After being won over by Shin Mazinger , I felt it was time to dig back a bit and see what else the Mazinger Z franchise had to offer. 2001-2002's Mazinkaiser is a 7 OVA (+ 1 "movie") continuation/spin off of the original Mazinger Z and its successor Great Mazinger. After Mazinger Z is defeated by Dr Hell and Baron Ashura's army of mechanical beasts, pilot Koji Kabuto stumbles upon a secret laboratory build by his grandfather, containing the most powerful robot ever built, the Mazinkaiser. All I can say is, after seeing this I fully realised how much Shin Mazinger brought to the franchise. The fight scenes in Mazinkaiser are pretty spectacular, particularly in the final 2 OVA's and the movie, but everything else is a massive step down in comparison. Despite there being a far smaller cast of characters in Mazinkaiser , characterisation is at its lowest. Personalities are paper thin and nobody really develops at all throughout the series. Koji is a hot head...

Mazinger Z is a piece of anime history. First airing in 1972, it was a pioneer in super robot and mecha series – the first ever to use mechas being piloted by humans. The series saw hero Koji Kabuto pilot the Mazinger Z robot battle the evil Dr Hell and his mechanical beast army. 2009 saw a reimagining of this landmark anime - Shin Mazinger Shougeki! Z Hen (or “True Mazinger Impact! Z Chapter”), that also incorporated many other of creator Go Nagai’s works – such as the manga spinoff Z Mazinger , Violent Jack and Mao Dante , among others. In the near future, a mineral known as "Japanium" is discovered under Mt. Fuji . This ore is discovered to produce a powerful energy source known as "Photon Energy". Dr. Juzo Kabuto and his associates have begun researching Photon Energy, planning to use it as a solution to the energy crisis plaguing the earth, when the nefarious Dr. Hell and his associate, Baron Ashura attack his lab. Along with this, the mysterious ...