Koutetsujou no Kabaneri

Jun 30, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 3

ZephSilver (All reviews)

1016 people found this review helpful

If you've spent enough time familiarizing yourself with the anime community, you'll come to realize that we're a demanding bunch. That should go without saying, given just how much anime tend to diverge from most mainstream trends. Because of this, we're always on the lookout for the next best thing. Constantly asking for something innovative. Captivating. Unique. Competent. Something to not only entertain but also to satisfy on some intellectual level. In a way, we're spoiled, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. We push for more because we've seen the medium deliver time and time again. Anime isn't afraid of addressing social taboos, nor read more

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Jun 30, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 2

Captain220 (All reviews)

327 people found this review helpful

If you happen to be someone who has a steady job within the anime industry, what is the best possible way to earn some decent $$$ when making an original anime? Is it to try and come up with the best and most original setting that comes to mind? To create characters with seemingly limitless potential? A thought-provoking story? If you think it's any of the above, you may as well be delusional. Wit Studio has it all figured out. Sadly, after milking the dried up and shriveled old cow that is Attack on Titan for a solid three years now, I think they may have forgotten how to make an actual original anime. Here, I'll paint you a somewhat-clearer picture of the feeling I got upon reading the series' synopsis. Imagine arriving to school with a brand new pair of shoes, right? So as you're walking down the hallway, your shoes are suddenly stepped on by some snot-nosed kid wearing a monster energy T-shirt and a hat turned sideways. That's right, the feeling of true despair.

So humans are at the brink of extinction again, blah blah blah. Only this time, our enemies are much less intimidating than ever before. They are just these mindless glowing zombies that raid trains once in a while and occasionally manage to get into the fortress. Oh, but don't get the fortress confused with the great walls from AoT as they are two totally separate entities and do not resemble each other a single bit. So seeing as regular humans are always as useless as one can be in these types of series, we are introduced to Kabaneri, the humans who got bitten by the glowing zombies and received superpowers because of it. Our main superhero is our boy Ikoma, who is out on a quest of revenge against the Kabane, accompanied by our loli heroine Mumei. These two form an invincible bond and so their journey begins.

Attack on Titan was one of the first anime that got me back into the medium and I still faintly remember the dread I felt while watching the first few episodes. That feeling is completely gone this time around which can probably be entirely accounted for by the lackluster execution, more or less. To say that the Kabane's designs are lacking would be an understatement but we also have these people who can kill a hundred of them within the span of a minute which makes the threat feel that much more nonexistent. Then the setting apparently takes place during an industrial revolution yet they don't put any emphasis on this point what so ever. This could have been a great way to delve deeper into the world and give more depth to the setting if it were utilized properly. I'm not going to settle down for those fucking trains being the only reason this takes places in an industrial revolution. The potential is there but unfortunately it is left untouched.

There were also minor inconsistencies within some of the writing. Like why the hell do they have the people who are bitten be locked up for 3 days straight when with every single on-screen instance we've had of a human turning into a Kabane when bitten has happened within a time period of 5 minutes max? This show is too stupid for its own good. Speaking of stupid, the drama between the humans and the Kabaneri never disappoints. Despite the Kabaneri protecting the humans for the entirety of the series, if they happen to do a single, usually insignificant thing that the public deems as questionable, they are to be locked up and shunned immediately."You spilled a cup of coffee? Looks like you're no different from a Kabane after all, damn wench!"

The main cast just honestly really impressed me. Our protagonist was a guy who got bit by a Kabane, went through some kinky bondage porn and emerged a Kabaneri. He is as original as one can be, making an oath to himself that he will exterminate all of the zombies after a death of a certain family member. This backstory got me really emotional. It is something that we have never once seen before and is very original. Design-wise, he is sort of what I would picture Harry Potter's edgier twin brother to look like. Having such a strong resemblance to that character may be a good or a bad thing depending on preference. Who knows. It has been a good few years since I've last seen the Harry Potter films so I couldn't really say. We literally know not a single thing about his background and past apart from the fact that his sister, who we also knew nothing about, had died. Such a tragic tale this is.

Our heroine is an awfully cocky and narcissistic brute of a 12 year old girl. She is a strong and agile fighter who helps our protagonist along the way as well as guide him when he is initially bit and turns suicidal. She seems to make a lot of decisions that are considered questionable by the other characters for some reason, like killing a pregnant woman who was about to give birth to a Kabane. This is somehow questioned and deemed not to be acceptable despite the soldiers casually putting every single bitten person to death on a daily basis. Is it morally right or not? Make up your mind already. Her backstory is neither here nor there but is definitely better than Ikoma's as we do get some flashbacks that tell us bits and pieces of her upbringing and how she became the way she is. Despite being extremely obnoxious, she is easily the most developed character in the entire show as by the time the show reaches its climax her personality would have already done a 180 and if she were not so damn stupid, I may have actually of been able to sympathize with her situation.

