Yes. It doesn't look like normal mecha anime but I don't see it as a parody anime. I believe it can be a good anime for starter since Gurren Lagann shows how crazy and stupid anime can be sometime.
Sure, but the show is explicitly a deconstruction of Neon Genesis Evangelion.
NGE was a deconstruction of ordinary mecha anime.
I'm not saying someone with no experience with anime couldn't enjoy GL, but it's wrapped in so many layers of meta, most of the themes and inside jokes would be missed.
Good lord, 2640 episodes with a total runtime of over 37 days.
I also just checked, and these shows (the ones still airing anyway) are able to have episode discussion threads requested from the bot if there are people that want to discuss them. Not sure how big the Chibi Maruko-chan audience might be in this community, but the capability is there if they exist and are looking for a home.