Kuromukuro

During the dawn of the 21st century, the United Nations Kurobe Research Institute was established in Japan to investigate an ancient artifact, which was discovered during the construction of the Kurobe Dam. Scientists from around the world have gathered in the facility to study the object, while their children enjoy their everyday lives attending Mt. Tate International Senior High School.

Yukina Shirahane, a reserved high school girl, is the daughter of the facility's head scientist. While visiting her mother at the facility, Yukina manages to solve part of the artifact's puzzle. To her surprise, what appears before her is Kennosuke Tokisada Ouma, a young samurai from the Sengoku era.

As a threat approaches from outer space, Yukina, along with Kennosuke, finds herself defending Earth against the invading forces. Along the way, she discovers the mystery behind Kennosuke and the reason he is determined to protect her.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Background

Kuromukuro is the 15th anniversary production of animation studio P.A. Works.

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Characters & Voice Actors

Ouma, Kennosuke Tokisada

Main

Azakami, Youhei
Japanese

Shirahane, Yukina

Main

Ichimichi, Mao
Japanese

Noël, Sophie

Main

Ueda, Reina
Japanese

Muetta

Supporting

Toyosaki, Aki
Japanese

Zeringer Mundef Bischlei

Supporting

Soya, Shigenori
Japanese

Borden, Tom

Supporting

Kimura, Ryouhei
Japanese

Shirahane, Koharu

Supporting

Asakura, Momo
Japanese

Liu, Shenmei

Supporting

Ueda, Hikaru
Japanese

Akagi, Ryouto

Supporting

Ishikawa, Kaito
Japanese

Ogino, Mika

Supporting

Seto, Asami
Japanese

More staff

Staff

Horikawa, Kenji

Producer

Nagatani, Takayuki

Producer

Okamura, Takema

Producer

Fukuda, Jun

Producer

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Opening Theme

	1: "Deathtopia (デストピア)" by Glay (eps 2-13)
	2: "Chou Onsoku Destiny (超音速デスティニー)" by Glay (eps 14-23, 25)

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Ending Theme

	1: "Deathtopia (デストピア)" by Glay (eps 1)
	2: "Realistic (リアリ・スティック)" by MICHI (eps 2-13)
	3: "Eien Loop (永遠ループ)" by Ami Wajima (eps 14-24, 26)

Reviews

Oct 1, 2016

Hinata-chi

Recommended

--- THIS REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS ---

Note (before review) : I wasn't expecting much from this series as I began watching it at the time of it's airing (Spring 2016) because it started off with some cliche aspects. But lemme say this, I'm glad I took a chance and continued to watch it each week while it was airing as the story started developing, my lack of enjoyment for it increased to a level of ... appreciation for this series.

Kuromukuro may not be most original idea as it involves a character from a different time period being awakened to a more modern time period to his own. In this case a Samurai named "Kennosuke Tokisada Ouma", from the Sengoku Period waking up in the United Nations Kurobe Research Institute, summer of 2016 to save a Kawaii girl named Yukina Shirahane, who happens to look like his princess who he failed to save during his time period from the Demons, his enemy from his time period. The Demons turn out to be back this time around, and it gives him the reason to live in this time period to fight for revenge for his Princess, even if it costs him his life. During his time in this world it was pretty amusing seeing him not know much about this time period at which he is currently now part of, mixed with Mecha fights against the Demons known as the "Efidolg" to protect Earth. The Efidolg have a goal and may not be what you had expected them to be, which you will find out if you watch this series. It was pretty interesting that he fought alongside with his Princess in a Mecha against the Efidolg during Sengoku time period, & now once more doing the same thing, in this new time period with a new partner, a girl who looks like his Princess. Lots of the characters in a series usually means a lot of characters that barely contributed to an anime but in this case, no so much. Even the Camera Boy Jundai has his purposes in this anime even if it's minor but still, I guess useful for this anime's development. I have no hate for any characters and like most of them. Personally I had a lot of excitement watching the fights in this anime, as well as the romance in this anime. Overall I enjoyed shipping characters with each other along the way as I love romance stuff in anime. The soundtracks in this anime were pretty good and I actually listened to the openings fully while watching this anime series, each episode. The art was perfect for this series but the art for the Mechas were not anything special compared to most Mecha anime. Thanks for taking the time to read this review and I hope you guys who are planning to watch this series, do so and enjoy it just as much, or better as I did. Again, I left a lot of details out such as a lot of stuff involving Yukina & etc to not spoil you guys.

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Sep 29, 2016

Stark700

Mixed Feelings

I have to admit, Kuromukuro is a show that taken me by a surprise. It’s not just because of P.A. Works is involved in a mecha show (since when was the last time they’ve been involved in something like that?) but because of how quickly the first episodes takes a viewer like a storm. As an original anime, Kuromukuro is a series that’s like casino, gambling between the good and the bad.

Simply put, Kuromukuro doesn’t simply want to be your typical giant robot-war drama but also more of an emotional ride. It wants to capitalize on its characters with its fictional world setting and most ... importantly, character relationships. The storytelling also has a bit of background that took place 450 years from its present timeline. Back then, there was an alien force known as the Elf Dorg that invaded Earth. However, the Washiba clan and their heir Yukihime along with Kennosuke Tokisada Ouma were able to retaliate against them while using a weapon known as the “Black Relic”. Yukihime mysteriously vanishes around this time as well. Then, some 60 years ago, this Black Relic is discovered. In the present timeline, a young girl named Yukina Shirahane accidentally gets involved in these mysterious affairs when she triggers the peculiar mecha. See where this is all going? It’s essentially a show that connects events from the past to the present. And while this is hardly anything original, it offers promise as there’s a lot to explore from the initial premise.