The antagonist of the series (who we shall refer to as Jimmy because spoilers) is so poorly-written that he almost manages to make the rest of the cast look good while on screen. Jimmy's motivations are extremely incoherent and shallow as well as just plain stupid. He developed daddy issues because his papi used to randomly assault him with a knife when he was 8 years old, as he apparently "feared" him. Hence, his primary objective is to end his father's reign because of the previously mentioned and for the fact that he for some reason let the Kabane destroy one of the cities which little Jimmy was defending at the time. I don't know why or how his father would benefit from doing so but apparently he does. And you know what they say - The apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Even after getting his revenge he still goes out of his way to wreak havoc upon the innocent civilians who've got not a single thing to do with this by releasing the Kabane upon them. Ahh so much shock factor ahh such good villain.

When it is necessary, Jimmy also enjoys pulling out the Plot Convenience Serum out of his pocket and injecting it into other characters in order to turn them into mindless drones. This of course has one hell of an influence on the overarching plot as you can imagine since you have people who hate his guts one episode turning into his slaves the next. This was obviously just an extremely lazy way of making the plot progress further in the way the writers wanted it to. What's a good anime without plot convenience anyway? Funny thing is, if the characters had any semblance of a brain inside their thick skulls, Jimmy would have no chance to even get near the fortress to begin with, much less get inside. No side characters stuck out as literally all of them are either useless or obnoxious and on special occasions maybe even both.

I have somewhat of an educated guess that Wit Studio may have made a tiny winy ounce of cash with the production of a show a few years back, as well as one more recently. So naturally, it may be worth considering that by now they can put in a pretty decent budget, and so they did. The animation is buttery smooth and the art is very appealing. The choreography is very impressive and engaging whenever the fights aren't entirely one-sided. They used some weird shading technique on the character designs which I think worked well for the most part. The blood and gore looked very fluid and liquid-y. As for sound, I've got no clue. I put IceJJFish and Anton Maiden songs in the background in order to ease the pain, sorry. Opening and ending are pretty nifty though.

Just dreadful in all honestly. Every single individual factor of the show managed to hinder my enjoyment in one way or another. Be it the subpar and messy plot, the gigantic amount of plotholes riddled throughout, the horrid characterization and character development, unparalleled edge, horrible antagonist, shitty worldbuilding, rushed ending.. The list could go on. To make the long story short, it was not enjoyable. That being said, I imagine most people will actually find something here, be it the over the top execution, well-done action choreography or simply poking fun at how bad it is. I myself am not an action junkie so the choreography, while impressive, didn't leave an everlasting impression of sorts and unfortunately I wasn't able to get a kick out of how bad it was either, rather it just left me with the impression that it was trying too hard. It really is the worst thing when an awful show takes itself too seriously. Where is Mitsumune when you need him?

A true trainwreck till the very end. Kabaneri wasn't even a disappointment, it was exactly what I expected from the synopsis. The production studio was unable to keep consistency within its mediocre 12-episode runtime as shown clearly by the spiraling transition of quality the further the series progressed. I want to say that it would have worked better if it were 24 episodes long but I really can't, judging from how poorly they handled a measly 12. I'm really inclined to believe that this was just a cheap cash grab by Wit Studio since they know far too well that they can get a decent amount of income just by having the show have Attack on Titan vibes, and boy, does it have that. Hell, I'm pretty sure I could sum up both of the first episodes using the exact same sentence. Now, a moment of appreciation for Wit Studio... Thank you. And so the second season of AoT is delayed yet again. Satisfied?

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Jun 30, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 3

Nervin (All reviews)

306 people found this review helpful

A society in the middle of an industrial revolution. Gigantic steampunk-iron fortresses protecting its citizens. Zombies that terrorizes the lands, where large tank-like trains are the only means of transport and communication with the different fortifications. Such is the setting of Koutesujou no Kabaneri: mankind's struggle to survive the everluring doors of death and despair. Zombies threatening mankind is nothing new, yet is arguably oddly entertaining - when it is done right that is. What could have been a simple story about humankind's struggle for survival, sadly turned out into a petty revenge story: despite its flaws, an enjoyable first part, but with a very read more

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May 19, 2016

6 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 2

Dude_Perfect (All reviews)

275 people found this review helpful

Preliminary

This is one of the worst anime that has been gaining too much hype this season.

Overall - 5
The anime has a mildly interesting storyline spoiled by generic characters. As far as the episodes that have come out, the anime has no purpose whatsoever other than fulfilling its quota of okayish action sequences with moderate amounts of gore and no horror whatsoever. The only reason you should watch this anime is if you were fooled into watching it by the amount of hype that built up to its release or you are simply into shitty action anime with retarded characters.

Story - 3
A generic dystopian future read more

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Jul 1, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 7

pole70 (All reviews)

214 people found this review helpful

Why are people comparing this anime to shingeki no kyojin? I mean, this anime by itself is already very good. I dont really understand why people are starting to rate Koutetsujou no Kabaneri lower now that they've watched the last episode. Overall, the last episode wasnt even that bad. IN FACT, it kind of gives way to saying the the story isnt really finished yet, which then leads to a hint that there could even be a second season. If people want to rate this anime, they should at least try not to be as biased as possible. Anyways, Hiroyuki Sawano, as usual, created an read more

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Jun 30, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 9

whatchamini (All reviews)

61 people found this review helpful

What an amazing, exciting, and shockingly original anime! Well rounded and done extremely well, I highly recommend Koutetsujou no Kabaneri for anyone who is a fan of zombies and thrillers.

