Saint Seiya Omega

To enjoy this series, let go of your beliefs and deep-seated assumptions about what the Seiya universe is like according to Kurumada's original anime and manga series. Kurumada is not involved in the creative process of Saint Seiya Omega, however he has been credited with the idea of Yuna and also many of the concepts used in the series (such as constellations, Bronze, Silver, Gold Saints).

This series was clearly written for new blood - i.e. new fans to the world of Saint Seiya and those of a newer generation and of different values from the previous generation, hence the new generation of Saints. Many of the changes have been heavily criticised (i.e. cloth stones, elements), however I hope that along the series, they will provide more explanations for these changes.

With the exception of the concept for the Ninja Saint and a new perspective into the law of the mask, major originality is something that should not be expected of this series.

The story was good, but slightly slow-paced after Athena's disappearance and with the introduction of the Palestra / Saint school arc. It was not for nothing, plot devices were set in place, slowly yet surely. With the upcoming revelations (which I shall not spoil in this review), the show is starting to pick up. Saint Seiya Omega has a lot of potential for growth and needs to tie up the loose ends while the story goes on.

The art is either a hit or miss with people, since not everyone enjoys the youthful vibrance in the artwork - with some preferring artwork of a mature or darker nature. At certain points , the colors may be a little too soft for the important landmarks of the series. (e.g. the 12 temples) Colors and shine of armor has been inconsistent. Quality has been alright, although the animation and fights sometimes leave more to be desired. Hopefully, they will start moving out of the elemental spam sooner or later as the new Saints make progress in their fights.

The music is effective and needs no more mention, other than the fact that re-introducing Pegasus Fantasy as the OP was one of the best things that has happened for this series.

The characters still have a lot of room for growth and discovery and we will eventually have more of their backstories, but they tie in very nicely and they have also stated that characters from the old series will make their appearances later, so fans of the older series at least have something to look forward to for nostalgia's sake. I enjoy watching every week's episode and the end leaves me wanting for the next episode. So far, there is always something to look forward to.

My personal opinion is that the mark of a potentially successful series is one that generates controversy or talk. By that mark, Saint Seiya Omega has a lot of potential. Let's see what they will do with it. For now, sit back, relax, and let the show roll.

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Ah, Saint Seiya, one of my favorite anime when I was younger. Now they are taking the franchise into the future, with new saints (despite the title being Saint Seiya, I guess that's the downside of having a franchise titled with the name of one character) for the new generation. At least I think that was the tagline.

First of all, they re-used the original theme song, Pegasus Fantasy. That's a nice nostalgic touch. The characters are updated to reflect the current stereotype of bishounen (no more muscles). Everybody is sleek and slender. The cloths are simplified, and are stored inside a jewel. The concept of cosmos is still there, but they added elements, you know, fire, water, earth, etc. I think later the saints will be able to summon Captain Planet.... j/k

The series started very promising. With Seiya as a gold saint protecting Saori and an infant from Mars. Yup, it's still Saori as Athena. Then the story turns into the expected pattern. We have Kouga as the new Pegasus saint, training and not figuring out the point of everything. The typical weak and ignorant main character. Then, also expected, Saori got kidnapped by Mars. Really, I thought she's Princess Peach now. So Kouga is going on a journey to find her.

Sounds good, right? From here, I was expecting Kouga's pain and gain throughout his journey, meeting other saints as friends and/or foes, life and death fights, even stronger foes, rinse and repeat, you know, the typical staple of fighting anime in general.

Well, no. Instead, he went to a school with his friends and learn how to become saints. Wait, huh? Yeah, they turned Saint Seiya into Harry Potter. Oh, and yes, they have classes too. *sigh

Okay, setting that aside, the story brings you the typical themes. Friendship, rivalry, finding one's purpose, etc. But the delivery is weak. I mean remember how Seiya developed friendship with Shiryu in the original. It was a truly life and death situation. Compared to that, Kouga and Ryuho's fight is just mere pillow fight. It's watered way down. In fact, pretty much any fights so far feels watered down. Sure, they are flashy, but you don't feel the hardship of the protagonists, which is the staple of the original. Maybe it's too early to tell, but in the original, things got bloody even from the 1st episode, and it only ramped up from there. You have the feeling of danger, that the hero(es) may actually be killed, or did. Not here.

Oh, and what could you do to make things worse? Oh, let's bring back a character from the original, and make him into a clown. They did that to Hydra Ichi. It's just bad.

Maybe I'm too biased, being familiar with the original. Maybe the target market is different now, towards the similar market for Yu-Gi-Oh/Digimon/Pre-Cure. Maybe things will actually get better. If I had not known the original, I might have had a different impression. Still, it is clear that they are piggybacking the original, and one would expect the series to be compared with the original.

Let's just hope they don't have the saints summon Captain Planet.

*Update:
After catching up to episode 12, the story is getting a bit more towards the original franchise. The school is gone, the fights with the Gold Saints overwhelmed the protagonists (as it should), and cameos. Still, the fights with the silver saints seem "too easy." And a megane chara turned into a ninja saint? Ninja? Err.... okay. The appearances of the evil gold saints do bring a bit of my interest back, but not much.

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The legendary anime has returned everyone. !!!!

The storyline of Omega takes place in the future era, 25 years after the Holy Wars of the 20th century narrated in the original manga and its anime adaptation. The goddess Athena is still on Earth after reincarnating to cleanse it of the agent of evil as she has done during millennia, accompanied by her Saints, fulfilling her duty of protecting peace on Earth, after her victories over antagonistic deities. Athena and a new generation of Saints prepare to face a new menace that lurks in this new era, in which Pegasus Seiya, the protagonist of Kurumada's manga, is revered as a Saint of legend.

Saint Seiya Omega story involves a new generation of Saints who have to protect Athena from Mars. We are introduced to Kouga who at a young age was attacked by Mars who is after Athena's Cosmos power. Years later he is being trained by Shaina in order for him to become Saint. He is chosen as the next successor of the Pegasus Cloth. We will see the new generation dawning the original cloths and new ones.

