There is only one way for a true tokusatsu hero to end its run and that is in his original spandex. Gridman was one good anime run with an expected cheesy win and an unexpected after-credits final scene.
Japanese Title: 覚醒
The final episode is almost all Akane. Now that we know that this is a made-up world created by Akane, the Gridman Alliance is trying to save whatever is left of the only world they know. Akane’s kaiju form, created by Alexis, is defeated by Anti and then the combined form of Alexis and Akane is counterattacked with the power of love and friendship. Her friends (which are not her real friends as their counterparts, or something that closely resembles them, are in the real world) save her soul by reminding her that there are still people who care about her and are willing to help her redeem herself.
In the end, Akane returns to the real world (more on that later), Gridman and the Men in Black return to the Hyper World, and Yuta and the rest continue their lives as denizens of the Computer World. Anti’s eye is healed and he is probably going to star in his own show.
Confusing Ending: The post-credits scene shows a brief live action segment of the real Akane waking up in the real world after leaving her creation behind. While the scene is open to interpretations, it seems like the anime took part inside a dream-like reality which co-existed with the virtual world. The real Akane is part of the world of the original Gridman. Yet, the real-world Akane has the pass-holder Rikka gave her. Is that something that happened before Akane created her imaginary world? My take is that this was a cool isekai concept. Akane left the real world and came to the Computer World to live a life where she is perfect and loved by everyone. She is used by Alexis to conquer the Computer World and in the end she mustered enough courage to return back to the real world and face her problems.
Back to the Roots: The song playing during the battle against Alexis was from the original Gridman series. Also, all Hyper World agents get an original Acceptor and thus Gridman gets into his original 1993 spandex form.
Remain: Anti chooses to remain in the make-up world and he is joined by Anosillus the 2nd and her predecessor.
Subtitle Confusion: During Alexis’ conversation with Rikka, a decision by Crunchyroll to take out a crucial part of the wording, left fans of Gridman without a hint that that the show is part of the original Gridman continuity. Alexis refers to Rikka and the rest as Compoids, the denizens of the Computer World.
Fixer Beam: In the original series, the Fixer Beam was used in nearly every episode to repair what damage the Kaiju had inflicted to the computer world. In this series, the Fixer Beam is used to restore the Computer World and essentially make it a copy of ours.
Has the anime hinted to a potential live-action sequel? I am very curious to see where the production will take the franchise after its anime reboot’s unexpected success. Is it time for a new tokusatsu show?
Did you like Episode 12 of anime SSSS.Gridman? Let us know in the comments and don’t forget to check the rest of our Fall 2018 anime reviews!
The summer anime season is over. We had a few refreshing titles that kept us company through the hot months, but fall is bringing so many new titles and a few sequels we’ve been waiting for a long time.