Story: 9
As I said, this was a very original anime, especially the story. We don't see many zombie anime's, and the ones we do see tend to be slice-of-life or, oddly, romantic. I can only think of 1 or 2 other zombie anime, and neither one even came close to this. Exciting and adrenaline-pumping action, you really feel invested in the story and the characters.

Art: 9
Weirdly, this anime has a sort read more

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Jul 1, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 5

XHellLyterX (All reviews)

58 people found this review helpful

Koutetsujou no Kabaneri was the show that I was the most excited for this anime season. Sure, it seemed like a lot of the ideas were borrowed from Wit studio's other anime, the widely known and critically acclaimed Attack on Titan, but I was willing to overlook that and view Kabaneri as its own, separate anime. I was initially impressed by the first two episodes, however the hype train slowly ran out of steam as the anime progressed. It was truly heading down the right track, but the anime simply derailed itself when it failed to expand its plot beyond generic characters fighting mindless zombies. read more

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Jun 30, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 3

Cynthesizer (All reviews)

51 people found this review helpful

Survival is a theme that is touched upon quite a lot, and not only when it comes to the anime medium. Most of these kinds of series tend to engage this rather generic theme with interesting and good-looking fights, completely ignoring the plot's development and the characters' growth on the audience, instead adding a lot of gore which apparently triggers the "feels" of ignorant masses because, you know, losing someone precious is hard. There are many ways to strike a certain series despite the generic concept, instead of doing that you might as well develop some characters hence making it feel not as retarded. Kabaneri does not do that, and it also is full of the "retarded adults syndrome", it being apparent in the whole anime, despite the main characters themselves being idiotic. Consequently, all it manages to be is a copy of Attack on Titan, if not even worse than that, and yup, that ain't good at all.

Koutetsujou no Kabaneri takes place in a post-apocalyptic Earth, in the face of an industrial revolution, where unknown creatures named Kabane have appeared, them eating flesh and drinking human blood, hence becoming humanity's natural enemy. Once a Kabane bites a human, that human becomes a Kabane and so on. Post apocalyptic Japan has been colonized into train stations, which themselves are cities and are surrounded by walls, with trains travelling between them for many reasons, including provisions and soldier transfers. Interesting huh? Well, despite some of the points of the concept being indeed interesting, such as combining a steampunk setting with survival in a world that has been destroyed were, not really, because there was nothing left in order for the concept to be supported, therefore the execution being extremely weak. Letting alone that the dialogue was really cringy and reminded me of SAO, everything else except the production values was, likewise. After all, trains can not save anything.

The havoc has wreaked, and then there is our main character, Ikoma, who is an overenthusiastic fellow. Guess what, he wants to kill the Kabane in order to avenge his sister who was bitten by them. He develops a weapon which can kill Kabane in an easier manner, and boards Koutetsujou because the city is not to be inhabited anymore with several other people, to whom I will get into later, him broadening his horizons and deciding that it's not fair that only strong people have to survive or whatnot. The moods of the main character change quickly depending on the situation, so he sometimes is extremely badass whilst in others you wanna hit him in his head with a screwdriver because of how retarded his actions are. Another bad thing about him is that he actually is the most likable character in Kabaneri. Unfortunately.

Enter Mumei, our second main character, who is your generic fare of courageous on the outside, feelsy yet manipulated in her childhood on the inside. Not that it matters, but it is the revelations about her that are extremely lazy, leaving me with a hand scratching my head. She is the one to inherit the standard "strong people survive, weak people die". The portrayal of that ideal is really bad, as it is played with and goes round and round to reveal that, in the end, Mumei should not become like her mum who was killed by the Kabane, and that she should remain strong and get experimented in order for her to become her "brother's" puppet, becoming a Kabaneri and wandering around like an idiot not knowing what to do with her life.

Mumei's symbol of admiration, Biba, whom she calls her brother, is the most interesting character in the whole series, appearing relatively later in the series, only for the audience to learn that he is the leader of the Kabane extermination troops in order to satisfy his egoistical means, adding yet another idiotic character to the cast. By the end of the series, he has become your common villain with only a flashback to be supported with, following the quote "in the face of our supposedly enemies, he is the one that should be exterminated because of his evil means". Apart from these three, there are other side characters which are cookie cutter like our mains, including your Ayame-sama, her knight who is always by her side, Ikoma's friend who dies for the sake of melodrama and many many more, including the retarded adults whose IQ is minus 150. Bad writing is all over the place, there are no explanations given about what the hell the Kabane are, and true, some but few characters might have gotten some development, but that was done with some of the lamest, laziest and most boring excuses aka. Plot devices I've ever encountered in my life. Along with an ending that obviously was not the best, after the trainwrecks all the other episodes were, the outcome most surely is not that noteworthy.

