A samurai pulled from the past doesn't know what a phone is, but he understands loyalty so completely that he becomes the emotional center of a show about teenagers piloting a robot. Kuromukuro spends its first half making you think it's a standard mecha series, then dismantles that expectation by proving the machine only matters because of the person inside it. The CGI stutters in places, but by season two when everything breaks open, you're too invested in whether these kids survive to care.

When a mysterious ancient object surfaces during construction of the Kurobe Dam, scientists from around the world gather at a United Nations research institute to study it. Their children attend Mt. Tate International Senior High School, among them Yukina Shirahane, the reserved daughter of the institute's head. While visiting her mother, Yukina solves part of the artifact's puzzle and awakens Kennosuke Tokisada Ouma, a young samurai from the Sengoku era. When a threat arrives from outer space, the two end up defending Earth against the invaders, and Yukina begins to learn the mystery behind Kennosuke and why he is so set on protecting her. The series is a mecha action story.