Aura: Maryuuin Kouga Saigo no Tatakai

There comes a time when most of us tend to dislike reality. Boring people, normal unending days, and nothing much to do. Then we turn to fiction. We visualize ourselves as someone we're not and, in extreme cases, live up to our fantasies.

That's what Aura's story is mainly about. Aura is about a story of former chuunibyou (8th grader syndrome) case who's now trying to become a normal person, that is until a faithful encounter with a girl who calls herself as a "researcher" searching for dragon terminals. At first, he hesitates on helping her as he doesn't want to have a relapse again but ... soon finds out that she needs his help.

Aura: Maryuuinkouga Saigo no Tatakai is a slice of life story that has a subliminal message. We all know the pain of bullying either as the recipient of it or as a bystander observing the damage done to the bullied. It's never beautiful and that's what Aura conveys. It shows how people tend to step on other people when they outshine them in certain weird and quirky ways. It is less a comedy show (unlike Chunnibyou demo koi ga shitai) and more of a drama with realistic elements.

The art and music of this show is about average and there's nothing much to revolve about in the story but the main driving point of the show are the characters. This movie is all about character development. You start off with a doubting protagonist that would end up as a dependable friend for a lot of people. That's the norm and this doesn't deviate much from it except for the fact that the heroine not depended on him but he changed her. All of the characters can give you the proper emotions. You take pity on those who are being bullied and you get mad at the antagonists. Personally, there was a time I was afraid I'd punch my monitor because of the rage building up inside me. That's how well the characters can pull you into their simple lives, something most shows can't do.

Overall, the movie is enjoyable. The flow of the story is smooth. Despite the abrupt turn of events in the middle to last scenes, the story progression feels natural and believable. It feels like you're seeing real people and not just an animation so kudos to the voice acting staff in that division. You're surely bound for a roller coaster of emotions for this piece that would lead you to tears, anger, and smiles. Just try to view this movie with an open mind (Please don't try to compare this with Chu-2 since they are both different) and I'm sure you'll enjoy every twist and turn you're gonna go through.

This gentleman in the times when he had nothing to do—as was the case for most of the year—gave himself to the reading of books of knight errantry; which he loved and enjoyed so much that he almost entirely forgot his hunting, and even the care of his estate. So odd and foolish, indeed, did he grow on this subject that he sold many acres of cornland to buy these books of chivalry to read. … [In the end], he so buried himself in his books that he spent the nights reading from twilight till daybreak and the days from dawn till dark; and so ... from little sleep and much reading, his brain dried up and he lost his wits.
(Don Quixote)

On first glance, the Don Quixote is a very clunky tome of a book, with about 800 pages, full of slapstick moments, very unrealistic damsel-in-distress-esque female characters, lengthy and possibly monotonous digressions, and, even with the Modern lauded Edith Grossman translation, still reads like a sack of old bricks. The style of the book, when seen from contemporary times, is very much like Cervantes' description of the Don and his horse, a thin crooked gentleman on an equally battered mare riding off godspeed into who knows what kind of uncharted territory. The experience of reading the book itself was, to me, partially entertaining, due to the comedy and wit of some of the scenes given that it's one of the first books to properly use metafiction; but most of it was a lump of text after text that bored into my skull.

Yet classics must not be read in isolation. The Quixote has been called the Spanish Bible, has been lauded by all sorts of writers such as Borges, Kafka, existential philosopher Miguel de Unamuno, the orientalist Simon Leys (who wrote a very very good essay on its importance in the world) and even hated on by Nabokov. A classic is not merely a text by itself but it sucks history itself with it and must also be read within the soup of history itself. What is it exactly that makes this comedy of an old man who becomes a knight in a world where chivalry is dead and gone so edifying and grand?

The answer here is in the word 'becomes'. This quote comes from Simon Leys' essay:

"The occupation which Don Quixote chooses for himself is that of knight errant. He is not under the delusion that he is a knight errant—no, he sets his mind on becoming one. He does not play at being someone else, as children do in their games; he is not pretending to be someone else, like an impostor, or impersonating a character, like an actor on stage. And he adopts the profession of knight after due reflection: it is the result of a deliberate choice. After having considered other options, he finally decided that the career of a knight errant would be the most rewarding, intellectually and morally.

But how does one become a knight? Van Doren asks. By acting like a knight—which is the very opposite of pretense, of make-believe. And to act the way Don Quixote does is more than to ape. To imitate as he does is a profound apprenticeship—the true way of learning and the key to understanding. “What is the difference between acting like a great man and being one?” Van Doren asks. “To act like a poet is to write poems; to act like a statesman is to ponder the nature of goodness and justice; to act like a student is to study; to act like a knight is to think and feel like one.”

Had Don Quixote been simply and plainly mad, or had he indulged in a protracted game of self-deception and play-acting, we should not be talking of him now, Van Doren observes—“We are talking of him because we suspect that, in the end, he did become a knight.”

This is the crux of the Quixote, which is to provide a vision of a man who decided that, with nothing being right with reality, it should be slayed. The dragon in the Quixote is not the windmills, nor is it the giant, but all of life itself, and to be exact Spanish life in the 17th century, full of small little taverns and farmers leading mundane lives. And the most stunning thing of all is that he actually succeeds, in ingraining himself into the view of the reader. Regardless of whether Don Quixote is a good knight or a bad knight, by the end of the story he is still, utmost and completely, a knight.

