Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann/Characters/Main Characters

Simon
"Voiced by: Tetsuya Kakihara (JP), Yuri Lowenthal (EN)"

""My drill is the drill that creates the HEAVENS!""

The main character of the series, Simon starts out as a humble miner, digging out tunnels to expand his underground village. Among the many treasures he digs up along the way, he discovers a small mecha (later dubbed the "Lagann"), setting into motion a chain of events that would catapult Simon into the role as the savior of the universe. No kidding. - "Simon: If you're gonna dig, dig to the heavens. No matter what's in my way, I won't stop. Once I've dug through, it means that I've won! Just who the hell do you think I am? I'm Simon. I'm not my bro. I'M ME! SIMON THE DIGGER!"
 * The Ace: Eventually becomes this.
 * Adorkable: As cute and endearing as Kamina is hammy.
 * Anti-Hero: A Type I during the first act. He grows a backbone and ditches this trope soon after he meets Nia, however.
 * Badass
 * Badass Adorable: Is overall a sweet-natured, shy, live-and-let-live, utterly endearing person... who can kick your ass up and down the metaphorical street if he feels he needs to.
 * Badass Longcoat: Prologue and last arc (doubles as Walking Shirtless Scene).
 * Badass Nickname: Simon the Digger.
 * Future Badass:
 * Heartbroken Badass: After . Much later, he is left heartbroken again with.
 * Bash Brothers: With Kamina. Simon never believed in himself and needed Kamina's bravado and encouragement, but Kamina could never accomplish anything without Simon's hard work.
 * Beady-Eyed Loser: Introduced as one. As he takes level after level in badass, his eyes slowly get de-beadified, until they become complete Tsurime Eyes during the Final Battle.
 * Berserker Tears: If you see Simon crying, run.
 * Tears of Blood: In episode 25, . Simon has strained himself so severely from, the blood vessels in his tear ducts rupture.
 * Beware the Nice Ones: His normally-gentle personality makes his behaviour after  -- launching into a vicious verbal attack on Rossiu out of nowhere, and changing drastically into a blood-crazed, thoroughly Ax Crazy pilot in battle, for instance -- all the more startling. Thankfully, his psychotic tendencies don't last... but he does come out of it as an official Badass Adorable, and making him angry is still always a BAD idea.
 * Break the Cutie: Pretty much from episode 8 onwards.
 * Be Yourself: Once he learns, with Nia's help, to accept himself as he is and recognize that it's okay for him to be a very different person from Kamina, his Character Development takes a massive turn for the better.
 * Big Eater: Witness the plates and plates and plates that quickly pile up around him every time he eats. Even if it's Nia's cooking. Especially if it's Nia's cooking.
 * Big Good: From his He's Back moment onward. The new leader and the recognition as a threat from enemies. A rare case where the The Hero is also the Big Good.
 * Bishonen: Post-timeskip.
 * Blood Brothers: As above.
 * Blue Eyes: Of the innocent, hopeful variety, though they occasionally look more grey.
 * Calling Your Attacks: His attacks tend to be more technical and less silly than Kamina's.
 * Courage Pet: Simon is the reason why Kamina tried so hard to be courageous, strong, to never give up and do so much down to . This is reversed after the Time Skip, not only to Simon but to the entire Team Gurren.
 * Cowardly Lion: For the first few episodes.
 * The So-Called Coward: Saves the day several times, with no one but Kamina to sing his praises. This changes when he snaps out of his Heroic BSOD.
 * Cursed with Awesome: Early on, he certainly doesn't seem happy about piloting Lagann, but he grows to enjoy it after a while.
 * Cute Shotaro Boy: Pre-timeskip.
 * Determinator Not as boastful as Kamina, nor as showy but he's rocksolid. Scarily so sometimes.
 * Expy: Of Noriko Takaya. Both start as pilots with great potential, but serious courage and self-confidence issues. And both manage to overcome their fears and limitations in order to become true heroes.
 * Prior to his Character Development, he had more than a passing resemblance to Shinji Ikari, in that both were Cowardly Lions who undergo Sanity Slippage and become really scary in the face of trauma.
 * The grown-up Simon at the introduction to the series, with his "don't give a damn if the universe is our enemy," is similar to Ryouma "Batshit" Nagare from the Getter Robo manga, from which this series borrows heavily from.
 * Goggles Do Nothing: He keeps them from his mining days, but mostly they're just to look cool.
 * Goggles Do Something Unusual: A mild example, but they have a headlamp installed... whose light shines directly out of the lenses...?
 * Glasses Pull: When he means business.
 * Good-Looking Privates: Post-timeskip, he wears a military uniform along with the rest of Team Dai-Gurren. However, for the final battle, he has a different outfit that's even more hot.
 * He Is All Grown Up: At least from an out-of-universe perspective- he goes from being an adorably-goofy Cute Shotaro Boy to being an incredibly gorgeous and sexy Bishounen.
 * Heroes Want Redheads: Has feelings for Yoko first.
 * Heroic BSOD: Simon goes into a big one of these after ...
 * He's Back: ...And bounces back from it in a manner that is completely and utterly AWESOME.
 * Hot-Blooded: As he grows in confidence.
 * I Just Want to Be Normal: But Kamina just. Won't. Let him.
 * And then, after all is said and done,
 * Image Song: "Break Through The Dream" (shared with Kamina).
 * Indy Ploy: Becomes increasingly fond of these as the series goes on.
 * In the Name of the Moon: Takes over this from Kamina. Used against both Big Bads.
 * Just a Kid: Kittan and Viral's opinon of him, at first. Then he grows up...
 * Kid Hero: Pre-timeskip. Matures afterward.
 * Know When to Fold'Em: Overlaps with Refusal of the Call in the beginning, but even after his Character Development into a Badass Determinator, he's still rational enough to know when to walk away from a fight.
 * The Lancer: To Kamina.
 * The Hero: After.
 * Marshmallow Hell: As a kid, he is the perfect height to be subjected to this over and over. Both the manga retelling of the series and Guren Gakuenhen, the High School AU manga, take this gag and run with it. "I'm so sorry, time and time again..."
 * Meaningful Name: Simon was the birth name of Saint Peter, a common worker who was handpicked by Jesus to be among his first followers. Simon Peter went on to become what most consider Jesus' foremost disciple, the first Pope, and, in Christian lore, the holder of the key to heaven's gates. Substitute Kamina for Jesus, world leader for Pope, and drill for key, and there you have it.
 * That is Faux Symbolism. Simon comes from the Japanese "shimo", that means "under", while "kami" means above, it has nothing to do with Apostle Peter.
 * But it IS a wonderful coincidence.
 * Don't be so sure -- this is Studio Gainax after all. "Kami" also means God, and they did choose to romanize the name as "Simon" instead of "Shimon". The names are katakana, so we can't assume anything without Word of God.
 * The Messiah: Takes over the role after and when he first meets Nia.
 * Messianic Archetype:
 * Mr. Fanservice: He grew up very nicely...
 * Never Tell Me the Odds: They don't matter, even if they're 0.
 * No Shirt, Long Jacket: Pre-timeskip and late post-timeskip.
 * Official Couple: With Nia.
 * Older Than They Look: Word of God states that as a kid, Simon is stunted in growth (assuming Kamina to be about six feet tall, Simon can only be about four feet in height). He's fourteen prior to the timeskip, but hardly looks like it.
 * Person of Mass Destruction: Hell, he can create objects of  proportions!
 * Red Armband of Leadership: A piece of a cloak belonging to  comes as Kamina puts it on, which Simon grabs and ties around his left arm. For a while, it's just a , but when Simon becomes a leader in his own sorts, this Trope is instantly invoked.
 * Red Oni, Blue Oni: The blue to Kamina's red -- Simon is blue-clad, blue-eyed, and pale where Kamina is red-clad, fairly red-eyed, and tan, and is a practical hard worker who is relatively sensible, fairly shy, and intelligent, where Kamina is a big dreamer who specializes in encouraging people and cheering them up, and is reckless, outgoing, and not too terribly bright.
 * He later becomes the red to Rossiu's blue.
 * Refusal of the Call: Attempts this in early episodes, but Kamina's not having any of it.
 * Rousing Speech: Just like Kamina.
 * Say My Name: "BRO!!" "NIA!!" " YOKO!!" "KITTAN!!" etc.
 * Screw Destiny: Of the entire cast, he's the best at it.
 * Most likely, he's worried . He's also learned he's no Invincible Hero, either: he could slip up and cause one hell of a disaster.
 * Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: Sensitive Guy to Kamina's Manly Man.
 * Showy Invincible Hero: The only people to put dust on him are Kamina and Lordgenome, and This is pushed to more of its limits in the movie where not only does Simon get a hell of a lot more dust on him, but he nearly loses
 * Shrinking Violet: He is a male example for most of the pre-timeskip episodes; he spends most of his time keeping quiet and trying not to be noticed, and has a huge lack of confidence. He gets better, of course.
 * Shut UP, Hannibal: His response to Spiral Nemesis.
 * Spanner in the Works: Viral didn't know he existed until near the timeskip. His relationship with Nia also counts.
 * The Spock: Of the initial three.
 * Does grow out of the role steadily after, and has practically become the opposite at the time skip, serving as a counterpart to Rossiu instead.
 * Straight Man: To Kamina. Kamina even calls him "the method to my madness".
 * Supporting Protagonist: Subverted, BIG TIME. Based on the first arc alone, one might think so,
 * Tareme Eyes --> Tsurime Eyes
 * Theme Music Power-Up: Plenty.
 * Took Nine Thousand And One Levels In Badass: The results speak for themselves.
 * The alternate timeline version of him as seen in the prologue, while definitely not originally intended to be so, has been retconned into something along the lines of Chaotic Evil, since he is a lot more arrogant in that depiction and possibly unintentionally willing to . Of course, this doesn't happen in the main continuity, and this happened solely because the producers thought it was a pretty good theory by the fandom.
 * Tragic Keepsake: In episode 3, However, it takes on a much sadder meaning later on:
 * Transformation Name Announcement: Mixed with World of Cardboard Speech
 * Tunnel King: Even in the first episode he was renowned as the best digger in Githa village.
 * The Unchosen One: When he stops refusing the call, Simon becomes a destiny-screwing badass to be reckoned with.
 * The Unfettered: Not as extreme as Kamina but still...
 * Walking Shirtless Scene: Though unlike Kamina, he occasionally wears one.
 * Weapon of Choice
 * Empathic Weapon: Lagann. It can find him underground.
 * This Is a Drill: His primary weapon, and
 * World of Cardboard Speech: In episode 11, he realizes that he'll never be Kamina, but he doesn't have to be.
 * Tareme Eyes --> Tsurime Eyes
 * Theme Music Power-Up: Plenty.
 * Took Nine Thousand And One Levels In Badass: The results speak for themselves.
 * The alternate timeline version of him as seen in the prologue, while definitely not originally intended to be so, has been retconned into something along the lines of Chaotic Evil, since he is a lot more arrogant in that depiction and possibly unintentionally willing to . Of course, this doesn't happen in the main continuity, and this happened solely because the producers thought it was a pretty good theory by the fandom.
 * Tragic Keepsake: In episode 3, However, it takes on a much sadder meaning later on:
 * Transformation Name Announcement: Mixed with World of Cardboard Speech
 * Tunnel King: Even in the first episode he was renowned as the best digger in Githa village.
 * The Unchosen One: When he stops refusing the call, Simon becomes a destiny-screwing badass to be reckoned with.
 * The Unfettered: Not as extreme as Kamina but still...
 * Walking Shirtless Scene: Though unlike Kamina, he occasionally wears one.
 * Weapon of Choice
 * Empathic Weapon: Lagann. It can find him underground.
 * This Is a Drill: His primary weapon, and
 * World of Cardboard Speech: In episode 11, he realizes that he'll never be Kamina, but he doesn't have to be.
 * World of Cardboard Speech: In episode 11, he realizes that he'll never be Kamina, but he doesn't have to be.


