The supporting cast makes a lot more sense once you know that the lead character designer is primarily a yuri artist, at least on Twitter. Of course, that makes the leads make even less sense, but that's just part of the ride and the incredible talent that went into this work of art.
Ah, Masami Obari. You are simple man of simple pleasures. You gave us Tekkaman Blade, the Fatal Fury movies, and a whole mess of bizarrely-proportioned magical girl hentai. For this bounty, we give thanks eternal.
One of the funniest things to come out of the creator interviews is that apparently all of the characters are really talking in English. Smith can't speak Japanese and only knows a few basic words like sushi and tempura. Isami had to speak to him in English the whole time or else Smith's weeb ass wouldn't have understood him.
"Okay, is this _supposed_ to be a double entendre, or is that just an accident of translation?" ... "I've lost track of how many entendres got crammed in here."
please please please please please main channel more detailed video later after everyone who's gonna watch it has had the chance to do that oh my god. [SPOILER WARNING FOR REAL DON'T READ UNLESS YOU WANT MASSIVE SPOILERS] I just have to gush about what a genius move this anime pulled by making Lewis Smith the character that he is. he's a massive fan of this genre, and he gets to do, by far, the coolest thing that you could ever let a fan of the genre do. he gets to sell everyone on why it's so cool. Lewis has been pursuing some form of heroism ever since his parents died in action. he very explicitly wants to be like the characters he always looked up to for comfort. and even when the aliens first show up, before anyone knows anything about what they're doing... he finds Lulu on the beach and takes her in, even knowing she might be an enemy, because she's a kid, and she doesn't have anyone on her side. he catches sight of a scared little girl in the hallway of the hotel he's staying at, and you can tell this pulls at him. there's a crisis going on, and he remembers what helped him when he was in crisis. he wants to provide that for others, so badly. but he's still not the hero. Bravern didn't choose him. the main problem with Lewis not being the hero isn't really the disappointment of it all... it's mostly that whoever the hero is will be leaving him behind, with no way to help. possibly going off to die, far away, where he can't do a single thing. it's a trauma that he's desperate to prevent. Lewis could've been bitter toward Isami. he could've been jealous. he could've been sad and disappointed, and let that defeat him. but the point wasn't to be admired... the point was to help. and Lewis does everything he can to help. he can't pilot Bravern, so he runs support. he sees Isami getting anxious and closed off, so he tries to prove that he's formidable enough to stand by his side and support him. he tells Isami that people would care if he died, and he doesn't have to try and do this alone. he pilots the Titanostrider, tries to pilot Superbia, fails at that, but then immediately pivots to form the Brave Knights, all while never questioning that Lulu is his responsibility... in every moment, Lewis's next question is just "okay, but what _can_ I do?" and then he finds something. even if it isn't ideal, or what he was expecting. he doesn't linger on Isami being the hero instead of him... he tries to keep up, so that he can stand with the hero. all he wants is to be there too. and most importantly: he falls in love. it's such a completely unselfish response. as far as Lewis knows, Bravern chose Isami, and that's all there is to it. a super robot exists, and Lewis still never had a shot. but this is never even remotely a stumbling block. Lewis loves heroes, and he sees a lot of things to admire in Isami. and then episodes 8 and 9 hit. when Cunus explodes, Lewis understands what he'll be doing to his loved ones. in this instance, he's cast in the role of the hero... the kind that never comes back. and that's unacceptable. Lewis isn't going to do it. but more than that... each Death Drive has a deep-set fulfillment need that must be satiated before they can truly die. Cunus chose to engage in combat with Lewis because she could sense the type of feelings he had, and Lewis refuses to die because he doesn't want to leave Isami behind, to fight all on his own. he still hasn't met his own fulfillment need yet. he still hasn't told Isami that he loves him. it's really only after that, that he