What Koutetsujou no Kabaneri lacks in every other department, somehow wins when it comes to the art and animation sections, because you might as well make something bad at least look good. The backgrounds are great, them being the best point of the whole series, the sceneries being fresh and given a good amount of lighting. The choreography of the so-judged significant battles, especially the ones in episode 8, is pretty detailed and make up for some shortcomings incoming with the drop of budget in the middle episodes, although it looks a whole lot like Attack on Titan's 3D Maneuver Gear. The character designs are as a matter of fact not bad-looking, but they somehow are unappealing in certain moments, especially when it comes to the character's faces. Mumei's face is a huge representative example, as when included in light-hearted moments, like those where she plays with the kids, where her face looks extremely moe-ish and unfitting to the whole thing (her armpits and legs make up for it though). A character design that I personally liked is that of Horobi, which is quite detailed and looks great in a certain battle scene. A plus, amongst others, would also be the costumes of each and every significant character, which are cool enough and remind me a lot of a crossover between the cheap clothes used by people back in the industrial revolution along with some style to support the steampunk setting. Overall, despite the animation quality drop in some episodes, the section as a whole smelled success, over how bad other things in the series were per say.

Soundtrack-wise, Koutetsujou no Kabaneri is fine. It comes down to each person to how much they will like edgy music or not after all, and in Kabaneri's case, the opening and ending songs have fitting music and lyrics to the series' concept. The OST was misused some times, a good example being Mumei's flashback where a happy-toned song was used in a scene which was downright sad. The voice acting was quite okay, though forgettable most of the times, the exception being Ikoma's, which was both exaggerated and unforgettable in a whole bad way. He sounded like someone who was getting laid off at the time and place he spoke in. Consequently, the soundtrack was above average despite myself not being a fan of Sawano-esque music because it is repetitive as heck.

To say the truth, I somehow enjoyed Koutetsujou no Kabaneri quite much, with both its goods and its of significant amount bads. I enjoyed the fights and their choreography, the sceneries and the backgrounds and I laughed at how tarded the characters were. Noticing how much of a "Nothing happened: The Animation" it was, was incredibly fun as well. It literally went round and round and achieved nothing but nothingness, void, darkness. And even if it did achieve something, it was by default pointless, because in the end, nothing happened. Only edgy teens trying to survive in a post apocalyptic world full of blood-drinking creatures, generic and undeveloped villains and retarded adults, with the whole meaning of the word. I would have enjoyed it way more, hadn't it tried to be as supposedly serious as it was in the first place.

In conclusion, Koutetsujou no Kabaneri is just another one show of the kind which includes overhyped Attack on Titan-esque shows like Black Bullet. If you expect a show with relatable characters, a realistic depiction of survival and interesting yet explained lore, avoid it like the plague it is. However, if you just need a show to cool off with and do not care about any kind of flaw and shortcoming, engage Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress like the ephemeral and cathartic journey it is. To finish with a bang, I am going to quote a friend: "It will be performed as an opera on the holodecks of the ships that disperse us into the heavens. We were really just clothed monkeys until it allowed us to transcend our animalism. I shall sing its praises to all that shall come forth and be enlightened. If it was not Clannad After Story that could make you cry, try Kabaneri, that is how amazing it is".

Overall: 3/10

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Jun 30, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 8

Vaenny (All reviews)

45 people found this review helpful

This show reminded me that one can immerse in the anime world just by simply watching it. With its breathtaking visuals and compelling story, I was taken into the world of Koutetusjou no Kabaneri.

Now a lot of people will say it's a rip-off of the mainstream anime, Shingeki no Kyojin. Well, I digress. This show actually offers more than suspense and action. For one, not everyone in this show is powerless. The characters are actually able to fight back from the monsters easily. Not everyone is at harm because the threat wasn't that big (no pun intended). The real problem lies outside the walls, but read more

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Jun 30, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 5

Stark700 (All reviews)

41 people found this review helpful

Koutetsujou no Kabaneri (also known as Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress) is honestly one of those series that almost wants to make you rip your hair out. By first impressions, the show seemed to be on the right track. Dubbed by some as a generic clone of “Attack on Titan” or the next “big thing”, this series is one that is filled with controversy.

As an original anime by Wit Studio, Koutetsujou no Kabaneri seems to be inspired by a lot of generic concepts taken from the dark fantasy genre. These concepts ranges in variety from survival horror, revenge, tragic past, monster invasion, betrayal, experimentation, you name it. If you’ve seen a monster movie, chances are, you’ll find one of these ideas stuffed into this show. As the first few episodes rolled through, I do have to admit that the series is highly entertaining. The storytelling sparks interest, the setting has potential, the characters are diverse, and the production is solid. So what exactly went wrong?
Before we get to the meat of the series, it’s probably best to understand the staff behind the series. Besides Wit Studio, we got director Tetsuro Araki who is well-known for his work on Attack on Titan. Then, there’s Ichirou Okouchi, the guy that wrote the scripts for Guilty Crown. And finally, the music you hear throughout the show is crafted by Hiroyuki Sawano who is well known for many series (Kill la Kill, Aldnoah Zero, Owari no Seraph) Take this in all a second and you may see a pattern. And chances are, you’ll find some familiarity with these shows if you’ve seen them.

