what showed me that mecha anime could be really "deep", and what I've seen of Gurren Lagann showed me that mecha anime could be badass (I say "What I've seen" since I haven't finished it yet - but as soon as I finish Diebuster, I'm going to work on correcting that), but Gunbuster showed me that mecha anime could be both.

Overall - 9/10
I wouldn't say "If you're only going to watch one mecha anime in your life, make it this one", but I would say that if you're only going to watch one OVA this year, make it this one. It's just so awesome.

RIYL: Any mecha anime

The Good:
- Plot progression is fast.
- Action scenes are old-fashioned, but still fun to watch.
- Characters are likeable.

The Bad:
- Plot is very simple (which can also be a good thing).
- Can be ridiculous at times.

Conclusion:
This one's a bit over the top, which means if you want to enjoy it, you'll have to put your brain aside. If you just sit back and enjoy the super robot kicks, the laughable drama, the ignorant human-centric logic, and the brief nudity, you'll have a great ride.

Top wo Nerae or Gunbuster was created by Gainax in 1988 and was Hideaki Anno’s debut production. Though the show is only 6 episodes long it is regarded as a work on par with his much more famed Neon Genesis Evangelion. Top wo Nerae’s title was inspired by both “Aim for the Ace” (Classic tennis anime) and “Top Gun” (Hollywood Film). When watching Gunbuster some aspects of the show can almost immediately be drawn as similar to that of Neon Genesis, such as both protagonists having practically the same character archetype. The art, soundtrack, etc. can also be viewed as similar but that is ... where the similarities end. One thing that Gunbuster seems to do better than the majority of shows in its respected genre (Mecha) is its implementation of science and how it affects everything in the world.
The story of Top wo Nerae starts during the year 2023 and follows the main protagonist Noriko Takaya, the daughter of Admiral Yuzo Takaya of the Luxion who went missing early in the war. The story is picked up during her training in Okinawa with the desire to become a Gunbuster Pilot. Noriko is seen to have superior physical strength compared to the majority of the students there, however she is awful with technology and is seen by the other pilots as the weak link with no hope of ever becoming a pilot.
Though she was the worst of the lot in controlling the mechs, she worked hard at trying to become her dream, a Gunbuster pilot. (*Spoiler*) This was seen by “Coach” or Kouichirou Oota and against all odds was chosen as a pilot to go into space. This is where the story really begins.
Honestly I think it would be better going into it not knowing much after that portion, so that it adds to the experience.

Story: 8/10
Nowadays a sci-fi mecha series is just seen as another genre, however back when Top wo Nerae (1988) was airing it was a relatively new concept with some of the only other sci-fi mecha series out at that point being Macross and Gundam. As I stated previously it also has heavy influence from scientific theory and how the nature of the technology realistically could make this story plausible. Which again was, and still is an underused concept that I feel should be used more as it makes you more inclined to believe what the story is throwing at you.

Characters: 7/10
Noriko Takaya was a different take on what a main character should be at the time. As the majority of main characters have a sort of air about them that made you instantaneously realise that “Yep, that’s main protagonist-kun”. Noriko, however is different, she acts more like a real human, ex. Getting depressed over the death of another character, which affects her ability in combat. Now aside from Noriko the cast is pretty limited, other characters being: Coach, Kazumi and Jung. The story does do a good job of trying to flesh out the characters but I felt them still a bit lacking aside from Noriko, that may be in part to the fact it is only 6 episodes.

Art: 9/10
The beauty of Gunbuster being produced during the 80s is that every frame of every episode was drawn by hand. This leads to objects having an incredible amount of detail, such as the mechs. By adding more detail to things the viewers become more invested in the technology and how it works, which is something that Gunbuster does a phenomenal job at. Gunbuster has some of the most gorgeous animation of a series that came out before 1990 that I have ever seen.