 * You Killed My Father: He becomes motivated to fight in episode 2 when he realizes that the earthquake that killed his mother and father seven years ago.

Kamina
(No, not that Kamina, although this Kamina is also a main character who pilots a giant mecha.)

"Voiced by: Katsuyuki Konishi (JP), Kyle Hebert (EN)"

""WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK I AM?!""

""Listen, Simon. Don't believe in yourself. Believe in me! Believe in the Kamina who believes in you!""

Probably the character everyone's going to remember when this series has faded into memories, in part thanks to Memetic Mutation. Simon's "big brother", a big-mouthed teen who refuses to acknowledge the words "quit" or "surrender" in any form. Through sheer bullheadedness, he manages to steal a mecha of his own (the "Gurren") and use it challenge the rule of the oppressive Beastmen, in the process inspiring Simon and all of those around him to similar greatness. Fate is not kind to him, however....

- ""Yours is the drill that will pierce the heavens" "WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK I AM?" "Kick reason to the curb and go Beyond the Impossible. That's how Team Gurren rolls." "Believe in the me that believes in you.""
 * The Ace: Subverted, it's contributions of others, aka Simon and Kittan, that allows him to be The Ace.
 * Lampshaded by himself everytime there's a partying scene with him happen, he song a praise for Simmon only people were blinded by his acts to think he's the one doing it.
 * A Man Is Not a Virgin: Averted so hard it's not funny.
 * Badass: No doubt the king of this on the show.
 * Badass Cape
 * Bash Brothers: With Simon. Kamina could never accomplish anything without Simon's hard work, but Simon never believed in himself and needed Kamina's bravado and encouragement.
 * Belligerent Sexual Tension: With Yoko.
 * The Berserker: His battle strategy is (almost) always Attack! Attack! Attack!. Almost.
 * BFS: Casually snatches his village chief's nodachi katana as a weapon of his own.
 * Big Brother Mentor: To Simon.
 * Big Eater: If there is ever a huge dinner to be had, expect him and Simon to be happily shoveling down fourth and fifth helpings. He even briefly sports a Balloon Belly in episode 6 thanks to this trope. "A man's stomach knows no limit!"
 * Big Good: The leader of the forces of good and the one the enemies are afraid of and focus their plans on.
 * Blood Brothers: As above.
 * Boisterous Bruiser: Large, loud and aggressive. "HEY! HEY-HEY-HEY-HEY-HEY-''HEYYY!!!'"
 * Breakout Character: Easily the most popular character from the series.
 * Calling Your Attacks: Sets the standard for every other member of Team Dai-Gurren.
 * Gratuitous English: ORE-WO-DARE-DA-TO-OMOTTE-YAGARU-KI~CK!!
 * Catch Phrase: WHERE THE HELL DO WE EVEN BEGIN!?
 * Let's see. For starters we have:
 * Catch Phrase: WHERE THE HELL DO WE EVEN BEGIN!?
 * Let's see. For starters we have:

""Simon, is this the humongous face you were talking about?""
 * Chick Magnet: Kittan's sisters fall for him immediately. All three of them.
 * Combat Pragmatist: Using a (barely) live animal to distract Viral before attempting to shoot him, surprise attacking with a hidden arrowhead between his knuckles, setting Simon up to attack an enemy from behind, and raining boulders from high ground. The man wasn't shy about attacking from the front or the back.
 * Cool Triangle Shades: Kamina Shades is even one of the redirects!
 * Deadpan Snarker: He is capable of making sarcastic and witty remarks without hamming up as well, like in the first episode:
 * Deadpan Snarker: He is capable of making sarcastic and witty remarks without hamming up as well, like in the first episode:

