SSSS.DYNAZENON

DESCRIPTION

CAST

ANIME ActionSSSS.GRIDMAN
SPECIAL ActionAzur Lane Anime PVs
MOVIE ActionGRIDMAN UNIVERSE
NOVEL ActionSSSS.DYNAZENON CHRONICLE
MOVIE ActionSSSS.DYNAZENON Movie

REVIEWS

• 

  DekorationXanNex

  90/100
  At the end of the day, it was incredibly fun, and that’s really all that matters.

  

  Scarred Souls Shine like Stars
  I’ve been wondering what SSSS stood for. Along with this being the biggest reveal in the franchise, I really enjoyed Dynazenon, even more so than I did with Gridman, due to a combination of its directing, powerful and engaging characters, and more succinctly, how the show, despite the giant robot action set pieces, monster of the week formula, mystery and mysticism of the plot, was incredibly human.

  

  
  Scarred (characters)
  One of the most engaging parts of the show was how tightly the character’s lives were weaved together. Dynazenon has 5 main characters, Yomogi, Yume, Koyomi, Chise, and Gauma. With only 1 cour at its disposable along with a varied side cast, it seems quite difficult at first to develop everyone while making a strong and purposeful dynamic, but Dynazenon finds a way. Where other shows might slowly introduce their main cast, episodically building them individually, Dynazenon takes another approach. True to the nature of giant robots that require multiple pilots, Dynazenon introduces all of its characters in the first episode, wasting no time in meandering, making us wonder when the team will assemble. This dynamic of having the cast be up front and directly available to us is exactly how the show carries forth.

  This is an ensemble, with each member of the cast serving as a different piece of their giant Kaiju blasting robot, Dynazenon. But what makes these parts shine even further, is their individual problems, development, and characterization that we manage to receive in a tight package filled with symbolism, visual framing and directing, and powerful emotional payoffs. Each of the characters, have a different type of trauma that the show puts at the forefront.

  

  Souls (themes)
  Yume’s problems dealing with her deceased sister is the first strong thematic hook that looks into the themes of trauma, and moving forward from the past. As we see her desperately struggling to find answers and reconcile with the person she lost and the regrets she holds, Yomogi finds his way entangled and entranced, joining in her troubles and being a guiding light. Although Yomogi does have parental issues due to the changes in his family life, and that aspect isn’t explored or fleshed out nearly as much as I would have liked, he himself was still great to have along. Being the catalyst of how the entire plot started in the first place, and also being someone who’s strong and ready to help his friends, he surprisingly served as a nice balance to Yume’s extremely darker issues. In all of his normality, having a character like Yomogi, who is as regular as he comes, can help us follow Yume with a lighter tone, grounding the issues that are presented, making them digestible.

  Koyomi and Chise follow along as well, but their problems are interspersed between the main hook of Yume, and although they don’t necessarily intersect, do have strong parallels among themselves. Koyomi is locked behind his past, leaving him shut-in within his home with no prospects of a future, but this is unlocked through a chance encounter over the course of the show, revealing a certain person who has plagued his thoughts throughout his early adult life. Chise, likewise is also locked behind her past. Again, although Chise isn’t as fleshed out as Koyomi, just having her around and be a lighter contrast to him, was a reliable way for the show to present their inner complications.

  By the end of the show, almost every character went through major changes in the problems they were dealing with, and it felt very organic. The entire show is spent between the gears of these characters, jumping from Yomogi to Yume, then to Koyomi and Chise, spinning with the dripping oil that was Gauma, the last of our main characters. Gauma, like Chise and Yomogi, wasn’t the strongest character in terms of having a complicated development or arc, but due to how he was written and how enjoyable it was for him to be on screen, that energy was contagious and easily found through my experience. Even if certain pieces of the system are rusted, as a whole, they all functioned beautifully in tandem, reinforcing the ensemble’s strength.

  

  Shine (Mecha)
  Although I spent a long time building upon the characters and the drama that the show definitely puts at the forefront, Dynazenon, of course, at its brightest, is also about giant robots fighting stupidly larger monsters. It’s inevitable that this part of the show is also very vital, and admittedly at times, felt less bright than the character drama. It wasn’t so much that the fights looked bad, the CG used was just the right amount, and giant robots fighting giant monsters comes with a certain chorographical constraint, but often times the vehicle to move episodes forward were exactly that, needing to insert a giant robot to fulfill the formula. Less often did the show make me feel tense since, Dynazenon was just, Dynazenon, a super hyped robot who can tear apart any futile attempt by the villains, and as it powered up in more bombastic and stupidly exciting ways, the less threatening the monsters were. At a certain point, it felt very rout and mechanical whenever a monster appeared, and although there is good reason for these fights to happen, considering, villains don’t often take vacations, they were sizably less interesting when juxtaposed with the amazingly well done characters.

