Zombieland Saga

Idols again !, but Zombie?

The concept of Zombies Idols can be very good depending on how it is handled; and that absolute ignorance about what it was about and how this anime was handled is one of the things that made it shine. First when you see the first episode, you find yourself a bit confused, because you don't really know what you are seeing, then when the story progresses, it makes "sense" and becomes hooked.

Zombie Land Saga is something that nobody asked for, but that everyone loved; with its Zombie Idols concept, very well managed, with quite original situations (really, very original), with its ... colloquial humor, by quite charismatic characters, with super intriguing Plot Twist and with everything else you can see. This anime is positioned as one of the surprises of 2018.
Neither is it a revolutionary anime, nor the best, but in the "idol" arena after so many anime trying to replicate the success of LoveLive! Zombie Land Saga, with its originality and good development, deserves a good recognition.
10/10 100% highly recommended !!

Zombieland Saga is both a great starting point for anime fans who want to get into idol anime and an anime that effectively reflects and provides commentary on aspects of the idol industry. As a fan of idol anime, I would recommend this show to anyone regardless of how familiar they are with the genre. Now with that out of the way, let's get into the meat.

One of the biggest things that stick out about this anime is the premise itself. Compared to other idol anime (such as Love Live!, The Idolm@ster, etc.), the idea of idol zombies is just ridiculous enough to draw ... in fans of many different genres. The plot skirts the line between concrete and ambiguous, which lets the watcher fill in any blanks that may be in their minds. Turning the main idols into zombies introduces this pseudo-horror-comedy element which works incredibly well to keep watchers interested during each episode. This is one of the best things I love about this anime: it has plenty of scenes that can keep many different watchers interested and doesn't drive viewers away by being too idol-centric.

On the flip side, there are plenty of aspects to Zombieland Saga, which appeals to the idol genre's big fans. Many scenes, plotlines, and character actions can be viewed as critiques of the idol industry. A few involve some spoilers to get too far into it, but I will use the girls' zombification as an example. The zombie idols are a good representation of the obscene amount of work that idols have to go through, and Koutarou Tatsumi's attitude towards them reflects how many idols are treated as objects rather than people. I'm definitely not an expert, though, so interpret it however you'd like.

The characters are enjoyable to follow and have plenty of depth. Being from many different eras, every character feels unique (especially the LEGENDARY YAMADA TAE) and brings different experiences and outlooks to the idol group. I won't go too far into it, but none of the girls feel unnecessary or flat, which is very refreshing to see. If you want to know more, you should watch the show and meet them yourself!

I would be remiss if I didn't mention the music. The show immediately defies expectations by including songs that seemingly wouldn't fit in idol anime at all, but Zombieland Saga makes them work to great effect. The seiyuu are unbelievably talented. Zombieland Saga's cast is definitely one of my favorites out of all the anime I've watched (the LEGENDARY YAMADA TAE is especially well-voiced). I'll also mention the animation during the song sequences, considering that they can be controversial in quality. The show starts with iffy concert animation, but it uses that as a metric to show how much the group improves over the show, which is a clever way to poke some fun at other idol anime and get the viewer excited to see the next concert. Also, the OP is really good. It's found a nice place on my main playlist.

I'll round this out by telling you how much I enjoyed it. I had a dumb grin on my face the whole time I was watching Zombieland Saga. I loved the characters and shared their troubles and triumphs throughout the show. The music dug into my ears, and I found myself humming the songs for months. As a big fan of the horror genre, I also enjoyed the kernels of it in the show. Also, Nikaidou Saki is best girl.

If you haven't watched Zombieland Saga, I highly recommend that you get started on it right away.

Zombieland saga is a unique parody of an idol show with zombies instead of high school girls as the main group of idols. It excels at certain parts, but also fails at certain parts, though it was still an enjoyable watch nonetheless.

Let's start with the good parts. The show has a great focus on its characters, which is something you rarely see in shows with a huge female cast, such as idol, CGDCT, SOL shows etc. The first few episodes introduces us to the bizarre cast of characters, all with different backgrounds and even from different time periods. The best character though is hands down ... the manager of the group of idols. From the first few episodes I was already in love with the chaotic energy from him, yet you can still feel his strong determination to help the idol group achieve success. The first few episodes did a great job introducing the characters, and later on during the show there are also individual episodes focusing on the episodes, adding a lot more depth to the characters in a genre full of copy and paste cute girls with no personality. Zombieland saga does a great job at being a parody, while still keeping the soul of this girls-support-girls genre.

However, while this show does a good job at exploring its characters, it is also lacking in one of the most important elements in idol anime - the dance scenes/performances. The 3d animation is more than just rough around the edges and I was honestly surprised it was made by MAPPA. The 3d models look very different from the actual 2d characters, which accentuated the problem when they decided to keep switching from 2d and 3d during the performances. The dance sequences and performances were also quite repetitive and didn't really stand out to me, which was quite disappointing. Still, this is the only huge flaw I can think of for this show.

Overall, this show was still a fun watch and a solid 7/10

A high school girl with a big dreams is going to be cute... BANG, dead, death metal, house of horrors, zombies, Saga, stage, "Music, COME ON!!!!".

Episode 1:
Story - 10
Art - 10
Sound - 10
Character - 10
Enjoyment - 10

The rest:
... Story - 4
Art - 8
Sound - 8
Character - 7
Enjoyment - 6

This anime has the most hilarious first episode ever. If you think you will not like the anime, go watch the first episode only. It is hilarious, ridiculous and the best parody there is. First 2 minutes and I was already amazed and laughing out over the black humor development. It is WTF?! all the way in. The pace is amazing and keeps you amazed, so I will not spoil anything about the first episode in this review.

Well, if all episode were like the first, we would have the best parody, the most ridiculous and funny idol anime out there. The change of environment, the self-irony of how small the Saga prefecture is (I do not know if that's true, it is what the anime makes fun of) are superb. But then someone from the staff decided that this won't be a parody, but rather comedic idol anime... When the anime take the more serious tone of how the life (or in this case the zombie life) of an idol can be, it lost its appeal and become fairly average anime. There is a glimpse of zombie jokes here and there, but now it gets a little bit boring from time to time. Instead of addressing problems of the small prefecture, the idol life and the difficulties in ironic way, it addresses them literally in the story as a slice of life (or slice of zombie life) in this case.

