SSSS.Gridman (2018) User Reviews

The opposite of Darling in the Franxx

[Protogeist · 6/10 · 11 March 2019]

The overall opinion on Triggers first project of 2018, Darling in the Franxx, was bad. It was great in the beginning and slowly got worse until the end where it all crashed and burned. Overall I found Darling in the Franxx to be really good. The production was fantastic all the way through, the characters were great and the story was also really good until the halfway point. But it's hard to ignore that ending. Trigger really needed to shape up to not lose its reputation.

And in a way, SSSS.Gridman was the exact opposite of Franxx for me. Let me explain:

In the same way that I liked Franxxs beginning more than ending, I liked SSSS.Gridmans ending more than beginning. I haven't rewatched the episodes, so I don't know if there was information that could have been interesting after watching everything. But it felt like every episode was: A kaiju appears > The gang can't get to Gridman/They can't kill the Kaiju > They figure out a plan, and they kill the kaiju

Again, maybe I missed foreshadowing that could have been interesting. But I don't think you should write an episode of a show so that people who have already watched it think it's interesting. Cause if new people find that boring, no one will get to the ending. Maybe that's just my opinion though.

But around episode 6, something happened. It instantly got more interesting. It was the episode where we are introduced to a new character (I won't say who for the sake of spoilers) who explain a little more about the antagonist. But it didn't feel like they explained it to the audience. More like the Protagonist needed information that she could give. And after that episode, the quality just flew up. The characters got a lot more development, especially the antagonist. The story got more interesting. It was pretty amazing.

And now everything is finished, and I haven't rated it higher than Franxx. Mainly because of the characters. I know I said that they got a lot of development in the second half, but not enough IMO. The more memorable characters were the antagonist, Akane, and one the of main characters, Rikka. They both had inner fears and insecurities. They did bad things, they did good things. They were very interesting. And even though the rest of the cast were fine, they weren't nearly as good as those two.

So at the end of the day, I liked this show less than Franxx. It wasn't bad, it wasnät even average. It just didn't beat the thing it tried to beat.

A solid 7/10

It has different prospective

[puneetsharma9 · 8/10 · 12 January 2019]

This anime put you in the shoes of the artiest AND it is fresh to see something that you don't see this before. Animation is one of best and ground-breaking. It just perfect.

Other thing look very generic first and by the way if I say anything about this anime it spoil the freshness. Just I like to say anime GOD is something you never see before and that way it behave is something else this type of character I never see before.

I just do not get why everyone loves this anime

[sparkguy09 · 6/10 · 5 January 2019]

First of all the show start off slow. They just give a bunch of slice of life scenes with no conflict. the fights are too short and too predictable.It is down right easy for monster anime of the week to be clicke. Just watch Gundam and you understand why monster of the week feels clicke why Gundam spelled the end for that style of plot in anime and only done in shows that want to be light hearted and silly. The reason being it like the last fight does not matter and you know they going to win. to be some characters just down right flat. They do add some matrix like thing in middle. I guess the anime crowd relates to some of the characters being emo and non mecha parts of the story. How ever if you're looking for a mecha anime that has good action and character development that come form the struggle of the fights you will be disappointed. How there is one thing that this anime does extant is art, character designs and animation.

A Fun Anime

[Bobby_Diesel · 6/10 · 27 January 2019]

After watching some of the other original anime of 2018, I finally got across to watching SSSS. Gridman. Going into the show, I heard of all the praise, so I expecting something truly great. I think my expectations were a little high, but do not get me wrong, I still I found the series to be entertaining. I found that the most entertaining points of the series were the visuals and some of the characters. The visuals especially during the fight scenes were well done. The animation tended to be on point for the most part, specifically during the fight scenes. Some of the characters were good. The main characters Rikka, Akane, and Anti were the best in the series. Akane specifically stands out as the most interesting character in the show. The music was alright, with some stand out tracks such as the opening song. Besides these positives, the show did have some issues. As mentioned previously, there are some good and bad characters. One of the worst characters was the main protagonist/hero, Yuta. I just found him to be severely uninteresting and cliched. My other problem with the series, was with the action scenes. The action scenes lacked a sense of stake. I won't go to in depth, so that I do not spoil anything, but I never really felt that anyone was in real danger during the fights. The show starts averagely and ends messily. Though, the episodes around 4- 11 get progressively more interesting. SSSS. Gridman is a fun anime series with nice visuals, some good characters and an interesting plot/story, but there are some cliched characters and a lack of stakes. I advise those to watch the series if they enjoy action, mecha, adventure, or science fiction anime.

Gridman is just all around fantastic

[Mysterygeneration · 7/10 · 16 January 2024]

At first, SSSS. Gridman was not well received by the public. Many of the superficial aspects, in my opinion, put off viewers, especially considering how plodding and formulaic the first few episodes were. However, the show's real content kept us watching week after week as it started underway, and it eventually became not just one of my favorite shows of the season but the entire year.

Gridman is a dangerous hybrid of genres that juxtaposes massive mecha battles with what appears to be regular school life. The former defies popular perceptions of mecha animation and is probably the reason the program is regarded as sluggish. Nevertheless, these two very different parts of the world strangely complemented one another, with the action sequences' catharsis being fueled by the tension of everyday life. This assessment will concentrate on the more commonplace stuff because that appears to have received the greatest criticism.

