Has Armored Trooper Votoms Been Misclassified?

Did you ever have that feeling that, despite the fact that you had watched the same show as other people, you had somehow seen a different show than other people?  This has been my experience with Sunrise’s “other” big, enduring mecha franchise, Armored Trooper Votoms.   My disagreement with the discussion (that I’ve been privy to) of the show is not about the esteem in which it is held.  The show is one of my absolute favorites.  I think it’s really well done, and nearly every iteration of Votoms offers something worthwhile…even the most recent stuff.  Not even LOGH can say that.

To be clear:  this post does not really concern the Votoms franchise as a whole but mainly the original 1983-4 television show, though my comments do apply to most of the series.  The reason for disparity between my own view and those of others has to do with what I think the show fundamentally is.  Most people describe the show using terms like mecha, sci-fi, and action (see my own metadata) or talk about the realistic nature of the robots or grittiness of the combat.  Such talk is not wrong;  all of these elements are certainly present in Votoms.  However, I maintain that, at its core, the show is a tragedy.

Suggested Soundtrack for Reading – Oneohtrix Point Never “Replica”

WARNING:  MASSIVE SPOILERS FOR THE VOTOMS FRANCHISE BEYOND THIS POINT.