What kills the anime though, is the fact that it seriously include in the story the result of the ridiculous events in the first episode. If those idols weren't zombies the story will go in different direction. This means, that the story the anime tells, when serious, is supposed to imagine how difficult is to be an idol, but only if you are zombie. Sorry, it seems the living audience might not have a chance to properly relate to that...

Art: The art is what you can expect from 2018. It is not outstanding, though. Anime like "Sound! Euphonium" easily beat the art within the same year.

Music: Well, the music is definitely not bad. Some songs are even amazing, and it is rarely to hear death metal genre in anime. While I am not a fan of death metal, it was hilarious choice for the first episode OP. The situation combined with the music clearly stated, that you cannot take what you see seriously. The other songs are catchy, but not so amazing, except maybe "Mezame returner", which kind of have proper rhythm and rhyme to enjoy, even when you do not understand the text at all (although some parts are strange). If you watch this for the music, episode 3, 7, and 12 near the end are worth it.

Characters: In the first episode Tatsumi is pretty funny, and during all episodes the quirks of each characters will make some funny situations, which will cause occasional laugh of otherwise the boring story. The police officer (apparently the only one in the whole Saga prefecture) scenes are the craziest one, he is my favorite side character. Otherwise, the stories of each individual past is kind of BORING, except maybe Saki, which is super cool.

Enjoyment: I do not feel I have wasted my time watching this. It is fairly enjoyable and forgettable lighthearted show. The only thing I am regretting is that it take so much time to realize only the first episode was worth it. I feel like I clicked a click-bait. Something can be ridiculously funny and good at the same time (see KonoSuba). This anime had this potential, but I have no idea what happened. At least it has happy semi-ending, suggesting possibility of second season.

Zombieland Saga, one of my first music based genre anime for me. And well it was just a amazing serie and did enjoy most of it.

Story 9: The story is very well. And there were some nice part in it. For me the past of the zombies and the last part was the greatest. Every person has there own story. And some of them died in a funny way.

Art 8: Art could be better for my opinion. But it was good enough.

Sound 9: First of all the opening and ending are great. Just some good music. But why I give this a 9 is ... the music during the serie. Amazing songs and dance I LIKE J-POP.

Character 10: All of the characters are Great. But the one I do like was Tae Yamada. This girls is nuts. And laugh alot at the last part (but i dont spoil).

Enjoyment 10: Why? If started watching this with my friends and well. If you chill out and watch it with friends. Its doubles your enjoyment for sure. Comedy was 100% active in this serie. Story just great!!

Overall 9: Well because zombie saga is just a story about music. This serie is really one to watch. And cant wait for next season. My personal opinion: Its great and you will laugh alot. Or else you are a zombie ;)

Studio Mappa will never cease to astound me with the absurd level of ambition it pours into each and every project it creates. Ever since Zankyou no Terror put them on the map back in 2014 (and even before then, with their debut Kids on the Slope), they have always struck me as a studio willing to go above and beyond, to take on unconventional stories with demanding production requirements, never settling for just being good enough when they had the potential to be so much more. In some ways, that can be to their detriment; while I’ve enjoyed all of their work I’ve seen ... thus far immensely, I also feel like their ambition almost always outstrips their ability to pull it off at 100% capacity. Yuri on Ice, Zankyou no Terror, and now Zombie Land Saga were all incredibly complex, risky undertakings, and I always get the feeling that the scripts could have used maybe one more pass at the writing table to truly match the challenge they set for themselves. That said, I will always respect a project that shoots for the stars and maybe doesn’t quite stick the landing over a project that plays it too safe to leave any sort of impact. The kind of ambition Mappa exemplifies is the kind of ambition I’d love to see from every other studio out there, the kind of unique and exciting storytelling that makes this medium so valuable. And if Zombie Land Saga isn’t quite the masterpiece it could be, that still shouldn’t take away from just what a fantastically fun, exciting show it is, bursting with imagination and creativity that makes its weaker aspects much more forgivable.

The plot, for those of you who haven’t been keeping abreast of the seasonal discourse and thus haven’t seen this show plastered around every corner, follows young Sakura Minamoto, a high school girl with dreams of being an idol that are promptly dashed when she’s killed by a runaway truck in the first minute of the show. And as she flies in slow-motion through the air, raucous death metal playing over the opening credits, you begin to realize the ingenious bait-and-switch Mappa has caught you in. This isn’t just an idol anime: this is a zombie idol anime. Sakura is resurrected as a zombie, along with six other idols (and idol-adjacents) from various points in Japan’s history, by the mysterious motormouth Kotaro Tatsumi, who plans to turn them into a functioning idol group to serve as a tourism boost for the dilapidated Saga prefecture. And thus, tongue firmly in cheek, the show takes you on a rollicking tour of idol anime’s greatest hits as filtered through the Troma school of schlock horror, and the result is as hectic and inspired as that description might lead you to believe.

Yes, in a word, this show is fun. It’s ridiculously fun. It has such a firm grasp on the mechanics of its own absurd situation that it’s able to start cranking out killer body horror gags and slapstick scenarios straight out of Evil Dead’s slightly peppier cousin right from the word go. The contrast between the usually sterile, pure image of idols and these cute zombie girls with their limbs popping off every odd second is such a refreshing burst of laughing gas, never failing to catch me off guard in the best ways. There’s something kind of lightly transgressive about the whole affair, about letting these focus-group-managed starlets be this wacky and unexpected and weird and outsized and occasionally gross. It grants the entire show an air of unpredictability; for once, I wasn’t really sure how this story was going to play out, even as it starts seguing into more conventional idol trappings in the back half. And when I’m having this much fun not knowing what’s coming next, that speaks volumes about how damn committed this show is to the beat of its own offbeat drum.