But being a knight is no easy task, especially in a world where knights are dead. Nabokov's great gripe with the book is that he found it to be too cruel. "Hideous cruelty —with or without the author's intent— which riddles the whole book and befouls its humor". The sheer about of blows that fall on the two main characters would probably be enough to cause significant limb and spinal injury to render them both invalids for life. The laughter and exploitation of the Don's position, especially in the later part of the book, is the pinnacle of Schadenfreude. But actually what makes the Don is its cruelty. Without cruelty, the Don would not have become, to us, a knight. He would not be a knight because he would have no dragons, and nothing would prevent him from being viewed as merely a play-actor leading a life of luxurious delusion. It is because the Don struggles at any cost that he becomes edifying. Unamuno wrote an entire book arguing that Don Quixote was an existentially real human being, even more so than his creator, who has been lost more or less in the annals of history as a paper patchwork of sources and university historical analyses.

Likewise Borges himself wrote a story about a man on a strange task, to write the Don Quixote without actually reading it, by fully assimilating the writer into himself and creating the work exactly as the writer should have done. The surprising thing too is that Pierre Menard succeeds in his quest to write the Don Quixote.

It is an interesting observation to make that today's world, rather than suffer from an exceeding amount of simulation brought about by media and video game addiction, seems in fact to also suffer from an overload of Reality. Nowadays we live in the shadow of Youtube and quick and easy video devices. There is no bad deed that is not filmed and uploaded out there. There is no embarrassment that has not been captured. We live in a world full of endless depictions of the true disgusting horrors of war, the silliness of broken testicles by people who commit acts of grandiose insanity, religious organizations and fundamentalists being stripped apart as lunatics, and all sorts of miscarriages of justice. Idealism is stark dead because no one can do any vigilantism without having shaky cam footage of some drunk idiot in a suit getting slammed by a beer bottle soberly stripping apart the fantasies of the millions behind computer screens. In some strange way society has hardened itself up against fantasy while equally basking in it. This means that the ideal world and the real world do not mingle like before but are put behind stark bars; an either/or proposition.

Without the power of fantasy, some of our greatest exploits would become woefully insignificant, and we wouldn't be driven by the mad feelings to stop that bully or confess to that girl or do something to win the favor of the people around us. The sad thing is that now all these fairy moods are recorded down strictly and objectively in places everywhere, where men can all be judged without regard for subjectivity. Its not a bad thing though, since it also means that the grand horrors of Nazi Germany, with its monstrous spilling over of fantasy, has a much much lesser chance of coming to pass. But in the end everything must be done in moderation. An excess of fantasy is just as bad as an excess of reality; by strictly stratifying the two into two separate domains, some which the psychoanalyst Carl Jung was fighting desperately against, human being was divided without being able to become whole.

(On a side note here. Tanaka Romeo, who wrote the original Light Novel for Aura, has been considered one of the greatest writers of Visual Novels and Light Novels ever, sometimes even considered as the Shakespeare of the LN/VN industry. His major themes are usually about outcasts and people who are split away from the norm, as well as some critiques launched at social institutions. Sadly from some comments floating out there on the net, it seems his work will never be fully appreciated except in the original language.)

In today's stratified world, reality and fantasy have both reached their extreme ends. Hard pragmatism and self-interest plagues hordes of politicians and citizens, while the other half are so far off into the realm of delusion that there is almost no referent back to reality, sometimes due to the disproportionate social backlash that results from it. Fantasies are regulated into 'subcultures', 'phenomena', 'fashions', 'fads', or even worse 'mental disorders' (I'm okay with the belief that certain mental symptoms can be 'cured' just as easily as physical symptoms, but the modern perception of mental disorder, especially among people who don't know exactly what it means, is a whole other different matter), and other big labels indicating that these are separate from life itself, based on some tenuous set parameters where fringewalkers can mingle with other fringewalkers without falling into the general 'mainstream'. The fact is that these are all as much manifestations of Life and Society as the so-called norm. (It may be a result of the political structure that this results. For an interesting viewpoint see Hunter S Thompson's brilliant journal on using fringe culture to try and affect politics in Aspen.)

But in this world can then anyone be so fully and existentially self-determined to be 'rationally fantastic'? That perfect blend of reason and fantasy that has shook many readers to the core ever since the Don Quixote was first created? There are many thinkers and people who have been posited as such, such as Che Guevara, Renzo Novatore, Max Stirner, Jack Kerouac, and other idealists. The stark difference though is that these are merely idealistic are not 'fantasists' like the Don.

Which brings us to Aura. This adaptation of the Tanaka Romeo light novel works by being a whole lot more cruel, and as a result a whole lot more cathartic, than that other famous Kyoani Chuunibyou work out there. Sadly it probably doesn't do the original enough justice, and it also suffers from extensive melodrama and too black-and-white a morality. Also none of the characters ever take things to the extent that the Don does, and in the end they still come off as play-acting heroes rather than really being them. Much of the 'humor', if this can even be considered the comedy, comes from the insane technolingo that comes out of the main heroine's mouth in reaction to completely ordinary situations. The movie has moments, like von Trier's Dogville, where you get a cheap satisfaction or feel needlessly enraged because of the stark villainy and the stark heroism. This would probably work better if it had been longer, but yet for what it gives us, it's worth a watch. But upon coming to the finale, something amazing happens. Whereas Don Quixote was about the Don's madness striving on in spite of the relentless cruelty of the world, what happens at the end of Aura is the opposite, where madness succeeds in infecting reality, and the world transforms into an Expressionistic-Romantic landscape so brilliant and powerful that it becomes a full exaltation of the need for escape in a bitter reality.

In any case Aura walks down the road left behind by Cervantes; a critique of stark realism, and in praise of fantasy.

Seiji Kishi is an interesting director. But rather than go into a couple paragraphs about him, all you need to know is that he’s a great director when it comes to comedy and a pretty poor director when it comes to everything else. However, as of late, Kishi’s really hit a new low by taking a really interesting story and slaughtering it with his poor directing. With his half-assed video game adaptations being his biggest felon, it’s no surprise that people have been panning him.

