Enen no Shouboutai

Episode 9 and the one before it convinced me to drop the show. Seemed like a lot of gratuitous violence toward children and women as shock value, while the revelation that a character we know little about is one of the bad guys was not as surprising as they seemed to be going for because we haven't gotten to know him.

And then there's the fanservice. I have watched One Piece for 11 years. I don't mind fan service... When it's used appropriately. There is a time and a place and stopping a key fight scene just to have multiple breast faceplants and a character's clothes ... strategically removed to be as revealing as possible ain't it, chief. Plus this happens at awkward, poorly timed moments constantly, in every episode. It's starting to feel more like a softcore hentai. I wanted to like this show because of the animation, character design and interesting concept but... nah.

Watch Promare instead if you want fiery action.

A generic shonen show. I wont talk about the story because it would be a complete waste of time. This show is all about the fights and to be fair, they are good. The animation is top tier and the sound design can be decent. Sadly fights alone cant carry a whole show so by the end I started to really get bored. If you want to save some time, just skip to the fights.

So why am I even talking about this generic show? It has one of the weirdest problems I have ever seen. Fan service. Now I like fan service as much as ... the next guy but when the show feels the need to stop a fight just as it was getting good, only to deliver some fan service I think we have a problem. Like seriously, why would you ever do this? Whose idea was it? i just cant comprehend what were they even thinking.

This anime would be a lot better, if it just let it serious moments be serious and not bogged down with some piss poor comic relief, there are too many moments where they're fighting and the situation should be serious but the writer decides to put a ton of bad jokes during these situations leaving you unable to take these fights seriously and then questioning the timing and execution of it all.

I'm going to put this show on hold for now and I may come back to it and update my review, its just really hard to watch sometimes.

(I have not read the manga so this review is limited in scope. Minor anime spoilers ahead)
Fire Force has some real moments of audiovisual brilliance. I want to say that this anime has hands down the best sound design I've ever witnessed. However, audiovisual spectacle cannot carry the incredibly poor storytelling and writing.

Many other reviews have been more eloquent than I will be about this so I'll just toss a bulleted list of complaints about the story (3/10):
- Characters are 1-trick-pony tropes and it's painfully obvious every time they speak
- The "growth" that even the MC experiences is limited to "gained more power" and "learned ... to persevere". That is to say, blase and stereotypical lessons on the level of Barney's Club House.
- Some fights are incredible, and some fights have whiplash-inducing lack of visual continuity. (Especially egregious in Episode 21 where the villain is shown to have been thrown on the ground and deployed a helicopter contraption from his back, the scene cuts to our hero to say a quip, cuts back to the villain but somehow the villain is just standing facing away from the camera with no apparent damage and no helicopter contraption.)
- Every single female character is treated as a damsel in distress at one point or another in the show. It's really boring and there's never any sense of real danger because you know from the start Shinra will evolve some power to save them.
- Every single new companion added to our hero's party is tossed into a background role and their abilities and interesting characteristics are all but forgotten except for tiny moments in which they save themselves from certain death.
- The "big twist" of the story is the most predictable thing I've ever watched

Good points (and there are few because again, Fire Force does nothing countless other Shounen haven't done before)
- Sound design, visuals, animation (for the most part 10/10)
- Villains are not instantly redeemed before their defeat as many shounen do (makes some plot points enjoyable)
- Character designs are really unique and work well with their abilities (caveat: the second part does not apply to the female characters. Too many of them are just "this ability makes me able to strip them of clothing once an episode" or "its a woman so her power MUST be about flowers and I will not elaborate further")

That's it. I don't hate this show. I don't like it either though. The definition of middling. Average.
Overall: 5/10

This was my favorite anime because of the comedy. It's animation is also decent being epic. It also has some good art style and it fits the story. The protagonist is not really your average shonen crybaby character like deku for example. But most importantly, it's plasma gun sound effect, like it sounds like music in my head. Yeah some of it's flaws are cgi and some people would hate on this but I think it's still a good anime and stack up to the hype it has in my personal opinion. Also if you like soul eater then you will like this one because ... since it's a prequel so why not give it a shot.

pros:
-Absolutely excellent opening and closing songs: "Inferno" by Mrs. Green Apple and "Veil" by Keina Suda.
-There is a main female character that isn't just written off as fan service or severely lackluster. Muscle Witch concept goes hard.

