Log Horizon

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Alternative Titles

English: Log Horizon

Japanese: ログ・ホライズン

Information

Type: TV

Episodes: 25

Status: Finished Airing

Aired: Oct 5, 2013 to Mar 22, 2014

Premiered: Fall 2013

Broadcast: Saturdays at 17:30 (JST)

Producers: NHK

Licensors: Sentai Filmworks

Studios: Satelight

Source: Light novel

Genres: Action, Game, Adventure, Magic, Fantasy

Duration: 25 min. per ep.

Rating: PG-13 - Teens 13 or older

Statistics

Score: 8.00¹ (scored by 446,164 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #538²

² based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #92

Members: 877,450

Favorites: 10,113

8.00

Ranked #538Popularity #92Members 877,450

Fall 2013TVSatelight

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Episodes: /25

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Synopsis

In the blink of an eye, thirty thousand bewildered Japanese gamers are whisked from their everyday lives into the world of the popular MMORPG, Elder Tale, after the game's latest update—unable to log out. Among them is the socially awkward college student Shiroe, whose confusion and shock lasts only a moment as, a veteran of the game, he immediately sets out to explore the limits of his new reality.

Shiroe must learn to live in this new world, leading others and negotiating with the NPC "natives" in order to bring stability to the virtual city of Akihabara. He is joined by his unfortunate friend Naotsugu, having logged in for the first time in years only to find himself trapped, and Akatsuki, a petite but fierce assassin who labels Shiroe as her master. A tale of fantasy, adventure, and politics, Log Horizon explores the elements of gaming through the eyes of a master strategist who attempts to make the best of a puzzling situation.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Background

Log Horizon adapts the first five volumes of Mamare Touno's novel series of the same title.

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Related Anime

Adaptation:	Log Horizon
Summary:	Imanara Maniau! Log Horizon
Sequel:	Log Horizon 2nd Season

More characters

Characters & Voice Actors

Shiroe

Main

Terashima, Takuma
Japanese

Akatsuki

Main

Katou, Emiri
Japanese

Naotsugu

Main

Maeno, Tomoaki
Japanese

Nyanta

Supporting

Nakata, Jouji
Japanese

Krusty

Supporting

Sakurai, Takahiro
Japanese

Kode, Rundellhous

Supporting

Kakihara, Tetsuya
Japanese

Corwen, Rayneshia El-Arte

Supporting

Ise, Mariya
Japanese

Kanami

Supporting

Inoue, Marina
Japanese

Serara

Supporting

Kuno, Misaki
Japanese

Seta, Soujirou

Supporting

Shimono, Hiro
Japanese

More staff

Staff

Ishihira, Shinji

Director

Hata, Shouji

Sound Director

Shirahata, Nobuo

Episode Director

Andou, Takashi

Episode Director

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Opening Theme

"database feat. TAKUMA (10 Feet)" by MAN WITH A MISSION

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Ending Theme

"Your song*" by Yun*chi

More reviews

Reviews

Mar 24, 2014

25 of 25 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 9

yahzee (All reviews)

620 people found this review helpful

What started off as what seemed to be a bland-version of Sword Art Online turned out to be one of the hidden gems of anime shows. Log Horizon starts off slow with the usual setup of a "no-faults" main character, but with a slight difference. That difference is how the main character, Shiroe, strategically approaches each situation that makes Log Horizon an exciting show to watch. Shiroe isn’t the typical shounen main character that powers up throughout the story and then overpowers his enemies. Rather, he’s the guy in the background, the “villain in glasses” who controls the flow and direction of battle. Overall, Log Horizon is a genuinely fun show without all the pitfalls that we've come to expect from a shounen-type series.

The story begins by introducing a set of typical MMORPG rules/restrictions that many viewers are familiar with. But what's not so familiar are the way these rules are manipulated, opening paths to feats that were previously impossible. When one thinks of rules and boundaries, one would assume that it would limit whatever it governs. Ironically, these strict rules expand Log Horizon's story from a generic show to a well thought-out strategic adventure. It's an extremely appealing story given the relatability to many of its viewers. Having played games like World of Warcraft, I and many other viewers understand how the core mechanics of questing, leveling, raiding and more work. That’s why when other possibilities that greatly affect these game mechanics are discovered, Log Horizon truly becomes special. It also feels completely plausible. It is NOT a “power of friendship defeating the boss that was previously kicking your ass.” It’s fundamentally sound and really becomes an intriguing show.