The real secret weapon behind Zombie Land Saga’s success, though, is its characters. Franchouchou, as it’s eventually named, is composed of some of the best, most immediately memorable eclectic personalities I’ve seen in quite some time. Sakura is the straight man who’s not afraid to match the intensity of her fellow group members, there’s a pair of more conventional idols who ground the mechanics of the story in their expertise, an expressive little girl with her heart literally beating out of her chest, an actual courtesan with a killer right hook, a badass biker chick who instantly steals every single scene she’s in, and The Legendary Tae Yamada, who might just actually be a conventional mindless zombie, but god dammit, it’s Sailor Moon’s legendary voice actor wrangling an entire character performance out of nothing but growls and grunts, and that’s just plain incredible. But even she’s nothing compared to the sonic wall of explosive mouth diarrhea that is Kotaro Tatsumi. Good. Fucking. God. I have heard Mamoru Miyano’s unhinged vocal stylings before, but this performance just takes it to a whole new level. He is operating at 200% the entire show, rattling out barely coherent orders and inspirational platitudes like a human gattling gun in a voice that swings between “sentient shit-eating grin” and “sloshed drill sergeant” at the drop of a hat. You’d think that would very quickly get annoying, but somehow, Miyano hits the perfect sweet spot between sincerity and self-parody every time, and result will have you bowled over laughing every time he opens his mouth. It’s this cast that endears you to Zombie Land Saga’s unorthodox wavelength, a wacky band of misfits that capture a spirit of camaraderie you can’t help but get swept up in.

Which is good, because while the time we spend just hanging out with these lunatics and watching them do idol stuff is oodles and oodles of fun, I feel that the show isn’t quite as strong in the more emotional moments. Their struggles just feels a little too conventional and perfunctory, especially when compared to how daring and expressive the lighter moments are. To me, Zombie Land Saga doesn’t feel like a show where a subplot as simple as “two group members don’t get along and have to resolve their philosophical argument!” really fits, or where the janky CG used for many of the performance scenes matches the usually expressive-as-hell animation. It’s the faces that really make all the difference: compared to how lively and exaggerated the girls’ expressions are at their best, such as during a gut-busting rap battle in the second episode (yes, you read that right), the stiff, limited movement of their CG models keeps you at far more of a distance at what are supposed to be the climactic emotional high points. And you can really feel that difference, because the few times where the performances are done in traditional animation are easily the best, most evocative moments of the entire show. Especially when, without spoiling too much, one of those performances ends up being the lynchpin of one of the best goddamn coming-out subplots I’ve experienced. If the rest of the emotional storytelling were on that level, then I would feel confident calling this show an outright masterpiece.

As is, though, I can’t feel too disappointed in the show we got, even if it’s maybe a couple of rewrites away from true transcendence. Zombie Land Saga is still absurdly fun, endlessly creative, and bursting with energy, a roller coaster ride of imagination and light subversion that I would definitely love to ride again should a second season be greenlit. Chances are you’ve already checked it out for yourself, but for those of you still on the fence, now’s the time to watch it. I promise you, you won’t regret it.

FIRST REVIEW, don't judge... plz

Zombieland Saga was a pleasant surprise this season, I went completely blind into it with just a title as reference so I wasn't really expecting for a comedy/idol (first one I've seen) anime but more for an action/horror kind of anime, then when I started watching the first episode my first reaction was "WTF??" and at the same time I was enjoying it. My shock wasn't because of the weirdness of the show, I like weirdness I embrace it, it was more because I wasn't really expecting this at all but I'm glad I stuck around till the end.

This show has ... some of the best characters this season starting with the manager Koutaro Tatsumi his voice actor (Mamoru Miyano) is excellent and every time he talked he made me laugh,*spoiler ahead* btw many people theorized that he was the one that ran over Sakura I actually always thought that he used to know her or had a crush on her when she was alive the way they show it in the show I could have been right *spoiler end*

As for the girls we have everyone with their special little quirk Sakura being main girl as main as can be, Saki a badass, Lily with her heart poking out and being cute af, Junko being the quiet, gentle soul, Ai being litteraly an idol, Yuugiri slapping people left and right, and Tae doing Tae things, overall it is a group that I would like to see a lot more from them.

My main issue with this show is the cg used on the performances, I know that it is kinda of a parody of idol shows and I know that animating a whole performance with dance moves costs a lot of paper, but i thought that at least for the final performance wouldn't be in cg, but nonetheless it wasn't really too bad.

The end left room for a second season and for what i've been seeing apparently this is big in Japan so I'm 90% sure that there will be a second season and I'm hoping for it.

Story-7
Art-7
Sound-8
Character-9
Enjoyment-9

Overall-8

When I first started Zombieland Saga, I wasn't sure what to expect. About halfway through it, I almost dropped it. But I'm glad that I finished it. And here's why:

Zombieland Saga is full of comedy and that's why I stuck around for as long as I did. Some of it is repetitive and abrupt but it's this which makes it even funnier (sometimes). The story itself is simple though and some may find this boring. But it's easy to get into even if idol anime isn't your thing. (Trust me, I'm one of those people.) Also, the anime's use of flashbacks near the end of ... the 12th episode made the episode more powerful that it already was.

And the characterization is good. Not great but good. You learn more about the characters and their backstories as the anime goes on. Unfortunately, some characters weren't very explored. This is kinda obvious considering that we find out more about two of them naturally and the later episodes explore a few other characters in a noticeably episodic manner. This isn't necessarily bad but, because of how the backstories are done later in the series, it's pretty obvious when some of the characters aren't covered. The timing of the main character's backstory was done well in my opinion and I really enjoy being able to notice and learn one thing at a time about a seemingly blank but funny character.

The art is pretty good; it's bright and looks really nice. The animation is great most of the time but some may not be a big fan of the CGI. The transition between the normal animation and CGI is very noticeable and the speed of it is kinda slow. The characters themselves don't look too bad in CGI though.

The sound is great. The opening is funny and catchy. The ending song is sweet and nice sounding but it's slow and lacks energy. That's normal for ending songs but it's not something I listen to every episode. The songs they sing together are really good though. It's nice being able to hear the voice actors' singing voices.

Story: 9
Art: 9
Sound: 10
Character: 8
Enjoyment: 10

Watch this anime from start to finish. It's comedic but becomes inspiring later on. The anime turned itself around and became something I didn't expect. Overall, this anime deserves a 9. I'm going to miss this series a bit.

