Thursday 8 April 2010

HEROMAN - Episode 2

HEROMAN's opening episode did a fast but solid job of introducing us to the world of Joey and his new inherited toy turned hero, as well as the romance angle and the barriers which stand in his way from a life of perfect bliss.

However, for a kid who has discovered that the broken toy he picked up is in fact a hugely powerful robot being, Joey doesn't really seemed too thrilled about the whole thing - Indeed, despite his saving Lina from her car accident, he seems positively scared to distraction by the power which has dropped into his lap. So, what's he going to do with the incredibly technology and power at his disposal? Such is the dilemma that eats away at our protagonist early in this episode.


Needless to say, Joey's hand is soon forced, as Professor Denton's message into space in the search for extra-terrestrial life reaps unimaginable rewards.... unimaginably terrifying that is. So, the alien race as the Skrugg set foot upon Earth to wreak havoc and destroy the planet, although not before they find out where the signal that drew them there originated from so that they can prove its source for information. It's here that Joey has no choice but to swing into action and employ Heroman as his last, nay only, line of defence.

As per that first episode of this new series, HEROMAN continues to hold what can only be described as a Saturday morning cartoon feel in terms of both plot and delivery, whether it's the aliens who have come to destroy the planet seemingly for no particular reason or Joey's place as the reluctant hero of the day. That said, the animation is reasonably polished, the soundtrack is excellent, and I had the sudden realisation that I was grinning like an idiot as Heroman was unleashed upon the suspecting aliens. I suspect that this was the same grin I wore as a kid when Optimus Prime arrived to do battle with Megatron, and I equally suspect that this is exactly the kind of reaction which HEROMAN is trying to evoke as some kind of old-school action show. If that is the case, then mission accomplished on this occasion.

7 comments:

Shinmaru said...

My favorite part is when the cockroach alien changes to a more dramatic voice when announcing that he and his fellow aliens will destroy the planet. Hilarious. He doesn't know the language, but he is a gifted public speaker!

Topspin said...

This show's really tuned for maximum genericess, isn't it? I mean, I like watching every superhero/mecha show cliche condensed into it's more boring essence as much as the next guy, but...

JW said...

Admit it, Topspin, it's fun. It's nothing but fun.

There's no angst, no message. It's good, old-fashioned, "Mommy please buy me a Heroman for Christmas!" fun! It's completely devoid of anything besides beat-the-bad-guy and it doesn't try to fool us into thinking that its any more than what it is (Yu-Gi-Oh, I'm looking at you).

I really enjoy the OP as well as the End credits. Seeing the penguin get beaned with the baseball makes me laugh.

Topspin said...

@JW: Gurran Lagann and Giant Robo were FUN. This is just.. boring. I guess I am just harder to please than I was when I was 10? Or I'm just a jaded jerkass with delusions that my opinion matters :)

Hanners said...

I do worry that this show will soon lose its appeal if it carries on just trying to go down the mindless fun route - I think there's only so much of that you can take before you want something a little deeper, or at least different.

Robert said...

You know, I wish my Saturday Morning Cartoons were this large-scale and well-presented back when I was little. Stodgy insipid clunkers like "Gadget Boy" always seemed to be on repeat whenever I was watching...

JW said...

Hmm... were you before the comicbooks animations? X-men, Batman the Animated Series (BAS for short), and Spiderman were really good offerings.

Frankly, I have a hard time thinking of any that top them. Slice of life tales like "Doug" was another of my favorites. If I go farther back in time (though not as good) the original Ninja Turtles.

I don't remember Gadget Boy, so I probably grew out of television by the time that one aired.