Aura’s a different story though. This time, Kishi takes a not-so interesting story and actually brings it to life with pretty ... great direction... and it's not a comedy either... it's a drama... (Say whaaaat?)

Being a film with only 80 minutes, I believed this shaped Kishi up just a little. There’s no random sidetracking, no rushing to try to get to the meat of the story, no chopping transitioning and none of those odd “gaps” we often see with Kishi’s series. Aura is deliberately paced and the direction is dead on with what it wants to achieve. I might argue that the direction is a little too dead-on; some small breathers to focus in on some smaller moments would have been nice.

But overall, Kishi’s directing is great from the beginning to the end of the film and it’s his directing which brings Aura’s generic story to life.

There is honestly nothing we haven’t seen before about Aura. It’s a more mature look at what a victim of chuunibyo suffers from, but everything plays out like a typical highshcool bullying story. There are no twists or turns. Everything can be seen coming from a mile away. Yet the story still works well and it’s not simply due to the directing.

First off, the dialogue is certainly well written as there’s this genuine sense of realism in which the main characters speak that many will be able to resonate to.

But secondly, the drama is simply well done.

I was expecting the drama to either be Kishi’s usual lifeless crap or something along the line of Mari Okada’s overbearingly blown out melodrama. Instead, Aura’s drama falls perfectly in the center. Everything feels natural. Angst and conflicts are perfectly and realistically presented instead of a cheap means to manipulate the viewer's emotion. The drama is sweet, it’s sincere, it’s heartfelt and it’s heartbreaking.

Unfortunately, the drama could have been more powerful too. Whether it was simply the writing itself and simply because the film was too short – I take blame with the latter – Aura felt just a little lacking. It takes its generic story much further than most and turns it into something great, but not amazing. The characters are likeable and easy to sympathize with, but are far from being anything spectacular. Its major themes and the romantic relationship between our lead couple did hit many notes with me but ultimately they don’t feel fully developed to truly became powerful and thus it just misses the mark of being truly remarkable.

Because honestly, I found the final scene where the male lead confronts the female lead at the tower of desks to be absolutely brilliant and it would have been more so if we were given just a little more development.

Final Verdict:

Story – Generic but is brought to life by good directing, unfortunately due to the length of the film the story does not feel fully developed

Characters – Likeable and easy to sympathize with, but like the story, they lack full development

Setting – A nice theme that would have been stronger with more time to develop

Production Values – Far from being outstanding, the artwork and animation are still both pretty. The music, on the other hand, is pretty damn good

Do I recommend?: I was contemplating giving this an anime a 7 or an 8 and while technically speaking, I believe Aura only deserves a 7, I’ve got to take my own personal enjoyment into account with my reviews and give a 8 (yeah, yeah I'm a sucker for this sentimental bullying kind of stuff). Regardless, I’d recommend to give Aura a try. It’s short and sweet, and while not as profound as it could have been, Aura still tugs lightly at the heart strings and it sure left me with a big smile on my face after the film finished.

It was fine.

Characters were taking stuff so seriously that I figured it would lead to a bigger conclusion then, "Life kinda sucks some times, AmIRite."
There were subtle hints that there might actually be a conspiracy here. The teacher was kind of an ass, the girl can copy voices too well, the family acts kinda suspiciously when Ichirou comes home, and Ryouko built a palace out of school desks in an afternoon.
For a while I was thinking maybe the main character actually seriously hurt someone with his chunni tenancies, or maybe attempted suicide. That could explain some stuff more clearly. Instead he got ... beaten by his parents for having an imaginary girl friend. Don't get me wrong, I can see how that would be traumatic, but for me that comes off as a massive over reaction. Cultural stigmas don't translate well, I guess.

Oh yeah, and the R+ rating was forced in there, for a blatant fan service scene.

Aura is a film that tries to give a good message, being an attempt to make "Don Quixote" modern. With the difference that instead of a crazy man now it is a cute waifu.

Story (5/10):
It's funny how this movie puts more emphasis on its characters than on its message and yet this is the only aspect that do not completely fail.
Even with that, we must also highlight the incompetence of the writer, the film begins by talking about bulling and ends with a message of accepting oneself at the same time that out of nowhere everyone wants to be like the lunatics of the ... protagonists.
I don't like the changes in tone either, I feel like they want to manipulate your feelings, when the plot needs it the movie becomes very depressing or very optimistic.
On top of that, I didn't manage to take almost anything seriously at the beginning of the film, why in all the movies about bulling the antagonists are one-dimensional baddies who treat people badly just because?
Finally, the aspect that makes me take the film even less seriously is the immeasurable amount of inconsistencies that exist throughout the film, things like Ryouko building a temple of tables in an afternoon do not have a fucking sense.
In conclusion the message is still there is only that the presentation and execution fails completely.

Art and sound (5/10):
The animation is ok but it is nothing to write home about, it works well even so I would like to emphasize that despite being a bit forgettable I like the designs (Ryouko's reminds me of Boogiepop). In sound aspect it is ok, the music is quite forgettable and the voice acting is ok too.

Character (4/10):
The characters are in my opinion the worst aspect of the movie (which is a shame since the movie places a lot of emphasis on them).
The protagonist is the only one who is partially well written since at least they gave him some development (going from interest to repression to acceptance) also the way in which his development is executed is very well done without any abrupt changes.
Outside of the protagonist, the other characters are poorly executed such as bullies, which are one-dimensional and wasted potential (For example, it is not understood what the point is with Yumina, is she envious? Is she jealous? Is she also repressing herself? none of that is taken advantage of and in the end ends up being a bad person just because)
Other characters like Kume or the master are just plot devices with legs.
And the only reason why people like Ryouko is because she is a cute waifu, if anyone came across someone like that in real life, the most possible thing would be to think that woman is crazy (and what if she was also ugly ). These kinds of doubles standards are everywhere in animation. In addition, Ryouko feels very exaggerated, she takes her fantasy world too seriously, as I said, if such a person existed in reality, the most possible is that he is in a psychiatric hospital and not in a school (And where the hell are his parents? ?, the girl misses classes for a week and her parents do nothing about it).