"Viral: "What the? How did he get so good so fast?""
 * Decoy Protagonist: He definitely seems like the protagonist until ep six.
 * Delinquents: Was one in Giha. A punk who got beat on by the chief for breaking rules.
 * Determinator: Not even  can stop Kamina from helping Simon.
 * Deuteragonist: Goes along with being the . He gets as much or more screen time than Simon, and drives the early plot.
 * Disappeared Dad: His father once went into the surface and never came back. Kamina became a "Well Done, Son" Guy because of it.
 * Expy: Basically, a goofier and less Aloof Big Brother version of Tetsuya Tsurugi. Both are Red Oni to their younger partner, uses katana/sword, and in the outside, while they shows some superiority aura on the outside, they have a massive inferiority complex on the inside to their younger partner.
 * Fake Ultimate Hero: Played straight and subverted. While really a passionate hero who wants to liberate humanity,  and in the end  . He's good enough to hang a lampshade on it, as he constantly sings Simon's praises and at the same time, it was thanks to his courage and belief that the heroes prevailed at the end.
 * Fan Service: Rippling muscles, shirtless at all times, outrageously handsome... he's the pinnacle of it!
 * Mr. Fanservice: That sound you hear when ever he walks on screen? It's the horde of fangirls (and boys).
 * Walking Shirtless Scene: Provides the page picture.
 * Fearless Fool: Subverted upon revealing his Hidden Depths, but this doesn't stop him from being too brave for his own good though.
 * Fountain of Memes: In Real Life and in-universe; Team (Dai-)Gurren's name(s), catchphrases, flag, and overall style - not to mention every set of Arc Words - all originated from him.
 * Genre Savvy: Knows he's a red oni and that he needs a blue oni to balance him. Not to mention the entire universe works exactly, and we do mean EXACTLY, how he thinks it does- on pure Rule of Cool, Crazy Awesome, and unadulterated manliness! Although it's not clear if he knew this from the beginning because he's The Messiah, if he found out by pure dumb luck, or that he realized he was right when he found out jamming a smaller robot head onto a larger robot works incredibly well and decided to run with it.
 * Guile Hero: In many ways, he doesn't out fight the enemy, but his confidence is the thing that inspires Simon to kick the enemies ass.
 * Handsome Lech: In the first episode he cannot stop hitting on Yoko...until he realizes she's a pit chick. Then he starts up again the moment Yoko covers up her gorgeous features... and then decides that he wants to gaze at her twin peaks in episode six.
 * The Hero: Fits everything from wearing red to winning battles to team leader.
 * Heroes Want Redheads: The only girl he was interested in was Yoko. Well... that and a couple of Beastmen Playboy bunnies in disguise... but that backfired BIG TIME.
 * Hidden Depths: At face value, it's easy to see Kamina as an arrogant, completely fearless Berserker ...until it's revealed that  He also mentions that he "wants kids to be able to look up at the sky without a care in the world" -- he's not interested in revolution for the sheer hot-blooded thrill of it, but genuinely wants to make the world a safe and happy place to live in, and will do whatever it takes to achieve that.
 * Honorifics: Insists that members of Team Gurren (especially Simon) call him "Aniki", or "Bro" in the dub.
 * Hot-Blooded: Always doing something and often that something is outrageous.
 * Hunk
 * Idiot Hero: Boy howdy. What he lacks in brains he makes up for in FIGHTING SPIRIT!
 * Later Subverted: Kamina decides to concoct a brilliant strategy with his team to . Kamina's really brilliant at heart- he's just so headstrong he doesn't give a rip about planning and cuts straight to the chase. That is, unless he wants to figure out a solution to a problem.
 * Image Song: "Break Through The Dream" (shared with Simon)
 * Indy Ploy: With one notable exception; see Unspoken Plan Guarantee.
 * In the Name of the Moon: VERY fond of giving speeches before, during, and after battle.
 * Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Rough and not the nicest on the surface, but his dream is make life better for humans.
 * Juggling Loaded Guns: He almost shoots his own genitals off while attempting to use a gun. Granted, the poor guy had never seen a handgun before in his life- and inadvertently learned how to pistol-whip a Gunmen's door open.
 * Jumped At the Call: When a gunman dropped into Giha Village, he was the only person not running in terror.
 * Large and In Charge: He's not actually the tallest member of the Great Gurren Brigade, but still tall for his age, as well as very muscular and generally quite physically imposing.
 * Large Spiral Sliced Ham: LARGE HAM PERSONIFIED. Try not to crack up laughing at his singing in "Break Through The Dream".
 * Leeroy Jenkins: Lampshaded by the man himself when he admits he'd be dead if it wasn't for Simon's calming influence.
 * Lantern Jaw of Justice
 * Magnetic Hero: A strange example. While it was Kittan that actually recruited everyone, it was Kamina who inspired him to do so and the others to join.
 * Manic Braggart Dream Big Brother: To Simon.
 * The McCoy: Of the initial three, the one relying most on emotion and guts.
 * Meaningful Name: "Kami" in this case means "up". His very first line in the show is, "Keep your head up when you walk, Simon." He has a signature pose pointing in this direction, carries ambitions of reaching the heavens, and embodies the show's theme of endlessly upping the scales to insane heights.
 * Also "Kami" means "god".
 * The Messiah
 * Messianic Archetype: With a foot firmly in the old meaning of Messiah, A Protagonist Shall Lead Them, a human who would inspire, unite its people, teach them and, not a super badass. He does this to the T, to the point that its a fact that without him, the entire Team Gurren would have been  . Plus,.
 * Proof.
 * No Indoor Voice: You know all those (many) catchphrases? He shouts all of them.
 * The Obi-Wan: To Simon, and all of Team Dai-Gurren too.
 * Only Sane Man: Inverted. He's the only member of Team Gurren obviously lacking in sanity, but also the only one who believes in Simon's abilities for a long time. And yet... Kamina's sane, alright: he just ignores fear.
 * Post Dramatic Stress Disorder:
 * Purple Eyes: Depending on the scene his eyes appear either red or purple.
 * Rated "M" for Manly: A tall, musclar and shirtless man who wields a sword in a revolution. And a full-throttle Badass who faces off against gigantic Gunmen without batting an eyelash!
