Jormungand

“Your new recruit is a child soldier? And he's got iron, shit.”

There is much to talk about guns, wars, arm dealers, and child soldiers these days. For those who are into the fast action type, the type of series involving a kickass music, or a type of series involving a main protagonist being loco, or blood being splattered all over the screen, then this series is definitely something to keep an eye on.

According to Norse Mythology, Jörmungandr (or more often known as Jormungand) is known as the Midgard Serpent or the World Serpent. And like a serpent, the main character is cunning as expected of ... an arms dealer. For without intelligence and leadership, the crew would not be what they've become of today.

Jormungand is based off the manga of the same name starring Koko Hekmatyar, a young arms dealer who sells weapons under HCLI, a weapons corporation. She is badass, she is independent, she is cunning, she is fun, and she is of course loco. With her is the child soldier, sidekick, bodyguard, and brother all the same time named Jonah (Jonathan Mar). He is of the West Asian origin and after being orphaned swears to get vengeance. Yet the same time, with his acquittance of Koko and the crew, his sentiment seems to have cooled down and even has a warmer side to him that some of us may see as cute or peculiar.

[ - Story - ]
To be honest, this is the type of show that can make any fan of action genre glued to the screen with its blood packed spilling, rapid violence, and gun dominance at first glance. The first episodes kicks off already with some full throttle road war and those bullets fly across all over the screen. It wastes little time in conveying the hazardous occupation and brutality of being an arms dealer. At the same time, it also finds ways to make the series relaxing through some heartwarming moments and comedic scenes.

The story is set in the modern eras so if you're looking for mecha action, futuristic weaponry, or of the historical theme, then you're looking at the wrong place. Fear not though as the story is easy to understand and not one of those mindfucks that leaves the viewers going “HUH?” Speaking of stories, Jormungand has a smooth pace focusing on the crew's teamwork and abilities to accomplish tasks. Each arc focuses on professionalism and it's up to Koko and her crew to work together in the end to deliver the result. Although somewhat one-sided and predictable, the story is still smooth and to the adult-oriented audience, can be appealing.

[ - Characters - ]
One of the aspect that engineers this series is the colorful cast of characters. Koko Hekmatyar assumes the role of the female protagonist who is amusing, entertaining, and dramatic to watch. Despite the real dangers of her occupation, she makes fun out of most it and can literally be seen as a troll at occasions. Her character brightens up the gloom and doom of the crew and gives her job a new light that some future arm dealers may find appealing or maybe strange. On the other hand, there is Jonah, the child recruit soldier. Like the opposite side of a coin, he has a more stoic mind and says things that can sometimes be interpreted blunt, sarcastic, or too brutally honest. Yet he is an interesting character if we look at him more carefully for his ability to balance out the seriousness and fun mood of the story and her crew.

Speaking of the crew, there are some of other prominent characters to look at. One of them is the one eyed ripped girl, Valmet. Her priceless expressions throughout the episodes towards Koko are those of a puppy like crush and silly to watch. Yet behind that eye lies a dark past, one which changed her life forever and made her the person that she is today. There are some others worth to mention namely Lehm that resumes the second in command of the crew, Kasper Hekmatyar (Koko's elder brother), and Chinatsu from one of the earlier episodes. While all of them have contrasting personalities, it is easy to see that they share the theme of having a dark past whether playing the role of the good or bad player.

It is because of these themes and histories, the crew and the characters of this series are quite unique in its aspects.

[ - Animation/Art - ]
Like Steins; Gate, Jormungand is handled by White Fox. They are a relatively new anime studio who are more into the traditional background. At first glance, that's nothing worth to talk about. Yet, if we look carefully, we can clearly see that the studio creates the realism of the the story and into its characters. The weapons, the military backgrounds, the settings, the outfits, the visuals. It retains its ability to create the atmosphere. Koko's mischievous expressions on her loco face shows it all through the lashes and those slippery grins like a serpentine. That can also be said to the same for her bodyguard, sidekick, and friend, Jonah.

The series also tries to bring out humor through some of the more comic scenes with the black ringed eyes in the form of priceless expressions. While not too appealing, it brings out the comedy side of the series and shows that while the job of being an arm dealer is dangerous, it can also be fun and to make most of it.

[ - Sound - ]
I'll say this once and once only. The music and soundtrack of this series is pure epic. The music director behind the scene (Taku Iwasaki) puts the e into epic for its beats and techno trance like music that will make you wish you're part of the series. (unless you fear of getting shot that is)

The OP song, “Borderland” sung by Mami Kawada is also quite catchy. Known for her work from the popular Shana franchise and the Toaru Majutsu no Index series, she brings her latest work to life through this song. All in all for nothing else of a reason to watch this show, the soundtrack of the series is one of them

[ - Enjoyment - ]
Like I said before, this series is packed with nonstop action in rapid sequences. There's not much romance to expect out of this show but who cares when we have Koko and her alpha crew? There's also some little fan-service here and there with the ripped Valmet, the mass volumes of blood spilled on an episode basis, and of course, those kickass music that can get you start watching the show in a heartbeat. The action does occasionally get repetitive and the gore seems to be almost forced on. But if we look carefully, the series also has the more emotionally side to it (especially involving Valmet) in some of the later battles. To combine action and emotion, that is enjoyment.

Despite all the praise, this series does have flaws. After all, without flaws, this show would be in MAL's top 100 by now. Yet, it's not. That's because it does have flaws.

One of the major problems I'd say would be the forced action that is a bit driven too much and lack of more character development. For example, I'd love to see some more history background besides Valmet, Koko, and Jonah. Maybe that guy with the sniper that has the eye of a hawk, or maybe Schokolade, the blonde informant that has a peculiar and joyful personality. Additionally, the character designs of the show are a bit blend and seems somewhat dirty. After watching Koko and her crew grin on a daily basis, in the OP, on missions, etc, it gets repetitive. But even with these flaws, this series is enjoyable, at least in the action and seinen department. But even if you don't meet the age demographic, this show can be watched for some guilty pleasure involving Koko's alpha crew and their exchanges. It's fun, it's bloody, it's entertainment, and it's in your face. All in all, this series is great to watch in the middle of the week especially after a busy week of school or work even with all the violence.

Just remember though in real life that violence is not the answer to everything, well except in Jormungand.

“People who kill too much turn into dragons one day. Beasts that rule the land atop piles of money and fly the skies on wings of authority. They become more and more violent until they can no longer understand the language of men. We cannot allow dragons to remain in this world, even though we are the ones from which they are spawned.”

Koko Hekmatyar is an unique person, one of those people who keep equlibrium in the world, setting the delicate balance between right or wrong. As a guns merchant she encounters many chaotic situations where the line between right or wrong is easily crossed, ... however that doesn't stop her, as she stands collected in the face of perils. As every person working in this line of business, she gathers a team of people who are her subordinates. As you might have guessed, they are not ordinary people, but experienced soldiers who returned alive from the pits of hell. They choose to follow the bright light that Koko emits, being attracted by her charm and wisdom, talents which make her a natural leader.

As her new subordinate, she recruits Jonah, a boy who fought as a child soldier in the Middle East. Jonah meets her team and is taken by surprise by all the new information he finds out about the world outside the war zone, since he only knew who to shoot a gun and fight. Koko gives Jonah a chance to be free and discover the world in his travels. However, Koko doesn't babysitt him, making him a new addition to her team, and giving him the role of protecting her in her gun transactions with people of the underworld.