It’s pretty much one of those mainstream shows that tries to appeal to a broader audience. And by that, I mean it’s a show that tries to do everything possible to make it entertaining. Not necessarily entertaining for its story but more about its over the top notch action. It’s pretty obvious though. The production quality of the series is stellar. A simple glance at the first two episodes will have you in awe with the action as we see humans fight monsters (or otherwise known as Kabane). These monsters seems mindless and inspires horror based just on their appearance, behavior, and way to try to assimilate others into their race. The setting has the apocalyptic feel with the widespread destruction caused by the Kabane. Furthermore, we also have steampunk technology in the form …trains. That’s right, trains. They are actually called Hayajiro and are locomotives used for transport and protection due to their armor. The most infamous one is the Koutetsujou where we meet our main characters.

Collectively, the characters are both generic but also has some unique traits about them. The main protagonist is Ikoma. He may seem like the typical teenager but has genius intellect when it comes to inventions. On the other hand, there’s nothing too special about him except for his main role in the show because of his personality. You’ll probably notice it right away from other series similar to this: the type of characters where they have a strong will power to protect what they believe in and make a difference in their world. Then, there’s Mumei, a strange petite girl with a lot of mysteries of her own. Unlike Ikoma, she has the personality of a child despite her powerful abilities to fight the Kabane. It’s also shown that she had a tragic past so expect PTSD-like scenes in some of the later episodes. In essence, what she lacks is more of a character that can be relatable or we can feel attached with. Although throughout the series, Mumei does forge a strong bond with Ikoma that seems to grow more and more. However, the way some characters develop throughout the series is rather questionable. While Ikoma follows a straightforward progress of becoming a savior of mankind, Mumei’s character seems to develop backwards from a badass fighter to damsel in distress. While I still find the chemistry between Ikoma and Mumei to be fun to watch, their characterization is something that really degenerated.

Of course, we do have the princess of the series. Meet Ayame Yomogawa who is blessed with noble blood. She’s pretty much the typical female character you’ll find in books who has a reasonable understanding about certain individuals, is honest, and even shows mercy to her enemies. She also shows potential as a leader and unlike Mumei has more of a mature personality. And if you can guess by now, she also has her own personal bodyguards such as Kurusu, a serious man with a code of honor and skilled fighter. So on paper, the majority of the characters from the series each has their own strengths and weaknesses. You’ll discover them easily through their role in the story and believe me, some of them are generic to the core. On the other hand, I do like some of the relationship dynamics throughout the show. Strong friendships such as Ikoma and his childhood friend Takumi, the deeper bond between Ayame and Yukina (engineer of the Kotetsujo), and Ikoma and Mumei’s building trust are just a few to name.

So initially, I had little problems with the show mostly because it’s what I had expected and nothing really took me by surprise. The revelations and identities of the Kabaneri, zombie symptoms spread through like a “curse” by infections, background history/storytelling, or the weaknesses of the Kabanei never really bothered me. What started to become rather questionable is the storytelling and execution of the episodes around mid-season. Out of nowhere, we get antagonists whom I find as some of the most stereotypical characters I’ve ever seen. Their motivation and roles in the story almost makes me puke just because how preposterous they are. As I’ve also mentioned before, Mumei becomes one of the most insufferable female characters in the series later on. That’s actually a bit disappointing to realize as well because the show has painted most of the female characters as strong women. Otherwise, storytelling takes a swerve with two faced characters, the overemphasis on certain plot devices (such as mind control), and overall just seems unrecoverable after certain episodes in the latter half of the season. The inserted breather episodes are overshadowed despite their importance while deaths of certain characters are extremely predictable from miles away.

By technical standards, the show is gorgeous. There’s little concern about it as production values remain high throughout the entire series ranging from battle segments to cinematic choreography. The setting of the series is also designed with high caliber quality with rich backgrounds. The technology has a crude yet firm design such as the weapons that Ikoma and Mumei uses or the locomotives we see every episode. The monsters also gives a horrific feel with their design and although isn’t too unique still inspires fear. Finally, character designs sophisticated that makes both the male and female characters credible with their roles.

If you got headphones, then definitely put them on for the show. It’s worth it because the OST is something that will get you in the mood quickly. Because the show is very action oriented (especially in the first few episodes), you’ll quickly catch on with the flow. The OP and ED theme songs are also nicely choreographed and sung by world class talents. Speaking of talent, Sawano’s skills are easily recognized as well that combines elements of thriller and his instrumental style to bring the show larger than life when it comes to music. On a lesser note, character voice mannerism is moderate and you’ll hear plenty of screaming.

So, the big question mark is if you should watch Koutetsujou no Kabaneri. It’s an original show so there’s nothing to lose when it comes to adaptation. But for its storytelling, do be aware that it’s not exactly as impressive as it seems. Characterization throughout the series is questionable for certain characters and the show also suffers from numerous flaws about them. But if you’re in it for some fun entertainment, then this is definitely the show to go see. Put those headphones on, ride the train, and see what’s ahead.

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Jun 30, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 6

lawlmartz (All reviews)

36 people found this review helpful

BOKU WA KABANERI DA!!!!!!!!!!!1!!!one!!!oneoneshiftone!!!!eleven!!!