 * Testosterone Poisoning: And tries to take on aformentioned Humongous Mecha with said sword and often needs to be saved from his own actions.
 * Red Eyes, Take Warning: A variation. He's far from evil, but he can definitely be dangerous -- furthermore, because of his hot-headed, reckless personality, fire is both a recurring motif in his characterization (see his flame-decorated Badass Cape for one of many examples) and a common result of his actions; red is a colour traditionally associated with fire. His eye colour also serves to underline his Red Oni, Blue Oni dynamic with Simon.
 * Red Oni, Blue Oni: The red to Simon's blue -- Kamina is red-clad, red-eyed and tan where Simon is blue-clad, blue-eyed and pale, and is a big dreamer who specializes in encouraging people and cheering them up, and is reckless, outgoing and not terribly bright, where Simon is a practical hard worker who is relatively sensible, fairly shy, and intelligent.
 * Rousing Speech: He's a master of this trope. It's his role in the team. All the heavy lifting is actually done by Simon.
 * Sarashi: The most upper clothing the man ever wears. Except
 * Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: Manly Man to Simon's Sensitive Guy.
 * Smarter Than You Look: He's actually smarter than you might guess, despite being a Hot-Blooded Idiot Hero. Almost every time he went into battle he had a plan (Well, unless you count his Combining Mecha idea. It really shouldn't have worked, but it just did.) and it probably takes a certain amount of brainpower to come up with and remember all the RousingSpeeches.
 * Stealth Mentor: A lot of his Idiot Hero moments are really gambits to get Simon to man up.
 * Supporting Leader: He's the leader and founder of Team Dai-Gurren but he's not the protagonist. That honor goes to Simon.
 * Tender Tears:
 * Too Dumb to Live: Even despite the Hidden Depths, he's still a king-sized idiot. Of particular note is his "plan" to combine Gurren and Lagann (which worked, but not in the way he intended at all), and the Hot Springs Episode, where he spends the entire time trying to see the girls naked (without saving them first). Then comes the moment where he decides to defy expectations and think of a really competent plan-
 * Took a Level in Badass: He may have already been awesome, but remember how he got his ass kicked the first time he tried to face Viral with just the Gurren? The second time they fight without Simon and the Lagann getting involved, though, he's able to easily hold his own.
 * Purple Eyes: Depending on the scene his eyes appear either red or purple.
 * Rated "M" for Manly: A tall, musclar and shirtless man who wields a sword in a revolution. And a full-throttle Badass who faces off against gigantic Gunmen without batting an eyelash!
 * Testosterone Poisoning: And tries to take on aformentioned Humongous Mecha with said sword and often needs to be saved from his own actions.
 * Red Eyes, Take Warning: A variation. He's far from evil, but he can definitely be dangerous -- furthermore, because of his hot-headed, reckless personality, fire is both a recurring motif in his characterization (see his flame-decorated Badass Cape for one of many examples) and a common result of his actions; red is a colour traditionally associated with fire. His eye colour also serves to underline his Red Oni, Blue Oni dynamic with Simon.
 * Red Oni, Blue Oni: The red to Simon's blue -- Kamina is red-clad, red-eyed and tan where Simon is blue-clad, blue-eyed and pale, and is a big dreamer who specializes in encouraging people and cheering them up, and is reckless, outgoing and not terribly bright, where Simon is a practical hard worker who is relatively sensible, fairly shy, and intelligent.
 * Rousing Speech: He's a master of this trope. It's his role in the team. All the heavy lifting is actually done by Simon.
 * Sarashi: The most upper clothing the man ever wears. Except
 * Sensitive Guy and Manly Man: Manly Man to Simon's Sensitive Guy.
 * Smarter Than You Look: He's actually smarter than you might guess, despite being a Hot-Blooded Idiot Hero. Almost every time he went into battle he had a plan (Well, unless you count his Combining Mecha idea. It really shouldn't have worked, but it just did.) and it probably takes a certain amount of brainpower to come up with and remember all the RousingSpeeches.
 * Stealth Mentor: A lot of his Idiot Hero moments are really gambits to get Simon to man up.
 * Supporting Leader: He's the leader and founder of Team Dai-Gurren but he's not the protagonist. That honor goes to Simon.
 * Tender Tears:
 * Too Dumb to Live: Even despite the Hidden Depths, he's still a king-sized idiot. Of particular note is his "plan" to combine Gurren and Lagann (which worked, but not in the way he intended at all), and the Hot Springs Episode, where he spends the entire time trying to see the girls naked (without saving them first). Then comes the moment where he decides to defy expectations and think of a really competent plan-
 * Took a Level in Badass: He may have already been awesome, but remember how he got his ass kicked the first time he tried to face Viral with just the Gurren? The second time they fight without Simon and the Lagann getting involved, though, he's able to easily hold his own.
 * Tender Tears:
 * Too Dumb to Live: Even despite the Hidden Depths, he's still a king-sized idiot. Of particular note is his "plan" to combine Gurren and Lagann (which worked, but not in the way he intended at all), and the Hot Springs Episode, where he spends the entire time trying to see the girls naked (without saving them first). Then comes the moment where he decides to defy expectations and think of a really competent plan-
 * Took a Level in Badass: He may have already been awesome, but remember how he got his ass kicked the first time he tried to face Viral with just the Gurren? The second time they fight without Simon and the Lagann getting involved, though, he's able to easily hold his own.
 * Tender Tears:
 * Too Dumb to Live: Even despite the Hidden Depths, he's still a king-sized idiot. Of particular note is his "plan" to combine Gurren and Lagann (which worked, but not in the way he intended at all), and the Hot Springs Episode, where he spends the entire time trying to see the girls naked (without saving them first). Then comes the moment where he decides to defy expectations and think of a really competent plan-
 * Took a Level in Badass: He may have already been awesome, but remember how he got his ass kicked the first time he tried to face Viral with just the Gurren? The second time they fight without Simon and the Lagann getting involved, though, he's able to easily hold his own.


