Gainax is cashing in... AGAIN.

Let it be known that I loved Top wo Nerae!/Aim for the Top!/Gunbuster. It was a superb blend of drama, action, and heartache, framed in the first sci-fi adventure I can remember that actually deigned to obey the theory of relativity (which adds to the heartache). Seiyuu Hidaka Noriko's performance as Takaya Noriko is, to this day, one of the three iconic roles of her long, prolific career (the others are Asakura Minami and Erica Fontaine), and Tanaka Kouhei rules.

Let it be known that I sorta liked Top wo Nerae 2!/Aim for the Top 2!/Gunbuster 2/Diebuster. I like it for being a follow-up to Top wo Nerae! (and paying homage in every episode -- especially that last one, heh), for using the same style of animation that made FLCL great, and for doing so many things in an over-the-top manner (feel free to groan now). I am not as impressed with the so-so voice cast, the way the plot twist(s) turned out, and Topless -- probably the ugliest pun I can ever remember being executed to visual fruition in anime (yes, this should be ironic to you, considering what I just did in the last sentence). All in all, it was still enjoyable.

It stands to reason, then, that my curiosity should go on red alert when I heard about this. I was very excited about possibly witnessing the collision of the two installments of this grand space saga, I speculated about a Go Nagai-esque crossover throwdown, and I really wondered how Gainax would resolve the lingering continuity conflicts (and a couple of pretty important plot questions), the slight discrepancy in the timeline, and the dramatic differences in the animation styles between the two OVAs.

They didn't.

Continuing their recent tradition of re-releasing stuff they did decades ago (*cough* Eva *cough*), Top wo Nerae! * Top wo Nerae 2! Gattai Gekijouban (Aim for the Top! * Aim for the Top 2! Combined Theatrical Edition) is a combined re-release of both OVAs -- each joined together into one continuous 90-minute-ish movie. Yeah, there's some new stuff (such as the widescreen letterbox format and a few new scenes with voices from new seiyuu -- a few of which were still playing with hanetsuki and Ultraman action figures back when Top wo Nerae! was made), but the content is largely the same. So now you get to go to a theater, sit down, and watch both installments of the franchise in one three-hour sitting. Whoopee.

Perhaps I wouldn't have been so annoyed if Gainax had simply translated their Japanese title for the "film" the way I did... but no, they had to go with "Gunbuster vs. Diebuster." That title really makes you feel like the two titular mecha would, you know, actually meet each other, doesn't it? Imagine my disappointment when I found this was just another Gainax ploy to get you to spend money on something they've already sold you before.

By the way, the DVD box of "Gunbuster vs. Diebuster" came out on January 26th. Feel the excitement! Dig out your wallets and pay Gainax now!