Aquarion Evol

(Note: this review covers the whole series' content and has done so forever, but MAL stuck a little yellow tag on here that says "preliminary")

Aquarion EVOL. It's been 12,000 quarter-days since the first series came out back in 2005 and now it's been reincarnated for the new era. First, some history:

To my knowledge, not many people liked Genesis of Aquarion. It was an overly melodramatic, awkward, very episodic and somewhat girly mecha series where the robots were essentially powered by orgasms(You read that right) and it had to compete in an era where good mecha anime was still a thing. It was a show that ... couldn't take itself seriously even when it was trying to take itself seriously. Audience response was mostly apathetic, but people loved the theme song and the OST had some of Yoko Kanno's best work. Hell, that OP was the sole reason I decided to blindly download the whole show on dial-up back on Christmas of '05. It took 4 months to finish, and was actually my first subbed anime.

I loved Aquarion. It was stupid and weird in all the best ways, and to this day it's still a very different spin on the super robot genre. The melodramatic characters and their reactions to everything, the complete nonsense shouted by the leader that would lead to victory in every episode, the omnisexual, ten-way, cross-dimensional love story... All of it was just grand in retrospect. I had no idea of what to expect from this series' new art direction and the effects of a near-decade hiatus, but ho-damn am I satisfied.

Aquarion EVOL opens 12,000 years after the end of Aquarion, with the main character, Amata, watching his favorite decade-old movie that (poorly) depicts events of the prequel series' final episode. This is followed by his boss coming out and telling him "Amata, no one likes that movie but you, really. The theme song got popular, but that's about it." So yeah, the opening of this new foray into the orgasm-powered mecha genre is Shoji Kawamori brazenly declaring that he gives not a single fuck to the haters out there. I can't even tell you how happy that scene made me, I felt like Amata.

After that, you get treated to what's easily the prettiest god damn show of the season, and maybe year, as Amata takes this big-boobed blue haired girl on a date through the rivers of neo-Venice. The environments are always painted in absolutely beautiful detail and color, and many shots are screencap worthy because of how genuinely pretty they are. I strongly suggest watching this in HD.

The character and world designs are all very unique and memorable, infused with an injection of sharp detail, personality and visual originality that you don't see in many anime anymore. The world and characters feel alive, and there's even two full fictional alphabets that show up in the show that contribute to this. Also, each scene is well-composed on screen and because of that, Aquarion Evol is never a bore to look at.

So far, Aquarion Evol's new cast of characters is what makes it shine, at least in my opinion. Rather than the really odd focus of the first episodes of the prior series, Evol began strong by introducing a cast of lively, thought-out and memorably designed little mecha pilots and having them ping off of each other.

The antagonists are presented in a very neutral and borderline desperate way. They don't appear evil and their motivations and details about their pasts are kept as a mystery for a while, but the show gives many hints and allusions as to who they really are and keep the viewer interested rather than starve them for details.

The writing is strong and sharp up until about 2/3rds the way through, and then it gets a little dumb near the end when old plot lines end in anticlimactic ways, pointless new plot lines appear and things get pretty drawn out in general. But then the final episode is pretty great and brings all the important stuff back to the forefront for the most part, and the series ends on a strong, melodramatic cheesy note that it should.

This is all in contrast to the first series, where the story and characters were a little unfocused until the final 6 or 7 and episodes, and then those were all amazing and climactic.

Then you have the titular fighting robots. Shit looks absolutely fantastic, though, honestly, the 3D animation is a bit stiff and the original Aquarion has a leg up on it in terms of good choreography and smooth movements.

EVOL makes full and complete use of the "orgasm when combining" joke throughout the first episode, but actually lightens up on it as the show has progresses. So far, the only real mecha orgasm sequences have been for particularly climactic moments and new character introductions. The gag is used sparingly and after the first series it's apparent the creators took note that it alienated some people. This whole project in general looks like it's taking the widespread criticism of Aquarion both in stride and into consideration, creating a series that satisfies both old fans and newcomers.

The OST is still amazing. If you watched the first series you'll probably recognize a number of the background tracks, remixed or reworked, along with a bunch of nice, new pieces. This show's opening theme is an orgasm of Japanese vocal work. Yoko Kanno knows what she's doing.

All of the base elements of Aquarion remain intact, for better or worse. It's still pretty cheesy and melodramatic, but this time they're hamming it up even more while at the same time keeping a good focus on down-to-earth elements like the cast, for the most part. I appreciate the hell out of it, but I'm sure some people still won't 'get' it. It's also still really, really pretty and the energy produced by the visuals and sounds carry the show's asinine writing like a thoroughly lubed bullet train.

"So should I watch the first series before getting into this one?"

Yes. Or at least maybe the OVAs to get a feel for the characters and stuff. One of the main draws of this series (for me) was that it's actively referenced Aquarion quite a bit, such as one of the main villains basically being an evil version of the main character in the first show. Kawamori's also stated that the main cast in this show are reincarnations of the previous cast. Eventually learning how the two stories and their characters will tie together is going to be, as I predict, one of the most rewarding aspects of EVOL. So if you want to enjoy Evol as much as you can, experience the previous project a little bit first.

Also, honestly, while Evol might be more "likable", Aquarion was a better put-together show in the end, in my opinion.

"They... orgasm in the robot? that's stupid!"

And ironically this show has far less ecchi and has more thoughtful writing than any series it's directly competing with. But really now, you probably just got done watching tit-infused garbage like Lagrange, you can't criticize this show lmao

"So, is it better than Lagrange, the other girly mecha show this year?"

Yes, in just about every single possible way, shape and form.

"Is Fudo Gen in it? He was the only good thing about Aquarion"

Yes, and he's a fucking pirate ohmygodit'sgreat

Aquarion Evol gave me colorgasms and excitement for something to see every week for half a year, and I hope it did the same for everyone else. Give it a shot.

This is my first time writing a review, so please bare with me, but for this series I felt like I needed to write my opinion of it.