The story follows the journey of Koko and her team to various countries and continents where Koko sells different guns and war machinery. As expected, the transactions don't always go so well, thus making Koko's team enagage in badass combat to protect her when the situation gets out of hand. It does remind of Black Lagoon, but this show stands on its own, the story being engaging and interesting enough to set itself apart. However, it does have flaws, the story not being coherent at times in the transition between episodes as well as having some characters's backgrounds unexplained.
Story: 7

The art is appealing, especially the designs of Jonah and Koko. The animation is constantly good, and the fighting scenes are engaging and highly-elaborated. I find the guns designs pretty imaginative as well as the various combat styles.
Art: 8

The music in this anime is really stunning, from the up-beat rap music to the classic music played in the background and the music in various languages that suits the multi-cutural backgrounds of the characters. One of my favorites songs from this anime is in portuguese, its beauty touching the strings of your heart.
Sound: 9

At first Jonah clearly states that even if he's talented with shooting guns and killing people with them, he hates guns and those who sell them. However, he soon discovers that Koko is not your usual cold-hearted, insensitive gun merchant, but follows her own code of morals, even if it at times ambiguous. For example, she doesn't accept payment in drugs, and it's been shown that she admires determination and bravery even in her enemies. The way she chose her followers is the best example. For instance, her bodyguard and driver, Ugo, was a member of the mafia when Koko ordered for them to be killed when they wanted to pay her in drugs, leaving Ugo the only survivor. When asked why did she leave Ugo alive, she replyed that she liked the fact that Ugo looked away in disapproval when the mafia showed the drugs.

Koko is a force of nature, one of those rare people who can become anything they wished to be. Instead, Koko chose to be part of the dangerous underworld. She was born at sea, thus not having a place where she belongs, but because of that she feels unbounded, being able to feel freedom at another level. In norse mythology, Jormungand is called the "World Serpent" because he grew so large that he could surround the world and grasp its own tail. That may be a metaphor for Koko, who has the ability to feel free everywhere she goes in the world, thus by following her, she gives other people who strive for freedom, the chance of feeling eliberated.

We also meet her other subordinates which are people who survived wars and conflicts. There is Lehm, the always calm and collected veteran soldier and mercenary who is very compelling as a character. There is also Valmet, a skilled war combatant from Finland who still pursues revenge for her murdered comrades. As Koko once stated : "She's her teacher, her friend and more than that".Another member of Koko's team consists of Lutz, who serves at times the role of a comic relief, being shot in the ass several times, however showing superior skill as a sniper.

The character of Jonah is very interesting to watch as he develops, at the beginning showing a strong loathe of guns and the criminal world, after joining Koko's team he finds that things aren't as black and white as he initially had thought, people like Mao, for example, who have a family and are good-natured individuals, but still have to kill because of their job.

However, there are problems with the characters as well. The portrayal of the characters as being the “good guys” is highly unrealistic, because of the profession they have. Seeing a sympathetic law-breaker is acceptable in anime format, though. There are also interesting supporting characters but they aren't developed, which is quite a pity. I would also have liked to see more of Jonah's experiences as a child soldier and how they affected him. That would have been very interesting for me to watch, but unfortunately, it was totally discarded.
Characters: 7

I enjoyed this anime, I recommend it to those who watched Black Lagoon as well as those who like action scenes and imaginative combat styles.
Enjoyment: 8

Overall: 8

This was probably one of the best shows that I have ever watched. This anime rocks to the very core!

The story was great. It shows the reality of what an arms dealer does. I have known some in real life. And they are indeed such kinds of persons who are in this anime. They hire people to defend them, they fuel wars, they compete with other dealers, they kill their enemies, they partner with those they can't handle and most of all they are good in economics (supply and demand lol). It was also somehow realistic in the sense that quantum computing could be dangerous. ... In fact, such kinds of technologies are existing right now but are currently suppressed or controlled by the governments. To wrap up, the story is outstanding as it never fails to show how reality looks in this kind of game(arms-dealing).

The art is also good.. Not too showy unlike other military genres which have too much explosions and crap that hurts the eye.. The fight scenes are naturally shown and are quite enjoyable.. it's pretty much like how real gunfights look.

The characters are also very cool. Each member has different personalities that were nicely portrayed in the show. Not to mention that the show was also able to show most of the stories of each member (their pasts and their struggles). The anime never failed to describe each of them.

Overall, I give this one a 10. This is one of the best animes that I have ever watched and this is the very first time that I have given myself a chance to create a positive review here in MAL for this anime really deserved it.. :)

I am not sure what to say about this show. It is extremely action packed and the character looks interesting at first glance, but there is so many of them and they are all still so cryptic that it is hard to tell if they are not just generic characters in the end. I am not sure where this show will be going exactly, obviously action will take a major part of the show, but I have a feeling (mostly because this is a white fox production) that the character will turn out to be very likable and interesting in the end.

I’m more interested in ... learning what is the deal with Jonah. That poor boy is very interesting, he doesn’t like to talk, yet he asks many question, he doesn’t like guns, yet he carries one around. The only time he laughed was when he was able to hold a plush in his hand for a minute. Otherwise he always kept the same Kristen Stewart facial expression for the whole episode. In term of characters, Jormungand already hooked me in. Also, I don’t know if it is just me, but Jonah reminds me of Johan from Monster, mainly because they have the same letters in their name and both kids are messed up beyond any kind of redemption.

Another part of the show that I absolutely loved were the soundtrack. The Opening and Ending are just awesome ! They made me think of Black Lagoon somehow in their style, most likely because both shows are of similar genre after all. Even after listening only once to those songs, I already want to listen to them on loop. I guess I’m kind of a sucker for this kind of “music”.

Finally, I’m not sure what to say about the action, the only thing I can clearly say is that some of the stuff they did in the show are simply physically impossible. No one can stand on top of a car that is driving at I don’t know how many kilometers per hour, not unless you have nails under your boots, but even in that case it would have been impossible in that particular scene, since the van was bullet proof and the nails would have never taken grip in the first place. Also, while I’m no explosive specialist, I am fairly confident that the shock wave from a grenade explosion is sufficient (at such close range) to active the detonator of an RPG, but maybe some gun maniac could prove me wrong on that one.

I’m willing to give this show a try, I have a feeling that the action might never buy me, but the characters already did and from past experience, white fox make great shows. I will look forward to blogging and watching this show, at least for the next couple episodes.

Possibility of Watching: Likely

What in your mind if we're talking about a series that have gunfire packed with some stunning action? Maybe you would think a hollywood movies that usually have stunning action and amazing gunfire scenes like The Raid Redemption (2012) or maybe James Bond series , how about in anime? Dont worry we have like that too, its called Jormungand.

STORY

The story in jormungand is about Jonah, a boy who fought in middle east as the child soldier is being recruited as Koko's companions. Koko itself is an arms dealer who travels all around the world for selling the guns. As the arms dealer, Koko must have ... many obstacles like resistance from a group in the country or even a rival in dealing with arms. As her subordinate, Jonah and the companions must make sure Koko's safety in every transactions. By reading the premise of the story maybe you can imagine. There will be many spectacular action and stunning visual gunfire which means you will being served by a full-pack of action. Well, its true.

