gen:LOCK

While the show's future cyberpunk setting is intriguing (And will hopefully be more thoroughly explored in later seasons) the real attraction is the characters. Just about everyone is easy to like from the moment we meet them, and as the story goes on they prove to be very well thought-out and three-dimensional. And on top of that, they're brought to life thanks to some top notch acting, particularly by Dakota Fanning, Maisie WIlliams, and of course David Tennant. Giant robots are cool and all, but the people inside them are what really makes this show special.

The spectacular action and the likable, diverse characters are the standout features in a first season that sets up a fascinating world with bags of potential. A clear love letter to mecha, sentai, sci-fi and cyberpunk, but with a spin and style you won't find anywhere else. It also boasts a cast that wouldn't look out of place in Hollywood. Michael B Jordan, Dakota Fanning, Maisie Williams and David Tennant to name a few, along with some Rooster Teeth favourites, and anime legend Kōichi Yamadera. The pace is a little quick, and with just the 8 episodes in its first season, it does feel like we're only scraping the surface of what this show can be, but its easy to binge and a really fun ride while it lasts. P.S. Cammie is best girl.

Despite the star power on display here Gen:Lock does not introduce anything new to the mecha genre to any extent. Mech designs look too similar with small primary colors differentiate from each other. Despite being a 3D animated series does not make their characters personalities still are very much 2D that being said they do have fun moments from time to time. Actors do a good job with their roles considering the script's writing but for some reason when the less trained speak its clear who has experience & who doesn't. Strangely one of the cast being a very famous individual does not speak very much which confused me. Why hire these A-listers but not have one of them have more lines? CG seems very stiff & does not hold 30fps which seams to be a problem for even bigger animation series. Only show to do this is Zoids from what I've seen. I dont hate this show mainly because theres not enough to hate. I was simply bored & its inoffensive unless a certain characTer RepresenTaTion which is cool To see but is regulaTed as a Token due To rely on That for Their enTire characTer personaliTy. Action scene with poor writing doesnt help a series like this. Roosterteeth need to hire better writers for their series before throwing money at these action scene. I hope this improves because I like the idea of the show more so than the show itself

I found the main attraction of Gen:Lock the character interactions and development. Yes, it is a sci-fi, mecha, anime but those aspects take a back seat to story line of Chase coming to grips with who he is and where he fits into the World. If Chase's romantic relationship was fleshed out in full this would have earned a fifth star from me. If you are not a big fan of character development, you can just watch Gen:Lock for the awesome fight scenes and slick mecha.