Anime is like a well-oiled machine. When all of its parts work harmoniously together (i.e. the story, characters, aesthetics, and the like), you end up with a piece of work that functions well as a piece of entertainment that has a larger majority of its audience responding well to it. But when there're sections that don't really work all that well, then you've got a problem.
Story: With the world dying to the point that it could no longer sustain life, a man known only as 'Y' rebuilt it from gears and clockwork, thus creating the 'Clockwork Planet' that the characters live in.
...
(Don't ask me how he did it, the characters themselves don't even fucking know) It is here where our dual protagonists come across many wrenches in this world of gears as they try and work out the kinks in the machine.
Based entirely on only a few of the story's beginning arcs, Clockwork Planet is a typical arc-heavy story that relies on different problems arising for our protagonists to deal with, each creating a similar problem in a different way. These outlandish scenarios act as a double-edged sword for the series as while the plots create a semi-engaging scenario for the audience and provide us a reason to continue watching, the actual logistics for each antagonist's reason for doing their evil deeds usually don't really make any sense whatsoever. Especially with the last arc, a lot of the show's cogs fall apart because a lot of plot aspects don't fully mesh well with each other.
It's also important to note that very often the show wastes time with less action-packed scenes and focuses more on comedic or slice-of-life moments that while do help provide a better aspect of life on the clockwork planet, don't really add much to the story. Especially since most of the time they shove these parts in the middle of the action, so it creates a jarring shift in tone.
All in all, Clockwork Planet was a series that had a rocky start, picked up a little bit in the middle, and then ended with the cogs falling apart again. Mixed with plot holes (some of which can be ignored to an extent), unclear antagonist motivation, and a surprising amount of choppiness with the story, Clockwork Planet's story ends up being a clunky mess that has some good aspects, but ultimately falls apart because things don't mesh well enough to create good synchronization.
Overview:
+ Interesting world (Gotta give 'em for an interesting setting)
- Clunky pacing
- Jarring tone shifts
- Unclear antagonist motivation
Characters: Inversely, the characters of Clockwork Planet share a different opinion when compared to its story. Sadly, if you're not a main character, than the show really doesn't care about you.
First are the duality of protagonists, Naota Miura, the boy whose sexual preference is robot and Marie Bell Breguet, the short fused clocksmith gone rogue. Obsessed with clocks and wanting to be a clocksmith, Naota represents the 'Natural Genius', as his uncanny, natural ability to hear minute problems within the rhythm of gears and figure out the problem from that actually makes him quite interesting. As a character, Naota is a boy who adores automata to the point that he makes one his waifu and gets very upset when they're mistreated. Marie on the other hand is an experienced clocksmith representing the 'Learned Genius' as comparatively, she knows how to fix stuff, but has to work to find the answer when her counterpart does the reverse. Because of their contraries, the characters work well together as opposites, and the majority of the runtime is dedicated to their opposing ideas meshing together to fix the problem. While they don't do well on their own, their teamwork brings up a good positive for the show since their bickering is actually really fun and interesting to watch.
Then there's RyuZu, the one who follows. As the main automaton of the series, RyuZu is a sharp-tongued robot gal who hates people but loves/respects Naota because he fixed what 200 years of clocksmiths couldn't repair. Generally acting as a supplement to Naota's character, RyuZu acts as a bit of a gag due to how rude to everyone she is, thus creating some actually charming scenarios between the characters. She mostly stays stagnant in terms of development like the rest of the cast, but the qualities involving her offensive nature make her very entertaining if nothing else. Other automaton like AnchoR and Halter act a similar role in that they add more to the series to make the cast more colorful, but don't have much in the way of development and are really only necessary to the plot when needed.
Aside from them, the supporting characters are shoddy examples of what not to do when creating a supporting cast. The antagonists have very loose motivations that don't really make sense or amount to anything, and the supporting cast either have a very tiny role and/or don't really make much sense.
Overview:
+ Interesting (and entertaining) main characters
+ Entertaining supplementary characters to the main duo
- Supporting cast doesn't really matter all that much
Art: Produced by Xebec, Clockwork Planet's art leaves a lot to be desired. The animation and art itself is standard fare, and the show uses actually really nice CGI in order to create the numerous amounts of gears, cogs, and machines that we see throughout the series. Despite its background appearance, the character designs leave a lot to be desired.
