TV-Nihon

< Previous
Wiki

It's not a mind blowing series by any means, but it's pretty cool seeing all these characters working together and forming bonds and stuff. Love the brevity of this series, it's short, the characters are cute and quirky, and it gets out before it gets tedious or boring

[16:34] <~takenoko> fucking hell
[16:34] <~takenoko> okay it's GandD
[16:34] <~takenoko> Goo and Daishi
[17:05] <|discord|> <Lunagel> I think that wins for stupidest hero name ever
[17:46] <~takenoko> hello, have you met my friend sazer gans for the cancer constellation?

So... is this series getting a sequel? It's weird that it ends on a cliffhanger with nothing really resolved...

I doubt there'll be a sequel, NHK almost never does sequels. Plus this was mostly done to drum up awareness for the Paralympics, and with that over, doesn't seem like they'd bother. Then again, NHK has also been attempting to increase their number of disability/minority awareness shows, so it might happen.

It's short and sweet and the cast is extremely well-used. It's nice to see that Zi-O's actor can actually act when given a script that isn't totally dumb. I like the subtle way Goo is technically disabled as well and requires a helper/translator to talk for him.

I assume they're hinting the girl/granny are both descendants of older aliens from Planet Araato considering they seem to have similar culinary tastes? Though the way everyone in that village prays, maybe everyone is slightly alien? A lot of unanswered questions, though not necessarily ones that require answers. I hope they do make a sequel eventually, because I'd definitely watch.

Take, I think the reason the tracker isn't working with this episode is because the tracker thinks the link for Episode 2 is for this episode. At least, for the 720p version.

SVNBob wrote: ↑Thu Sep 02, 2021 1:11 am Take, I think the reason the tracker isn't working with this episode is because the tracker thinks the link for Episode 2 is for this episode. At least, for the 720p version.

Whoa. Oh crap. Also good eye!

Is the line at 15:49 supposed to begin with the number 1?

See, this is the kind of show that really makes me mad, because it has everything I look for in a toku only to prove it's just a teaser for a series that might never come, sort of like Kamen Riders G and Shinobi but better.

The good points:
1. great morals without coming off as preachy
2. a type of hero we don't get to see that often
3. a story with some fun background
4. a little romance without it being sappy or forced
5. mostly great CGI and pracs, although there were a couple rough spots
6. great chemistry among the cast
7. a story that didn't take itself too seriously while still providing some great dramatic moments
8. great writing overall
9. excellent costumes, including the kaiju
10. gorgeous female lead
11. a moment where they broke the breaking of the fourth wall (I love when that happens!)

The bad points:
1. as mentioned, one or two rough patches in the effects (truck turning, some scaling discrepancies during the final battle, etc.)
2. WAY too short with a cliffhanger that demands a sequel or full series
3. the lead just proved how bad Zi-O was by showing he can actually act (and is surprisingly fit)
4. a little heavy on the gay jokes in the first episode (see below)

So I honestly didn't think about "diversity" in this show because it felt pretty organic. Looking back at it, you have a paraplegic, a Pinoy, a gay guy, a foreigner, and (I'm guessing) a depressive. They went out of their way in the first episode to point and shout "Hey! Gay man over here!" every few seconds, but thankfully got it out of their system. Seriously, real gay men aren't that flaky and it's annoying when they're portrayed that way. At least they were trying for a comedic effect with this one.

But yeah, we've had wheelchair-bound superheroes back in the '80s and lead characters even further back (Professor X, Ironsides, etc.), so I didn't feel at all like this was some big awareness ad. It's such a breath of fresh air compared to the woke west where everything's shoved down your throat. Daishi is a character you want to root for. He's optimistic bur realistic. He's flawed and reluctant, yet actually pushes towards his dreams despite the hurdles. His dream of becoming an astronaut is a realistic one but (as in the show), a lot of people think it's impossible.

If this was done in the west, Daishi wouldn't need an entire crew backing him up. The only person who is better is Kei, who bosses him around constantly. But no, this was done quite the opposite. Kei's unsure of herself at times and often brutally honest, expecting the same in return. Daishi may be dead set on achieving his goals, but when offered great power he's reluctant to accept it. Pretty much everyone in the cast has something to contribute, and in the case of the ragtag factory crew, it's an array of skills and full support of Daishi. I actually wanted to keep watching (and binged all three episodes back to back but still wanted more). I also lone how Earth's sister planet had many races that were at peace until recently, while Earth only has one race that can't stop fighting. And the fact that Goo's the actual "treasure" in the show due to his built in ability to cast the urban renewal spell is also a fun development.

I actually thought Rio would be my least favourite, but as the show progressed, I started to really like her. She kind of reminded me of Tomoko from Fourze, who quickly became a favourite once she started coming out of her shell. And I really love how they kept removing the fourth wall for Kei, then doubled back at the very end with the classic "Who are you talking to?" line. As for the professor, I have a sneaky feeling he knows a lot more than he lets on. In fact, he practically spoon-fed Kei her own lines during their conversation in the cafeteria. Plus, he seemed awfully calm when hearing about someone wanting to fight giant space lizards. Could he actually be from the other world or have dealings with them? And the fact that the characters were picking on the hero's name and couldn't agree on how it was pronounced just added to the fun.