<insert your favorite cliche, corny phrase from the show here>

Kabaneri. What happened? This show was supposed to be the Attack on Titan that everyone wanted. All the pieces were there to get everything on track- Tetsuro Araki as the CONDUCTOR, Wit Studio in the boiler room, and my main man Hiroyuki Sawano handling the harmonic balancing in the CABOOSE. With these three wheels churning, Kabaneri should have been a hit. But oh man... did it ever DERAIL itself about halfway through.

They say that monorails make for a good one liner, but Kabaneri really RAILROADS you through the story. There's something to be said for a fast paced show, but this one is full steam ahead from the first minute, burning off much needed characterization in favor of jumping from one action setpiece to another. The inclusion of a machiavellian villain who has no discernible goals other than to be a giant dickhead and watch the world burn could have been a great DEPARTURE from the norm in anime- villains who have some grandiose rule the world or become immortal plot. However, Biba truly is just evil for the sake of being evil, and his entrance into the plot comes far too late to have much effect in taking us DOWN THE LINE.

For those who don't mind getting OFF TRACK into mindless violence involving a little girl and a level 87 Platinum Edgemaster of the Balron, though, this show could be your TICKET! For everyone who is looking for characters to EXPRESS themselves through something more than action, the show runs out of STEAM very quickly. Once the shock value of decapitating a pregnant woman, killing children, and generally showing no mercy to most characters that aren't listed in the main cast wears off, it pretty well SIGNALS the end of anything that's not pure action schlock for Kabaneri.

In fact, this show could have been a FIRST CLASS alternative to Attack on Titan, had it just come out of the gate sooner. It's almost like there was a DELAY, and this made it to the STATION late, but nobody got a refund or free trip. All told, this show is basically a one way trip to high action, but never gets back to any kind of real storytelling. Revenge is a powerful motivator, but when it's the only thing DRIVING the show- it looses a lot of its STEAM.

The bottom line:

If you liked Attack on Titan, you'll probably like this. It's all the action with very little of the teen angst. Another zombie series that's heavy on action, light on characterization, and a visual feast- just don't BOARD with too many expectations, or it might just RUN YOU OFF THE TRACK.

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Jul 1, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 3

themegamancave (All reviews)

33 people found this review helpful

Remember the last time an anime truly gripped you, a show that you couldn't put down and was complex and intellectual? If you're looking for something like that, Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress is not the anime for you. Plagued by vanilla characters and repetitious fight scenes, Kabaneri was the disappointment of the season for me. How could something combining zombies, samurai and steam punk be bad? Please allow me to explain ...

Long, long ago in a galaxy far, far away there exists a populace chronically threatened by incessant hordes of zombies called Kabane. Most of the world's people are confined to living in tight settlements or aboard one of several titanic locomotives. Although the Attack on Titan comparisons are evident, I initially found the setting reminiscent of the recent cult classic film, Snowpiercer (those of you film buffs who have seen it will probably understand where I'm coming from). All we as viewers seem to need to care about is that the zombies attack by the shitload, are very hard to kill and pretty much everybody is a pussy about it. Ikoma enters stage left with the hatred and knowledge of these creatures that seems to transcend virtually anyone else in the show, despite the fact that he's probably only a teenager. Why? Because anime says so. I was initially receptive of Ikoma's zealous personality, and thought he was a protagonist I could really get behind. He had just cause and didn't whine like a baby. Nowadays that's just about all I need to not hate a character.

The first episode was rather intense, and I could feel my expectations building. I kept thinking "if the show just keeps it up, if it keeps up this intensity it'll be good". However, the main area where Kabaneri fails is depth. It doesn't have much going for it past its shock and awe face value, and it started to bore me after a few episodes. It's like a young puppy let loose after being in its crate all day. At first it runs around hyperactively and makes lots of noises but eventually ends up just chasing its tail and pooping on the carpet once it loses its excitement. We see Ikoma turn into a Kabaneri, or half man/half Kabane, by a process which is lazily explained. He uses this newfound power to defeat more Kabane, meets this wild child who is also a Kabaneri, develops awkward feelings for her, then the bad guy is introduced, everyone is irritated/mesmerized by him, more Kabane are killed, some people die... yadda, yadda, yadda. I think this script may have actually been stolen from a B movie director and pawned off as an anime. Kabaneri literally has nothing else going for it other then impressive fight scenes and questionable lolli fan service with Mumei.

The writing in Kabaneri is just dreadful. I'm not asking for a Pulitzer Prize winning script here, but I would like something better than what can be comprised by a third grader with writer's block. The dialogue is stale and unsettling with constantly recycled lines and sporadic conversations that don't necessarily seem to fit. Mumei is the most frequent culprit here. One minute she's laughing and joking around with little kids and the next she's a cutthroat lapdog unwilling to listen to reason. I get the whole half Kabane thing, but is there also mind control going on? If so, that certainly wasn't explained properly. It's also quite amusing how the Kabane horde attacks are written in the script, as if to say "oh yeah, in case you forgot, here comes another zombie attack!" Timing is impeccable. Most of the scenes seem reactionary, like nothing in the show is premeditated. So many different themes or touched on but never really explored. The writers spent too much time delivering cheap action sequences rather than focusing on the characters or what made the Kabane tick.

