Well, last time was the heartrending tune Beyond Memories. A song that plays when the protagonist team is reeling from a terrible loss. So I say that this time we turn things on their head. No matter what losses they may face, heroes have to see things through to the end. And what can help more with that than something that gets into your blood and sends it scorching in your veins?
Day 19: Music that brings out your hot-blooded spirit – Back Alley Space Boy (Dai-Guard) (Super Robot Wars Z2.2)
You know a song is good when you find yourself doing something in time with the rhythm. Tapping fingers, bobbing heads, humming, whatever suits your fancy. And there are many that get you pumped up for a fight. You hear it and you feel that no eldritch amalgamation of negative emotions can hope to stand against you. (Even when Potential L9 and HP Regen L say otherwise, but that’s neither here nor there.)
Well, today’s pick is one that will get your blood pumping no matter what you’re doing, whether that’s defending the innocent from monsters in a giant mech or filling out insurance and damage claims. I’m talking about Back Alley Space Boy from Dai-Guard, and while it technically debuted in the first Z2 game, I already used that earlier, so it’s Z2.2 Saisei-hen (World Regeneration Chapter) for this entry.
Dai-Guard’s titular robot was designed in response to an attack by a monster called a Heterodyne. However, in the years that followed that attack, no further sightings of Heterodyne occurred. As a result, Dai-Guard has been relegated to being the mascot of the company that built it, the 21st Century Defense Security Corporation.
However, the Heterodynes eventually do return, so Dai-Guard is “commandeered” by a CDSC salaryman, Agaki Shunsuke, and with the help of fellow employees Ibuki Momoi and Keiichiro Aoyama, they manage to defeat the monster. Thus begins the threesome’s goal of defeating the Heterodyne’s while dealing with the mountain of paperwork that come from both that and their day jobs.
At first you might think that Dai-Guard looks like a “run-of-the-mill Super Robot”. But when you see it in action, you realize…that it’s a highly obtuse Real Robot. It needs scaffolding and wires to be assembled, it’s version of the Super Robot Rocket Punch is to tear off it’s own arm and throw it, and it’s drill arm attachment throws the mech completely off balance.
I’ll admit, I didn’t think too much of Dai-Guard when I first saw it. But then I heard this theme, and I was floored. I wondered, why so rockin’ a song for such a seemingly un-notable mech? So I did some research, and it turns out that what Dai-Guard lacks in any kind of otherworldly power, it makes up for…WITH GUTS!!!
Dai-Guard has a lot going against it, but no matter what, it’s pilots manage to make the best out of any bad situation and come out on top. Dai-Guard is an underdog Real Robot who manages to cut it as a venerable Super Robot. And let me tell you, I tend to have a soft spot for underdogs. And this theme…oh, man this theme. I tend to catch myself shadowboxing after listening to it long enough. Dai-Guard is high on my list of series that I want to see in a new Super Robot Wars game, and I hope that if it wasn’t on yours, it is now.
Well, we’ve covered sadness, energizing…what’s next? Well, I might have talked about a couple of songs that make you realize you’re up against a truly great threat, but how about one specifically picked to instill fear and dread in you? Sound good? Well, that’s what we’re looking at regardless. And I’ll drop a hint to say that it’s actually a song that isn’t from a mecha anime, manga, or anything like that. See just what I have in store next time.
All right, everyone say it with me…