First Impressions / Series Introduction / Super Robot Wars OG

OP Sequence

OP: 「MAXON」 by JAM Project
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「赤い衝撃」 (Akai Shougeki)
“Red Impact”

Having only really played through some of the Classic and Alpha SRW games, I had to do a fair bit of research into the Original Generations timeline to get a good grasp of what’s going on in this adaptation. It served as a good refresher to fully appreciate the story, which new viewers diving into this sequel will likely be overwhelmed by to start. Still, this is the best-looking SRW anime adaptation to date, so fans of mecha in general should find enjoyment from this one. The most confusing thing to new viewers will be the nearly six-minute long opening fight between what looks like a deranged version of one of the main protagonists on the ATX Team, Kyousuke Nanbu (Morikawa Toshiyuki). Despite how much that appears to be a cold open to the series, it’s actually a fight in an alternate universe from the one that this series takes place in. It’s often referred to as the Shadow-Mirror universe due to the existence of a military faction with that name, which Axel Almar (Canna Nobutoshi) who’s seen lingering around to fight Kyousuke is a member of. This particular scene is meant to depict the rivalry between Axel and Kyousuke, a.k.a. “Beowulf”, and serves as a prologue to the Original Generation 2 Game Boy Advance game. At the end of the fight, Axel jumps dimensions into the Original Generation universe, where the rest of the story is set to take place.

Seen throughout the various SRW games going all the way back to the classic timeline (i.e. SRW 2-4, EX, F, F Final), the concept of time travel and leaping dimensions isn’t anything new. Those who are somewhat familiar with the games will already have a good idea of what happened in the opening scene, whereas those jumping into the SRW franchise for the very first time will probably be scratching their heads. Now as to whether or not that takes away from your enjoyment of the series is going to vary from person to person. For those unfamiliar with the games, it’s worth noting that each one from Super Robot Wars 4 onwards started featuring Banpresto original characters that you pick to be your main protagonist. The storyline these characters take vary depending on whether you choose them as your main character, since the one(s) you didn’t would often show up as a rival. In the Original Generation timeline that this series takes place in, Banpresto has given each of those characters a canonical story to follow, so one of the coolest aspects is seeing some of the would-be protagonists as antagonists in the series (or at least starting out as such). Axel is one prime example of that, since he was the male lead in Super Robot Wars Advance, whereas Lamia Loveless (Shimizu Kaori) was the female one, who’s seen working in mysterious ways with the arrival of her Angelg super robot at the end of the episode.

In terms of scope, Banpresto has A LOT of characters they’ve created over the course of their long-running franchise of games, so having a good chunk of them here in some form is both a treat and a bit overwhelming. This means that almost all the characters who have been shown to have some importance without any formal introduction will indeed have one, plus there’s a whole slew of others that have yet to be seen. The SRX Team consisting of Ryuusei Date (Miki Shinichirou), Raidiese F. Branstein (Okiayu Ryoutarou), Kobayashi Aya (Touma Yumi), and Kobayashi Mai (Orikasa Ai) who are seen with the huge super robot in the opening have yet to make their appearances, though Ryuusei is seen getting killed by Kyousuke in the Shadow-Mirror universe for unsaid reasons. That’s on top of Kyousuke, Excellen Browning (Mizutani Yuuko), and Brooklyn “Bullet” Luckfield (Sugita Tomokazu) from the ATX Team seen kicking ass here. However, the real thing that will throw new viewers in for a whirl are the names of the various mechs, better known as Personal Troopers (PT) in the case of the real robots (i.e. the ones that look like mobile suits). The vast majority of them have names that stem from German, as is the case with Kyousuke’s Alt Eisen, Excellen’s Weiss Ritter, and Bullet’s Huckebein Mk II Wildschwein M.