What make me love about this series was this anime wasnt always about gunfire or battle scenes. There was a time when this anime shows good jokes and some lighthearted story. Having a great action battle doesnt mean they forgot about the story, the story in this anime was well-made and not too hard to understand. Jormungand is really great at composing the story when times to jokes and when the times for serious.

Of course, in Jormungand there was some moments when you have question in your mind like "what happen?" or "how could it happen? what the reason"
but eventually, it would happen if you werent focussed. But aside from it, Jormungand is pretty enjoyable action anime that will make you sitting down quietly on your chair.


ART

The art in this anime was awesome, especially in the weapon details. They were specifically put extra details in the weapon that being used in this anime, like when there was a scenes with a weapon usually they make it really like a realistic weapon. Not just the weapon details, The background in this anime was really synch with the situation or the atmosphere, even the background seems so simple but it isnt decreasing the "epic" effect when there was a gunfire scenes. The simple background that White Fox usually does is being covered by how the gunfire scenes works. So people usually being sidetracked and focusess on the battle scenes.



SOUND

You wouldnt get spaced out if you're watching Jormungand, since when watching this anime you will feel like in the middle of battles. Gunfire and exploding sound will echoing your room and makes like you're in the middle of battleground. Not just the sound effect, the BGM which made by Yasunori Ebina (known for To Aru majutsu franchise) is helpfully increasing the feel from "war" situation.

The OP of Jormungand, which is "Borderland" by Mami Kawada is pretty catchy. With some electro tunes and fast beat, this OP easily grasp my heart. This OP itself is quite match with Jormungand themes, which have a full-suspense action and fast battles. I cant help to not to rewind after hearing the OP, its really good and easy listening.

CHARACTER

This is maybe what make Jormungand shines the most. In this anime, you will find many interesting characters. Its not tsundere or dandere that you would find in any anime but its more into realistic terms. Like Jonah, our main character who is mostly quiet (because of the trauma) but at the same time pretty skillful in battle, Koko which is the "boss" in this anime, she is very charismatic and sometimes behave like a child but when comes to serious, she is can be very scary, and also there was Valmet, who is Ex-Major serving for UN forces in Africa, looks scary on the outside but can be pretty darling when it comes to Koko and there is still more, from a freaky one into a badass one. This anime full of interesting character that you wouldnt get bored from it.

CONCLUSION

Above all the appreciate that i gave in this anime, Jormungand is really deserve to have all the apreciation, Jormungand is really a great action one that rarely seen in another series. You have great story packed with amazing battle scenes, wonderful soundtrack that can hyping up the atmosphere, great backgrounds and loveable characters. What else did you need again? anyway, this anime is for those who loves action. FYI, i am not action fans but i started to getting addicted with action after watching jormungand. So, basically this anime is RECOMMENDED!

"Though i Devour Five Lands and Drink the Three Ocean Dry i am powerless Against the Sky,for i have neither Wings,nor Legs nor Hands.i am the World Snake and My Name is Jormungand"
Jormungandr is originally a son of Loki the Norse God and the enemy of Thor(his uncle).a great snake that is known as the World Serpent.although Jormungand anime is not directly connected to the mythology it uses the name to represent Koko's personality.she looks innocent and cute at first but with a look at her eyes you can see she is a Dragon without wings that devours the world.(she even has complexity with the ... sky like the original Jormungandr.as one of her men always says "nothing good comes from Koko and the sky")

Story and Characters

Jormugand starts with a young boy named Jonah that hates weapons but has nothing else to depend on and have to use them.an arms dealer named Koko hires him and they travel the world with Koko's team.in their travels and missions Jonah Learns about each of the team member's past and skills and we also learn why he is sticking around.(he also has to learn school stuff from the gang too but he ditches his classes most of the times).

every arc features an story about one of the Jonah's Squad mates,their background and their abilities in battlefield.even those that might seems less capable at the first glance can take your attention when they finished showing off in their own arc for example Mao seems like an empty character at first but when you find out that he is a family man and can rain six thousand steel arrows on his enemies with ease you see there is more to him.there are also characters that can get your attention and love from the beginning like Lehm or Valmer (my favorites from the squad)

throughout the story the squad get involved in some awesome fights featuring Guns,Blades and Blood(what more do you want?) but that's not all we get from Jormungand.behind every fight most of the time there is a mind game going on between Koko and her rivals.while the talk of blood and tricky games gives a serious theme to the series it always managed to have its own style of comedy as well which is mostly shown at the start of every arc(R going perv on Valmer or Lutz playing Paintball with Jonah).another good thing about Jormungand is that no one is invincible in it and in every mission you get the feeling that someone may die specially with the way they adopted the manga.(like Ugo's scene that they made a cliffhanger out of it).even the mighty Lehm can get Knock out anytime like real humans.although you will see some unreal things in this anime as well like dodging hundreds of bullets...

Animation

you can feel the animation getting better through out the series.it always tries to be in synch with the ongoing theme for example you can feel a dark shade most of the times on battle scenes and a light one on comedy scenes.the character design is good as well although it doesn't completely stays true to the manga.

Sound

"her name is Koko she is Loco i said Hell Yes!"
with good action scenes there is always a need for a good music as well to gives you enough adrenaline rush and Jormungand is successful at that.the BGM and OSTs in this series are one my favorites.also its worth mentioning that the series has a good Opening theme done by Mami Kawada named Borderlands as well.
also they did a good job at voice casting and it has .Valmer and Lehm are perfectly fit from the beginning and we heard their voice on similar characters before so that helps as well.you might think that Koko's Voice is little of at first but the more you get to know her the more you see that it suits her well.they even brought Isobe, Tsutomu as Bookman which is nostalgic since he voiced Dutch in Black Lagoon(a similar anime.also both of their mangas are being published in the same magazine)

Enjoyment and Overall

Jormungand might not seems like something complex at first but the more you get to know it the more you feel its not just a simple gunfight anime and that the creator actually put a lot of thought and feeling behind the story and characters and the staff did a good job at bringing it to life.

Ok, so the 1st season of this anime has ended and we all look for ward on the next season, and it is suggested that the main baddie involves the so called "Bookman" ..... obviously he's the guy whom we saw who met up with "R."

But let's have a short quiz first:

I.True or false

1. The former Soviet Union was the biggest supplier of weapons during the cold war.
a. true b false

2. The " Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia — Ejército del Pueblo," or better known as ... " FARC" is currently the most active revolutionary insurgency group in South America particularly in Colombia.

a.true b. false

3. The Mexican Drug Cartel is only involved in smuggling and dealing in drugs.

a. true b.false

4. The Chicago Mob (Mafia) is currently the biggest criminal organization in the US.
a.true b. false

Let me remind you that the question being ask here were related to the anime itself, though you can choose to brush this quiz aside it can only prove that you ain't interested to know at all.

