Series Review: Gamera Rebirth is an excellent audiovisual spectacle

Humanity has faced great disasters in its history, cinematically speaking things have been worse, earthquakes, asteroids and extraterrestrial threats, attacks by terrifying beings, viruses, and massive destruction, this is in different genres, the most important being science fiction and fantasy.

There is a very specific genre, that of monsters, that of gigantic creatures that threaten all of humanity. This was born with the 1933 film King Kong by directors Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack with a script by James Creelman. and Ruth Rose, with impressive special effects for its time and context, narrated the adventures of a failed filmmaker who discovers an island where time has not passed and the one who dominates it is a huge gorilla who is taken to civilization, causing dangerous havoc.

The success of this film was such that many ideas came to the minds of writers and this is how in 1954 one of the most representative characters created by Ishirō Honda in this genre was born in Japan. Godzilla is a Japanese franchise of monsters or kaiju that has He has films, television series, novels, comics, video games, and countless other products to his credit, thus becoming an influential classic of the genre.

11 years later the creators, Noriaki Yuasa, Masaichi Nagata, Hidemasa Nagata, and Tomio Sagisu take this concept to another level, Gamera is not exactly an antagonist of the famous Godzilla, he is a completely different Kaiju, a character that his first film was Intended to compete with Toho Studios’ hit Godzilla, he has since become a Japanese icon in his own right, appearing in a total of 12 films produced by Daiei Film and later by Kadokawa Daiei Studio, and several others. media.

What is Gamera? He is a giant turtle monster whose origin is the result of the United States military attacks against its enemies, presumably the Soviet Union, which causes the detonation of an atomic bomb that frees Gamera from a state of suspended animation in the Arctic ice. This is explained in the 1965 film, along with a Japanese research team discovering a tribe that has an ancient stone carving depicting a giant turtle that the tribe refers to as Gamera.

2023 is the year in which this fantastic Kaiju arrives as a Japanese anime series directed and co-written by Hiroyuki Seshita and produced by Kadokawa Corporation, animated by ENGI, it is a reboot of the franchise after what was done in 2006.

What is the series about?

During the summer of 1989, four children living in Tokyo witnessed the appearance of a monstrous kaiju turtle named Gamera. After the threat that has been unleashed in the city, he is the only creature capable of bravely facing giant human-eating monsters that seek to dominate. the world.

It is undeniable that this genre of monsters is too attractive for locals and strangers, it is their stories and their designs that give life to these giants that attack and at the same time defend human beings from equally gigantic and dangerous threats, this genre would seem that it is already too exhausted, that there are no longer original stories, that there is nothing more to tell and what has been done has been recycled, imitated and plagiarized from previous productions.

Gamera has had a very different destiny from that of other sagas, its rival and the most important being that of Godzilla, which already has its monsterverse, having success at the box office, these gigantic beings are guaranteed success, and the television series format gives the ease and opportunity to explore more of these characters.

When this type of production takes care of even the smallest detail based on advocating nostalgia, so fashionable in our times, then this has a very big plus point over everything that has been done before, balancing old elements with modern elements and having the necessary dose of action respecting its own rules the show is assured.

Anime is a highly respected and rich genre in terms of stories and characters, it is here where many of these productions find a place in a very demanding audience that looks for a specific entertainment, the problem here is its distribution and promotion in Western countries, Over time this has decreased with the appearance of digital platforms such as Crunchyroll, VRV, Anime Onegai, Jonu Play, HIDIVE, Prime Video and of course, Netflix are the ones who have allowed this medium to be more massive.

This new anime series is the kind of thing that sounds like a perfect introduction to the franchise and a new generation of viewers, Gamera Rebirth takes a different approach to its story and 3D animation in its context, the fight scenes. between Gamera and his various kaiju enemies are very exact within its narrative, there is a visual balance between what is the action and the drama experienced by the humans who are being attacked, and its production design perfectly sets the period and the political conflict war between the United States and Japan.

The fact of using 3D animation and combining it with traditional 2D animation seems that we are seeing 2 different things, on the one hand, there are the subplots that involve humans and on the other hand, the fights between Gamera and his enemies make all of this not look like the typical anime and it remains a new concept that works very well to tell its central story.

Taking the above into account, this project tries to have its personality, its touch of uniqueness in the genre that occupies it, a kaiju as the main line of defense against other kaiju seems like something extremely trite and already seen, but here this is completely new, We cannot deny that both children and adults like these things.

The beginning of this rebirth is located in the summer of 1989, Boco (Hisako Kanemoto), Junichi (Aki Toyosaki), and Joe (Yoshitsugu Matsuoka) worry about the typical things of any child, riding a bike, walking, eating candy, playing arcade video games, save money to buy audio equipment and of course deal with a group of bullies led by Brody (Subaru Kimura), an American who criticizes everything around him, however, everything changes when the city is attacked by giant kaiju and monstrous, the children will have to gather all their ingenuity to escape alive from this terrifying threat, in the middle of all this chaos a different kaiju emerges that is protecting them all, something that looks like a giant turtle that they call Gamera.

