Who are some of the most important characters, creators and artists in super-robot history in your opinion?
Well, you gotta start at the beginning: The robot from Fritz Lang's silent film "Metropolis," the inspiration for many robots to come, and the basis for C-3PO.
Well, for starters you have Mitsuteru Yokoyama who created Tetsujin-28 the first controlled giant robot, Go Nagai who defined the Super Robot genre with Mazinger Z, you have Ken Ishikawa who started the Combining Mecha, Yoshiyuki Tomino the creator of Gundam and the Real Robot genre and Hideaki Anno who created Neon Genesis Evangelion the series that deconstructed the mecha genre at its time.
hmmmm, would you call that a SUPER-robot though? I would just call it a robot? It's certainly a significant film, but I don't though that it fits. If you think it does, please explain how? I mean I would not put the replicants from blade runner in here for example. Good film, cool story, but not a super-robot. I'm open to all suggestions, but for me a super-robot has to do something above and beyond the garden variety robot, android, cyborg or A.I. In the same sense that you have regular heroes (lets say a soldier or cop, or someone who does something brave or heroic etc) and then you have superheroes e.g. Superman, who are clearly much different. As for whatserface from Metropolis, they also pinched her look and legs for Robocop. EDIT: FYI - I have not got around to watching Metropolis yet, so if you feel it does qualify as a super-robot then please add something in, otherwise I'll include that film in my more general robot article instead.
Definitely Astro Boy and Gigantor should be included. But I'm gonna go a little more contemporary with GoLion, Daizyuzin (aka Voltron and the Megazord) and the RX-78-2 Gundam.
Are GoLion and Daizyujin that influential? In the west maybe, but in Japan? From my knowledge GoLion and Zyurangers weren't that much popular in Japan, especially GoLion who was lost among the countless Mecha anime at the time.
First of all, who said they had to only be influential in Japan? Voltron and the original Megazord are huge part of 80's and 90's pop culture in the West and that has to count for something. Also Zyurangers kicked off more than a dozen of installments. So how is that not influential? It started a whole franchise that has lasted decades. So you're saying that they were that popular but has lasted for 23 yrs. That's like saying The Simpsons or South Park hasn't been popular. As for GoLion, who also currently has a modern reinvention on Netflix, it still has toys including two very high end toys coming out more than 30 yrs after the show wrapped up production.
Bender Bending Rodriguez. That robot is the jack of all trades. He can be a still, a cannon, an oven, a hot water heater, a bending robot, a friend, a lover, an enemy, etc...
I don't care to measure exactly how influential anything, if it's significant in ANY way, in ANY country, I want to hear about it. I'm writing about Super-Robots right now, but I'm also going to do a follow up / sister article on the general history of robots - but it's such a broad topic, id rather start with super robots and branch out from there. To even START with a history or robots whether real world or fiction, you've got to go back to the 1800s, and I don't have the time nor inclination to do that all now. Too many other projects / plates spinning. So this article will be specifically super-robots, while that is mainly japan stuff, there are super robots in other media in other countries, including mainstream american cartoons and comic books etc, it's not like they are exclusive to japan, but the term mainly refers to that sort of thing. I don't know if I would include terminator or robocop (well robo is a cyborg) but they almost qualify for being damn near indestructible, while the more common robots are not known for their fighting abilities eg C-3PO, R2 etc. Then again R2 might almost qualify seeing as he has quite a few abilities that are above the ordinary for other droids from his class, even thought he was technically obsolete in his fiction. Voltron is a player all right, can't leave him out. Popular in east and west for sure. And I will be doing a sub section on the diff types of super-robots in including modular and combining super-robots.
Michael Bay's Transformers has to make the list, distinct from the rest of TFs. Ever since his first TF movie debuted in 2007, the hyper detailed look of the robots and sound design has been mimicked by countless other movies (whether they had robots or just high tech machinery).
How about Terry Nation and Gerry Anderson? Terry Nation was responsible for the creation of the Daleks (and their leader, Davros), easily one of the most famous robots in modern history. Gerry Anderson created Thunderbirds, a very influential, puppet-based series that picked up speed in Japan for its super robot/Sentai similarities.
Hmmm. Tricky one there. I like all that stuff (a friend is mad keen for those guys and their work, a big Who and Thunderbirds fan) But for the daleks, they are aliens / mutants housed safely inside a manufactured metal vehicle / body - not unlike what you would call a mech suit for a human. As they are organic beings that resemble a brain with tentacles and an eye, I don't consider them robots. however their galaxy conquering metal bodies / life support system could make a case for them as cyborgs, but that seems to be more Cybermen territory, as far Who-stuff goes anyhow. I guess if you had a dalek exo-suit / body without the alien inside it, add in an A.I or V.I. and that could be a robot, or at least a remote controlled drone.
Then what about Kit Peddler and Gerry Davis or Bob Baker? Kit and Gerry created the Cybermen, Bob created K-9. And what of Gerry Anderson?
Speaking of Gerry Anderson, one of his best creations, Space 1999, had an episode with a homicidal robot named "Brian the Brain"...
I don't know...........what about them? If you have something to say, then please do. I'm starting to think that nobody actually read the title or first post in this thread???? If you think something is a SUPER-ROBOT, then please explain HOW you think it fits. I respect the work of Gerry Anderson, but know nothing about him. My friend is nuts about his stuff, and been into it for like, most of his life I guess. I respect you feel passionate about it, but as I know like nothing about them, can you explain how they are relevant to the topic please?
First let's address Super Robots vs Real Robots. Super Robots have abilities that are fantastic and far outside the realm of real world possibilities. They might literally be gods in mechanical form. Real robots are treated as military hardware. Frequently, they are assembly line mecha piloted by skilled but not one-of-a-kind soldiers. A great example would be Voltron (GoLion) vs Robotech (Macross saga/SDF Macross specifically). Voltron is one of a kind, has abilities never explained beyond "it's magic" and can't be piloted by just anyone. The Valkyries (or Veritechs) of Macross are mass produced, have no special powers unexplained by good engineering (ignore Robotech's goofy Protoculture things for now), and though the story follows certain talented pilots, plenty of cannon fodder pilots buy the farm. I feel confident that OP is aware of this, but if not there it is. SHINOBI03's list is absolutely great. I would add Shoji Kawamori's name to it. Kawamori is an absolutely legendary designer, best known for the many Macross series, but who also designed for Vision of Escaflowne and Aquarion. He also worked on Diaclone. I would also add the Yuusha and Eldran series. In my opinion, Gaogaigar is one of the best Super Robot series produced in the last 30 years. Add Gurren Lagann, for being even more over the top hot blooded than Gaogaigar. TV Tropes's page on the Super Robot genre is fairly exhaustive, if you need more. I highly recommend checking out Gaogaigar and Gurren Lagann.
