Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)I admit I am old enough to remember watching Gigantor back in the day, so watching this Boxed Set brings back lots of fond memories. Sure Gigantor has crude black & white animation, a few unflattering stereotypes & some politically incorrect behavior--smoking, lots of gunplay & in one episode Gigantor fishes for whales!!--but unlike more recent anime, does this series MOVE.
Jimmy Sparks, Gigantor's owner, is one of the most amazing cartoon characters ever. A 12 yr old boy who not only controls the World's Most Powerful Robot, but also drives a car, flies jetfighters, scuba dives, solves crime & regularly consults with Inspector Blooper & various Heads of State! And he does these things without the second-guessing & psychological torment which plague more modern characters (think Shinji Ikari of EVANGELION). Different times back then.
Gigantor's battles with his arch-nemesis, Magnaman highlights this series. Whoever possessed his secret codebook controlled Magnaman by shouting those codes. Yes, it's goofy but like so much about Gigantor, that was part of the series' appeal.
If I could buy only one Gigantor Boxed set, my choice is the first set. The Extras are better (tho' not by much) and the stories remain at a higher quality overall than Boxed Set 2. After Magnaman is sent packing back home, it appears the Gigantor series lost momentum, and the final episodes are really weak. The animation is cruder than ever and none of Gigantor's later adversaries--Big Fang, Ironton, Brainy, Dinosaur Robots--really stand out.
Despite that, Gigantor is one of the greatest cartoons ever and it's nothing short of a miracle to have all 52 US episodes on DVD. For one reason or another, ASTROBOY & KIMBA weren't as lucky. Kudos to Fred Ladd & Rhino.
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Gigantor - Boxed Set 2 (Episodes 27-52)
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