Power Top Plate (Korean: 최강 탑플레이트, Choegang tabpeulleiteu) is a South Korean animated series created by Heewon Entertainment and Tooniverse to promote the toyline of the same name. It was made in co-operation with manufacturer Sonokong. Two seasons aired from 2013 to 2014, ending at a total of 39 episodes. The anime's original title in Korean can also be translated as Ultimate Top Plate.
It was directed by Hong Heon-pyo, with Yoo Bong-hyun serving as the the character designer and general animation director and Kim Hyeong-ju and Jo Jeong-hee serving as the script writers. It also featured music from Park Jeong-sik and Jin Hyeon-deok.
Tae-yang Son is a young boy with an affinity for power top plates. He has just moved in from a remote village and can't wait to show off his skills. He becomes rather famous at his new school for his abilities, building up a cadre of new friends who serve as his teammates. With a renewed confidence, he travels from tournament to tournament winning matches.
However, Tae-yang's past may have caught up to him in a way he didn't expect. Along the way, Tae-yang also recurringly butts heads with Black Dragon Team, who aren't just standard nasty rivals - in fact, they possibly may be tied to a tragic incident involving his father's fall from glory...
Tropes
- 2D Visuals, 3D Effects: The powers of the top plates are always shown in 3D form in spite of the show being 2D.
- Alternative Foreign Theme Song: The Arabic dub adds its own localized theme song. See here
. - Anime Hair: Many characters in this setting have long, spiky pompadours that stick out in all directions with varying colors. Even the girls.
- Bilingual Bonus: There are many signs and billboards written in English despite it being a Korean work.
- Eye Catch: A thirty-second long live-action advertisement for the toys serves as the commercial break notifier.
- Fictional Sport: Top Plate is a fictional sport where children pit their bladed steel tops against one another until the last one is left standing.
- Medium Blending: While the show is mostly 2D hand-drawn animation, the Power Top Plates are always depicted in 3D mode, to the point they don't even have 2D renders.
- Merchandise-Driven: The show is based on the Power Top Plate franchise and made to sell toys.
- Mons Series: The "Mons" in this case being top plates, that are possessed by the spirits of powerful giant monsters that answer to their human masters, are used to fight competitively, and can be passed on from owner to owner.
- National Stereotypes: In the first episode, some Inuits are shown watching the top plate matches....from their igloos. While dressed in traditional sealskin clothes. Some Arabs are likewise seen watching the matches on their phones in the middle of a desert, with a camel next to them.
- Only Six Faces: Due to the show's limited assets, many characters utilize the same facial expressions and animations, including background characters.
- Plot-Mandated Friendship Failure: In episode 30, Dam-deong reads some negative comments on the internet and thinks Gong-myeong wrote them. In spite of his lack of evidence, he continues to grill Gong-myeong about them, while he denies it asks him if he really thinks he'd stoop as low as to do that. Their coach notices their spat and has them resolve their issues and become better friends by teaching them the importance of teamwork.
- Rose-Haired Sweetie: The telecaster for all the top plate matches is a cute pink-haired young woman who always encourages the players and has positive things to say about everyone.
- Shout-Out: In episode 1, there's a billboard with the word Cold Play written on it.
- World of Technicolor Hair: Several characters have odd hair colors like sea green (Gong-myeong), navy blue (Min-ho), bluish-gray (Bi-lyu), dark magenta (Ga-on) and so on. Even background characters tend to have blue or purple hair!