Music/Sound Design: 8/10
One thing that I can say that I took away from Gunbuster is the OST which plays a heavy role in putting you in the atmosphere of the show. The majority of the music is orchestral type and listening to it during epic scenes just makes the show all the more enjoyable. The same can be said about the sound design as it comes of as very unique in nature compared to modern day mecha, it just feels different.

Overall: 8/10
Personally I enjoyed the series as a whole and would re-watch it if I felt I wanted to, however this is not a show I would recommend to a new viewer of anime in the same sense that you wouldn't give an inexperienced driver the keys to 78 Nissan. You would have to go to the trouble of teaching them how to drive clutch; clutch being the analogy that I’m using for appreciating classic shows in the same sense of appreciating classic cars. #ClutchMasterRace… get it, because race… cars race...never mind. But for those of you that have been around for a while, give it a shot, one episode never hurts right (Unless it's Boku no Pico)?

After watching the horrendously bad final 5 episodes of Darling in the Franxx where it ripped off so many elements from many mecha series from the past I decided to go back and re-watch Gunbuster.  A series that I use to hate on my first watch back in 2012. However, as time went and I re-watched it over the course of 2016 and onward I started to like and appreciate the series a lot and also no surprise after my latest re-watch of Gunbuter where I finished the final episode a day after the final episode of Darling in the Franxx. I can definitely say ... this. Gunbuster is a very good and well written OVA series. Sure it has a couple of flaws which I will go ever throughout this but all of them were thankfully minor flaws that didn't ruin the show. Now with that out of the way let's get started.

Story and Characters.
The story of Gunbuster follows Noriko, the daughter of famous space captain Yuzo Takaya, who died in the Luxion disaster of 2015. She attends school for aspiring space pilots and Earth threatened by an incoming invasion of Space Monsters. A new coach named Koichiro Oota arrives sees potential in Noriko, and chooses her to be a pilot in the Gunbuster project, despite her lack of piloting ability. Noriko and her senior, Kazumi Amano, board the Exelion and train to become the pilots of the first two Buster Machines. Upon entering space, it is made apparent that, every time they enter near-lightspeed travel, Time Dilation occurs, sending them into the future. As the series progresses, they continue the fight against the space monsters while the lives they knew on Earth slowly slip away.

The story is Gunbster is pretty good.
Gunbuster is a very engaging and well-written coming of age story where we see our protagonist starts off as a wimpy angsty crybaby to a pretty badass pilot. The show does a pretty great job at exploring themes of understanding one another, left behind, overcoming your fears and sacrifice.
The show is very well paced as it does a great job at keeping the viewer interested of what it's going on especially in the final 2 episodes.
Speaking of dark and serious I really loved Gunbuster overall tone. It starts off as a lighthearted parody mecha series that doesn't take itself too seriously but after episode 4 the shows becomes dark, sad and pretty depressing thanks to certain story elements which I won't spoil.

Gunbuster is one of the first animes ever to use this phenomenon known as space-time distortion where farther you go in space the faster time moves on the earth. Now as much I want to talk about it great detail but I won't thanks to heavy spoilers. Plus if I spoil it now it will also spoiler a very important story element in this series.

When it comes to the chararters I thought they were pretty good.
Noriko is a pretty great character. I really loved her character development in the series where she starts off as this angsty girl who has no confidence to a pretty badass pilot who is willing to save the world even if she to watch the earth advance in time while being in space fighting.
Kazumi is a pretty cool character. While she doesn't have much character development as Noriko she's still is a likable character that I really enjoyed. The same thing can apply to Koichiro who is a pretty cool and determined coach.

While the story and chararters were pretty good I have one single complaint.
If your name is not Noriko and at times Kazumi and Koichiro you can forget about your character development. What I mean by this is that the other characters in the show minus the main three don't get any form of character development of progression whatsoever.
There was a certain character named Jung who is basically a Prototype Asuka who had a great debut episode then after that episode she quickly just became a background character where doesn't get any form of character development.
Thankfully this problem is tammed compare to its squeal Diebuster where it became a big issue in that show. Other than that complaint I thought the story for Gunbuster to be pretty damm great.

