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May 17, 2014
It's a concept show. It has pretty animation, complemented with an appealing art style. It attempts to develop a vivid world, all the while presenting, and accentuating themes of acceptance. It tries to do all that, but it succeeds at none of that.
Aside from the concept itself, there's absolutely nothing novel about this. It has a vapid antagonist, inclusive to a totalitarian, more technologically-advanced society. Antithetic to that, is a more 'human', less-technologically advanced society. Both view the other are being the inverse of the other -- both literally in the show's rendition of physics, and figuratively in the values which they hold dear.
...
The show's primary theme is acceptance, but because it hosts such a generic cast of characters, and an unconvincingly forced, brusque romance, it does little to make its argument convincing.
The show ultimately raises more questions than it answers. It's labeled as science-fiction, but it does nothing to actually explain what's scientific about it. If science is the process to which facts are discovered through trial and process, then the show's display of science is akin to didactic dogma. If it was the show's intention to be this 'meta' [by juxtaposing the lack of plot with the lack of justification practiced by one of the sides], then by all means, this show ought to be lauded as being revolutionary. In the more likely occasion in which the show was simply sloppily written, it'd ought to be scrutinized.
Nonetheless, despite all that, the show did have a concept with potential. The difference between Eve no Jikan and Sakasama no Patema is that the former show actually had focus, it was actually worth watching outside of its aesthetics. Sakasama no Patema didn't adapt, or write a well-thought out plot as much as it did a spur-of-the-moment draft inspired by a late-night session of methamphetamines tacked on with LSD. The movie presented an ultimate end-game midway through its completion, but it never bothered to end it. If this were an essay, and the prompt was "How to unite all humans", then it'd be akin to having ended it with the line "And that's why I like walruses the best."
In the end of it, the show was nothing more than a pretty display of artistic colors. It's artsy in its display of science, and it's artsy in its plot. It has a generic cast of characters, most of which are somewhat endearing. The development of romance between a certain two individuals seemed tacky, rushed, and undeveloped; it was done for the sake of symbolism. When a work defers verisimilar human sentiments to objective symbolism, then the work becomes nothing more than a brute, showcase of philosophy. While this work was not so egregious in doing so, it certainly didn't help out its characters. Nonetheless, even had the main cast been properly developed outside the cursory glance, the monochromatic antagonist would have invariably ruined an otherwise, varicolored world.
Reviewer’s Rating: 3
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Dec 22, 2013
Walkure Romanze is a harem series laden with fan service.
But, that doesn't exactly detract from its ultimate purpose. The show itself is fairly blatant with establishing the mood -- the type of show that it's going to be. It's not meant to be a serious show. It's not meant to have fantastic writing. And most importantly, it's not meant to revolve around intimate character interactions. Yet, it goes against that. It actually develops a storyline. It actually has characters with decent, albeit cursory writing. It presents jousting not as a means to advance the storyline, but as an integrated way to define the series,
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and to develop the characters.
It does everything that a generic harem shouldn't do. It has fan service, but not to the point of it being obnoxious. It has its episodes bereft of plot, but at the same time, episodes laden with it. It's a character show. And as a character show, it presents an array of generic, archetypal, but affable characters. It does its purpose well. It goes beyond that by actually having drama which supports the series. It does more than it was expected to do. It's not sloppily handled, and for the most part, it's enjoyable. In comparison to some of the other shows this season, this show is probably the most consistent.
The aesthetics of the show were surprisingly good too. The art style affable and easy-on-the-eyes, with the animation, being consistent, and apt enough to present the series. The soundtrack was surprisingly good: a melange of memorable tracks which played during the lachrymose and climactic moments. It's a show that doesn't disappoint because not much is expected from it in the first place. There's not much of a chance of disappointment when there's really nothing to initially expect. Walkure Romanze supersedes its nonexistent expectations.