Story:
Episodes 1 - 13 = 7
Now, the series started off very good, I wouldn't say it was amazing, but it was enough to pull me in and get me interested in the series. It was lighthearted and comedy filled at points, but it also had plenty enough action and mystery involved to keep you looking forward to what might come next.

Episodes 14 - 21 = 5
Unfortunately at this point, the story seems to start getting thrown all over ... the place. Some episodes I liked and some were just not so good... and I'm sad to say that it continued to get worse.

Episodes 22 - 26 = 2
This is where everything in the plotline just falls apart. Revelations and twists are made and it all seems to turn into a horrible joke. It didn't end well either as there will a lot of plotholes and loose-ends in the series that were left unanswered. You know it's bad when you root for the antagonist in the series to win and hope that the heros will lose.

Overall, the plotline was decent, but definitely no where near amazing.
Total Average: 4.5

Animation: 7
Tha animation quality was overall pretty, but not overly fantastic, especially since the CG wasnt really well done on some points. It had a lot of recycled footage through out the anime and unfortunately the reused footage from Sousei no Aquarion stuck out like a sore thumb against Evol's animation. But for the most part it was very pretty to look at, especially the first ending.

Sound: 10
Ah, the saving grace of the show and probably one of the few things I will remember from Evol. The music is just astounding; I could listen to it all day and not get tired of it. Gekkou Symphonia, Paradoxical Zoo, Eve no Danpen, Kimi no Shinwa, Yunoha no Mori, Aquaria Mau Sora... they're all wonderful songs, there's not one I do not like.

Characters:
Main Characters = 2
The main characters are some of the worst I have ever experienced in a show. I started off liking Amata quite a bit; he was a weak willed character but he seemed very devoted and it looked as if he would develop into a stronger character; how wrong was I. He continued to be weak and couldn't seem to function without Mikono around; it was unbearable to watch him near the end. I think most will agree with me when I say that I definitely won't miss his "MIKONO-SAAAAAAAAANNNN!"
Mikono... she starts off as quite a snotty character a little bit in the beginning and shes always looking down on herself and calling herself useless... at one point it seemed that she stepped up and looked as if she would actually do something and help out, but in the end, remains to be useless and forever stuck in the damsel in distress mode.
Zessica- as much as I love Zessica, she was a poorly developed character. She started off amazing and had the potential to be a great person, but gets stuck in her mopey and dull self as her unrequited love for Amata beats her down repeatedly into a deeper depression. If Zessica's character taught me one thing, it's that no matter how you try to go against fate/ destiny, you can't and it will beat you down.
Kagura started off as an interesting character, but I also think he was poorly developed. Has a very beast-like personality and his sole focus is to get Mikono and anyone in his way will get hurt/killed... there's really not much else to him. But the thing that will continue to bug me to the end of days is his OOC'ness at the very end of the series... he is suddenly shown capable of being a human being and rather intellectual when that was definitely not the case from before.

Supporting Characters = 8
The supporting characters, to me at least, outshown the main characters by far. Jin and Yunoha were some of my favorites, separately they were both very good, but when they were together, something sparked and they quickly became my favorite love interest in the show. Andy and Mix provided a lot of comedy, especially when they were together, but their love at the end really moved me. Both JinxYunoha and AndyxMix were by far better love interests than AmataxMikono and much more enjoyable. The other side characters were also very enjoyable in their own way- Cayenne and Shrade, along with Sazanka and Malloy were just wonderful.

Total Average: 5

Enjoyment: 5
The first half of the series was very enjoyable and I was always looking forward to the next episode, unfortunately my high expectations from the first half led to a lot of disappointment in the second half. It became a trainwreck; the plotline became something that I didn't look forward to and I found myself groaning at a lot of scenes or just not really caring.

Overall: 6
I think it was my high expectations from the first half that led to my great disappointment, but Evol just stands as average to me. The terrible plotline, poorly developed main characters, and lack of enjoyment for the second half really hit me. Despite the not so good things, there was still enjoyment from the supporting cast and especially from Mykage(whom was a great villain), so overall it wasn't terribly awful, I just felt it could have been handled better.

I haven't watched the first season (don't really need to imho since they basically bring up the past a lot of times and you really only need a few tidbits to get whats going on). However, I will be watching the first season after this season is over to get a better feel of the story.

Story: The story is really good imo. You have 2 guys who clash together in order to win over the girl they love. The season isn't over yet but in my opinion it feels like 1 side represents "old love/destined love" and the other represents "new love/breaking chains of fate". ... It's a typical space/sci-fi/school life anime where a boy gets involved in a cross-planetary war and his whole life is changed. He gets introduced to various "special" people who possess unique powers that are used to protect the planet.

Art: The artwork is beautiful. It's basically a 2012 looking anime so of course the colors are vibrant and very nice.

Sound: This show reminds me a lot of Macross Frontier for some reason. Music plays big rolls in major events that happen throughout the show. New powers = music, dramatic events = music, etc , etc.

Character: The characters are really good. You have the perverted male friend who clashes with the tsundere boy hating goodygoody girl and the typical bishounen guys that the girls are head over heels for. Then you have the various girls that are in love with the MC (One is more open, the other is the typical conservative shy soft spoken girl).

Enjoyment: This show is really really good. I honestly only watched this for Zessica Wong (she's cute :3) but I wound up enjoying the show a lot. It reminds me a lot of Macross Frontier + Isekai No Seikishi Monogatari which happens to be my favorite anime :3

ENJOY IT and don't forget! ZESSICA IS #1 F*CK MIKONO


EDIT: I finished watching the first season. I recommend it to those of you that want to a get a better feeling of the whole Aquarion history. However, it is not necessary to watch S1. All you basically need to know is that 12000 years ago 2 lovers fought to save the world from destruction and through self sacrifice they were separated from each other, destined to fall in love again when they were "reincarnated". It's basically a recurring 12k year cycle of lovers. All of this information is shown in EVOL (episode 1 for that matter).

If you would like to get to know more about the past lives of some of the characters you should watch S1. You can see how Kagura and Apollo share MANY traits which leads viewers to believe he is the true reincarnation of Apollo, yet Amata has the Sun Wings.