  Did the formula, however, shift and were there moments where the fights served to have more than just stupidly awesome fight scenes? Yes. But those moments for me, were fewer than I would have liked. It’s easily the most ridiculous part of the show, how they destroy the city every other day, and although they do address that in a few episodes, where the characters actually react to mass residential destruction, it still, at the end of the day, is a part of the genre that will always be silly.

  

  Stars (Conclusion)
  I loved SSSS. Gridman. I loved SSSS. Dynazenon, and I’m excited to see what else Trigger can whip up for this franchise. Dynazenon, was an amazing show, with great characters that meshed together, engaging and grounded themes that are explored through those characters, and of course, the patented action spectacles that this genre is known for, but at its core, the insistence of Dynazenon to stay grounded within its human elements, is what elevated the show for me. There were so many moving parts that all fit to make this show special, but regardless of how I thought of the writing, the directing, the structure, at the end of the day, it was incredibly fun, and that’s really all that matters.

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• 

  CodeBlazeFate

  80/100
  Dynazenon maintains the depth of Gridman while having more overarching themes and ideas to focus on.

  some spoilers for SSSS.Gridman, as SSSS.Dynazenon is a distant sequel that's best experienced with the context of Gridman

  SSSS.Dynazenon is an impressive follow-up to 2018's SSSS.Gridman. It improves on all of the visual elements of its predecessor while having a far superior cast that gets explored with the level of precision rarely seen in 1-cour anime outside of Ping Pong: The Animation. With said rogues gallery, Dynazenon maintains the depth of Gridman while having more overarching themes and ideas to focus on.

  SSSS.Gridman was a piece of anti-escapist media. Its focus was on Akane Shinjou and her struggle to accept that she can't just callously play a malevolent god in this world she created for herself to escape her problems. Despite some unease and dissatisfaction with the show's worldbuilding, it manages to tell its message in fascinating and resonant ways thanks to director Akira Amemiya and his team. Unfortunately, while its focus is primarily on Akane and perhaps one or two others, the cast was largely pretty dry. Most of the main characters hardly had much to their personalities and weren't all that entertaining. Outside of one side character, the cast was really carried by its antagonists: Akane, Anti, and Alexis.

  This is where Dynazenon comes in. The main focus this time is on getting over your troubles and regrets in order to move on with a sense of purpose and direction in your life. It explores this through its entire main cast and some of its antagonists, as unlike Gridman, Dynazenon wishes to explore and develop its ensemble cast. Yomogi, Gauma, Yume, Koyomi, and Chise make up the initial Dynazenon crew, as well as the heart and soul of the show.

  Let's start with Yomogi, as his issues are the least important. This is not a slight against the character, but rather a statement of fact that he himself agrees with. He feels uneasy about his mom dating a new guy who could potentially become his step-father. Big whoop. Compared to everyone else, his problems are the most benign, and therefore, the easiest to get over when the show reaches its bonkers 10th episode storyboarded by Kai Ikarashi. In reality, his character is more centered around understanding the call of duty in comparison to the normal life he tried to lead, and his burgeoning and frankly charming relationship with Yume.

  Speaking of, Yume herself is probably the most interesting and resonant character of the lot. In stark contrast to Yomogi, Yume is probably the most damaged of our main leads. Due to the mysterious death of her estranged sister Kano, she found herself detached and standoffish for years. Since the death came after Kano invited Yume to her club's recital for the first time, she developed a habit of asking boys out and standing them up, breaking promises like the one that was robbed from her. After doing this to Yomogi and realizing that the two are now pilots of parts of Dynazenon, they eventually become closer. Yume takes the initiative to find out the truth behind her sister's death, and Yomogi joins her as their relationship deepens. Said relationship is deemed interesting by Kaiju Eugenicist, Shizumu, who finds people's dependence on each other limiting and sad, but nonetheless finds emotions beneficial as they are what fuel Kaiju.