While the original art for clockwork planet does leave some things to be desired, the anime's adaptation of said art has a lot of inconsistencies with it. Character proportions (like AnchoR's head compared to her body) look off, as the heads of the characters are stretched length-wise and create some really peculiar looking people. On top of that, the show's inconsistencies with character design make it so that one shot doesn't look the same as another, thus creating weird shots altogether.
Overview:
+ Good use of CGI
- Inconsistent character designs
Sound: Appropriately (or lazily) named 'Clockwork Planet', the show's OP made by Fripside is...quite samey to what the group makes. A lot of their songs sound very similar, and this one is no different. That isn't to say it's a bad thing, as the inclusion of windup noises and the overall tone of the song is still quite nice despite how similar it sounds to a multitude of their other tracks.
The show's ED on the other hand (also appropriately named), "Anti-clockwise", is a louder, slightly more screechy song with dissonant piano chords and an all around messier structure comparatively to its OP counterpart. It's not that pleasant to listen to, and is one of those things that's worth skipping not because it's forgettable, but because it does grate on the ears a little bit.
Overview:
+/- Tracks vary with your mileage
Personal Enjoyment: I was anticipating the release of Clockwork Planet for quite a while. It was one of those show that I really wanted to watch and I had to wait for its release because it was stuck in development hell for a little while. Unfortunately, the end result I wouldn't say is worth the wait, but despite that, I still enjoyed it regardless of the fact that I can just as easily chalk up a lot of the shows problems and ultimately say that it is indeed a 'bad adaptation'.
Did I enjoy this series?
Critically, the show has many flaws. Despite that, Clockwork Planet still managed to be a guilty pleasure of mine. The bickering between the main cast really made the show enjoyable for me to the point that I really didn't care much for the story or any other aspect of the show. Fripside's OP's always interest me, so I would be remised if I said that I didn't enjoy that too. Sure it's not a great show, but a show doesn't have to be 'great' in order for one to enjoy it.
What didn't I like about this show?
The last arc felt really weak. Especially since it took about a third of the runtime, having a huge portion of the story stumble towards the end was a big letdown, especially since very few things at the moment clicked in place.
Would I recommend this series?
If you just really want to see some interesting characters talk to each other, than Clockwork Planet fits the bill. Again, the show struggles with having a cohesive story and the visuals leave some things to be desired. Despite that, its characters make the show good enough for those with low standards to still find something enjoyable to watch, so if anything, I'd say this show is for those willing to devote some time to enjoy something that's kinda stupid, if anything.
Alternative Titles
Japanese: クロックワーク・プラネット
More titlesInformation
Type:
TV
Episodes:
12
Status:
Finished Airing
Aired:
Apr 7, 2017 to Jun 23, 2017
Premiered:
Spring 2017
Broadcast:
Fridays at 01:58 (JST)
Licensors:
Funimation
Studios:
Xebec
Source:
Light novel
Duration:
24 min. per ep.
Rating:
PG-13 - Teens 13 or older
Statistics
Ranked:
#74762
2
based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded.
Popularity:
#1562
Members:
165,357
Favorites:
445
Available AtResourcesStreaming Platforms | Reviews
Filtered Results: 36 / 36
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Your Feelings Categories Jun 22, 2017
Anime is like a well-oiled machine. When all of its parts work harmoniously together (i.e. the story, characters, aesthetics, and the like), you end up with a piece of work that functions well as a piece of entertainment that has a larger majority of its audience responding well to it. But when there're sections that don't really work all that well, then you've got a problem.
Story: With the world dying to the point that it could no longer sustain life, a man known only as 'Y' rebuilt it from gears and clockwork, thus creating the 'Clockwork Planet' that the characters live in. ... May 12, 2017
I will note that I am not the best at writing reviews, and that this is only my second or third time writing one. It may not be objective and fair, but these are my honest thoughts on this anime.
I decide to give this a fair try, and I'll be watching it till the end, my friend suggested it to me and that is why I am continuing to watch it otherwise I would have dropped it the first episode. He claims it picks up but I have yet to see that. The story is one of the weakest aspect of this show, careful because I ... Jun 22, 2017
This is a anime with a intriguing idea, and interesting premise and start, that doesn't really feel like it goes anywhere. Which is a shame as there is so much to like about the world, I liked the idea of the earth essentially being a clock work planet now.