can be killed. but also, Lewis gets to fulfill his every cathartic urge as Bravern... he gets to be the best super robot that he can possibly be. he has theme music, and attack names, and he projects his logo behind him when he enters a fight, and he builds his own upgrades out of giant model kits, and he leads military training exercises, and he gives heartfelt advice to his friends... Lewis loved this type of hero. he needed a hero like this when he was in crisis, and right now the world is in crisis. the world needs Lewis to LARP as the best possible archetypal hero he can muster. everything will be okay... because he is Bravern. and even on a meta level... Bravern is the best super robot he can be, for _our_ benefit as an audience. Lewis Smith is a fan, like us, and who would know what we would want to see, better than him? he sings the anime's OP, so of course we love it. and of course the creators of this show knew we'd love it. they're fans too. Lewis gets to be both sides of the equation, both the mecha and the fan, and he gets to express all of the warmth and kindness that flows between the two. finally Lewis is equipped to do the one and only thing he's ever wanted to do: protect everyone from harm. and he gets to do it by selling people on how cool a heroic super robot can really be. and he makes his case so well, that he turns a skeptic like Isami into a true believer. Isami's story contrasts with Lewis's... he grew up on a lot of the same shows, but he wasn't that into them. it's Lewis who really got him to think positively about the situation, and it's Bravern who gave him the confidence to believe that together, they could be the hero. by episode 11, Isami is fully invested.
@@itsanotherhomestuckfanwow9350 I love him so much. [SPOILER BREAK] at first I wasn't sure how I felt about the plot twist, but the more I think about it, the more I love what it does for Lewis's character. like I remember when my friends and I were going over all the Bravern Behavior that got recontextualized once you realize who he's always been... and one of my friends asked why he didn't go save Isami from getting waterboarded, if he remembered that happening. but like... Bravern remembered that he, Lewis Smith, went to go save Isami. meanwhile, Bravern keeps yelling "Isami! Isamiiiiii!!!" over and over again, because demanding to have Isami pilot him was the fastest way to prompt Isami's release. or like... when Isami locked himself in the cockpit, and clearly wasn't handling things well, that was during the time when Lewis was really preoccupied with trying to handle Lulu. he never really saw Isami acting like that, so it makes sense that his distress surprised Bravern. the next thing Lewis remembers seeing of Isami was him being kinda jealous about how much of Lewis's attention Lulu was absorbing. or like, when Bravern drops Isami off at the bar and encourages him to make more friends, and create more of a social circle for himself... he knows that Lewis will eventually "die" and Isami will need people he's close to, who can support him emotionally. what kind of guy is Lewis, that he can prepare Isami to handle that loss, and willingly let himself go off to die, because he would still choose to do everything he's been capable of as Bravern... Lewis is absolutely incredible.
@@briangen0 The west is largely sleeping on it, as you said, dude. The trailer that painted it as a real robot show rather than a super robot show didn't help. I'm glad it's getting tons of attention in Asia!
Obari cooked so hard with this one. Omni fanservice, super well timed comedy, a genuinely well set up plot twist (and you did well not to spoil it on the video) The last episode did disappoint me a bit but well, it was still great overall.
I think I know what you mean about the last episode. In the first episode they drive home the idea that this is a real war with real consequences, and there's a twist that somewhat undercuts that. But I love the characters so much I was ultimately okay with it.
i have been screaming Bravern's praises from the rooftops since it started airing and frankly, it deserves a main channel video once things settle down for the Basement crew
This anime is example of how CGI animation can implemented well and look good. The way Bravern is rendered makes him look 2D and surprisingly fluid animation sells amazingly well all the action scenes. I still prefer hand-drawn animation (nothing beats Gurren Lagann in that regard) but this is a huge step for CGI in anime.