Even if you watch S1 you still won't understand why Mykage does what he does or why he looks like the dude from S1 (forgot his name... wait it's Toma, now I'm too lazy to change what I just wrote -____-)

Basically the reincarnations as I see it are:

Amata/Kagura = Apollo
Silvia = who cares, she's a betch :3
Toma = Zessica (can't say why because that's a spoiler, message me if you want to discuss)
Silvia's Brother = who cares, he's a loser. Seriously, he really is. Go watch season 1.

If there was one thing that absolutely stood out for me in Aquarion EVOL, it was the artwork. Aquarion EVOL shines brightest in its absolutely gorgeous setting and consistent animation. Each location is drawn with such care and beauty and there were plenty of places for us to see. The artwork is what I'd would call "eyegasmic" or "scenery porn". It was a completely positive surprise. As of 2012, I can only list a handful of TV series that had such amazing artwork on display.

Unfortunately, aside from the delightfully eyegasmic setting it was in, the story and characters leave a bit to be desired. At ... it's core, it's not a story to be taken seriously. Like the prequel, there are a lot of ridiculous and ludicrous events that happen throughout the show. How about a punch move that wraps the entire planet just to punch the enemy into space? How about each time the characters combine into the Aquaria mech they experience near-orgasms? If you can suspend a great amount of belief, you can enjoy this show since there are lots of funny and exciting material here. For some, the lack of a serious and well-thought out story can really be a disappointment. Indeed, the story in Aquarion EVOL had a lot of potential. The villains of Altair and their motives belong in a moral gray area, but the planet Altair is mostly left undeveloped and unexplored as the credit rolled.

The characters also suffer from wasted potential in terms of depth and attitude. The main characters, especially, come off quite shallow and frankly, annoying. Both Amata and Mikono are shy and often unreliable, and they often misunderstood each other for both comedic purposes and really shallow and cliche reasons. On the opposite spectrum is Kagura - the bad boy villain who lusts over Mikono and Zessica - the scantily dressed confident girl who lusts over Amata. These main characters came off as largely one-dimensional. While they do receive character development, it was often too late in the series to really appreciate them. Kagura's sudden change of character near the end is frankly just sloppy writing. Their one-dimensional personalities became repetitive quickly.

Character writing was undoubtedly not a strong point of Aquarion Evol. However, the side characters certainly were pretty entertaining even if they were one-dimensional. There is Andy W. Hole who is completely obsessed with holes, Mix who is obsessed with neatness, the loli president Crea who amuse with weird puns, the immortal Fudou who speaks in riddles, and many more. Their character interactions are usually amusing to watch even if the main characters comes off as annoying and boring.

Each episode often starts with light-hearted character interactions, and usually ends with the mech Aquarion in action against an opponent mech. The CG in these fights is really obvious and differs in style from the beautifully rendered artwork, but it doesn't really take away any entertainment value. Combat flows fluidly and is entertaining in general since each fight seem to end really differently. Sometimes, it's just not enough to destroy an opponent with a punch. Aquarion EVOL will punch with such profound disregard to physics that will make other mecha series tame in comparison. Still, the problem with Aquarion EVOL is each episode becomes formulaic. The series is what I'd call mindlessly entertaining, but it really could've had more depth if it spend more time developing the villains and developing the world instead of spending time on flat characters and formulaic mech fights.

Other than that, the presentation value is really high and I was pleasantly surprised. AKINO returns to this sequel with catchy j-pop insert themes and OP/ED credits. The soundtrack is varied with grand orchestra pieces, solo piano or violin pieces, as well as light-hearted or solemn moody pieces. Character models are pleasing to look at and remains in quality even if zoomed out. And of course, the gorgeous landscapes and space artwork whether it was day or night made lasting and unforgettable impressions. Words can't really describe the beauty I've seen, but I highly recommend it if anyone enjoys what the anime medium could offer in looks.

Ultimately, Aquarion EVOL was an enjoyable series full of heart and ridiculous combat, albeit often ending up as melodramatic and exaggerated. The artwork and sound are gorgeous and catchy, but the story and characters came off as wasted potential. For someone looking for a serious and well-thought plot with realistic characters, this is definitely not the series for you. But if you are simply looking for some fun, Aquarion EVOL is definitely an entertaining series.

I saw this anime because of a Funimation Trailer on Youtube. And when i saw the trailer i saw Good looking characters and animation, and i could tell right away it was of a Romance genre. This show has alot of Fan service, but some of the fan service thats shown is shown when they begin to use the Aquarion as a group and i wont spoil what its called

(Im guessing thats what those robots are called since they always shout out "GO. AQUARIOON" when they start to fight which can give a corny feel. I watched it all but if i sound ignorant of ... it its cause i watched it a few months ago.)

So the "Fanservice" during those parts can get corny.
It definitely has some funny moments so you will laugh while watching it, but most of it is based on the romance.

Now the story....im not gonna spoil it but the story is understandable but its explained horribly, you just have to use the information you get while watching it to get the story.

This show is very hard to explain because it is hard to understand while watching it. I havent watched the Original Aquarion because others told me this is the second season, and i heard the first is better than this one.

Its watchable, but if you have other anime you know has good recommendations and you're itching to watch those then go ahead and put this one on hold.

Aquarion Evol is not an anime to be taken literally. It is saturated with an abundance of metaphors and symbolism; some painfully and intentionally obvious whiles others subtle. Nevertheless, it is not particularly intelligent and never makes any attempts at being profound. Aquarion Evol distinguishes itself from others with its ostensibly ludicrous gimmicks: homosexual angels and donut philosophy to name a couple. Most significantly, however, is the amount of passion and love that pervades the series. Evol spelled backwards is love, and is filled to the brim with exactly that.

Aquarion Evol is a dog bereaved of life, revived, and bestowed with wings. It ... is conceived and directed by Kawamori Shoji, known for his works teeming with passion such as the Macross series and AKB0048. Aquarion Evol may not be his best work to date in terms of quality, but it is the absolute pinnacle of his creations in spirit. Set 12,000 years after Genesis of Aquarion, it renews the legend that the first series paved way for. Evol is not dependent on the original; it gives the audience bits and pieces of backstory throughout its duration, as well as incorporating an exposition episode which contextualizes all prior events. I have not seen the original myself, and the standalone experience of Evol was nonetheless seamless.