Walkure Romanze understands its demographic. It doesn't try to cater outside of it. A show that doesn't try to do too much, a show that isn't inconsistent, and a show that surprisingly, has its unexpected, positive surprises is not apt for a universal condemnation.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Aug 18, 2013
The conflict between the ending the author foresees, and the ending that the viewer want is prone to be controversial. At times, the author's judgment is the 'best' judgment, resulting in an unexpected, albeit enjoyable ending. At others, the other's author's mildly delusional. This case isn't either of those -- the author had a clear purpose with what he wanted to illustrate, but it was done in a way that stimulated the unanimous ire of every other viewer.
I don't think most people watch OreImo for the storyline. They watch it for the fun interactions. When you bereave those interactions, and create three episodes of
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explosive drama, resulting the tears, curses, and condemnations from each respective side heroine [who were previously endeared], it's a little hard to watch. The primary strength of OreImo was the interactions -- these OVAs didn't have a lot of that. There were three eminent heroines presented, each lovable [arguably], and each, with their strengths. The ending is as ambiguous so as much to suggest that there was no actual 'fulfilling' conclusion. If the message were to remain rotary to 'the hardships of love', and 'sacrifice', then the message may have gotten across. But in doing so, the series disassociated itself from its fun interactions, its lovable moments, and its memorable, recurrent lapses of ridiculous cuteness. The opportunity cost for such an ending was far too high.
However, the faults of the anime adaptation were hardly the fault of the production. The author wrote, and the studio respected his decision. It was a faithful, albeit not entirely enjoyable adaptation. Of course, the studio could have easily have went the original route -- three episodes could have presented an alternate ending for each respective heroine. It may have even sold better. But, they decided to respect the artistic vision of the author. That's hardly something to condemn. It may not be affable, but it's not terrible.
The quality of the art and animation remained consistent with the main series. It was good. The soundtrack was appropriate, but the ending themes were especially memorable. The characters are consistent, but their reactions may be a little dubious. It wasn't very enjoyable. I don't like seeing tears. I'm all for the ending that the characters want, but when each character gives off the aura of being discontented, then it's a little to ascribe the series with the title of having a 'logical' ending, over it having the 'bad' one.
Reviewer’s Rating: 5
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Jun 30, 2013
Terse, trite, and tried to do too much.
*This review contains some spoilers for the show*
Suisei no Gargantia was my anticipated show of the season; written by Urobuchi Gen [the mind behind novel renditions of derivative works such as Madoka Magica (to Faust), Psycho-Pass (to works such as BNW/1984), Saya no Uta (to Lovecraftian works), Kikokugai, and so forth], and animated by a studio adept with handling most subjects [Production I.G.]. I was looking forward to it; his works not only make the audience think, but they’re often crafted intricately — excelling in both plot, characterization, and ultimately, presentation.
But the result? A mercurial series effusive with
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heroism, bad writing, and awkward, fickle characters. If in a work, the plot is meant to complement the character, and the character the plot, then in this aberration, the plot advances the characters forward, without any heed to the intricacies of how a character actually develops.
Ledo’s our protagonist; he’s accentuated to be servile to the mechanical acquiescence of militant dogma, and stubborn to the root; throughout the series, he constantly shifts between having the fervor of a Westboro Baptist preacher when it comes to the holistic condemnation of an entire race, and being an average teenager with notice towards morals and emotion. His character wasn’t really given the ‘right’ treatment; the former half of the series revolved around making him more human — the series was fairly enjoyable during this period; the developments weren’t shaky, and it seemed reasonable for him to be initially belligerent towards the foreign preaching of ‘love’, family, and morals. However, at a breaking point, he essentially left his learned insight bereft, and committed an act antithetical to what he was being developed to be. After that, he becomes a clock-reaction of sorts; fickle to change between being that guy driven by visceral emotion, and being that guy driven by the stringent tenets of the military [for example; during the last episode, he was willing to risk his life for the sake of 'love' towards a girl that he never so as much blushed at, while a few episodes previous, he had condemned her kind to be plain, detestable savages].