Oh, zombies. They've been a staple in horror movies ever since horror movies started utilizing them. Some zombie related stuff is good in the right hands, and others...not so much. But let me ask you: Who in their right mind had the idea to come up with an anime about cute zombie girls becoming idol singers, and having it be a wacky, colorful, comedic satire on idol culture? Oh right, this is Japan. They pretty much allow anything to be made into an anime. If they can come up with anime about things like runaway hospital beds, cute girls peacefully living out the end of ... the world, or sentient sardines that wish for death, then zombie idols being cute really shouldn't be that surprising. Ironically, the people who made this anime didn't think it would do very well, and lo and behold, it wound up becoming the darling of the autumn 2018 anime season. But how did this random anime even come about, and why is it even so popular? Most idol anime tend to be either saccharine, melodramatic, or of general poor quality. Well, let's dig some graves and find some answers. May we all rest in hell.

In the year 2008, a young high school girl, Sakura Minamoto, is determined to become an idol. After gathering some application paperwork, she races out the door to make her dreams come true...only to find herself meeting the business end of a speeding truck and dies from the impact. But this is not the end. She wakes up to find herself in a creepy, abandoned mansion in Saga Prefecture inhabited by zombies. Terrified, she runs away and tries to find some answers...only to find out that she too is a zombie, and that ten years have passed since she died. A mysterious man named Kotaro Tatsumi resurrected her and six others girls from different eras, intent on turning them into popular idols for the purpose of saving Saga Prefecture from falling into obscurity. This can either go really well or fail miserably, especially since Kotaro spends a lot of his time yelling at them and not even bothering to explain anything to them.

When the anime was first announced, no real premise was revealed for it, as its plot was kept very tightly under wraps until its airing. Many thought it was just going to be a cute girls meet zombies kind of show, like School-Live, so imagine their surprise when they found out it was going to be about cute zombie girls becoming idol singers. It came out of the gate with guns blazing, complete with luscious, wacky, fluid animation that bursts with color and charm. Yeah, I gotta say, the animation for this one is sublime. The colors are bright, the character movement is fluid, and the many visual gags always manage to pack a glorious punch with great comedic timing. It also manages to switch between cute and scary almost seamlessly when it wants to. The only real negative thing I can say about it is that it uses really clunky CGI during the idol segments. Not all the time, but they're jarring enough to know that you're watching 3D models instead of 2D animation, and the transition there isn't the smoothest. Sorry, Zombieland, but Dragon Quest: Your Story and the later seasons of Aikatsu raised my standards for Japanese CGI, thanks. (I still haven't seen Land of the Lustrous yet, but I do plan to!)

However, the show is very versatile in the music department. Seriously, the soundtrack for this show is all over the place. Death metal, J-pop, rap/hip-hop, jazz, Zombieland Saga serves a whole buffet of music genres, whether it be singing or the background music. The opening is wacky, bold, colorful, full of rapid movement, and is downright silly in the best way possible, while the ending song is a low key, somber, heartwrenching ballad. I honestly didn't find a single song that I didn't like, even the idol songs (Though I did feel the song To My Dearest was sung way too fast in its beginning verses), and the background music was also very well done. so the soundtrack hit a solid home run here. Also, zombie girl rap battle. How can you go wrong with that?!

But again, you can't have a story without good characters to back it up, and while I don't feel these zombie girls are as fleshed out as others in other anime I've seen, I love the whole ensemble, and they have subtle layers to them that help keep them from coming off as just simple archetypes. Sakura's enthusiastic and upbeat, but she's not a ditz nor a pushover. Saki is a badass, trash talking biker chick who's a complete degenerate and stays that way, but isn't a complete bitch either (I also appreciate that the anime doesn't try to change her into a girly girl and lets her stay a degenerate biker gal), Junko's a shy girl who's not fond of how drastically the idol industry changed from her time period, but isn't so shy that she doesn't want to perform in her own way, as she justs wants to enforce clear boundaries. I also love that the anime treats its characters and their personal boundaries with far more respect than other shows I've seen (Take note, episode 6 of 22/7!), something that is sorely needed, especially with how competitive and cut throat the idol industry in itself can be. That being said, the only ones who don't get much development are Yugiri and Tae, whose backstories are unknown as of this season, and Kotaro...not gonna lie, I'm not the biggest fan of him. I mean, it's funny when he's hammy and silly, but he's also kind of an abusive jackass who constantly treats most of the girls like crap and puts them down over the slightest provocation (especially Sakura) and never explains anything to them, especially how he resurrected them as zombies to begin with. But the show knows he's a jackass and he always gets his whenever he sets the girls off, especially Saki and Ai, who don't hesitate to put the guy in his place when he treats them like shit.

Speaking of not explaining things, the anime has a lot of neat ideas and concepts, but with its short length, it leaves a lot of questions unanswered. How did the girls even become zombies? What is Kotaro really planning on doing with them? Will people make the connection and see that the girls were actually people who died in varying time periods? One person recognized Lily, so the possibility is there. Also, what's the deal with Yugiri and Tae? Or even Kotaro, for that matter? Not only that, the final episode doesn't really end the series, so much as teases the audience with a hook for a potential second season. Thankfully, a second season has been confirmed, so for all we know, we might finally get answers if and when that airs. Still, some might not be satisfied, and that's okay.

With an anime that relies on two main gimmicks, zombies and idols, one would think meshing the two would be a complete disaster. But surprisingly enough, Zombieland Saga actually managed to make it work. True, the fact that the girls are zombies become less and less relevant as the series goes on, and Zombieland Saga does play some idol tropes and scenarios completely straight even when it's parodying or satirizing them. But I never felt like Zombieland Saga was trying to paint a rosy, overly saccharine picture of the idol industry, and it does acknowledge that being an idol is, at its core, a job, a business selling you a product, even if the most it digs its claws into is tongue-in-cheek jabs at it. It doesn't try to do a full take-down of the industry like Wake Up Girls did, nor does it paint the industry as being all sunshine and rainbows like Love Live consistently tries to do. I actually did watch the first episode of Love Live and I absolutely hated it, because it was basically overly syrupy Disney fare that was bland, generic, childish, overly pandering, and tried to paint a way too rosy, syrupy picture of how the idol industry works. As a result of how it tackles the idol industry and all that it entails, any drama that comes up in Zombieland actually feels more earnest and substantial than most idol shows try to do, without ever coming across as shallow or melodramatic. Basically, Zombieland Saga uses its bizarre, off-the-wall premise to present its messages with earnest sincerity and just tells it like it is, pulling the wool from your eyes but not trying to outright trick you or throw you a curve ball.