Aquarion Evol is the ugly duckling: scorned for unsightliness, but an ethereal swan from the start. The intricate backstory notwithstanding, the premise of Aquarion Evol is simple and trite. Set in a city constantly terrorized by “Abductors” who kidnap women for unknown purposes, Sora Amata and Suzushiro Mikono are forced to enroll in a school for people with supernatural abilities that pilot mechas known as Aquaria. The nearly banal story then gradually escalates into an ambitious tale of fallen angels and inter-dimensional love. Similar premises have been seen countless times before, but Evol adds to it its heart. As the grandeur of the story unfolds, the audience is presented with an exceedingly corny story that despite its seeming unoriginality is bursting with genuine passion. Aquarion Evol exudes such love and imagination that it is difficult to blame it for being clichéd. Ultimately, Evol can be seen as a massive allegory for the indiscriminate power of love which, both figuratively and literally, brings worlds together.

Aquarion Evol is a boy helplessly in love: mistaken for indecency, but with feelings ever so pristine. The public often fallaciously presume that Evol is filled with vulgar or lowbrow humour. Indeed, the robots are fueled by bodily communion and metaphorical orgasms. Though sexual it may be; vulgar it is not. Evol treats sexuality with utmost earnestness, approaching it indirectly through metaphors and symbolism. The mecha battling is another appropriate example of Evol’s tactfulness: the combat not only advances the story or provides enjoyment, it serves primarily as a platform for character growth and thematic development. During combat, the characters confront themselves as well as their enemies, and the battles are usually accompanied by some sort of symbolic exploration into sexuality or love. This is not to say that Evol is completely devoid of pandering, but the earnestness with which it is handled makes it forgivable.

Aquarion Evol is a puzzle; its fragments hollow of meaning are but emergence potentials for its, if assembled, holistic magnificence. In the presentation of its themes, Evol’s characters play a far more pivotal role than anything else in the grand scheme. The cast of Evol consists of a wide array of characters; most of which are extremely likable in their simplicity. Their personalities are often defined by a single trait, and none of them are particularly complex. There is Andy W. Hol, whose obsession for digging holes embodies the desire for connecting worlds. There is the dying musician Shrade, whose love for music composition symbolizes the equilibrium between life and perilous passion. These simple characters are thematic representations more than anything else; each of them embody an abstract idea related to love, and it is through these ideas and their interplay with one another that the audience receives the messages of Evol.

Aquarion Evol is love; nothing more and no less. The greatest charm of the series is the overflowing passion emanating from every single one of its components, from its characters to its symbols. In the end, no one and nothing is cast in a negative light. Even the antagonists, who initially appear heartlessly sadistic, eventually become heart-felt characters that the audience can sympathize with. The ending beautifully wraps up all the conflicts and strife using one thing only – ephemeral yet eternal, earthly yet ethereal – love. It is a conclusion so overwhelmingly corny, yet undeniably satisfying. Evol’s atmosphere is dramatically enhanced by its production values, which while not exceptional are above average in all respects. The art is sharp and detailed, the CG mecha combat is a feast for the eyes, and the soundtrack is fitting to say the least as some of the more touching tunes can be tear-jerkers by themselves. The production quality is epitomized by its ending theme, which complements a gorgeously archaic montage of the characters with an ambient ballad which perfectly captures the romantic and melancholic air of the series. The producers poured all of their heart into Evol, conceiving a series that is by no means insightful, but by all measures enchanting.

Aquarion Evol is not everyone’s cup of tea. It is perhaps best treated as a lengthy parable; an anime allegory for the power of love. It does not feature complex characters or tactful development; nor is there any profound exploration of humanity or society. What it does offer is its heartiness unparalleled by any other anime. With a wealth of giant robots, radiant characters, corny passion, and unwavering love, it captures the anime spirit more than most other shows do. Words cannot possibly do its magic justice; Aquarion Evol is an anime that needs to be experienced.

“To inherit a legend is to become a legend”

I first started this anime because I thought it would be about evil fishes, no joke. I translated the words at random and developed this idea that it would be like Finding Nemo with a twist. Don't find that too surprising, it insults my creativity (lets call it that) since my mind read the title as "Aquarium Evil." Anyway, I was a tad disappointed.
Don’t get me wrong; evil fishes would have made my day but I’m trying to be “cup half full” for the New Year’s crap. So I decided to watch even after the first ... five minutes confirmed that evil fishes were, in fact, nowhere present, but it was better in a way.

For those wondering, this is a review based on one episode (long one it is!) that I’ve seen. I know nothing of this genre or if this has any previous works but there’s always a first and I’ll forget to write my thoughts on it later, I’ll share them now:

The first couple of minutes create a sort illusion that Aquarion Evol is just about Sora Amata, who’s name I only remember because of Kingdom Hearts. He’s a loner, who works at a movie theater and is in love with a movie (Skies of Aquaria) and wishes people loved it as much as he does. While talking to a girl about his favorite movie he blushes at something she says and starts floating in air. At first I thought it was a weird-anime-guy-thing and he floated when he got turned on or something, even though that isn’t weird by anime standards (meaning I’ve heard/seen of weirder). I decided to postpone that thought and let the show tell me why he has to stuff his boots with metal pieces to keep from floating up.

The story’s attention shifts and action drops into our lap (finally!).
We learn about their world, how it’s divided and the boys and girls don’t “mingle,” so to speak. How members from their force have elemental powers (can it be called that?). How Aquarion has been battling with beings from an alternate dimension who wreak havoc by kidnapping citizens from Aquarion with spirit like machines called Abductors(not very creative there but it gets the point across and if your memory sucks like mine it’ll also help you remember) and take them back to their dimension. Aquarion fights back and sends their army called Aquaria to defend Aquarion.