 * Tragic Keepsake: Tragically,.
 * Transformation Name Announcement: VERY fond of announcing himself.
 * Ubermensch: A charasmatic and passionate man who challenges conventional ways of thinking and gathers followers.
 * The Unchosen One: Fully aware that while humanity needs a hero, he is not that man. He's fine with it, and devotes his time to making humanity's hero realize his worth.
 * The Unfettered: There really isn't anything he won't do, except give up or desert his friends- Leeron excluded.
 * Unspoken Plan Guarantee: His secret plan to combine Gurren & Lagann worked better than anyone could have expected. His meticulously-detailed plan to steal Dai-Gunzan
 * More significantly,
 * Weak but Skilled: While Kamina was not a bad fighter, he was far beneath the level of the generals and the strongest warriors of the series. Also, he possessed the lowest level of Spiral power of the entire Team but he supplied himself with sound strategy, his allies help and pure raw determination. However, Kamina still ranks above, who has no Spiral Power at all.
 * Weapon of Choice:
 * I Like Swords
 * BFS
 * Kamina Is Just Better: He can cut through anything because he's Kamina. His katana is just along for the ride.
 * This Is a Drill: Although this is usually Simon's territory, Kamina uses drills quite often when combined with Lagann. In fact,.
 * "Well Done, Son" Guy: As a child, Kamina was too scared to go to the surface with his father, and the regret he felt over this led to him becoming a Hot-Blooded Determinator.
 * He became a more benign example for Simon, who always strived to be worth of his brother praise and admiration. The difference is that Kamina gives it glady  but it takes time for Simon to accept it.
 * What Beautiful Eyes!: His pretty eyelashes, specifically, always feature prominently both in depictions of him and in the Black Siblings' gushing about him.
 * The Worf Effect: Won exactly one fight without Simon's help - two if you count the time he hijacked the Gunzar from Commander Dusack. Every other time he lost, or had to be dragged away.
 * He realized it himself, and he's actualy a good fighter on his own right seeing how Viral struggled against him during the last part before . However it's really obvious that he's nowhere as good as Simon at all, which he realizes too- until he has a
 * Worthy Opponent: to Viral (and Thymilph, to a lesser extent).
 * You Gotta Have Blue Hair: And yet he's a Red Oni!
 * You Gotta Have Blue Hair: And yet he's a Red Oni!

