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is the name given to the giant robots and monsters of ''The Big O'' anime series. Forty years prior to the events of the series, the world was turned into a vast desert wasteland and the survivors were left without memories. The megadeuses are portrayed as remnants of the previous civilization, a lost technology few citizens of Paradigm know how to control.〔Roger Smith (voice-over): There isn't anyone who really knows exactly what did happen forty years ago. The only thing that seems that have been left behind is the fear that whatever it was may have completely changed the world... No, there is one other thing. The megadeuses, they left us a technology that surpasses any other in the world. (Act:12)〕 The word is a blend of the Greek ''Megas'', meaning "Great", and the Latin ''deus'', meaning "god". The pilot of a "Big" megadeus is a , taken from Latin. The robots were designed by series creator Keiichi Sato, who also designed the Mazinger mechas featured on the ''Mazinkaiser'' OVA and the mutant creatures of The SoulTaker TV series. The designs are strange and "more macho than practical." Unlike the giants of other robot anime, the megadeuses do not exhibit ninja-like speed nor grace or possess voice-activated special attacks; but for what they lack in agility, they more than make-up in firepower and protection. The robots come armed with weaponry like missiles, piston powered punches, machine guns, and laser cannons.〔Shimura, Shinichi. (2004). Anime rebel with a cause: The Big O's Keiichi Sato. ''AnimePlay, 5'', 22-26.〕 The nature of the megadeuses is tied to the event forty years prior.〔(【引用サイトリンク】 The Big O: Megadeuses )〕 In the final episode of the first season, Roger Smith has a flashback in the form of a nightmare: an army of "Big" megadeuses burn down the city as a group of bald children look on. In the second season premiere, he experiences a lucid dream of a town without domes, where its citizens have not forgotten who they are and megadeuses are nowhere to be found. In the final episode, he gets another burst of memories: the city stands in ruins and multiple "Big" megadeuses fight amongst themselves while a winged giant oversees the onslaught. In the tradition of Japanese monster movies, ''The Big O'' features monsters modeled after conventional or mythological creatures. The series follows the "villain of the week" formula, meaning the protagonist is hired to do a job and by episode's end he must battle a monster using a giant robot of his own. Given the series' style, for some critics the robot battles seem out of place,〔(【引用サイトリンク】 ''The Big O/The Big O II'' )〕 while others praise the "over-the-top-ness" of their execution.〔(【引用サイトリンク】accessdate = 2006-11-04 )〕 The term "megadeus" is officially used to refer to all giant robots and monsters seen in the series, though the term is often used to refer solely to the four "Big" robots. The "Bigs" are unique among the other megadeuses in that they are implied to be at least semi-sentient 〔Dan Dastun (seeing Big Duo move on its own): But that's impossible! No one's piloting it! // Schwarzwald: You don't need a master, or do they choose their own master? Do we control them, or do they control us, Roger Smith? (Act:12, "Enemy Is Another Big!")〕 and have the ability to judge a person's worthiness to be a pilot through the phrase "Cast in the Name of God," then a declaration of either "Ye Not Guilty" or "Ye Guilty." == First season == 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「megadeus」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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