Meha ( Japanese メ カ meka , from the English mechanism - “ mechanism ”) is a subgenre in anime [1] , manga [2] and in science fiction , the main attribute of which are huge fighting human-like machines, walkers , as well as the general name of these machines . They can be either independent self-governing combat units or manned robots . [3] The name comes from the Japanese slang abbreviation for the English word “mechanical” ( メ カ meka ) [4] .
Content
- 1 History of the genre
- 2 See also
- 3 notes
- 4 References
History of the genre
For the first time, a giant humanoid robot appeared in the manga of 1958 , and in 1963 in the anime series , “ Tetsujin 28-go ” (literally “Iron Man No. 28”), which became the founder of this anime genre. This genre reached its greatest development in the 1970s under the direction of Guo Nagai, a comic book artist who created the plots for some series from such classic Japanese animes as “ Mazinger Z ” (1972), “ Getter Robo ” (1974), “ Gender ” ( 1975), Combattler Wee (1976) [4] . Starting with the anime Mazinger Z , the main feature of the genre has been formed - a giant humanoid robot piloted by a person inside [5] .
In the fur series of the mid-70s, there is a steady pattern in the plot with minor deviations: an alien civilization attacks the Earth, which intends to destroy / enslave people. An outstanding professor invents super-robots and puts a teenage pilot / group for him, who, as the main character (or a group), fights with enemies. In one case, the main character is the son / grandson of the professor, in the other case, the professor has a daughter / granddaughter who faithfully follows the main character and develops a close (love) relationship to him. However, in some series there are deviations in the plot regularities, for example, with the series Steel Jeeg (1975-1976), the protagonist is already an adult, or in Goliath (1976) the girl becomes the main character-pilot. The designs of giant robots were usually attributed to alien or ancient civilizations [6] .
In the early fur series of the 70s, there was a clear line between evil and good. Enemies (aliens or less often monsters) seemed to be monsters with purely antagonistic qualities or completely devoid of reason. And the main character is waging a fierce struggle against them, sooner or later winning a victory. In the late series of the 70s, which were already created for an adult audience, the plot begins to become more complicated, and more attention is paid to enemies (aliens) giving them more cultural or even human qualities, the concept of good and evil is gradually erased, especially in the series: Chou Denji Machine Voltes V (1977) and Tousho Daimos (1979) in which the plot makes a significant reliance on politics, and the true antagonistic roles are reduced to individual sabotage characters, who became the main cause of the conflict. For the first time in the Gordian Warrior series, a post-apocalyptic concept appears, which shows the Earth world, almost destroyed by an alien civilization earlier, the Uchu Senshi Baldios (1980) series takes an even more radical approach: here “evil triumphs good”: aliens triumph, arranging a global catastrophe on Earth .
The anime series “ Gundam ”, released in 1979, introduced elements of realism into the genre, and further the fur was divided into two subgenres: “super robots ” and “realistic robots” [4] . The genre of “real robots” began to consider giant mechanisms rather as just machines (in particular, designers began to attribute pseudo-realistic technical characteristics to furs) and focuses on the thoughts and feelings of people (such as in the anime Full Metal Panic ). One of the main differences between Gundam and similar animated series was that the robots from this anime were not unique combat units, but were mass-produced. Robots were controlled by hand wheels, buttons, and pedals, while in previous mech series, robots were controlled using conditional shouts [7] .
Fur series in the 80s are already intended for a more adult audience and the concept of a unique super-robot and a teenager piloting it is fading into the background. The plot of the fur series is mostly associated with an uncertain future, where the level of human technology reaches a sufficient level to produce serial fur robots for military purposes. Moreover, in the future, mankind goes beyond space and populates other planets, in most cases in such colonies there are tendencies towards dystopia . The main character, a young man, as a rule, has hard experience in a past life. He is a kind of social outcast and does not have a permanent place of residence, constantly traveling. Soon new allies gather around him, who ultimately form a kind of faction to fight against enemy forces. The main character receives fur-robots by chance, finding him, as a rule, abandoned. In another situation, the main character can enter a certain military alliance, working as a policeman / patrol, in which case he also gets his mech-robot.
In turn, “super robots” with the advent of the anime “ Evangelion ” in 1995 also successfully evolved from a variation of kaiju to a separate independent genre. Robots in this series combine both biological tissues and mechanical parts [8] . Emphasis also shifted to the characters, but the mechs began to be woven into the plot more carefully, acquiring special fantastic or mystical properties and becoming a variant of the character- robots, often demonstrating the ability to act independently on a more or less limited scale.
See also
- Battle robot
- Evangelion (robot)
- Walker
- Exoskeleton
- Force of arms
- Fur (armored vehicles)
- Fur simulator
- Shogo: Mobile Armor Division
- Xenogears
Notes
- ↑ Types and genres of anime (inaccessible link - history ) . Date of treatment January 28, 2011.
- ↑ Manga - Glossary . manga.ru. Date of treatment February 8, 2011.
- ↑ Thompson J. Manga: The Complete Guide . - New York: Del Rey Books , 2007 .-- P. 499. - 556 p. - ISBN 978-0-345-48590-8 .
- ↑ 1 2 3 History of giant robots: On violation of the laws of robotics . Date of treatment January 28, 2011.
- ↑ Bolton, Christopher. The Mecha's Blind Spot: "Patlabor 2" and the Phenomenology of Anime (Eng.) // Science Fiction Studies: Journal. - 2002. - Vol. 29 , no. 3 . - P. 453–474 .
- ↑ Ivanov B.A. Introduction to Japanese animation. - 2nd ed. - M .: Cinema Development Fund; ROF "Eisenstein Center for Film Culture Research", 2001. - P. 72. - 396 p. - ISBN ISBN 5-901631-01-3 .
- ↑ Ivanov B.A. Introduction to Japanese animation. - 2nd ed. - M .: Cinema Development Fund; ROF "Eisenstein Center for Film Culture Research", 2001. - P. 75-76. - 396 p. - ISBN ISBN 5-901631-01-3 .
- ↑ Gilson, Mark. A Brief History of Japanese Robophilia (English) // Leonardo: Journal. - The MIT Press , 1998. - Vol. 31 , no. 5 . - P. 367-369 .