The Top 10 Coolest Mechas from Live-Action Movies
5. ExoSuits- Edge of Tomorrow
I’ll admit that I thought Edge of Tomorrow was going to be a terrible movie based on name alone. However, it turned out to be one of the better science fiction films I’ve seen since becoming a film critic. I’ll admit that the ExoSuits look pretty funny at first, but as the movie progresses Tom Cruise proves just how powerful those mechas can be. There’s a whole montage of him slowly training and getting further and further into the battlefield every time before he dies (it’s a whole time travel thing). By the end, he is literally kicking ass and taking names as he hands it to the alien scum invading the planet.
4. Iron Men Suits- The MCU
Iron Man is technically the West’s most iconic mecha, so it makes sense to include him on this list. The third Iron Man movie had a lot that I wasn’t a big fan of. From super-powered Pepper Pots to turning the Mandarin into nothing more than a red herring. However, it did showcase a ton of different Iron Man mechas and that was pretty cool. I almost decided to go with the Hulk Buster from Age of Ultron, but Iron Man 3 just showed off so much diversity in the designs of the armor. Hell, I don’t even know what half those suits could have been used for, but I’ll give Tony props when it comes to creativity. Then again, he probably just did it for the action figure sales.
3. Jaegers – Pacific Rim
Probably the largest of the mechas on this list, the Jaegers are still incredibly large robots driven by people. Honestly, I loved Pacific Rim, because it was everything I ever hoped for in a mech movie from Hollywood. There are a ton to choose from when it comes to the Jaegers, but I’ll always have a soft spot for old Gipsy Danger (though Chernobyl Alpha was pretty awesome in a Cold War kind of way). These giant suits were made to fight the likes of Godzilla and King Kong (which would be an awesome crossover in the future, Hollywood). As far as giant robots go, Jaegers are pretty much everything you could want. As far as mechas go, well there are a few models I think are a little more iconic.
2. Mech Prawn- District 9
A Neill Blomkamp mecha makes another appearance! This time the mecha isn’t made for silly little homo sapiens. This one belongs to the extraterrestrials affectionately known as “prawns” by awful bigots. It got pretty limited screen time, but as far as mechas go this one made one hell of an impression. This thing just reigns fire down on the soldiers attacking the aliens trying to escape the planet. The Mech Prawn has two massive guns on either arm and some impressive mobility, making it more than a match for most military forces. Just imagine what’s going to happen when the Prawns come back with hundreds of those mechas. It’s not going to be good for gun-toting bigots, that’s for sure.
1. Power Loader- Aliens
Sure, there are other more powerful and combat effective mechas on this list. But the Power Loader is a classic. It’s vintage. Plus it was more than enough to take on a Queen Xenomorph when the chips were down. Straight out of the 80’s it’s still one of the most impressive mechas I’ve seen on the big screen. Oh, and I definitely had the toy as a kid. While others have all the bells and whistles, but nothing beats good old space-colony muscle. Besides, that classic “caution yellow” is pretty sweet. Growing up as a kid, I was always disappointed on Christmas morning not to find one of these mechas with a giant, stupid bow on it. It would definitely come in handy when my friends need help moving.
See, there are plenty of awesome live-action mechas out there, and I’m hoping we’ll get a lot more in the future. Still, there are a lot of obscure movies out there that probably have some pretty awesome power suits of their own out there. So, if you think I missed one, be sure to let me know in the comments. I’d also love to hear which of these mechas you’d like to own if you got the chance. So leave your picks in the comments and let’s see which is the most popular!