New Getter Robo is a remake(hence the "new") of the classic series from the 70's, Getter Robo. In NGR, the earth is under constant attack from demons called the Oni. So to combat them, Professer Saotome creates a series of robots so completely badass that most people die trying to pilot them, so he has to find the right pilots. The first one he finds is Ryoma, a hot headed, down on his luck martial arts instructor. Next, he finds Hayato, a sadistic political revolutionary. Last, he recruits Benkei, a buddhist monk trying to atone for his past of violence and debauchery. Together, they pilot the Getter Robo, which is actually three aircraft that can be configured into three different robot modes. Getter 1 for overall badassery (piloted by Ryoma), Getter 2 for speed (piloted by Hayato) and Getter 3 for heavy hitting and underwater use. The three must not only learn to pilot the Getter Robo, but also learn to work together despite their conflicting personalities. It's cliche', I know, when when there are totally sweet giant robots kicking ass, I'm okay with that.
The disc contains episodes 1-4 (out of 13 total episodes) and they mainly focus on introductions of the characters and the crisis at hand. Episode one focus's on the introduction of the Professor Saotome, the Getter Robo and Ryoma, episode two introduces Hayato, episode three introduces Benkei and episode four focus's on them learning to work together. While there are a few choice moments, such as Hayato kicking the crap out of a bunch of Yakuza thugs in episode one or seeing what a psychotic bastard Hayato is in episode two, not much is really done to advance the storyline. This is pretty typical for this kind series, but things do drag a little bit in episode three and for the first half of episode four.
My interest in the series probably would have started to wane at episode three had it not been for the fact that this series has plenty of violence and blood, but also for the style of art the directors chose to go with. I'm not quite sure how to describe it, it's almost like the 70's anime style fused with the art of the Japanese feudal era. It sounds strange but it totally works and also gives the series a look completely it's own.
Overall, I enjoyed this DVD a lot, but I'll be the first to say it's definitely not for everybody. The plot (so far) is pretty shallow and the violence is pretty much non stop. But, if you like giant robots don't have a problem with copious amounts of blood and simply want to watch something that's a lot of fun, I'd say give New Getter Robo a try.
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