Becoming fully-versed in the world of SRW won’t happen overnight, but that shouldn’t discourage anyone who’s interested in mecha anime to check this one out. After all, this is the culmination of nearly two decades of games that brought together the series like Mazinger Z, Getter Robo, Dancougar, Combattler V, Raideen, L-Gaim, Gundam, and Macross, and was inspired by the best that they all have to offer. If you’re completely new to SRW, it’s probably best to simply focus on the story that’s progressing for the time being, where the Earth Federation has reformed under their new leader Brian Midcrid (Hayami Shou). It’s six months after Earth forces drove off the the alien invasion by the Ze Balmary Empire — better known as the “Aerogaters” — whom they tried to negotiate with afterward. However, the anti-government organization Divine Crusaders (DC) led by Bian Zoldark destroyed the Aerogaters delegation, as part of their radical ways of strengthening Earth’s defenses against aliens. Now, the remnants of the DC are still proving to be a thorn in the side of the Earth Federation, who has made the existence of alien threats known to the world in an attempt to further unify and strengthen their global defenses. From this point on, expect a lot of new individuals to get intertwined in the struggle, plus a lot of betrayals, cloning, and brainwashing. SRW always loved to play with the latter two plot devices since they’re homage to the Gundam series. Oh yeah, there are a lot of very attractive girls among Banpresto’s original characters, many of which don’t even wear airtight pilot suits. Because you know, we want to see sexy pilots showing skin even when they’re piloting mechs. See the ending sequence for the full treatment.

Visually, Asahi Production’s work here already looks a lot better than Pokemon animation specialists Oriental Light and Magic’s (OLM) work in the prequel Divine Wars. The opening and ending themes are befittingly performed by JAM Project and Misato Aki whom they often collaborate with, as they’re the ones who performed all the songs in the games. Some of the coolest music is actually heard in the show itself, since they use the characters’ themes in various cases. The two GBA games, Super Robot Wars OG1 and OG2, actually made their way to North American shores in 2006 (published by Atlus), but the real treat to SRW fans was the remaking of the two games on PlayStation 2 under the title Super Robot Wars OG Original Generations in 2007 to commemorate the series’ 15-year anniversary. If you’ve never seen the super-deformed turn-based strategy game in action and are considering getting into this series now, check out the almost 11-minute long promotional video for the PS2 remake below. Also included is the video game version of the opening scene between Axel’s Soulgain and “Beowulf’s” Gespenst MK III (which looks identical to the Alt Eisen but is blue to begin with). Watching these videos makes me want to go back and play some of the titles I didn’t, particularly the most recent Super Robot Wars Z released last year.

[flv:Super_Robot_Wars_OG_PV.mp4 350 262] Super Robot Wars OG Original Generations PV (10:41)
[flv:Super_Robot_Wars_OG_Gaiden_Axel_vs_Kyousuke.mp4 350 262] Super Robot Wars OG Gaiden – Axel vs Kyousuke (1:31)

ED Sequence

ED: 「僕らの自由」 (Bokura no Jiyuu) by 美郷あき (Misato Aki)
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Preview

82 Comments

  2. I wasn’t going to watch this because I didn’t know anything about the games, but I think I will simply for the mecha, character designs, animation and the blurb you posted about it Divine.

    Irational Promise
    Reply

  4. No mention of the SRX that got trashed by Beowulf at the start?

    Anyway, the biggest question I have so far (other than where the hell Thudgelmir came from in this ep), is what version of Axel we’re going to get stuck with. Hopefully it’s the OGS one, who I hear is a lot more palatable then the absolute bastard that we saw in OG2.

    Shiden
    Reply

    2. Having watched the episode, I’m fairly certain it will be OGs Axel. In his battle with “Beowulf” he was pretty level headed and honorable. I haven’t seen any of the qualities that made him a tool in OG2.

      fragb85
      Reply

      1. (Since my longer post is in the moderation queue…)

        Though it doesn’t look like it has the normal Mk.II-M backpack. That one looks more like the 009’s. But either way, it was definitely meant to be a Mk.II-M.

