The thought of video game adaptations in film or anime usually leads one to imagine the more frequently popularized aspects of video games: Stylish violence and sensuality, high-velocity, no-holds-barred plotlines with worlds that need saving, and iconic, stone-faced heroes and heroines. Atelier Escha & Logy, an adaptation of one installment in a series of well-received roleplaying games, is about as far removed from that generalization as possible—its heroes and heroines are not particularly adept, and its focus drifts towards some of the more humble aspects of gaming, such as navigating the environment, gathering resources, communicating with other characters, and gradually honing skills. The idea is
...
respectable, but the result here is a slice of fantasy life that is calm and benign, but also difficult to become invested in.
It is immediately clear that, whatever other virtues Escha & Logy might possess, a budget isn't one of them. Put bluntly, this show screams “cheap.” The backgrounds lack any noticeable texture or detail, and are reused frequently. The character art, while usually not too bad up close, can sometimes stray wildly off-model at a distance. The animation, bordering on cut-rate to begin with, actually degenerates in quality as the episode count mounts, until fight scenes or even just scenes of quick movement are nothing more than montages of still-frames.
A simple lack of production values can, of course, be overcome by visual creativity, and a show with this much whimsy seems like a prime candidate for such a treatment, but a series of poor design choices prevent it from happening. Perhaps handcuffed by a desire to remain true to the game's image, the character designs here are about as typical as a fantasy can get—a witch is a girl with a hat riding a broom, a warrior is a bulky dude with a sword, and so on. Color, however, is the biggest obstacle to my saying this show looks anything but mediocre; the palette is painfully light in tone, with soft yellows, whites, and reds in huge numbers, and even its dark colors look bleached and faded, resulting in a uniformly washed-out blur of pastels. In general I'd rather not beat up a series for its looks, but there simply isn't a lot of room for compliments when something looks both creatively bankrupt and technically inept.
The music, however, manages to slightly bolster the technical side of the series. It's difficult to pin down the vibe emitted by the show's setting—vaguely steampunk with numerous elements of medieval fantasy—so the soundtrack wisely paints in broad strokes, from soft modern orchestral to anthemic rock to Celtic-sounding folk music. Though it doesn't contribute much toward an overall sense of consistency, this scattergun approach works surprisingly well on a scene-to-scene basis; the score is a little too typical at times, perhaps, and a little too overwrought at others, but at any given moment the odds that it's complementing whatever is happening onscreen are solid.
Escha & Logy's world is a barren one in which human settlements are ringed by The Land of Dusk, a wasteland of cliffs, deserts, and dry, cracked soil which cannot sustain plant life. Civilization has resorted to the research of alchemy in order to restore the desolate land to a more hospitable state, and main character Escha, who lost her mother when she was a child, is the last in a line of alchemists. Raised by the automaton Clone in the tiny frontier town of Colseit, she has joined her town government's research and development branch in order to assist with alchemical development and various expeditions into The Land of Dusk. There she meets Logy, an alchemist from a much larger city who has been sent to assist the Colseit branch in their adventures. The conceptual high points of the show are revealed early on—Escha's personal history merging with the history of alchemy and the battle to restore The Land of Dusk to a fertile state is a curiosity-piquing idea. Some scenes, such as the revealing of the town's generations-old, hand-tilled apple orchard, have a sort of modest grandeur. The lone spot of noble green in the wasteland, made possible only through hundreds of years of human effort and sacrifice, seems like a tiny hint at what Escha & Logy is about: The little ways in which we choose to fight ruination, be it within ourselves or within the world. Initially, the skeleton of a story seems to be in place.
Unfortunately, it soon becomes apparent that a skeleton is all that it is. Escha & Logy is quick to talk at length about anything but its overarching plot, instead diving into a series of episodic shenanigans in which the eponymous pair explore old ruins or meet the many denizens of Colseit and help them through personal problems. They help a local swordswoman through a quarrel with her sisters, help a local witch capture a fire spirit, help a local girl with a wish to make medicine. The more the list goes on, the more disconnected the show begins to feel from what could have been its strengths—the dusky world eventually looms like a forgotten backdrop rather than an essential element, and the two main characters eventually seem more like walking panaceas who exist to provide conclusions for the stories of others rather than humble, newly-minted researchers with goals and motivations of their own. The arc which concludes the series seems like a slapped-together combination of all the standalone adventures, a desperate attempt to prove that there is, in fact, a narrative thread holding the show together. There isn't, though. A mindless amalgamation of supporting characters piled on top of a final objective does not a story make.