I think the show is okay with how it currently is, just a fun, wacky, biting but loving satire of the idol industry that's full of heart. It won't be for everyone, but this show is a fun, wild ride all the way through, and I'm eagerly looking forward to the second season when it comes out!

1. Yamada Tae = 9 Characters = 9 as my MAL Rating. Coincidence? I think not.

2. EVERY one of the girls felt so alive and well-developed. Some didn't get full-arc representations, but they did what they could with 12 eps and 7 heroines.

3. THE MUSIC IS GREAT. Can't get the OP out of my head.

4. A show about Zombie Idols? The story can't be any good. WRONG. WRONG. When the Reddit episode threads constantly fill up with possible explanations to the nuanced story plots, you know it's a winner.

5. The Art/Animation- tis excellent.

... 6. Try to watch the whole series *without* laughing. Dare ya to try.

7. The VAs really had a ball with this one. Very impressive work.

WHAT have I Listed here? Well it's a reason to watch this show for each and every waifu on the cast. Reasons why you should drop what you're doing, right now, and start watching the Rebirth of Saga.

This anime has, hands down, the best opening in anime history.


Seriously the way this starts it's IMPOSSIBLE not to get your attention. So, now the show has your attention, what does it do with it?


Story :-


Six lovely ladies are turned into zombies. Their goal is to be teen idles and inject some much needed life into the Saga prefecture in Japan. The irony is very much intended.
...
With their fast talking fake it till you make it manager they have to over-come the growing pains of their current predicament, Act as a group, the different personalities and levels of professionalism, their insane manager.

If you haven't realized already this show is parody of girl idol AND horror anime with a little social commentary packaged in regarding how the industry treats teen idols.


Characters :-


Each of the six girls has her own unique personality that sets her apart and is influenced in part by who she was in life. Sakura Minamoto gets the majority of the screen time as she is the more typical MC in anime... aka Ms. normal but cheerful and pleasant. The manager taking second place though 5 seconds of screen time with him is more than the average mind could handle.


Art :-

colourful and upbeat usually though the girls nature allow for some unusual angles. There is a play on the horror genre when needed and the art style shifts to match. CGI pops up after episode two. It's a bit distracting but not horrendous. Just cheap looking... which is how you know they will recycle this particular scene over and over to cut costs.


Music:-

A mixed bag. The opening tones in episode one as well as the over the top ones used in that same episode have been the best so far. The rest however are either forgettable or full below average depending on the music genre the show is mocking in that particular episode.


Fun Factor:-

This show is hilarious. You often have no idea what's going on or what the devil you just watched BUT you always laugh and have a good time. Be it the personality clashes, the sudden zombie attacks (by or on, always a coin toss) or the manager showing up.


Summery:-

Zombieland is the definition of an oddball. It effortlessly plays with your expectations and then doesn't go in a different directions so much as through a wall like the cool aid guy. It's weird, it's funny and it's fun. You will easily find at least one of the six girls to root for and your eyes directly go to her in any group setting (Yes I'm talking about the legendary Tae Yamada. GO TAE!)

It's questionable if the show can keep it's momentum however as the pacing and quirkiness goes down significantly after the second episode...

First off, I want to say that I really wanted to enjoy this show. I really did. But when I found it a chore to watch the next episode, I just couldn't

Let's start with the premise of the story. 6 girls that died in different periods of time are revived by Tatsumi Kotaro to become idols and save the town of Saga. Sounds interesting enough right? That's what I thought in the first episode. I was thinking "alright this is gonna be pretty good and funny." Instead I got a boring show with boring characters whom I all despise besides the manager, Kotaro.

Speaking more ... on the characters, I didn't like any of them besides Kotaro, but most of his punchlines were HAHAHAHA I'm being mean and yelling at the zombie girls!!!!! All of the idol characters annoyed me and none of them were that interesting to me

Now let's get to the comedy part. Now I understand that comedy wasn't really the main goal of the show but it was pretty obvious that they were trying to land jokes and just failed miserably. I spoke about Kotaro's jokes but "The Legendary Yamada Tae's" jokes through some of the show were just her making noises and OMG ZOMBIE GIRL ISNT AWAKE YET AHAHAHAHAHAHA and it just really got on my nerves that they would sink to such low levels of comedy.

Now to the infamous episode 3 where they used atrocious CG to "make fun of" other idol shows but it just came across as them using horrible CG. It made it look worse than the stuff they were trying to make fun of.

All in all, I gave it a 4 just because I wanted to get it done but it felt like such a chore watching the next episode, purely because of how much I didn't enjoy it.

Idol series, a genre that certainly has had its peak in the past years but has also known some steep decrease in popularity in recent years. We really don't see a lot of “good” takes on the genre if hardly any. One could always say it's gotten old or way too repetitive, a bunch of ambitions individuals form up an idol group and strive for fame and success, yeah, I could form the same an assumption if you put it in similar words, but zombies forming an idol group sounds a lot funnier and exciting.

Story (7.5/10):
It takes a lot to maintain a good and consistent ... plot, and to be honest, “Zombieland Saga” while not of a mature or serious setup and doesn't have a long run to it either is still doing just about decent handling itself in term of consistent writing and story progression.
A bunch of mysterious “idols” from different periods of time gets resurrected somehow into mildly-sane zombies and put in a quest of saving this town called Saga. Don't even ask me how can simply being an idol save anything either.
As we start at the first episode from a blank starting point, we basically know nothing about their world or the main character cast, but just the idea of seeing everybody open up to one another and strengthening their bonds is one quirk of Zombieland Saga that does right, it's nothing to take lightly as to wake up one day and be told that you're dead and are now a zombie, and seeing these girls not only getting over that, but still have a strong spirit to even dare grow as individuals on a greater scale is astonishing, and the sense of achievement that comes throughout the series is just that inspiring.

