Favorite Mecha/GIANT FIGHTING ROBOT Media and Why?

[Fijiman]

For video games I'd have to say Iron Brigade. I would say Chromehounds but I never got to play more than the story mode, and anyone who has played Chromehounds can tell you that the story mode is pretty lame.

For shows and whatnot I'd have to say Zoids.

 

[wickedmonkey]

Patlabor, the movies and the series.

Although they're more detective stories, I love the attention to detail and how grounded the mechs are, along with the atmosphere oozing from the episodes/movies - Kenji Kawai nails it.

Spoiler: The opening.

Spoiler: That mood!

 

[Samuki Elm]

I'll go for the lesser-known Vision of Escaflowne.

A fantasy epic from way back in 1996, it remains my favorite anime of all time. I thought it was complex, original, and deep, without being pretentious - everything about the series was just well-executed. I would recommend it to everyone, with the caveat that the first episode is seriously misleading - the series is NOT about life and love as a high school girl in Japan. The protagonist happens to be a high school girl in Japan - which is a turnoff for some, since mecha anime is generally supposed to be butch and testosterone-dominated - but the story shifts gears soon enough.

It's not exactly a light-hearted anime, either, so don't go in expecting that.

If there is a downside, though ... the mecha aren't necessarily the coolest I've ever seen. If we're talking about the coolness of the big robots alone, then Escaflowne might not cut it.


These guys are pretty cool, though:

They're the villains of the series, and those five barrels can shoot both flame and liquid metal, which can be hardened at will into any shape by the pilot. They can also fly and some can turn invisible.

If they sound a little overpowered - well yeah. Much of the series involves the bad guys kicking the good guys' asses. Like I said, it's not that light-hearted.


(edit)
BTW, there are two versions of Escaflowne out there. The first is the series, which is excellent. The second is the movie that was released some time after, which takes the bold route of not really having anything but aesthetic similarities to the original. You have some characters with the same names and similar looks, but dramatically different everything else.

Also, the movie sucks. Do not watch the movie.

Unless you hate the series (in which case you deserve to suffer), in which case, please watch the movie as penance.

(edit 2)
Also, Escaflowne was released for US broadcast on Fox some years back, but it was substantially re-edited, presumably to remove the more gory stuff and make the series more broadly appealing.

Don't watch the US edited version. Unless you enjoy misery and mild confusion.

 

[DefunctTheory]

Hm... I wonder...

Tremble in fear, the Battlemechs are here!

 

[Marik2]

Muv Luv Alternative. It has good characters, setting and an engaging story. It's the best one I've read/played. I can't even name another which I think is good, or comes close to Alternative for me.

Gonna go with this and Xenogears.

It is one of the few JRPGs that is enjoyable to me and has great moments, even when the story can get overwhelming at times

 

[Dr. Cakey]

Of the many mecha anime I've seen, this one has always been my favourite.

Disregarded my many as being a little sister or "clone" to Evangelion, I always think of RahXephon as the superior show. It had a likeable protagonist, philosophical discussions on the power of music, and a unique art style. It doesn't go overboard and throw symbolism everywhere it the hopes that people will believe it as deep and complex, but focuses a lot more on the relationships between the characters, and knows hows to pace itself when revealing plot points to the viewer. It my opinion it also has one of the strongest endings of a mecha anime.

Highly recommended.

snip

Finally, I've found someone else who doesn't see it as an EVA clone, its ending was amazing. Also, I liked the movie too and how it showed a different path things could have taken, if you haven't seen the film, I recommend it.

I haven't really seen anyone call RahXephon an Eva clone, although I have seen plenty of people say it isn't. I guess that makes it the "fake geek girl" of mecha anime?

They say you like Eva or RahXephon but not both...and I'd say they're right. I'd be hard-pressed to think of a single thing it does better than Eva, except maybe the visuals, and even then I'm not sure.

I also think - and I freely acknowledge the irony and hypocrisy of me as an NGE fan saying this - that its plot was very confusing and things were not well-explained.

 

[Ed130 The Vanguard]

Pah! You puny heretics waltzing about in your fragile stick walkers. Feel the power of a TRUE GOD MACHINE.

Nothing like a beetle backed mobile fortress of doom unflinchingly marching over your pathetic defenses while firepower rivaling a battleship is unleashed.

Reaver Scout Titans?

Not too bad, but I'm more a Warlord kinda guy.

Spoiler: showing the scale of a Warlord

Honorary mentions to the Atlas of Battelmech fame and the Jagers of Pacific Rim for actually looking and feeling like 100 ton machines designed to tear opponents a new one.

Special mention to MEGAS XLR because it may be absurd, but at least it runs with it.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

Pah! You puny heretics waltzing about in your fragile stick walkers. Feel the power of a TRUE GOD MACHINE.