Although some may disagree, I really thought that one of the show’s biggest strength is how the characters all have defined, unique roles. Where Shiroe is the leader in the shadows, Crusty is the leader in the spotlight. Where Akatsuki is loyal, quiet and small, Naotsugu is the loud, pervy and funny big guy. And you also have... Rundelhaus, who's in a category of his own when it comes to goofiness. These kinds of distinctions allow Log Horizon to have all kinds of interactions between characters and the possibilities become endless. To me, the characters are one of the biggest strengths of the show.

The story is what makes Log Horizon quite different from a typical shounen show. It has heavy political/economical themes that tie well into one of the show’s biggest points: building a world. In fact, there are a few episodes where the dialogue gets quite heavy and may not be everyone’s cup of tea. With that being said, I genuinely enjoyed the dialogue and found the story to be engaging. Log Horizon also executes its' story quite well. I found the pacing and structure of the arcs to be satisfactory and enjoyable.

Art is decent, it's not UFOtable amazing, but not terrible either. It's consistently pretty decent and not "inconsistent" like some other shows. Nothing else to be said here.

Sound is decent as well, the opening and ending songs are quite good but take time to get used to. The background music, while not bad, is overused. You'll know what I mean when you get halfway through the season.

With all that being said, Log Horizon is not a perfect show. For example, why does no one care about what's happening to their bodies in the real world? You'll find yourself asking this question as you watch the show. It's almost as if the topic of what's going on in the real world is completely forgotten. Also, some people may find that the interactions between the characters become quite repetitive, especially with Henrietta, who has a loli fetish for Akatsuki. Her interactions with Akatsuki are always of the same manner and it gets boring very quickly. It seems that Akatsuki's character is reduced to mere loli humor later in the show.

On a side note, I really feel that it's important to point out that Log Horizon is not a combat-heavy show. That in itself already distinguishes itself from other shounen shows. But what's really important is how the show focuses on actual strategy and manipulating the rules within the game world that the characters live in. If Log Horizon's story didn't have these elements, I really believe that Log Horizon would not be an exciting show to watch, it would just be another okay show.

Log Horizon is not your typical show. It has firm grounded roots of realism in a world of fantasy that is genuinely exciting to watch. From diverse characters, to bending the rules in a world most of us are accustomed to, Log Horizon is a good show and is worth your time. With that being said, it is by no means a perfect show. It's a rather simple show in terms of concepts, as well as having plot holes in the overall story. But Log Horizon more than makes up for it in terms of its pure enjoyability (isn't that why we watch anime in the first place?) and execution of its story.

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Apr 4, 2014

25 of 25 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 9

Deiger (All reviews)

267 people found this review helpful

Log Horizon. The basic premise, as is evident in the synopsis, centres around a group of players who by some - as of yet - unexplained phenomenon, got stuck in an online massive multi player role playing game.

I can imagine anyone familiar with Sword Art Online doing a double take at this point, obviously comparing the two anime, itching to see how one holds up against the other. SAO lovers and haters alike will travel down this line of thought. To be honest, I was and is one of the latter. Infact, I went into the series hoping to find all I missed read more

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Mar 26, 2014

25 of 25 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 6

GonzoLewd (All reviews)

225 people found this review helpful

There is a demographic of people who love to dabble in the virtual world of Massively Multiplayer Online games (MMO) to achieve escapism from stress and other struggles that plague their nature. Recently, there has been somewhat of a resurgence of interest for anime fans to watch shows that detail the life of gamers who play these sorts of games, with Sword Art Online being the forefront of it. These shows detail whether the virtual world could become more real to us than what we initially thought of as real from when we were born should be the central theme for these shows to explore and bring a fresh new take on it. It’s just too bad that none of these shows in question ever bothered to in the first place and become generic as a result.

A year later we have Log Horizon; an MMO inspired anime that has the same scenario as the show above with only a few minor iterations here and there. Now before I begin, this won’t be a piece where I start to compare or contrast both Sword Art Online and Log Horizon, as many people, unfortunately, seem to be inclined to do so. Whether I think Sword Art Online was good or bad should not be a factor on how I feel about Log Horizon in particular. Judging a show by its own merits without any outside influence of another show should be the number one key in critiquing any work. With that said, does Log Horizon hold out on its own?