I'll quickly discuss the show's treatment of homage. I believe that a large portion of the criticism directed towards the show stems from its excessive use of allusions to other television programs; in fact, Obari Masami, the animator of the first Gridman, expressed dissatisfaction over the show's lack of originality. Having said that, I don't mind at all since these references provide fanservice to the original film's audience and don't interfere with the plot. In addition, how angry can I really be since every character design is inspired from a Transformers obscure series? That is so cute.

Finally, Gridman is just all around fantastic. Because of the first unfavorable reviews, if you've been hesitant to see Gridman, I'd say it's worth a go. Although I'm still not quite sure why so many people in the community dislike this show, I thought it was fantastic and I really hope more people would give it a shot.

tremendous by far! Tsuburaya production is back on buisness!!!

[mohammadirfan274 · 10/10 · 8 October 2018]

Started watching recently and i must say its really amazing as anime!! Gridman was a live action series in 90's but now its revived as anime in 2018 and i must say it was worth a wait!! i would recommend that you should all give it a try! great great visuals, bgm hence everything is perfect! yes! tsuburaya is back on buisness!!!

Explaining the SSSS.Gridman's world and why it's quite unique

[AltizGremlin · 9/10 · 26 January 2019]

I know, Evangelion did the 'Monster of the Week' formula turn into an anime about escapism before and everything I'm about to say here might be very obvious to some people, but Gridman had some interesting points on that subject: This anime is about a real person. Akane is portrayed as a goddess from another world. She created a whole city inside her mind, where she could reign freely and forget reality, and that's why everything was shown as anime, a very common escape route, especially to someone with her cultural background. The fights inside Akane's mind were Tokusatsu style because those were the coolest imaginable combats she could imagine, being a Gridman fan (also, that's why something from our world was used there and not something original). The hero chosen was Gridman for that very reason, and she used that beloved heroic image as her will to recover from that sad state, a very tough internal fight she was losing constantly before, also the reason Yuuta seemed to spawn from nothing; that was her will to be freed from the seemingly hikikomori state she was living. The alien was also extremely cleverly inserted on the world, with the clear visual of a villain, but being so close to her, almost as if that place could only exist if he - her fears - was simply hanging there normally, acting as an intermediate to her powers. That shows how she was clinging on that negative feeling to keep her on a pseudo-safe world. The final fight sounded extremely corny, but every single word there was literal, so it makes sense. Some people may argue that she looked like a very weak goddess, but it was on purpose, she wanted to lose the fight, but that instill fear of leaving her room wasn't letting go, and consumed her. The moment Gridman - her will - won the fight, she was able to stand for herself and come back to our world. Akane then 'wakes up' from that state, ready to finally start her life outside the room, that was very cluttered to give us the impression she did everything from her bed. Now she's ready to be a goddess in the world of gods.

Come for Rikka thighs stay for the plot

[phanthinga · 9/10 · 24 December 2018]

At first I'm just like one of those clueless anime fan that will watch anything Studio Trigger pull out and of course one of the hottest keyword of the anime community at the time "Rikka thighs" but after just a couple of episodes I'm totally hook on this anime thank to the awesome CGI kaiju fight and the unexpected Matrix-like plot twist. There not a lot of meat in the characters when they all are your typical cliché anime characters but the anime give them enough character development for us to care so I got nothing against it. I'm not a fan of the "It all just a dream" ending in any kind of manga, anime, book or movie but I will admit that when the series pull that ending out for the season finale it come out very natural and add more depth into the Shinjo Akane character

Akira Amemiya is a master at his craft

[RebelPanda · 8/10 · 2 August 2022]

After 25 years since the original Gridman TV series debuted in 1993, Studio Trigger and Tsuburaya Productions, the company behind Gridman and Ultraman, have collaborated to produce the magnificent tokusatsu inspired reboot SSSS. Gridman. For those who are new to Gridman and tokusatsu entertainment, it is the Japanese term attached to any sci-fi/fantasy live-action series that uses an abundance of special effects. More specifically, practical effects; think people wrestling in rubber monster suits smashing through model cities and stop motion animation.

That leads us to SSSS. Gridman, the love child of first-time director Akira Amemiya and Keiichi Hasegawa, famed screenwriter of the 1990s Ultraman. It is overflowing with references and callbacks to the live-action series, SSSS is a lovingly crafted modernized take on the original series. The new story takes a theme relevant to today's audiences and focuses on the youth of Japan and their relationship to technology.

