How do you rate episode 2 of
Brave Bang Braven! ? Community score: 4.3
© Cygames Pictures
I have to admit, I was thrown for a loop by Brave Bang Braven!
I also started to get quite complacent. “This is going to be a super robot show,” I told myself. “There’s no doubt about that.” I mean isn’t it obvious? Not only does it star the legendary Masami Ōbari, but it also has the word Brave twice in the show’s title! The visuals are key with the gritty fighting robots and the opening minutes of tactical action that won’t put me off. Isami was ranting about wanting to be a hero and I just knew a giant super robot would show up.
I was right and had nailed the program correctly—or so I thought. Because even though I read correctly that the word Brave in the title was a clear statement, I didn’t realize how important the word Bang would be.
For everyone’s sake, this show focuses heavily on super robots and passionate drama between men.
I quite liked it myself, although there are a few caveats there. The overall vibe works for me. The characters are all big and boisterous with recognizable archetypes, and that’s before you factor in the giant robot with personality. Braven is interesting for many reasons, but one of the most obvious is that he is sentient and speaks directly to everyone else. I’m not sure if it’s written in stone somewhere but mecha shows where the machine is sentient seem to have a different appeal than mecha shows where the robot is clearly a tool or a device. bag. I like it, but I know it might upset some people.
Speaking of which, the tonal differences here are huge and fluctuating. You have robot tropes that are truly sci-fi and super robot shenanigans, which may also turn some people off. I like it and think the difference works quite well. A clear, obvious hero unit supported by backup mechs is more grounded than a well-established narrative (landmark series like Gundunda and to some extent Macross essentially use this formula, albeit given more in-universe justification).
The explicit homoerotic subtext–ah, who am I kidding, this isn’t subtext but just text–between Isami and Braven is also a big part of the show. This is not my area of expertise so I can’t say how to handle this elegantly, but there are some interesting puns. For those who want this element but don’t have a sense of humor, the connection between Isami and Lewis seems to be there as well. It’s a bit more subtle…well, wait, the ending theme is them both singing shirtless in the rain…so the show itself is more subtle.
However, I think some of the comedy beats are a bit ill-timed. Having Bravern scream at the top of his lungs about needing Isami inside him and toying with his controller while juxtaposing that with scenes of Isami being actively waterboarded was a poor choice for me. Unlike the robot/super robot juxtaposition that actually provided some texture, the comedy-versus-torture rhythm just didn’t work for me.
Overall though we got off to a strong start with a good alien fighting premise and a lively dynamic between the lead robot and the lead pilot. I think this will be an enjoyable watch this season no matter how you slice it.
Episode 1: Rating:
Episode 2: Rating:
Grant is a co-host on the Blade Licking Thieves podcast and the Super Senpai Podcast.
Bang Brave Bang Braven is now streaming on Crunchyroll.