One thing to realize about the plot is the tone of the setting and how it feels very lighthearted despite the dire situation that all of the characters are in. As far as the characters know, they have no way of getting out of the game. Many have criticized this aspect as being somewhat unrealistic in how real people would react to something of this magnitude. It might be an understandable critique to offer, at first. However, as the show goes on it feels fitting based on the nature of how the characters think about how they live and survive in the virtual environment. For however long they’ve been trapped in the game for years on end, at least based on their confusing logic, that virtual world becomes their world and get used to it by then. It also helps to the show’s credit that they don’t ever show us the real world at all and keeps it a mystery as to how things are going to make the situation from the characters’ perspective feel more apparent to the audience.

While this might be one of the stronger points of the show, the story itself in how it is paced and told isn’t nail-bitingly intuitive or well thought out. The premise isn’t that complicated, to begin with, as we’ve been shown before, but Log Horizon seems to think that if they throw in multiple sub-plots into the mix to make it sound complex, it’ll succeed. Unfortunately, those sub-plots I’d mentioned don’t amount to anything special in the long run and aren’t even that memorable because of it. Not only that, but that lack of memorability stems from the fact that all of these political and social constructs that Log Horizon’s world possesses aren’t written clear enough, other than the fact that they’re there to establish some basis for our protagonists to go somewhere. This comes into perspective with how many characters there are to follow in Log Horizon, but I’ll get to that later. The problems with the world-building might be more apparent after knowing that the original creator, Mamare Touno, was responsible for the creation of Maoyuu Maou Yuusha, which also had the same problems in its adaptation that can be compared to this one. These sorts of issues are prevalent in adaptations in this type of scale, but that can’t be an excuse at this point.

Though the massive cast of characters might seem like a huge negative, the way I put it, that shouldn’t mean that all of them are mediocre. The main cast of characters that are prominent throughout the show is exceptionally likable and hilarious to watch due to their numerous escapades with each other. It helps tremendously how they all have their unique characteristics that improve the nature of every one of them, rather than making them all generic and uninteresting. The same thing can’t be said for the side characters, regrettably so. With our main cast being Shiroe, Nyanta-nyan, Akatsuki, and Naotsugu, there’s this decent sense of chemistry between these four characters that is ultimately lacking for our side/supporting cast. All of their archetypes mostly consist of them having a trait that tries to make them distinct, such as Henrietta having an obsession with cute things like Akatsuki, and Serara, who has a habit of wanting to clean things to calm down. At first, it’s humorous, but after a while it becomes redundant, and it doesn’t make them any more meaningful.

In an action anime centered around the MMO systems, it would make sense to make the anime feel like you’re really in an MMO game from the gritty details of cool-downs, being a tank, healing your party members equally, and conjuring status effects at the right time. I, myself, am one of these people who enjoy these types of games and, to me, Log Horizon is probably the only one that gets it right. Usually something like this would steer off into brainless shounen show cliches, and there are a few here and there. Amazingly, Log Horizon gets the idea of taking its time for the characters to strategize their movements and actions rather than just blindly fighting off monsters without any thought in the world. That might make it seem too slow or methodical to enjoy watching, but in reality, they do a good job in the pacing of these fight scenes and keeping the action flowing seamlessly to give us a clear picture of what’s going on.

The art style can be construed as good, just not excellent in quality. The character designs themselves are very plain and ordinary enough for me even to consider them a triumphant success in artistic merit, but we come to expect that, and for what it’s worth, it handles it decently to where they don’t seem to cut any visible corners in the later episodes. As I’ve mentioned about the action being fast and flawlessly executed, the animation is a big part of why those are the case. The fluid character movements feel nice and kinetic to the spells that are cast and look pretty good as a result.

Voice talents range from relatively unknown voice actors to the familiar ones we’ve grown to be fans of giving their artistic liberties to full effect with Log Horizon. Emiri Kato as Akatsuki is devilishly cute and her being a fellow MMO fan sort of gives her performance an exciting spin. Even though Henrietta wasn’t that special as a character, Ayahi Takabaki manages to pull off the mature woman voice well and gives her voice some new territory for her to explore for her vocal talents rather than more boyish female characters. Takuma Terashima proves himself worthy of being the main protagonist of a show, and I hope to see him do more shortly. Not to mention, I could listen to Jouji Nakata say anything with the word “nyaa” at the end of his sentences and never get tired of it.