Honestly, really important in the 'History Lesson' is Obari's own particular history in the industry, and the parallels to shows he has previously worked on to some extent or another. The opening episode and its general premise is essentially a more drawn out version of the beginning of Super Machine Beast God Dancouga, with the militaries of Earth finding out there's aliens on the way and proceeding to get their shit wrecked because whoops turns out they're in a Super Robot show, standard military hardware isn't gonna cut it. Dancouga proceeds to make a particular point about the titular machine being the result of a military programme, piloted by soldiers with the support of what remains of Earth's military forces, not 'Grandpa built it in his spare time' or 'energy researcher who just happened to be prepared for an ancient civilisation invading'. But for anyone noting how that origin for the super robot differs from Bravern - yes, because Obari has also mixed in his experiences on works like Tekkaman Blade, and several of the shows in the Brave series. While Obari mainly did the OP on the former, an alien saviour with a red, white, and gold colour scheme is a notable parallel between the works, while Bravern is just... so loaded with Brave series references it's almost silly. Even Bravern yelling to remember his name as a very 90s title card appears is a reference to the final pose in Great Fighbird's combination sequence (Fighbird being the source for 'Is this a Pigeon?', for its own place in anime history).
bravern is hilarious because it's obari referencing literally everything he ever worked on (burn dragon steals from fighbird and graveon, bravern's color scheme is terry bogard's from fatal fury, the intro steals from might gaine and exkaiser plus a bunch of other stuff) but in-universe it makes sense because bravern is a giant weeb dork who thinks all this stuff is the coolest
Bravern is an all timer. When I saw the first episode I was in, but when I saw the second and the robot's intensely homosexual soliloquy about how great it feels to have Isami thrusting his stick boldly up and down deep within him, I knew I was watching something special. I don't even have to follow that up with "yes that's a real thing that happens in this real show" like I usually do, since you put it in the video! Big ups for that.
Keeping up with the show weekly was making me nervous that that the show was gay-baiting me with the ending sequence and the homoeroticism, but I'm genuinely so thankful they followed through with it. Subtext is for cowards, what a wonderful show this was.
Same here, the fact is that the gay storyline is the main reason this whole thing happens, the director recently said the reason why Kunus targeted Smith was due to “his hidden feelings towards Isami”
This is the exact reason I stopped watching. It was almost ‘too good to be true’, that and Braven’s…. hyper-erotic speeches were a bit too much for my british sensibilities. But now I’m going to have to get back to watching it. (I adore Smith and Isami)
I swear I knew with absolute certainty the whole time that it was real. It was kinda like the Golden Kamuy effect, there's a certain kind of homoeroticism that is just distinctly recognizable as coming from a really authentic place (b/c game recognizes game) and I don't know how else to explain it. Was still overjoyed to be proven right though.
I'M SO GLAD YOU'RE COVERING THIS! My friends were turned off by the trailer but I managed to hook them with some well-timed screenshots. I was genuinely not sure if you were going to go the way of your Oshi no Ko video and tease the whole thing as standard mecha anime and leave the bit about aliens as a surprise. Considering the comedic bits you were able to use that didn't have anything to do with it, you probably could have, though knowing how balls-to-the-wall it goes in e1 is pretty good bait, too.
If not for Frieren this would be getting so much more hype, within it's Mecha genre it's clearly up in the top 10 of all time. The show is also functionally a love letter to Western Otaku from Japanese Otaku.
I normally don't like green screens with scenes playing on the back while the guy talks, but for you I will always make an exception because you are awesome.
I have never seen Stickin' Around merch ever. Your t-shirt was like a Ratatouille moment transporting me back to my old living room watching YTV on a fat CRT. Also bravern is peak.
The 8-bit Top Gun Theme as the outro music was an absolutely perfect way to cap this video. Now I gotta go track that down and give it a listen. Also, I am definitely going to add this show to my watch list. Your recommendations haven't steered me wrong yet.
I watched this show every week as it aired and boy what a ride it has been. This is one of the show that when you first see and say WTF is this show but you will continue on week by week or episode by episode because it's addicting to watch and you couldn't stop yourself.
the engrish in this video gave me severe sengoku basara flashbacks. which means bang brave bang bravern is probably fuck-awesome. ARE YOU READY GUYS! LET'S PARTY!