Overall (4.75/10):
Aura is a movie that tries to give a good message but that fails in its presentation and execution causing the movie to end up being one of the many in the end (At least it is better than other anime about bulling cof cof koe no katachi cof cof).

Let me start by saying this anime NEEDS to be seen by more people.

A good way to enjoy this anime to the fullest is to NOT read the synopsis. I watched the anime like a week after I added it to my "Plan to watch" list, so I had completely forgotten what it's about, and that helped to greatly enhance my experience. I was hooked ever since the first minute. Afterwards I was a bit lost in the story, mainly because I kept wondering what is real and what is not. Not to mention my utter confusion as to how the beginning of the ... anime connects to the rest of the story. At the end, when all the puzzle pieces were finally put together, the message of the anime hit me so hard that I cried A LOT. I can honestly say I relate to this anime on a personal level. The bullying was shown in such a raw and impactful way that it can easily beat other anime movies such as "A silent voice".

My first review, sorry if there are lot mistakes but it really deserve some review so let's just get into it.

Story : 8(Very Good)
I can't call it's masterpiece because there are still lacking of information and depth but it's really expose how society judge people who different and it portrait them really well, this type of story already used by some anime out there like chuunibyou but this one portrait it better than I think it would be..

Art : 7(Good)
Art quality for movie is not something stand out or I should say it's just mediocre since it's created by A.I.C but some moment of movie ... really stand out so I will let out for art quality

Sound : 6(Fair)
There aren't any of sound really stand out during the movies except for the ending which bring me goose bump.

Character : 8(Very Good)
Love both MC, the main male probably look more realistic to me and the main female just cute the way she act around.

Enjoyment : 9(Great)
I really craving for this type of anime so it really hook me up from the beginning until the end.

Overall : 8(Very Good)
If you have really high expectation for this one you must be disappointed but this movie give us some enjoyment from rom-com and some drama here and there. If you craving to watch some good romantic comedy anime you probably enjoy this movie, so give this one a shot

As MAL includes a synopsis and you're here reading this, I start my review deducting you are somewhat interested in this film and you already have a basic notion of its plot.

Despite what the cover might imply, this is not really a magical girl film. The superpower idea is there, but it won't bother those who don't like the genre, and those who do will have it just with a bit of imagination. I don’t think this should be catalogued as comedy like MAL put it, that I noticed very few moments were intended to make you laugh and it is mostly drama, dissembled or ... clear.

In cases of bullying there are mainly two types of people in relation to the ones that are harassed: people who don't care or don't involve in fear of becoming bullied themselves, and people who help those in need in compliance with the consequences.
The main character in this story is the second type, nonetheless he is still influenced by the thoughts and actions of others on him, changing his exterior facade through the story. Hiding one’s inner self and confronting others if it comes out is something that gets a lot of importance in the movie.
For these reasons Ichirou Satou's evolution is one of the reasons for which this plot is interesting to follow. The other is the main protagonist Ryouko Satou. She's a strange girl who (apparently) nothing affects, and she clashes into Ichirou's gloomy world changing the uninteresting way of life he had had for months. Though from a hostile and outsider point of view they would seem completely different (an ordinary student and a freak) the plot unveils they have much in common apart from their surnames (to avoid confusion I will refer to them with their first name).

Ryouko’s difference with the rest of the world is also shown in the animation: her eyes are brighter and warmer than anyone else’s and her hair shines more. In some scenes you can notice a change of light (a park of brighter greens in comparison to the greys around it, or the sun’s orange light in the darkness), but most of the film is presented in shadowy, opaque colours. The school is one of the (scarce) scenarios where this is most obvious, and (excluding Ryouko with her notorious attire) everyone there is coloured in the same muted tones. Characters are drawn with simple traces, becoming the eyes more detailed in close shots (as usual) but though I think the design to be pretty and I do not consider the choice of colours as inadequate for the film, the animation’s cleanliness fails when faces portray strong emotions. In some scenes I guess angry or anxious people were intended to have a crazy gaze, but in others this is exaggerated or the features seem just badly drawn during sudden changes of positions. Fortunately, this happens mostly in the beginning and when the film is reaching its end we are granted with beautiful and carefully drawn shots.

About sound, some of the soundtrack might seem typical, but the OST has some nice pieces and it almost always fits the image well, concluding the film with a song adequate for the mood. I think voice actors did a good job (especially Nobunaga Shimazaki as Ichirou), displaying all the different and numerous moods these characters show. During the movie also a couple out-of-place fanservice moments appear, but as they are short and unusual scenes they don’t influence the story’s style.

Story: 8
Art: 6.9
Sound: 7.5
Character: 8.6
Enjoyment: 8.3
Overall: 7.86

Overall, this might not be a film at its highest referring to technical, but it’s the emotional part what makes you like it. Or better, the story’s development. In fact, it begins with a low level of tension, but it evolves to some special last minutes. I would recommend the movie to that people who want to see how normal people deal with the 'antinatural' or what someone feels when helping a person who’s trying to overcome the same problems. Or to someone that just wants to know why a girl is carrying a cloak and a box on a stick!

This was first review ever! If you did not found it helpful, I hope it at least offered you something new. Thanks for reading.

