Gad Guard

Gad Guard is a TV Anime from studio Gonzo directed by Hiroshi Nishikiori. With an original run between April and September 2003, the series culminates in 26 episodes. A Light Novel was adapted from the Anime with illustrations by Izuna Yoshitsune and published by Media Factory in 4 volumes.

The story takes place several hundred years in the future, the resources of the Earth having run out, the progression of the human race stagnated and the world divided into "Units". Hajiki Sanada lives with his mother and sister in Unit Blue, in a place called "Night Town", where all electricity is shut down at midnight. Haijiki often skips school to work as a courier earning money for his struggling family. One day he has a chance encounter with a GAD, a device with the ability to reconstruct materials while reacting to feelings of an organic life, which transforms into a giant robot. Together Hajiki and his new Techode set off on a journey of personal discovery to locate the other GADs and their owners, who may be friend or foe alike.

It Needs More Love.

Tropes used in Gad Guard include:

After the End
Badass: Hajiki Sanada, eventually.
- Katana, definitely.
Crapsack World: Things aren't too bad living in good parts of the city like Gold Town, but poorer areas and those outside the cities just get grimmer and grimmer.
Disappeared Dad: Hajiki's dad was an astronaut who died when Hajiki was young.
Eerie Pale-Skinned Brunette: Katana pulls this off with blue hair.
Empathic Weapon: The Techodes are able to move and react according to their masters' emotions and personal wishes, as well as their innermost characters. This explains why it seems that Thunderbolt goes berserk on Messerschmidt; although Takumi has nothing against Aiko, it seems he harbors a somewhat wrathful spirit along with his rather black-and-white desire for justice
- The scarred man seems to have an attachment to Lightning, as his movements are also it's own. It is revealed that the nature of the Techode was split, and when they become one again, Lightning seems to get the ability to talk and sentience, as it seems.
Enemy Mine: Katana pulls this during the fight with the train A-Techode.
Foe Yay: Katana and Hajiki
Gaia's Lament
Giant Robot Hands Save Lives: Many many times.
Humongous Mecha: Notably, of the retro Gigantor mold, as opposed the much more popular piloted type.
Knight Templar: Takumi. He mellows out towards the end though.
MacGuffin: The GADs.
Magic Skirt: Arashi, considering it's tiny and she fights with kicks. Also Aiko has a habit of running around in one that looks more like a belt.
Morality Pet: Sayuri, to Katana. She existed only because he needed her after all.
Mr. Fanservice: Katana, the cool, brooding, handsome guy in the Badass Longcoat who also kicks ass, has a Hidden Heart of Gold and is voiced by Junichi Suwabe.
Names to Know in Anime:
- Kenichi Suzumura and Tony Oliver: Hajiki
- Junichi Suwabe and Dave Wittenberg: Katana
- Fumiko Orikasa and Kari Wahlgren: Arashi
- Yuko Sato and Julie Ann Taylor: Takumi
- Masayo Kurata and Michelle Ruff: Aiko
Not Distracted by the Sexy: Katana couldn't care less about Wanda's attempts to seduce him.
Not So Different: Hajiki and Katana, mainly about how they both use their Techoid for violence. Hajiki is not very happy when being reminded by people around him (Katana included) about that.
Oddly Visible Eyebrows
Official Couple: Hajiki and Arashi. Takumi and Aiko may be the Beta Couple.
Older Than They Look: Takumi looks about 10, but he's in his mid-teens.
Ojou: Aiko, though she doesn't have the personality.
Reunion Kiss: Arashi and Hajiki shared one of these.
The Rival: Katana. He later graduates to being an Aloof Ally.
Token Loli: Sayuri of course. She's the youngest character in the show, positively tiny and made of cute.
Tsundere: Arashi.
Scarf of Asskicking: Hajiki's Technode has two exaust pipes that look (and move) like one.
Theme Naming: The main characters' Techodes are all named after World War II fighter planes.
- Hajiki and Katana are named after weapons, the gun and the sword respectively.
The Only One Allowed to Defeat You: Katana towards Hajiki, after Hajiki destroyed the Techode Katana built himself.
Waif Fu: Arashi
You Gotta Have Blue Hair: Katana (blue) and Wanda (green) are the most prominent.