One of my all-time-favorite anime, Martian Sucessor Nadesico, had within it a smaller sub anime that one of the main characters, and eventually the whole crew of the Nadesico, was obsessed with. Gekigangar Three, while not an actual anime, was a paradigm of classic giant robot action. Featuring a combining robot of three different vehicles, strange inhuman enemies, three hot blooded pilots, and a laboratory set in some remote location, Gekigangar three was representative of classic robot action.

Of course, Gekigangar Three was never to be a full anime, and my only insight into classic giant robo anime was short-lived indeed. When I got my hands on New Getter Robo, I was overjoyed: in New Getter Robo, we have the same premise: three hot-blooded pilots, a combining robot, and inhuman foes. Coupled with lightning fast robo action, New Getter Robo is easily a great example of action-packed classic robo anime.

The first three episodes introduce us to the three pilots of the Getter Robo: Ryoma, a reckless, hot-headed martial artist with a chip on his shoulder and a serious problem with authority; Hayato, a somewhat calmer, yet insane man who seems to know a bit about the Getter Robo and the mysterious "Getter Rays" that are used to power the giant machine; and Benkei, an ex-monk whose sinful nature comes out in moments of comedic brilliance. Together, the three form the crew of the Getter Robo and combat the mysterious Oni.

Each of the characters has a unique chemistry with one another, something explored in the fourth episode, which is carried delightfully by their unique personalities. The Japanese track makes the pilots sound rougher, more hard bitten, where as the English manages to expand upon a single trait: Ryoma sounds more devil-may-care, Hayato sounds a bit on the crazy side, and Benkei is sillier than his Japanese counterpart. All in all, the English voices manage to do an excellent job, approaching the quality of the Japanese.

The animation style is classic, though with a crispness that can only come from modern techniques. Each of the characters is designed around the typical team paradigm: Ryoma is skinny and well built, of medium build; Hayato is tall and lanky with long hair; Benkei is a big, bald, bruiser. The mechanical designs are also top notch, retaining that "classic" feel to the entire series: each of the Getter Robo's iterations that we see is animated differently for its different capabilities: Getter I is a general purpose form, Getter II is skinnier and the fastest of the lot, and Getter III is more massive and heavily armed than the other two.

The first DVD comes with textless Japanese closings, and a pair of music clips for the insert songs. Ordinarily, I would not pay special mention to the music clips but these are worth taking a few minutes to listen to. The insert songs are set against some of the more violent and action packed sequences from the first four episodes and do a remarkable job of keeping with the fast pace of the animation. Other extras include previews for Samurai Champloo, Texhnolyze, and Appleseed.

All in all, I would recommend New Getter Robo to those who want to ad a bit of "classic" anime to their collection: New Getter Robo will not disappoint.

Distributor: Geneon
Creator: Go Nagai / Brains Base
Released: 2004

Video Quality: A
Audio Quality: A
Presentation: A
Content: A
Overall: A