Every now and then, we get a good couple of years where classic super robot properties get modern treatment. In the late 2000s, we got Kotetsushin Jeeg and Reideen, then around five or so years ago, we got Mazinger Z: Infinity, then we got the anime adaptation of Getter Robo Arc in 2021. We even saw a crowdsourcing campaign for a live action Getter Robo movie a couple of months ago. And so, the latest super robot property to get a modern adaptation and/or reboot has been announced — Grendizer U.
Grendizer U is slated to premiere in 2024 and is based on the classic UFO Robot Grendizer which became popular, not only in Japan, but in Europe and the Middle East. The original follows Mazinger Z and Great Mazinger and you’ll see later some similar connecting threads.
Taking the director’s chair is Mitsuo Fukuda who of course helmed works such as Future GPX Cyber Formula, and both Gundam SEED/SEED DESTINY. He’s currently promoting Mobile Suit Gundam SEED FREEDOM so he’s quite the busy guy. Writing the script is Ichiro Okochi who just came from Mobile Suit Gundam the Witch from Mercury and also did Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion. Yoshiyuki Sadamoto (Neon Genesis Evangelion) will provide the character designs which you’ll see below.
Only two characters are currently revealed. On the left is our main protagonist and pilot of Grendizer, Duke Fleed. On the right is Koji Kabuto, yes, that Koji Kabuto whose bio describes him as the grandson of Dr. Juzo Kabuto, a leading scientist in photon energy research. In the original series, Koji meets Duke following the former’s retirement from piloting Mazinger Z. It will be interesting how they present his previous exploits given that this series appears to be a standalone entry in this reimagining.
We also got a look at the new Grendizer, which looks more or less the same as the original, save for some added details. The updated design skews away from the hyper-detailed “Infinitism” aesthetic but still looks modern to serve this adaptation. We also don’t see the Spazer, though they might be saving it for a later reveal, or they’ve just decided to ditch it if it doesn’t serve the story, we’ll see.
In any case, I’m interested, especially in Ichiro Okochi writing the script. I just hope Mitsuo Fukuda doesn’t crank the recycled animation on this series up to eleven like those in Gundam SEED. Check out the teaser video they released following the announcement below.
