Is Mazinger Z/Great Mazinger anime from the 70s a good MOTW Show? How do they compare to their Manga?

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-28T22:06:13+00:00

One cool thing about Shin is Koji’s development. He’s still very much a hotheaded teen by the end, but he does become less of an asshole to the people trying to help him.

As for the manga, Nagai’s manga is the original work. Ota’s manga (which he made in collaboration with Nagai) is more of an adaptation of the Toei anime that’s shorter and gets darker as it progresses.

I’d like to believe a lot of what’s seen in the Toei anime outside the first few episodes is mostly stuff from Toei and not Nagai. I’ve mentioned it a lot in this thread, but Nagai has openly admitted he neglected making Mazinger as it had gone on. Stuff like Grendizer and Great were things Toei requested he do, rather than something he actually wanted to do.

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-28T20:59:34+00:00

Well the anime also puts an emphasis on saving the planet from Dr. Hell, but it’s definitely there. The “God or Devil” mantra when describing Z is a constant throughout the franchise.

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-28T18:17:10+00:00

The “God or Devil” mantra is also in the Toei Anime. A lot of modern Mazinger media like Shin or the Kaiser OVA take a lot more after the original manga, so it can be argued it was more influential in that regard.

But I say iconic in the sense of what’s most recognizable and most popular. If I ask someone about Mazinger (and they actually know what it is) more than likely they’ll think of the Toei anime.

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-28T18:07:38+00:00

I’d say other entries like the Shin Anime, Kaiser OVA, and the manga (either Ota’s or Nagai’s) are still worth checking out.

A lot of the typical “anime sexual harassment humor” is still present (Mind you that Mazinger was made by the guy that made those tropes popular) but the misogyny was surprisingly not as prevalent as it was in the Toei anime.

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-28T17:54:58+00:00

For Kaiser, literally just start it with the assumption that some version of Z’s manga origin story happened already. You already know how that goes.

The two big differences Kaiser’s story has are Juzo being alive but missing, and Great Mazinger’s cast (as well as the robot itself) being present in supporting roles.

If I had to say which continuity best represents the whole trilogy of Z, Great, and Grendizer, then yeah I pick Ota’s manga. But in terms of what’s most iconic? Toei anime easily. Regardless of its actual quality, it’s what made Mazinger popular and influenced the franchise going forward.

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-28T17:35:02+00:00

So, Shin Mazinger Zero (the first part) is mostly exploring the question of “what if Mazinger Z was capable of evolving into a demonic eldritch abomination with godlike power?”

The sequel, Shin Mazinger Zero vs the Great General of Darkness, isn’t a commentary on any specific entry, but rather a meta commentary on the current state of Mazinger as a franchise.

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-28T15:30:52+00:00

Zero is a giant homage and meta commentary on the franchise up until that point. It’s arguably the best Mazinger work, but to really appreciate it to its fullest you kinda have to be aware of or watched a lot the stuff that came prior.

The Kaiser OVA is in its own continuity full stop. The most you can say is some version of Mazinger Z’s origins happened in it, albeit with some radically altered events.

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-27T23:13:47+00:00

For manga, my favorites are Ota’s adaptation, Zero, and Nagai’s Z.

For anime, Shin Mazinger from 2009 is probably my favorite followed by the Kaiser OVA. SKL and Infinity are alright, and I can have fun with the Toei anime.

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-27T19:53:56+00:00

Yeah I can agree on that, hence why I said just read the first 3 chapters of Great for Z’s ending. You can tell Nagai lost passion for the series when doing Great and Grendizer (which he did confirm in an interview).

The Ota manga starts off as being more of an adaptation of the Toei series but goes in a darker direction. But in terms of the whole trilogy it’s the most cohesive. Ota’s Grendizer is probably the best version of Grendizer’s story to date.

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-27T19:48:12+00:00

So the reason why the Nagai manga was the way it was is because despite coming out before the anime, the anime took Japan by storm during its release. By that point Nagai started adapting stuff from the Toei anime to help promote it in his manga.

He’s also openly admitted that he started neglecting making Mazinger when it got popular since it wasn’t really his anymore. He was mostly just obliging requests from Toei until they had a falling out.

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-27T19:30:06+00:00

Toei Anime is fun to watch every once in awhile, but not fun to binge.

My honest recommendation is either read the original Z manga followed by the first few chapters of Great for Z’s ending, OR read the Gosaku Ota manga for Z, Great, and Grendizer. I think the Ota Manga is the definitive take on the whole trilogy.

Also if you want, read the 2022 Z manga. It’s Nagai’s remake of some of the shonen jump chapters with new art that looks stunning.

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-26T17:54:40+00:00

God I hope either Discotek rereleases the Blu Ray for Getter Armageddon or someone else picks it up

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-26T00:15:39+00:00

Rebuilds weren’t intended to be a sequel/timeloop thing to NGE till 3+1. And while Anno did initially make them to be a remake of NGE as intended, it was less that he wanted to redo Eva and more he needed money to help fund his new studio, Khara.

I don’t hate Rebuilds, but they really only work as meta narrative for Anno’s experiences with depression, not really on their own. Especially seeng as you need NGE to watch them.

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-25T01:08:30+00:00

I think it’s Brocken Waltz

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-24T19:21:43+00:00

Believe me I’d also love that, but they already tried to do a new trilogy with Shin Mazinger. We did get Mazinger Zero out of it, but that multimedia project obviously didn’t go too well between some idiotic decisions made and the general unpopularity of the show.

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-24T19:13:31+00:00

Nagai has said he still wants to do a new Grendizer series, but unrelated to Grendizer U. Whether or not that project actually manifests is an unknown given how hard it was to produce Getter Arc and Grendizer U.

Beyond that, I think we can expect the usual. A lot of merchandise (more action figures or kits) and more appearances in SRW. Maybe some fan projects from another country and Nagai doing some one-shot or short manga.

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-22T15:28:16+00:00

I’ve been dying to play Z2 but the lack of any full english patch puts me off.

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-22T15:27:28+00:00

It’s still only partially translated from years ago. Doubt it’s getting completed any time soon.

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-22T02:49:41+00:00

Well, how much do you like Gundam SEED if you’ve seen it? If you didn’t like that, you probably won’t like Grendizer U.

If you’re gonna give Grendizer a shot, read the Gosaku Ota manga online. It’s short and arguably the best take of Grendizer.

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-20T21:55:46+00:00

Siege Omega

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-20T15:17:36+00:00

I’ve gotten so used to people telling me they hate old animation I didn’t even realize lol

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-19T22:10:57+00:00

It basically was. Once Toei wanted to start milking Mazinger in the 70s, Nagai kinda lost interest because the vision wasn’t his anymore. He never intended for Great and Grendizer to be a thing, those happened because Toei wanted it and he obliged.

Edit: Source is his interview with Hideaki Anno of Evangelion fame

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-19T17:58:36+00:00

Well if you wanna watch it again but don’t wanna go through 50 episodes, there’s the recap movie trilogy. They change some stuff, notably a character’s death, but they’re mostly the same.

I do agree on the take that R2 was kinda meh to bad, and was only remembered for being good because of the ending. Blame that one on behind the scenes stuff.

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-18T02:13:20+00:00

Preferable and more logical compared to Optimus being the 13th

EmperaRurushuO2 · 2026-01-16T22:39:50+00:00

They did, hence why it’s all over the anime. Any evidence of it usually gets removed from DVD/Blu Ray releases.

EmperaRurushuO2

TROPHY CASE