Saint Seiya Omega used the original Saint Seiya themed opening. The opening scenes reminded me the original Saint Seiya. Sound- same sound effects of Pegasus Meteor Fist!!! : )

I cannot wait to see more of the new series.

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I'm usually against writing reviews before the anime has ended; I just have to make an exception here so I can tell people what's in store for them if they decide to pick this up.

Let's begin by saying that this anime is nothing like its predecessor: It's worse in every aspect—from the point of view of someone way over 10. The show is aimed at little kids with no real knowledge of Saint Seiya.

You may have realized how the trend is to make anime more simple and cute so more people may be attracted. Well, Saint Seiya Omega its exactly that. Saint Seiya Omega is to Saint Seiya as Dragon Ball Evolution (movie) is to Dragon Ball.

The art is as simple as it gets. You'll notice right away how the designs of the armor have changed: From looking like heavy and sturdy to... shiny clothing. They don't give you that feeling of protection.

The OP is a slow-paced version of the original OP in Saint Seiya. I like the original OP so I kind of like this OP too, but it's by no means better.

The worst part is clearly the approach taken in the story. Check this out: There's an actual school—which all the buildings and stuff—where you go to train to become a ''Saint of Athena''—you graduate and become one, I painfully assume.

Also, remember how all the Clothes used to be in those majestic Pandora's Boxes? Well, they are stored now in little diamonds. Way to go.

In conclusion, is not a bad anime on its own; however, it certainly is not something people who already know and like Saint Seiya will enjoy. So, if you don't know Saint Seiya or you really like the new generation of anime, you may want to give this one a go.

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If you're a true fan of Saint Seiya ... maybe you must not see this anime...
This anime starts with a short battle between Seiya, the new Sagitarius Saint and Mars and when you hope to see the new power of the Saint they make a cut and put Kouga... the most stupid Saint in all the franchise.
All scenes with Kouga in the screen are unbearable. Kouga pass all the time talking about save Athena that's not bad if you do not looks like his lover...
It's okay if they want a new Pegasus Saint... but the character itself is hateful. Talking about the pegasus saint... the Cloth it's like latex or something like that. Do not look like metal... they look like cloth, like cotton or silk.

The plot is not better... in special the "Tournament Part" or the part of the Zodiac Temples...
The "Zodiac Temples" are a copy from the same battle in the original manga but worse. There are Gold Saints that do not respect the rules and have the gold armor... The Taurus Saint is a person who loves kill people to hear how your bones break... the Aquarius Saint let the "evil" curse his armor to be stronger... the Capricorn Saint is an Old Guy who in a moment becames Broly and fuck all the logic.
Finally the "Piscis Saint" who is like Gilgamesh from Fate/Stay Night... but less cool than Gilgamesh, of course.
This "arc" finish with Seiya letting Kouga using the Sagitarius Cloth... for plot reasons, to kill a God who appears from the nothing.

The Last Arc is the "Pallas Arc" in this Arc some cloths return to a form more like the Original Manga... but with gems, because they do not want to lose this magical girl anime touch...
All the battles in this arc are trash until they got to the Pallas Castle... the old Bronze Saints of Saint Seiya reappears to fight...
In the end Seiya upgrade his Cloth and a new enemy appears from nothing, again... fuck Seiya, broken his new armor in seconds, something very strange if you saw another Saint Seiya series before... And Kouga saves the day talking... yes, talking... in a fucking second, the enemy becames his friend and say farewell...

Please, do not watch this anime if you don't want suffer.

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I waited to write this review until I finish the first season (ep 52). The anime per se is good but as anything that has a great ancestor you will either love it or hate it. And I love it, why? just because if you are a truly fan of Saint Seiya (as I am) you will look into the similitude of this anime with the original series instead of looking for differences. People tend to compare OMEGA with Lost Canvas, impossible, Lost Canvas are OVAs and Omega is a series. I don't know why people make a lot of noise about the school (palestra), there was no one class in the episodes and they started the tournament (as the galactic tournament), so even when I didn't like the school thing it didn't matter at the end. The element thing is OK and it only adds more "techniques" because higher cosmo beats lower cosmo no matter the elements, so other thing not to worry but its nice that instead of having 1 special move all have 2 or 3.

Long story short: The start had to be as it was to gain more viewers as per ep 27+ you will see a lot of original series stuff and also focusing a lot of what Saint Seiya is in ep 46+ you will not notice that this is a spin-off because everything is back to normal, looking for Greater Cosmos, the one who has the strong reason to live on will fight better in ep 52, you will agree with me... Saint Seiya Series is back to track.

What I like the most is that this is a great opportunity for Saint Seiya franchise to get more followers and get more money to make more good works as Lost Canvas or Sekaihen Overture.

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The story is as cliche as it gets. Little boy needs power to save the world and get all the girls to like him. It adds things like "elements" and "ninjas" (1 leaf tree trunks and all) but other than that it's nothing you haven't seen before.

The art is really the worst I've ever seen in a japanese anime. Anime in my opinion is supposed to stand out above saturday morning cartoons but this doesn't even try to. The drawing is childish and horrible but the shading and coloring is even worse. There are probably 6 year olds with coloring books that could do better than this.

The sound and voice actors are okay I suppose. Nothing really stands out here either but it all sounds average enough to earn a fair rating which is pretty good compared to all the other categories.

The characters are pretty much based on the power rangers with poses and all. The armor looks nothing like it did in Lost Canvas though, they really "power rangered" it ... for lack of a better description.

Overall I really enjoyed Lost Canvas but the only thing even remotely similar is the base of the story; athena, pegasus, etc. This is not Saint Seiya GT, it does not come with anything even slightly better than the previous Saint Seiya series. Everything is horrible and this should not have even been published.

Save yourself from the frustration and don't bother watching this. If anyone out there never watched anime before and picked up this as their first anime, they would think anime is just like nickelodeon or saturday morning cartoons and we all know that is not true. Shame on everyone involved in the development and publication of this anime. Garbage like this should not be released.