The show itself has both a serious and lighthearted tone. It combines elements of action, sci-fi, drama, and perhaps even romance. The most mysterious character is Ouma, a main male protagonist born around the Sengoku period. He establishes himself as Yukihime’s protector and he forms a peculiar relationship with Yukina as she resembles her. Being born around the Sengoku period, it doesn’t come as surprise that he is clueless about modern day technology either. Then, there’s Yukina, the typical school girl you can find in almost any sci-fi related series. Although I have to admit, she didn’t leave me with a good impression at first. This comes from the fact that she is often insecure about herself and has a ‘damsel in distress’ type of feel. Prior to getting some actual combat experience, she felt more like a character that needed to be saved rather than saving others. Luckily, the show is able to make her more likeable as the story progressed to show a stronger side with her character.

Speaking of characters, the show actually offers quite a diverse range of them. From skilled pilots to dedicated researchers, you’ll probably find at least one character where your mind is thinking along the line of ‘oh that looks familiar”. One of the more prominent female characters in the show is Sophie Noel, a French exchange student who is considered a prodigy. In contrary to Yukina, she is very self-independent and more difficult to approach. Throughout the series, her involvement with the various conflicts brings light about her character. It’s shown that despite being a bit self-centered, she is also very courageous and wants to make a difference in her world. As such, the main three protagonists all stand somewhere on their own that differentiates them from each other. Still, the most mysterious character is unquestionably Ouma. His past isn’t very clear as we only see cryptic clues about them. Furthermore, Ouma’s personality is one that’s very formal although also comedic if you put him into a modern life environment like a school.

Although the series has a serious plot (hello? An imminent alien invasion?), it also has a lot of lighthearted moments. This can result in more of a mixed bag reception because viewers may not take the show seriously as intended. The slice of life moments from school are prime examples of this while we also get the occasionally breather episode that furthers the pacing issue. What I do think holds value though is the character relationships. Besides the three main protagonists, there’s evident family dynamics especially with Yukina. She has a mother who is a chief researcher but also plays the role of a mother. Ironically, she seems to lack qualities that would make her a realistic mother but deep down does care for her daughter. (as shown in later episodes) Yukina’s younger sister sees Ouma as a role model because of her passion for historical dramas. Finally, it’s noticeable that Yukina’s father is not present in the show because he mysteriously disappeared. This brings back Yukina’s reasoning for lacking self-esteem as well. So at the center, Yukina is primarily the girl that somehow always gets involved with the mysterious events in the show. Whether it’s meeting a look-alike of herself or even getting abducted by aliens, it’s unquestionable that Yukina has an important role. But the real question is if she is likable? I think this can be viewed from several perspective but most importantly is her development. The show will test your patience as each episode progresses. From a personal perspective, I think she is acceptable but her first impressions aren’t what I call as memorable. At least compared to other characters, Ouma’s introduction will definitely leave an odd impression before your eyes.

Produced by P.A. Works, it’s no surprise that the character designs looks familiar. Anyone who has seen Nagi no Asukara will find a similarity with the looks especially the main female characters. P.A. Works has always been known for their exquisite background scenery and the studio once again brings their talent to the table. We got gorgeous visuals with the natural forests and mountainous regions. In space, there’s a strong feeling of sci-fi when it comes to the action sequences. While the show isn’t known for its fan service, it is however known for more of man service thanks to Ouma.

In terms of its soundtrack, the musical content of Kuromukuro works quite well. It delivers with an instrumental feel while also known for its emotional drama. However, I find the voice mannerism to be tolerable at best. Yukina’s voice took me a long time to get used to while Sophie’s tone is way too soft for someone with her talent. Of course, Ouma stands out the most with his manly voice, something that I find hard to ignore.

It’s unlikely that you’ll find yourself watching Kuromukuro as a high priority on the bucket list. It’s hard to deny but with so many anime coming out these days, it’s one of the lesser noticeable mecha shows. However, I think Kuromukuro is worth the time investment. Yes, it is 2-cour that shuffles between a mecha drama story and all all-out galaxy war involving earthlings and aliens. Even if you’re not a fan of P.A. Works or mecha, it still has moments that can make you come back wanting for more.

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Oct 1, 2016

PyraXadon

Not Recommended

You know, it's one thing to go into a show expecting something it to be good. It's another thing to go into a P.A. Works show and expecting it to be good. Over the years, P.A. Works have shown us that despite having good animation and interesting ideas, you won't always end up with a good show and meaningful characters. And so, after 15 years of churning out what are mostly original anime (which is honestly quite impressive given how original anime are such a rarity these days), we have Kuromukuro or 'Black Relic', another mistake made by P.A. Works which is ...

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Kuromukuro

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Characters & Voice Actors

Ouma, Kennosuke Tokisada

Shirahane, Yukina

Noël, Sophie

Muetta

Zeringer Mundef Bischlei

Borden, Tom

Shirahane, Koharu

Liu, Shenmei

Akagi, Ryouto

Ogino, Mika

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Kuromukuro

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Information

Statistics

Available At

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Streaming Platforms

Synopsis

Background

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Characters & Voice Actors

Staff

Opening Theme

Ending Theme

Reviews

Interest Stacks

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Recent Forum Discussion

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