Ok enough of the BS, so what now? Just kidding, Since this anime has a Action, Adventure, Military and seinen genre in it, it actually has the following; the flare of James Bond combine with the action of "The Unit" with the addition of black comedy of "Sons of Anarchy." It kinda looks like that the author himself, Keitaro Motonaga may have had his inspiration with regards to these shows. However, he may have also gotten some inspiration that happened in real life and I'm referring to the "Iran-Contra" scandal where during 1986 the Reagan Administration violated their own arms embargo to Iran and Israel serves as the middle man between the US and Iran which cause a ruckus in US Congress. In which this anime may be a metaphor for that kind of incident. In reality an arms smuggler like Koko Hekmatyar would not last 5 mins out there and we are talking about every law enforcement agency including the Interpol would would be knocking in her front door and she'll run out places to hide just like what happen to infamous drug lord Pablo Escobar in 1993. You see the business of being a middleman in arms smuggling is not as glamorous as that of Koko in fact the job itself is as risky as drug smuggling, but unlike drug smuggling, arms smuggling is only cruel to black marketeers but not to arms manufactures and in the countries where they reside. So for the story since the plot varies from episode to episode and there is that element of realism in it I gave it a "Good" number 7.


Art: Decent 4.

Ok, usually I really don't comment much about the art of an anime, but I really like the way them amazon were drawn like Valment, Karen, Curry and Chiquita it seems that the illustrator may have gotten the idea of using Japan's famous female body builder Tomoko Kanda as a model for the said female cast of this anime which I like.

Sound: Poor 3.

I simply hate both the opening and closing themes.

Character: Good 7.

What I like the roles that were fitted into the characters, co'z how they were drawn actually matches them perfectly. Take for example Koko Hekmatyar, one can see that she the good, the bad and the ugly. Good because her posses respect her and she has a way that commands the respect of her would be killers, she's bad co'z if one crosses her it is open season for him and she ugly co'z.............she's smart, cunning and generous, but she simply ugly and I kind hate her for being a lolicon since it is very obvious that she has hots for Jonah. Valmet on the other hand kinda strikes me as both a Milf and a hot Fbb which I find her as awesome, since I kinda have a thing for Milf's and Fbb's. Jonah, for me he looks like grown man in a boy's body, which if I can have it my way I would have love to tie him unto a ICBM and launch him in the sky. You know, I would have wish that Chinatsu better known as "Commando Girl" would have had some uncensored fanservice with regards to her butt to add some spice to her character even thought she only appeared in 2 episodes.

Enjoyment and overall: Good 7 and Very Good 8.

The enjoyable part of this 12 episode 1st season is the gun fight, blood and gore and some good fanservice from the Valment, you can really say that this anime is for seinen who would like a good action and adventure kind of thing, Overall, White Fox studio really did a good action pack anime which deserves a 2nd season. So even if the 2nd season is yet to come I wonder if the "Bookman" will be able to tame the "Jormungand"( which by the way I'm referring to Koko)? I guess we'll find out when the 2nd season arrives.


BTW, how about another set of Jormungand quiz?


5. What is the name of the Surface to Air Missile (SAM) system that was shown in episode 2?

a. Hawk b. Stinger c. Patriot

6. One of Koko's mercenaries is a former " Bersaglieri," question, what is a" Bersaglieri?"


a. An elite unit of the Russian Army B. An elite unit of the Royal Army (UK)

c. An elite unit of the Italian Army


7. A Javelin is a form of ____________.

a. Artillery b. Sniper Rifle c. Shoulder Fired Missile

It is commonplace to assume that the arms industry will observe a boom in demand during times of war and little during 'peaceful' times but unfortunately that isn't the case giving the sorry state of the world. Terrorism, uprisings and vast amount of budgeting for security has made arms dealing one of the most profitable modern professions today.

Jormungand was originally a manga by by Keitarō Takahashi. It follows the adventures and exploits of the young and cunning shipping heiress Koko Hekmatyar as she travels around the world selling weapons together with her group of bodyguards. The latest addition to her squad is a child soldier ... called Jonah who claims to loathe weapons and warfare but unfortunately has no choice but to use them due to his occupation and state of the world.

The plot in Jormungand is pretty straightforward and simple, selling arms, but how and the situation koko's group gets into to do this is both mediocre and exciting at the same time. Believe it or not, dealing in private arms is a perfectly legal profession in most countries. Most arms dealers that do get arrested aren't arrested because of their profession but because of import and export laws, or U.N. sanctions that are being circumvented and the series does hint at this in the first couple episodes.

Unfortunately its not all fun and games, the series being about selling arms gave alot of attention to 'arms' but the selling part was giving very little attention, i felt it would have been a nice addition and would have given the show a bit more sense of realism. At the start we are told that Jonah resents arms dealers due to his past but Jonah shows absolutely no amount of resentment towards Koko from the offset, a little resentment initially and gradually bonding would have been a nice way for the story to flow and build up their relationship but sadly it didn't. In Koko's defense though her personality is very likable and not something one can resent even if they tried.

White fox have done a nice job with delivering stunning visuals throughout the show, art was good, scenery and locations also. The design and facial details of characters made them stand out with the artists going for darker pencil lines and color tones that really made the dark aspect of the show stand out. The design of the weapons were done in good detail but i wished more attention should have been given as to what type of weapon was being used at the time. There are also certain firefights where for sure our protagonists would be in a pinch but would always seem to come out unscathed as if having divine protection from the animators.

All the voice actors were top notch but might intially take a liitle getting used to, in the end all gave astounding performances to even the supporting characters. The OP, Borderland by Mami Kawada is an upbeat J-pop song that really went well with the tone of the show, pumping up audiences for the episode to come. The ED, Ambivalentidea by Nagi Yanagi although a slow paced song seemed surprisingly a good fit and it felt as though it complemented the upbeat OP and in a ways bringing balance to the overall feel. The BGM were nicely done too and the OST CD is definitely a look out for whenever it comes out. The most important sound aspect for the show is inevitably the weapons and it received composite attention, all sounds were in line with real life.

The place the series takes a bit of a headfall is with character development, Koko, Jonah and one or two of Koko's team members are developed well but the remaining were given very little detail, at times i thought some characters were new additions to her team cause i had never seen them before but only to go back to a previous episode to see that they were present but just lack of screen time was hampering them. We cant really blame them for this since it s just a 12 episode show but the very little introduction brings the show down a bit. The number of Koko's team itself i felt was a bit of a problem, it's just too much and other arm dealers we encounter have a more manageable size of bodyguards .

Its not all bad on the characters sides though, the few people we did see development was done well and kept enjoyable, Koko's cunning is also fun to watch but the humor is something the show wasnt much good at and tries to apply it in situations rather than speech.

Dialogue between characters were handled professionally but there were a few places where audiences would be scratching their heads not knowing what was going on though. The choice of sometimes switching names of countries with simple letters like 'country T' i felt was not a good idea. The show seemed to somewhat over rely on the characters personalities a lot to deliver and not really on the story much.

Overall Jormungand is a good show and definitely one of the better shows of 2012, it is very enjoyable all through and one of the better thriller animes out there and makes enough impact to trade blows with shows like Black Lagoon any day. All in all you'll discover the life of an arms dealer is more than meets the eye and tricks such as being a professional in using different types of weapons wont get you much far and cunning and wit need to be added to the package.

“Fun, funny and fast-passed, a well-driven action focused show… A ‘Lord of War’ (movie) meets ‘Black Lagoon’ (anime) kind of thing”

REVIEW FREE OF SPOILERS!

We all have seen war, whether depicted in movies, games, books or through news channels or even in your own life, but not many things talk or show us about the dark and “behind-the-scenes” scenario that takes place during those wars, revolutions or fights of any kind, and by the “behind-the-scenes” I mean those person that finance –whether a group or militia- with weapons. Movies like “Lord of War” (Nicolas Cage) or “The International” (Clive Owen) come to mind, so what makes ... “JORMUNGAND” such an acclaimed show?