  The reason the two come together in the first place is due to Gauma and the appearance of the 4 pieces of Dynazenon. Gauma is brash, passionate, principled, and in no way accustomed to modern day society thanks to his experiences breaking away from the Kaiju Eugenicists of yester...millenia. Regardless, he's arguably the most entertaining of the bunch, and his struggle to remember the final important thing his beloved mentioned, as well as his grapples with being unable to find her, are nonetheless compelling. His interactions with Yomogi tend to be pretty amusing and endearing after the latter saves him from starvation. Plus, his antics upon getting a part-time job are priceless. He's the one who chews out Yume for standing Yomogi up and breaking promises (important thing 1), and he finds himself relating somewhat to Koyomi, as the latter lives a rather pathetic life by his own feelings (thing 2).

  As for Koyomi, he's a 33-year-old NEET. The most important moment in his life was when he ran away from his crush in middle school after she proposed to run away with him. He was afraid to take life by the horns, and now he's a loser who has made nothing of himself with the girl he likes ends up coming back into his life with a husband she's on the rocks with. At best, he lives with his younger cousin, Chise, who doesn't go to school just as he doesn't go to work. He ends up being a foil to Mujina, who has no ambitions and hardly knows much about herself. Koyomi goes along with the Dynazenon cuz it gives him something to do, and Mujina goes along with the Kaiju Eugenicists' myriad of motivations including the destruction of humanity and a world where Kaijus are needed, for the same reason.

  To round out the main cast without spoilers, there's Chise: the middle-schooler who felt ignored by all her peers. She's also the odd one out in that she's the only member without a piece of the Dynazenon. Yomogi has Dyna Soldier, Yume has Dyna Wing, Gauma has Dyna Diver, and Koyomi has Dyna Striker. Qt best, Chise just tags along and gets a little bit of practice as a substitute, but between this and Koyomi's own subplot, she feels like she's second fiddle once again. She's also the only one without any Kaiju Eugenicist to serve as a foil. Yume and Yomogi have Shizumu, Koyomi has Mujina, and while the next comparison is more shallow, Gauma does have the soft-spoken, mild-mannered Juuga as well as the more brash and psychopathic buttmonkey, Onija. Chise has none of that. Her arc does come to a head around the same time as Yume's does, and Chise manages to lift the both of them up in a time of need. However, she does have the fewest connections out of anyone in her group.

  It's not often that a 1-cour series successfully juggles this many character arcs at once so naturally while having all of them constantly play off of and run alongside each other. Each member of the show’s ensemble cast is lively in their own way, and has a lot of powerful moments before climaxing in episode 10. Even the Kaiju Eugenicists have a lot of chemistry with one-another, especially when the shoe dedicates time to showing them just dicking around. It's where Mujina in particular, ends up shining the most, as the empty and often stoic girl becomes just as vibrant, fun-loving, and expressive as most of the cast.

  There's still a lot of fascinating and compelling specifics regarding Yume and Chise in particular left out for the sake of a spoiler-free review, and there was still a lot to unpack. To think, we didn't even get into the characters that make this show a distant sequel. There's also the two-part ending that details what happens after the bulk of the conflict is over and everyone is forced to move forward on their own terms based on their developments, or in the case of the Eugenicists, drift along due to the lack thereof over the course of the show. We shan't get into them here, but the two returjing characters add even more fun humor, character chemistry, and transformations into the show. The ending is certainly weird, but it's nonetheless a powerful conclusion.

  The audiovisuals are also an improvement from Gridman. There is still a lot of CG, and when it comes to debris, it can still look weird and choppy. However, the tokusatsu feel is captured much better this time, as the compositing and the new kaiju models are more appealing to look at. The show still retains the feel of the rubber suit kaijus in toku works, as well as the environment toppling over like cardboard. It's just that the team at Studio Trigger has refined this aspect of the franchise, leading to more dynamic and stylish fight scenes with less of the jank of Dyna's predecessor.

