Like, right down to the *exact* same style of praise Eva and Madoka fans give, “Unlike [other series], this one actually is good.” Even though all 3 series were written by people who love and adore mecha, or magical girls, or JRPGs.

Like, I get what you’re saying but let’s not forget how a lot of the contempt for the fanbase coming from older fans of the genre came about as a result of people who haven’t played a JRPG since like, 2002 acting like it’s God’s gift to games and the second coming of Christ.

The Madoka and Evangelion comparisons are pretty apt, in that E33 fans will also act incredibly dismissive of other entries in the genre, or talk big about how it’s a transformative landmark work while actively ignoring other longtime franchises.

"Actually, it's symbolic of the inherent humanity of mobile suits, imitating the human form and Seabook channeling that to defeat Iron Mask, who has discarded his humanity to become a monster. This is reflected both in his character, and the Rafflesia being non-humanoid in shape." Whatever, man.

The other one that comes to mind is there's a Skirmish in Zadnor where you fight a boss called "Delta Gabriel Plus", a nod to the Delta Plus from MSG Unicorn:

The launch animation that plays when you fight the Sapphire Weapon in ShB has the G-Warrior do something similar to the ZZ Gundam's pose, too