9/10

Visuals.
Visually Gunbuster is great and appealing to look at. Yes, the show at times defiantly shows it's age with certain scenes being a bit choppy but least it not that noticeable compared to other anime in the 1980s.
The character designs are very appealing to the eye. The mecha designs on the other hand not so much. While the Gunbuster itself is very well designed mech by itself the others sadly range alright to very bland in my eyes.
The animation is mostly smooth and well animated for the most part.
The thing that I praise about Gunbuster visuals the most was in the last episode where it was all in Black and While. Some people may say shitty directing but honestly if you said that then your totally missing the point of the last episode directing wise as it meant to showcase the darker elements in this series which I cannot spoil here.
The last thing that I want to talk about is the fan-service. You see Gunbuster is the first anime series ever introduced fan-service aka the thing that creators do if they are usually not competent enough about the works. Gunbuster is the anime that started it all. Personally, I don't mind the fan-service in this show I will admit it kinda got distracting at times. Luckily this small complaint is tammed when you compared its squeal Diebuster
9/10

Sound.
Sadly the soundtrack for Gunbuster isn't all that memorable. Yes, they were a couple of good tracks in it but most of the thing the soundtrack is pretty forgetful in my eyes.
The voice acting in Gunbster is great and suits the role of each character very well.
6/10

Final Thoughts.
Overall I liked Gunbuster. Despite the lack of characters of development for the side characters as well the meh soundtrack thought the show was pretty great. The story is nicely written that is filled with great theme exploration. The main characters were great, and the visuals were wonderful.
If you're looking for a good mecha OVA series that isn't too long then I recommend Gunbuster.

Final Score 8/10

First, allow me to put this up front: I am compelled to call this show "Gunbuster". This is how it was titled in North America decades ago and what I watched it under at that time. You can guess that I am a little bit biased toward it, based on those two sentences.

There are flaws in Gunbuster. I've lived with this series for long enough that I'm able to admit that. But the question is whether it's strong enough to overcome these flaws. This is what this review endeavours to determine.

Story:

This is the reason that I love this show. Hideaki Ano chose to use time ... dilation as a plot device, something that is rarely seen in most science fiction, even in pieces where doing such would make perfect sense. And it is used to full effect, influencing and revealing the motivations and psychology of the main characters and giving us one of the most deliciously bittersweet endings ever witnessed in an anime. Though he plays fast and loose with the physics, it's only to amplify the impact on the characters and, of course, on the viewer.

Art:

The best way to describe the art in Gunbuster is "freakin' awesome". One can see in it the embryo of what would become the over-the-top style that is now an integral part of Gainax's identity. The sleek design of the Exelion and the Eltreum. The immense scale of the Buster Machines. The action which seems to defy the laws of physics and Euclidian geometry.

And then there are the space monsters. These were designed in such a way that, from even a first glance, one can tell that they are not of this Earth and yet at the same time recognize them as living things. One at once are afraid to touch the ugly squiggly things and intrigued by the very nature of its existence.

The character art can put one off on occasion, such as Noriko sometimes looking a little bit developmentally disabled in certain scenes. This is the only thing that really keeps the art from attaining perfection, in my book.

Sound:

If you are not pumped up by the Buster Machine March, then you are not human. The music sets the tone of the series almost perfectly. When the scene is sad, the music helps to make you feel sad. When the scene is action packed, the music gets you excited. When the scene is meant to inspire, sweet monkey nuggets, you are inspired!

There are a couple spots, especially in the first episode, where it doesn't seem to convey things properly, sort of like awkward first steps. But, other than that, the score is solid.