Along the way we get confirmation of what we already suspect, that Sora isn’t an ordinary boy but a chosen one who is “destined” to be fighting alongside Aquaria in his own special mecha spirit thing that he eventually unlocks by calling it by its name:

“GO! Aquarion!”
“Aquarion. He knows the forbidden name.” -----Are you kidding me!

The animation is very nice and sort of reminds me of a role playing game sometimes. The characters each have their own uniqueness even in their own particular hair color. It’s a colorful world that’s for sure, but it gives it the aquatic feel to it that the anime wants to express (I guess). Something’s looked out of place for me, like one minute they were in a high tech building where everything seemed robotic or futuristic and the next it looked like a street in Paris. Threw me off a bit but I expected evil guppies so, eh.

The characters, it's too soon to tell and I can't get a feel of them right of the bat, I mean I can make assumptions and say it'll be like so and so but I like to assume they'll surprise me even if they end up not doing it. The main cast pair, you know who it is right off the bat, I wasn't a fan of much after 40 minutes just because the girl is annoying, but she's cute (in an Princess Euphemia way) so that'll make up for it.

The soundtrack is good, but honestly I would only notice something is off if it didn’t belong, like if Taylor Swift started playing during a fighting scene, otherwise I just notice that the music and instruments were in sync with the action scene and the mellow ones.

I wasn’t a fan of all the “aqua” to everything but I was surprised that I was enjoying the first episode more than I thought I would.
Why did I keep watching this show even though I don't watch sci-fi? Well because apart from the fish thing (above) it was the one show that I clicked on that during the first five minutes didn’t use the phrase, “wet panties.”

It’s an entertaining show and even though I am probably not making sense in this review since I don’t review non-romance anything I think it has potential and it reminds me a little of the fighting scenes in Code Geass which is the only other mecha anime I’ve watched, ever. Aquarion Evol is also one of the few anime I liked from the winter lineup.

The orgasm powered robots are back and ready to kick some ass. Now at this point I would like to say that if you dont already know, this is a sequal and I will admit that you dont need to see the first to understand this, I think you still should, because you will be able to appreciate this more.

The original was good but the main problem I had was that I didnt really think a whole lot of the characters. There wasnt that one guy that I was like, hey I can relate to this; it just didnt happen. Here however they did ... a far better job creating appealing characters which is the biggest step up in my book. Another change is that the show isnt about the orgasm powered robots, in fact they kinda go away from that. I like that because while I can say it was funny as hell at first it got old after so long and I was scared that that was all it was gonna be for a second season. Instead its used more in a symbolic nature, saying yeah thats whats up, but we're not here to make a vulgar display.

The story itself starts 12000 years after the stuff in Aquarion goes down, and as you probably know it follows the reincarnates of those characters, and of course the characters before that. As was the case in Aquarion, Evol follows a group of teenageish characters as they pilot Aquarion to save the world from abductors. It focuses on their relationships with one another and shit like that, but at the same time it is able to maintain an interesting story that keeps you going all the way through.

One thing that the story does is this: it changes alot of stuff that happenned in the original Aquarion, as in details that mattered alot to the story. This was risky because if you start changing stuff people can become confused, but I didnt and I doubt anyone will because they do such a good job in just the overall story-telling effort. It answers all of your questions which is very very important in any show.


The art was beautiful. I thought that the art in the original was pretty decent but damn, this just takes it all up several notches. The fight scenes are terrific and everything is so clear. The character models are done far better than in Aquarion and that was just fantastic to see.

Now on to the characters themselves. As ive already said, the characters were far more appealing to me this time around and I found myself rooting for them, which is something that didnt happen in the original. It follows Amata and his friend (who he'd like to be more than friends with) Mikono as they enter the Neo-deava academy and become elements for Aquaria. As you should have figured out by now, or will shortly these are supposed to be the reincarnates of celian and apollonius which is kinda true but at the same time not and as it goes on you'll see what i mean. Also in this you have a villain who looks suspiciously like Amata and some others make return appearances such as that shadow-angel dude from Aquarion and that crazy bastard Fudo shows up(yeah 12,000 years later).

As the story progressed, it got more and more tragic. There are just sad situations and the whatnot popping up everywhere at a point and I was all depressed and shit like "aw damn, this is gonna have a sad ending" which was the vibe I was getting. The actual ending though is very good and all the sad stuff that goes down at least gets brought to points where theres closure if nothing else. The ending also provides an actual end, by this I mean that the whole 12,000 year repeating cycle can finally be ended by the end to this.

On a whole I was really happy with this show. It had subtle humor, good characters, orgasmic animation(sorry I just had to use that pun) and it fixed alot of the crap that Aquarion didnt do so hot with. I will recomend thsi to anyone who liked the original, hell, Ill recomend this if you didnt like the original because this is just on such a higher level. Enjoy.

This Is the 2nd season Of Aquarion. Its By Kawamori Shoji and is currently writing the manga as well. I officially liked the ending but really needs a third season because it didn't describe or answer many questions about the previous series. I'm happy for this anime but a few of the fans are hating cause it had an alternate ending to it.The other Aquarion was more serious,in a way. This starts with a boy named Amata who goes to a village and meets a girl named Mikono, they share deep love connection to each other. This season is about destiny,faith and Forbidden love(That every ... affection that everybody has, yeah its forbidden). Even a few Shadow angels are reincarnated here and want world domination against humans and want to be with there favorite angel but don't get the love...eh to bad. Love makes you do crazy things in life, Good and bad times.

I really loved the story but I wish they make more episodes for the season..like an "ongoing" Anime or something. I liked the Art because it felt more new than the before series.The only thing I didn't like about it was that they didn't answer every question about everybody. By the way don't let a shadow angel use Aquarion..It doesn't look to well. I was also happy that they had new Aquarion vectors and names for them.

I chose a 7 for the Story cause It didn't feel like it actually answered enough questions about everyone. I still like the story and characters with it.

The Art was a 10 because its different than the other that Its stunning with everything around it.

The sound was a 10, because the music and the attacks had the same melody as The first series did, which was good.