Nothing like a beetle backed mobile fortress of doom unflinchingly marching over your pathetic defenses while firepower rivaling a battleship is unleashed.

Reaver Scout Titans?

Not too bad, but I'm more a Warlord kinda guy.

Spoiler: showing the scale of a Warlord

Honorary mentions to the Atlas of Battelmech fame and the Jagers of Pacific Rim for actually looking and feeling like 100 ton machines designed to tear opponents a new one.

Special mention to MEGAS XLR because it may be absurd, but at least it runs with it.

Scout Titan? you sure you aren't talking about the warhound? Reavers were the mainstay titans of the Great Crusade until the new Warlords replaced them. They're full on Battle Titans, and they have Baneblade sized Chainfists.

 

[Ed130 The Vanguard]

Pah! You puny heretics waltzing about in your fragile stick walkers. Feel the power of a TRUE GOD MACHINE.

Spoiler

Nothing like a beetle backed mobile fortress of doom unflinchingly marching over your pathetic defenses while firepower rivaling a battleship is unleashed.

Reaver Scout Titans?

Not too bad, but I'm more a Warlord kinda guy.

Spoiler

Spoiler: showing the scale of a Warlord

Honorary mentions to the Atlas of Battelmech fame and the Jagers of Pacific Rim for actually looking and feeling like 100 ton machines designed to tear opponents a new one.

Special mention to MEGAS XLR because it may be absurd, but at least it runs with it.

Scout Titan? you sure you aren't talking about the warhound? Reavers were the mainstay titans of the Great Crusade until the new Warlords replaced them. They're full on Battle Titans, and they have Baneblade sized Chainfists.

Really? All the fluff I've read stated that the Reaver was a Scout class, more due to its size compared to the larger classes and an excellent fire support and city-fight platform. Was this in one of the Forge World books?

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

I've only exposed myself to Evangelion, as far as shows goes. I'm not crazy mad over it but I like it enough to keep watching.

 

[PedroSteckecilo]

Pah! You puny heretics waltzing about in your fragile stick walkers. Feel the power of a TRUE GOD MACHINE.

Nothing like a beetle backed mobile fortress of doom unflinchingly marching over your pathetic defenses while firepower rivaling a battleship is unleashed.

Reaver Scout Titans?

Not too bad, but I'm more a Warlord kinda guy.

Spoiler: showing the scale of a Warlord

Honorary mentions to the Atlas of Battelmech fame and the Jagers of Pacific Rim for actually looking and feeling like 100 ton machines designed to tear opponents a new one.

Special mention to MEGAS XLR because it may be absurd, but at least it runs with it.

Oi! No baitin and hatin!

Heh... Warhammer likes to pretend it's the biggest kid on the block buuuutttt.....

You rang?

Or I suppose if that's not big/powerful enough for you...

 

[[Kira Must Die]]

Does FLCL count as a mecha anime?

Well, I guess you can say that FLCL has a little bit of everything, which is why I love it.

I'm gonna go with Evangelion as well, with Gurren Lagann following in second, if we're talking pure mecha show.

I'm surprised that I gone with these two shows, as I grew up on a number of Gundam shows. Maybe it's because I can't remember enough from them to determine whether they were good or not.

 

[Dr. Cakey]

snip

Reaver Scout Titans?

Not too bad, but I'm more a Warlord kinda guy.

Spoiler: showing the scale of a Warlord

Judging by that picture, an Eva should actually be just about the same height. They're apparently supposed to be 50 meters tall, but since they're impossibly agile for something so big and most of the Angels are larger, sense of scale goes right out the window. The Warlord is more heavily armed, so I imagine if I had to fight an army I'd rather have one of those, but an Eva is basically impossible to destroy due to bla bla science bla bla bla god bla bla AT Field.

Gundams are smaller I think, but I believe they tend to be able to fly. But I haven't seen any Gundam except for 00, so I have no allegiance to the franchise. If you wish to declare your giant robot to be superior, I will not stand in your way.

Do you wish to continue comparing the size of our giant robot penises?

 

[Ed130 The Vanguard]

Pah! You puny heretics waltzing about in your fragile stick walkers. Feel the power of a TRUE GOD MACHINE.

Spoiler

Nothing like a beetle backed mobile fortress of doom unflinchingly marching over your pathetic defenses while firepower rivaling a battleship is unleashed.

Reaver Scout Titans?

Not too bad, but I'm more a Warlord kinda guy.

Spoiler

Spoiler: showing the scale of a Warlord

Honorary mentions to the Atlas of Battelmech fame and the Jagers of Pacific Rim for actually looking and feeling like 100 ton machines designed to tear opponents a new one.

