Real Robot (リアルロボット Riaru Robotto) is a genre of Japanese animation.[1][2][3] The genre contains mecha robots that are powered by conventional power sources and weapons explainable by real world science, and that use ranged weapons (especially guns and cannons) and speed to survive battle situations.[2]
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Mobile Suit Gundam (1979) is largely considered the first series to introduce the real robot idea and, along with The Super Dimension Fortress Macross (1982), would form the basis of what later people call real robot anime.[4] In an interview of Yoshiyuki Tomino and other production crew members in the April 1989 issue of Newtype, about his views on the first Gundam anime that is not directed by him, he commented on realism of the show, in which he sees the sponsors, Sunrise as imaginary enemies of Gundam, since they do not accept certain level of realism.[5] Armored Trooper Votoms is viewed by Famitsu magazine as the peak of real robot anime.[6]
The word could also be used to mean real world working robots per definition of Nikkei Business Publication.[7]
They established the concepts behind "real robots" that set it apart from previous robot anime, such as:
Gundam series now still refer to itself as a real robot series.[9][10] It is normally referred to as the first real robot anime, it turned away from the traditional just heroes beating evil villains simple story and creates an independent background world as well as science research, and builds a world where adults can enjoy in exploring.[11]
Other series, such as Patlabor, explore non-military uses for real robots, like law enforcement and construction, although military use robots also exist in the series.
Japanese examples include Macross, Genesis Climber Mospeada, Armored Trooper VOTOMS, Nadesico, Southern Cross, Full Metal Panic, the Patlabor movies, and of course the aforementioned Gundam series.
Inevitably, there are some types of mecha that are difficult to classify as either a real robot or a super robot. Some of these include the Aura Battlers from Aura Battler Dunbine or the Evangelion units from Neon Genesis Evangelion, which follow the general motif of real robots, but their origin and abilities are more like the typical super robot. The Mortar Headds from Five Star Stories are unique artifacts, treated like individual works of art by the fictional society present in the story, and their power often borderlines on super robot. However, their intricate engineering and the motif of their weaponry is often scientifically explained by series creator Mamoru Nagano which makes them very real robot-esque in other ways.
As this mixing of both genres is becoming increasingly popular in anime, it is often difficult to classify mecha as either real or super, although they often tend to lean more in one direction than the other. Even Gundam shows this tendency; while the mecha designs are based in the real robot genre, the characters in the show typically have unique robots designed specifically for them, and the shows often feature characters with psychic powers or superhuman abilities; the latter are both common in super robot anime, though the degree to which Gundam leans to either side of the spectrum varies considerably between installments.
The word Real Robot is normally linked to the Super Robot Wars game, the term might have been used occasionally in separate anime, yet it is first used as a general term in the famicom, 4th Super Robot Wars, which is used to describe robots or mecha that are treated as realistic tools/weapons rather than as heroic semi-characters, or Super Robots. The user can choose at the beginning of the game which genre the player character is, and the story would alter accordingly to let different anime genre robots to join the team.[12]
The founder of the genre was Yoshiyuki Tomino, who was the director of the original Gundam series, Mobile Suit Gundam, and its sequels Zeta Gundam, Gundam ZZ and Char's Counterattack.
Another one of the most famous producers of real robot anime is Ryosuke Takahashi (高橋 良輔), who created Fang of the Sun Dougram, Armored Trooper Votoms, Blue Comet SPT Layzner and Gasaraki.[13] His method of making the anime more realistic normally includes smaller and weaker robots as compared to giant robots. Also, he used trucks to transport the robots in his show instead of having them walk long distances. He commented on the size of the robot that 4 metres is the limit in size where you can still call it something that is piloted by the pilot instead of the pilot wearing a mechanical suit.[8]
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