I suppose the closest title you could compare Aura to would be Love, Chuunibyo and Other Delusions in that both explore a male lead trying to move on from his middle school days as a chuunibyo and encountering a girl his age undergoing the same delusions of grandeur that he went through in middle school. Unlike the mentioned TV anime that is more light-hearted and comical in its focus on Yuuta and Rikka, Aura explores the chuunibyo issue in a more realistic bent as Ryoko and other chuunibyo like her in their school are social outcasts who face frequent bouts of bullying. Ichiro's past as ... a chuunibyo in middle school is a dramatic one full of similar issues as Ryoko's as he tries fitting in with others while getting dumped with the task of looking after Ryoko as she goes through her delusions as a chuunibyo. Throughout the movie, Ichiro finds himself conflicted with how to handle Ryoko as his attempts to protect her from bullying lead him to face pressure from both the chuunibyo seeking his support and the normal crowds wanting him to butt out of their hazing on the chuunibyo students. This drives the developing relationship he has with Ryoko throughout the movie which does come off as a natural one thanks to the gradual changes that both their characters undergo.

Aura is not without its faults though. The climax to it borders a bit on the absurd and pushes believability quite a bit with how one of the major characters in the film could set it up, as well as the visuals to Aura looking more on par in quality with a TV anime than a movie. But perhaps the biggest issue I took with Aura had to do with how it addresses its chuunibyo issue. While more realistic in exploring the issue, the film suffers the same fate as Love, Chuunibyo and Other Delusions in that it chickens out with how to resolve the chuunibyo issue and the moral it pushes with conformity and regarding more unique traits as a bother may not sit well with Western viewers since the Japanese culture mostly values group over individual social dynamics.

While I did have interest in the more realistic direction that Aura addresses the chuunibyo issue, it still suffers in lacking a satisfying resolution to the situation and having a rather ridiculous climax with Ichiro and Ryoko's situation. The film as a whole is still mostly enjoyable for the character development and chemistry between our two leads, but the finale of the film will not be one to satisfy everyone.

Warning: spoilers ahead

It was about a month ago I watched this movie. I saw people comparing it to Chuunibyou, which I love, so I thought “oh this is going to be great”. Well, I was right, though not in the way I thought. See, Aura takes the idea of chuunibyou, but instead of making it lighthearted and comedic, it puts a darker spin on it. It’s much more dramatic than Chuunibyou was, which was refreshing. I don’t think I’ve ever seen an anime that actually took the 8th grade syndrome elements with any amount of sincerity. Off the top of my head, the anime I’ve ... seen chuunibyou in is OreImo, Haganai, Sabagebu, and, of course, Chuunibyou. There’s probably more I’m forgetting. However, not a single one of them took it seriously. And that’s what sets this apart from the others.

Story: 9.5/10
The story of Aura is very focused. Maybe because it’s a movie with a limited amount of time, or maybe because of the writing, or some other completely different reason, it has direction. Without spoiling too much, it takes the idea of chuunibyou and asks “what if society was less accepting of this”. There’s a huge stigma against people like Ryouko and Ichirou. Ichirou has learned this and conformed to the standards, but Ryouko hasn’t. The bullying scene(s) really worked well for drama. They felt natural, realistic. It felt like something that would really happen, maybe because I’ve seen the same thing happen at my middle school.

Now I’m going to talk about the ending, so stop reading if you haven’t seen it and don’t want to be spoiled. So basically Takanashi Rikka builds this huge contraption out of school desks on top of the roof. How she managed to do that is beyond me, and I wish they’d addressed that, but it wasn’t enough to ruin it for me. She basically says that in order to complete the incantation, she need to kill herself. It’s at this point that you realize just how obsessed she is. Throughout the whole movie it just felt like a game of hers. But now that she’s actually ready to jump off the school roof in order to complete the incantation you realize that oh shit she is way too into this. It was an awesome setup. Maybe it’s just me and my love of tragic endings, but I feel like the ending would have been been better if she’d actually gone off the edge. It would have at least been much more dramatic and in line with the tone of the rest of the movie. The happy ending felt like it kinda came out of nowhere, and the sad ending would have just worked more naturally. Regardless, the story was amazing.

Characters: 9/10
Our main characters, Ryouko and Ichirou, are the two most fleshed out characters in the movie. Ichirou is a former chuunibyou whose delusions drove his family apart. He henceforth decided to never be a chuunibyou or associate with them. This is fine as a character motivation, although the idea that his parents actually beat him because of his delusions is kinda bullshit. Ryouko is just fuckin crazy. At first she seems like a “normal” chuunibyou girl, but as time goes on you realize she’s reeeeally into this shit. She’s a very interesting character, and her relations to the bullying are realistic and believable. The bullies are really the only characters I had any issue with. They’re almost as two dimensional and evil as the bullies from Elfen Lied. I get that they weren’t supposed to be deep, fleshed out characters since they’re pretty much just plot devices, but still… they weren’t sympathetic at all. They felt inhuman, and even plot devices should feel a little bit human. At least in my opinion they should.

Art: 9/10
The art was really good. It looked beautiful and the coloration fit the mood very well. The final scene on the rooftop stands out in particular. The orange color added a mystical, final feeling to it. I loved the character design of Ryouko, even if she did look and feel like a carbon copy of Takanashi Rikka, as well as the costume she was always wearing. I have a soft spot for cool looking clothing.

Sound: 9/10
This series knew how to set the mood with music. I am once again going to refer to the ending scene with them on the roof. The music used adds to the drama really well, building up to a climax at the same pace as the events. However, none of it really stood out as something I’d listen to again and again. There wasn’t any music that I’d listen to and say “ah, that’s Aura music”.

Overall, I think Aura is a really well done movie. In the time they had, they managed to tell a believable, realistic story about delusions and the effect it can have on your social life. The characters were sympathetic (well, the characters who weren’t the bullies that is) and the art was stunning. This movie is worth a watch, especially since it isn’t very long.

