Gasaraki

Where Evangelion revolutionised the mecha genre, and perhaps inspired melodramatic experimentalism in modern anime, Gasaraki made a quieter step in a different direction for mecha. From the very outset, I’ll just say that one of the main draw points for this series is the mecha design, and the high degree of thought that was put into the functionality of the bipedal machines as effective tools of war in near-future combat. But there is a lot more to the show than that; Gasaraki is one of those rare anime that manage to rise above what could easily have become a convoluted mess of a plot. With ... elements of military, romance, supernatural, sci-fi, mecha, history, and politics, Gasaraki is the product of an amalgamation of a whole slew of genres and plot-lines that manages to work. But it doesn’t work as well as it could have, and the constant juggling of its many characters and stories result in some elements being underplayed and others over-stressed. The character of Misuzu and her endearment to her brother seems to be almost completely redundant at times, and quite often you end up wishing one storyline was given more attention than others. But the hectic plot also means that the show manages to be engaging for the majority of its run without ever resorting to an episodic format, which is a bit of a rarity in anime. One of the show’s biggest flaws is its characterisation, largely in the first half of the series.

The series has a very large cast, and as such, it struggles early on in giving any one character enough attention to establish them as a believable, human individual. For far too long, the protagonists of the series are sidelined to a seemingly inconsequential role of feeling sorry for themselves, and most of the rest of the cast are like talking clichés. This results in a disappointing, flat beginning. But the show does eventually manage to pull in the viewers when things start to come together and the characters are faced with hardship after hardship, the way they handle each obstacle a contribution to their depth of character. By the end of the series I felt a strong affection for many of the characters, and the villains prove to be very satisfying in their antagonistic roles, with Gouda-esque scheming and cunning. The almost iconic Nishida was one of the more interesting characters, a tactical genius and a man of honour and strong values, he provided the backbone for the idealistic elements of the series. Unfortunately, Miharu is never quite granted enough development to make her anything beyond blatantly sympathetic, and Yushiro is often terminally quiet. The more outgoing members of the TA crew proved to be the best source of characterisation from the whole show.

I’m not usually a fan of mecha at all, in fact the mere concept of creating bipedal weapons that dwarf other combatants or transform into jets is just impractical. A man-made bipedal weaponry would not only be incredibly hard and costly to create (just look at how long it took them to get ASIMO waddling about), but it would serve no purpose, having no benefit over existing vehicles of war such as tanks and aircraft. Not to mention, hominoid designs for mecha are only possible to a certain height, whereupon the sheer weight of the mecha would cause its legs and joints to crumble. Gasaraki, however, is the one and only mecha anime where the mecha is both feasible and logically designed. Rather than trying to sell them as useful all-purpose weapons, the “Tactical Armours” or TAs, are portrayed as being optimised for urban combat, where the mobility of tanks is severely limited. They are not oversized, instead built with a stock frame that is able to hold a large array of equipment, ammunition and some missiles. The thought that was put into them is quite impressive, exemplified by the fact that they, realistically, are not flawless super-powered machines. In one of the earlier episodes, for instance, the functionality of the TAs are severely impaired by sand getting into their systems when they enter combat in a desert area. Also, the piloting of a TA is shown to be quite a taxing experience, with the use of drugs to manipulate the pilot’s physical condition being a common occurrence (quite an adept foresight into the direction of warfare). In combat, their mobility is significantly better than alternative vehicles (especially as they are able to hoist themselves up the sides of buildings), but they are not overly dextrous or agile. This down-to-earth, believable portrayal of mecha is something I hadn’t seen done before (or since), and so I give the show credit for its pioneering mecha conception.