Characters:

This is the largest flaw in the show. The way some characters act seems to strictly be to advance the plot. Admiral Takaya's sacrifice. Jung's apparent swings between bitter rival and a tender friend (though, considering that her name is Jung Freud, she might be a touch bipolar). And, of course, Noriko's actions in the third episode and most of the fourth, making these parts difficult to watch.

Having said that, the seemingly nonsensical decisions that are sometimes made do advance the plot in important ways. And they can often be justified if one puts a little bit of thought into it. The issue here is the mental gymnastics required for some of these justifications.

Enjoyment:

As I mentioned before, I am biased, so take this section with a grain of salt. But Gunbuster, in my opinion, is fun from beginning to end. Some parts are tedious, but you are rewarded once they're over with moments of pure undiluted awesome. The use of the principles of time dilation to facilitate character development (though not entirely scientifically accurate) genuinely explores how people would act under circumstances that our technology has yet to bring about. And the action sequences are incredibly well done and are worth taking the time to see.

In addition, there are countless little things that are a bonus for those who really pay attention. Noriko's room being covered in posters for classic anime such as Space Battleship Yamato and Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind. The construction of the starships which seems to involve immense plastic model kits. The women preparing for battle with the space monsters by applying makeup and nail polish. The countless shout-outs to Gunbuster's predecessors. These minor inconsequential elements work to make light of tropes that existed in anime since time immemorial and that still exist now.

Overall:

A loath as I am to admit, Gunbuster has flaws. These flaws, though, do not detract from one's enjoyment of the show in its entirety. You will become involved with the main characters, despite some of the incomprehensible decisions that are sometimes made. You will feel compelled to cheer out loud when the plodding buildup to some unadulterated excellence finally pays off. And you will be genuinely moved when the final scene of the final episode plays.

I think it was a few year ago that the name Gunbuster was introduced to me. Gurren Lagann had just ended and after finding myself dissatisfied with its ending, I asked some friends for some similar series. One of them mentioned Diebuster, another said that I shouldn't watch it until I had watched Gunbuster. Alas, I never actually bothered to watch any of the other super robot shows they named other than G Gundam. It was at a convention that I was again reminded of this amazing 6 episode OVA that I had neglected to watch. A friend of mine was cosplaying Noriko and after ... asking her about her costume, the discussion turned to Gunbuster, then to her excitedly telling me to go see it. So I did.

Immediately, the Gainax "touch" struck me. Many of the established Gainax tropes were here, everything from boob-bouncing, the heavy fanservice and deep character development. What seemed to be missing was a well-developed plot. Aliens want to kill us, we build robots and ships to fight them. Almost the entirety of the plot can be summarized in that sentence. Case in point, Noriko, our protagonist, lost her father to the aliens but this is never a major plot point and only serves as a springboard for more of her character development. The characters keep the ball rolling, and boy does that ball roll. The characters are immediately endearing; you feel their pain, their inner conflicts and you can relate to their tragedies. Best of all, you can sense certain nuances and subtleties in their interactions. A good three out of six episodes is spent carefully crafting these characters, the heavy action does not enter the picture until well after the middle of the fourth episode. This never tries your patience however; the pacing could have been better but the characters are so interesting that you are compelled to watch. Hence, more character driven scenes only really come off as deliberate, never boring or slow.

When the action finally does hit though, it hits hard. The action is pure super robot, the design of the titular mecha evoking designs like Mazinger or Gaiking. Animation-wise, this is pure 80s anime bliss. Bright colors punctuate the zeerust designs of the spaceships and the alien designs follow the Giger-esque trends of the time. You'll also be treated to some of the best shirt-ripping (yep, an excuse for more tits), attack screaming, hot-blooded mecha action around. It is during these scenes that Gurren Lagann's homages become readily apparent. Tropes include the classic arms folded badass pose and the impassioned "get a hold of yourself" speeches.