The show opens on Yuta Hibiki, an amnesiac first-year in high school who's just woken up in the home of Rikka Takarada, a girl in his class. With no clue who she is, or who he is for that matter. His standard introduction no doubt had people rolling their eyes, including me, and it does detract from the story, at least until we learn why he lost his memory. Yuta sees hallucinations of a robot named Gridman in an old computer in Takarada's family store, later called 'Junk' in reference to its name in the original show. Afterward, he meets Sho Utsumi, his friend before getting amnesia. Sho helps him with his memory loss, which is more or less his role in the series, being Yuta's support. He's a decent character, with a minor arc and some development. Throughout the first episode, the information we're being fed by the characters is incongruous with what we observe from Yuta's perspective. Rikka and Utsumi easily accept Yuta's amnesia and when he sees Kaiju looming in the distance they assume he's joking because-like his Gridman hallucinations-he is the only one who can see them at first. In spite of the mundane reactions of people around Yuta, the directing of nearly every scene communicates dread. It constantly feels like danger is just off the frame and the next scene will change everything.

Amemiya lingers on long shots too long for them to feel normal, instead, they communicate anxiety, you constantly are waiting for something to happen that will break the mundanity. Lighting is oversaturated during the daytimes to convey the crushing heat of the summer, and at night is subdued with fog and the monsters are constantly shown looming in the distance over the heroes. In the first episode, a radio playing is placed in between scenes to shift the tone. It bears so much similarity to Neon Genesis Evangelion. It's no surprise considering the director is a Gainax veteran. No doubt, SSSS. Gridman's greatest strength is the tone, it balances the mundane life of high school students with the dread of a Kaiju attack. Eventually, when the Kaiju do attack, it is equally satisfying to watch play out. The three main characters are together in Rikka's family store when the first Kaiju begins wreaking havoc on the city, forcing Yuta to work with Gridman fight off the monsters in giant robot form. Together they create the Gridman Alliance, dedicated to defeating any Kaiju that threatens to destroy their city.

Animation is fluid, characters are incredibly expressive, storyboards are filled with detail, shots are excellently framed. The camera work is dynamic making the action always exciting and even the CGI used during many of the fight scenes is superb. The sound design is especially amazing at giving audio feedback during these scenes, a vehicle being crushed, the ground crumbling under a monster, and all of the attacks sound so visceral and lifelike. From time to time the show's incredible opening is used as background music in fights, and this would typically grow tiresome but because the song is so good and relevant to the story it never bothered me. At times the monster's movements look janky, but it never feels unintentional, watching old tokusatsu series shows that this is how the monster/giant robot fights looked, they move in ways that make it seem as though someone is inside a suit navigating them. 2D animation could never have achieved the authenticity of the monsters they were aiming for here. Not every scene is exploding with action, but even when the pace slows down, the directing and intruiging storyboarding are still visually arresting. One qualm I would bring up is the overabundance of fanservice placed at awkward moments, this thankfully only happened in certain episodes around the midpoint of the show. All around, this show is incredibly faithful to the original series, visually, audibly, and narratively.

The story is at times too standard to the genre and could have used more originality rather than reliance on the source material. It delivers it's story beats confidently and plenty self-aware of the nostalgia it's evoking, but the times it updates the script to a modern audience are worthwhile. Important information is shown to us rather than told, a characters motivation is never told to us before it is shown, a twist never comes that wasn't foreshadowed heavily. This showing rather than telling comes across the most in Akane Shinjou's scenes, a classmate of Yuta's. She offers the most exciting writing in the show. In the first episode alone, her scenes convey more fear than any of the Kaiju scenes. She's subtle with her dark side and when she gets her quiet moments of angry reflection you get to see how bitter she is. Her psychotic tendencies and lack of care for others are made all the more frightening by how much power she proves to have.

Although Yuta's simplistic personality is explained very well in the narrative, Rikka and Akane get far more development than him. Eventually, they even take his place as the protagonists, and the show is much better for it. Rikka gets more development than Yuta and becomes a remarkably sympathetic character right away. While Yuta and Utsumi celebrate their victories against Kaiju she worries about the fallout of the city being attacked and if her friends are safe. She's the most nuanced character in the show, and it often feels like she is a normal person who was placed into the plot of a wild sci-fi kids show. Her apprehension towards conflict and her contemplation of the effects of what's occurring in the story are what makes her so believable. Yuta and Utsumi are at first, ecstatic to escape the mundane life of being a student, then the shock of the danger they're in forces them to face reality and change their mindsets. Whereas Yuta accepts he has to overcome challenges at face value and follows through like a typical protagonist, Rikka is constantly questioning why she's in such a dire situation and where her place is in all of it. Her development throughout the show is intertwined with Akane's and they both change in ways that are very engaging to watch play out.

The themes of Gridman are showcased throughout the story in the elaborate technology the villain has, all alone in her room, contrasted with the beat-up old computer the Gridman Alliance use. Yet even with basic technology, they prove to be formidable foes to the Kaiju, and they enjoy working together. What the screenwriter is trying to say is rather basic, but it's nonetheless a well-reinforced theme and consistent throughout the show, you don't need an abundance of technology to have good relationships and valued friendships.

SSSS. Gridman stands as one of the best mecha in recent memory. Stylistically it is much different than the rest of Studio Trigger's anime, but it is one of their greatest works yet. It wears its love for the original series and tokusatsu entertainment on its sleeve. The story is wonderfully nostalgic, and surprisingly enough, thought-provoking. Laden with subtle details building up to every twist, every theme, it is both visually interesting and endlessly analyzable. I look forward to rewatching it time and time again in the future.