        The strange part about it is that Bullet was supposed to have the Mk.II, not a MP type. I guess it’s too close to the RX-79 to actually show in the series?

        Shiden
        Reply

  7. Great animation quality. I think this will be one of the rare series I watch just because of the animation quality since I already played the game before and know how the story will progress XD

    aiueo123
    Reply

  8. SO SHINY!!!!!!!!!! damn!!! sooooooooooo MANY NEW SHOWS!!!! soooo little time, DAMN you responsibilities! ,DAMN you job!, DAMN you friend’s & family! won’t you all GO AWAY and let me bunker down and immerse myself in all THESE FIRST EPISODES!!!!!!!!! PLEASEEEEESE!!!!!!

    BROOKLYN otaku
    Reply

  12. Does this anime remind anybody else of Gurren Lagann especially the mecha that has drills on its back and two faces. If some body says “Who the Hell Do You Think I Am” or “My Drill Shall Pierce The Heavens” my going to die laughing.

    Zero
    Reply

      2. Thrudgelmir is indeed extremely awesome, but unfortunately, he’s not the “SWORD THAT CLEAVES EVIL”

        Rather, he’s….. “THE SWORD OF MAGUS” (Cue music: The Gate of Magus)

        W-General
        Reply

  16. Oh man, Divine, you have no idea what you’re missing by not playing SRWZ. There will come a point where your party splits up into 2 factions and you actually get to fight the other guys. There’s just something really great about cutting Shinn Asuka in half.

    Dendoh_fanboy
    Reply

  19. Wow. That game looks so fun! And for the PS2, it looks fantastic! Those specials look serious! And I’m telling you, towards the end, if Optimus Prime could “Blade Kick” like that then those deceptive cons wouldn’t stand a chance, man.. Woo~!

    This looks like something complex. I wanna steer clear just as much as I want to watch it now. But I’ll wait one week for the next episode I guess. Double up, y’know? :1

    Shirt
    Reply

      1. Eh, I don’t really mind Angelg’s redesign, I’ve seen worse. Godannar’s Volspina anyone? (incidentally it was the same robot designer who designed this Angelg). I’m more surprised on the fact the Angelg has a face. I never knew it had one.

        fragb85
        Reply

    1. And correction, I just watched bits of it and find what I said was false. There is a tint of blue in the first shot. And every single screen that Divine put has it the MKIII look red >_>

      Sora no Kaze
      Reply

  31. Sorry saw the design of the female robot, who for some odd reasons has breasts and nipples has put me off even attempting to watch it. WHY would a robot need breasts hmm? Even if its to show femininity to have them so big is pointless, ah well

    minarge
    Reply

  32. who was piloting that one with the drill (thudgelmir, is it?)? and where did it come from? and why does it seem that the atx team is a bit cocky. i hope something shows up to whoop their asses.

    will stick around for a couple more episodes. if i don’t find the story too catchy, i’ll probably drop this.

    kc
    Reply

  34. The only thing that is wrong with this first episode is thudgelmir is there, he shouldn’t appear until later in the story, but hey what the heck hes my favorite mech of all time, so can’t complain if I see more of him.
    Someone should post the youtube link for his last move, just fucking epic I tell you.

    mike
    Reply

      2. They better add in Ibis before Roar or Raul. I mean, they’re both awesome, but a lack of Ibis would just be disappointing considering she was in the original OG2 to begin with.

        Dendoh_fanboy
        Reply

      3. Well actually, he’s definitely not suppose to appear that early. Not even in OGs. The other thing is even if they did follow OGs, Fighter Roar wouldn’t make sense with the story line, because he’s actually from OGG otherwise known as OG Gaiden. Raul on the other hand makes perfect sense, though I guess we won’t get back story until they randomly appear.

        And for great justice! WHERE IN THE WORLD IS MY IBIS!