Let’s start.


-STORY: 7-
As I’ve already stated on my “introduction” something that its main focus is built around arms dealing isn’t one of the most original things ever, nevertheless it IS a setting that hasn’t been overused like let’s say the topic of WWII. So one of the main things –probably- that has captivated the viewers –in addition to the story- into watching “JORMUNGAND” is the uniqueness of its main emphasis, the arms dealing and not like most action/adventure shows which main focus –usually- is the war itself.

The story department is simple –at least the first season-,it’s filled with well-achieved action moments, there are some “meaningful” and “touching” memories of the main characters and it’s well-driven, but then again the show falls a few times on one of those typical repetitive patterns shown in plenty other anime. Don’t misunderstand me; the story is great, not a masterpiece –without a doubt- but not a boring one. In addition, “JORMUNGAND” is one of those shows in which every single one of the main characters are bad-asses, which means that they will always find a way –effortlessly, if I may add- to save the day –their day, of course- thing that by the end of the show leaves you wanting something “else” or “more”, maybe a little more passion or meaningfulness should be thrown into the story.

One of the characteristic that I find attractive and kept me watching the show is the fact that one of the main characters –Jonah- is against guns and thus bringing an interesting “sub-plot” within the show. Another characteristic that makes this show “likeable” –or pleasant, if you will- is the fact that is engaging, interesting and enticing for it isn’t you every-day-war-kind-of-anime. Another aspect is that the show wasn’t always about just guns, most of the times it is but there are some moments that are more focused on the characters.

To conclude, the first season of “JORMUNGAND” was probably just made to place and prepare the “board” for what’s –probably- coming-


-ART: 8-
“JORMUNGAND” the art shown on the show is remarkable, it isn’t a masterpiece or the jewel of the show but it isn’t something “wanting” either. It’s detailed, in most aspects, especially when talking about guns and action scenes, that’s where the magic of the art team of “JORMUNGAND” shines. Also, the characters designs are appealing and believable.


-SOUND: 7-
The show contains very talented voice actors that transfer their mood/feelings to the viewers, although the script isn’t one of the most “deep” and meaningful things in the world, it looks like it was more action oriented but still, there ARE indeed some reflective moments.

The music by Takau Iwasaki is good, it’s a wide range of music styles from music containing ethnic sounds –focused on the country they’re in-, or fast passed compositions made to fit in the moment. Nevertheless, the soundtrack isn’t a masterpiece or something that is imposing anything interesting, it’s just a soundtrack that tries –and fails, in my opinion- to hype you up. To put it bluntly the soundtrack is shallow, it’s like they tried to have a soundtrack for the sake of just having a soundtrack and not to evoke feelings –other than excitement-.


-CHARACTER: 9-
“JORMUNGAND” is made in a 12 episode-format show, which –as I’ve stated before- is usually counterproductive when talking about the “Character Department” subject, since most shows aren’t able to develop something or they just lack it or the characters just lack to back bone, but it is probably –in my opinion- the best department in “JORMUNGAND”.
There’s not much character development per se in this show, it has some but most focused into “friendship” in a dimmed kind of way, its faint.
What makes the characters so well-achieved is that they’re interesting, they are appealing, they have a past and most importantly everyone has a goal or a believe, making the character department rich and slightly well-grounded.


-ENJOYMENT: 9 & OVERALL: 8-
“JORMUNGAND” is one of those shows that you love primarily because of the characters within it. It’s a fast passed, well-driven enjoyable show.
But as I said before, the season one looks like just like a preparation for what’s to come.

Thanks for reading!

after 1 episode i feal compelled to write a reveiw on this,first of all ,read the sumary of this show by yourself because im not just restatiing the obvious,second,this story has a specific genere ,so if you dont like anime's with guns,blood,action,kid soldiers,wierd random humour,adults,warefare, this anime is not for you.ok so overall this is a good anime if you like stuff like that ,the thing that is unique and makes this somthig to watch other than somthing else in its genre is how it is pulled together,it fits well with everything you like smashed into one ,and well...Thought breakdown

1)STORY.the overall story is "good" but ... that is just based on one episode,i can see potential either way you look at it,low posibality of screwing this up .The story dosn't have arealy detailed plot besides "sell guns/fight and kill enemy's",no plot yet any way,but if you like action its got plenty of that so who cares?its still a likable show with the action/guns/wiht a wierd "humour"

2)CHARACTOR,im undicided on this ,its hard to judge on one episode but....the charactors all seem to have a great fondness for koko,they seem to all have their reasons/troubled lives,all of them are likable in their ownway.prehaps explained later?The charactores all seem to like their job,all are mysterious in a way but thats what makes you want to watch more

3)Enjoyment:GREAT! "yay" a thrilling story i can't wait for more whats going to happen next!?im confused a bit but i want to know what will happen!?its a griping story ,but not everyone will like this sadly

4)Art/Sound:very good wow the art looks unique ,the way the eylashes match the hair colour that is not used very often,it has a mix of "solid" styles its enjoyable to look at



..yep thats my thoughts(sorry for the spelling errors DX(and bad review,im not good at these:T)any questions feal freee to ask :)

The top show this season (excluding kore wa zombie desuka otd)
this show good point IMO: great OP song, No bullshit about super heros super power crap just plain old Gun Blazin battle and sometime they slip some comedy inside.
If you want to compare of course its gonna be BLACK LAGOON however the amount of bullet shed in this show is much much moar and of course since this show is about arms dealer they got various type of weapon

TL;DR Jormungand is a good series.

Jormungand is the story of a crew of arms dealers, led by the charismatic Koko Hekmatyar. The series is mostly episodic, weaving in some character arcs on the way. Usually the formula is this:

1. The crew arrives.
2. Stuff goes awry and they need a way out / need to out-think their opponents / straight up kill dudes.
3. Mission completed and on to the next arc.

Pretty easy formula to make a series from. I’m sure that if you’ve heard about this series earlier, then you’ve heard about the series that undoubtedly stands as a huge influence: Black Lagoon. Black Lagoon is ... about a small group of people who conduct usually illegal business and get in trouble with all sorts of people. Jormungand is basically this, but with a bigger group. Now, obviously Jormungand isn’t a straight rip-off of BL, it just builds from the same ground. While BL arcs usually comes together with cooperation and the combined with of the Lagoon Crew, Jormungand is basically The Koko Show. And that’s perfectly fine. Koko carries the series very well. For a more fleshed out character run-down, look below:

Koko Hekmatyar: Arms dealer, handling business mainly in Europe and Africa. Very charismatic and beautiful. Usually very energetic and behaving sometimes like a child, she has a ruthless interior and on multiple occasions called a monster. Although usually cool with a smile on her lip, Koko has one of the most intimidating glares in anime.

Jonah: Child soldier. His parents were killed in an air-strike and he became a child soldier shortly after. Has a strong hate for weapons, but still works for Koko, often serving as her bodyguard. He definitely shows more understanding than expected from a child.

Lehm: Ex-Delta Force operator. Used to be active in Somalia. Second in command of Koko’s crew. Veteran mercenary who takes charge when armed conflict arises. Used to work for Koko’s father. Very versatile in weapon use, ranging from long-distance sniping to close quarters combat.

