The new series, SSSS.Gridaman by Studio Trigger features giant monsters and a reference to a classic live action series from the 90s. Is this enough to make worth watching? Welcome to Three Episode Report. This report will be judged on its first three episodes to show if it gets a PASS (meaning it passed and more episodes need to be watched) or a FAIL (meaning you probably should not watch it any further).
Summary
Yuta Hibiki has no memory and has no idea where he came from. When Kaiju start to appear and destroy the city, a strange computer named Junk merges Yuta with a mysterious being known as Gridman to fight against this new invading force.
Positive
This series has a lot going for it thanks to a lot of great action which takes place throughout the episodes. You can tell it was based off a tokusatsu (Special effects show. Think Power Rangers or if you remember how the original show came to America, think Superhuman Samurai Syber-Squad) as the setup of “Monsters appear and hero fights” is the basic formula. Still being animated presents much more fluid and destructive graphics than what could be shown in a live action media.
The show also presents a mystery in the early episodes. After each fight, everything is put back to normal as if nothing ever happened but at the same time if people die in the Kaiju attack they stay dead and the history surrounding them is altered. It leaves the audience with just enough intrigue in these first few episodes to plant curiosity in the viewer. When you combine the intrigue with the energetic opening theme “Union” by OxT and there is more than enough to get the audience eager to finish the series.
Negative
The loose and fast animation style has become a trademark of Studio Trigger. Though this time around it isn’t nearly as breakneck as say KIll La Kill, the series does have moments where the characters move very spartically. If you are getting sick of this style of animation, this may not be the show for you.
Other minor complaints include a main character who has amnesia is far too overplayed of a plot point and the ending theme “Youthful Beautiful” by Maaya Uchida is never very catchy of a song. Still these are minor complains over all.
Grade
This one gets a PASS for sure. If you are a fan of giant monsters and action then this is the show for you. On the other hand if you are getting a little tired of Studio Trigger and its animation style, maybe just watch a little bit. Then see if you can look past the visuals in favor what promises to be a very entertaining new series.
SSSS.Gridman is streaming on Crunchyroll.