For some of us who are fans of the MMO genre, Log Horizon should be the one show to be doing it right, and while it does handle the actual MMO aspects brilliantly, the real narrative and storytelling sets itself down from being great. I do appreciate the amount of depth it tries to convey that wants us to feel attached to the world, yet I can’t help but wonder if that could’ve been done to better effect had it made the narrative more tightly constructive and less cluttered. The saying, “Too many cooks spoil the broth,” sums up Log Horizon perfectly. Only when the eventual sequel comes out, we will know if the journey will be worthwhile enough to experience its next climax.

Grade: B-

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Mar 22, 2014

25 of 25 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 8

Stark700 (All reviews)

122 people found this review helpful

There are certain degrees to which MMROPG series are adapted these days. While not an original concept, Log Horizon has been unanimously compared to another popular series known as Sword Art Online. It’s almost unavoidable considering both series are based off a light novel and relates to character in an MMORPG setting – an open world based off a video game. But really, that’s all there is to it and the similarities ends there. Log Horizon isn’t a rip off of SAO, .//hack franchise, or anything else relating to the MMOROPG theme. It’s a show that shines in its own way that makes its point in the horizons.

Log Horizon is an anime adapted series based off the light novel of the same name written by Mamare Touno. The setting takes place in a virtual world known as ‘Elder Tale’. Log Horizon follows the story of a young man known as Shiroe who has earned a reputation in the community. His nickname “Shiroe the Strategist” fits his title exactly as such because of his analytical skills and abilities of intellect. Together with his companions, they take on this world that blurs between the lines of fiction and reality.

As a MMORPG series, Log Horizon adapts many of its concepts relating to the fantasy realm. Nothing in Elder Tale is real but they have their own mechanics. These include but is not limited to various classes players can adapt their roles in, monster categories, economic/politic aesthetics, and world concepts. In fact, the world that Log Horizon is based on is colored with all sorts of fantasy attributes; goblins, murlocs, gryphons to just name a few. More importantly is the fact that the world itself also has its own rules such as penalties, death/respawns, pking, etc. On many chances, Log Horizon follows a suit of narrative through which mechanics are explained thoroughly to give viewers insights. These narratives often goes over background information and how exactly certain notions function. Log Horizon presents this flawlessly because it both tell and shows its mechanics firsthand. It brings out its best when the show follows the concepts of actual MMORPG mechanics. As a former MMORPG player, I am pleased to see this such concepts being explored. More so, Log Horizon also focuses on world building with its construction of its fictional universe. It aims to inform, presents it, and delivers.

Series based off of MMORPG often incorporates a large cast of characters. Log Horizon is no stranger to a large cast. Most prominently however are our main protagonists of the guild – Log Horizon. Shiroe, Naotsugu, Akatsuki, Nyanta, Minori, Tohya, and Isuzu makes up this group of players and together stands as a unity to face their world. Even from the first episode, there’s a sudden degree of chemistry between each member that can attract viewers to see how it develops. On a technical level, each character has their own personalities and more importantly, a class and level. This is important as each class has a skill of its own as well as a sub-class that is imperative for a guild to survive. For example, Akatsuki’s class is ‘assassin’ with a sub-class of ‘tracker’. Both of these functions well in stealth missions where infiltration and gathering information is significant to ensure a guild’s success. Log Horizon demonstrates this well on various degrees by testing the limits of these classes for both its advantages and flaws.

The series functions well in terms of storytelling on most parts. Every episode offers something new to the audience with its game mechanics whether it’s combat, politics, or even culinary. While the series does have its concept of survival, it doesn’t just focus on that exclusively. Rather, its formula consists of various degrees of concepts that connects the story as a whole. It focuses on an internal level of struggle and warfare that sets Log Horizon as a unique series. Furthermore, it also engineers the overall theme of the plot and doesn’t go overboard with its comedy, drama, or even romance. Of course, there is also action offered which brings the show to life with its sequences. What makes it more entertaining and attractive is the way characters engage in combat with their skills based off their classes. Even players in a party such as healers play prominent roles and no one is left in the dust. There is also no player that plays the role of an overpowered protagonist or break through impossible circumstances through deus ex machina. The concepts and mechanics are explained beforehand and applies when the time calls for it.

