Anime where two ships merge together and mechs that join up

Question

This is set in the future when Earth is split between two organisations. Women and men split and went to space but both have went in opposite directions.

The guys and the girls both have mechs that they control. Under the right circumstances, certain mechs can combine to make unique mechs. Both the guys and the girls have a common enemy that they fight together to defeat.

It's somewhat like Gurren Lagann when they combine to make a stronger mech. I think it was made in the 1990's to 2006 may be older.

Japanese-style animation I think? This was on Netflix when I watched it, but it is not there anymore.

Answer 1

This sounds like it's almost certainly Vandread, an anime series from Gonzo.

• Aired in 2000,
• Men and women live in separate colonies from each other and most go their entire lives having never seen someone of the opposite sex (the first episode has a propaganda video portraying women as horrible monsters that leave men traumatized)
• Battles take place in space using mecha,
• The male main character discovers his mech can join with the mechs of the female characters so lots of the female cast become eager to 'join' with him in a thinly veiled metaphor,
• The men and women share a common alien enemy in the Harvesters.

Answer 2

Vandread:

The separation or men and women:

Set in a universe where humans have colonized the galaxy, and in one star system, men and women are completely segregated (on completely different planets: Mejere by the women, Taraak by the men) causing the gender war to be more than just a metaphor.

For the fusion of the ships:

Nirvana

The battleship the characters use throughout the series. It houses the Pragma Paxis as the ship's core, powering almost anything within the vessel. After the Ikazuchi battleship and Magno's pirate ship were thrown into the wormhole, created by the Paksis, both ships began to fuse with one another.

The Vanguards/Bangaata can also fuse.

Japanese animation with some early 3D rendering, that stand out.

The original run was October 3, 2000 – December 26, 2000 so the time frame is good.