“SSSS.Dynazenon” Anime Review: What is Something Worth Fighting For?

For a lifelong giant robot and tokusatsu fan, you might watch these sort of hero shows long enough and they can start to feel like they’re a dime a dozen. Sure, the heroes and monsters look cool, the fights are cool, you’ve seen them all before. Sure, the heroes defeat the bad guys and save the day. So what? Why is it important that the day is saved? Why should we care? All those heroics can feel a bit superficial, even shallow.

Sometimes it’s so easy to lose sight of it all and become apathetic to everything. It’s a theme that SSSS.Gridman touches upon, with Akane Shinjo’s uncaring outlook towards other people. To her, the kaiju are toys that keep the status quo, used to punish those that disrupt her perfect bubble. Meanwhile, it’s Gridman and the heroes who serve as a disruptive force to destroy Akane’s ideal world, one where she’s free from the pain of rejection, but where she would ultimately regress and fail to create any meaningful relationships.

Dynazenon expands on this theme, except that this time, the tables are turned. What it sets up is that while one knows exactly where the kaiju come from, they’re heavily influenced by human emotions. Shizumu talks about how the kaiju are free, capable of doing whatever it wants and unrestrained by human concepts such as time, or life and death. He posits the kaiju as a liberating force—destroying oppressive and restraining human constructs whether it be buildings, school, or part-time work (it’s darkly humorous that even when huge chunks of the town got destroyed by a kaiju attack, our characters are still expected to go to school or work). Even Goldburn, a benevolent kaiju born from Chise’s emotions, almost tried to destroy her previous school, something she despised and was glad to be free of.

And there’s an allure to how it feels like we might be better off without these systems, how maybe it would be nice if the school got blown up so we wouldn’t have to do our homework. If the kaiju are affected by people’s emotions and the kaiju destroy the city, aren’t they merely responding to people’s desires to have it be destroyed? Our protagonists would know that feeling first hand. After all, they’ve all have had their share of trauma that involves being let down by larger systems, whether it’s being constrained by their familial relationships, crushed by societal expectations, or betrayed by one’s country. They don’t fit in some way or another. Dynazenon fights to protect the town and people’s daily lives, keeping the peace but also maintaining that status quo that can be so oppressive. Again, is that really a good thing? Is that really worth fighting for?

Dynazenon‘s answer is simple, and yet this act of defining what the heroes are fighting for and why it’s important for them to do so is fundamental in making a compelling hero show. Despite everything society throws at them, the cast of Dynazenon comes to learn that there’s still value to be found in forming bonds and relationships with others and that our lives are worth living out. It doesn’t mean that things should stay exactly as they were—Dynazenon coming into the lives of Yomogi and co. is still a disruptive force that disturbs their daily lives. But it’s one that encourages them to move forward and change what they don’t like about it so that things can begin to get better.

On the flip side, to reject all the good and the bad, like Akane Shinjo or the Kaiju Eugenicists did, would mean to fully “understand” the kaiju, as Shizumu puts it, thus embracing everything about them that isn’t human and surrendering your humanity as he did. Maybe you would be gaining complete freedom, but wouldn’t you also be losing irreplaceable bonds instead?

I think it’s perfect that the show ends with a school festival, (something that happens in a dreary place like school, but is fun and maybe isn’t so bad to have) with our characters slowly coming out of their shells to reach out to those around them, finding fulfilment from it. Yomogi becomes more outspoken in lending a hand to those who need it. Yume opens up to trust in others more. Koyomi finds the confidence to move forward with his life, as does Chise who becomes even more confident with her individuality. And Gauma manages to find what he couldn’t in his previous life: friends that are true.

At its core, I think that both SSSS.Gridman and SSSS.Dynazenon are shows about how something irreplaceable and worthwhile can come from engaging with life and connecting with others, embracing both the good and the bad. Scars can become a reminder of not just how we were wounded, but how we were able to overcome that pain and heal. It’s a message that’s not just not compelling but also moving, one that’s sure to be remembered by many. And I hope that it stays that way forever.

Facts and Figures

The Indonesian Anime Times | Review by Caesar E.S.