cons:
-Everything feels more or less generic in an unimaginative manner.
-Dialogue often reads as unnatural or dumbed-down.
-Character development is almost non-existent. The show went as far as sacrificing a character's development in order to just maintain them as the designated fan service.
-Humor is spliced in a manner so poor that it actually detracts from any tension the show tries to build up.
-The magic system in this fantasy tries to ... be rooted in science, but ends up stretching itself too thin.

neutral:
-If you are a fan of generic Shonen, then you'll probably find no fault in this show.
-The fight scenes are okay enough to pass some time.

Well David productions delivered once again.

The animation is very good and pair that with excellent sound design and you have a recipe for a great show. But the problem with Fireforce is that the story is pretty dull and generic although the cool concept, and the characters are really nothing special. but they are funny and the main characters have good chemistry amongst them. It's just your run of the mill shounen is what i would describe this show as, but don't sleep on it because the animation, sound effects and the humor bind it togheter into a very enjoyable show.


But keep in mind that ... season one only adapts up to around chapter 80 of the manga and season 2 up till chapter 170. so i would say it's too early to really bash the show for it's lack of depth in the characters and generic storytelling when the manga is as of now (2021) 280 chapters long and still releasing weekly.

I really hope this anime can redeem itself in later seasons because i see alot of potential.

Lol i don`t know why i write reviews but whatever lmao

Fire force everytime if i think about this anime i don`t know how good this show is let me explain

Story: We starting to know the protagonist Shinra Kusakabe a young boy and his dream is to become a hero. He wants to join the Fire force(Special force that put demons in rest) he joins the fire force special force The 8th in this anime you have different bases and they have all numbers. Like shinra he is placed in the 8th with his old classmate Arthur Boyle were he always arguing with. The story goes ... more about the world in danger and the backstory of the protagonist later in the story his backstory and the danger in the world make sense. Through the story the 8th have always conflicts with demons or other bases from the fire force special force sometimes some of the bases helps the 8th and few are against the 8th. We have a villain group the white clad this is organization that wants that the world is gonna be destroyed and they have all special powers like the special fire force and so the story.

The characters are in my opinion not interesting the only one that i think are solid in this show are Arthur,Benimaru,Joker this charachters are the only ones that are interesting.

why it is overhated: the story is lame is doesn`t make sense: i can agree with that the story is really frustrating and is confusing but sometimes it have his ups and downs. The art is horrible: In my opinion every anime has his own art design for me it is fine

should i recommend it???
In my opinion i want to say yes and no: yes because the fights are amazing and few backstorys are good, and the comedy is good. And no because the story doesn`t make sense and sometimes the anime lacks something

lol i`m done

Ah Fire Force,

It genuinely has a TON of potential (alot of that potential being realized in the second season), however this season leaves a rather painful first impression with plenty of Bread and Butter shonen tropes mixed with a messy tone and direction.

The characters are a mixed bag, but mostly pretty great. Shinra continues to fascinate me in interesting ways, and while he seems static, I see his potential being realized. Arthur is hands down series Best Girl, being equally loveable as he is dumb. His goofy, Whinny the Pooh attitude brings a rather fresh take on the "main rival character". Tamaki is mostly unnecessary, ... with her whole thing being an excuse for fanservice. I found myself just patiently putting up with her, rather than liking her as a character. In terms of interactions, this is where the characters truly shine. Seeing Shinra and Arthur's dopey, stupid and obscene clashes with each other is fresh. Seeing the Captains of each division work together to unlock the initial "hook" of the plot is also interesting. Seeing the 8th division (Shinra's team) interact amongst each other proves funny, entertaining and even heartwarming at times. The only serious knock I could give would be that some of the villains are comically evil, and it's hard to take them seriously sometimes.

The Art really suffers, as this series reeks of odd and awkward cuts, jokes, and fight sequences. Characters don't move with weight, and fight scenes feel cobbled together. David Productions seems to be allocating its budget in all the wrong places, with stiff character movement and still shots that scream "budget cuts" from a mile away. I absolutely love Atsushi Ohkubo's unique and indescribable art style, but too many times I found myself saying "if only this were animated by Bones". That isn't to say that things are all down bad. By episode 16, David finds a real groove, and fight scenes evolve into everything I hoped they were. By episode 20 I was yelling at my computer as Shinra's quick and powerful kicks sent chills down my spine.

