Although Neon Genesis Evangelion was made as a deconstruction of the genre, it ended up becoming one of the codifiers for future series. So, what do we need to make a formulaic mecha series? (Originally written while TV Tropes was having trouble)1. A name for the series mecha.
2. A theme for mech naming. (I'm thinking I'll volunteer for this: My ACs are named after types of songs, with Aria being my main one.)
3. A mysterious waif and her mysterious origin. (Clone, robot, long lost possibly alien race, takin' all bets!)
4. Technobabble for why conventional military weapons are ineffective.
5. Some religious/artistic/cultural phenomenon from which to draw excessive symbolism.
6. Cause for the main character to have emotional troubles. Level of legitimate angst to wangst variable.
7. Disturbing imagery.
1 comment:
I say the mysterious waif should be the personification of Beethoven's Symphony No. 10. Somehow.
Let's drag in the Sapir-Worf hypothesis and totally mess it up for the technobabble: whatever the threat is, they require the mecha because they do not understand guns, to the point where they can only be affected by music.
My train of thought is leaning toward this being a combining mecha show, as the mecha coming together represents the unification of different musical elements to create a more powerful whole.
I'm thinking maybe the mecha could move towards representing a fusion of a variety of musical styles, while the enemies are... I dunno.
Sadly, I can't think of any angst motivation, and the only disturbing imagery that comes to mind at the moment is overlaying random scenes with seventies-era porn guitar riffs*.
I bet someone else has better ideas...
*I have not seen any seventies-era porn.
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