But he’s not the only erratic character in the series. The characters that were developed the most consistently and the ‘best’, were the ones that were linear and simple; Amy, the heroine, remained consistent, and her actions sought no faults in relative reason — the nascent commander was devoted an entire episode of development, perhaps the simplest, albeit more realistic progression of character development within the series. Then we have the chain of ridiculously dubious characters; we have the pirate, emblematic of pride, greed, and cruelty, turn contrary during the final episodes into becoming an altruistic hero ["I'll help you if you give me X; helps without mentioning X again]. We have the mechanic, characterized by an ambivalence between avarice, pride, and greed, all the while holding onto apparent, blatant empathy towards his associates. We also have the mecha, austere in judgement, and strict in dogma — to valiantly sacrifice itself for the sake of inexplicable love.
Then we have the science fiction within the series. There’s a dichotomy of science-fiction series; there’s the series that integrate an explanation for every development [an allusion to a real-world theory, or a pragmatic explanation falling within real-world boundaries], and series that hold the term ‘science-fiction’ nominally. Suisei no Gargantia belongs to the second category. The series doesn’t attempt to explain most of the occurrences; the plot revolves around the protagonist falling through from one location to another — the series never attempts to explain how or why. The series bases the primary plot off of an enigmatic lifeform by the appellation of “Hideauze”, yet its explanations for its origin are incredibly antithetical to how science actually works [We can't even engineer a major modification for genes within the same species, yet Suisei no Gargantia is comfortable with engineering modifications past the phylum ].
You also can’t forget the structure of the series. The latter half basically bereaves the mood and developments that the former half worked so hard to craft; if the former half were viewed as a standalone, slice of life, and the latter half, individually as an action series, then perhaps, the respective halves would not be so awkward. But when coalesced, you get an erratic amalgamation of dissonant factors devoid of the slightest harmony. Suisei no Gargantia had thirteen episodes to craft a holistic, reasonable story; they spent half of it on slice of life, and the other half, on erratic plot; they attempted to do far too much within a simple one-cour series [most plot-heavy series require a two-cour season]. The former half made use of the tranquil soundtrack that offered vestigial aid to the latter half, while the latter half boasted forgettable tracks, integrated as simple filler music [also have to note its liberal use of flashbacks, without any further attempt to attenuate its ambiguity, or the usages of dei ex machina with its sudden reveals of certain weapons] .
While a work isn’t exactly entirely dependent on the obscure laws of presentation, and of reasonable development, it certainly should at its very core, leave the audience entertained. Yet, it’s hard for me to say that for Suisei; his works as noted, are novel renditions of derivative series — this work, is awfully similar to his most recent work. More than that, like the previous work, was incredibly vocal with making the characters literally express the themes and the ideas of the work. There’s not grace in conveyance when you’re having a protagonist scream his philosophies in an aggravating, 'let this guy die please' way, and it’s made less so when you have the opponent rebut back in an equally vehement manner ["You're being immature? I will too].
The flaw with the series had to do with its potential of being able to easily devote thirteen episodes into crafting an affable slice of life, or even thirteen episodes of reasonable science-fiction, to come short with half a season of shaky developments, and another half of retrospective unimportance. When you force down every other genre down on a series, you might get a stride of adventitious enjoyment, but most of the time, simply avoidable frustration.
Reviewer’s Rating: 3
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Apr 7, 2013
It's a series that had potential, but ruined it by doing too much.
[mild spoilers pertaining to storyline progression and general point-of-view]
A third season of Spice and Wolf is perhaps the most desired adaptation among fans of the franchise. When announcement came through that a similar series, with similar staff members, was going to be released, fans were ecstatic. Unfortunately, it's not quite that simple to live up to the name of the predecessor, and it's even more difficult to satiate an entirely new crowd. Maoyū Maō Yūsha suffers from a variety of debilitating features that not only make it a shitty, half-assed 'successor', but
...
an awfully trite,mundane standalone.
