OBSCURE O.V.A.S, *Diebuster

Gainax's sequel to their legendary space opera Gunbuster coincided with the studio's 20th anniversary. Diebuster at first seems like some kind of continuation of the epic space opera, but it isn't till the end that we learn its place in the Gunbuster timeline. Taking a lot of visual cues their previous production of FLCL, Diebuster director continued spastic take on animation as he fulfilled his place as protege to Gainax founder, Hideaki Anno.

Set thousands of years in the future, the Solar System continues to be cut off from the rest of the galaxy by an area called the Red Milky Way, which is populated by gigantic space-breathing bugs that mankind uses huge mechas called Buster Machines piloted by energetic teenagers known as "Topless" to fend off the star-bugs. An android girl named Nono joins the ace pilot Lal'C where the two begin a budding girl/romance, and Nono gets her own hi-tech mecha which allows her to reach planet-sized levels. The two pristine pilots help the human race pull through the overwhelming invasion. Years pass and Lal'C awaits the arrival of the original two Gunbuster pilots to tell them about Nono's sacrifice.

Diebuster pulls together alot of the standard Gainiax tropes, like the sci-fi military jargon during giant monster attacks, the strange but aloof bonding between the teenage characters, and the total "over the top" attitude the reckless youth has toward protecting their future. There's two cuts of this to view from, the uncut 6-episode OVA series, plus the compilation movie edition shown with the Gunbuster/Diebuster double feature originally put together for Japanese theatres. You'll probably find the movie edit available on streaming services, but you'll get a more complete story if you scope out the full OVA series.