I knew going into this that the movie was primarily about bullying, but it ended up being even more depressing than I expected. A Silent Voice did a great job of building that theme into a rich and well-developed story. Aura, unfortunately, just spends most of its short run-time beating us over the head with one miserable act of bullying after another. Every time I thought the story had hit its low point and was about to move forward, it just kept coming in with one low blow after another. When it did eventually move on to the climax, the resolution wasn't as cathartic as ... it could have been, and left some conflicts unresolved by the time the credits rolled. This was amended somewhat by mid-credits and post-credits epilogue scenes, but these flip-flop the ending back and forth to the point where it gets its messages muddled. It almost feels like it gave us the endings from two or three conflicting routes of a game, and consequently I have no idea what point it was actually trying to make.

"Aura: Koga Maryuin's Last War" is an anime that attempts to tackle the complexities of 'chuunibyou' with a serious twist. While it delves into the emotional aspects of adolescent escapism, the generic and cutesy art designs detract from its intended depth. The story touches on important themes but falls short in execution, leaving some scenes feeling forced and lacking impact. The characters' journeys are relatable, but the overall presentation may come across as pandering to a specific audience seeking waifu tropes.

The climax of Aura: Koga Maryuin's Last War is unfortunately marred by unrealistic, corny, and cringeworthy moments. As the narrative reaches its peak, the execution ... falls flat, relying on over-the-top melodrama that feels forced and out of place. The attempts at emotional impact come across as exaggerated and lacking authenticity, undermining the intended depth of the story. It's a disappointing culmination that leaves a sour taste and fails to deliver a satisfying resolution.

Despite its commendable effort to explore adolescence, Aura fails to deliver a truly compelling and engaging experience. Overall, the anime fails to deliver a compelling and cohesive narrative, making it a regrettable choice for anyone looking for a worthwhile watch.

Review of Aura: Maryuuin Kouga Saigo no Tatakai
Run time 90 Minutes
Aura is the story of a young man named Ichiro Satou. While in middle school he suffered from a case of youthful delusions of fantasy and grandeur, which caused him to be bullied throughout middle school. Now in high school, he strives to be a normal student. His teacher is aware of his past and uses him to help with another student a girl named Ryouko who has a similar case of delusions.

This plot gives us a lot to work with. Having observed how students are cruel and bully each other all the time I ... have empathy with the main character and the young lady he is tasked with helping. The colors of this story are in a muted tone and trend to the darker colors. While the music is a counterpoint to the story providing a push forward as you are watching.

I liked this story and how they blended escapism with reality to show the suffering of the main characters and even the struggles of the people around them. Growing up is a challenge yet we all have to walk this path. For some, the lure of fantasy, anime, manga all provides an escape from the mundane world that we currently live in. For others like me, writing provides our escape. This show is very much worth the watch as it opens the door to accept grow and change. I hope you take the time to go on this journey and perhaps discover something of your self hiding within.

I rated this show seven of ten. Mostly as it felt at times a touch rushed but all in all well worth the purchase. Welcome to the world we live in. With all of its failings and hardships it still holds the power that trumps all of that. the power of love.

It is a very interesting film at the beginning as you say I am watching, but as the film passes you see how the plot progresses. The protagonists are sweet together. I think it is very good how he portrays what happens at school with the other classmates, how there is that division between popular people and normal people. How the most popular are idealized. The animation is very cute, the main characters are very endearing. I liked the ending but it could have had a better ending in my opinion but the ending is not bad. I recommend it is a good movie.


En español:
Es ... un película muy interesante al comienzo medio como decís que estoy viendo pero a medida que pasa la película ves como avanza la trama. Los protagonista son re tiernos juntos me parece muy bueno como retrata lo que pasa en el colegio con los demás compañero, como hay esa división entre la gente popular y las personas normal. Como se idealiza a los mas populares. La animación es muy linda, los personajes son muy entrañables los principales. El final me gusto pero podría haber tenido un final mejor en mi opinión pero no esta mal el final. Lo recomiendo es una buena película.

Once again HanaKana beautiful sounds stunned me. No wonder i am so in love with this movie, not only cause her sound, her personality through Ryouko really get me into this show. The story premises keep simple until the end. No complex plot appear, just another bullying problem attach as a classical building. Then, what is the best, is the MC really gotten his self onto the knight. This is rather different by such a typical romance story appear with no good performance. Yet, this show proves how incredible its school was. Another perfect plan to show how good the story is.

With that all, no ... matter what people thought, no matter how people underestimate this, but my mind still clear. This is the best movie with simple premises, and such a nice ending i ever seen. The balance between real world and the fantasy one must be a great reason for me to actually thinking how good this movie was. No other choice. My point still relevant. Yet, another rant gone by some shitty people, so i shall be compromised their attitude.

Keeping the story still simple, while in another side the character itself feel complex seems to be a great challenge. But, this movie keep all flow going into the great direction. The MC here keep his cool til the end, even though his desire gone awhile in the middle. However, as simple as before, the MC actually realise his bad decision, and saved my girl from her dead. How sweet, with that big-ass built in like that, and their act, really got my feeling gone into the depth.

This is how i interpret how nice all the scenes are here. The happy ending, i love how mad sister Ichirou had there, im laughing when i know that shit. After that, ofc the last kissing between those twos shall be my reference how hot they are (i may say again, that scene as a twice kissing scenes, right? Now Ichirou can not ignore the feelings). And after credit scene with Ryouko casual cute uniform, and all going complete as HanaKana lovable sounds loaded my ears with so much feeling (yes Ryouko, you are now normal, my girl). All my dream just come to the truth. This is really good, no other words can describing what i feel right now!

Again, all good thing must come to an end. Ichirou first year high school, might be full of nightmare. However, when all gone to the happy ending, all costs must be paid in full of charge. Happy for knowing that thing happen. Thats all i can say. This movies was pure of magic. Ofc the magic by HanaKana cute sound really got this show as a magic world. As a romance genres, magic can clearly make people gone crazy, so do i. I gone crazy, and cry like a baby, and completely giving all my 10 into this beautiful movie.