Valmet: Ex-Major serving for UN forces in Africa. Her unit got slaughtered by Chen Guoming and she lost an eye in the attack. Since then, she suffers from anxiety whenever she sets foot in Africa. Very proficient with knives and pistols.

Then there are the rest of the cast, that aren’t given much other than support roles most of the time. Technically only Koko and Jonah are the only real main characters, but Valmet and Lehm are given much more time on screen than the other side characters, so they sort of slide into main roles by association. The entire crew is 10 men strong, and the series struggle to give decent air time to all.

The big cast isn’t a bad thing in itself, but it doesn’t help either. It’s quite logical that an arms dealer would have a decently sized squad with her, but most of the characters see very little air time. Most characters get to have their arcs play out (some might have theirs in the second season) sooner or later, but it’s a shame we aren’t given more time to know the entire cast better. Especially since they keep being given airtime and dialogue with Koko that are defined by their characters and their pasts, both of which we don’t know. Valmet's arc is especially strong. The characters mostly revolve in and out when they have an arc or not. When they’re around, they contribute to the colourful group of people.

To my surprise, there is little discussing of morality around, especially considering Jonah is a fucking child soldier. Sure, it’s brought up, but quickly shot down at times. Let’s be frank about this, the characters in the show aren’t good guys. They’re varying degrees of bad, I guess. Or, a better way to put it would be that they are all in the moral grey zone. They’re portrayed romantically as the heroes, so naturally you’re going to root for them when the oddball villains pop up to kill them. I wanted to see some more discussion or feelings about war, than what we got. It is a character-driven drama/action series, which is right up my ally, but I feel they do themselves a disservice to skip some strong discussion points on the way. And it’s topical because, you know, there’s tons of child soldiers in the world.

As for the story, there’s not a whole lot to be had, except for when the supporting characters have their arcs. The story follows the crew as they deliver and/or sell weapons and other necessities to a diverse set of people. They’re usually dealing in Europe and Africa through the season. Then there’s usually a villain for each episode, with some villains lasting another one or two more. The formula mentioned before is how the episodes unfold.

Something that quickly stands out is the very distinct art-style. It’s not super drastically different compared to most other anime. It’s usually very realistic, sometimes with some exaggerated details, usually the eyes. For the most part it’s absolutely gorgeously drawn and animated. Backgrounds are usually done nicely as well, and at times with great and impressive detail.

The voice acting is excellent across the board. The only drawback is that there’s rarely chances for the actors to use a wider range than slow drama and some comedy here and there. The soundtrack is good when used. Pretty sweet electronic battle music. OP (opening theme) and ED (ending theme) are both excellent songs.

As far as the general theme of the show goes, it’s usually a slow-paced drama with some comedy blended in. Then there’s the occasional high-speed action scenes when deals either go tits-up or there’s other people that want to hit Koko’s group.

As for the comedy, it’s a bit too much. I would have prepared being almost completely without it. In the most serious episodes, there’s practically none of it, and they’re so much better off without. The comedic parts being randomly inserted here and there just disturb the pacing and atmosphere of the series. It just feels like something inserted to please the mainstream audiences. The thing is though, that this isn’t really a series made for mainstream audiences. It’s about killers and mercenaries selling weapons to guerillas and warlords. Not something that you want your kids or the family to sit down and watch in the evening. Inserting comedy into the formula is detrimental to the concept and leaves us a worse product to enjoy. I want to stress that I’m not anti-comedy, but doing it as half-heartedly and shallow as it is here it can only work badly.

The antagonists that pop into the episodes are along the lines of the comedic tendencies mentioned. They’re almost always very eccentric or have some crazy fighting style. In some arcs it works, like when the crew goes to Africa and come face-to-face with an old enemy of one of the crew members. They usually don’t take anything away from the enjoyment, but they don’t usually add to it either.

An excellent scene which stands as a display of how good the drama of the series can be is when it's brought up that killing to much people can make you "a dragon," and a character asks Koko if she would ever become one. The scene is unbearably tense for it's short running time, and shows how good the series is when it sticks to straight-up drama instead of faffing about with random comedy.

As for the enjoyment, it’s great. While not being the best I’ve veer seen, this series is highly enjoyable. It’s variance is it’s strength, and while I don’t usually like the comedy, some light-hearted scenes are always good in a series like this, and some scenes succeed in being genuinely funny. From slow-paced planning with some tense meetings with antagonists; to high-speed gun-play and chase-scenes, Jormungand is one hell of a ride, and it’s a pleasure watching it. While not always ending in cliffhangers, the show still gets you excited to watch the next episode after you finish one, and that’s high praise for a series. Jormungand is a delight to watch, and should be seen by people interested in serious drama, and is obviously very recommended for fans of Black Lagoon.

If you like it, check out it’s sequel, Jormungand: Perfect Order.

Oh boy, where do I even begin with Jormungand? I mean, what's not to love about an anime about a group of lovable misfits traveling the world selling illegal weapons to anyone who will buy them? And let's not forget the main character, Jonah, who hates weapons and those who deal them but is somehow convinced to become a bodyguard for an international arms dealer. I mean, that's just good, solid logic right there.
But wait, it gets better! The team is constantly pursued by the CIA and assassins, so they have to constantly protect their dear leader Koko and her "overly idealistic goal of world ... peace" with their lives. Oh, and did I mention that Koko is an international arms dealer? Yeah, that whole world peace thing might be a bit of a stretch.
Overall, Jormungand is a wild and absurd ride that will have you rolling your eyes and laughing at the sheer ridiculousness of it all. It's definitely a must-watch for anyone who enjoys a good dose of sarcasm and irony with their action-packed anime.

Jormungand, a fitting title for our heroine, a sly snake that lurks under the shadow. An arm dealer traveling with 9 elite bodyguards is not to be underestimated.

I don't know about you guys, but the moment i saw this anime's banner, i thought to myself, "Gosh, this would be another boring violent anime with SIMPLISTIC "save the princess" plotline". Guess what? It's true!!!

However, Jormungand is different. Your princess now is a dangerous person who are an evil genius and selling weapons across the world.

Ok, now for the interesting part [spoilers alert].

Prepare yourself for an amazing experience by watching this anime. I have to admit, although ... the base line is, as i said, SIMPLISTIC, as you go deeper into the anime you'll encounter a lot of emotional storyline. Hatred and betrayal are to be expected to be this anime, but Jormungand didn't stop there. Love, trust, revenge, affection, trickery, sarcasm, jealousy, admiration, etc , etc, etc, YOU NAME IT! It's all (most of it) there!!! Not only that, they also brought the problem that is existing in the world now. Child Soldier, Smuggling, Corruption, Illegal transaction, unhealthy competition, animal extinction, etc ,etc, etc, you'll find more and more as you progress through the plot.

There's no telling of what going to happen next and they'll always hang you at the end of the episode. It motivates me to finish this anime in ONE SEATING!!(this anime is the first one that did it to me) It's 12 episodes of consistent thrill, action, drama and comedy! What more can you ask really??

How can you stop staring at this beautiful anime??? I mean Ms Hekmatyar might be a little bit creepy but look at how detailed they present the gun, the atmosphere, the humour, the expression of the characters... THEY NEVER FAILED TO AMUSE ME! It ables to convince me that a battlefield is fun @.@!! (I'm going nuts)*Please ignore my previous sentence*. Your ears will also certainly be entertained all the time. Music (from songs and instrumental melody, when i'm talking about instruments that include guns) is a harmony that will enrich your experience from watching this anime even more.