That doesn't mean the series has nothing to offer. As far as simple, lazy, Sunday afternoon entertainment goes, one could do a lot better than Escha & Logy, but one could also do a lot worse. It's innocent enough in content, and each adventure can occasionally offer a tidbit of humor or a tidbit of genuine cuteness. There are men and women who need saving, pies that need baking, petite dreams that need to be reached. All of that has a certain charm. The series bumbles along, but, other than failing to capitalize on the potential of its own ideas, makes no great transgressions. There's nothing particularly malignant about it—the average episode is just a warm and fuzzy (if shallow and predictable) little story which might serve as that most basic type of escapist entertainment, vapid and insubstantial, but mildly pleasant and passable as a brief distraction.
Ultimately, though, watching Escha & Logy feels a little too much like watching someone else play a video game, with each episode a quest. You can practically feel the boss at the end of the dungeon approaching, or the pop-up box of success when a character is helped. Simply by virtue of its constant movement from place to place, such a thing might draw the attention of the eye and the brain for twenty minutes. But when it's over, you'll take whatever miniscule reward it offers, walk away, and, hours or days later, forget that the whole thing ever happened.
Alternative Titles
Japanese: エスカ&ロジーのアトリエ ~黄昏の空の錬金術士~
More titlesInformation
Type:
TV
Episodes:
12
Status:
Finished Airing
Aired:
Apr 10, 2014 to Jun 26, 2014
Premiered:
Spring 2014
Broadcast:
Thursdays at 22:00 (JST)
Licensors:
Sentai Filmworks
Studios:
Studio Gokumi
Source:
Game
Genre:
Fantasy
Duration:
23 min. per ep.
Rating:
PG-13 - Teens 13 or older
Statistics
Ranked:
#76612
2
based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded.
Popularity:
#2934
Members:
65,651
Favorites:
81
Available AtResources | Reviews
Filtered Results: 17 / 18
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Your Feelings Categories Aug 11, 2014
The thought of video game adaptations in film or anime usually leads one to imagine the more frequently popularized aspects of video games: Stylish violence and sensuality, high-velocity, no-holds-barred plotlines with worlds that need saving, and iconic, stone-faced heroes and heroines. Atelier Escha & Logy, an adaptation of one installment in a series of well-received roleplaying games, is about as far removed from that generalization as possible—its heroes and heroines are not particularly adept, and its focus drifts towards some of the more humble aspects of gaming, such as navigating the environment, gathering resources, communicating with other characters, and gradually honing skills. The idea is
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Jun 15, 2014
I'm a big fan of the Atelier series, so I was hyped when I heard that the 2nd game from the "Dusk" series will be animated. To be honest I was satisfied by how the actual show turned out, it is simple yet fun to watch. The story isn't bad but not as consistent compared to the game, the art is pretty decent and the music is brilliant as well. I would recommend this show to everyone.
Jul 3, 2014
So everyone knows this is based on game series and yes, it's not that easy to understand the whole thing without playing those games.
Yet it doesn't mean that you won't be able to enjoy this anime at all. Even if you're not familiar with games, there's a certain aura to this anime that you can enjoy it as well as others do. Story 7/10 - isn't anything too complicated, it's rather easy-going, may feel a little slow-paced but that's just the nature of this anime. There's nothing much to talk about story actually, most of the episodes are concentrated on individual characters. They don't go ... Jul 28, 2014
"Don't give up on your dreams"
That pretty much sums up the moral that the anime teaches in a sense. Although not many reviews or others have really focused on the what anime can teach someone.. but personally I think it is rather important to at least touch on it because it is something that many people overlook. Many people underestimate the power of anime. Anime is one of the few things that can shed's light on issues that people may not be able to understand, teaches and reminds us of morals and also provide entertainment for all kinds of people (but.. as we all ... Sep 25, 2016
Although the story may be told in a different way, the anime adaptation of Atelier Escha & Logy is by all accounts a solid and competent one; as an avid fan of the game I can vouch for that- allow me to explain.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The story of Escha & Logy is but a simple story centered primarily around the themes of cooperation, ambition, caring for the natural environment and the perils of the unbridled lust for wealth. In fact, such are the themes that deeply pervade the Dusk series in the Atelier franchise of video games. However, what differentiates this anime adaptation from the video game is that ... Jun 29, 2014
First thing's first, I am unfamiliar with the game series this is adapted from so I will not be making comparisons, instead I will review this as the anime alone.
Story - 6/10. Escha & Logy no Atelier did not have much of a story. It turned out more like a slice of life, at least for the first half of the series. Two alchemists start working in the Development Department and from then on the first half of the series is largely focused on our main characters, Escha and Logy, meeting the rest of the cast. Small things do happen, but nothing plot focused happens until ... Jul 23, 2016
Atelier Escha & Logy series (エスカ&ロジーのアトリエ ~黄昏の空の錬金術士~) has 12 eps in total and 'til this date haven't announced for the 2nd season. Maybe it'll just going like this. Atelier Escha & Logy anime television series based on the game with the same name.