Maoyū Maō Yūsha doesn't have the world's most amazing storyline. In fact, it's relatively archetypal -- the king of demons and the hero of humanity wish to team up to ultimately better the world. Sounds relatively creative right? It's not. But it could have been. We're given two main characters, Maou, and Yuusha [translated to Devil and Hero]. Their names are titular of their roles. During each episode, humanity attains a new invention that may better life [e.g. new farming techniques, agriculture]; and during each episode, a mild time skip is applied [typically a few months]. What does this do? It advances the plot. But does it do anything more than that? Probably not. Is it bad because it's simple? Not necessarily. Is it bad if they advance the plot over developing the characters/mood/every other aspect of the show? Probably.
A certain series revolving around a travelling merchant and a wolf goddess revolved around the characters -- every episode moved at a snail's pace, and the characters were developed accordingly; in Maoyū Maō Yūsha, it isn't uncommon for several months to move in one episode. The characters aren't developed. There's a romance between Maou and Yuusha. But the romance between the two are magnetic. They're only together for the storyline. A magnet doesn't need a reason to attract the opposite charge, neither does Maou to Yuusha, and Yuusha to Maou. They're together, but there's no semblance or inclination that would insinuate anything outside of being together for the storyline. Love? What's that. 12 episodes, or several years, resulted in a half-assed display of affection at the end. No discourse implying anything significant, and no actions outside the cursory depicted a sort of love outside of obligation.
The art and animation in Maoyū Maō Yūsha was fantastic? You mean the art and animation during Maoyū Maō Yūsha's first episode was fantastic. Arms was tasked with animating the series -- Arms did a really nice job during the former half of the series. The latter half, they kinda just gave up on maintaining consistent quality. Surprisingly, Arms, a studio, known for their integration of ecchi into everything, didn't put that much ecchi into Maoyū Maō Yūsha. That's a bright side. How about the soundtrack? The soundtrack's probably one of the best, redeeming features of the series. The track titled 'Beyond the Hill' by Takeshi Hama [composer of the original Devil May Cry soundtrack]would on its own, bump the score up by at least a point. The series contained a fantastic soundtrack, albeit, it wasn't exactly applied that well. The general soundtrack is perhaps one of the few things that Maoyū Maō Yūsha does better than its related series. It may not have been used as well [the soundtrack in the former was heavily ambient, but that ambience was integral in developing the mood], but it's certainly noteworthy [the main theme really is good].
So, we're given a series with generic characters that are seldom developed, the noble goal to save the world, time skips for plot, alongside a fantastic soundtrack, inconsistent animation, and a predictable, archetypal plot progression. Oh, and don't forget the romance. Everybody loves romance. So to sum it up, we're given a series that attempts to do too much within 12 episodes, that's understandable right? Well, it probably would be if it attempted to do something difficult. Every other development and concept explored in Maoyū Maō Yūsha isn't exactly novel, or avant-garde; it's not even a rendition of generic concepts. They're really just generic concepts without any sort of application. Economics? Spice and Wolf had more economics within a single episode than this did in 12. The notion that opposite sides often have a lot in common and that they probably shouldn't kill each other? That's clearly edgy and new.
It's not as enjoyable as it could be to watch because the series tried to do too much. When you introduce a romance, actually develop it. When you attempt to mirror a similar series, at least compliment it. The series doesn't revolve around combat and the mechanics of the world? Then don't dedicate an entire episode to combat. There wasn't enough time to do what we wanted? Then don't do so much.
Reviewer’s Rating: 4
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Feb 9, 2013
A harem done right?
[contains suggestive language, and an extreme loss of interest in constructive reasoning halfway through.]
It's difficult to end a harem. Regardless of how happy the ending turns out to be, only one girl 'wins' the guy over -- the others are presumably meant to cope with the loss. Some series like Mashiro-iro show the externalities of a singular bliss, while series like Zero no Tsukaima, like most others, avoid the topic all together. Isekai handles a harem correctly [as it is the highest rated harem on MAL], but it does so in an unorthodox manner.