With the zombie genre, Kabaneri had a unique opportunity to do something most anime don't have the luxury of, being scary. While some of the moments were intense, it never really captured the fear that SnK did. I felt rather apathetic when characters were killed off, because the poor writing didn't really make me care. The individuals killed felt more like useless fodder than real people with families and friends that cared about them. I think back to other zombie films like 28 days later and World War Z where I was absolutely frightened during some scenes, wishing that one day an anime is able to capture that same emotion in me.

Sometimes, even by anime standards, some events that transpired in Kabaneri can be unreasonable and unrealistic. The fact that I'm questioning the validity in Ikoma's process in becoming a Kabaneri in the first episode speaks volumes. If what he did was truly possible, I feel like it wouldn't be such a revelation and that somebody would've figured it out long before he did considering the Kabane have been around for a while. There's also a portion in episode six or seven (I can't remember which) where a precarious, intense battle where many lives were lost jaggedly transitions to some kind of a festival? How can they sit around making fireworks when they can't even establish rice fields? Are they so naïve to think that fireworks arent going to attract a horde of zombies? Possibly the dumbest scene in the entire anime. If there was anything well-placed in this series, it was Mumei's skirt, since I wasn't unnecessarily bombarded with panty shots while she was flipping through the air in damn near every episode.

I could write a lengthy dissertation on all of the issues I had with Kabaneri and its script, but I should probably point out a couple positives for good measure. If there's one upside to the writing that I can attribute, it is undoubtably the fight scenes. For the most part, the scenes are well choreographed and intense with characters introducing new weapons and tactics at various points throughout the show. I also like how they wrote scenes with Ikoma, with incorporating his severe lack of battle experience into his fighting style. He'd be rumbling and bumbling while slightly skiddish, and I often thought he would get overrun by the Kabane... Only to prevail at the last possible moment. This is one of the few areas that I wouldnt improve on.

To elaborate on the character aspect, let's start with our protagonist, Ikoma. If anime has taught me anything, it's that the list of badass characters with glasses is rather small (Sakamoto, Shiro etc.). I should've heeded to that red flag when Ikoma was introduced, because underneath it all he really doesn't get that much development. Aside from the first episode or two he serves more as a placeholder in the generic protagonist trope than anything else. The writers were negligent on his past and focused on other aspects of the story instead. Mumei serves as the necessary fan service part of the series, as I've already seen some rather scantily clad images of her floating around the Internet. It's actually kind of sick considering the fact that I think she's only like 13 or 14 in the show. At least we learn a little bit about her past, and how she turned into a Kabaneri to begin with. She arguably has the most depth of any character in the show, as she experiences multiple flashbacks along the way. The villain seems like a spoiled brat who resents his father and wants to bring down everyone else because of it. I don't know if it's just me, but I'm so sick of these archetypes. I mean we get it, your dad was mean to you but can you stop whining about it already? I feel like killing thousands of innocent people to get your point across isn't necessarily the way to get back to your father. The rest of the cast is as bland as they come, all replaceable in their own right. Being the nerd that I am, I really wanted to delve in deeper and see what I was missing in the character's motives and aspirations since they were never really explained. Unfortunately, there's really no source material for me to gander at, as Kabaneri is a standalone anime and not transposed from a manga.

Even though I've already watched 12 episodes, I still can't decide if I like the art in this series or not. On one hand, the character models are unique and the environments remind me of an early 2000's anime. But also in some respects I can see that as a negative. It could be used as an excuse for lazy artistry since it didn't have a lavish budget or use the standard illustrations we're used to seeing in anime today. I'll have to go ahead and give the artists the benefit of the doubt on this one, since most steam punk animes seem to have different styles (Last Exile, etc.), and given the fact that there was no overuse of CG.

The opening for Kabaneri is actually quite enjoyable. I've seen more and more anime utilizing a small intro phrase or something of that nature to get their opening started, and it really seemed to be effective here. The music seems to fit the setting well, and the animation and choreography was top notch. This is what truly got me hyped for the anime initially. Perhaps even more polarizing than the opening was the ending. Despite the overall disappointment I have for the show, I have since added the ending song to my playlist of top anime music. Some of the rest of the background music fits in decently, but the show still suffers from recycled tracks and occasionally missplaced music. Incorporating a ballad with strong female vocals is normally nice, but not in the middle of a fight scene were Kabane hearts are being ripped out. I don't really know what they were thinking here. The voice acting cast was buffed up, and even ironically included the likes of Yuki Kaji (Eren from SnK), but no single performance really stuck out to me. Not to mention one of the engineers randomly spoke English from time to time. Really, what the hell was that about?

Whenever I look back to Kabaneri, I will always think about what could have been. While Attack on Titan was certainly not my favorite anime of all time, Kabaneri had an opportunity to learn from its shortcomings, but it just didn't capitalize. You know what they say, you can lead a horse to water but not make him drink it. If I could recommend this anime to anyone, it would be those who play videogames where they like to mash a button repeatedly (i.e. Dynasty Warriors). There's not much else to be explored then mindless drivel and flashy fight scenes. Eventually someone in anime will get this zombie thing right, but until that day I await with bated breath. As always, thanks for reading and be sure to check out the rest of my spring 2016 reviews!