The Characters was a 10 because every character stayed in there place during the series. They listen and help one another.

The enjoyment was a 9 and Overall was 10, I really enjoyed watching it so I recommend you go watch it if you haven't seen it yet. Its great and new chapter for you as well.

Mikono X Amata..........awesome, so finally this 26 episode anime has ended, so what now? Duuuuh, I guess, I'd probabaly say that this is all good, the genres indicated like Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, Mecha, Romance and Sci-fi did proved well for this anime, ok so there is that fujoshi element in the last episode of this thing which for me is EEEEEEEWWWWW. But then again the romance genre has the most impact in the story so for the "Story" part I'd give it a "Very Good" number 8, since I like the main plot were there are challenges that comes with Amata's quest for ... Mikono's heart, aside from it every episode has its own set of climatic thing in it which make the whole 26 episode worthwhile.

Art and sound: Mediocre 5.

I just have nothing to say about these parts, since the art is similary with "Sousei No Aquarion." Plus, the fanservice is kinda off, though Zessica looks hot in her skimpy outfit. As for the sound, I kinda like the mechs changing theme.

Character: Good 7.

I like the romantic role that Amata and Mikono played as lovers who are fighting to reverse the destinity that keeps them apart, also I kind like that role of Andy breaking into Mix's heart I guess you may say that the comedy genre of this anime is them, as for the other characters like Sharade, Cayenne, Kaguya and Mallory they really did their part well as part of the of this anime for as they represent the anime's action genre . I also like that the antagonist is solely reside in Mykage, in fact his role is a total representation of evil behind that angelic look. For Fudo.... well I guess since this anime has a fantasy genre, he may well be that genre.

Enjoyment and Overall: Very Good 8.

Ok, so for me, to give it such rating is because I've always expected that the arc would be a Mikono X Amata arc and it did happen, ok so most would expect a Kaguya X Mikono arc and a Zessica x Amata arc.....good thing it didn't happend which it the enjoyable part of the anime. Overall, this anime is worth watching every episode and this is one anime which you don't have to watch its prequel, since the way that Mari Okada of studio Satelight created it can stand on its own. In fact you might say that it is unrelated to the prequel- even if it is, then again who cares? This anime is all good, and that's that.

I hope that Satelight studios would make another sequel or a spin-off of this anime.

Btw: Mykage X Fudo (or Apollonius) arc?????????EEEEEEWWWWWW I hate shonen-ai or should I say Otoku-ai. No offends to LGBT's out there, just my personal opinion.

This anime is just outstanding !
When I watched the first episode I though I will stop,but then I heard ending song. Its words are beautiful and music is just great. The more I'm watching this anime the more I feel like it's going to be my favorite ! Story is awesome,art is awesome,sound is awesome,in short this anime is just awesome.
I don't like mecha very much but here it's different,mecha is combined with ecchi and romance,perfect !
Every character is different. I know I didn't watched the whole anime cause it's still airing but I still love it.
I founded Aquarion Evol ... several days ago when the 11th ep came and every day when I'm at home from school I'm watching new episode.
After I watch the whole thing I'll read manga...and one more thing I didn't watched the first season. o.O ups,ahaha xP

I don't normally watch mecha animes but this is definitely an exception.

Aquarion Evol is no doubt better than the original considering that the original (Sousei no Aquarion/Genesis of Aquarion) was already one of my top ten favourite anime.
Having said that, Aquarion Evol is far more superior than the original in all aspects be it the story, the character development or the overall enjoyment factor.

The new characters all share traits with characters from the original Aquarion series which makes it a delight for those who have watched the original to guess the identities of these "reincarnated characters". Some obvious similarities are drawn in the first episode ... between Amata/Kagura (Evol) and Apollo (Genesis)...and Mikono (Evol) and Sylvia (Genesis).

It's nice to also hear some of my favourite Genesis Akino songs reused in this series.

But my favourite part of the series is the clash between the mysterious Kagura character with the humble Amata. Both desire "the hand" of Mikono but both share a secret that makes the relationship between the three so much more complicated than "just another love triangle".

So for those who love action mixed with romance, this is definitely the anime for you.

Hello, fanservice my old friend!
If you were waiting for a direct sequel for Sousei no Aquarion, you will be disappointed. But if you don't have anything to watch and are itching for some corny romance and fanservice aboard big mechas, then go ahead and enjoy the show. Once I got what the show was about, I was able to enjoy it fully.

I was drawn to the series by its colorful and pretty animation, and the show doesn't disappoint in this regard.The story as a whole doesn't make much sense to me but, as stated before, we are not here for the plot ... but for the romance and big mecha fights!

Most of the characters are pretty silly and overdramatic (and also a bunch of horny teenagers). The show delivers its load of bishounens and bishoujos at will and it focuses on their relationships with the other gender by slapping some ridiculous situations, cheesy lines and metaphors as subtle as... an elephant in a room maybe? I found myself snorting at how silly the whole ordeal was.

That said, if you are here to watch mecha fights, you will be served.

In the end, this show is pretty enjoyable, if you are into that.

Before I begin let me say that I used to kinda like the series when the first episode came out. Then as the series progresses it began to suck even more and more. To the point of feeling unconformable to even watch an episode due to the plot and character interaction. That reminds the the PLOT.....YEAH THE PLOT after 12000 years after the first series the new characters have some similarities of the old series back in 2005 but that didn't help from preventing itself from SUCKING EVEN MORE. I forgot about most of the story because it became convoluted to the point of confusion ... also it makes kingdom hearts story like reading abcs. The only thing good about this one is the art design THAT'S ABOUT IT JUST PRETTY COLORS AND NOTHING ELSE!! The OST forgettable as HELL FOR A MECHA ANIME COME MAN PUT SOME ELECTRIC GUITARS, DRAMATIC ORCHESTRA OR EVEN BLOOD PUMPING ENERGETIC TECHNO MUSIC. That's my review of this series and I wonder how in the living heck I manged to watch 18 episodes or 25

Let's be honest. How many of you actually watched the original Aquarion 7 years ago?