It does this by creating a romance so
...
weak, that the very element of it could be miscategorized as simple interaction, devoid of especial sentiments. Every heroine in Isekai no Seikishi Monogatari inevitably and invariably falls in love with the protagonist -- but contrary to a typical harem series, they're all given equal screen time. There are no routes, and each heroine is subject to nothing more than the playful interactions. From the get-go, it was apparent that Isekai no Seikishi Monogatari did not intend for a meaningful romantic ending. To some viewers, that's a let-down; you typically watch a romance for a romantic ending -- a harem is synonymous with the romance genre [girls falling in love with the guy kinda fall under the category]. But, just as Isekai no Seikishi Monogatari is the "highest rating harem on MAL", it's also missing the elusive "romance" tag.
Isekai is not a romance series. As to what the series excels in, it would be the character interactions. In Isekai no Seikishi Monogatari, there is an underlining storyline -- the series begins integrated within the grand storyline, and it ends in a similar fashion; yet, the "middle episodes" of the series ignores the storyline development outside of slight mentions to development [prioritizing slice-of-life-esque interactions above hard storyline]. These episodes, which could have been erroneously miscategorized as traditional filler episodes [to a storyline-centric series], were probably the most enjoyable parts of the series. Isekai doesn't excel in dialogue; its storyline is generic [albeit not entirely predictable from the start], and its soundtrack is forgettable -- but, it combines a cast of likable characters and fresh comedy into the amalgamation that earns it score.
We're given a protagonist that's essentially beta in attitude, but alpha in attributes [like really fucking alpha]. He's given a wide variety of females. From oversized breasts, to ample deposits of nature, to nonexistent ones, Isekai panders to every demographic. If you're a fan of tsunderes, there's that -- if you want an overbearing, older sister character, there's that too -- the trustworthy bodyguard? Why the fuck not. How about the silent girl who never does anything but look cute? Sorta. The genius lolicon? Sorta too. Isekai has a vast variety of characters. It's guilt-free in ending because the romance doesn't exist, they're just there to essentially look attractive [who the fuck doesn't like attractive girls?].
Then there's a matter of the art. Thirteen episodes and a year of airing time -- every episode has well above-average production qualities. The art style is likable and the animation is great; the colors are bright, and this section is generic as fuck. Who the fuck actually criticizes art and animation. The art's pretty and shit.
[shit's being used as a noun in this case, not a negative noun, more of a passive noun --
e.g:
A: What the fuck is this shit?
B: It is my Isekai no Seikishi Monogatari review.
A: No shit. ]
Sound: I don't even fucking remember the soundtrack. The opening song was kinda nice. There was an ending theme? Must have skipped onto the next episode before it played.
Enjoyment: Shit was enjoyable.
[I kinda dislike block reviews. I really just wanted to say that Isekai did the harem genre correctly in not creating super serious bonds between the characters. It was simple and likable. It's good because of that.]
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Jan 1, 2013
Kokoro Connect's essentially a teen drama.
[Contains vague spoilers, nothing specific; keep in mind, the rating's just a number, read the content]
When you leave five teenagers in a room, you're bound to have something interesting happen. Sexual tension, explosive conflict, and heartful resolutions are perhaps all derivatives of what ultimately makes Kokoro Connect the series that it is -- a great agglomeration of lovable aspects and developed characters.
Each character has a particular flaw-- some rely on other characters, others attempt to rely solely on oneself, while others want to depend on a certain, individual character. Whether the problem ranges from being something as commonplace as
...
the inability to trust, to effects of unfortunate events such as assault, one thing remains relatively constant -- the managed effectiveness for the characters to eventually get past it with the help of one another.
The thing that sets Kokoro Connect aside from every other teenage drama would be its method of actually getting things "done." When teenagers argue, they don't argue very logically -- it's mostly emotional and effusive with semblances of interpretation rather than actual being; in Kokoro Connect, this is the case. But in a way similar to real life, they get over it. Yes, the characters break into absolutely ridiculous conflicts at times, but they all have their reasoning behind their actions and their feelings. Of course, their reasoning isn't absolutely valid or "logical" -- but it's a reason nevertheless.