Now, now... what about the characters? I TELL YOU THIS! THEY ARE AWESOME O.O!!! You got a dishonored major to a child soldier. Really, the variety of characters are so great, every character is very unique to their own background and speciality.

You : Well, you seems to like this anime a lot. But don't you think you're a little bit bias? All i can see is praise in your review.
Me : Fine, fine... Certainly this anime has it flaws. Sometimes Jormungand just brought its plot to somewhere else totally unconnected and their character development are not so in depth for everyone of them. There are a few loopholes here and there. Some of the things happened are also not explained fully. But hey, these minor flaws are insignificant enough for me to say that this anime is EXCELLENT!!(Not yet a masterpiece, I must admit)

And guess what? I want to bet that Jormungand 2 can overcome those flaws, thus making this anime A MASTERPIECE!! Muahahahahaha!!!

All in all, it is worth your time to watch this anime (totally worth it). For you guys who don't like gun shooting anime or action anime, maybe you can find interest in the story and drama that this anime has to offer. As i said before, this anime can make us realise how troubled our world is.

Conclusion : GO WATCH IT!!! DEFINITELY!!!

If you are reading this because you have not yet seen this anime and want to see if it is the right show for you then please keep in mind that this is my opinion and may differ from your own so please keep your own tastes in mind when you are reading this. If you have already seen this anime then you are just along for the ride.

Intro:
I heard about this anime from various places but I have never heard too much about it and I wasn't particularly sure what to think of it until one day when I had nothing to do, so ... I figured I would take the plunge; having no idea what to expect. I wound up with a pretty pleasant surprise.

Story/Character:
Jormungand is a dark gritty and sometimes comical seinen (geared for a more mature audience) action series about an arms dealer named Koko and her elite team of badass bodyguards and a child soldier named Jonah who is their new recruit into the team and chronicles all of the adventures they have though a mostly episodic set up.
My overall impression of the story and anime in general was pretty good, it had some pretty great action in the form of gun fights, knife fights, fist fights, etc. and a somewhat compelling plot about war and morality on the side. This show was also funny especially with some of the interactions between the characters, Koko's team in particular showing that the all have a pretty good bond and have worked together for a wile. This show is mostly episodic so most of the episodes are pretty self contained.
The characters for the most part are very fleshed out with there own past though not all of them are until the second season but never the less all of the characters were fun and entertaining. I also especially liked the attention to detail some of the use of weapons and firearms in this anime.

Art/Sound:
The art and animation was pretty good and had some really good character designs and it had a nice gritty look to it.
The soundtrack was ok but it wasn't the best but my favorite part was the sound design and yet again they had really good attention to detail to what the guns sound like.

Sub/Dub:
There are animes out there that are to said to have a dub that is particularly better than the original, I believe this is one such anime and I don't say that lightly considering I normally take a neutral stance on this topic but after watching the dub I really didn't care to see the original subbed version and I'm saying the Japanese version is bad because it isn't but the english on this one is just a step above.
The voice acting is good and the voices in english fit the cast so well and dub is little more funny considering they did change some of the lines but subtitles don't always get it right not to mention the cast is kind of multinational with some characters having different accents and all of that just doesn't come crossed in Japanese. Now I'm not here to tell you what you should be watching but I will suggest that the dub for this anime, is defiantly worth checking out.

What I Hated:
I did have some problems with this anime, one being that the main cast which is Koko's team of bodyguards are really overpowered to the point that you know how most of the gun fights and skirmishes are going to turn out with them coming out on top and sweeping away the bad guys. The second problem I had was that this anime despite all of it's action was very anti-climatic, like I said before the enemies and villains are swept away so easily to the point where it takes out most of the excitement after a while and I feel that with many of the villains there was a lot of wasted potential with them considering most of them are killed off pretty quickly and a lot of them seemed like pretty interesting characters. But all in all that's just me.

Final Verdict:
I give this anime a 7 out of 10.
It's not perfect but it is pure unadulterated fun.

Sometimes I get a review request and have no idea what to expect. Jormungand is one of those times. I'd barely even heard of it when I got the request and the name tells me nothing aside from that there's a possible connection to Norse mythology. From what I can tell, the manga was written by Takahashi Keitaro and the anime was brought to us by Geneon and White Fox. It's not a whole lot to go on, so let's just dive in and see what the anime is about.

I quickly discovered to some minor disappointment, that Jormungand has nothing whatsoever to do with Norse ... mythology. No, I will not hold that against the anime. I may be highly critical, but that would just be taking it too far. There isn't much in the way of story in Jormungand. There's an arms dealer named Koko who travels with a group of bodyguards, including a child soldier, an ex-mafia agent and several former soldiers. Most of the episodes have very little to do with each other. Rather, they show the group undertake different missions. There are both good and bad things about this approach. On the positive side, it allows for a variety of situations and locales. It also allows for more of a character focus. On the downside, since things jump around there isn't a whole lot that has any lasting impact. And, although it isn't an issue in the first season, the lack of a plot could easily lead to the episodes getting repetitive. It also has to rely heavily on its characters in lieu of a story.

So, does Jormungand have characters capable of sustaining it? I would have to say that it does. It has a very compelling, and awesomely quirky group. Koko is a lovable nutter. Valmet is both a total badass and quite adorable. Even the more secondary members of Koko's group are well done. Unfortunately, I did have one pretty substantial problem with the characters. And that's that the dynamic between Koko and Jonah, the child soldier, seems like its moving towards romance at some points. They had a great opportunity for a spectacular cast of characters and they compromised it by forcing the audience to question whether or not the main protagonist is a pedophile. What the hell Takahashi? Did you just not realise that that would be a problem? Were you trying to create a completely unique dynamic and just didn't notice how it could be construed as problematic? To be fair, it isn't entirely clear in the anime whether she has an over-zealous platonic affection towards him or an attraction, but at the same time this isn't something that should be open to interpretation. I really hope that they better define Koko and Jonah's relationship in the second season and that it isn't supposed to be romantic. As it is, it's pretty suspect.

Looking at the art, I can't say that I care for it that much. The characters tend to have bizarre faces and there are several who look just about the same. Don't get me wrong, I'm the only real criticism I have for it is that it really is hard to differentiate between some of the minor characters. I just personally didn't care for the style. The action sequences are really good. They manage to combine over the top elements with semi-realism in a way that really works.

I really enjoyed the voice acting. Now, there are some major moments of over-acting but they all work in context and they do refrain from going overboard with them. Itou Shizuka Ohara Sayaka, Ishizuka Unsho, Koshimizu Ami and all of the other actors all do spectacular work. I wasn't nearly as fond of the music. Some of it's really good and does a lot to enhance the mood, but some of it falls pretty flat.

The yuri factor is easily a 6/10. Koko seems to attract quite a few other women, especially Valmet, who is unfailingly awesome.

My final rating for Jormungand is a 7/10. Most of my problems with it are pretty minor and the biggest issue I have is more of something that's suspect than something that's definitively gone wrong. If you liked Black Lagoon, this is your type of anime. If you're looking for a good cast of characters, it won't disappoint. If you're looking for an impressive story, you should look elsewhere.

Jormungand is about an arms dealer and her assistants. The story revolves around their adventures and their hidden objective. The story contains a lot of gun scenes and explosion. I recommend this to others and here's why.