Yoko Littner
"Voiced by: Marina Inoue (JP), Michelle Ruff (EN)"

""It can be a real pain being as tough as I am!""

Bursting onto the scene in the first episode, Yoko fills out the role of central female in the series. She hauls around a huge sniper rifle that can take down a Humongous Mecha in one shot, and dresses in a...er...interesting fashion. In spite of her apparent designation as walking fanservice, she gets some pretty good development as a character as well, going from a Fiery Redhead Tsundere to a strong, cheerful Cool Big Sis. -
 * Action Girl: The only member of the team who doesn't need a giant robot to murderlate giant robots.
 * Badass
 * Badass Normal: While she has access to Spiral Energy like all humans, it's nothing compared to the likes of Kamina, Simon or Kittan, but with her trusty BFG she remains a formidable presence in Team Dai-Gurren from the very beginning, and is the only character in the series to have destroyed Gunmen without one of her own.
 * Badass Abnormal: She pilots Dayakaiser late in the series.
 * Heartbroken Badass:
 * Belligerent Sexual Tension: With Kamina.
 * Big Eater: Not to the same degree as Kamina or Simon, but she eats more than she looks like she does to be able to carry her rifle and be active in combat. Dayakka looks at a normal meal for her and assumes she's eating herself sick.
 * Combat Haircomb
 * Cool Big Sis
 * Eyes of Gold
 * Fan Service
 * Absolute Cleavage
 * Action Dress Rip: While, one of the kids gets stuck in a tree. To save him, Yoko shreds her dress with a crisp RIP and scales up the tree with the freedom to stretch her legs. However, Yoko was well-prepared and had another one ready to wear the next day.
 * Bare Your Midriff
 * Boobs of Steel
 * Gainaxing
 * Godiva Hair: In the movie, in a suitably epic battle against Adiane.
 * Male Gaze: Very much so.
 * Ms. Fanservice
 * Underboobs
 * Fashionable Asymmetry: Wears one normal fingerless glove and one elbow-length one.
 * Fiery Redhead
 * Fingerless Gloves
 * Friend to All Children: Just ask the adoring children at her.
 * Friendly Sniper: The only character to defeat a gunman without their own, its a good thing she's friendly.
 * Gag Boobs
 * Hair Decorations: Wears a hair clip that looks like a skull.
 * Herald: Its her entrance that starts Kamina and Simon's adventure.
 * Hot Amazon: Just ask Kamina!
 * Humongous Mecha: She pilots Dayakkaiser and the, but most notably
 * BFG:
 * Bigger Is Better:
 * Chest Blaster:
 * Guns Akimbo : With, no less.
 * More Dakka:
 * Hypocritical Humor: When she complains about the Black Siblings' "absurd outfits" in the Beach Episode.
 * Image Song: "Trust", "S.t.a.r.S."
 * The Kirk: She's the one saddled with balancing Kamina's Hot Blood with Simon Shrinking Violet
 * Mama Bear: Do NOT threaten her friends.
 * More Dakka:
 * Hypocritical Humor: When she complains about the Black Siblings' "absurd outfits" in the Beach Episode.
 * Image Song: "Trust", "S.t.a.r.S."
 * The Kirk: She's the one saddled with balancing Kamina's Hot Blood with Simon Shrinking Violet
 * Mama Bear: Do NOT threaten her friends.
 * Mama Bear: Do NOT threaten her friends.


 * Meaningful Name: "Yoko" means "side".
 * Meganekko: As.
 * Overshadowed by Awesome: Didn't get much opportunities to be useful when Kamina was around but boy did this change later on.
 * Plucky Girl: Not as plucky as Nia, but still counts.
 * Rapunzel Hair
 * Redheaded Heroine
 * Scarf of Asskicking
 * Shower of Angst: After.
 * Sniper Rifle: Modelled after the Barrett M82 anti-materiel rifle.
 * Stripperific: Her justification for this is that she doesn't want her clothing to impede her mobility in combat. Notably, when she isn't in a combat situation, she actually dresses fairly modestly.
 * Before the timeskip, she always wears the same outfit regardless of whether or not she is in combat. She does, however, uphold a more covering outfit after the timeskip,.
 * Thigh-High Boots: Sports a pair after the Time Skip.
 * Tomboy and Girly Girl: Tomboy to Nia's Girly Girl.
 * Tomboyish Ponytail
 * Tsundere: For the first few episodes.
 * Tsurime Eyes
 * Unknown Rival: To Nia for Nia's first three episodes before the two become BFFs.
 * Walking Swimsuit Scene
 * Weapon of Choice
 * BFG
 * The Gunslinger
 * Small Girl, Big Gun
 * Who Wears Short Shorts?
 * Younger Than They Look: She's supposed to be fourteen pre-Time Skip. At least, to the people who DON'T LIVE WITH A SUN. Their years aren't quite synced up to Solar years, remember (is the convenient explanation).
 * Zettai Ryouiki: Hotpants + socks, then hotpants + boots
 * Zettai Ryouiki: Hotpants + socks, then hotpants + boots

Princess Nia Teppelin
"Voiced by: Yukari Fukui (JP), Hynden Walch (EN) Post-Time Skip Nia: Yukari Fukui (JP), Bridget Hoffman (EN)"

""Hail, fellow well met!""