But, this particular "reasoning" is recurrently smeared with the introduction of a third-party, omnipotent element -- Heartseed. In practical terms, you're given a room full of angsty, excited teenagers paired with an apathetic, ominpotent entity who finds it enjoyable to mess with the kids. Of course, this entity isn't there for the sole reason of screwing with the kids -- with its interaction, it strengthens the covalent bonds between the members of the club, in hopes of truly "connecting" their hearts. But just as much as this particular entity aids, it also stabs as a double-edged sword -- romances began with this element as the strengthening cause, but romances also dissolve because of its acerbic tendencies.
The studio behind it, Silver Link, it perhaps the most surprising element of the series -- we're already given a generic concept, but we're given an even more unpredictable studio. For those unfamiliar with Silver Link, they adapted works such as Tasogare and C3 -- works that were visually pretty with a good soundtrack -- but also works that were needlessly dramatic at times. Kokoro Connect's primary element is drama -- surely, a studio inept at dramatic adaptations would "fail" with adapting a drama, but the opposite occurred.
Surprisingly, against all odds, the drama in Kokoro Connect, for the most part, worked out really well. It flowed, it was logical, and it was highly enjoyable. Silver Link screwed up with series such as C3 in making it needlessly melodramatic with brusque transitions -- but with Kokoro Connect, the arc-based, character-idiosyncratic format complemented the drama in a way that made the series "great" and not "bad."
The art in Silver Link's previous series was ridiculously pretty -- it carries over to Kokoro Connect; Silver Link has the proficiency to make a relatively simple palette look adorned with great features -- the complementing aesthetic element, the soundtrack, was also done fantastically by Yasuhiro Misawa. The opening, which was paradigm by eufonius, matched the thematic principles of the shows.
But what stood out more was the ending theme -- each done by Team Nekokan, and each featuring a particular artist. To me, two specific artists stood out the most -- Rekka Katakiri, who is known for her work in visual novels such as Sharin no Kuni and G-Senjou no Maou, and Lia, who is renowned for her work in Key adaptations [by Kyoto Animation]. The other endings were certainly not lacking, in fact, some of them were the most memorable of the series. Kokoro Connect had a fantastic soundtrack paired with pretty art -- it did well in this department.
As mentioned, the structure of the story followed an arc-based format, each arc revolving around a particular character. This format was generic, but it was very effective in establishing the characters and in further advancing their characteristics. It was trite, but it was certainly not bad -- it went very well.
The characters were all likable. In fact, some of them were extremely likable. But some, were also less likable -- yet, more developed and complex. This ambivalence between a "lovable character" and a "complex character" truly made the finale of Kokoro Connect a discordant, hard-to-solve dilemma. Silver Link faithfully adapted the story as the source was, but I do have problems with how the author actually executed it.
[http://mdzanime.me/2012/12/31/kokoro-connects-logical-disconnect/]
Nevertheless, all the technical terms aside, the thing that makes Kokoro Connect the series that it is, is the enjoyability of it. There are seventeen episodes of Kokoro Connect, thirteen from the former season with four to the latter, "concluding" arc, Michi Random. Each one of these arcs are truly enjoyable -- some arcs mirror practical, yet meaningful dilemmas that teenagers face. By actually crafting a series that "related" well with the primary audience, the enjoyability of the show in ineffable.
Kokoro Connect's anime has ended, but its light novel has not. There are more arcs after "Michi Random", but it's a matter of whether they'll get adapted. It truly was an enjoyable series, and a meaningful one. For that reason, it's a favorite series.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Feb 25, 2012
Oh the memories that this brings back...
[review doesn't have spoilers]
I remember watching Steins;Gate due to a friend's recommendation. I didn't really expect much; it was science fiction. In my head, science fiction solely revolved around giant mechas and melodramatic teenagers with daddy problems. Surprisingly, I got into it, and I caught up to the 22 episodes in a day. Then the last two episodes aired. The feeling while watching it on-going is completely different than marathoning through it. For me, it was one week of constant trepidation; I was expecting the worst [probably slightly exaggerated]. Then it was followed by a week of being ridiculously
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pumped up; I vividly remember speculating on the finale with a friend, those were some really great memories. When the finale came; it left me satisfied, yet longing for more. I finished the series on a high-note, was essentially elated. Given that, I didn't expect this OVA to rival the series, it's bonus material after all. Yet, I'm surprised to say, it delivered.
