History Anime / Zambot3

Still, the show stands out because it isn't ''just'' 'MonsterOfTheWeek.' As our lead hero Kappei Jin and his allies fight the Gaizok, ''countless'' homes and towns are [[DestructiveSavior demolished in the process]], and whereas some later series such as, say, ''WesternAnimation/MegasXLR'' would just play it all for laughs, Zambot [[{{Deconstruction}} plays it all completely straight]]. The results would have been a turning point for the HumongousMecha Genre had it caught on, with greater maturity and sophistication in the storytelling and a much darker atmosphere. But alas, this wasn't to be, and it wouldn't be until a couple of years later when ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam'' was broadcast and the RealRobot genre was invented that the next big advance in the HumongousMecha genre would occur. (And both shows were directed by [[Creator/YoshiyukiTomino the same guy]] no less!)

* AnyoneCanDie: Just to be sure, you did read [[Creator/YoshiyukiTomino who directed this anime]], right?

* KillEmAll: By the man himself.

* AlienInvasion

* AnyoneCanDie

* AlienAmongUs: The Jin Family.

* {{Jerkass}}: Kappei is a total ''asshole'' at first, deliberately refusing to have his machine combine with the others, nearly killing someone by pretending to punch them ''while in the machine'', and pretty much mucking things up more than he needs to. But as the series goes on and turns REALLY dark, he evolves into a JerkassWoobie.

* {{Jerkass}}: Kappei is a total ''asshole'' at first, deliberately refusing to have his machine combine with the others, nearly killing someone by pretending to punch them ''while in the machine'', and pretty much mucking things up more than he needs to.

* WhyAmITicking: Halfway through the series, this becomes the weapon of choice for the Gaizok. And tragically, the victims are completely unaware through the very end.

* TwoGirlsAndAGuy: Kappei and his childhood playmates Aki and Michi, were this before the Gaizok invasion. The girls later shun Kappei, blaming him and his family for their tribulations.

* WhyAmITicking: Halfway through the series, this becomes the weapon of choice for the Gaizok.

''Zambot 3'', or more fully, ''Invincible Super Man Zambot 3'', is a 1977-1978 anime series by long-standing mecha anime studio Creator/{{Sunrise}} and Creator/YoshiyukiTomino. It was Sunrise's first completely in-house production. Despite consisting of pretty standard SuperRobot fare, ''Zambot 3'' stands out for three things, with the first two coming out of the third. Firstly, it had somewhat of a DownerEnding. Secondly, it featured ChildAbuse on an unprecedented level for a children's show. And thirdly, it was one of the earliest (if not ''the'' earliest,) attempts at a Deconstruction of the SuperRobot genre. The general story is that [[AlienInvasion Earth is being invaded by aliens known as the Gaizok]], which are chasing after the survivors of another planet they ruined, who came [[AlienAmongUs to live and hide on earth.]] However, these refugees left behind two weapons - [[CoolStarship King Beal]] and [[SuperRobot Zambot 3]], for their descendants to use. Cue MonsterOfTheWeek format.

''Zambot 3'', or more fully, ''Invincible Super Man Zambot 3'', is a 1977-1978 anime series by long-standing mecha anime studio Creator/{{Sunrise}} and Creator/YoshiyukiTomino. It was Sunrise's first completely in-house production. Despite consisting of pretty standard SuperRobot fare, ''Zambot 3'' stands out for three things, with the first two coming out of the third. Firstly, it had somewhat of a DownerEnding. Secondly, it featured [[child abuse]] on an unprecedented level for a children's show. And thirdly, it was one of the earliest (if not ''the'' earliest,) attempts at a Deconstruction of the SuperRobot genre. The general story is that [[AlienInvasion Earth is being invaded by aliens known as the Gaizok]], which are chasing after the survivors of another planet they ruined, who came [[AlienAmongUs to live and hide on earth.]] However, these refugees left behind two weapons - [[CoolStarship King Beal]] and [[SuperRobot Zambot 3]], for their descendants to use. Cue MonsterOfTheWeek format.

Although the show has gained a well-deserved reputation as a game-changer in the robot anime genre, it, like its successor ''Gundam'', wasn't particularly popular at the time and has achieved that distinction retroactively. In addition, the show's dark themes hindered international distribution: to date, the series' only official release in the West has been in Italy, where the show aired in 1981 (and even then, being shown only on a series of regional channels, never nationwide). However, the series is available for viewing online with English subtitles.

* DragonInChief: Butcher is Gaizok's minion but he has a much more active role in attacking Earth than the former. [[spoiler: It's a JustifiedTrope since Gaizok is actually a computer.]]

* VillainousGluttony: Butcher is often shown to eat piles of food and drinking liquor when he's not ordering atrocities.

* TwoGirlsAndAGuy: Kappei and his childhood playmates Aki and Michi, before the Gaizok invasion. The girls later shun Kappei, blaming him and his family for their tribulations.

* TwoGirlsAndAGuy: Kappei and his childhood playmates Aki and Michi, before the Gaizok invasion. The girls later shun Kappei, blaming him and his family for their tribulations. [[spoiler:Kappei later has a sort of reconciliation with Aki, just in time for her to be blown up as a human bomb, right before his eyes.]]

* TwoGirlsAndAGuy: Kappei and his childhood playmates Aki and Michi.

* AlternativeForeignThemeSong: Averted, as the Italian dub kept the original Japanese themes.

** Though this is arguable, considering the two shows couldn't possibly be any more different, at least in terms of tone. ''Daitarn'' might be a successor, but not necessarily a spiritual one.

''Zambot 3'', or more fully, ''Invincible Super Man Zambot 3'', is a 1977 anime series by long-standing mecha anime studio Creator/{{Sunrise}} and Creator/YoshiyukiTomino. Despite consisting of pretty standard SuperRobot fare, ''Zambot 3'' stands out for three things, with the first two coming out of the third. Firstly, it had somewhat of a DownerEnding. Secondly, it featured [[WhatDoYouMeanItsForKids child abuse]] on an unprecedented level for a children's show. And thirdly, it was one of the earliest (if not ''the'' earliest,) attempts at a Deconstruction of the SuperRobot genre. The general story is that [[AlienInvasion Earth is being invaded by aliens known as the Gaizok]], which are chasing after the survivors of another planet they ruined, who came [[AlienAmongUs to live and hide on earth.]] However, these refugees left behind two weapons - [[CoolStarship King Beal]] and [[SuperRobot Zambot 3]], for their descendants to use. Cue MonsterOfTheWeek format.

* CruelAndUnusualDeath: In one episode, Butcher captures a bunch of japanese politicians and ties them to giant balloons floating in the sky in order to use them as ''target practice'', causing them to fall to their deaths when he hits the balloons.

* FatBastard: Killer the Butcher is both figurately and literally one of the biggest bastards in the Super Robot genre.

* BreakTheCutie