When the OVA finally winds down in the sixth episode, the action and drama have been blended and meshed nearly perfectly. This is the episode that feels the most like Hideki Anno's other works, namely Evangelion in some parts. The final episode is deliberately monochrome in order to emphasize the drama. It works incredibly well, especially in concert with the now legendary ending. Admittedly, the first few episodes could feel tedious to some, but it is absolutely worth sticking around until the final episode simply because the ending is so incredibly well done. It's almost safe to say that the reason this OVA is so fondly remembered is because of the sheer emotional impact of those final scenes. If you are in any way a mecha, sci-fi or Gainax fan, you must watch this OVA. For good reason, it is widely considered a classic and I'm kicking myself over not experiencing it earlier.

After finishing episode six, I felt that on it's own merits Gunbuster is a near-perfect OVA. However, Gunbuster does have a sequel: Diebuster, released in 2004. I almost felt as if a newer, modern sequel would never do this classic justice nor would it complement it.

I was wrong. Really wrong.

On to Diebuster...

There are many shows in anime that deserve more attention in the medium than they get. There can be many reasons as to why this attention is never obtained: the budget was low, the show came from an unknown studio/director, the animation was off, the show was ahead of its time, and so forth.
Gunbuster is one such series. The directorial debut of Hideaki Anno, Gunbuster is a short 6 episode anime that was highly influential to the industry, presenting new forms of story telling, and a firm grasp of world-building and characterization that propelled the ... show to new heights. Gunbuster is a show that while considered a classic, is hardly watched by newcomers into anime. That needs to be remedied.
Gunbuster starts off with a bang, going with a blistering pace to introduce the main characters, as well as introduce the audience into this glimpse of the future. Much of the beginning of the series relies on this world-building, opting for story-telling over action. Action is there, but the first 3 episodes' goal is to introduce the audience into a realistic and fun world.
Characters in this series are fantastic, well developed, and well designed. With a distinct look, the anime looks rather ahead of its time, with amazing animation that holds up even today. Anno did very well on establishing his own style with his debut, and you can tell how Gunbuster influenced many of his later anime, with the most obvious being Neon Genesis Evangelion.
What will stand out to some, and may be a turn-off to others, is the heavy fanservice. Breasts, while not necessarily over-sized, are shown often, and are fantastically animated. This was some next-generation stuff when it aired, and it has some of the best booby-bouncing physics I have ever seen. If you are into that sorta thing.
Gunbuster is a fantastic series that still holds up well today, presenting the audience with a believable world, colorful cast of characters, and amazing story-telling that beats most anime being released today. If you have not seen Gunbuster, go see it now. It will change the way you see Mecha, and anime, forever.

Gunbuster is a strange mixture of parodically cliched, half-assed storytelling and subversive, dramatically-powerful moments.

Some of this is obviously intentional, mainly the first two episodes, which are aping sports-anime tropes from Aim for the Ace! such as the klutzy-but-hardworking underdog protagonist, the idolised perfect older-sister figure, and the jealous rival, as well as the taciturn coach with unshakable belief. (Note that the intentional parody doesn't make these parts any less boring or annoying.)

However, other instances of this contrast are difficult to understand. For example, despite its bizarrely detailed depiction of "hard" sci-fi concepts like time dilation, the anime barely makes any real effort at fleshing ... out its setting and premise - the central conflict in the story is between humanity and mysterious "space monsters" about whom virtually nothing is ever learned, and whose enmity to humanity is never adequately explained.

Despite the commonplace nature of mechas as a weapon, scenes of training or military maneuvers rarely evidence any attempt by the writers to actually think about the implications of using them - Noriko, for example, seems to train more by just running around or lifting weights than by actually piloting her mech. The incongruous sight of mechs doing push-ups or running around on the ground is commonplace, despite how useless it would be to practice these things for a space battle. Although the entirety of Earth is presumably allied in fighting the space monsters, we rarely see any kind of international coalition of forces that would indicate the scale of such an effort - the sole "foreign" presence is a completely useless fanservice character who's hilariously named "Jung Freud".