Even though Log Horizon is the main guild that is explored throughout the series, it doesn’t just focus on them. Supporting characters also get their spotlights with their own classes, levels, and secrets. There’s a degree of connection that the audience can relate to. There’s no random fan service or the typical cliche of the accidental bath walk-ins that sets no relations. As a fan of MMORPG games, I appreciate its presentation that focuses supporting characters and not just its core players. Even NPCs (non-playable player) gets its exploration that is intuitive. And as a MMORPG based off setting world, it doesn’t forget to add the idea of PKers – player killers. It’s a common sight to see and offers a threat for players to face beyond just the world and its creatures.

As fantastic as it sounds, Log Horizon is by no means a perfect series. Fantasy wise, the world of Elder Tale adapts itself well but hard to take it at heart. It quirks into silliness with its high dosage of comedy that makes it hard to take the show seriously on occasions. Demonstrated by its cartoonish designs, most of the characters lacks any features of impressive design. Akatsuki is also advertised as a young girl with a cute face but dangerous nature which is ironic since her age contrasts greatly with her appearance. Her devotion to Shiroe, or rather in her words “protecting her lord” can get repetitive and lacks substance. Essentially, Akatsuki suffers from developments and characterization. And from some flashbacks are shown, most of the main characters’ backgrounds are only briefly touched and vaguely touched upon. It leaves viewers in the dark as to how our characters became the players are they are in Log Horizon. Finally, the connection between the players in the game and their real life counterparts is completely omitted leaving viewers in the dark on their origins.

Despite some of these drawbacks, Log Horizon still offers impressive features to take notice of. From minute one, the show focuses on its theme and doesn’t venture far off of it. The world of Elder Tale also presents location that is credible such as the natural mountains, the ruined cities (that resembles past civilization), fresh breathing beaches, and dampening caverns. There’s a sense of reality that the audience might relate to if they have played MMORPG games in the past. It adapts itself based on these themes where Log Horizon and should be endeared.

The artwork of Log Horizon strikes as a make or break situation. By credibility, it works out very well with adapting its fantasy style of Elder Tale. Satelite studios previously were involved with other fantasy series such as Guin Saga, Arata Kangatari, and Fairy Tail. Here, they make the show believable with its artwork designs at the surface level. On other hand, character designs sometimes becomes distracting and hard to take seriously with their designs. Akatsuki is perhaps the character that stands out the most with her appearance as an assassin but nothing else strikes more than her as that. This same applies to Shiroe with his geeky like appearance that acts as the brainiac of the group. They just seems to be there with its blend background. However, Nyanta is one character to take notice of because of its feline features that really defines the fantasy atmosphere to what Log Horizon is.

Soundtrack wise, Log Horizon strikes as an outstanding feature. Beginning with the OP song, the show defines itself with the theme of “Database” that blurs between lines of fiction and reality. Most characters’ voices fits their roles well with some that defines their characters more than others such as Nyanta. The OST also performs at a level that matches scenes whether it strikes as important, emotional, cinematic, or comical. The ED song also reflects a more innocent theme with Akatsuki as its main mascot.

As a former MMORPG player, I appreciate the way Log Horizon presented itself. Rather than just going with a concept of the typical virtual war trope or saving the world, Log Horizon sets its basis on a foundation of mechanics that is presented in an exquisite way. Not only is it accurate to the basis of an MMORPG setting but the characters themselves drives the story with their adequate roles. Log Horizon also likes to focus on various degrees of politics and economics to explore its insight on a more intellectual level. It also adapts world building concepts that becomes a focus to drive the story forward. It explores territory an MMORPG exactly as it should be and doesn’t lose track. On some technical note, it can take some time to get used to the artwork. Comedy can also strike as a hit or miss depending on your preferences. Still, the end game is that Log Horizon is an unique series. It’s not a clone of Sword Art Online or does it leave audience confused. In fact, you’ll likely be forming your own theories as each episode progresses relating to its world and characters. It’s appreciable that Log Horizon can adapts so many concepts into the show as an industrial revolution of success.

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