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Wow… where to begin?
Ok, first of all, if you grew up watching Saint Saiya or saw any of the movies, be sure to put off those shiny, engraved nostalgia goggles, cause this is more your… generation X Saint Saiya. Don't take that comment the wrong way, as new is always a good fresh air into life, just not in this case.
As soon as I heard of this anime my butt was glued to the seat and I watched all the episodes that were out one after another. Sadly that huge, bright childish smile that it started with, slowly turn into such a state of confusion that I still can’t help myself but to throw my hands in the air with a very cliché WTF expression completely engraved into my face.
The story start with a big nostalgia trip, showing us characters of the old show (like Saiya, Shaina and Saori; even her old butler makes an appearance) and introduces us to our new main protagonist: Koga, which in turn will take the cloth of Pegasus.
The new villain, Mars the god of war, wants (of course) to take over the world, but as the story progresses we realize that this is not the same, linear story path that the old series took, and instead takes a new, more “modern” approach into the lives of our protagonists.
I don't want to spoil anything, but the changes taken with the series seem more to attract a new, younger public, by reformatting the way the cloths work, the powers of the cosmos and just, a lot of minor details that will surely will leave old fans lost and baffled, making them remember the old show with even more love and nostalgia in comparison.
The animation is good, as it is the sound track, but for today standards it seems very average. The new art concept for the characters is a modern, but accurate adaptation of the old ones, and to be honest some of the characters models are very original considering where we are coming from.
Sadly, the biggest changes to how this world works is what made it weak. First of all, we are introduced to a new form of elemental power, that seems to be in line with the cosmos of the characters, and each of them commands a different element. The Saints are now not trained by ancient masters or forged by hardship and misfortune like in the old series, but in a school of Saints.
A SCHOOL OF SAINTS!!!!
I'm sorry, is just so…. heart breaking.
In this school, they learn about their elemental abilities and how to control them, as well as prepare to serve Athena and protect her, although it seems they are not aware of the presence of Mars or any other villain in the world.
Ok, next we have… ninja saints…
OH GOOOOOOD NOOO!!!!!
I know is too early to give the series a formal review, since it’s not even over. Granted I am still watching it so is very unfair to judge it without giving it the chance to convince me otherwise… but… ninja saints????
I will admit that maybe my love for the original might blind my judgment, but this new take on the series surly will not sit fine with old school anime fans I'm pretty sure. Even some details like the armors looking more plastic than metallic, the fact that now your “elemental” power seems as important, perhaps even more than your cosmos, and the “level upgrades” of the armors, WHICH REQUIERS MEDALIONS TO WORK, really upset me. I grew up with the dark, story driven and most of the time bloody Saint Saiya; so to see this, energy, modern era, bright colorful take on the series somehow hurt my childhood in a way I thought anime just wouldn't do. It almost feels like the cartoon network version of Saint Saiya. (of course, that’s not to say there are bad shows in that channel, simply that the target audience for it is completely different from a Saint Saiya audience)
Lets say that at least there are some changes that are very well done. The new Gold Saints look and feel very good, and the difference in power between the characters and classes is very clear, unlike the original series in which it seem that the protagonists will win and revive endlessly. Also, the story of Athena seems interesting enough, even if is just to watch were they are going with this.

As I said, maybe is my childhood bitching that doesn't let me enjoy to the fullest this anime but, is impossible not to compare it with the original source so, do give it a try, if not for nostalgia value, at least to witness the changes and stare in horror like I REALLY try not to do, most of the time.

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ENGLISH REVIEW AFTER PORTUGUESE


Bom, Saint Seiya não é um anime muito bom! Mas ele foi um clássico marcante para os antigos.

Saint Seiya Ômega comete muitos erros de seu antecessor, entre eles estão:

- Haruto: A ideia de criar um cavaleiro ninja, não é ruim, só que ele foi mal produzido. Haruto! Exatamente como você leu! Ele te lembra algum nome? Claro que lembra, Naruto! E de ninja o que eu vi nele foi o mais clichê possível.

- Repetimento De Ataques: Saint Seiya sempre teve isso, mas de tanto ver isso acabamos relevando. Mas quando a luta se baseia em uso de poderes! SE PREPAREM PARA UMA CHUVA DE HATE!

- Elementos: Por que colocar elementos, se vão ser apenas: Fogo, Aguá, Terra, Vento, Luz e Trevas! O Hyoga e o Shun entra aonde nessa história???? Desnecessário!

- Armaduras: Muitas armaduras tem um desing muito fraco! E a ideia de as Urnas terem sido trocadas por cristais, foi muito mais desnecessário do que os elementos! As urnas mostravam que os cavaleiros, além de terem missões, eles tinham que carregar o peso que iriam usar nas batalhas, isso mostra a determinação de cada personagem. Na segunda temporada elas voltam! GRAÇAS A DEUS!

A história tem seus altos e baixos, ela começa mais ou menos, ela fica boazinha, ela cai e levanta de novo como o próprio Seiya haha! Mas, ela é boa.

Considerações Finais: O anime não é um completo lixo, tem seus erros, a maioria poderia ter sido consertada por Masame Kurumada. A melhor parte do anime, com certeza é o inicio até o final das doze casas, mesmo que tenham cavaleiros de ouro mal desenvolvidos!

Fim! :D

PS: This review was made by a Brazilian!

AQUI É BRASIL!!!!

English Version:

Well, Saint Seiya is not a very good anime! But it was a striking classic for the ancients.

 Saint Seiya Omega makes many mistakes from its predecessor, among them:

- Haruto: The idea of ​​creating a ninja knight is not a bad thing, just that he was poorly produced. Haruto! Just as you read it! Does he remind you of any names? Of course you remember, Naruto! And from ninja what I saw in him was as cliché as possible.

- Repetition of Attacks: Saint Seiya always had this, but from seeing it so much we ended up. But when the fight is based on using powers! GET READY FOR A HATE RAIN!

