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Over on Facebook, someone described Pacific Rim as "a campy sendup of the genre".
I'm a little baffled.
To be a campy sendup, there would have to be a substantial body of mecha-vs-kaiju work that was notably more serious than Pacific Rim. And, to my knowledge, there isn't. The original Godzilla, sure, was very serious. A lot of mecha TV shows have their serious moments (e.g., in original Gundam and Gasaraki). But still, the vast bulk of the genre is light-hearted at best, and downright goofy very often (G Gundam, Son of Godzilla, Gurren Lagann).
Not that Pacific Rim doesn't have its moments of silly (like the bit with the desk toy), but it also has its heartwrenching moments (Tokyo). I think it is firmly in the middle of its genre. Opinions?
I'm a little baffled.
To be a campy sendup, there would have to be a substantial body of mecha-vs-kaiju work that was notably more serious than Pacific Rim. And, to my knowledge, there isn't. The original Godzilla, sure, was very serious. A lot of mecha TV shows have their serious moments (e.g., in original Gundam and Gasaraki). But still, the vast bulk of the genre is light-hearted at best, and downright goofy very often (G Gundam, Son of Godzilla, Gurren Lagann).
Not that Pacific Rim doesn't have its moments of silly (like the bit with the desk toy), but it also has its heartwrenching moments (Tokyo). I think it is firmly in the middle of its genre. Opinions?