After a particularly traumatic event in his life, Simon stumbles across a box that the drill he recovered from the mines can open. When opened, out of it pops a young, naive girl with pastel blue and yellow hair: Nia. She turns out to be the daughter of Lordgenome, and is thus the princess of the Beastmen. She develops into Simon's Love Interest, -
 * Action Girl: Becomes one of the Lady of War variety eventually.
 * Anime Hair: It's pastel blue and yellow in color, layered in such a way that one might think the blue parts were the shadows at first, and the long hair running down her back resembles cotton candy in consistency.
 * It also acts somewhat like a flame at times, for instance, when wind blows, it will flow in the wind like a flickering flame, and if you pay attention small parts will fly off and disappear like small bits of flame.
 * She probably got it from her dad...
 * Badass Adorable: She is completely fearless and insanely strong. And she's very, very adorable.
 * Badass Damsel
 * Beneath the Mask: Nia acts fearless at the mercy of a captor, but as soon as Simon arrives to save her, she melts and lets loose her tears. The worst is when.
 * Blunt Metaphors Trauma: Back in her younger days. Even cuter in the dub where she's voiced by Hynden Walch.
 * The Chick: Simon's emotional support and the most promiment female after Yoko. Heck, she puts heart back into the entire brigade.
 * Close-Call Haircut: Yoko's shaky aim as she tries to shoot Nia free from Adiane causes her to slice up Nia's locks twice. Nia later asks her to fix it, although Yoko isn't too savvy on haircuts. It grows back even longer after the time-skip.
 * Cloudcuckoolander: It's a little hard for others to understand her at times, or her to understand others.
 * At first this is due to her sheltered up-bringing but it's quite clear she isn't all there in the head when even after 7 years in the outside world she still surprises everyone with her quirky misunderstandings.
 * The very worst case of this is when Simon  Kiyoh and Kiyal make her realize this accidental mistake and she quickly decides otherwise.
 * Creepy Monotone:
 * Crucified Hero Shot:
 * Cry Cute: When sweet little Nia breaks down into tears, you feel broken up inside. And God help you if Simon sees you're responsible for her sobs.
 * Cute Little Fangs: Although she doesn't have them in the series, They have shown up in official art.
 * The Cutie
 * Drill On A Stick:
 * Everything's Better with Princesses: There really isn't any point to her title.
 * Exotic Eye Designs: Cross-shaped pupils, at that, providing the trope image.
 * Fan Service
 * Fan Service Pack
 * Ms. Fanservice: Not so much as Yoko, but still counts. Especially after the time-skip.
 * Foot Focus: When Nia steps out of her capsule after Simon first meets her, he notices she's going barefoot and splattering icky mud onto her feet with each step. Although Nia loves the gooey feeling of the mud underfoot, he lends his boots to her as a courtesy so she won't hurt herself trudging through the rocky terrain. Nia wears them until she gets a pair of heels on board the Dai-Gurren.
 * Gag Boobs: If the second movie is to be believed, then Yoko and Kiyoh aren't the only ones with huge tracts of land.
 * Girl in a Box: How Simon finds her.
 * Hair Decorations and Flower in Her Hair: When she is first introduced, she later drops them.
 * The Heart: What she does for Simon and the rest.
 * Hey, It's That Voice!: In the English dub pre-Time Skip, she's Starfire.
 * Hello, Nurse!: When she's shown in her swimsuit, a bunch of the male characters get Nosebleeds.
 * Hot-Blooded: She may not fight, but she completely outdoes half the cast in terms of sheer determination. And when she DOES fight, holy crap.
 * In the high school AU manga, she actually has a Hot-Blooded moment alongside Kamina and manages to equal him in it!
 * I Feel Angry: "Are you aware of who exactly I am?!"
 * Important Haircut: Nia's hair is cut by two bullets from Yoko's sniper rifle the episode after she decides to shun her previous life. Unlike many cases, this time the accidental cut doesn't give a clean cut at all, and she has Yoko clean it up, showing that they finally trust each other.
 * Keigo
 * Lady of War:
 * Lethal Chef: Her cooking tastes anything but good... unless you're Simon or Boota. Poor Rossiu.
 * Literal-Minded
 * Meaningful Name: Her name comes from "near".
 * The Messiah: So kind, so helpful, and so inspiring for the Dai Gurren Brigade. They were ready to fall apart before she arrived.
 * Mystical Waif: How she's found and what her life means to the world.
 * Neutral Female: Though subverted at least three times, and even when not it's because she has no other option rather than she can fight but refuses to.
 * No Social Skills: Falls between this and The White Prince, having been raised in isolation for her entire life until she was literally put in a box and left on a landfill.
 * Official Couple: With Simon.
 * The Other Darrin: The reason Bridget Hoffman took over the role post-Time Skip was because Hynden Walch had personal matters to sort out and had to drop out of the show. It works better than most examples, since Nia is a slightly different character now that she aged.
 * Plucky Girl: She may not be able to fight, but in terms of sheer hot-blooded determination, she can hold her own against any of the men. Are you either pointing a gun at her, have her in your mecha's claws, or are about to dematerialize her? That's not gonna break her down.
 * Nia is actually so plucky that she actually out of sheer willpower, just so she can  . Examined further in the second movie:
 * The Pollyanna: Its not that she's unaffected or oblivious to trouble, but her sheer faith in Simon to drill through it makes it even  a minor inconvience.
 * Princess Classic: Hits almost all the points except shy.
 * Princesses Prefer Pink
 * Raised by Wolves: Nia has no contact at all with the outside world until she is found by Simon, her attempts to adjust to life on the outside charm even the baddest of badasses in Team Dai-Gurren.
 * Rapunzel Hair: Post-timeskip.
 * Red Eyes, Take Warning:
 * The Reveal: The daughter of Spiral King Lordgenome and.
 * Screw Destiny: Made absolutely explicit in the movie.
 * Second Love: For Simon. The first was Yoko- until he found out she favored Kamina- the hard way.
 * Stealth Mentor:
 * Tareme Eyes
 * Tsurime Eyes: As
 * Technicolor Eyes: Has opal blue eyes with pink flower-shaped crosses for pupils... and they look adorable!
 * Tomboy and Girly Girl: Girly Girl to Yoko's Tomboy.
 * You Gotta Have Pastel Blue and Yellow Hair
 * Red Eyes, Take Warning:
 * The Reveal: The daughter of Spiral King Lordgenome and.
 * Screw Destiny: Made absolutely explicit in the movie.
 * Second Love: For Simon. The first was Yoko- until he found out she favored Kamina- the hard way.
 * Stealth Mentor:
 * Tareme Eyes
 * Tsurime Eyes: As
 * Technicolor Eyes: Has opal blue eyes with pink flower-shaped crosses for pupils... and they look adorable!
 * Tomboy and Girly Girl: Girly Girl to Yoko's Tomboy.
 * You Gotta Have Pastel Blue and Yellow Hair
 * You Gotta Have Pastel Blue and Yellow Hair
 * You Gotta Have Pastel Blue and Yellow Hair
 * You Gotta Have Pastel Blue and Yellow Hair