- Elements: Why put elements, if only: Fire, Water, Earth, Wind, Light and Darkness! Where's Hyoga and Shun enter this story ???? Not necessary!

- Armor: Many armor has a very weak design! And the idea that the ballot boxes were swapped for crystals was far more unnecessary than the elements! The ballot boxes showed that the knights, besides having missions, had to carry the weight they would use in battles, this shows the determination of each character. In season two they come back! THANK GOD!
 
 The story has its ups and downs, it starts more or less, she gets good, she falls and gets up again like Seiya himself haha! But, she's good.

 Final Thoughts: The anime is not a complete rubbish, it has its mistakes, most could have been fixed by Masame Kurumada. The best part of the anime, of course, is the beginning to the end of the twelve houses, even if they have poorly developed gold knights!

 End! : D

PS: This review was made by a Brazilian!

HERE IS BRAZIL!!!!

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Saint Seiya: Omega is a dumpster fire. While not being as bad as Saintia Shō or Soul of Gold, Omega still makes the running for one of the worst series in the franchise. *Yoshiko Umakoshi’s character designs & *Make-Up’s catchy rock ballad rendition of ‘Pegasus Fantasy’ lure old fans into the fray, but fanatics of the original are left with nothing but cardboard remnants of the past. There will be spoilers in this review! You have been warned!
*Yoshiko Umakoshi is most famous for his character designs in Casshern Sins and HeartCatch PreCure! Make-Up’s cover of ‘Pegasus Fantasy’ features Shōko Nakagawa as the vocalist, she is known for singing the opening of Gurren Lagann.

• Omega’s cast in a nutshell:

—Pegasus Kōga: Typical Shōnen Jump protagonist. Compassionate, strong-willed, friendly, but gets evil goat eyes and becomes possessed by a dark spirit, when he’s ‘set off.’ Which is another shōnen manga trope. He’s more or less a carbon copy of Seiya from the original Saint Seiya.

—Lionet Sōma: Hot-blooded, revenge driven, and Kōga’s best friend. After his vengeance arc comes to an anti-climactic end—Scorpio Sonia’s defeat was disappointing, to say the least—he’s pretty much a throwaway character that either (1) exists to be an impulsive, yelling guy (to further the plot), or (2) just a bland, armored ornament in the background.

—Aquila Yuna: Thighs. The sex appeal of the series, doubling as a token female character. Breaks the law that female saints have had to follow for thousands of years—‘wear a mask, and whoever sees your face must marry you or die by your hand’—and got zero repudiation for her disobedience. *This rule was held with such reverence by Ophiuchus Shaina, that when Seiya circumstantially saw her face, it tormented her throughout the whole series. It felt like the Omega writers quickly retconned that rule because Yuna is pretty. It never even shows any the other female saints at their academy following in Yuna’s footsteps; it was like, I guess Yuna is the exception because of main character privilege. It would have been understandable to write a student revolt that eventually led to women being able to train without masks, this story takes place twenty-five years later—after all, but the creators were too lazy to properly write it into the story!
*Death was an immediate consequence for any crime, in the classic Saint Seiya. Original Saint Seiya was very faithful to its Ancient Greek motif.

—Dragon Ryūhō: The sensible one, also is the son of Dragon Shiryū from the original series.

—Wolf Haruto: A shinobi. The stoic, mysterious one with glasses. In Episode 56, Haruto abandons the saints to pursue his dream of being in a rock band but that ends with him apologizing immediately and stating that his allegiance to Athena is more important than anything. Nothing gained there, other than a subplot.

—Aria: A martyr, like every ‘Athena’ in existence.

—Equuleus Suburu: Annoying, shōta character that only exists to further the plot. Imagine a one-dimensional version of Katz Kobayashi from Zeta Gundam.

ーOrion Eden: Eden is one of the more frustrating examples of an antagonist becoming a friend. After the saints kill his father (Mārs) and his mother (Medea), Eden vows to avenge them but falls short on his promise, seemingly because the writers forgot to incorporate it in the plot. The tension is dissolved with Eden becoming the tsundere rival that helps out occasionally. Essentially, Eden is the domesticated cat of Omega.

• So, that’s the main cast of the series and the worst part about it is: they never grow. The series is ninety-seven episodes and there is NO character development! The characters just remain as they are, archetypal shells, used to sell toys. Another example of cardboard character writing is with the ‘Pisces’ Gold Saint of the series, Amor. He is revealed to be a lying, sociopath that is killed off in the Martian arc; but in the ‘80s Saint Seiya, Pisces Aphrodite is only alive for two episodes before getting killed by Andromeda Shun and, even then, he has complexity—he has an overwhelming desire to be respected for his power over his feminine beauty. The Pisces in Omega is a cackling cohort, at best. Gold Saints are important, so they HAVE to be written well.

• Another absurd direction for a Gold Saint was for Taurus Harbinger. He’s a huge guy (at least 9’0’’) that’s ripped with a huge scar on his face and yet the director chose to give him Starscream’s voice from Beast Wars? Kazuki Yao, his seiyū, is capable of voicing more manly characters, i.e. he voiced Judō Āshita in Gundam ZZ and *Bunshichi Tawara (Tenjō Tenge). To make things even more ridiculous, Harbinger’s famous catchphrase is, ‘I’ll break every bone in your heart.’
*If you want to see a legendary, manly showdown—watch the battle between Bunshichi and Shin from Tenjō Tenge.

• Gemini Paradox’s story really bothered me because they teased her up to be a really likable character in her introduction (in Episode 31); like every ‘Gemini’ in the Saint Seiya franchise, she has a good and evil side; and upon her quaint introduction, it even delves in her backstory to show that she was alienated by society and her parents because of her powers. Though strange, she also has a a facination with Dragon Ryūhō because she was saved by his father as a child. Interesting, right? Well, in the second half of the series, the Omega staff decided to completely dump that plotline and make her character more convoluted. The series decides to give Paradox a twin sister, named Integra, who is revealed to be the rightful owner of the Gemini cloth. This is confusing because, in the aforementioned Episode 31, it shows flashbacks of Paradox as a child and none of Paradox’s memories contain a version of her family with a sister. It’s like the writing staff wrote it in last minute! It’s a shame because Paradox, along with Eden, had the potential to become interesting characters!