it came at a time where anime was just starting to be popular where i came from, and where i lived, to love anime as much as i did, or rather, japanese games, art music, etc etc, was anathema to the social ladder. didnt really care. point being i watched it years ago. i still watch it. i have the damn thing in my hard drive right now. when the characters said that the movie the characters were watching was a let down and only the music was good, good ... enough to warrant its own show, i felt so vindicated.

nvrmind, after all this years thinking how underappreciated it was kinda riles me up. the music it uses now is a variation, remixed and improved. if you loved the music 7 years ago, you'll love it now.

graphics? arts? i had a fucking orgasm over the beauty. nuff said. the venice like river of the first date, absolutely beautiful. the characters are drawn far more aesthetically pleasing compared to the original. i mean, put amato and apollo side by side and start laughing. i dont really follow anime as avidly as i used to, but i can honestly say this might just be the best animation of 2012.

characters? eh.... just two spisodes..... no comment except that most people in the show seem to have a stick up their arse. especially the single sex ladies in the robot. to be honest though? the first thing that struck out to me when i watched the first ten minutes were how the Celiane and sylvia was depicted in a movie. i had visions of Apollo and Appolonius bursting out of Amato's back old school style and LAUGH at how girly the heroine is now compared to the real thing 12000 years and 24000 years ago. i kid you not. basically so far the blue haired heroine has shown herself to be a typical japanese Yamato Nadeshiko. soft spoken, sensitive, utterly beautiful as opposed to the rough housing, amazon warriors the first two heroines were.

overall? i sat in my chair and ate salted peanuts while staring at a blank wall for 12 hours straight because i was waiting for the thing to be released. so i have to say i might be a little biased. if you like visually pleasing shows though? this might whet your appetite and if not the characters dont, the story will drawn you in.

SPOILERS AHEAD:

So, as always, Aquarion as a franchise is a mixed bag. The original series received quite a bit of criticism for both its throwbacks to older style "Super Robot" anime, as well as for an at-times silly set of subplots surrounding its characters. The original conceits of the series were often cringe-inducing as well: the action of the series focuses aroudn Aquarion, which is a giant robot formed of 3 "vectors" which combined into a giant robot, accompanied by the pilots undergoing a "gattai" (union) which results in them, well, orgasming.

Aquarion Evol is not going to do much for people ... who disliked the original series, and in fact may not be a great show for people who loved it, either. I do think that there's a lot to enjoy here, particularly if you are a fan of romance + giant robots or the original series itself. Just don't expect too much.

SOUND: The Soundtrack is by the always wonderful Yoko Kanno, with frequent vocals by AKINO. If you're a little older-school anime fan like me, you might find yourself wishing that Yoko Kanno had collaborated with Maaya Sakamoto instead, but AKINO has plenty to offer here, and once again displays some quite good English skills (which makes sense, since the singer and her siblings all hail from Utah by way of Mesa, Arizona) alongside a strong voice seemingly made for belting out Yoko Kanno classics.

There isn't a lot of new music on display however, other than the OP/ED themes and a few insert songs. Most of the music is recycled from the first series, but rather than seeming lazy or cheap on the part of the producers, I think that the music does a great job of tying together the two series, which is doubly important since there are only a few characters in common, the character designs are a little different, and Aquarion and Aquarion EVOL are also separated by a 12,000 year gap.

There's not much to say about the rest of the sound, which is to say it's inoffensive. Aside from several of the female characters having your usual squeaky childlike voices and one character (Schrade) sounding like he had a cold the entire time, the cast does a decent job with their characters. The sound effects and environmental sound are good, and fit well with the fight scenes and quiet scenes alike.

ART & ANIMATION: The character designs and actual animation are great in this show, presumably because SATELIGHT used all their money on the digipaint scenes after saving a boatload by reusing assets from the first series. The character designs, provided by Chinatsu Kurahana, Kana Ishida, & Hirotaka Marufuji are vibrant, unique, and make it visually easy to distinguish between characters. There are a few weird choices here (like the prudish Mix wearing a dress that lifts and flaunts her breasts to an absurd degree) but all of it seems fitting with the tone of the series as a whole.

As with the original series, the 3dcg itself is not great, but then, it never is in anime. Animations can be jerky, as if there aren't enough 'tween frames, and the mecha often have very stilted and awkward movements. They do their best to work around these limitations, and since I didn't turn the series off in disgust I guess that they succeeded.

STORY & CHARACTER: This is where the good turns a little towards bad. Way too much time is spent on side characters (particularly the duo of happy, perverted ANDY W HOLE and prudish, frosty MIX) and the main romance never gets much development. Worse, the main character is written (on purpose) to be indecisive and passive, which really saps the enjoyment from watching him. There's a lot to be praised here for the way that main characters confront their feelings for each other head-on, and the willingness to develop some of the relationships in the series far beyond the usual "confession in the last 30s of the series" bullshit, but the truth of the matter is that head writer Mari Okada didn't seem to find much interesting in the relationship between Amata and Mikono, and it shows. As I said before, we spend a lot of time with the characters Jin and Yunoha, and MIX and Andy, and while both of their arcs have relatively satisfying conclusions, Amata and Mikono seem to come together in the end (after 26 episodes of Mikono waffling about Amata and his evil twin Kagura) more because they should for plot reasons than because they seemed a good fit together.

Additionally, we spend a lot of time doing silly "anime trope"-ish episodes: a school festival, a beach episode, etc etc etc. While none of them are BAD per se, they are also not particularly good either. The little bit of character growth we get during them is usually ignored completely next episode.

That being said, whereas the theme of the original Aquarion may have been "love as destiny" this series clearly embraces the idea of "love in spite of it". Kagura claims to have been born to love Mikono who is a reincarnation of Aquarion's Silvia, but Amata (her eventual choice) loves her for herself, not because of some 12,000 year long arc towards a destined ending. Likewise, most of the other characters in the show do not seem interested in finding out about their previous lives the way Apollo, Silvia, &c in the first season were. Instead they are all focused on their love and relationships in the here and now, and to hell with what your past lives wanted.