Well, if you try to search the game by itself you will find so many Atelier series. It is exactly like what it sounds, there are currently 15th series, and the one became an anime is the 15th series. From the pic I show above, it shows so many female characters. Don't misinterpret this anime to be for entertain the ... Jul 7, 2014
To those who have already played the games, I'm sure all of you will be familiar with this title already.
To those who haven't but had this title catch your eye, then welcome to the world of alchemy and other such things in The Atelier of Escha and Logy! In my case, it was the latter which got me watching this. So yeah, I'm apparently not that familiar with the series, but after completing it, I felt that I've gotten a bit closer to 'their world'! Story: 7/10 The entire series was generally simply made and thought of. Initially, most of the episodes covered that one incident each, until ... Jul 19, 2014
*This is my first anime review, sorry if it's not good! ^_^;*
Although this anime was adapted from the game version, this review will only focus on the anime. To start off, it was amazing. If you're into alchemy, magic and supernatural then this anime would be one of the best. Normally I'm not into alchemy, but this series made it look amazing. The two main characters (Escha & Logy) were great characters to take note on for development in personality. You could also see the romance between them sometimes( sadly it never happens T_T). The characters were developed really well, and you could see their ... Sep 3, 2017
(This was written in 2015. Posting now cause why not?)
Most anime are made to sell or promote their source materials via it be manga, light novels, or video games. Escha and logy is the latter. Escha and logy is set in a fantasy world with magic, witches, and alchemy. But due to certain circumstances the world is slowly coming to an end. So the people of the world decide to work together to try and halt their spending doom. The story follows our two protagonist, Escha and logy. The show is like a slice of life in a fantasy world. Most of the episodes are episodic ... Jan 15, 2021
The "Atelier Escha and Logy" anime—and, as of writing, THE "Atelier" anime—is a bit of a weird duck. It adapts one of the most popular entries in the franchise, but that game is the second in a trilogy and the anime assumes that you played the first game. Well, I haven't. And the way that it incorporates the first game tries to hit a middle ground where it's clear that knowing exactly what the references to it mean isn't very important, but that also makes those moments seem pointlessly vague. That's not a huge quibble with me, but it's why I wouldn't recommend this unless
...
Aug 24, 2014
I was excited after stumbling upon the first episode... alchemy! magic! quests to find rare items or complete jobs! But this show is rather... boring. It's more suited for 7-10 year olds, ecchi notwithstanding. The stories are resolved per episode. They're easy to understand, uncomplicated, uninteresting, slow paced... basically enough to capture the attention of a child.
I actually really like the whole idea of the plot, small old town with magic and alchemy, going on jobs/quests, friendly townsfolks with everyone having a job. The whole thing is set up well, but the story falls flat: it's too uncomplicated, the characters are undeveloped beyond ... Feb 28, 2019
No spoilers.
This anime is sort of a sleeper. It's unassuming from the surface and doesn't really stand out as something I would particularly like, but a few episodes in and I was hooked. The worldbuilding is incredibly rich, and the characters are each unique in both personal and visual design. Despite having somewhat of a large cast, I wasn't ever annoyed or put off by the characters. The plot progression was very gamery, but I feel like that was never a detriment to the overall feel, unlike with so many other video game adaptations. The biggest strength of this anime is the ... Jul 12, 2023
Has absolutely no plot and zero character development. I mean it. Not a single character has had any type of development including the main characters. MC girl is obnoxious voice wise. Randomly brings up her mothers death then immediately says "I don't care didn't really know her". So why bring it up...?
They introduced several new characters an episode and expect you to somehow memorize them. It's like memorizing every single below average individual you have ever met that never made an impact on you. It's just not possible. There's clear personality traits as if they read the dictionary and decided they were going to ... Sep 2, 2014
Story:
The Story had an appealing start. It's a refreshing scene with alchemy. But i've noticed that the development went fast from this to this. You can sense a rush in things or more like compressed. Even though it had a potential, i guess the development of the Story itself is a so-so. Art: Art was cool. Had refined details and each character had it's uniqueness. It reminds me when I'm watching Fairy Tale or that sort of nostalgia. Sound: Sounds / BGM / OST; all went with the right timing. I can't say thumbs down to that. I really liked the OP as well. It just sucks ... Sep 9, 2020
This anime in every way is my least favorite anime. It can really be summed up as extremely boring.The characters are very boring, there is nothing important going on in the story. I wouldn't recommend it, but that's just my opinion. The problems in the story are some really childish stuff. I think one of the problems was the water was polluted, this doesn't work here because nothing fun is going on here. Polluted water works in konosuba because they added comedy to it, there is no comedy in the anime. It's was not a fun time the only thing i will give the
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