Art (7.5/10):
For me at least, Zombieland Saga nailed its own art style, I'm confident enough that I could distinguish it from tones of other similar shows, it's just how they play with colors here. So you get theri zombie form that has all of those could and lame colors, and as soon as they put up some makeup to cover that up, you could swear their flesh is now more lively and vibrant, as the colors get stronger and outline them even better.
I feel that it was a shame for a great art style as that to fall short on animation on some of the big moments.
This is a show about idols, so you know it's going to involve some intense performances on the high scale, and they better have some clean shots in store for that, unfortunately, the use of cheap CG really kills the mood sometimes, you'd be having a great close up on a character's face in mid-performance and then it suddenly becomes a really zombie-fest of a visual with those ps2 graphics. Relying on pure 2D would have saved this show a lot of hassle.

Sound (8.5/10):
Music takes a huge cut from this show, so the vocals better be rocking it alright. And that's where I was right.
Unlike the sometimes horrifying visuals, the featured songs were spot on, you could almost get the same excitement of their live audience as if the voice acting cast were some sort of real world band that know what they are doing. Speaking of which, not only their singing sequences were great but also the rest of voice acting, the sad and fun moments were equally emotionally strong, and probably the star there would be Miyano Mamoru that voices the manager Tatsumi (Also famous for voicing Okabe from Steins;Gate).
I really enjoyed both the opening and ending theme songs, the opening was a bit questionable for me as a first exposure, it had that strange mecha-power-rangers feel to it, but it really does stick to the mind and the ending had a really strong nostalgic feel to it, it almost makes you feel bad the show will have to end one day, and it did for me.

Characters (8/10):
Probably what this show nails to the bone the most. Every. Single. Character. Man, that's a lot of favorites, I just can't pick one, they are all superb and similarily fleshed out.
First of all, their design, they do look like a group of idols for starters, and yes, they have that special main character aura to them as well. I really like their attire, and even reflects the period each one of them belonged.
My favorite part was their impactful backstories, I thought I signed up for a fun and goofy show, and I ended up pulling on my third tissue box by the end, man, those were some depressing and reflecting backstories that explained a lot of their individual treats, something I never expected from a show like this, but still appreciated to the core.

Enjoyment (7.5/10):
I'm not big on moe, nor am I that huge on idols shows, I probably only wanted to watch this because I had some extra free time and I needed to fill, I had already picked up more interesting shows and I needed another one just to make it an even number, but I never expected it to rank even higher than other picks, I really had my fair share of laughs, I spared some tears as well, I even got as far as changing opinions I had on a lot of other things prior to watching Zombieland Saga.
This is something I'm likely to get back to later, mostly for the fleshed out and lovable characters.

Overall (7.8/10):
Zombieland Saga proved to be something unlike the generic musical idol series, some would say it's another hit or miss entry, but it really not.
However I try to look at it, its emphasis on well-written characters really is something you rarely see in a lot of good shows, and its plot, in general, is something of a great rewatch-ability value, I myself I'm planning to get into the dubbed version as soon as I'm finished writing this review, because apparently, I need more managers screaming of good mornings and shaving squids up my face for no apparent reason.

This is my 3rd review! I appreciate all who take the time to read my reviews. (Please check out my other reviews!). There were a lot of surprise shows this season, and Zombieland Saga was definitely one of them. I knew kind of the deal going in, but it wasn’t anything I expected!
Let me say that I haven’t watched any idol show (Love Live! IDOLM@STER, etc) ever because I’m not too interested in the genre. This one kind of fooled me, and probably many people thinking it was a full-on parody or satire of the genre. At first, it definitely felt like it was. I ... knew a few viewers who were intrigued by it, however as the show went on, some of them felt disappointed as it did turn out to be an ‘idol’ show.
But I stayed, simply because I liked the characters and wanted to know more about them! I guess I can say I was fooled into watching an idol show, but don’t get me wrong, I’m not just about to go watch Love Live! Or another idol show because of this though.

Story: 8/10

A girl named Sakura suddenly dies and is revived as a zombie, along with other girls. They all seem to be affiliated with idol or some important culture/background. You find out the man behind all of this is Koutarou Tasumi. His goal is to revive the city of Saga with an idol group. At face value the plot does seem a little dull, however as the story goes on each character’s history expands on the main plot. This is what made me appreciate the show a lot. All the girls are dead, and they are revived for a reason. Some stories made me smile, laugh, and even tear up. That’s enough to say it’s a great story. It wasn’t breathtaking but definitely enjoyable. Each episode or two had a little variety which made me curious as to what was coming next week (obviously besides from the ending credit previews).

Character: 8.5/10

Each character was distinctive from the beginning. Their looks and their personality. I really didn’t have a favorite though as all the girls weren’t super interesting to me. What I really took from them was their story and how they became zombies in the first place. I think that history is what made me like each character more in the end. I think they all meshed well together even with how distinct each character is. They all work together, which makes a good group. There were some quality of life side/support characters that reappeared which I thought was neat.
However, I think the sole character that carried the show was definitely Kotarou-san. He himself made this show push the extra mile. He is what made this show interesting and hilarious. Mamoru did an excellent job and I feel like the voice director just told him to go wild. He’s one of my favorite voice actors. Steins;Gate is my favorite show so just the craziness and wackiness of his voice really upped the game for me. His funny English and random outbursts made me laugh too many times watching this. He actually gets a whole point for his performance. This ties in with the sound which I’ll cover later.

Art: 7/10

I’m actually not a big fan of CG, even if it is an ‘idol’ show which has CG, it really just doesn’t vibe with me at all. It’s just so eerie to me so having to watch it was a pretty big turn off. However, I do like each character’s designs, and the art style and techniques I actually liked quite a bit. Each character was distinct and they wore different outfits here and there. Just going back between CG and non-CG was just too much of a juxtaposition. In the end it was a really colorful show and I enjoyed that. But what really kept this score in tact was the opening cinematic. Holy cow! It’s so different I love it. The song is okay, but just what they are doing is awesome!

