The Whole Head of Gurren Lagann

 I finished Gurren Lagann a few days ago, and I can make my final conclusion on this rollercoaster of robots and explosions. What a fantastic rollercoaster ride it was.

 Since I'm a slowpoke and just finished this series, this "review" is not going to be relevant in the slightest to most people, but I want to write about it, because I said so. The show got a hell of a lot more entertaining after the timeskip, where it just becomes a huge mass of tropes and cliche that I can't help but love it. The show is very well made, but every single one of its ideas are taken from other sources. Gurren Lagann takes these ideas, paints them red, sticks fire decals to the side, and revs up the engine to max speed. The end result is an exciting homage to classic mecha shows from the last 30 years.

 After the events of episode 15, the series jumps seven years starting with episode 17. During this time, Simon becomes the supreme commander of the Earth, and the humans are living in peace. Simon and Rossiu worry about the prophecy told by Lord Genome at the end of the first part, and are forced to keep track of the human population. This puts pressure on both them, and as the millionth child is born, Nia goes missing, and fortells of the destruction of the planet. It's up to Simon and team Dai-Gurren to save the planet.

 This second half has pretty much the exact same cast as the pre-timeskip, with minimal changes among them. Simon is more Kamina like. Yoko has a semblance of a personality, instead of being walking cleavage. Nia is barely seen, and the rest of team Dia-Gurren do very little out of character. Rossiu and Kinon have the most drastic change however. Kinon is no longer the quiet girl from before. She's now assertive and seems to have an unhealthy devotion to Rossiu. Rossiu is not to different personality wise, but acts much more drastically than before, and is essentially one of the villian for the first half of this arc. Viral returns, but not in the way you would expect.

 Again like the last part, it brings up some cool themes, but never goes anywhere with them. It doesn't matter though, because that's not what makes Gurren Lagann great a series. I went in with the wrong expectations. I went in expecting something meaty to latch onto and disect, but I should have went in with some sunglasses, and to get ready for some intense action. The action in the second half, is so over-the-top it is truly a sight to see. Most of the show is a homage other super-robot shows through the fights and settings, but it doesn't make them any less amazing. The final fight in particular is so insane, that you can't help but be pumped. The show will always leave one on the edge of their seat and anticipate the next episode.

 The animation as usual is top-notch. The fight scenes are all very fluid and flow with finese, which is rare in a Japanese series, which usually look sub-par compared the the US. The crisp and clean animation makes the the combat much more exciting, and the little details help elevate even the dramatic scenes.

 One problem, which is also a blessing, is that Gurren Lagann is not very original. Everything is a homage to other mecha shows, and it's written on tropes and cliché. This is also the saving grace of the series, because it's what makes it fun. It's not caught up with teaching a message, or being deep. It just wants to be fun, like the shows it loves. It doesn't want to be Neon Genessis Evangelion, and be a convoluted mess. It would much rather be like Getter Robot and be fun.

Overall, I really enjoyed Gurren Lagann. It didn't have a deep plot or character development, but it was entertaining, which is the job of entertainment. I would much rather watch something entertaining than something deep and boring. The writers clearly had a love for the genre, and it shows throughout the work. It's what helps the show become what it is, and it is entertaining.