I'm really going to be mad if they don't do more with this show. I'd actually buy an action figure of GandD, and there's so much wonderful groundwork they could be working off of. With the costumes and effects for Revile looking so terrible (and frankly low-budget), I really want to see a third-party toku make some waves and force Toei to step things up. Not to mention how this show proves they don't know how to use their actors. Imagine if Okuno So was allowed to put this level of acting into that show instead of it being so poorly acted and written even worse (I still say I only finished that show because of Ora).

Also, was I the only one who got strong Ultra-Q movie vibes from this show? Especially the village of alien descendants and the whole thing about aliens doing periodic inspections of Earth. I'm easily one of the old folk here, so I tend to really love a lot of really old toku or those made by smaller companies or fans. GandD felt like the best of both worlds - a classic show with believable drama, well-placed comedy, and characters you actually want to get to know; blended with top-quality costume design and both pracs and CGI that in some cases stand up to Garo.


Oh well. Maybe with enough exposure to the fansub community, the interest will become high enough for NHK to either pick the show back up or license it to another studio. One could hope, anyway.

To be fair, with such a short running time and with the character being secondary at best, there's not really a great way to introduce sexuality without being a little heavy-handed. Personally, I thought it was pretty well done. It seemed like a fairly natural way someone would talk to/joke with a close friend. If they had a longer running time maybe they could bring it up a little more subtly, but on the other hand he wasn't the lisping limp-wrist stereotype, which they definitely could have done.

>Is the line at 15:49 supposed to begin with the number 1?

Nope. I'll fix it before it gets batched

>I'm really going to be mad if they don't do more with this show.

Yeah. What a waste if this doesn't get picked up

THANK YOU, TV-N! I've been intrigued by this show ever since they first announced it, so it was one I was really hoping you'd work on.

And, yeah, I really enjoyed it. A good cast of characters who I could really get behind, with a nicely balanced mix of humour and more emotional moments throughout (seriously, when child Daishi was telling his dad how he was going to be an astronaut, I was actually getting a little teary-eyed...) The part where Kei quickly turns behind her and the group suddenly act ignorant (the guy pulling up that tube thing to hide behind) probably had no right to make me laugh as much as it did, but what can I say, they made it work.

I do wish they'd explained Rio's translation ability a bit better. Like, is she really from the other planet? Does she have some weird connection to that ball artefact? You can imply some stuff but there's definitely some unanswered questions there.

Certainly wasn't expecting the last-minute cliffhanger and shady government types to enter the scene, but it's interesting that they would set that up at all. I'm not aware of them announcing any continuation of this thing yet but, if they do decide to carry the story on, I'd love to see it!

I'm guessing since Rio's grandmother is special, Rio might have inherited whatever made her special too?

Lunagel wrote: ↑Thu Sep 02, 2021 4:59 pm To be fair, with such a short running time and with the character being secondary at best, there's not really a great way to introduce sexuality without being a little heavy-handed. Personally, I thought it was pretty well done. It seemed like a fairly natural way someone would talk to/joke with a close friend. If they had a longer running time maybe they could bring it up a little more subtly, but on the other hand he wasn't the lisping limp-wrist stereotype, which they definitely could have done.

When he mentioned the alien was cute, I think that was enough to point out his sexuality without being heavy-handed, although it seemed like half the cast was bringing up Goo's looks. The moment where the factory crew were talking about what they liked in a trainer (on its own) was probably the better example of how it could be made apparent without overdoing it. Just drop the other gay jokes and anyone paying attention would know - not that it's anyone's business.

I think that's my biggest problem with Western woke culture is that they think people have to broadcast their private lives every ten seconds or there's something wrong with them. It's ruined so many franchises and does nothing for promoting acceptance of different sexualities. The limp-wrist lispy thing is probably the worst, but I haven't really noticed that trope being used much these days. It's more the constant use of "Hey, I'm gay!" comments or forced hetero bashing. Japan (usually) does it much better, such as the easy shipping in Faiz and all the fun love triangles they threw in. Every once in a while, they'll go over the top (usually for the sake of comedy), but Japan really does seem to handle people's private lives a lot more respectfully.

But as I said, while it was a little annoying, it felt more like an attempt at comedy in this show, which is why it didn't make me think of forced diversity until that point was brought up. So that's a pretty good sign if even that complaint has a concession. The cliffhanger, though... that I cannot forgive!

takenoko wrote: ↑Fri Sep 03, 2021 2:00 am I'm guessing since Rio's grandmother is special, Rio might have inherited whatever made her special too?

It was heavily implied that the grandmother was either descended from or related to the previous inspector. It would have been nice if they came out and said it, but I get that they had a lot to cram into 1.5 hours (and they did so without the usual exposition dumps!). The fact that we see the grandmother actively haunting Gen was a great touch that only added to the mystery surrounding her. Again, the thing with Rio and the grandmother really made me think of the Ultra-Q movie, which is never a bad thing, and Rio's surprise at her own ability (which I believe is technically trope territory) made me like her a lot more - especially when she said she hated playing interpreter at the end. I really hope she and Goo are going to be an item if the show returns for a full series.

I really liked the fourth wall breaking in this show. And surprisingly, the effects (special and practical) seemed good too.

As everyone is saying, there's little chance of this being continued, but one can hope...