Mecha

Gunmen are the main type of mecha used in the anime series Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann. The name itself means "face/facade"(顔面 ガンメン Face Surface), and can be broken down into "gun" and "man" — unsurprisingly, the mecha themselves are centered around faces and as such are very varied with few in the series being the same model. Gunmen sport a variety of weaponry: primitive models only use large clubs or bare hands, while advanced ones use solid or beam weaponry. Gunmen are powered by their human pilots' Spiral Energy(fighting spirit), or by electricity when piloted by a Beastman.

The original purpose of the Gunmen was to battle the Anti-Spirals, the main antagonistic force of the series. Lordgenome developed them about 1,000 years before the events in the series on a very large scale, with enormous Gunmen(called Dai-Guns) like the Dai-Ganzan and Arc-Gurren being much more commonplace than the smaller models seen through most of the series. Gunmen were also designed for space combat, so no further modifications were necessary when Team Dai-Gurren was launched with their Gunmen into the Earth's satellite orbit to fight the Anti-Spirals.

After the events of the series, there are very few Gunman are left in existence aside from Gurren Lagann and the Super Galaxy Dai-Gurren, with the large bulk of Earth's military being made up of Grapearls.

Team Dai-Gurren
See Gurenn-Lagann

See King Kittan

See Dai-Gurren

See Dayakkaiser Ainzer

Ainzer (アインザー, Ainzā?) is the Gunman that Ailak pilots. During the first arc of the story, it served as a mobile rifle platform for Yoko in combat. It resembles a shark with two small legs. Like the other Team Dai-Gurren Gunmen, it was believed to be destroyed after Grapearls were adopted by the military but was later upgraded and reintroduced by Leite in the second part of the series.. The later-created Space Ainzer differs in appearance from its original in the form of an enormous rocket thruster attached to its rear end. This Gunman is destroyed by the Anti-Spirals, along with the pilot.

Kidd Knuckle

Kidd Knuckle (キッドナックル, Kiddo Nakkuru?) is the Gunman piloted by Team Dai-Gurren member Kidd. This Gunman resembles a monkey armed with a pair of guns. Like the other Team Dai-Gurren Gunmen, it was believed to be destroyed after Grapearls were adopted by the military but was later upgraded and reintroduced by Leite in the second part of the series. Similar to Space Ainzer, the Space Kidd Knuckle looks similar to its original model but has an additional set of enormous rocket thrusters on its back. The Anti-Spirals destroyed this Gunman, along with the pilot.

Twin Boukun

Twin Boukun (ツインボークン, Tsuin Bōkun?) is a Gunman jointly piloted by the twin brothers, Jogan and Barinbo. It resembles two faces, each with a fist coming out of its mouth and a leg coming out of its neck. This Gunman vastly differs from most others, as it apparently sports two cockpits, each with a full array of controls similar to that of a typical cockpit. Apparently, this means that each twin would only control half of the twin boukun, making it unpilotable by anyone else (as a strong understanding between the two pilots must exist for them to coherently use the gunman, much less to use it with skill). Like the other Team Dai-Gurren Gunmen, it was believed to be destroyed after Grapearls were adopted by the military but was later upgraded and reintroduced by Leite in the second part of the series. The design of the colossal Space Twin Boukun differs from the original in more ways than the other Space Gunmen, having its general design altered so that it has a small head on the center of its body while the two larger faces of the mech act as the shoulders. This is likely due to the original Twin Boukun requiring two pilots, while the larger Space Twin Boukun only needed one. It also has much more detailed armor, a drill and horns protruding of various places and is a good percentage larger than the rest of the Space Gunmen counterparts. In a last-ditch effort to save Gimmy and Darry, Jogan and Barinbo sacrificed themselves so that the twins may make it to the Super Galaxy Dai Gurren, whilst shielding them from enemy fire, which destroyed the Space Twin Boukun, and by extension the original Twin Boukun and the pilots. Unlike the other Gunman destroyed by the Anti-Spirals, which exploded with minimal damage, the Space Twin Boukun detonated in a massive fireball, engulfing dozens or hundreds of enemies.

Sozoshin

The Sozoshin is Zoushi's personal Gunman, which he pilots as part of the main group of Gunmen Team Dai-Gurren deploys. Unlike the other core Gunmen, it's design is peculiar and squarish, not resembling any sort of animal or other object. Believed to be destroyed after the adoption of the Grapearls by the human military, the Sozoshin, among other Gunmen from Team Dai-Gurren, were in fact retrieved and maintained by Makken and Leite, who also equipped them with Spiral Energy-based weaponry. In the final part of the series an Arc-Gurren sized version of this Gunmen named the Space Sozoshin is created by Leite. However, it is later destroyed by the Anti-Spirals, along with the Sozoshin and its pilot inside.

Moshogun

Moshogun (モーショーグン, Mōshōgun?), piloted by Makken, is part of Team Dai-Gurren's main Gunmen squad. One of its weapons is a large katana, and its physical appearance is that of an ancient Japanese samurai. Believed to be destroyed after the adoption of the Grapearls by the human military, the Moshogun, among other Gunmen from Team Dai-Gurren, were in fact retrieved and maintained by Makken and Leite, who also equipped them with Spiral Energy-based weaponry. Makken is the first to appear to face the Mugann threat in his newly rebuilt Gunman. The Space Moshogun sports more armor and two katana as opposed to one. It was destroyed when Makken took a suicide dive into an Anti-Spiral missile in an effort to protect the Super Galaxy Dai-Gurren.