Warning! This article contains SPOILERS for Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans.
Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans is the final entry in Guillermo del Toro's Tales of Arcadia and it includes an excellent nod to another Del Toro project, Pacific Rim. Now streaming on Netflix, the DreamWorks Animation series comes full circle with Rise of the Titans. In the film, characters from across the Tales of Arcadia shows - Trollhunters, 3Below, and Wizards - come together to not just save Arcadia but the whole world from an apocalyptic threat.
Guillermo del Toro is a prolific filmmaker whose work includes Hellboy (2004), Pan's Labyrinth, and 2018 Best Picture-winner The Shape of Water. His films always incorporate elements of fantasy, horror, and science fiction, and nowhere is the latter more obvious than with Pacific Rim, his 2013 movie about humans who pilot giant robots (Jaegars) to fight off attacks from giant monsters (Kaiju). Pacific Rim is an obvious homage to the mecha and kaiju stories that del Toro loves, and now, his Trollhunters movie is paying homage to it.
In Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans, the titular Titans are colossal, kaiju-like creatures brought to life by the Arcane Order. They tower over cities and emit attacks based on the element of their controlling mage; fire, ice, or nature. Needless to say, these Titans are nearly impossible for the Guardians of Arcadia to fight based on their sheer size alone, so luckily, they have a secret weapon: Gun Robot. Dispatched by the Akiridion fleet, Gun Robot is an enormous mech created by Eli Pepperjack, who's been living on Akiridion-5 since the 3Below season 2 finale. Eli based his mech design on the in-universe Gun Robot movie series, which itself is a bit of a Pacific Rim parody. Eli's Gun Robot is piloted by Varvatos Vex and it engages in battle with Bellroc's fire Titan in the waters surrounding Hong Kong. Their slugfest is an epic battle between robot and kaiju, and very reminiscent of the fights seen in Pacific Rim. Sadly, Bellroc’s Titan proves to be too much for even Gun Robot and the giant mech is ultimately melted down by the monster's fire and lava.
Actually bringing Gun Robot to life within the Tales of Arcadia universe is just the sort of big spectacle moment a finale like Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans deserves. It's also a neat way to show how Eli hasn't just grown up while living on Akiridion-5, but has also learned a great deal about alien technology and engineering. He hasn't lost his sense of fun, either, as evidenced by the chain he installed that makes the machine bellow, “I AM GUN ROBOT,” whenever Varvatos pulls it.
It isn't too surprising Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans includes a nod to another Guillermo del Toro project, but Gun Robot as a Pacific Rim parody is easily one of the more blatant references the series has made. Gun Robot even bears a passing resemblance to the main Jaeger from Pacific Rim, Gipsy Danger. There's only one pilot for Gun Robot, however, unlike the linked pairs who pilot Pacific Rim's Jaegers, and rather than mimicking movements, Gun Robot includes more traditional cockpit controls. Interestingly, though, the Titans that the Arcane Order control do mimic the movements of their pilots and are even magically linked with them. When Nari and Skrael fight each other, for instance, the injuries their Titans endure are passed on to them. So while Gun Robot is the clear Pacific Rim homage, the Titans also share some similarities with concepts from that film.
Since Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans is the last installment in Tales of Arcadia, and given that Gun Robot meets its demise in the movie, this is very likely the last it will be seen. But if Tales of Arcadia were to continue in some way, then a story featuring another Gun Robot or similar mech would be a great option to explore. Just as 3Below was a change of pace from Trollhunters, favoring alien tech over ancient magic, a new chapter where a young hero must learn to pilot a giant Pacific Rim-like robot rather than wield a magic amulet would make an excellent addition to the Tales of Arcadia universe.