Given that the series is only six episodes, it can be excused for not depicting a drawn-out military conflict with twists and turns, although it's quite repetitive to have the two major climaxes of the series both revolve around the strategy of "go into the middle of the enemy forces with a big bomb, run away, and detonate it". But the makers could have scrapped many of the pathetic fanservice bathing scenes in favour of trying to flesh out the world and the details of the situation instead, and they don't do that.

At this point it's worth mentioning what's actually good about it. It has excellent art - with the exception of a 6-7 minute stretch in the last episode where the presumably cash-strapped Gainax staff tried to be arty by panning over still frames instead of animating them, the animation is generally fluid and crisp, and the visual impact of the anime is always engrossing.

There are several genuinely engrossing battle sequences, the first of which is quite subversive in that instead of showing Noriko effortlessly carving through the enemy as another anime might, it shows her freezing up and unable to do anything due to the shock and fear of being in a battle for the first time.

For some reason, despite being totally uninterested in any of the other sci-fi elements of its premise, Gunbuster is very interested in the idea of time dilation resulting from lightspeed/near-lightspeed travel. It puts this concept to use in several very strong scenes, where the pathos comes from people knowing that they're going out into space on a journey and will come back with everyone they know having grown old or died, or from Noriko coming back after what - for her - was six months, to find that ten years passed on Earth, and everything has moved on from her. This part of Gunbuster is probably its greatest strength.

If every other element of Gunbuster was written with the attention and interest that's given to the scenes involving time dilation, then it would probably be perfect and an undeniable classic. As it stands, the anime oscillates wildly between sloppy, lazy melodrama and genuinely interesting, emotionally affecting sci-fi. Which averages out to around a 6.

The Drama of space.

First off, I tried this based on a review that was comparing it with Neon Genesis Evangelion, or rather be-dwarfing NGE instead when compared with Top wo Nerae

well, I won't judge harshly and I won't take sides, but if you're in for some major heart-wrenching scenes from the world of Anno, Hideaki, then you're in for a treat.

Story:
Coming from the same famed director of NGE, this series comprises heavy emphasis on human relationships in a sci-fi outer space setting, when the world of man is facing total annihilation at the hand of super-insect alien race, man has to invent ways and tools ... of survival that has never been imagined before, it falls down to a certain youth whose unrelenting will and ever-shining love to those around her becomes her ultimate tool in saving mankind

the idea here is, unlike NGE this series doesn't put much darkness or psychological background to the plot, rather it is the prime will of man to survive and the interconnections of the people in the story thrown in a dramatic splice of life setting that makes this show a wonderful experience

and by saying Drama I don't mean the whiny kind, it is real Drama with real impact, which leaves you sad, happy and eager to continue watching, some would argue that it is only 6 episodes so what is the big deal, well at least they are good 6 episodes bound together with consistent plot that doesn't break down or feel awkward DESPITE the short episode count

Character:
we have Takaya our main character a girl thrown in an ocean of responsibility and dire situations where she'll have to get back on her feet and prove her worth despite how she feels about her self incompetence, a theme like this is kind of reminiscent of Tengen Toppa, where sheer determination of human will can have a huge effect on the fate of man
the other cast of people are not just supporting characters they serve to deepen the plot and to further expand the dramatic play until the final episode hits home for example, you have the coach who is a combination of marvelous voice acting and a mysterious background which bit by bit breaks down to reveal his true nature, you have Amano who is Takay's idol and the one she cares for the most, she helps Takay to grow from a wet cry-baby into a full-fledged warrior with horrendous responsibilities , symbolizing self-confidence and GUTS

Art:
Considering the date at which this series has been released, the artwork is really something, in fact it could out rate some of the newly released titles !!
you won't feel bored with old lines and sketches, it is carefully drawn plus you get to notice the NGE feel which is rather nostalgic :)

Sound:
I loved the opening track, again with themes encouraging one to go on no matter the obstacles and to always believe in one's self, this is in my honest humble opinion is the strongest aspect of this show, that and the heavy Drama the accompanies it of course


All in all I enjoyed it so much that I get to understand where NGE drew its roots, not entirely similar but somewhat connected, a tale of mankind versus the unknown, and a sentiment to how powerful man is when man is only as powerful as he believes he is

Enjoy

This is a 6 episode classic. Nothing less than a classic honestly.

