Television series
Super Electromagnetic Robot Combattler V
A foundational 1976 mecha anime where five teenage pilots merge their individual robots into one colossal warrior to battle aliens. Combines bright Saturday-morning energy with genuine mechanical spectacle—watching separate machines clunk together never gets old. Essential viewing for anyone curious how giant robots conquered anime's imagination, or just wanting to see where the obsession began.
Should you watch it?
Watch it if you love the old-fashioned super robot formula, with its combining machines, pilots shouting attack names and weekly showdowns that feel like a toy box tipped out.
Skip it if you want a tight serialized story or quick pacing, since its fights repeat in a familiar rhythm and its drama moves slowly between battles.
What it asks of you: Fifty-four half-hour episodes with a repeating rhythm of setup, battle and victory, so it rewards patience for the formula more than for suspense.
Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.
If you liked this
Mobile Suit Gundam1979
The spiritual successor that took mecha anime seriously, grounding giant robots in real military strategy and political consequence. More dramatically ambitious than Combattler V, but built on the same foundation of spectacular transformation sequences and ensemble teamwork.
But Significantly longer commitment at 43 episodes, and the animation quality varies wildly—some episodes look unfinished even by 1979 standards.
Mazinger Z1972
The direct ancestor of everything Combattler V does: a teenage pilot in a giant robot, weekly monster fights, the iconic finisher move. Faster-paced and weirder, with a genuinely unsettling villain and genuine stakes underneath the fun.
But Only four years older but visibly primitive animation, and some episodes drag. The dub is also aggressively cheesy if you go that route.
Getter Robo1974
An earlier, equally wild mecha show where three jets combine into one super-robot with multiple configurations. More chaotic energy and stranger sci-fi concepts make it feel fresher than Combattler V's more straightforward aliens-invade plot.
But Genuinely rough animation even for 1974, and the episode quality is inconsistent. Some instalments feel like sketches rather than finished episodes.
Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Super Electromagnetic Robot Combattler V
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
Nana2006
Both are fundamentally about how five (or two) individuals become something larger than themselves through trust and complementary strengths. Different genres, same emotional core.
A mature, character-driven anime about two women named Nana building a life together in Tokyo. Proves anime could be intimate, funny, and emotionally complex without robots or aliens—a philosophical opposite that shares Combattler V's obsession with how teams bond and grow together.
But Deliberately slow and focused on conversation, feelings, and mundane life. If you watch Combattler V for the action, this will feel glacial.
More like this (4)
Great Mazinger1974
A direct sequel to Mazinger Z that ups the scale and absurdity while keeping the pulpy fun intact. Better animation than its predecessor, and the new giant robot is genuinely impressive to watch in motion.
But Assumes familiarity with the original; jumping in here feels like joining mid-conversation. The plot is thinner than Mazinger Z.
UFO Robot Grendizer1975
A prince from a destroyed planet pilots a transforming robot on Earth. Combines mecha action with an outsider-looking-in perspective and surprisingly good world-building for a weekly monster show. More visually polished than contemporary series.
But The alien-prince-in-disguise premise feels melodramatic if you're not in the mood for it. Pacing can be slack between the big set-piece fights.
Akira1988
Both are 1970s-onward Japanese visions of the future, but Akira inverts Combattler V's optimism—where Combattler V has teamwork and hope, Akira shows isolation and collapse. Watching them together is watching two completely different answers to what Japan imagined tomorrow could be.
A cyberpunk revolution in 124 minutes—the film that made anime matter to the world. Spectacular hand-drawn animation pushed to impossible limits, a genuinely dystopian story, and a visual language that influences everything made since.
But Dense, fast, deliberately cryptic. You'll leave with questions. The plot can feel secondary to the atmosphere and technical achievement.
Carole & Tuesday2019
Both are ensemble pieces built on the idea that people of different backgrounds can create something beautiful by working in unison. Combattler V does it with giant robots; Carole & Tuesday does it with music. Same DNA, completely different expression.
An anime musical on Mars about two girls trying to make it as singers, made by the director of Cowboy Bebop. Gorgeously animated, genuinely moving, and proof that anime can do sincere emotion and spectacle in equal measure. Each episode is a small masterpiece.
But The sci-fi premise is window-dressing for a character story about art and ambition. If you want plot momentum, this meanders deliberately. Some episodes prioritize mood over narrative.