• Saint Seiya: Omega is often called the Dragon Ball GT of Saint Seiya for a reason. In the Pallasite arc, I originally was interested in the foil relationship between Pallas and Saori but, like every bit of potential in this series, it quickly transitions to minimalist kid-show banter. Despite the clean designs, the faces and body are often off-model; and some of the action animation will be of a character sliding across the screen, instead of running. Omega didn’t even have enough of a budget to afford an ending theme. I don’t recommend this series, even to diehard fans, and instead suggest Lost Canvas as an alternative. Saint Seiya: Omega is a 2/10.

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Disclaimer: This anime was my introduction into, and probably the extent of my involvement with, the franchise.


✪ Genre: action (gunfights, swordplay), adventure, drama, contemporary fantasy, shounen, superpower


✔ Positive Aspects ✔

◧ The animation of the anime is the only positive aspect of this series that I could name. Specifically, we witnessed fairly distinct characters using different kinds of bodysuits, majestic structures left and right, in combination with colors that were highly saturated and very vibrant, easily capturing and retaining the viewers' attention.


✘ Negative Aspects ✘

◧ When I am embarking on a new shounen anime journey, I do expect to stumble across some cliches (the protagonist's legendary bravado which is wholly predicated upon his selfless, borderline masochistic, intention to protect his friends, and the world in general; the antagonist's intention to acquire immense physical strength either for the sake of it, or for the liberation of mankind from itself by facilitating its destruction; some protagonists' and/or antagonists' quest towards more strength for some, at best, incomprehensible reasons, at worst, preposterous etc.) but that's quite different from having those cliches deployed in the most cartoonish fashion imaginable. It's as if the creators of this anime were intending to mock the genre itself by releasing a humorless parody based on every single cliche that the former has to offer.

◧ In the sound department nothing really stood out - the same tracks were being regurgitated throughout.

◧ As far as the character development goes, well, there was not really any to speak of. Most of the protagonists' and antagonists' intentions, beliefs, emotions, and thought processes were, to the extent they were made clear, pretty formulaic.

◧ In the action scenes department, nothing much was going on either. A great majority of the time was spent on specific choreographies (with graphics, head titles and all) which accompanied every character's individual combat moves. Another significant part of the time was spent on mundane verbal exchanges between rivals, before, during, and after the fight. And, finally, what was left was spent on repeating this sequence: the protagonist's/protagonists' beatdown and his/her/their display of bravado.

◧ The anime was broken down to (2) seasons, with completely different sets of antagonists, but the unfolding of the plots were characteristically similar in pace. Both seasons 'got into it' rather quickly, introduced us to the characters and antagonists almost immediately, gave us a clear idea of how all this was going to unfold and wasted quite some time with the protagonists simply running around and getting into fights with everyone. Furthermore, I would like to note that the 2nd season was completely unnecessary. If anything, it may have made the anime sillier since the protagonist's social existence, and consequently, his importance to the story, have been severely downgraded.

◧ Conceptually, I can't say that I was much enthusiastic about it. I am uncertain as to whether or not, and if so, to what degree, I may have been negatively predisposed given that I am of Greek ancestry, but, I don't think that the use of Greek mythology was very sensible. At various times throughout I felt that certain aspects of it did not make much sense, and the terminology used was rather idiotic (e.g. 'cosmo', 'cloth stones' many individual combat moves had silly-sounding names, etc.). Also, quite a few structural elements did not make that much sense either (e.g. the relationship between 'cloth stones' and their respective constellations; the origins of existent 'gods' and the conspicuous absence of many others; the earth's persistent attractiveness for the antagonists' plans despite being wildly dissimilar, etc.).


Overall: A bundle of shounen anime cliches deployed in the most run-of-the-mill manner possible. If you value your time, do not bother.

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I began this series with high hopes. Decent yet predictable story of a nobody kid who's destined for greatness after he makes friends to go on a journey with hiim where he overcomes some insurmountable issues. This anime is as predictable as predictable can be. To the point that it's not interesting even in the slightest. It's just a constant use of a typical formula that anime of this genre seem to over use. Meet a tougher enemy and through sheer determination, not skill, end up beating them in the end. Meet another, tougher enemy and through sheer determination, not skill, end up beating them in the end. Repeat. Then, when you get to the point in the anime that I am right now, around episode 32, the animators and writers decide that it's best to drag out this abomination and they play episodes so similar that the whole story stops progressing altogether. Episodes so similar that you can miss 2 or 3 or 4 at a time and still not feel behind in the storyline. Name dropping of old, good anime does not a winner make. The people that fund this sort of trash anime should be ashamed of themselves for even putting it on the market.

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Omega, how much worse could happen in Saint Seiya. Even if yes, in fact (as a quality) it is not the only one.

Started during a general recovery of the spin-offs, mainly because there were the classic protagonists (now adults, being 25 years in the future) and, as always, some gold saints. It was better I hadn't done it, and trust me, if you're a fan of SS, it's a series you can very well avoid. And when even the Gold Saints suck (not all, but more than half yes), it's already a signal.

If the original series had crude and violent, sometimes tragic aspects, Omega can be considered a "censored version", adapted for younger children, putting childish elements or clichés in it from other series, such as schools, elemental powers, powers of friendship, etc ... with the usual "original" next generation. In short, you can think of it as a mix of the worst of Boruto and Fairy Tail, mixed with Saint Seiya.


STORY: 2

The series is divided into two seasons, with mainly two large sagas, against "Mars" (which is not the greek god Ares, but looks more like a Martian) and "Pallas".

Having said that Toei's premise was to make a story suitable for small children, with the usual unoriginal next generation, we have several changes in the first part of the presentation.
Remember the dangerous and exhausting workouts to become a saint and get armor? Too violent for Omega, let's have a school.
Remember the beautiful armor of the classic series, in the Pandora Boxes? Well, here they have become gems, rounded in design.
Then to be "very original", the blows have become based on elemental powers.