As a whole, Fire Force has some absolutely awesome moments, but too many times it is held back by a poor direction, and lack of focus. The premise is filled to the brim with creativity and potential. Each fire power is distinctly unique, and when done well, the fight scenes are genuinely engaging, fresh, and jaw dropping. I am writing this review after watching Season 2, and I can promise you that almost all of that potential is realized. Atsushi Ohkubo and David Productions are very close to writing a hit, it's just a shame that so many people are going to drop it before it really shows what it has to offer.

If you're coming back from the first season, I encourage you to check out the second season. You're sure to love it. If you're a fan of Soul Eater, and love Atushi Ohkubo's work, then be patient. I promise you that this show has the creativity and imagination to match Soul Eater. It's not for everyone, but it hits a certain sweet spot of goofy, campy, action movie fun that kept me engaged, and left me pleasantly surprised by the end of it all.

THIS IS A SPOILER-FREE REVIEW

After just finishing the first season of this show i have very mixed feelings about it. This may be the hardest review for me to write because this show is just so controversial and devisive. When i started it i just looked for some Fighting-Shounen fun and what i got was a show were i am not even sure about the rating. Let´s try to get into it....

Story - 7/10

The main concept in itself is very similar to the movie "Promare". The world the series is set in is very interesting in itself. There are a lot of super interesting ideas ... put into the show, reaching from religious themes over evolutionary biology to pseudo-scientific bending of space and time.There is also a pretty cool mystery going on which makes you want to see the next episode. All the different ideas the show throws at you could be used to make a whole series about them, but Fire Force is cramming all of these together. The story feels overbloated and i think the author tried to bite of more than he can chew. The structure is another problem. The show follows a very boring pattern of mini-arcs hat always switch between action, training and slice-of-life. You always know when an arc is going to end because the pacing is very repetitive. However, i have to give credit for the last arc, "Netherworld". That arc was good from start to finish and easily has the best fight of the show. The comedy aspect is handled pretty poorly, consisting mainly of the same jokes that are used to the point of not being funny anymore. And this show has another HUGE problem, one that i didn´t think would bother me at all : Fanservice. Usually, i never have a problem with fanservice. The shounen genre always used fanservice and i have absolutely nothing against it if used correctly. However the fanservice in Fire Force has two major problems: 1) It consists solely of girls getting groped, falling over and revealing their private parts or the main character tripping into them which is....just not funny, and 2) It is used in the middle of the fight. That means super serios fight scenes get interrupted by cheap fanservice. Definitely not the way to do it... :D

Art - 8/10

This is the most controversial category. Some scenes in this anime are nothing short but breathtaking. This show came out in the same year as Demon Slayer and sometimes exceeds its quality. The way the fire was animated feels absolutely satisfying to watch. There are also some really cool dynamic shots during the fights which are a pleasure to look at. So, why only 8 points? The answer is directing. I never thought that anime could have bugs and glitches, but this one sure does. The whole timing of shots during some scenes feels just...off. Two characters are talking and after one has finished, the camera lingers on his face way to long before switching over. This also happens in some of the fights. It feels like entire sequences are missing and it can get really hard to follow what is going on. It is really hard to describe it to someone who hasn´t seen it so take this with a grain of salt.

Sound - 9/10

By far the best category. The insane soundquality of this show is noteworthy. First off, i have to give credit for the fantastic first opening and ending. Both are some of the most catchy songs i have ever seen in shounen. The second opening/ending combo was also solid. The BGM is pretty good as well and really sets a great mood during the less action heavy scenes. But the real standout here is the phenomenal sounddesign. I said this before, but i think sounddesign is one of the most underrated aspects of movies and TV-shows. I definitely suggest to watch this on a big TV with a soundbar and subwoofer. The bass is used perfectly, both to build tension as well as impact after a powerful attack. This alone, in combination with the (sometimes) insane animation quality makes the fights in the show entertaining, and a feast to watch.