Acknowledged.

Not once has i ever felt an anime or movie deserves a full 10 out of 10 movie until i saw this one. I had originally chose to watch it for i saw it was a comedy that was all. All i can say without ruining it for new people is it is a more drama than a comedy.

Imagine with that being the key word a world that gets you believing but wait that is not the case. For the actual set up is far more believable, but at the same time magical in a different sense. Having gone in the main ... characters shoes countless times the movie hit home for me in a sad way. However, i am glad it did and the director conveyed a beautiful ending message. I am sorry to those who are looking for a more detailed intro but doing that for this present(movie) would be a waste. You have to rip the wrapping paper off this present there is no other way.

*Spoilers ahead*

Unlike the poster that gives the impression to the potential audience that the movie will tell a fantasy and/or magical centered story, Aura: Koga Maryuin's Last War is a movie about a female character that is in a state of chunibyo, which seems like a delusion of something happening on a certain character doing an activity that is not connected with the reality. Oftenly related to magical stuff.
That action is obviously considered to be a weird habit to have, especially if done by someone that's not fit with their age. The said female character, Ryouko, then meets the main male character, Ichirou, by ... accident. Their journey begins after the encounter.

Now, let's get to the review

Story: 4/10
As I explained as an opening before, this movie tells a story centered on the female character that's in a state of chunibyo, Ryouko, and the "normal" male character, Ichirou. The movie starts off with a comedic and kind of cutesy approach for it's character introduction. Giving the audience an expectation that it would tell a heartwarming story. While it's true, the drama here is actually pretty heavy. After giving the audience a nice and calm introduction, the movie took a sudden turn with it's overly dramatic complication on the center of the movie's runtime. The drama is heavily focused on a horrible practice done by a bunch of students, which is bullying, targeted at Ryouko.
The sudden turn came in rather unexpected, in a bad way. It feels like a forced drama because there is no actual explanation for the bully to take those horrible action targeted to Ryouko. There's also this unexplained action taken by the said bullies to threaten Ichirou not to help Ryouko dealing with the bullies. Though the overly dramatic part of the movie might sets off the mood of the audience, the last part might bring back the audience's mood because of it's cute and heartwarming approach. Even so, the last part also came in with a flaw. A confusing act done by the main characters that are somewhat deviated with what they have experienced before.
While i know it's supposed to tell a philosophical story, it's just that the movie didn't explains much with how and why these things on the screen happening.

Art & Animation: 7/10
Nothing special with the overall art quality the movie gives. It looks like the overall quality is coming from a TV series as it just looks plain, but i guess we could look past that because it still looks nice. There's a scene with a detailed touch on the characters face, nicely pictures what reaction/expression the characters are having on some scenes. The animation is smooth and stable throughout the movie.

Sound: 8/10
Now, this category might be the one that the movie did best, especially the voice acting. The voice acting for almost every character here sounds natural. Their screams could even make some goosebumps, you could feel what the characters feels from their crying scenes, and there's a scene where a certain character talking with a calm tone which could make you feel sad and relaxed at the same time. The music is okay. The choices of the music placed on an important scene is good enough to set the mood for the audience. The sfx here is good. If you decided to watch this with a headphone on, you could even feel like you're in the movie because of the nice atmosphere the sfx gives.

Character: 6/10
As i mentioned before, the main characters of the movie are Ryouko and Ichirou. While being the main character of the story, the movie didn't give out much info and/or backgrounds of the main characters. It forcefully shoves up their backgrounds in the middle of the overly dramatic sequence of the movie, and didn't explains or even shows it properly. Making the audience confused with the overall actions taken by Ryouko and Ichirou when dealing with their problems. Even so, Ryouko and Ichirou's journey dealing with all the drama they experienced throughout the movies and their relationship development could make the audience cares about them and interested to watch their journey on the movie. The other characters though? Seems like they exist only to be a plot device. Not enough screentime to make the audience at least lay an eye on them. The side character's action is also did not explained clearly. There's a scene where one of the bully is confused with what is happening, and why their action became a bullying act, then in the next scene, they willingly bullies Ryouko just because of self satisfaction. Again, no clear and proper explanations.

Enjoyment: 8/10
I watched this movie with an expectation of it being a fantasy+action+romance anime, what i got is something unexpected that i didn't know i somewhat needed. It's a cute movie with a big turn of tone in the middle then ends with a nice and heartwarming moment. It's a pretty good movie to watch overall even though there's a lot of downs from the movie.

Overall: 6.6 -> 7: Good

Aura: Maryuuin Kouga Saigo no Tatakai is a Japanese anime film that explores the theme of escapism through the eyes of its two main characters, Ichirou Satou and Ryouko Satou. Ichirou is a high school student who is ridiculed for his past delusional behavior, while Ryouko is a new transfer student who shares Ichirou's love of fantasy and role-playing games.

From the very beginning, Aura draws the viewer in with its engaging characters and thought-provoking themes. The animation quality is impressive, with detailed character designs and beautiful background art that immerses the viewer in the story's setting.

The film's exploration of escapism and the dangers that come ... with it is handled with care and nuance, allowing the viewer to empathize with both Ichirou and Ryouko as they navigate their struggles with reality and fantasy.

While the film's pacing can be slow at times, the emotional payoff at the end makes it a satisfying and memorable viewing experience. Additionally, the film's musical score is beautiful and enhances the emotional impact of the story.

Overall, Aura: Maryuuin Kouga Saigo no Tatakai is a well-crafted anime film that is sure to appeal to viewers who enjoy character-driven stories and thought-provoking themes. Although it may not be everyone's cup of tea, those who give it a chance will be rewarded with a heartfelt and poignant story.

