The latest incarnation of Go Nagai's Getter Robo continues in the second volume of New Getter Robo.  The story takes a surprising turn as the three Getter pilots travel back in time to battle the Oni.  With all the blood and action as the first volume, this is sure to please Nagai fans.

Oni, monsters from Japanese mythology, have started appearing on earth.  They take over regular people and turn them into blood thirsty ogres.  In order to battle this threat to humanity, Dr. Saotome creates three special planes 'Get Machines' that are powered by mysterious Getter Rays.  When these ships combine together, they can transform into various different giant robots that are able to take on the giant Oni.

Dr. Saotome has managed to prefect the Get Machines, but he needs special men that can pilot them.  Men who are brave fighters that won't be bothered by the violence and blood that fighting the Oni will entail.  In the first volume he gathers a trio of unlikely heros to protect humanity:  Ryoma, a martial artist whose deeply in debt to the mob, Hayato, the leader of a street gang, and a Buddhist monk, Benki.    Being of vastly different temperaments, these three need to learn to work together and fight as a team, but that is easier said than done.

As this volume starts, Ryoma is getting frustrated that the Oni keep attacking and disappearing through worm holes.  No matter how many demons they fight, it doesn't seem that they are making any progress.  Dr. Saotome suggests that they follow the Oni through the worm holes to see where they go.  The next time they attack, Ryoma does just that.

On the other side of the warp, they discover that they are at the bottom of a lake, and  find that the Oni have been waiting in ambush for them.  During the pitched battle, a crack opens in the lake floor and an ancient city is reveled.  When another worm hole opens up, Ryoma and his associates jump through that one too, hoping to find the source of the Oni.

Something odd happens.  Ryoma wakes up in a field in ancient Japan.  The Oni are here too, living in a fortified city.  He has no idea where the Get Machines are, or where if his companions have made it too.  This version of feudal Japan is very different from the one he is familiar with.  There are odd flying machines and hand guns here, but the weapon of choice is still a sharp sword.

While Ryoma joins with a group of warriors who are planning on storming the Oni stronghold, Hayato and Benki manage to find each other.  They've both been on this world for months, and Benki has even married.  But they figure if they are both here, that Ryoma must be nearby along with the Get Machines.

This volume took me by surprise.  I wasn't expecting to have the team travel back in time to an alternate universe.  The lead demon in the past was something else I wasn't expecting, and he makes the series a little more interesting.

The series isn't the greatest giant mecha series to come down the pike, but it's not bad either.  The biggest problem I have with it is that there really isn't a lot of plot or intrigue to really drive the action.  Now that the group is in the past, it's a little more interesting and not a monster-of-the-week
 type show, but still fairly straight forward.  The good guys find the bad guys, then attack.

One the plus side, the show is a lot of fun.  The clunky robots have an old school feel that adds a sense of levity to this fast paced show.  The action is fairly constant involving fights between mecha and men against demons.

Being a Go Nagi show, there is a lot of violence.  The show is rated 16+ for good reason.  It is a fairly bloody show, with people getting their heads sliced in have vertically revealing a nice cross section of their brains, and limbs are frequently severed.  There isn't very much nudity, but this still isn't a show for younger viewers.

Audio:

This DVD comes with the original Japanese soundtrack and an English dub, both in stereo.  I alternated between the tracks while watching this series, and liked both of them.  In both tracks good use was made of the front sound stage, with the voices and action panning across the front speakers effectively.  It's too bad that they didn't include a 5.1 English track.  With all the battle scenes this show would have benefitted from one.  Audio defects and hiss weren't present, making this a good sounding DVD.

Video:

The widescreen transfer (1.78:1)  is anamorphically enhanced and looks very good.  The lines are tight, and the colors are bright and vivid.  Digital artifacts are practically nonexistent, with even aliasing being a minor problem.  A very nice looking transfer.

Extras:

Extras on this disc include a textless closing, and a music video along with three previews to other Geneon anime series.

Final Thoughts:

While there is a bit more blood than is really necessary, this show still was fun.  There was a good amount of action, and the pace was quick.  The plot isn't anything spectacular, but then again that's not why you buy most mecha shows.  If you aren't turned off by the excessive violence, this is worth checking out.  Recommended.