However, with that appraisal out of the way, the fact that they are more realistic also means that the action scenes are often slightly subdued and slow, not as exciting as the fast-paced fisticuffs of your usual clichéd mecha. There are a number of action highlights, such as Symbol’s TAs taking out a unit of tanks in Belgistan, and the battle following the awakening of the Kugutsu, but all in all, the action scenes are relatively bland, and sometimes the animation budget clearly isn’t there to support them (such as when the rioting takes place later in the series). A few times, they are made more interesting by the ingenious use of the TAs many functions to escape a tight situation. The show maintains a relatively fast pace right the way through, so it isn’t lacking in excitement, but don’t expect to be blown away with intense action sequences. On the whole, the production values get the job done but do not excel. The character designs are different, but, with the exclusion of the Gowa family, also uite unappealing. There are a number of reused cels and shortcuts in the animation are apparent at times. The music, on the other hand, is remarkable, with an ethereal clash of archaic Japanese and modern, militaristic sounds. This melding of sounds is exemplified best by the OP, which I consider a musical accomplishment, and quite possibly my favourite anime OP ever. The soundtrack is fittingly haunting and refreshingly innovative.

So, where the characters and the production are the sources of most of the show’s flaws, the plot is an understated success, crafting a complex mythos for the gasaraki, as well as deftly utilising the global economy as the stage for a truly modernistic conflict. The way the series balances, or rather, collides the old and the new through its exploration of multiple timelines, one set in archaic Japan and the other in the near-future, is clever and engaging. It mirrors the thematic core of the series, which is all about the conflict between traditional and modern values, and the resultant direction of human civilisation. I especially love the story behind the Gasaraki, and their plight was a nice way to cap off the themes of the show in a thought-provoking manner. I will also attest to the fact that Gasaraki truly nails the fragile balance between mystery and explanation; where many anime leave frustrating plotholes, Gasaraki leaves a hazy sense of unknown which compliments the new-age mythical tone of the show. It helps that I’m a great fan of political espionage and conspiracy, as a good portion of the show is spent scheming and plotting, as well as exposition interestingly delivered through news reports. There is a lot of dialogue, and the story is quite involved, so it’s not a show you can casually skip through. That’s not to say it becomes bogged down in pointless dialogue; there should be enough going on to keep anyone interested.

All in all, Gasaraki is a series that should be applauded for trying something new and interesting with the mecha genre, and for the amount of thought that went into its complex story, but is one that failed to live up to its potential through unexceptional production and often poorly written characters. It’s a series that will be highly enjoyed by anyone with the fortitude to watch past its opening episodes, and for anyone who really appreciates innovation and a creative story. Those who simply must have strong dramatic elements to their anime, or who are likely to be apathetic toward the cool mecha designs may find the show very disappointing. In any case, its milestone treatment of mecha as more than a fanciful superweapon, is one that no other anime has put in the effort to match, and its plot is several cuts above the cliché that plagues the mecha genre.

A different kind of Mecha anime.
Gasaraki is a relatively unknown anime series. Instead of concentrating on battles in their machines, it revolves more around family politics and politics.

The story revolves around Yushiro Gowa, the fourth son in the Gowa family. The largest company in Japan. His family puts him in the volunteer part of the experimental Mecha unit. Then things erupt in the Middle East, and a Nato/UN is sent in, and are pushed back by a unknown force. The Gowa family learns that there is another Mecha unit and send in theirs without UN permission. Things get really complicated then, Yushiro meets the leader ... of the other Mecha unit Miharu and things begin to come clear in Yushiro's life. After the UN forces defeat the Middle East country, the United States finds out about the Mecha units and tries to take them for them selfs. That's just story through the first ten episodes. Like I said a lot of political intrigue. I'm not going to go much further let's just say it puts the United States and Japan a odds, and maybe that's what some people want inside Japan to shake it up, because they feel Japan is America's slave.

I know this came out before the Iraq war, but there are is a lot of similarities to what's going on right now, and it's doesn't show a good impression of the United States, Japan, and the UN. The story was captivating, the Mecha battles were believable, nothing over the top. The character's seemed real, and believable. The only thing that kept it getting a 10 was the ending. It was a little anti climatic, other wise the show was great.

I could start off by saying that Gasaraki has a criminally low rating on this site. However, it makes sense that such a heady series wouldn't win over the hearts of wide-eyed mecha anime consumers who expect fight scenes to actually be mech fight scenes, and not the economic and diplomatic warfare that takes precedent in this anime. The attitude as expressed by raters here on MAL parallels the tension that defines the main theme of the series: the eternal and (probably) identical movement of progress and destruction.

