Grendizer, dedicated to the House of Culture of Japan, still fascinates

The “Grendizer-XperienZ”. Until October 30, the Maison de la culture du Japon in Paris is offering an exhibition on Goldorak. Actarus and his huge robot revolutionized cartoons in the 70s and 80s and paved the way for the manga phenomenon in France. Through original drawings, elements of productions and derivative products, the exhibition looks back on the genesis of this essential pop-culture.

Created a few years earlier by Go Nagai and Toei Animation, the sci-fi anime had a huge impact on the generations it rocked, influencing many contemporary artists. Even today, it fascinates. “There were a lot of derivative products at the time. It was the cartoon with the most derivative products. Today, there are still a lot of products on the market. This makes current generations familiar with Grendizer. “, confirms on TF1 Thomas Musial, manager of the Vintage Game Room boutique.

“When it happened in France, it was a huge hit. We were very marked by it. Today, there is a new generation of enthusiasts, children to whom parents have introduced Goldorak. is nice “, adds David Grendizer, a collector.

Goldorak is also a work rich in themes and references that it addresses throughout the episodes. “There is a very pure, very noble message. It is for example a certain code of honor conveyed by Actarus, the pilot of Grendizer. There is also the idea that we must protect the Earth, that this one is fragile and that we must help each other between humans to repel threats that risk destroying us “, underline on France Inter Ivan Jablonka, writer and historian.

Some also see in this cartoon an early environmental consciousness. Sarah Hatchuel, forty-something professor specializing in film and audiovisual studies at the University of Paul-Valéry-Montpellier, discusses in Point a “ecological epic which touches the myth”. The trauma of nuclear weapons is also omnipresent in this work.