A group of scientists find in a deep cave a different living organism, a nest with eggs that begin to break and release creatures called Gyaos that attack them, kill them, and escape, the twist here is that these creatures are released by a group of terrorists from a secret and mysterious organization that claims to have a new vision to purify the planet of humans and the pollution they have made over decades.

To achieve this, they release 5 different species of kaiju that Gamera must fight, each one better than the last with better abilities and more dangerous, the only thing capable of stopping them is the mutant turtle that seeks to protect Boco, the protagonist of In this story, a restless boy who is the one who has the best ideas for having fun, Joe, on the other hand, is the one who assumes the role of an older brother and finally we have Junichi, a science fanatic who is the one who logically explains what what’s going on.

During the first attack on the city, the children meet James (Mamoru Miyano) and Emiko (Saori Hayami), two staff members of the Eustace Foundation who recognize the importance of the boy to their cause, the foundation is an organization that helps develop new technology to fight against the kaiju, but in reality, they are planning something that directly threatens the human race, that is, they are not good guys but they are not bad guys either, it is simply the cliché of not everything is what it seems.

As the episodes progress, Gamera’s devotion to protecting Boco becomes more evident with each fight, while one tries to protect him, the other insists on doing his thing and putting his friends and himself in danger until we reach a conclusion that has a twist that, while not impressive, is something that Gamera fans will be more than satisfied with.

The 6 episodes that make up the first season are:

1. OVER TOKYO.

Just as best friends Boco, Joe, and Junichi confront the bully who took their money and beat them, the town is attacked by something of an unknown nature.

This first episode summarizes the essence of what Gamera and animes based on kaiju are, it does not disappoint by presenting an entertaining show with colossal creatures that wreak havoc on a city that is not prepared for an attack of that level, the main antagonists are the flying kaiju called Gyaos, a species similar to the mythical medieval dragon as well as Gamera the giant mutant turtle, as a presentation we can see Gamera’s versatile abilities to fight with a swarm of flying kaiju, regarding the human characters they establish a bond of brotherly friendship between Boco and Joe, the action sequences are incredibly well done, with precise biomechanics of the kaiju, making it an audiovisual spectacle worth seeing.

2. UNDER CURRENT.

Brody claims to have top-secret information about where the kaiju threat could be located and wants to check it out with his little new friends who are being protected by the colossal Gamera.

In this episode we see more of the development of the kaiju and meet a new one, a four-legged kaiju with canine characteristics that are further emphasized by its ability to dig tunnels, as a series it maintains the pattern of telling kaiju origin stories, Some eggs hatch and within hours we witness the emergence of a fully developed kaiju who is the leader of all the others and who is being controlled by the evil secret organization.

It also presents important developments that shape the plot Douglas, the abusive American joins the group of children and the foundation approaches them to get their help, these changes allow the story to diversify and it will be interesting to explore the possibilities that it has in itself.

3. RUN SILENT, RUN DEEP.

While the children are aboard a high-tech ship owned by the Eustace Foundation, they learn of a kaiju attack on a passenger ship and that they could be the next target.

The line and trend in this episode of presenting a different type of kaiju to confront Gamera continues, and the intrigue and intentions of this foundation are further developed, Zigra is the new monster that Gamera faces in his natural habitat, underwater, Gamera fights to dominate the kaiju in this environment and this is where Junichi puts all his scientific and nerdy knowledge into practice.

The chapter focuses mainly on the character of Junichi who has been part of the group from the beginning but has not had the opportunity to have his time on screen as viewers we can learn about his skills and intelligence by using the radio signal emitted by Gamera to stun Zigra allowing Gamera to get the upper hand.

Another significant aspect that we see is his emphasis on learning more about the personality of this character Junichi through anecdotes from his childhood and his bond with Emiko, Zigra proves to be the most formidable opponent that Gamera has faced so far.

4. KILL.

While Boco, Joe, Junichi, and Brody undergo testing on an island, James considers calling it quits after the Zigra incident, however, the sword-faced monster, Guiron, emerges and amputates Gamera’s arm.

Here there is a lot of mystery and intrigue to unravel, the story transforms into something very different from what we have been seeing and now facing its end, the brotherly bond that Boco has with Joe who has constantly been the voice of reason for the group and prioritizing caution in these situations proves to have been right in everything.