I will say, one thing this show does fantastically is present homosexual love and homosocial relationships in a positive, engaging manner. Schrade and Cayenne are clearly deeply in love, but their relationship is hardly even commented on by the other characters except to present sympathy when the inevitable occurs. Meanwhile, while Toma & Mikage may technically be non-gendered or genderqueer, they both present as masculine, as do the objects of their love, Apollon. This is not presented a prurient, or weird, or even worthy of mention: they simply love each other in a way that shows gender has no meaning in love. Much later in the series as well, MIX is transformed into a man but Andy doesn't even blink: it doesn't matter to him. he loves Mix the person, not Mix the walking pair of breasts with some glasses perched on top. And while this may seem a little too "perfect", it also shows excellent growth in the character from his roots at the beginning of the show where he was desperate to sneak into the girls' side of the dormitory to get himself a peek at some "big bangs."

Other than the diffuse focus on the cast and the at-time silly one-off episodes however,the biggest thing that bothered me is retconning. The identity of Apollo is retconned during Aquarion EVOL, and while Shoji Kawamori insists this was always part of the plan, There certainly was no evidence in the original Genesis of Aquarion series (there may have been in the OVA released later, but I have not seen that). This changes the nature of the ending of the original series, and changes Toma's character (and his reincarnation in Mikage) substantially, seemingly only because this was the need of having an angel as a villain to manipulate everyone else.

Anyways, it's about time for me to wrap this one up, and I will say that despite my complaints, I enjoyed my time with Aquarion EVOL and would recommend it to anyone who is willing to take as a given the silly trappings of the Aquarion universe (gattai as sex, bad cgi robots, totally ignoring forced gattais as metaphors for rape, etc) and enjoy a series that tries its hardest to fit in some shallow meditations on the nature of love and the connections between humans in between the giant robot fights and eye candy. Just don't expect too much depth here, and prepare for a lot of silliness.

Story - The story for AE seems more progressive and less episodic than the previous series (Sousei no Aquarion), it is has some good action and comedic scenes which are good, but as a whole, the anime suffers unfortunately because it incorporates the easily misunderstood belief of reincarnation. That combined with some people's disagreement at the coupling at the end despite being obvious from the beginning, it does have a lot criticism, which I feel is unfair. I think it has one of those plots in which you either like it or hate it.

Art - The art is very good and detailed, all ... of it from the mechs to the background enviroments. Most certainly the strongest aspect of the anime.

Sound - Sound in this anime is also very good, the variation of music is good and is nicely timed to the fighting scenes.

Character - Just like Sousei no Aquarion, Aquarion Evol has characters that your going to like and others that you hate, that includes the antagonists as well. I don't know why but I much prefer the characters in AE than in SNA, the characters personalities seem more interesting.

Enjoyment - There are some flaws with the story and the characters, but Aquarion Evol is still very enjoyable. The action scenes are well timed with the music, the enviroments, character designs, mechs and lighting are easy on the eyes.

Overall - I enjoyed watching it, also Aquarion Evol was designed so that people didn't need to watch Sousei no Aquarion to understand it, so you can watch it without watch SNA.

This is my first review so I'm sorry in advance.

After watching the first episode, all i can say is that i got really into it. not to mention about a boy liking a girl, super powers, robots and separating the boys with the girls in a school to stop them from becoming in love. I would always wait every week for this anime. This anime has everything I'm looking for; Cute Girls, Robots, Comedy and Romance.

At first i had no clue where this anime was going, so i deiced to watch the first season "Genesis of Aquarion". It was okay, i ... just needed a clue what the whole series was about. Mostly about fight invaders who were harvesting humans so they could stay alive or so, and the only way to stop them are to use these people so called "elements" to pilot a Robot.

Aquarion Evol revolves around a boy name Amata which i THINK who is the recreation or Apollo. Amata is a boy who is an element (he has wings in his feet) user who meets a girl name Mikono and starts liking her. Mikono seems to be a shy and timid type of person. They then get involve in the Robot fighting with the invaders, and then has been made to stay at this school that is separated between girls and boy. Lets just put it to that for now, I'm still watching. (x

To be honest this anime will drag you in, with great art as if you are watching in HD, and with also great Opening and Ending songs. I love the Characters. This show is Random and Weird at the same time, that's why I love it.

[SPOILER WARNING]

An ok anime! I would recommend this anime to people who like to see people having orgasms powering up robots! A funny anime, but the ending was like WTF! So the evil Kagura who was pursuing the amazing Mikono, just suddenly gave up on her! Then Amata the most weak-ass character of all time just took her! Though I do prefer Amata over Kagura, Amata barely did anything outside of his stupid robot!

I may be a little harsh on this anime, but I cannot say I absolutely enjoyed it! The plot was great! The mechs fights were ok, the romance was a bit ... dull(still Ok)! The music was amazing! They could've easily done a better job on this anime, but they decided not to. If I were to make this anime better. I would add something like Amata suddenly becoming badass and actually standing up to Kagura!

Also btw Mikono was the most useless(she says so herself) anime girl I have ever seen! But she was the cutest(obviously) girl that got paired up with an ugly ass guy Amata! Though Zessica and Amata would have been a better match, I still like AmataXMikono better.

The series definitely started off strong, and had alot more going on between characters then the prequel which focused mostly on slyvia and apollo's relationship. It was great all the way up till they throw in probably one of the most pathetic plot twists I've ever seen, that being completely ruining the story of the first one, which had a pretty much well ingrained fact that apollo was the reincarnation of apollonius. But they throw that out and say that he wasn't bust instead hes the reincarnation of the dog, which isn't shown in the previous series at all, maybe the other retelling they show ... him but other then that he never existed in the prior series.

It was at this point I lost all enjoyment from the series, as I enjoyed the previous series although melodramatic, it still came around for a decent romance drama. Which was founded on the fact apollo was apollonius that gets thrown out the window near the end of this show.

Besides the horrible turn of events for the story, the characters are good and develop very well, they entertain multiple relationships between characters which is nice. I mean theres not much to say besides the story was going well until that horrific twist, other then that it was pretty good.