Characters - 6/10

Honestly, some of the characters were just plain awful. Arthur was genuinely making me angry. He has one of the most obnoxius personalties i have ever witnessed and rivals even Zenitsu from Demon Slayer in stupidity. I have to defend the main character Shinra though. Although he is pretty generic and shounenlike, i rooted for him the entire time. He is voiced by Gakuto Kajiwara who also voices Asta from Black Clover. He had a clear motivation from the start and i really like his powers. The other standout would probably be Benimaru who was a really cool addition. The female characters....were there. Every single one of them was used for fanservice in one way or the other. Especially Tamaki really got on my nerves. This and the fact that none of the villains besides Joker or Giovanni were even remotely interesting makes this the worst category.

Enjoyment - 6/10

The incredibly mixed aspects of the show made it a really hard watch. There were some really amazing scenes and episodes that i enjoyed fully but every great scene comes with downsides as well. I decided that i will watch season two nonetheless because of the potential i see in the story and the possibility of character development. If you are a shounen fan you can definitely get some enjoyment experience out of this show. Everyone else should better skip it.

- Marco_Yooo

FINAL SCORE 6/10

gah! enen no shouboutai has officially marked the 100th anime i've watched. thruthfully, i have watched the first episode of this anime when it was still airing and dropped this shit right there and them. it has that 'interesting' quality but somehow i am not interested.

but yea. decided to give this anime another chance because my irls love it so much.

and here is my take. (note: i am a really simple person. i view stuffs on one point of view)

story: 6/10
i don't know why i can't get into this fire, human combustion, infernals concept. it really is a whole new world but somehow it was ... missing something that i can't really pinpoint. or maybe if the story is told in another pov, or another setting, idk? something about the story isn't really satisfying when in fact the story has that 'excellent shounen' quality. i think, it could have been written better.

art: 9/10
the art is really clean and clear. the fire was animated really well too as it gives off the impact it should.

sound: 10/10
HOLYSHIT beside my irl friends telling me fire force is amazing, the other reason i chose to pick up this show was bcs of the rumour that it has the best sound effect and oh lord nobody is lying! it was an amazing experience. the sound team need a pay raise ffs!

character: 7/10
well... they have a good characters and a whole 'why would you even exist' character. ah and not to mention the fan-service that's so loud it makes uncomfortable. i thought we left fan-service on 2016? but anyway arthur was the one who keeps me going. if it's not for this dumb cocky dude, i would have drop the show at episode 2! oh and benimaru. the blueprint of overpowered relief character. love him.

enjoyment: 6/10
i would say the entire show's enjoyment is 6 but somehow i started paying attention on episode 12-14. and i fully believe it is NOT and understatement to say that EPISODE 14 CARRIED THE WHOLE SHOW. i will rate this show a 6/10 but will drop a 10/10 for episode 14 anyday.

i believe in episode 14 supremacy.

Fire Force is another addition to the shonen library of the modern age that gained popularity during the summer 2019 season. You couldn’t go far without hearing about the animation, the opening theme, and hatred for a character named Tamaki. But where exactly did Fire Force stand compared to other shonen was still a lingering question. Unfortunately, it joins the ranks of being an average shonen.

Fire Force overwhelmingly follows the tried and true tiresome formula. Whatever trope is common for the genre is here in full force. You’ve seen cliche story beats such as cheesy heroic speeches, reformed villains from simple conversations, and training to ... improve many times before. However, the biggest offender is the fanservice. The fanservice wouldn’t be a problem if the series knew when it was appropriate to have it. There are emotional moments that are interrupted with something like accidental groping gags. This questionable direction is distracting and removes all tension from the scene. Fire Force is not something to watch if you want more than the same old formula.

Buried underneath this formulaic endeavor is a decent dark fantasy mystery plot. Spontaneous human combustion is a phenomenon that has plagued humanity for centuries in their world. Humans randomly combust at any moment and become monsters known as Infernals. The titular group is a firefighting organization of pyrokinetics tasked with taming these beasts. Living in a world where you could spontaneously be burned alive is a terrifying idea. Unfortunately, it doesn’t amount to much because the beginning of the season follows a monster-of-the-week format combined with the aforementioned run-of-the-mill shonen fare. When it transitions to Company 8’s investigation of the Fire Force is when the plot becomes slightly better. The secret behind spontaneous human combustion lies within the very organization they serve is what they believe. Throughout there is some enjoyable comedic relief thrown in to break up the tension. Some of these gags overstayed their welcome, such as Arthur’s need to announce himself as a knight king. Regardless, how spontaneous human combustion began and how to end it will leave you curious enough to stay engaged.