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Jul 2, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 8

AlreadyNight (All reviews)

30 people found this review helpful

No matter who the enemy might seem to be (zombies, titans, mutant bees, flying pigs), the real enemy for humans will always be humanity itself. I believe kabane were only a tool meant to emphasize that. I'm not gonna lie, I'm not very bright and this review's not gonna be the most intelligent thing for you to read. Just a humble review for humble people interested in giving Koutetsujou no Kabaneri a shot.

Story
6/10

Really messy, but somehow its mediocrity made it seem like a piece of reality adjusted to fit a steampunk puzzle. Real world is filled with people who make bad decisions, kill (apparently) read more

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Jun 30, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 3

Adi (All reviews)

28 people found this review helpful

Ahh, a show about humanity being pushed to the brink of extinction due to a sudden appearance of man-eating monsters who are overwhelmingly powerful. Wait, doesn’t that sound familiar? If you say yes, it’s Attack on Titan, then you’re absolutely right. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with an AoT clone if it improves on AoT, but somehow Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress manages to do everything worse, spiralling down into a ludicrous mess of melodramatic, illogical plot elements and a villain so poorly founded and comically evil that it is laughable. Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress (especially the latter half) can only be best described as read more

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Jun 30, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 5

MozillaFennekin (All reviews)

28 people found this review helpful

Dammit, Kabaneri! You had it! You were good! But then you just had to had to make things human, didn’t you? You couldn’t just stick to what you were actually good at, no; in fact, you’ve completely forgotten what made you great in the first place!

It’s not every day that I get to say an anime was not only the most surprisingly good show of the season, but also the most disappointingly bad. With a strong start, a shaky midsection, and a complete disaster of an endgame, the anime had gone completely off the rails. Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress truly is a trainwreck.

There, you read more

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Jun 30, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 3

Zidanenvy (All reviews)

26 people found this review helpful

“THE APOCLAYPSE STARTER PACK”
Whatever disaster happen in this world. Absolutely, we can’t predicted about that. That’s why we must make preparations and brainstorm our mind to address this problem. You’d better prepare your transportation, shelter and food for emergency. Sometimes, natural disaster occurs in the several country and there’s a lot of cost to recover all this things. In fact, this is just information of the catastrophe. Henceforth, our discussion is about the theme of post-apocalyptic & you know? “weapon & suit & tank is the paramount things in the battle against zombie, right?” In the year 2016, the WIT Studio launched their new read more

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Jun 30, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 6

CodeBlazeFate (All reviews)

25 people found this review helpful

*SPOILERS FOR KOUTETSUJOU NO KABANERI aka KABANERI OF THE IRON FORTRESS. OH, AND TO ANY OF YOU WHO CLAIM THIS TO BE AN ATTACK ON TITAN RIPOFF JUST BECAUSE IT HAS A BUNCH OF MINDLESS CREATURES PUSHING HUMANITY TO THE BRINK, I SHAKE MY HEAD AT THEE. IT'S LIKE YOU NEVER HEARD OF ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE SERIES BEFORE*

I'm sure you've heard this question before: What do you prefer? Starting off strong but ending weaker, or starting of weak, but ending strongly? Personally, I'd choose the latter, and I know a few shows that DID the latter, like Macross F. Unfortunately, this show falls into the former, read more

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Jun 30, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 8

jdam5798 (All reviews)

23 people found this review helpful

Story: 7/10
Although the story is unoriginal, I'm a sucker for zombie anime because there haven't been a plethora of them and even then, some of them weren't as good as this one.
Art: 7/10
The art was good for the most part, but there was no need for CGI. For example, it was obvious the Black Smoke monster was used with CGI and sometimes, when they showed a zoomed out action scene, they used CGI for the characters.
Sound: 10/10
Just go listen to the OST. Words can't describe how amazing it is.
Character: 4/10
I have to be honest: I hated most, if not all of the characters. They get read more

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Jul 6, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 3

hffn (All reviews)

17 people found this review helpful

**SPOILER REVIEW**

If I had to describe iron fortress in a word it would be... generic. Now you don’t have to tell me how overused and pretentious that word is, because I’m very well aware of that. But I suppose it’s the most appropriate word to use for this anime because that’s exactly what it is. This is indisputably one of the most generic anime I’ve seen in a long time. The biggest problem with this iron fortress is that the vast majority of it is so standardized and uninspired. It's a show you've probably seen many times in the past and probably more read more

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Jul 2, 2016

12 of 12 episodes seen

Overall Rating: 5

gabrieuTG (All reviews)

16 people found this review helpful

Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress, or Disappointment of the Iron Fortress, you choose the best title for this.

SPOILERS AHEAD

The show started very well. Despite of the amount of people comparing it with AoT, the first seemed that this show would be a blast, and also would be nothing like AoT. However, after 3 episodes, this show became a trainwreck.

The plot is almost nonsensical. Kabaneris wear tight necklaces that for some reason don't asphyxiate them, Mumei gets transformed to Kabaneri by Biba just because of silly reasons, Biba wants to transform everybody into Kabane because of silly reasons etc.

Furthermore, there are disturbing plot holes. Katanas, that read more

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