This movie was better than i expected. There is missing part why and when she became chunybo, and about her past which was not explained. And that bully girls didnt get what they deserved. This is more realistic aproach to the delusional world they create, like with bullying and stuff, but im glad he stod up for her even in hardest time. I can feel drama and romance in this movie which was refreshing considering how movies usually rush romance and plot. One thing bullies were right in this movie that those dress up etique was not proper, if everyone can wear school uniform, they ... can too. But to resort to bullying and violence thats different thing, but it was realistic which i liked. Teacher who used sato to help her was scumbag. Ending was nice and cute and she is slowly coming back to reality, i wish there is more to it but oh well i loved movie anyway.

Unless you are one of those few people that do their research before deciding to watch a show, you just like me came into this anime with very different expectations taking into account the anime's title and cover. You most likely came into the movie expecting a generic magic world type anime and got hit with something completely different, however in my opinion the story and setting of the anime is much better compared to a generic fantasy power type anime and the surprise subverting all your expectations actually enhances the overall experience of the show.
(P.S. I was made aware that many people recently gravitating ... to this movie were brought to it via tiktok but since I don't use the app as I enjoy keeping my braincells intact I have no way of confirming if this show is really that popular on the app)

Plot: The anime mainly focuses on two concepts bullying and Chuunibyou or the eighth grade syndrome, a term presented to us on many other anime, which is basically when a teenager is trying desperately to stand out which usually happens through delusions of greatness where they typically pretend or believe they have secret powers and different backgrounds; basically they live cosplaying shounen anime MC's. Our main character in "Aura: Maryuuin Kouga Saigo no Tatakai" is Ichirou Satou and the anime hints several time that he was a Chuunibyou during middle school and was bullied because of it and therefore changed and tried to be and act like a typical teen once he got to high school. One day he forgets his notebook at school and decides (for some weird totally not believable reason) to INVADE his school just to get the notebook back and found a strange girl in a weird costume talking about dragons and alternative universes, he decides to follow the girl and spend some time with her showing us he still has his Chuunibyou side but is just suppressing it due to trauma. We later come to find out that the girl is merely a classmate of Ichirou Satou that is at her Chuunibyou peak where she would even go to school in cosplay, miss whole week's of classes and constantly talk to classmates and teachers in character. The main character ends up befriending the girl at the request of their teacher and the story progresses from there with some interesting and heavy plot lines and twists. The story's main concept and the character development are great and I loved it but when you look objectively at the movie you will find many flaws in the details and execution of the show, some might try and argue that a movie is not enough to cover all basis but there are many anime movies that do so and if a movie is not enough than this title should've simply been done in an episode format.

Art: This part has nothing much to talk about as the animation is painfully average by it's release date and below average by todays standards. the anime aired in 2013 which is not that long ago and with it being a movie I expected some better animation, with this said the animation is not bad in a way that would affect your enjoyment of the show. The character designs were interesting to see as they resemble a more early 2000's type style like "Code Geass" and other anime of the time.

Sound: With this anime being a stand alone movie it doesn't have your typical opening and ending songs that can greatly enhance your appreciation for the title but it did have an OST song play during a key moment of the show that really enhanced the scene in a special way making you feel much more immersed and connected to what was being portrayed; this OST is a very slow and mellow, borderline depressing song so I am not so sure about it's replay value outside of the anime on a playlist of some sort but it was definitely a really well thought out pick.

Characters: As a Romance Drama show it's main focus is obviously the characters, their development and relations. Ichirou Satou our main character is in my opinion the best written character in the show with Ryouko Satou (the girl in cosplay) being a close second, however sadly besides these two all other characters are either extremely bland or they seem to be heading for some growth and then just die out as background characters. Ryouko Satou is a girl who isn't happy with her ordinary self and her monotonous day to day so she decides to be as different as possible from others to try and escape reality to a fantasy scenario, this starts off as a simple quirk but after some events through the story reality starts to catch up to her and her true depth as a character is shown tackling some heavy topics, but more than a good character I see Ryoko as a mere vessel for the anime to portray this very uncomfortable but relatable theme to the viewers in the form of a cute waifu. On the other hand, Ichirou Satou, As I previously mentioned is someone who was just like Ryoko before but got bullied out of it and as the story progresses he starts seeing himself in Ryoko and seeing history repeat itself through her; with this he starts to have internal struggles where he wants to distance himself from her and specifically that world of fantasy but he also wishes to help her and take care of her so that she doesn't have to suffer the same way she did. Even with this absolutely amazing duo as main characters the previously mentioned lackluster side cast makes it so this anime mainly becomes wasted potential with the teacher presented as a puppet master pulling the strings behind everything but basically never mentioned again after the first half of the episode, the antagonists of the show have zero development and do not give any reasons for their actions making it look like they were simply there to lazily push plot; another character that personally bothered me was Shinako Kobato which is presented as being a character in the antagonists group who later joins the main group and is ultimately forgotten in the show making her character a completely useless piece in the anime.

Overall: I think based on the rating I decided to give to this title and with the hints I've been giving throughout this review (if you read it all), you can guess my feelings towards this anime. The show is a massive waste of potential as the premise of the story and it's main characters had the potential to make a top-tier Romance/Drama show comparing to some of the big shows withing these types and if this anime had some better execution, better development and focus on secondary characters and less inconsistencies or absurd moments (like when our mc decides to casually invade his school to get a notebook he could get the next morning via legal methods) I would give it a 9/10 or more. Sadly all of this isn't true so this anime can't go higher than a 6/10 for me.

SPOILER WARNING
P.S. I didn't want to go heavily into this as it would be hard to do so while not spoiling but the most absurd moment was Ryoko finding that outrageous amount of tables and being able to setup that whole castle without anybody (in a school during school day)noticing it before it was finished.