Although, the delivery of the narrative is damaged by the rapid pacing. Fire Force breezes through backstories or entire story arcs before you even process them. Additionally, the undercovering of the mystery is thrown at you all at once. This leads to plenty of exposition about important concepts and the bigger picture coming across as convoluted. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself rewinding sometimes just to comprehend what occurred. Why Fire Force decided to progress at such a speed is its own mystery.

Shinra Kusakabe is the newest rookie at Fire Force Company 8. First impressions lead you to believe he will be a devious, rebellious type of protagonist. Instead, he’s your standard good-natured hero who always does what is right. Which is not surprising considering his literal goal is to become the Hokage, I mean, a hero. It’s also shocking that something as formulaic as Fire Force doesn’t have an idiotic shonen protagonist. Always a pleasant change of pace for them to be intelligent. However, he does remain stagnant since he never grows from any of his experiences. He instead sticks to his ideals and persuades others to agree with him via “talk-no-jutsu”. But Shinra is still a main character you could get behind overall.

Joining Shinra are the other members of Company 8. They had nothing besides a single personality trait to differentiate themselves from each other. And we don’t see them all in action often because Shinra takes all the spotlight. Fire Force also decides to keep introducing new characters later instead of focusing on the ones we have. The only standouts were Maki Oze and Akitaru Obi. Obi shined as the charismatic captain of Company 8 who was motivated to help the world. Additionally, it is awesome how he was able to keep up despite not being a pyrokinetic. With Maki, she went against the stereotype of physically fit women being masculine. She showed that having a muscular physique doesn’t make her masculine because her personality revealed her feminine side. And she was an exceptional pyrokinetic that could hold her own. Altogether, Company 8’s comradery and lighthearted vibe showed they worked best as a group.

The infamous Tamaki Kotatsu deserves a direct mention because she is one of the worst characters of all time. In the beginning, she seemed like a character that had promise. This potential was quickly erased minutes into her introduction. It became clear that Tamaki being a fanservice outlet was her sole purpose. Almost all of her scenes present her naked or dressed up to look cute. The series cannot even commit to treating her like a person because her character-driven moments are squandered by fanservice. Therefore, Tamaki is a distraction that has no reason to be here besides wasting time.

The enemies of the Fire Force are not any better. A religious cult known as the White Clad aims to reach their goal of burning everything to the ground. However, you would not care about them or their motivations. Their sole purpose was to be obstacles in the path of the protagonists. They are a generic villain organization with cliche antagonistic goals and unclear reasons behind their actions.

The only areas where Fire Force can confidently be praised is in animation and sound design. The fights are a spectacle because of the fluidity of the movement. And sounds, such as pyrokinetics using their flames, were satisfying to hear. Additionally, the opening and ending themes were addictive to listen to. David Production brought in their expertise from JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure and did an excellent job.

However, not everything about the production values can be credited. Unlike the animation and sound, the art quality is inconsistent. Sometimes the art looked beautiful, having colors that contrast well with each other. The dark atmosphere also highlighted the bright colors, such as the color of flames or everyone’s eyes. Other times, the budget seemed to be lacking because scenes would look poor quality. In addition, Fire Force has the strangest cinematography choices. For example, there is one scene where Obi finishes his conversation with a captain. Afterwards, the camera awkwardly remained panned on them despite their conversation being over. There are many other bizarre scenes like this plastered throughout. At least the animation was excellent because the art and cinematography issues bring down the whole presentation package.

Fire Force is an entertaining shonen at best. The weird pacing, ridiculous fanservice, and cliche elements are amongst the many issues you would have to withstand. Your reward is a mostly interesting story with decent characters if you can endure. And the animation represents one of the best displays of 2019. If you can’t, then hopefully you still give the opening and ending theme a listen.

SCORE: 6/10

I originally started this anime, watched the first two episodes and got turned off by the fan service at first. I picked it up again, hoping that it would get better, but they introduced Tamaki and I got completely turned off. Some people might like fan service, but I don't. I loved the sound design and the music, but the fan service is a bit much.

