Oct 1, 2020
Story 9
Animation 5
Sound 10
Character 8
Enjoyment 9
Overall 9
For starters I have not played the game this anime is based on, nor have I really gotten into the BanG Dream! merchandise. I love idol animes so I tend to compare to my favourites (like Utapri or Starmyu). However I give every anime a fair chance to shine on their own.
The characters and environment are obviously done with the 3D model technique, which is a problem with me and many others too. There were some times that were animated "normally", which I found a bit weird. I would prefer a bad animation through the normal events and cgi only on stage - not
...
when they drink coffee and have dialogue. It needs to be used to, since the facial expressions are very stiff and walking is like from a crash doll demonstration. Now that would be pretty much my only critique.
If you put the terrible animation aside, I have no complaints on this show whatsoever. The story was really good, the character design (as in their personalities and story lines) was great, the plot twists really hit hard and the music was actually SO GOOD! It was so easy to get involved and live the story through the characters. I found myself suddenly very invested and caring towards the main characters within the first two episodes. And I had my doubts and I really didn't like the animation, so that tells something about how well they've done with them and story. Every obstacle made me stressed, every success made me smile (and cry). Every performance gave me chills. Sure there were a lot of clichés, but somehow this was still very different from any idol animes. The obstacles are something a band has to face irl: debuting, writing a song, finding team spirit within the band, finding places to perform... It was very realistic in a way. Kind of reminds me of Idolish7, but Argonavis is not an idol group, but an independent band. Which is great, because no one does the work for them, no label or sponsor. They have to deal with everything themselves.
I have to mention the ending though: It was a bit rushed (probably due to the virus) but to me it wasn't a disturbance, but a promise of continuance. FOr some it can be annoying, so you've been warned.
Like I mentioned before the absolute saviour of this anime is the music. Almost every episode had a new song and it usually connected witht the story. The performances were fire and the cgi really worked well in these scenes. I am so glad that the bands' songs can be found on Spotify. I have yet to find out who writes the music and how this is produced, because this is not the typical pop they make in musical animes that seiyuus try to struggle through. This was actual music I would want to listen to.
So in short: don't watch this for the animation, but do it for the characters, story and music. It was one of the best music themed animes I've watched. I highly recommend if you're into this genre. Give it a chance even if the cgi-animation hurts your eyes, it is so worth it.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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