Opening Songs
OP 1 - Insight (White Ash)
Ending Songs
ED 1 - 6 Billion Wings (Angry Frog Rebirth)
Genre: Action, Science Fiction
Episodes: 13
"Gatchaman Crowds" is something that I never did expect to enjoy, even back then when I watched it a long time ago. Now, with the sequel, "Gatchaman Crowds Insight", you'd expect that they wouldn't deviate from the formula, and would do more of the same. If that was what you thought, you'd be....so extremely wrong. Despite being a sequel, "Gatchaman Crowds Insight" is mostly different from the original, introducing a plot and setting that's pretty much completely new territory for both newcomers and those who watched the original. This changes a lot of things, it now becomes slightly more difficult to give everyone that "Must Watch If You Are A Fan" recommendation that I would mostly slap on sequels, because "Insight" is pretty much nothing like the original. While there are many who like it, some don't and I'm a bit on the fence here. Here's my 2 cents on "Gatchaman Crowds Insight"...which is, admittedly, a nice name for a sequel.
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| Hajime and crew are back with new faces! |
I always did enjoy "Crowds", which was the opening in season 1, and I was delighted to discover that White Ash returned to sing the opening for season 2, which is "Insight". Obviously, "Insight" is a great song that's incredibly catchy, intense, and rock-inducing, its an amazing opening theme for a show like "Gatchaman Crowds Insight". The ending theme is "6 Billion Wings" by Angry Frog Rebirth, which is also a pretty good song, good enough IMO to be an opening theme, even though it IS outshined by "Insight". Sounds like something that would go well as a "Naruto"/"Bleach" opening theme.
Rating: 7.5/10
"Insight" is very different from the original "Gatchaman Crowds" in a way that's quite unexpected. There's no villain, its as simple as that. Without something, a common enemy, to take down that lasts throughout the show, the focus shifts heavily away from the cool "Kamen Rider Hipsters That Kill Aliens". There IS some sort a minor villain that's present throughout the early episodes, but as the anime progresses, it's really not much of an action anime, and the show's tone shifts into a lot more of a..."intelligent one". Instead of a show about good guys versus bad guys, it quickly ramps up into questions about morality and the fragility of human nature, which is honestly some pretty deep shit. However, with so much dumped onto that one single theme, the entire show is pretty focused on it, and there isn't much left for out heroes to actually "fight". In terms of the action, "Insight" is solely lacking, but it provides a lot more food for thought, which is also good. New characters are very well interpreted, with the old characters playing more of a supportive role this time around, giving more room for these new characters to grow, which works pretty well.
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| Ge-rururururu~~ |
With the Gatchamen basically becoming saviors after dealing with the threat known as Berge Katze, they become a fully recognized hero unit within Japan and are living their lives as celebrities. Sugune is even more popular with the girls, O.D is a regular guest that appears on one of the most popular reality shows in Japan, Pai-Man gets all the kids, and Hajime has more fans. The story focuses on newcomer Tsubasa, who was the next one to be forseen to become a Gatchaman by JJ. Tsubasa is a regular country bumpkin living with her parents and grandfather, who is a genius firework maker. One day, an unknown alien known as Gel-Sadra appears in Tsubasa's homeland, who appears to be friendly. With the press and Gatchamen appearing, Tsubasa awakens to her notebook, and transform into a brand new Gatchaman. She moves into Tokyo and into the Gatchaman base along with Gel-Sadra, where her new life begins.
"Gatchaman Crowds Insight" is a brand new swing when it comes to comparing it to its predecessor. Still, its a good show on its own, though admittedly, its not as fun as when it was simply just "Gatchaman Crowds". One can only wonder where the series will go from here, because at the moment, its so hard to say.