Sound: 9/10

Voice acting was amazing. You already know how much I praised Mamoru for his performance with Kotarou. Even with how stupid Tae and the police officer sounded, it just went along with the silly tone. Saki with her slang, Yuugiri with her old era tone, each voice was unique. And to be honest, I thought some of the performance songs were catchy. Like I’ve heard Love Live! songs and with how many there are…I think I like one or two, so it’s hard to get my attention with idol songs. I didn’t add them to a playlist or my music library or anything, but they good enough for me to enjoy the performance. Especially Junko’s singing, jeez, that’s a singing voice that I like. As mentioned, the opening and ending songs are forgettable. I think the rap battle in the second episode was definitely one of my favorite episodes that I’ve seen in a while. Sick bars. This episode solidified that I should keep watching. However I was a little disappointed that nothing really got up to this caliber, but it wasn't bad by far.

Enjoyment: 8/10

Whenever we got history on a character or when Koutarou was talking, I really loved it. When there was CG or some drama between the girls, it was definitely a turn off. But it wasn’t enough for me to really dislike the show a lot. I got so caught up wondering how each girl died, and when it’s enough to make me tear up or be surprised, it carries the enjoyment score up. Especially the glimpse of something in the last episode. It literally made me stand up and look wide-eyed to my girlfriend who watches this show with me. I think it was very entertaining and I had a good time watching this show.

Overall: 8/10

For my final thoughts I think it’s a very good show. It’s not bad for what it is. It’s definitely an idol show, but with what I like, it was good enough for me to enjoy it. I’d say give it a shot. I had no experience with an idol show so this was a good first one for me. It’s silly, dramatic, and heartwarming. Adding the score total up it comes to 40.5 out of 50, which is an 8/10 really in the end!

Thanks for reading! I’ll try to put some more out when I can. I appreciate it!

Just personal scratch.
Advised, possible spoilers.
Opinion & Informal

Art: 7/10
A majority of the art was traditional style while the dance sequences later on were cgi. Outside of the cgi elements, I thought the art quality was nice, clean, and crisp. The few nature showcases looked fine. Not many panoramics or expanses but the generic backgrounds and supporting details looked pretty good though. Interiors were nicely populated and detailed as well. Anatomy and proportions checked out. The zombie version details looked fine. Lots of varied facial expressions that looked fine. Not many impact shots to note. Cgi could look a bit "eh" most of the time, but I ... would have rather had full-framed cgi dance sequences in mediocre quality than nice-looking dance sequences heavy on the selective framing. I admit, there were a few decently nice instances of cgi such as Lily's song, but overall I wasn't too impressed with the cgi work in this show.

Animation: 7/10
The animation was solid aside from the cgi work. The non-cgi animation looked really good: the headbanging, the dance moves, the facial expression changes, etc. Natural movements such as walking looked good. Motions and gestures looked believable. Supporting effects such as stage lights affecting hue, for example, were nice. My only personal complaint was the stiff cgi: body language looked unnatural and movements looked forced at times. Overall, aside from the cgi which was only a small portion of the show, I thought the animation was solid.

Characters: 7/10
This show was saved by the its character developments. Despite missing the opportunity to develop Yuugiri and the Legendary Yamada Tae, I was pretty happy with how this show chose to focus on the character developments starting halfway through. Although I found the first one or two episodes interesting enough, my interest began to waver in the early quarter of the show. However, the direction shift to focus on the backgrounds of each of the girls was what changed my initial assumptions about this show. Introducing some sort of baggage to their previous lives and actually resolving it to an acceptable point for most of the girls was excellent. I would have liked a bit more intra-character interactions to strengthen their friendships but I don't know if there would have been enough time for that, so it's fine; I'd like to see it in a sequel if that's ever a thing. What I mean though is that some of the character's stories were a bit isolated to me. For example, Saki's story was resolved through her own guts and that's totally fine, but once her personal story episode was finished the characters that were relevant to it were relegated to simple background cameos. I wanted more of how Junko and Ai formed a deeper friendship than the rest of the cast because their personal stories and resolutions intermingled. I personally would have liked to see Yuugiri's background and I would have killed to see Yamada Tae developed. Overall, I thought that the character designs were well thought out and made each of the characters very distinct and unique. I thought the character dynamics were a bit on the short side, but that was made up for with the focus on the characters individually. My personal gripe is that I wanted to see more of Tae.

Plot & Development: 5/10
The initial few episodes were nice and got me interested, but some of the questions that were raised during those times were mostly brushed over by the end. I accepted the explanation for as to how the girls were resurrected into zombies, but I sort of wanted to know how Tatsumi got a hold of the corpses, why they were all in relatively the same condition considering that some were over 100 years old, and how each of the girls were able to stay in relatively the same decomposition state. I accepted the whole "To save Saga" thing, but I was expecting some deeper motivations to be touched upon; the 2 second flashback of Tatsumi's interaction with Sakura implies romance, but that's just it. It was 2 seconds and that's all we got for any explanation of his potential true motivations. It could have been romance, it could have been repaying a debt, pity, etc. Why did Tatsumi have to go about whatever he wanted to do for Sakura by resurrected several other girls? Could Sakura have just attempted to blend into a regular idol group or was it so that Sakura could have something in common with her peers? Plenty of ways to go about explaining everything and they could all be perfectly fine, I'm just pointing some things out. The bar meeting with the mysterious bearded man raised some questions that I had some theories to, but I honestly would have just preferred some clarification or unveiling to that meeting. Overall, I thought the culmination of everything was fine: the girls reached a point closer to their "goal," but I felt like their goal was just stated by Tatsumi. I felt that they sort of just accepted Tatsumi's proposal way too easily, especially for Saki. Moreover, I was left with a lot of "why" and "how" by the end of the show and the way the show wanted to explain (or lack of) everything felt pretty lazy at times to me.