Problem is this is a example of a great idea hindered by poor villains and lack of feeling of gravitas. I never understood the villians goals, or their reasons and what their final plan was supposed to do. which made the final moments confusing. I would say watch a few episodes to ... Jun 23, 2017
Clockwork planet review
Beautiful android girls saving the world from government corruption with the help of an eccentric ability user and a genius engineer. There are slight spoilers mainly in character analysis so please be aware as you read the review Based off the light novel of the same name Clockwork planet is an action based anime that has a pretty interesting premise in that it combines an action based anime with something that we usually see inside a sci fi anime which in this case are the automatons which is a type of advanced android that populate the world that this anime is set ... Aug 8, 2017
Warning possible Spoilers
When I found out that Clockwork Planet was created by the same person who made No Game No Life I was definitely interested with what it would offer me, although despite not being as good as NGNL Clockwork Planet was still alright. When Earth was destroyed it was rebuilt by some God or being and made entirely out of Gears, Our MC Naoto Miura has a special gift that is needed by people to help fix certain gears, luckily he has a ragtag group to help him on his journey. The story of Clockwork Planet is pretty confusing and I'll admit it was hard ... Jun 7, 2017
i was very surprised to see such low ratings! it feels weird to be reviewing a show that hasn't finished airing yet, but I felt something needed to be said so people don't turn away from this masterpiece based on the ratings and negative reviews.
First of all, the art is incredible! This clockwork world is simply beautiful. The characters are interesting and creative. I love that the lead doesn't struggle with the kind of self esteem issues that drag on character development in many shows. I don't know about you, but I watch anime to see something more than ordinary. Anime has the power ... Jul 30, 2017
One day, a little MyAnimeList user named FrozenRoy was on his friend's Crunchyroll account, looking for a show at the start of the anime season to watch, and eventually review on My Anime List. Our little FrozenRoy quite enjoys steampunk and clockpunk stuff and so was interested in a show called Clockwork Planet, because it had a really interesting premise. That's how we get here.
Clockwork Planet's premise is, indeed, pretty cool: The planet Earth was fucked up so hard that it looked like humanity was going to become extinct, long ago. A supergenius only known by Y proposed and performed a massive operation to replace ... May 26, 2017
This anime sucks. Earth is destroyed and a genius name Y recreate it with gears, the story may look like interesting but trust me, it's not. The first few episodes looks pretty interesting but i don't understand why they put fan service stuff in this anime. Well it's not like hardcore but it's very lame. You don't even laugh for the jokes, it's that bad. The story gets worst every new episodes come's out. I have dropped this anime at episode 8.
Story - Horrible story, suddenly a female powerful robot falls from the sky and he considers it has his wife and after few ... Jan 19, 2018
This anime is a bit special to me; it was written by the author of No Game No Life, one of my favorite lightnovels, Yuu Kamiya-sensei.
First off, I would like to say that the benchmarks for a 10 are: Story: Steins;Gate, Iron-Blooded Orphans Art: 5 cm per second, Violet Evergarden Sound: Guilty Crown, Spice and Wolf Character: Kimi no na Wa, Koe no Katachi Enjoyment: Lucky Star, Ghost in the Shell Overall: Working!! ... May 27, 2017
This anime, for the lack of a better word, is definitely a disappointment thus far. Everything about it has been lacklustre in my opinion and I have to say, I've been watching this anime ever since it's been released in hopes but I'm still unsatisfied even up to episode 8 - they still jump around the plot, drag things on and cut out important bits.
It's a kind of anime that you HAVE to watch before reading the light novel or manga, or better yet, just don't watch this and read the manga/LN. If I hadn't read the manga or the LN, then perhaps I would've ... Oct 26, 2017
Now this is important: You should never just take someone else's opinion as the end all be all.
ILL KEEP IT SHORT FOR YOU: This anime is a masterpiece in its own right. The only way i see it getting so many bad reviews is that all the people that actually bother to write these things are closed minded idiots that cant embrace the different perspectives that some anime series try to recreate like this one. Clockwork planet's plot is by all means short and very open to a second season if they can bring back the same or improved interest (hooks) as the first season. With its stupid ... Jun 23, 2017
STORY: Story begins when Naoto saves a cyborg named RyuZu by activating her. RyuZu pays him back by calling him master and ordering his commands. Soon, they team up with a girl named Marie and her bodyguard Halter. The enemy = the government. They have committed purges on the cities which causes the destruction & deaths of the citizens. The story also talks about the origins of how Earth was re-created over 1000 years ago with gears by Y. He is also the creator of RyuZu. CONTAINS: A lot of backstories and conspiracies, Action-fighting scenes, Humor, romantic-comedy moments (including Loli) & weird sexual encounters.