Not to mention the Omega, which is a NAKAMA POWER, a power of friendship not even hidden, the usual bullshit to make the protagonists win in a meaningless way. When it is used, making the circle of friendship or something else, also turning into new ridiculous armor, it is really HORRENDOUS, just as it is terrible to see enemies, super-powerful with respect to the protagonists, to be defeated by that crap.


Well, this series has no logic, except on rare occasions. But let's go into the story.

The first 27 episodes serve as an introduction to the characters, training and a saga of elemental temples, totally useless and boring.

The following ones, up to 51, are the real battle with Mars. But since Toei is original, what do you propose? A sanctuary of traitors, faithful to the enemy, Athena in danger and the new protagonists to save her in ... oh, a climb to the 12 houses, what a novelty. But a climb to the 12 houses towards the sky, towards the planet Mars, wow.

Some clashes are good, many are horrendous, also due to the Gold Saints, several are painful or managed really badly. Mars is a good character, the fight with him is fine, but what follows is horrible.


The second season is instead a war against Pallas and his servants, although in truth there will be a more powerful enemy behind. Meanwhile, the traitor gold saints who survived the 12 houses, sided with Athena. We say that the second half has merits, which make it more enjoyable than the first, but also enormous defects.

The merits are the active participation of the legendary bronzes (the historical protagonists), some death and an interesting secondary character, and the fact that this seems like a real war, with Athena (yes, Saori Kido) fighting. And the enemy behind it all, the god of time Saturn.

The defects are different. Several little charismatic characters, some horrible recycled (Tokisada and Paradox), but above all Omega, a world crap. Against Gallia, Hyperion, and Saturn itself, THE WORST SIGHT IN SAINT SEIYA. In addition to the return of the Steel Saints, the historical anime fillers, forgettable.

There are a couple of good moments, most connected to the old classic protagonists, but more truly horrible, even in this second part. All the fault of the next generation and the power of friendship, as always, the worst that exists in anime/manga.


ART: 4

The style tries to break away from that of the late Araki, but it is not the best.

There are beautiful designs or animations from time to time, but also tremendous bass as a quality. Now this is the beginning:

https://www.animeclick.it/images/Anime_big/SaintSeiyaOmega/SaintSeiyaOmega3.jpg

But even at the end, against Hyperion or Saturn, deformed drawings appear.

Okay that's a TV series, of 97 episodes, but it was already the beginning of Toei's lack of care towards this franchise.


SOUND: 5

I don't remember many music, normal.


CHARACTERS: 3

Where to start. Excluding the classic characters (the 5 bronzes and Athena, plus other minors), we have.

The Next Generation: well, we are innovative, the usual miraculous Pegasus from stereotype (Koga), the son of one of the old protagonists (Ryuho), a hot head in search of revenge (Soma), a "miss I know everything" that does not wear the mask for equal genus (Yuna), a copy of Ikki to do the badass of the group (Eden) and a ninja (Haruto). Perhaps Eden, the others are painful.

The (Fake) Gold Saints: excluding Kiki (successor of Mu), Genbu (pupil of Dohko) and Seiya (sagittarius), loyal to Athena, the others are faithful traitors to Mars, at the beginning.

We have a bull smashes cute bones (Harbinger), a love / hate nymphomaniac muddy the sign of Gemini (Paradox), another pathetic cancer (Schiller), a lion without character (Mycene), a tasteless Virgo (Fudo), the scorpion more pathetic and weaker than ever (Sonia), an old arrogant of Capricorn (Ionia), an arrogant but very weak aquarium (Tokisada), and a Bart Simpson of darkness, and playboy, like fish (Amor).

Harbinger and Fudo are okay, in addition to the 3 above, the others are vomiting.

The Pallasites: removed a couple of traitors, direct servants of Saturn (Europa and another one, they are interesting), the only ones of thickness are the N1. Titan is good, even if it is like Seiya (adult). Aegon is normal. Gllia is a concentrate of arrogance and antipathy. Hyperion is arrogant, but strong, too bad that it is handled horribly, like Gallia.

The Gods: Mars is good, Apus is awful and only an ass**ll to give a power-up to Koga some times, Pallas is an Atena 2.0, Saturn is cliché, but interesting for his powers.


So, characters promoted?

Sagittarius Seiya, Libra Genbu (my favorite Libra), Phoenix Ikki, Cygnus Hyoga, Andromeda Shun, Mars, Europa and Titan.

Kiki, Harbinger and Fudo are normal. Shiryu here is disappointing.

All the others, from the anonymous to the forgettable, to the worst that has happened to Saint Seiya. A fail with the new characters.


ENJOYMENT: 2

As already mentioned several times before, if you are children under 10, it may be for you. If you like simple stories and where the logic in clashes does not exist because there is the power of friendship and love, like Fairy Tail, too. But if you are a true Saint Seiya fan, the historical series and the manga spin-offs, you can avoid hurting yourself.

The moments they deserve in this anime, in 97 episodes, can be counted in less than 2 hands. Time wasted.

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So Saint Seiya Omega, the non-canon sequel to saint seiya

I will judge this compared to the original Saint Seiya series, and will include little to no spoilers, enjoy:

Story: the story has 2 sagas each with their own main enemy and with separate arks inside each saga. Unlike the original saint seiya anime this anime has more characters that are actually developed and we get more insight on them, it isn't just gold saints and main cast. the story actually has turns that you don't see coming at first or has some minor characters that have some deeper feelings and thoughts. I wish i could talk more about the plot but it would have to include spoilers

Art: The anime generally looks good, far from revolutionary but always good enough to watch it, even when paused. the animation has sakuga in it, it is just not the most common, but it can make some scenes really good because of it, the special effects for all the special moves are also crispy looking.