Story:
You might think that the story is just your normal rambo crap but its not. The story might but slow to develop but it is very interesting. It also involves brain games that can make you guess what will happen next. The series are divided into different arcs that may contain 2-3 episodes but each of it are interesting.

Art:
The animation is very good given that it contains a lot ... of fight scenes that needs high frames per second. Those scenes are quite well done that really helps the mode of story. The blood scenes can be seen quite often so if don't like that scenes you might want to skip this anime. The background are well made and given that they go different places, the quality did not drop.

Sound:
The sound is also good. The ost's are great and it really helps in setting the mode. You can feel the excitement when needed and it really gets you going to watch more. Even in the preview track, the sound is really great that it will play in your head a number of times. Honestly, I always look forward to the preview track every time I watch.

Character:
The character development is discussed in the series. The lead is very interesting and really gives an impression. The sub characters might not be very interesting in the start but as the series goes on, you will learn a lot about them.

Enjoyment:
There may not be a lot of fanservice but you can still find this series interesting and enjoyable. The story is good and the scenes are intense. I sometimes stop watching just to kill my over excitement when watching the series.

Overall:
Overall, I will recommend this anime given the ideas I discussed on the top. I'm sure you will not regret this because it's a complete package anime.

Jonah is a a child soldier who hates guns and arms dealer who he hates because he blames the for selling the guns who killed his family. However, he ends up working as a body guard for the enigmatic illegal arms dealer Koko Hekmatyar.

With Jormungand we delve into the murky world of illegal arms dealing and the contradictions that go with. We follow Koko and her band of mercenaries as she makes arms deal with anyone who can make her money, rival arms dealers whilst dodging assassins and the CIA. One thing is for sure, where Koko goes death surely follows.

One thing Jormungand does too ... well is glamourising the world of illegal arms dealing. One thing you have to remember none of the characters are nice people. On the surface the characters are very likable but this is a facade. Koko is fiercely loyal to those who follow her and that loyalty is returned but this loyalty has a price. She is extremely cunning, expertly hides her thoughts and will ruthlessly kill anyone who crosses her. Her mercenary bodyguards are really more like well armed killers. This contradiction is probably the point of Jormungand.

Moving on from the morality of Jormungand. The art isn't the best but the story is good. The key to the whole anime is Koko Hekmatyar as you never know how she will handle any situation and it is this unpredictability that makes Jormungand enjoyable to watch and give the anime depth where it could have been just mired in gratuitous violence.

A violent but well worked and very enjoyable anime but it could never be a classic.

The Positive Side: Jormungand follows the travels of Jonah, a child soldier with a hatred of weapons, as he serves as body-guard to an eccentric and playful arms-dealer, Koko Hekmatyar.
One of Jormungand’s greatest strengths is in the way it handles its sprawling cast. Each member of Koko’s motley crew of bodyguards has a different set of skills, a distinct personality and a different philosophical perspective. Almost everyone is given an episode or two in the spotlight, and in just a short period of time with any given character, you can get a very strong sense of who they are. It’s difficult ... for a series with a cast this large to achieve this kind of distinction, but character development is one area where Jormundgand shines. Even the villains, however briefly they appear on screen, bring with them unique quirks and the remnants of their personal histories.

The most memorable character of the lot is easily Koko. She grins and jests her way through the tensest of situations, her skylarking and casual demeanor betraying her brilliant coordination of her team. She’s the perfect blend of silliness, wisdom and charm, like an albino, gun-slinging Willy Wonka.

Given the market saturation of supernatural/scifi Shonen series, Jormungand serves as a refreshing reminder that you don’t need super-powers to make an action-scene sizzle. Fights range from chaotic, urban gun-battles to smooth sniper-executions to a beautiful knife-fight set in a secluded clearing of a snowy forest.

The story is primarily episodic, each new episode setting up a new antagonist for Koko, Jonah and the rest to overcome, and it is not until the end of the series that it becomes clear what all this has actually been building up to. Like Cowboy Bebop before it, Jormungand proves that an episodic structure can work wonderfully as long as each separate story is well-executed.
Thematically, this is a story about the reconciliation between killing and morality. Koko strives to prove to Jonah that simply because she and rest of the group are in the moral grey by the very nature of their business doesn’t mean they can’t have fun and mess around on their days off. Koko repeatedly proves that she truly does care about her team, that she wishes to avoid killing when it is unnecessary, and that she has principles she refuses to violate.
The English dub is very well-acted, thanks to the talents of Funimation, and while the music can be a bit grating and synthetic at points, the opening theme really grew on me after a couple of episodes.

The Negative Side: While a fairly intelligent show in terms of theme and the impact of war, Jormundgand’s greatest failure comes from backing itself into a philosophical corner. It’s difficult to talk about the ending without giving spoilers, but I will do my best to keep this vague for the would-be viewer’s benefit.

In short, when we learn of Koko’s ultimate goal, we find that she is about to do something morally horrifying for the sake of what she believes is the greater good. It’s supposed to be a huge moral quandary, but the flaws in the plan become obvious when given the slightest degree of consideration. In fact, Koko’s own brother points out the faults in what she’s doing not long after she unveils her grand plan. The problem is, by the time her plan is revealed to be grossly philosophically imbalanced, the series is out of time, and has nowhere left to go. While the ending is nowhere near as bad as a few other series I’ve watched (The Big O, Deadman Wonderland), it’s still rather unsatisfying, especially compared to the show’s stellar Season 1 finale.

Final Verdict: Despite its lack-luster ending, Jormungand boasts strong characterization, action and plotting. It’s definitely worth watching, especially if you’re a fan of Seinen and war stories.

Jormungand has, to say the least, action. Lots and lots of action. If you like action movies like Rambo, Die Hard, just about any Jean Claude van Damme movie, then look no further. On a personal note, I do enjoy such films and was taken in quite quickly by this show.

For an arms dealer, you would think their attitude would be serious, evasive, short and to the point. Koko Hekmatyar seems anything but serious. Rather, she’s very calm and cheerful and has a demeanor that would put one more at ... ease than anything. Without any prior knowledge of Hekmatyar, you would think she’s a spacey goofball of a businesswoman. Her mannerisms can sometimes be that of a typical 10 year old throwing a tantrum.

With only 12 episodes to work with, they jump into plot rather quickly, not really bothering to go into the supporting characters much. Over the course of the series, they do eventually touch up on some of them and you learn about their past a little. But it is a bit sad when a character that only has three episodes of screen time gets more of a background than one of Koko’s own men whom we see in every episode. I would have liked to have seen more background on the other supporting characters that got few lines and hardly any screen time, and saved the main story and action for the second season.

The most pressing question many watchers of this show have in mind is, “if this kid Jonah hates weapons so much, why is he so good with them, and why does he continue to use them? If he hates arms dealers so much, why is he traveling with Koko?” This is explained during the early- middle part of the series. We learn about the trials Jonah has faced and why he has become who he is. As the story progresses, we do see a bit of a change in his personality, and he does eventually warm up to Koko’s group while still keeping his main goal in mind.

The animation is nothing super spectacular, but it’s still better than average. There were a few scenes during gunfights when I noticed the quality drop a little bit behind the muzzle flash of gunfire. Other than that, there wasn’t anything notably wrong with the animation.

In a nutshell, Jormungand definitely has a target audience in mind. But for those among that audience, you won’t be disappointed.