  The character designs are a lot more vibrant than the largely plain and uninteresting designs of Gridman's protagonists. Even the returning cast looks incredibly sharp compared to before. Additionally, while there are still some wonky, off-model shots characters have towards the middle of the show, they don't seem to surpass Gridman's iffy moments, either. There are several absolutely gorgeous shots in every episode, thanks to often beautiful art direction and Akira Amemiya and his team mastering sick wide-shots. Then, there's episode 10: a highlight among highlights. Kai Ikarashi's more jagged, stretchy style lends well to the extreme emotions and situations the characters find themselves in at the climax of their arcs. Here, the show sells a sense of desperation and impact like never before. The visual representation of TV screen static and cracks and Yomogi tries to help everyone deal with their issues, is difficult to describe. It really must be seen to be believed. Rarely is Dynazenon exactly a masterclass of visuals aside from its noteworthy presentation Akira Amemiya carried over from Gridman. However, episode 10 isn't just cool and interesting, it a highlight of the year!

  As for the music, the show does something interesting yet again. It does carry over Gridman's distinct lack of music in a lot of scenes where no one's fighting. However, the show ends up having a lot of insert tracks thst liven up the battle and exist diagetically as music bumped up by the titular Dynazenon. Most of the music is likable enough, though special mention must go to the bombastic orchestral transformation themes, as well as the OP and ED. "Imperfect" by Masayoshi Ooishi is an incredibly fun and lively OP theme, embodying a hopeful, youthful energy more so than Gridman's OP did. It also makes a satisfying transformation appearance in episode 1, as well as a gut-busting appearance in episode 2. Meanwhile, "Strobe Memory" is easily Maaya Uchida's best anisong for being a solid, peppy closer to every episode. Her singing is way better than in her Gridman ED, to boot.

  SSSS.Dynazenon takes everything that worked about Gridman, and just runs with them. There are some strange character beats here and there that at least make some sense. However, there aren't that many issues to be had aside from some strange pacing at points, a few of the Eugenicists not getting all that much focus, and perhaps some odd aspects of the Eugenicists' pasts which also get no real spotlight. Still, this show is even more ambitious and emotionally resonant than its predecessor, knocking its messages and the handling of its ensemble cast out of the park! There are several fun, little touches as well regarding the way the show carries itself. Concurrent conversations overlap and there's often this sense of quietness and awkwardness to the characters as they bumble about their lives in and out of battle. It's this mumble-core type feel that further cements the series' identity. It is best if you watch SSSS.Gridman before Dynazenon, but either way, this show is a must-see if you wanna experience what will surely be one of the best anime of 2021.

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• 

  lknkira

  80/100
  If you liked Gridman, you should definitely watch Dynazenon

  I really liked Gridman, so Dynazenon was already something I've been looking forward to since it was announced, plus the joy of expanding the SSSS franchise. And I will definitely follow future projects.

  

  The story follows a structure similar to that of Gridman, having the slice-of-life side and a fight with a Kaiju, in the classic style of Tokusatsus.

  As the synopsis says, the story begins when the main characters end up getting involved with Gauma in the fight against kaijus, basically because they are in the wrong place at the wrong time.

  Gauma, Yomogi, Yume, Koyomi and Chise don't have many things in common as they got together by chance, which makes it interesting how their relationship develops and creates a bond between them. As well as the development of the individual relationship between them, as well as their own personal development.

  

  I liked the villains too, since and many moments, we see scenes between them, which make you have a certain sympathy with them. We see that they and Gauma have a relationship, which is revealed later on.

  

  The fights are very well done, along with the score, I believe the battle formula at the end of the episode works well. Reminds me of when I was younger and watched I used to see Tokusatsu, and it brings me a certain nostalgia. Based on some comments I've seen discussions, I know some don't like this format, as it gets repetitive, but I believe it worked well in both Gridman and Dynazenon, maybe it's not the binge-watch anime, but it works great watching weekly.

  

  I don't want to summarize the series, but I need to comment on the story, especially about the growth of each one. For me, Yume was one of the ones that most caught my attention in this aspect, in relation to her sister, and how Dynazenon and the others managed to change her, and her journey to understand what happened to her sister. Especially the contrast created by the first impression we have of her when she calls Yomogi and doesn't appear towards the end of the anime, where we see the difference. And how Yomogi is willing to accompany Yume on her journey, and how he cares for her.

  

  Koyomi and Chise are also interesting cases, Koyomi being a 33-year-old NEET, gradually changing, overcoming the past and in the end we see him looking for a job trying to reintegrate into society, as well as Chise, who despite apparently not having returned. school seems to be better at it than at the beginning of the series.

  

  Dynazenon is a work that divides opinions (at least, among those I know), but if you liked Gridman, I recommend it. It may not be perfect, but without a doubt it has its value and is worth being seen.

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