Ginga Kikoutai Majestic Prince

As the entire Majestic Prince saga was completed with the movie release, I highly recommend watching the entire series. It's like the the more bombastic and wild mecha anime of the past, but for the 2010s and no filler for its length. A main cast of underdogs you want to cheer for and follow backed by a large cast of supporting and minor characters that are utilized properly. As mentioned there is no filler, the timeline and setting of the impending and intensifying alien invasion constantly moves the show forward along with the character development and plot at a consistent and enjoyable pace. The usage ... of 3D is incredibly well done and excellently produced, used only for the mecha and spaceship scenes, and still holds up very well. Overall, it is a fun mecha action show with a straightforward plot with great and well deserved moments and payoffs. Also, one of the rare shows that use the mecha rival team trope in a fantastic way.

I ought to have already learnt not to judge an anime by its name. "Majestic Prince" just does a good job of bringing that point home. Honestly, who'd take something with that kind of title seriously? It hardly has anything to do with the plot and as such, once disregarded, this show is immensely enjoyable. It's about space, robots and the survival of the human race - which, I don't know about you, but those themes are fun.

The story itself isn't anything spectacular. Aliens are attempting to take over the solar system and humans must defend Earth in a pitiably one-sided war. To counter this, ... authorities have genetically altered some teenagers and developed some cutting edge robots for them to fight with. On top of this, the government has decided to advertise them as heroes turning the tide in the war - all to reassure the public that they're doing something, regardless of the real nature of things. Team Rabbits, our group of protagonists are far from effectively perfect.

Team Rabbits, commonly dubbed The Fail Five at school, are a diverse cast of interesting personalities - ranging from the idiotically outspoken, to the reserved introverts. Essentially, they're all unique - although some a more faceted than others, the dynamic is better than one might imagine. Everyone gets on, relatively so. The dialogue is hilarious to witness. And what's more, we see them grow over the course of the show.

The side characters were generally, fairly good. It varied, depending on their role, but I've seen much worse.

The art was pleasantly nostalgic, a throwback to Gundam Seed and Fafner, the character designs were done by the same person. Do not worry though, their fashion sense has vastly improved in regard to those two aired a decade earlier. Probably. Most of the time they're in uniforms, so you'd hardly notice. The sound is gorgeous. Really polished feeling, it suited the atmosphere well. I never skipped the opening or ending themes, they were beautiful.

The pacing felt right. Not too slow, not too fast. Of course, there are differing opinions out there, but it kept me hooked and still allowed for details to be explored. Recently, I've been dropping shows around the halfway mark, even those that are one-cour, purely because they kind of... outstay their welcome. But this show was pleasant all the way through, it wasn't too intellectually demanding, but it didn't take the viewers for idiots either. And to top it all off, the action was enjoyably suspenseful - it was the antagonists with superior technology, and the protagonists had both victories, losses and arguable draws.

It was a load of fun. If you're hesitating, I highly recommend it. Give "Majestic Prince" a shot and you'll very well be surprised.

I wish I liked Majestic Prince more, I really do. Initially I ignored it after the first 5 episodes because it aired the same season as Kakumeiki Valvrave and Suisei no Gargantia, and Majestic Prince was far less captivating and engaging than those two. (And man…hoo boy…look how those two turned out…I guess style and shock doesn’t always create substance, Valvrave) However, when I came back to Majestic Prince, the sad truth that is while it’s not a bad series, it lacks a lot of qualities and just becomes a forgettable (and unfinished) memory.

Majestic Prince knows the tropes and dynamics of its genre very well. ... It was clearly made by a person or team that understands and adores the mecha anime genre. At times, it’s refreshing to see Majestic Prince portray such an unbridled love of its predecessors. Almost every character is given at least one endearing or memorable feature or moment, and the series does have good ideas. But it feels, at least to me, like Majestic Prince is a story written with all of the love and technical know-how of the genre, but without some of the quality and ability of a better writer. Majestic Prince doesn’t really do anything that’s overly bad or disengaging, it’s just not interesting. It’s unfulfilling and simple, at times it feels like running in a hamster wheel as your eyes glaze over. Which is a shame, because if molded better, these elements could've been a lot of fun.

The creative staff behind Majestic Prince should definitely be given more work and another chance, they have a lot of love and creative drive. They just…should be paired with a more seasoned and accomplished creative head to better flesh out and solidify their dreams.