Special mention to MEGAS XLR because it may be absurd, but at least it runs with it.

Oi! No baitin and hatin!

Heh... Warhammer likes to pretend it's the biggest kid on the block buuuutttt.....

Spoiler

You rang?

Or I suppose if that's not big/powerful enough for you...

Spoiler

Anyone can do big, but looking big and feeling big are two very different things. Eastern Mecha always looked very 'floaty' for me, as if it was a guy in a suit instead of a 100 ton death machine. Its not a bad thing, but it isn't to my taste.

Besides, the Warlord is the midrange Titan in the 40k universe.

 

[Ed130 The Vanguard]

Judging by that picture, an Eva should actually be just about the same height. They're apparently supposed to be 50 meters tall, but since they're impossibly agile for something so big and most of the Angels are larger, sense of scale goes right out the window. The Warlord is more heavily armed, so I imagine if I had to fight an army I'd rather have one of those, but an Eva is basically impossible to destroy due to bla bla science bla bla bla god bla bla AT Field.

Gundams are smaller I think, but I believe they tend to be able to fly. But I haven't seen any Gundam except for 00, so I have no allegiance to the franchise. If you wish to declare your giant robot to be superior, I will not stand in your way.

Do you wish to continue comparing the size of our giant robot penises?

I'm guessing you didn't read my own views at the end?

Honorary mentions to the Atlas of Battelmech fame and the Jagers of Pacific Rim for actually looking and feeling like 100 ton machines designed to tear opponents a new one.

Special mention to MEGAS XLR because it may be absurd, but at least it runs with it.

As I've said in an earlier post, Anyone can do big, but looking big and feeling big are two very different things. Eastern Mecha always looked very 'floaty' for me, as if it was a guy in a suit instead of a 100 ton death machine. Its not a bad thing, but it isn't to my taste.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

Warlords often go up against anime inspired Eldar Titans, so it isn't out of the question for them to fight agile opponents. And if Eldar aren't enough, there are plenty of Weeaboo Space Communists to crush as well.

Spoiler: Eldar Revenant Titan

Spoiler: Scratch-built Tau Titan from Dakka Dakka

 

[Sacman]

G Gundam truly had some of the greatest mecha designs ever...<.<

[img height= 300]http://a3.ec-images.myspacecdn.com/images02/61/147509fb9d7c428b9c4dc22329a2ec46/l.jpg[/img][img height= 300]http://www.mahq.net/mecha/gundam/g/gf13-066no.jpg[/img][img height= 300]http://www.tofugu.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/zebra-gundam.jpg[/img]

Because giving the African Gundam a spear and Zebra robe totally isn't racist...<.<

 

[Ed130 The Vanguard]

Warlords often go up against anime inspired Eldar Titans, so it isn't out of the question for them to fight agile opponents. And if Eldar aren't enough, there are plenty of Weeaboo Space Communists to crush as well.

Spoiler: Eldar Revenant Titan

Spoiler: Scratch-built Tau Titan from Dakka Dakka

Newest Tau codex included the XV104 Riptide Battlesuit.

Spoiler

Tau really like battlesuits.

 

[Dr. Cakey]

As I've said in an earlier post, Anyone can do big, but looking big and feeling big are two very different things. Eastern Mecha always looked very 'floaty' for me, as if it was a guy in a suit instead of a 100 ton death machine. Its not a bad thing, but it isn't to my taste.

I wouldn't even say they move like a guy in a suit. Godzilla moves like a guy in a suit, because...well, because he is, so he kind of lumbers around. Eastern mechs tend to move like a guy not in a suit. Evas are actually somewhat ungainly as mechs go.

The prize for 'most graceful mechs' probably has to go to the Cybodies of Star Driver, which have more in common with gymnasts than Jaegers.

FABULOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUS!

 

[Ed130 The Vanguard]

As I've said in an earlier post, Anyone can do big, but looking big and feeling big are two very different things. Eastern Mecha always looked very 'floaty' for me, as if it was a guy in a suit instead of a 100 ton death machine. Its not a bad thing, but it isn't to my taste.

I wouldn't even say they move like a guy in a suit. Godzilla moves like a guy in a suit, because...well, because he is, so he kind of lumbers around. Eastern mechs tend to move like a guy not in a suit. Evas are actually somewhat ungainly as mechs go.

The prize for 'most graceful mechs' probably has to go to the Cybodies of Star Driver, which have more in common with gymnasts than Jaegers.

Spoiler

FABULOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUS!

When I say suit I don't mean godzilla suit, or even a suit of armour but a literal suit of clothing or the spandex of a performer than anything. The lack of limb momentum can produce some amazing hand to had fights but decrease the apparent weight of said mechs, as if they were made of smoke.