CHARACTERS: Naoto: High ... Jun 30, 2017
TL;DR Section at the end of the review. This review may or may not contain minor spoilers.
Oh, Clockwork Planet... How I had such high hopes for you, and in a way, you didn't let me down at all. Clockwork Planet revolves around a world made out of... gears and clockwork parts. Go figure. The earth's resources had been used up to it's fullest, so a mysterious man known as Y made the Clockwork Planet by himself. Fast forward a hundred years or so, and we have Naoto Miura, an aspiring clocksmith. Someday, a female automaton falls through his roof, and discovers that she's not functioning properly. ... Jun 23, 2017
Story:
This is the anime's weakest point. It starts off okay, but the events that go on don't generally have a particularly good connection to each other and it's very predictable. There is literally no reason to anticipate that any major character will actually die or is in any danger and it's really just a show where the major characters blow stuff up and keep succeeding. There is very little world building as well despite the potential that this show has to make that interesting. Character: One of the slightly better parts of the story. There is some growth in Marie Bell Briguette and there's some development with ... Jun 24, 2017
Clockwork Planet for LA is easily summed up in 6 words "could have been sooo much better".
Clockwork Planet from the genius mind of Yuu Kamiya of No Game No Life fame is about Naoto Miura voiced by Yoshino Nanjo who is obsessed with automata's and has an eerie ability to hear what's wrong with automations and when a black box containing a female automata by the name of RyuZU literally falls into his lap, his world of success and failures of a gear-like world will come under attack. Yeah, sounds interesting right?.....yeah too bad it utterly fails in it's execution though. What does LA mean by this?, ... Jun 22, 2017
Now, I'm not going to say this was a masterpiece, but after watching 11 episodes (soon to be 12 later today when it comes out on CRoll) I can tell you that this anime was a fun ride. When it first came out, I was hesitant because I wasn't sure how well they would adapt the novel. It really does a good job at squeezing out the more entertaining parts from the 3 novels it has covered into a 12 episode series. Personally, I believe that it is one of the best new anime this season. I would suggest it, but I have to warn
...
May 14, 2017
Alright this is my first review but cut me some slack
I watched up to the 6th episode and i gotta say this anime is crap. The characters are too 1-dimensional, the tensions is fleeting and the first villain doesn't even provide any form of pressure. take an example from the first scene we see this "villain", at first he's all chill and stuff saying things like "I can't let you do that, it's against the "insert powerful association" orders" and doesn't let tsundere girl go save people. But the moment she pulls a gun on him out of anger, he suddenly squeals in fright completely ruining ... Jun 24, 2017
This review contains some spoilers:
Literally the only redeeming factors of this show were the character Halter and the fact that I had the best time drinking and making fun of this show (the only reasons this has a 2 and not a 1.) The story was a convoluted mess that was only about a quarter explained. I had the only the vaguest idea of what was happening. The villain was given no explanation to his motives and while the two main characters meet him, it's glossed over for at least 2 episodes (??!!!???). And the two Automatons don't use their full power in any meaningful ... Aug 16, 2017
Overall, I think this series was quite a train wreck. When I was first watching the series, I thought that the idea of a planet made of gears would be a super interesting concept, and that our MC would become super OP, much like the MCs of NGNL; however, at the end of the series, I felt like the MC was quite useless compared to his female counterpart. After finishing the series, I can say that, although it was a train wreck, it had enough momentum to keep me thoroughly entertained and I highly recommend watching the actual show.
Story (7/10) The story seemed a bit ... Jun 27, 2017
Real Score:5.5\10
ClockWork Planet, an adaptation of the Light Novel written by Kamiya Yuu, you might know him from the No Game No Life franchise. It has a wonderful setting, an interesting premise and a good overall design, but nothing more. The entire project falls flat and becomes generic, stale and not enjoyable at all at times. I don't like putting low scores, in fact i have given very few scores under 6, but all of the wasted opportunity and dull moments forced me to do it Story 4 The Story, if it exists, is bad, really bad. The pacing is horrible and the 2 major story ... |


