Armored Trooper VOTOMS
| Armored Trooper VOTOMS | |
|---|---|
| Director | Ryosuke Takahashi |
| Format | Anime (TV) |
| Made By | Sunrise |
| Episode Length | 25 Minutes |
| # of Episodes | 52 |
Contents
Genre
Sum it up in a Sentence
A soldier betrayed by his superiors fights endlessly across the universe in search of peace.
Main Description
The Hundred Years War between the Gilgamesh and Balarant has come to an end. Former Gilgamesh special forces trooper Chirico Cuvie unwittingly finds himself at the center of a conspiracy. Sent on a mission against friendly forces, Chirico accidentally discovers a mysterious young woman in a capsule. He is soon betrayed by his teammates before being captured and tortured by his former allies. After a daring escape, Chirico fights to discover the truth behind that mission and unravel the mystery of the woman in the capsule.
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Other Sci-Fi Mecha Series/Franchises
VOTOMS OVA
- Armored Trooper VOTOMS: Roots of Ambition
- Armored Trooper VOTOMS: The Last Red Shoulder
- Armored Trooper VOTOMS: Big Battle
- Armored Trooper VOTOMS: Shining Heresy
- Armored Trooper VOTOMS: Pailsen Files
- Armored Trooper VOTOMS: Phantom Arc
- Armor Hunter Mellowlink
Personal Opinions
GojiraYoda
Armored Trooper VOTOMS is one of those classic early real-robot series in the vein of the original Gundam or Macross. After the success of Fang of the Sun Dougram, director Ryosuke Takahashi went on to create another "hard" science fiction mecha series. The series's main draw are the AT's themselves. Small, cheap, mass-produced robots dominate this series. No fancy beam weapons, no super armor, no transformation gimmicks, these mechs are as down-to-earth, utilitarian, and expendable as possible. The main character himself goes through literally dozens of the series's main AT, the Scopedog, which really sets this series apart from the others.
The other draw is the action. When I think of VOTOMS, I think fighting. Gunfights, mecha fights, and everything from small-scale skirmishes to full-scale battles are featured in the series. It's not all about robots and fighting, though. As the series progresses, I found myself sucked in, following Chirico as he tries to understand his place in this hostile universe. Is a soldier always a soldier, and someone who can never find peace? Why is he the center of all of this attention? How is it that time and again he can survive even the deadliest of circumstances?
Classic is the best word I can use to describe this series. It's a must-see for any mecha or sci-fi fan.
jonjonaug
What makes VOTOMS really interesting to me is how it handles war. Chirico is a robot anime super solider. He can take out squadrons of grunts with ease, enemies seem to forget how to aim in his presence, he's hyper competent at everything related to combat, and he survives some really ridiculous situations while going through Scopedogs at an utterly absurd rate. Despite all this, the series still manages to highlight some of the horrors of war. It has an entire arc that is basically space Vietnam, Chirico shows symptoms of suffering from PTSD on occasion, and the effects of a long interplanetary war can be seen in almost every episode. VOTOMS manages to strike a perfect balance that very few shows manage to do, where you can enjoy it as a fun action series and as a war drama at the same time without anything feeling out of place or awkward.
Dj Meow Mix
VOTOMS is one hell of a show for real robot fans, undoubtedly a classic. Chirico is much like Kenshiro in a robot, although he certainly doesn't care about morality as much. Unlike pretty much every robot show in existence, there are only a couple of unique suits, and Chirico does not possess one of his own. He burns through Scopedogs (the mascot suit) like paper. The anime's pacing is actually quite excellent, and displays his growth as a character over time quite nicely, although he continues to kick lots and lots of ass all throughout. However, I must note that while the show is enjoyable overall and the characters are memorable, I found that the romance subplot was rather dull. The final episodes may also throw you off a bit, but don't be discouraged, it is still a great watch. This show shines at its greatest when it portrays war and conflict, which is proceeds to do from start to finish.
Zorak
Votoms owns bones. Definitely one of my favorite "realistic mecha" series (and it's probably THE most realistic take of mecha-as-weapons-of-war). It is also, very surprisingly and perhaps very subtly, a very "classical" style science fiction story. You will see what I mean in time. But DO NOT SEE THE SEQUELS JUST DO NOT, LET IT END WITH THE LAST EPISODE FULLSTOP.