Rather than a generic fan-service OVA that adds nothing to the overall scheme of things, this was an added sequel; I'm perplexed at how well they executed it. It not only contained further clarification on the events surrounding Steins;Gate, but it also managed to accentuate the same atmosphere, the same interactions that made Steins;Gate so great to begin with. I came in expecting a decent watch, yet I left amazed with a memorable watch.
But how exactly did the OVA end? The series itself ended on a satisfying, yet open ending. It just wasn't an obvious "happy ending", it was more bittersweet than anything. This OVA astounds me in the fact that it induced the same feeling. It doesn't present to you an explicit happy ending, it does insinuate it to such a degree that it's almost blatant though. This being said, I was slightly disappointed when the credits began to roll, I was sure that it would shift to the episode at any second, I was convinced that it was a false ED. Unfortunately, nothing more came.
Regardless of the ending, I'm still ridiculously happy after this watch. What leaves me speechless is that I came in feeling as elated as I did when Steins;Gate ended, yet I'm leaving with the exact same feeling. It's an unexplainable sensation. Just sheer happiness.
There's an upcoming movie. Its predecessors both excelled at presenting the story, I can only hope that the movie does the same.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Feb 22, 2012
What exactly am I watching?
[Contains mild, creative language used to emphasize certain things, also contains spoilers]
This review doesn't seem to flow, think of it as fragments of criticism.
So basically, I started the movie with mediocre expectations, it had a horribly low rating, but it was animated by Ufotable. So, I may be watching mediocre shit, but at least it'll have pretty visuals.
Anyhow, the introduction piqued my curiosity, a group of fishermen appeared to be dazed and shocked from a discovery, the discovery wasn't revealed till later. Now, what was the discovery? It was landfish.
The landfish essentially have a grotesque smell, followed by a
...
what the fuck appearance. Imagine fish, now imagine mechanical spiders. Now imagine a combination of the two. Now give the combination of the two to the storyboard of Guilty Crown. And now you have your fucked up landfish. The landfish play an integral role in this, they basically invade town and do whatever the fuck they want. They don't target humans specifically, they just do what the fuck ever, like eat the shit out cars and subways, just for shits. Later on, it's revealed that it's not limited to just fish, it just originated from them.
The storyline started off as somewhat meh, but possibly promising. It quickly drifted off to something you would write in a drugged frenzy. The storyline is basically composed of the chick accompanied by some dude, looking for her fiance. Along the way, they discover that the landfish was conceived as a biological weapon during WWII (unpredictable, right?). They also discover that the fish is half organic, and half synthetic; but, it's also infectious. In other words, a pointless biological weapon because it fucking infects everyone, your side included. The rest of the storyline is inconceivable shit, so I'll move on to the other sections. It should be noted that it's not shit because it's bizarre, different, and shocking. It's shit because it's shit, it's cliche and it flows about as well as this shitty review. Seriously, it ends by trying to invoke some fucking philosophy. The entire storyline thus far was giant fucking robot monsters shoving their tentacles up your ass to mind control you.
The characters were also a bit "what the fuck" worthy. Essentially, it's just the main heroine, but her two friends should be noted. First first friend is perhaps the paragon of "what the fuck how retarded are you?" A giant landshark comes through the window when she's screwing two guys, needless to say, she was injured. During the attack, she was scared shitless and the two guys ditch her. After the attack, she thanks the two guys for "saving" her on TV, then proceeds to screw them once more. The second friend actually started off as a pretty decent character; she was the third-wheel. However, it appears that any redemption for a decent character was killed during the second half.
The characterization was also minimal. You're just given some history, and you'll have to assume the rest by assuming some common character archetypes. The history would be much more convincing, if the voice acting wasn't so bland.
