Know Your Roots: Hit Anime That Debuted Spring 2007

Set in another world very very similar to our own, humans are forced to live underground. Aboveground is considered to be dangerous. Simon and Kamina spend their days drilling holes deeper into the earth to expand their village. Kamina is slightly out there with his big personality and refusal to take it from the man;Simon on the other hand, is rather timid and soft-spoken. While digging one day, Simon finds a small, strange drill and keeps it. Then he finds a small robot-looking like machine that he called the Lagann. After the roof of their cave comes crashing down, Simon and Kamina burst into action. Yoko, a woman with a very large gun and other large things, works with them to defeat a gunmen. Afterwards, they are brought out into the forbidden surface where Simon sees the sun and moon for the first time. They decide to explore this new world they have found with Yoko. It is not long before they encounter more “beastmen” in their gunmen robots and have to use the Lagann to take over one. It is from there that their journey begins. They have to find out who is calling the shots, how to protect humans, and solve a problem bigger than themselves, the enemies, and even the Earth.

Gurren Lagann should not be a surprise to be on here. Often referred to as “The Last Great Mecha Anime” this anime tells the story of adventure, dreams, desires, hope, despair, friendship, and tragedy. 10/10 if you watch this show, you will get suckerpunched in the feels multiple times. Gurren Lagann enjoyed explosive success when it debuted and won Best Television Production from the Tokyo International Anime Fair in 2008. Many staff members also went on to win award for the contributions to this series. Online too, wherever you go, the series is praised for it’s accomplishments. It is also considered to be a direct influence on western shows and series as well. The popularity has also led people to create a Gurren Lagann Reddit full of gems related to the series. If you are looking to see similar anime as well to this series, your best three bets are Kill la Kill, Evangelion, And Eureka Seven. Check out this masterpiece as you will not be disappointed!

Claymore follows the story of Clare, a Claymore. Claymores are beings that are half-human and half-youma or demons. They are then raised in a special way and taught how to fight in order to defeat real youma. Claymores are often referred to as “silver-eyed witches” and as one would expect to see of a series set in medieval times, humans are terrified of them. However, they need Claymores to protect their villages and towns, so when they arrive to visit, Claymores are warily welcomed. After a village is attacked, Clare, a newer Claymore, is dispatched. There, she meets a boy Raki and ends up saving him from being killed by a Youma. The villagers go crazy thinking that he brought the youma and so, he is banished and decides to follow Clare. They set out on a journey filled with danger and even more death meeting fellow Claymores along the way who are much stronger than Clare is. However Raki learns a secret, they are travelling for a reason. Clare is hell bent on pursuing and meeting the youma that convinced her to become a Claymore.

Claymore was made by Madhouse and as such, has a lot of pressure on it to do well. Thankfully, it has; however there is one flaw and that is that the series ending is very very open, so be sure to go pick up the manga after you finish watching it. Claymore has pulled a lot of comparisons in the past as dealing with how the art is well done in a time when there was a lot of backlash within the anime community. –Shocker–this argument never seems to die. The fight scenes are heavily praised as were the characters for the Claymores. For fans who may question what the draw is of this series, Claymore is often compared to the original season of Berserk, Blood+, Shingeki no Kyojin and more. While it does not have the obvious popularity that say, Berserk or Shingeki no Kyojin now, it is credited for breathing life again into the medieval supernatural setting for anime. Check it out!