        Sora no Kaze
        Reply

  35. I just wanted to watch this for the mecha fanservice and lord behold I’m slapped with all this overwhelming info and then BAM I get regular fanservice at the end. I will be regularly watching this now.

    exia
    Reply

  38. If I remember correctly…

    Show Spoiler ▼

    Chikinyx
    Reply

  40. I thought it was time for me to watch a new mecha series (last one was Mac F) and it was either this or the mecha ballet ginga bishie thing and I went with the more classical route, ie this show.
    I haven’t played or seen any Super Robot Wars before watching this episode, so your post was a big help to understand what was going on, especially at the start. Thanks Divine.

    Oh, and you say his nickname is Bullet, the Crunchyroll subtitles called him Britt all the time…

    Greg
    Reply

    2. CR also called the MP Huckbein, MP Vanguard for some reason. Mistakes happen.

      Bullet’s nickname was Brit for a long while because the characters could be pronounced that way, until the official Alpha guide said it was Bullet. So yeah, Bullet is his nickname.

      fragb85
      Reply

  41. What an awesome first episode, greatly looking forward to this considering how disappointing the first series was, then again Kyosuke + Excellen is always win so that’s pretty damn hard to screw up.

    Anza
    Reply

  42. I’d bet the sudden appearance of Thrudgelmir is just to speed up OG2’s opening. It wouldn’t benefit an anime adaptation to show a series of military bases, and the story characters based there, getting owned by each new individual baddy.

    The biggest problem I see for new fans is becoming terribly confused by how many different factions are running around in this series. We have;

    The Earth Federation trying to protect the world from an alien threat, the Divine Crusaders who feel the EF isn’t strong enough to do so and therefore must be overthrown, the Shadow-Mirror’s who are from another dimension and are now providing the DC with technology, the Aerogators who are the original alien threat defeated in the first OG game/anime, and the Einst who are the new alien threat in OG2. And all of those are just the basic *bad guy* groups. All the good guys are also divided into separate branches based on what Personal Trooper institute developed their mechs.

    On another note; The Angelg is now so womanly I doubt Ryusei would find it appealing anymore lol. Makes me rather frightened / intrigued to see what they do to the poor Fairlions.

    Silentghost
    Reply

  43. I basically enjoyed the mecha battle scenes…but the plot is too confusing… what’s with the random appearance of unknown mechas and an Uber-mecha in the first episode without any prologue whatsoever?

    anyway, gonna see next episode if i can grasp the story by then. XD

    ufobaby
    Reply

    1. Unfortunately, the deal is that this anime pretty much assumes that you’ve played SRWOG 1 and 2 or OGs. Which is probably most SRWOG fans are expecting anyways, no offence to you or anybody else that have never played them. I mean, there’s only 20-something episodes, and most of the people I’ve talked to are scared that a lot of things from OG2 won’t get covered.

      Dendoh_fanboy
      Reply

  44. if no has said this yet then
    now that ep 2 is out, i remembered there was a game about this anime version
    since i remembered it quite well how it goes it was more like a tactics RPG
    you trying to do an impossible 1st stage battle mission then Lamia appeared out of nowhere

    DM
    Reply

  45. After checking various sites about the games, seeing as I have not yet played any, I think that The Inspector will use material from OGS instead of OG2. I am judging this on the fact that during the fight between Axel and Beowolf, as well as Beowolf murdering the SRX team, they both seemed to have their personality from OGS. Also, I am sure that Divine Wars used their material from OGS, or that OGS got material from Divine Wars don’t remember witch. Plus by using OGS the producers of the anime set things up so that the can make an anime about OGG. Based on these things I am sure that Axel will have his OGS personality, which I think was also more popular.

    magixiii
    Reply

  46. Putting to rest once and for all the issue of Bullet’s mech, it is referred to as a PRODUCTION-TYPE WILDSCHWEIN in the episode summaries on the official site.

    Not Huckebein. WILDSCHWEIN. As should be obvious from the backpack design alone, though numerous details in the design of its head, shoulders, legs and torso point rather to the ‘Schwein than its Gundam-like successors from the games.

    Ring_Mao
    Reply

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