The voice acting in this was beyond mediocre, it was the apathetic type of emotion, it just didn't fit the characters at all. You could find better voice acting in Hentai than this, just saying. In Hentai, when a giant tentacle monster attacks you, emotions are heard. In Gyo, when tentacles attack you, you're reading off the script. However, ufotable did a decent job here, the visuals were good. The OST was lackluster to say the least, it's mostly silent. It could be argued that it enhanced the ambiance, but when music did play, it usually wasn't anything special.
This series also intends on inserting fan service, regardless of the occasion. It's more of a, remember to pay attention, otherwise you'll miss some boobs, or some scenes reminiscent of something you would normally find with the keywords tentacles and schoolgirl penetration. Some examples include a certain characters death scene. She's essentially about to die, then her eyes flashes before her eyes. What flashes? Was it precious child-hood memories? A lost love? Regret? No, it was her essentially before being screwed by the entire football team fully nude.
The law enforcement in this anime also seem to fucking blow. Hey, giant fish invading? No problem, let's fly a plane and hope for the best. Guarding a quarantined zone? Beat the shit out of anybody that tries to past, regardless of the reason. Your loved one's stuck on the other side? We should probably convince you not to go by physical encouragement.
Overall, if you're looking for plenty of nudity, and tentacles, go watch hentai. If you're looking for cheap scares, and shit storylines, go for Another or this. Shit, this review blew, but I spent too much time on this to delete it.
TLDR: It's not shit because it attempts to think outside the box, nor because it attempts to be creative & innovative, it's shit because it's shit.
Reviewer’s Rating: 3
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Feb 12, 2012
This review is just a brief "summary", it isn't a "great" well-thought out review, it took a few minutes to type on impulse; it's just a brief overview of how the movie is. There's some generalized spoilers, and some creative language.
I started the movie feeling pretty great, it inflected a great mood; I began reminiscing on how I don't credit FMA enough for carrying the shounen genre with a bearable series. FMA in my book, remains the only series to accentuate a "strong" shounen feel, it isn't melodramatic, the characters aren't fucking idiots, and it's logically held with in-depth mechanics. Despite those redeeming qualities,
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very few of those were prominent in this movie, however, it wasn't necessarily a "bad" movie, it remained enjoyable, but it was objectively mediocre.
Unfortunately, after the reminiscing was over, it started to go downhill from there: incessant bad developments ensued. Every development leaned towards the traditional "bad" cliche shounen, something that Fullmetal Alchemist typically doesn't represent; every other development halfway through changed from possibly ingenuous, to innocuously "bad" (deus ex machinaes). The first half was written by someone aspiring to retain the traditional Fullmetal Alchemist feel, while the second half was a collaboration between Ao no Exorcist and Guilty Crown. As much as I would like to criticize the weak plot, it wasn't completely bad. Some developments were somewhat "good", the "bad" ones just overshadowed the "good" in this case.
Now the ending to this was also somewhat lackluster; it appeared to be a logically impossible "happy ending". The new characters were essentially on the brink of destroying the entire world, there isn't logic in granting them freedom without punishment. It's great that a smaller nation got it's "independence", but it's kind of surrounded by two powers. One power has a brigade of alchemists, while the other has a arsenal of chimeras. All it has is strong will, and determination, that isn't enough to defend itself against attack. Unless the surrounding nations contest the newly "independent" territory leading to a stalemate, but that's just the best case scenario.
Overall, was an enjoyable watch I guess, didn't really expect much out of the movie. Although that ending with Ed complementing her was unneeded and somewhat forced, there wasn't exactly any development between those two, nevertheless actual chemistry.
Also, where the fuck was the Mustang action, all he did was watch; I expected fucking fireballs everywhere. Seriously, probably one of the biggest what the fucks is him standing there while lasers are shooting everywhere. He has less than 30 lines this movie, he doesn't do anything but watch. Killed his vindictive personality.
Objective Rating 5/10: It should be lower, but it being Fullmetal Alchemist rather than some other series alleviates some of the criticism. What FMA possesses is a unparalleled world on mechanics, alchemy. There isn't a shounen anime that comes close to it, it's just ingenuous and "balanced".
Subjective Rating 6/10: More enjoyable if you watch it braindead.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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