Gasaraki takes place in a not-so-distant sci-fi future. Illegal immigration is a (seemingly) huge problem in Japan ... due to the effects of globalist economics, which has built up the illusion of economic superiority in developed, globalist economies. On the minds of the Japanese people (or so we're told) is the desire for consumption, luxury, and the satisfaction of immediate desires. The interconnected international community, of course, is highly sensitive to huge changes, and an upstart in the Middle East (where else?) has created a problem that needs to be taken care of by all those with interests in keeping the Progress moving.

Enter the TAs. What better way to show-off your cool new mechs than going to the Middle East and hopefully (but is it really even necessary?) kick some ass. The first thing that one will take note of is the incredibly realistic mech designs. Their grittiness perfectly fits in to the muted, militaristic color tones present throughout the series' design. A design that even extends into the past (hey, it fits into the theme!)

The mechs (TAs) themselves aren't really the main focus in the grand scheme of things, although you'll get a nice bit of detail into how they work, and it's great that they're realistic enough that it seems probably that they could work as portrayed. Instead, we have the spotlight shining on a whole mess of characters. Like the TAs, we get a sense that most of these people are simply cogs in a political/militaristic machine, that has been turning for centuries. There are those, it seems, that can gain control of this machine (the 'terror' ?) and our main character Yuushirou is one who has the ability to control some crazy thing in order to get closer to that power.

Of course, with a power like that, who wouldn't want to use him as a means to their end? His own powerful family isn't going to sit by and let someone else harness his ability, so they do what they're supposed to do, be 'mean' to him...

In my opinion this anime shines in its literal discussion (not just exploration) of themes that define the will of human beings to take control of themselves, create civilization, and steer its progress. Therefore, it t is no surprise that politics and the military play such an important role in the anime because it is through these channels that modern man is able to accomplish change. The narrative mirrors this in a way I can only describe as ingenious: the content of the narrative becomes the movement of the narrative itself.

What we see happening on the micro level (this story) has been occurring in a much grander scale throughout all of human history.

So, what is it that Gasaraki is trying to say? Up until the very end there doesn't seem to be any overarching morality that the show is trying to espouse. Instead we have individuals ompeting to force their own vision onto the whole of human civilization. And at the end, well it's something....

Something I find most interesting is the portrayal of the TAs/kugai as vessels which contain the gods humans want to keep closest to them. Those gods really being a certain ambition within us all. That these vessels, in both instances, would also be weapons is quite telling. (see also: swords)


One of the individuals I find most interesting is Nishida, a scholar with the hope of rejecting the progress that has been made and instead descend into a more pure and idealized system. Another is the eldest (?) Gowa brother who does the opposite. The focus is on these big-shots , regulating even our main characters to the level of small-timers. This dichotomy between the big-shots and the small-fries becomes an important part of the series. Big-shots hope to shape the world with their ideals, become fate, while small-fries simply want to see fate as something not etched in stone but forever changing, and live their lives according to their own much smaller and more ephemeral dreams. This difference of perspective is really the only way we can gauge good vs evil, for the most part what is right and wrong gets lost in the force of those attempting to control the narrative. That our main characters struggle with one perspective, may be a clue as to the moral direction this series wants to take.

In terms of thematic content we have: the TA/kugai, pilot/kai parallel, the theater stage and the stage of fate, the eternal conflicts of civilizations and the eternal conflicts of ideas, chaos on the small and grand scale, mortality and immortality, human-ness and anti-human-ness, progress that leads to destruction and the destruction that leads to progress, the sapling that grows among the rubble and the husk that topples under its own weight, the personification of history/fate, the oppressiveness of fate and the rejection of fate, human monkey-ness and human being-ness..and many more.

The anime is also executed well. I think the direction, pacing is spot on. Opening and ending themes are incredible.

Gasaraki is a slow-moving, dialogue-heavy, dark, and realistic anime that asks some of the most important and relevant questions about ourselves and our desires as human beings, especially of those human beings who have power over all others. It also serves as a decent predictor of what has happened since 1998. 8/10.