Boota
"Voiced by: Shizuka Itou (JP), Julie Ann Taylor (EN)"

A palm-sized pigmole from the village that Simon and Kamina grew up in. He's Simon's beloved pet and companion on his travels, but does have a noticable love of riding in Yoko's cleavage. While he may be small, he's a motivating force for the team when push comes to shove. -
 * Cool Shades: Yes, the Team Pet has shades.
 * Eat the Dog: In episode 4. Simon and Kamina are starving from getting nothing to eat, so Boota does the most disturbing thing possible and  Fortunately, he's healed by the next episode.
 * : Almost inexplicably,
 * Evil Counterpart:
 * Marshmallow Hell: From Yoko.
 * Meaningful Name: "Buta" means "pig", and "buu" is Japanese for "oink".
 * Non-Human Sidekick
 * Parrot Pet Position
 * Ridiculously Cute Critter
 * Team Pet
 * Ridiculously Cute Critter
 * Team Pet

Viral
"Voiced by: Nobuyuki Hiyama (JP), Sam Riegel (EN)"

""I'll tell you two things: First, any human on the surface will be completely annihilated by our Human Eradication Army. Second, that is my dinner - give it back!""

Originally Vice Commander in the Human Annihilation Army, Eastern Unit, First District; Viral is the first real villain the heroes face in their quest to defeat the Beastmen. He develops a borderline Foe Yay relationship with Kamina, and later Simon. When the world is threatened later on the series, Viral reveals his hidden depths. -
 * Ace Pilot: He can't produce Spiral Power, but what keeps Viral in the game is his classical training and skill in the cockpit.
 * Antagonist in Mourning: When
 * Anti-Villain: Type I. He's just a loyal soldier for the Spiral King.
 * Later he becomes a
 * Beast Man
 * Beauty Is Never Tarnished: Viral is a shark, cat thing that's covered in scars, but that doesn't stop the fangirls.
 * Beyond the Impossible:
 * Blond Guys Are Evil: Subverted - he's just a soldier doing his job, and.
 * Butt Monkey:.
 * Can't Catch Up: Lordgenome tells him as much. "No beastman can stand against a human who has mastered the power of the Spiral."
 * Cats Are Mean: Subverted - he's just following orders.
 * Char Clone: Viral is essentially what this trope lives for. He's a blonde ace pilot that becomes The Rival for The Hero. He has a sense of honor that distinguishes him from Card Carrying Villains.
 * Curtains Match the Window: Pale blond hair, yellow eyes.
 * Cute Little Fangs: When he's happy. Not so much when he isn't...
 * Determinator: No matter how many times he gets beaten, no matter how many of his superiors are killed, he just won't give up.
 * The Dragon: He isn't the Dragon to the Big Bad but rather to every other general.)
 * Doom Magnet: Every person he's assigned to guard.
 * Everything's Even Worse with Sharks: Zig Zagged. At first, this is true for Team Dai-Gurren, but after the Time Skip, it's more true for.
 * Eyes of Gold
 * Fangs Are Evil:
 * Foe Yay: With Kamina. In the Viral's Sweet Dream video, every time he thinks of his wife, she turns out to be Kamina in a dress.
 * Good Scars, Evil Scars:
 * Hair of Gold
 * Hey It's That Grunt: Hey, it's Link!
 * Hidden Depths: Has a deep-seated sense of honor and a  More so, his innermost desire was
 * Hot-Blooded: He's voiced by Nobuyuki Hiyama. What'd you expect?
 * Ineffectual Sympathetic Villain: After his debut battle, things go rapidly downhill. Kamina even asks "is he still in this show?" and refers to him as cannon fodder before swatting him aside.
 * Actually subverted soon enough
 * Knife Nut: When he's not piloting Gunmen, his Weapon of Choice is a cleaver.
 * Leitmotif: "Nikopol"
 * Meaningful Name: Guess what Viral's name spells when the letters are rearranged.
 * Noble Demon: Allowing the enemies who have proven to be far stronger time to suit up when a sneak attack would be far more pragmatic? Definitely a case of Honor Before Reason.
 * Petting Zoo People: Literal in his case, as he's composed of shark and feline genetics.
 * Redemption Promotion: Went from Butt Monkey of half the Beastmen Generals to
 * The Remnant: A sympathetic version post-timeskip.
 * The Rival: To Kamina, before his Badass Decay. To Simon, after.
 * Scarf of Asskicking: Post-timeskip.
 * Shirtless Scene: He gets a few post-timeskip.
 * Slasher Smile: As an enemy, but
 * Stepford Smiler
 * The Stoic: Takes on this personality after being beaten down so much by Kamina, and later, Simon. Post-timeskip, he's an absolute stoic as a result of tepid and futile battles against the government. Fortunately, it starts wearing off with, and it's gone altogether in.
 * Tears of Remorse:
 * Took a Level in Badass:
 * Took a Level In Kindness:
 * Weak but Skilled: He was made so he couldn't make Spiral Energy and yet he can still blow stuff up with his Hot Blood.
 * Worthy Opponent: To Kamina. Not so much to Simon...
 * The Stoic: Takes on this personality after being beaten down so much by Kamina, and later, Simon. Post-timeskip, he's an absolute stoic as a result of tepid and futile battles against the government. Fortunately, it starts wearing off with, and it's gone altogether in.
 * Tears of Remorse:
 * Took a Level in Badass:
 * Took a Level In Kindness:
 * Weak but Skilled: He was made so he couldn't make Spiral Energy and yet he can still blow stuff up with his Hot Blood.
 * Worthy Opponent: To Kamina. Not so much to Simon...
 * Worthy Opponent: To Kamina. Not so much to Simon...