#groizer x

[fujikosouvenir]

Page from てれびくん Televi-Kun, November 1976 - Go Nagai & Gosaku Ōta's グロイザーX Groizer X illustrated by Noritsuna Maemura

[henshinhere]

Villain's Fortress' in 70s Super Robot Anime

[selketshaula]

DYNAMIC SUPER ROBOT ALLIANCE

[nakamorijuan]

池田鴻 - 飛べ！グロイザーX Kou Ikeda - Tobe! GROIZER X GROIZER X - Opening Theme

[rga531]

"I want my own Getter team!" "We have a Getter team at home." The Getter team at home:

[randomnumbers751650]

I’m watching a 70s mecha anime called Groizer X, named after its titular mech, but its Brazilian dub, that’s for some reason named Space Pirate. I’m actually impressed by the kind of themes the story approaches, which makes it stand out for a Go Nagai side project. Under more because I’m also talking a bit about politcses.

Basically, a scientific mission from Gaira crash-lands in Antarctica and they’re put on cryo-sleep until their homeworld gets the distress signal. The nuclear weapons, however, disturb their sleep and they wake up earlier and the first thing the leaders decide to do is to conquer Earth with their superior technology and maybe or maybe not use Earth enslaved labor to build up technology so they can return home. They also kill all those who oppose, only the scientist’s daughter Rita escaping with their most powerful weapon: Groizer X, or Space Pirate.

The Gairans also elect Japan to be the most dangerous nation (since Space Pirate flew there) and decide to attack it. Now Rita has to join forces with the Japanese and their main pilot, Joe Kaisaka and use Space Pirate to fight against the Gairans.

What calls the attention most is how the Gairans operate like an imperialistic group. Most of them are on board with the conquest plans, but others are just into it because if they aren’t, they’ll be killed.

Rita decides to refuse joining their imperialistic ambitions and pays for it. While she gives them Space Pirate and co-pilots it, she’s not someone with military training. She also has to deal with the fact she won’t be accepted by some humans; after a Gairan attack on Japanese farms, with the objective of harming their food supply, the main Japanese scientist’s nephew loses both his parents. When Rita is outside, reflecting on this, the boy goes to her, says he knows who she is and will never forgive her – and, even if Rita wants to be kind to him, this isn’t solved in the same episode.

In the recent episode I watched (the 7th), the Gairans concoct a psychological plan to bring Rita back to the empire, by sending her ex-boyfriend to convince her. He hijacks a TV station, killing two employees to send her a message that briefly convinces her and she steals Space Pirate because she trusts him to be a good person and his offer to return to their homeworld and leaving Earth alone. When she's about to meet him, she receives a message from the professor that he killed two employees to send the message. When she confronts him about this, he regrets that he had to do and says he's fully on board with their imperialistic ambitions and their belief that they're superior to humans and even shoots down the Joe's plane (who had gone after her) and gives her an ultimatum; she refuses, saying humans and aliens are the same, and then they engage in a dogfight, but both really don't want that and, in the end, the he allows himself to be defeated by her and dies.

70’s mecha anime villains have a tendency to be empires – like the Dinosaur Empire in Getter Robo, the Vegans in Grendizer – and there’s argument to be made that they represent the fact Japan was an imperialistic country itself. The Dinosaur Empire, for example, used Unit 731-like tactics in the manga. So I can see how they’re trying to come to terms with the truth that their country had a terrible past and how they could overcome it. Rita makes a point to say that the Gairan Empire is based on kindness and justice, just like Earth and humanity. This also makes sure the Gairans that are attacking Earth are just the worst there is and, in their homeworld, they aren’t different from humans, implying that in a better future both species can be friends.

It's interesting that the series had a Brazilian release. It was probably picked randomly by the distributor, but the themes can resonate in a Third World country that has to deal with imperialistic concerns, both in the direct (open influence) and indirect (“we have devised this plan to help you, don’t mind that there’s no input from your nationals”) ways (because this is something I study in my research).

The series is made by Go Nagai as well, and we know he wasn’t one to shy away from approaching political issues in his work; but he also had the talent and ability to do it in an engaging way. Plus, the theme song is good, quite nostalgic with its 70’s energy and I think one can watch without thinking of the subtext.

[apenasebal]

Groizer X (グロイザーX?), conhecido no Brasil como O Pirata do Espaço 

[theanimeshontimes]

Two Heads Are Better Than One: Anime's Best Mecha Co-Pilots

According to Crunchyroll

DARLING in the FRANXX's Hiro & Zero Two

Gurren Lagann's Simon & Kamina

Marriage of God & Soul Godannar!!’s Goh & Anna

Groizer X’s Joe & Rita

Gunbuster’s Noriko & Kazumi

BONUS: Pacific Rim’s Raleigh & Mako

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