Shinra seems like a likable main character, and I would be lying if I said that the fights did not hype me up, his story is interesting and I would continue Fire Force if there wasn't so much fan ... service.

If I were to watch this anime, I would have to skip through the useless scenes of Tamaki and her titties. It just doesn't make sense to me, she's fighting fires but she goes in with her suit open and only in a bra? She's just there for fan service and I can't stay to watch to learn more about her.

I started this anime because I wanted to see Shinra beat people's asses with his feet, but there's just useless scenes of Tamaki that give no meaning.

this anime could have been one of the best mades of summer season 2019, but unfortunately the inconsistent story-writing made it unlikely.

This review doesn’t contain any spoilers. So don’t be hesitant to check it out ^^

the anime was very virtuous and interesting at first, and I have to say that I was quite intrigued when the first(main?) villain had his first appearance. His profile was so alluring, and the hints that were showed to us about the backstory of the leading character made it clear that this wasn’t your typical shonen. It has quite some mystery in it that has to be unraveled. The very ... idea of this is what I liked most in this anime, and it contributed a lot to the Shonen genre. So this encouraged me to keep on watching, but sadly, around 17 episodes in, The anime lost its thrill and taste, and just left me utterly disappointed . This anime was doing good on the first half, and suddenly the quality just plummets down the second half, literally almost ruining the whole show. The events happening just became so uninteresting and lackluster. At that point, it proved quite hard to watch. This is the main thing that led this anime to its downfall. There is also the forced and way-too-much fan service which I won’t cover since it is pretty obvious. But frankly, I kind of find it tolerable.

The art is quite remarkable. The character designs are quite good, the backgrounds and other stuff was great as well. There are no flaws with it, and I found it pretty likeable. The animations are well done as well. I can see all the time and effort the studio spent just by watching it. It was super captivating. it’s just a shame that it has all gone to waste because of the inconsistent story.

The characters ain’t bad. Seeing some of the character’s profiles and motives was just pleasing, take the first villain as an example. However some characters did not really get that much development at all as the anime was heavily focused at the story, and didn’t give any screen time to the characters.

I honestly can’t say anything about the sounds. I didn’t find them bad, and I didn’t find them admirable either. It did its job, and i’m pretty fine with it.

The anime isn’t bad, but it is many levels away from being perfect. The premise and idea of the story was intriguing. I first recommend you to give the first episode a try, if you liked it, you can expect nothing less at the other episodes. However, the anime does fall short on the 2nd half. If you like shonen that has some uniqueness packed into it, I recommend you give this a try.

I'll start out by saying this. Give it a chance.

I had Fire Force on my watch list for quite some time and I finally finished the first season. From episode 1, I immediately got the ever so classic Attack on Titan vibes.

The theme of the show radiates many similar feelings I have gotten from many other shounen anime. "My family was killed and I want to avenge them by killing whatever it was that caused their death." But even though that is a very common theme as of now, some anime definitely portray and handle it better than most.

This anime wasn't exactly one of ... them.

There were moments where I of course got submerged into some feelings, but other times the plot felt very expected and honestly kind of boring. The pace was also kind of all over the place and well as some of the events.

But even though this anime contains several negative things, there are also some positives.

The animation and the powers/universe given to the characters is very unique. There are some things that happen and moments that do get your heart pounding when it comes down to it. I also thoroughly enjoy most of the characters as well as the handful of humor that is in the show as well.

I am going to watch season 2 since I can't just leave myself hanging on season 1, since I do find that even though it's not the best anime, it does leave me wanting to know what happens next. If it's on your watch list do give it a try and don't just kick it off after one episode. I do believe that this is an anime that is not for everybody, but it's really not a terrible watch when it come down to it. You just have to get past some of the weaker points.

Short review, no spoilers

1. Fights are great, impressive visually and ability-wise, fun to watch.

2. Fanservice is degrading, forced and placed like in the middle of the fight. Some characters do not have any purpose except flashing nudes.

3. World, while hinted as very interesting fiery-churchy-punky, was not explored at all. "Fire Force" forgets about their job after the 2nd episode and focuses on who knows what.

4. Story is as generic as it could be. Assemble team, grow as hero, fight bad guys.

Overall I enjoyed some part and simply skip others, and did not lose anything to be honest