Music: 7/10
The music was pretty good. I don't normally listen to idol-like or pop-like music, but I was surprised by how catchy I thought the tunes were. I usually don't look for slow-type music too, but I thought Lily's song was nice. I thought it was neat how during the Saga-Rock episode and where the girls were struck by lightning that their song became a different version through changing the vocals to use voice-synthesizer. The reason I gave the music a 7 was because of the neat ways this show handled the music and music style. I liked how it explored different styles. For example, I liked how the first and second episodes, although the girls were ill-prepared, their performances weren't terrible: they used death-rock and freestyle rap which was totally awesome. Overall, I think this show did an excellent job with the way it handled its music and sound. The music was catchy. The soundboard was nice. No sound design to note. OP and ED were fine, not my taste though.

Conclusion: 6/10
The conclusion was fine. It was pretty obvious that they were going to somehow make it in time for their big event and likewise that it would be a hit somehow. The rising up outta a critical situation was also expected. The generic happy ending was fine with me though. At least the show attempted to answer one of the biggest questions during the final episode which was Tatsumi's motivations for "helping?" the girls. I still felt a bit let down that some of the other big plot points weren't addressed fully, but looking at the conclusion through a lighthearted lens, it was good for what it was.

Overall: 7/10
This show did a good job at introducing and developing a plot encompassing second chances and overcoming personal walls. It was lovely how the story was basically a bunch of girls were given a second chance to overcome their weaknesses or accidents and live lives that they wouldn't have been able to with those weaknesses or accidents. Overall, the art, animation, and music were on point. I personally felt the plot development let me down, but that was overshadowed by the thoughtful character growths. My personal gripe is that I would have liked to see more of the Legendary Yamada Tae. This show is worth considering if you're into idol shows.

I don't think I've ever been as blindsided as I have with this one. I only watched one PV before it started airing and even from that I couldn't have even guessed what this was gonna be about. Of all things I didn't expect an idol show at that. Admittedly I've never watched an idol show and this was a pretty fun ride.

The characters in this show are probably about as tropey as it can get with anime just filling in the blanks with each of our girls and then we get the big hitters. The LEGENDARY YAMADA TAE and the groups producer Koutarou ... Tatsumi (voiced by non other the Mamoru Miyano AKA Okabe Rintaro). Tae had a good role of always being comic relief which is weird to think about in a largely gag concept of "zombie idols" and I wouldn't have it any other way with the antics she gets up to. Koutarou on the other hand is largely shrouded in mystery as to who he is and why he wants to save the Saga prefecture with an idol group whilst simultaneously berating our group in the funniest ways possible with incredible delivery.

Part of me wants to give this an 8 or possibly a 7 just because the dance sequences where done in pretty bad looking CG that made for really jarring cuts back to full animation but I have a feeling that was done intentionally as to mock its other contemporaries in an almost deconstruction nature of idol shows. Deconstruction of Idols is probably the most apt name for this show giving how it handles a lot of the things thrown at it and the cookie cutter nature of it characters.

If anything it having this quality probably makes this show sit comfortably at a 9 for me. It was a good time every week I tuned in for each episode had great gags, excellent chemistry between our characters and definitely showed off the better parts of idol anime while at the same time bashing it and always had me wondering what our undead girls were gonna get roped into next week.

Huh this show is so odd but oddly good which is shocking for me to say cause I hate idol shows

Story
The story is about a zombie idol group with each girl from a different era trying to save Saga with there music and team work with the most over the top manager who loves to shout. Will they be able to sing as idols without people finding out their zombies..... From what I've no there really bad at hiding it but that's part of the fun.

Art
The art does its job well enough when it needs fast pace comedie it works ... really well and when the show needs slow moments it gives us time to breath. The only problem I do have with it is the cgi on the dancing and singing it feels out of place though it's not to bad the girls move fine enough.

Sound
The music and voicing acting in this show is great Tatsumi, Koutaror Played by Miyano, Mamor Is so funny and you can tell is having a blast voicing this guy and the other girls do a great job as well. I'm shocked I liked the music from this some of them are stuck in my head.

Character
The Character that steals the show is Tatsumi, Koutarou it's hard to describe him now since I saw the last ep I can only describe him as Happy, insane, charming and a very bad driver. The rest of the girls are great as well when we get to see there back stories and how they died the only ones we don't really learn about is Yuugiri and Tae which I hope theres a season 2 so we can see there backstories

Enjoyment
I really enjoyed this show I found it pretty funny at parts, the Characters I love and hope to see more in a season 2 if we get one.

Overall
I recommend this show a lot to people who don't like idol shows it's a good watch and brings some life this the genre which is so odd since there dead........

This is a very refreshing music based anime which differs from other ther franchise. Zombieland saga gets straight to the point and there's no beating around the bush when it comes to sub arc.
It is a pity that this anime gets only 12 episodes, it has a lot of potential.

Every episode nearly have a unique genre of music that are casted which makes you become more curious about whatever may come next.

Although I would strongly disagree the R17+ rating which is ridiculous, the level of profanity or violence is no where near extreme to justify it. Yet, you have some anime that are ... borderline H rated and gets a R13+.

Zombieland saga is not what you think, don't give up on ep 1, you will get into it in ep 2, hopefully
You will eventually fall in love with the characters, it has some intense moments (unexpectedly) and emotional one also. This anime also has funny, sweet and sad moments. It has cgi dance, one ex: is the one they have to do in public, people hate it, but I like it, they are zombies, that's why I like how it looked, well it's up to you. There are some parts unsolved, need season 2, you will have to fill in some pieces, but no all ... is solved, am hyped for season 2.


Story- 9

Art- 10

Sound- 10

Character- 10

Enjoyment- 10

Overall- 9

This is from the perspective of someone who hasn't watched any idol shows before, so take that into account.

That said, this show is fun enough to get me to really get into it! The first episode alone is a masterpiece and that's what got me to watch the show. It's a lot of fun to watch, with fun songs and dancing animations.

I will say that I do wish that we could see more of the character backstories, but there's only so much you can pack into a 12 episode season. Luckily, season 2 is on the way! In addition, there are definitely some ... handwavey things, but the explanation of those things isn't really important, when the focus is on something else entirely.

Art's very bright and colorful, and while I've never been a fan of 3D anime characters, with an exception here or there, the sequences were still entertaining and fun to watch.