The characters of Norika and Amano really hold this series sincerely, and in my opinion, it has the best 6th episode (albeit with an ending that was a little too gaily for me to swallow, but I'll accept it as being part of the canon and as a part of its overall atmosphere, logical in the emotions being portrayed), and its progression really was good (especially after the middle of episode 1.

Construction wise, its a gem to watch - the emotions felt, the brevity of all the characters and their motivations, the depth of ... involvement of the story, and the sheer iron will of the people who took part in this clash of heavenly proportions. Its good stuff - the kind which makes you say "Hoorah for being human!" and all that.

An anime worthy of watching. Classic.

I'm one of the three anime fans who has not seen Evangelion, so I won't compare it to that.

Gunbuster manages to do in 6 episodes what many anime fail to do in 20+, tell a story that is both coherent and rich. In a nutshell, the show is about hot chicks in space with mecha and Norio Wakamoto. You already have a show worth sitting through at least 12 episodes right there. However, Gunbuster manages to go much further than that by establishing a thrillingly Lovecraftian enemy in a setting that explores the realistic implications of travelling at or near light speed. The show doesn't ... shove the science down your throat (unless you pay close attention to the lecture segments), but rather weaves the scientific concepts into plot elements that are emotionally jarring at their best.

At first glance, the story reminded me a lot of Ender's Game: the idea of recruiting young soldiers to go into space and train to fight a mysterious, unifying threat to mankind. The story ends a lot like Gurren Lagann, however. Using the power of perseverance to overcome the seemingly impossible.

The show reeks of 80's sensibility, so it can appear a bit dated at times, but I don't think this distracts from the enjoyment, although it can make the theatrics a bit cheesy at times.

The only real flaws I could see with the production probably had to do with shoddy subbing and aging sound/graphics. Once you get past that, you can begin to see the classic masterpiece that Gunbuster really is.

One of the first by Studio Gainax (Royal Space Force, Evangelion) and the first series worked on by Hideaki Anno (Royal Space Force, Evangelion), Aim For the Top Gunbusters has much of the same art, music, character designs, mech designs as Evangelion and has similar action focusing on women piloting mechs.

The story begins in 2023, not long after humanities first contact with insectoid aliens threatening their existence. Humanity, needing to defend themselves, develop massive space battleships, mechs, and the people to pilot them in order to defeat these invaders.

Noriko Takaya is the main focus whom is a trainee pilot. She wants to go into space ... in order to find her father or get revenge for him whom died in the first encounter with the insectoids. She, at first, has zero talent for piloting the mechs but is picked out anyways by the coach to be one of the two that heads into space to join the fight. Joining her on the journey is Kazumi Amano, the ace of the school and partner. Together they face the trauma of war, and Noriko must also face the doubts of her peers, and her own lack of confidence.

This anime is animated extremely well and the music matches up perfectly with the time it was made. There are interesting aspects that are done well such as the passage of time from space and to Earth. The lessons it teaches along the way is extremely interesting such as the mech designs as time passes to the hard science involved with the evolving storyline. Episode 6 in the OVA is the most standout. Not just because it is the last one, but due to it being all in monochrome. It has super robot elements, but the slow development over the first three episodes is all a set up for the trials ahead in the last three.

With the masterful storytelling and the progression of the main character Noriko, more than makes up for the occasional fan-service and super robot elements. Do not miss Gunbuster.