The episode also does an excellent job of elucidating why he approached things this way from the beginning and here comes the moral message that goes deeper into the importance of family, friendship, and courage, Joe is not the only one who starts to doubt the veracity of what they have been told and the Foundation’s intentions, James plays an incredibly important role in making this episode a pivotal point in the story by questioning the Foundation’s methods after noticing various suspicious behavior, That is why he is willing to leave the organization and the surprising and incredible battle between kaiju could not be missed and reveals why Gamera has been protecting the children, Gamera and Boco share a telepathic bond.

5. THE MOON IS A HARSH MISTRESS.

When Boco touches the Orylium, a dark vision of the past is revealed to them, an ancient civilization sacrificed children to the kaiju monster Viras in an attempt to control the population. After realizing Emiko’s sinister plans within the foundation, James and the children attempt to escape.

This episode finally reveals everything the foundation has been planning, exposing the true intentions of the executives and Emiko, culminating in the resurrection of Viras, the most powerful kaiju of all.

revelations such as Emiko’s deception, and James’ decision to abandon everything and escape with the children, Viras is magnificently portrayed during the fight, however, the confrontation does not live up to expectations and falls far below what was expected. we would expect what can happen between the protagonist monster and his antagonist.

6. CHILDHOOD’S END.

As the army undertakes a top-secret mission and line of defense to save Gamera and give him time to recover from his battle with Viras, a new, larger, and more dangerous Gyaos attacks them and only one of the two will make it out alive.

The final episode tries to be as warm as possible, we expected a resolution to everything to be presented here and it partially happens, Gamera ends up facing a Gyaos hybrid after it devours Viras, in terms of strength he has no chance against Gamera, he is dominated and finally defeated but not everything is as it seems, there are eggs of this species that have survived.

This episode adds more value to its moral discourse for example, James always strives to do the right thing, and the friendship between Boco and Joe reaches its highest point which illustrates their deep brotherly bond, it further emphasizes the connection between Gamera and Boco, these elements make the plot believable within its context.

In general and during the 6 episodes, the presentations and battles between the kaiju have their importance, and time on screen establishes that as animation they have been well prepared and excellently well animated.

Unfortunately, its script does not offer a clear and reasonable explanation of how and why Gamera was born, we only see that a turtle was trapped in a swamp and it is Boco who frees it, then we go directly to the action but at times we feel that something is missing in the plot, the connections between chapters can be confusing because we don’t know where we are located until the action begins.

Unlike Godzilla, who is indestructible if Gamera suffers mortal damage in his battles, at times more importance is given to the antagonists to show their ferocity and danger, but there is a point in the animation that fails to portray these monsters as too large in comparison. with its environment, the consequences that its weight would have are not seen and result in flat sequences.

At the end of the day, Gamera is a franchise that has focused on the bond of friendship it has with the children it protects from bad guys, and many fights with giant monsters that destroy everything in its path, the series is faithful to this concept by A controversial element is added, the fact that here the American is represented as another threat to the country, from abusive children to the army and the political-military implications to stop them, here the gringos have no more importance than being who they are the provocateurs and inciters, on the other hand, the Japanese people are deliberately good, technological and self-sufficient to solve their problems, hence the reference to the Godzilla monster verse where they emphasize that the United States could not stop a kaiju that attacked them.

The American is a useless person who can only plan strategies to protect himself but who does not have the intelligence or the technology to be self-sufficient, with a militarily poor culture they try to flaunt something that they do not have and have never had, but Being the first world power it seems that all other countries are obliged to ask them for help, this does not happen here and it is concretely and specifically well planned, the Japanese can do it alone with their monsters.

The structure and character design takes their time, screenwriter Niisan Takahashi together with the director Hiroyuki Seshita make a good team, unlike other productions that involve the different point of view of one or more involved hinders the plot, that does not happens, they know perfectly well who Gamera is and what they can do with her on screen.

With only 6 episodes almost an hour long, it is more than enough time to develop a plot together with its subplots and give a resolution to everything, an ending is the opportunity to have a new beginning, and it is just what we see and expect. of a show of this level.

The voice cast is made up of Hisako Kanemoto, Aki Toyosaki, Yoshitsugu Matsuoka, Subaru Kimura, Kazuya Naka, Mamoru Miyano, Saori Hayami, Marie Oi and Wataru Hatano. They do a good job, here the detail to recommend is that the series be seen in its original language with subtitles, the sound editing in its translation loses much of what is truly exposed.

The music composed by Shuji Katayama has the classic elements of the film series, each piece is designed to be part of the personality of each scene and each battle, a very good job that blends perfectly into its audiovisual framework.

In conclusion, Gamera Rebirth is a great show, it contains and respects all those elements that made this franchise something different in a world that is dominated by monsters, I hope this does not remain just an experimental project and we continue to see more of these characters, very good for Netflix, which in works like that risks being different and bringing viewers a good level of entertainment.

Gamera Rebirth is now available on the Netflix platform.