I'll never forget my emotions watching this. Me, 44yo straight male. First episode. Eh this is pretty cool. Second episode, this was cool...wait, did that just happen? Surely not...ok keep watching. Third episode, oh shit we are full on going there, not sure if I should keep watching. Fourth episode, ok eff everything else and my feels, I'm watching the rest of this, and getting my 16 year old daughter to watch. We could not wait for each episode and both loved it till the end. 10/10
I’m so glad to be a fan of mecha and Gundam especially. This shows brings a smile and your analysis is absolutely spot on, love the extra context added in your video.
i'm unashamed to say this show made me tear up. i haven't felt this excited while watching a show in a long time. my emotions ran hotter than the passion between these two men. super robots are and have always been justice.
Every "GA-GA-Piiiiiii" from Lulu was a symphony to the ears, the VA for Lulu cements why subs >>>>>>>> dubs because no NA voice actor can emote with that kind of raw insane, authentic energy.
Your shirt is such an unexpected trip down memory lane, I don't even remember the last time I thought about stickin around and yet i recognized it immediately
I watched the first episode of this before it hit CR, before there was a second episode to go to immediately, before the internet was full of people yelling about it. And let me tell you, from start to finish, I was unprepared for this, and it is the greatest thing I've ever seen.
Out of everything in this video, the thing that stood out the most to me is the fact that Geoff was wherein a shirt of Sticking Around, man that takes me back.
I certainly wouldn't mind a longer piece about Obari's place in mecha history and how a lot of the tropes being subverted here were created and pushed by his own work.
The juxtaposition of the Super Robot and the (for anime) very well done realistic NATO remnant operations really really got me. Like proposing a 60 hour combat air patrol because they don't know if any other airports even exist anymore, which is grim as fuck, and then cutting back to Bravern is bold as hell.
Watching the first episode was one of the most incredible anime experiences of my life. The moment it all went down and the theme song kicked in, I felt like a kid again.
This was by far my favorite anime of Winter 2024 (and may even be my favorite anime of the year depending on how later seasons go), thanks for making a video on it!
Bravern is a 12/10 masterpiece. Obari pulled out a gorillion animation references that were fun to spot, each episode was an absolute blast to watch, and the story even had surprises I didn't see coming. I really hope this means that the Brave series is back!
My kid got me into this and it was AOTS for me, totally bat shit crazy funny with great action. They really went there, I never knew what to expect out of any episode and yet I laughed like crazy every episode. And the songs! It's just so out there! Please watch it!
I really enjoyed this style of video. It gave me just enough info without felling I knew everything. With so much coming out every season, it can be really hard to figure out what is worth the time. I love the What to Watch videos, but a video like this at the end of a season is a great reminder
As someone who started watching it when it was at only 3 episodes, seeing it grow in real time and mindblow the fuck out of me was an amazing experience. Thank you for making this video, more people need to know about Bravern and experience a flavor of peak that will never be forgotten.
Geoff, you Sold me on the anime. Especially the CIA robot waterboarding. I binged the whole series and God it somehow goes even further beyond. Did not disappoint.
thanks for posting this. Im going to seek out this show. Thanks Jeff. imma bring this up for whiskey and anime night with the boys. Whiskey and Anime is a real thing.
Geoff you had me at the Big O reference, your taste is immaculate 😙👌🏾 That's on my opinion the most profound, reality shattering (iykyk) and simultaneously reality affirming piece of media I've ever witnessed, and not just in anime. And I have to use "witnessed" because art of such an all-encompassing nature is not something you simply consume and move on, but it changes every fiber of your being as it passes through you. That sort of loftiness might be too much to expect from this show, but I have no reason to believe after this that it's not phenomenal in its own right. So I'm onboard, I'm a Bang Bro now. Also yes more content like this please!