Sound: the music is pretty good, some of them really stand out like "Eternal Saints" "Like Pegasus" "Lonely Saints" "face determination" "those that should protect" all are really good osts that are quite memorable, my favourite probably being Eternal saints, this along the 4 openings really make the music feel good in the anime always adding on to the visuals happening on the screen. In terms of sound effects , i think it wasn't exactly the greatest but it did it's job pretty well. later on in the series however there are some insert songs that really don't do justice to the rest of the ost's and due to the very nature of insert songs and the presence of voice it felt a bit off-putting.

Character: Probably the part where it differs the most to saint seiya, both in execution and in idea. Although at first while watching it might seem like the show forgot about the older characters, in the 2nd saga the older characters shone a lot and really showed their improvements along with change that comes from : time , experience, age and events around them. The new characters however are also really good, they are much more complex, and even characters that at 1st glance seem like just a throw away character for no reason, still show emotions, thoughts, feelings, it makes both the world and themselves feel like more than a plot device. and especially the main cast , had so much change overtime, way more than the original bronze saints. and although some characters resemble a bit a character from the original anime, they are still different enough that you can not just call them a "reskin".

I genuinly think this is a good anime, it both rewarded me as an older fan of the series that watched the previous installments with some bits of lore that i knew before hand like for example older characters, as well being entertaining enough with new things like for example the element system, which adds a bit more flavour in 1st saga. Most of the mistakes this anime does, are what the original anime probably did as well to a certain degree, this anime is not perfect, i would say that 1st saga focused on the main new bronze saints more, while the 2nd saga showed a lot more of the other characters along with the older characters. but even with that in account, the anime always tried to change something, to show something unusual ,to stop things from being stale, and although some people dislike some of the foes coming back again and again, i felt like i was seeing how the enemies themselves were changing and growing along the heroes, kind of like looking at the other side of the fence.

Overall i still really enjoyed this anime a solid 9/10 for me, not quite close to 10, it would have to change some things like for example the 1st 10-15 episodes were honestly not that great, same with the beginning of the 2nd saga, they were only a way to either introduce ore reintroduce a character although it never felt as bad as for example reborn's first few episodes.

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The original Saint Seya happens to be amongst the first fighting shounen ever made in the mid 80’s and even the one who established the formula of the genre. Even Dragonball took pointers from it. Along the years the franchise was kept alive through numerous non-canon follow-ups, the major ones being a sequel series between 2003 and 2008, and a prequel in 2009. The thing is, most of the original fanbase either grew over it or went for newer and fancier shounen; it is by no means a franchise with tens of thousands of followers anymore. The reason being its formula remaining quite narrow and after a point had become too simple and repetitive compared to later fighting shounen. So it must be made clear that it is a franchise maintained mostly for nostalgia rather than sales or marketing. The latest addition is Omega, which is again non-cannon and takes place after the main series, with a new generation of Saint warriors. Don’t try to see it as a sequel to the Hades/Elysion arcs because they too are stand-alones compared to the main series.

I have many bones to pick with it so I will address them in a numerical order.

1) Animation is done by Toei yet again, only this time they changed the style considerably. It’s not bad in overall, but, man, does it look girly or what? The original style was not exactly manly all the way, as it was made to appeal to fangirls by drawing all the men in a bishounen / slightly feminine way. But this new one is just… well, too stylized if I am to go easy with the description. Less details on the characters, simpler and cuter faces, much smoother animation, and MUCH, MUCH, MUCH BIGGER EYES. It has been made by the same guys who also did the Casshern Sins remake of the retro series and I can’t say I am a fan of their style. I don’t hate it but it sure feels way too weird if you were accustomed to the older way of the 80’s. Plus, while Casshern Sins actually turned the original concept to something far more dark and deep (and thus likable), Omega on the other hand is simplifying it to the point most see the new artwork as a turn to something more childish (and thus worse). The whole thing now looks like a damn mahou shoujo instead of a fighting shounen.

2) The armours all of a sudden are now stored in crystals and instead of carrying them in big heavy boxes, they just pop out of a tiny necklace. Instead of changing shape like a transformer before attaching themselves to you, now they just magically appear on you with lots of bright colours filing the screen. I was surprised the hero didn’t get naked first or pulled out a magic wand, or had a catchphrase close to “I will punish you in the name of the Moon.” That felt way off from the original concept and definitely NOT MANLY! So ok, modern anime are gayer, nobody denies that, but this is rather too much for an older fan to appreciate. And sure, I understand that it was weird to have huge heavy boxes that needed to be carried all over the place and which magically disappeared from the battle but reappeared after it was over. Yet that was exactly what made it cool; the fact that they were bulky and heavy and took up space. But these crystals have no weight, and fit inside your pocket; you are just not made to feel like they are important. A pitiful thief can pickpocket them and run away. It took a brute just to barely be able to lift the old boxes; having to carry them was an easy proof of how powerful the heroes were for managing to walk with those things as luggage. On the other hand, the new heroes feel like weak kids who can’t do anything without transforming first.

3) Then it’s the whole premise of the show I also didn’t like. It’s a lot sillier compared to the original, which was already silly to begin with.
- The new villain, Mars, is not a member of the Olympian pantheon. Despite sounding like the god of war, there already is such a guy and his name is Ares (the original Greek name and not the bastardised Roman one). So this Mars fellow is a filler villain and must not be grouped with the rest of the canon theology of the series because he is not one of the twelve Olympians. And sure, the original series also had the Scandinavian pantheon mixing in at some point but in case you don’t know that was also filler. So were all those extras from Judeo-Christian mythology in the OVAs and the movies. And anyways, this Mars guy doesn’t even look like he is from the same reality as the rest. I mean just look at his armour; all he wears is a galaxy. Seriously, instead of a cool armour full of spikes he wears a galaxy. How the heck does that work?
- Even as filler, the scriptwriter screwed up the rules of engagement, since no god or saint warrior can just appear out of nowhere and start a one-man war like that. It originally was sort of what happens in Mortal Kombat games; the champions of each god battle, and the winners take over or defend a certain world. Yet look at this guy; acting almighty like he is more powerful than all the previous gods that messed with the heroes and just appears anywhere he feels like it without any problem at all. This is completely stupid since they had uber security before. Where is that weird barrier that kept worlds apart? Where are the other Gold Saints? Where are the other gods?
- In a similar fashion WHERE IS THE REST OF THE WORLD? All we see in the beginning is three people and an island, and later on a school in the middle of nowhere. Man, the rich and lively alternative Greece of the original is now an empty planet; I bet they plan on making this barren like Casshern Sins.
- So anyways, back to the story, Mars just walks inside the sanctuary without the slightest resistance and without using a single underling to somehow sabotage the defences. He kills Seiya before gets pushed back and for the next decade the Goddess Athena trains a new warrior to take the fallen hero’s place. In the meantime, while Mars is recovering he decides to get some underlings after all, most of which are in fact Athena apostates. How the hell did a weakened god manage to seduce so many followers and how the hell didn’t anyone notice it?
- Anyways, a decade later he returns and gets in, again without any resistance at all. Dammit you guys; you had a decade to prepare and did nothing? At least build a wooden fence to give us the illusion you tried a bit. And seriously, this Mars guy is so overpowered it makes everything feel so easy to the point he doesn’t even need underlings. He manages to kill or corrupt most of the Gold Saints, kidnaps Athena, rules the world, takes over the sanctuary and the palestra all alone. Although it is cool to see for once the strongest villain going in from the very start instead of sending progressively stronger underlings against the progressively stronger heroes, it makes it look so easy that you just wonder why he lags so much in whatever he wants to do. There is absolutely no explanation for why he took his sweet time to do all that with so many months in between and not at once.
- Probably just for the sake of new hero to get enough time to train and meet more Sailor Scouts… err, Saints to form a team and overthrow Mars. He has the typical protection syndrome of shounen protagonists and his resolve is what constantly gives him enough power to win when he most needs it. His willpower is enough to make one of those girly crystals to turn him into Sailor Moon… err, I mean Saint Pegasus and he goes to the rescue. And how polite of Mars to have underlings so the heroes can use them as punch bags and farm on exp points. See what I mean when I said he doesn’t need them?



4) What is even lamer is how all the new Saints now train in a school. A SCHOOL! They call it palestra but it is obviously a prestige place where teenagers study books and write tests. What the hell do all that have to do with getting super powerful and defending the world? What are they going to do, play twenty questions with cosmic horrors that plan to destroy the universe? They just need to smack the crap out of them! And am I supposed to believe that school is protected by a barrier that stops even Mars from going in? If so, how did he attack the Sanctuary in the first place? And even if we assume they improved it, why isn’t Athena there and instead spends a decade in a completely defenceless place?

5) Furthermore, now there is a girl in the main team of the heroes. It’s not like this is a bad thing but it makes it even less manly. We had some pretty powerful Silver level gals before (chauvinistically always hidden behind masks, hehe) but the top spots were always reserved for the dudes. Because it is a dude show, even if some were drawn in a totally gay style. Although the tradition keeps it up by having more of these masked chicks in the story, having one in the main team that casually takes off her mask like it was nothing important is stupid. She doesn’t even wear pants; SHE WEARS A TUTU! What is a ballerina doing in a manly team?

6) As if that wasn’t enough, the whole show now stinks of Naruto. They added a silly elemental system, where fire Saints are weaker against water Saints, who are weaker against earth Saints, and so on until it makes a circle. What kind of crap is this, some sort of an attempt to add strategy to the battles? Well guess what, there is no bloody strategy even with them present; since it is still the same old shounen fuss. The heroes always get enough power to win when they need it, regardless of what their element is. The original was fun exactly because it was guts and willpower doing all the work; not because water beats fire. What the hell are they doing here, planning to teach kids the rules to some related videogame? And as if trying to cash in on the Naruto fans with elements wasn’t enough, they also included … a ninja Saint named Haruto! OMG, lamest thing ever! The thing that makes Saint Seiya what it is has to do with people in fancy armours kicking the crap out of each other and not exchanging places with a log!

7) Combine all the above and you get a show full of convenient events and completely retarded script. You are literally made to believe they are all mentally challenged. To show what I mean, here is a small fanfic I made that makes fun of the whole thing.
Evil Goldy: Shall I chase after the heroes?
Mars: No, your power is needed to protect the sanctuary.
Evil Goldy: I can run with the speed of light, it won’t take more than a few seconds. If anyone attacks in the meantime, you are here to protect the place sir.
Evil Mars: I said no! You won’t go!
Goldy: Ok, then sir, how about you go get them with your powers that are a million times bigger than mine.
Evil Mars: Why would I bother doing that? It’s not like my master plan being stomped by them stealing the girl I need is important. So just go tell my little girl to chase after them.
Evil Goldy: Won’t that take several hours? And sending silvers instead of golds for such an important mission?
Mars: Just do it, ok? Oh, and make sure for the messenger to tell her to come back when she is about to kill them and take the girl back.
Evil Goldy: Um... how about coming back after doing all that?
Mars: Will you stop opposing me?!
Girly: So dad, what was so important that you wanted me to come back the moment I was about to kill the traitors and bring back Athena?
Mars: I wanted to tell you to kill the traitors and bring back Athena.
Girly: ... I was doing that right at that moment ...
Mars: What?! You failed me!
Girl: But …
Mars: Quiet! I will just tell a bunch on normal weak people to do what you couldn’t.
Evil Goldy: (facepalm)
Girl: Oh well, at least I was smart enough to leave behind two of my minions. They will take care of the whole problem.

Minion 1: You are traitors! You don’t want to surrender our world to a different god and go against anything we believed all our lives!
Yuna: Did anyone noticed how I am a bronze and defeated a silver with one hit, even though I am far weaker and critically injured?
Kouga: No, I was too buzy looking at your tutu.
Minion 2: Don’t mind me; I will just do nothing while you are ganging up and trashing my partner.

And all the above happen in just one episode… In all, this anime sucks hard. It is retarded and looks like Naruto dressed as Sailor Moon.

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