Kuutei Dragons had all the components necessary for a really interesting show but ultimately failed to put them together in a satisfying way. Airships straight out of Laputa, amazingly beautiful dragons, world travel and adventure...what could go wrong? Well, a few things.
First off, the sole motivating force of the show is just "we hunt dragons for money and because they taste good." We never get much more than that, and it's just not enough to drive twelve episodes unless you really, really like watching dragon hunting (and eating). Almost every one of those scenes, and there are a lot of them, play out identically: people
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Alternative Titles
Synonyms: Airborne Dragons
Japanese: 空挺ドラゴンズ
More titlesInformation
Type:
TV
Episodes:
12
Status:
Finished Airing
Aired:
Jan 9, 2020 to Mar 26, 2020
Premiered:
Winter 2020
Broadcast:
Thursdays at 00:55 (JST)
Producers:
Kodansha, Fuji TV, Bandai, Nexon, BS Fuji, TOHO animation, Hakuhodo DY Media Partners, Fuji Creative, Bandai Spirits
Licensors:
Sentai Filmworks
Studios:
Polygon Pictures
Source:
Manga
Demographic:
Seinen
Duration:
23 min. per ep.
Rating:
PG-13 - Teens 13 or older
Statistics
Ranked:
#45632
2
based on the top anime page. Please note that 'Not yet aired' and 'R18+' titles are excluded.
Popularity:
#3328
Members:
48,482
Favorites:
109
Available AtResourcesStreaming Platforms | Reviews
Filtered Results: 23 / 25
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Your Feelings Categories May 4, 2020
Basically whaling.... Yep, it's a show about killing flying whales that don't appear to be harming anyone "Dragons", harvesting, eating them and selling them for profit. Okay there is more to it than that but it's kinda hard to get past that if I'm honest, they're not heroes, they're "whalers" killing harmless creatures for profit.
Whats next, animal traffickers for wet markets? If you can get past it the series does get a a little better, the show has it's moments I guess but most of the characters are unlikable from the start for me. I know whaling is a thing in Japan but to ... Feb 12, 2020
This is the first time I write a review. A few days ago, this show has a 6.X rate here (now 7.X) and I am very curious as I have watched ep1 when it aired all 12eps. I don't think it will be that low so I go to watch more. I eventually finished up the whole show, which doesn't always happens.
After finished this show, I think people may have two main problems to be disappointed. First: this is a CGI show, it cannot give us detailed facial expressions with this quality, and the expressions are rather rough especially in close cut for their eyes. And ... Jan 30, 2020
I'm five episodes in and don't know if this show is supposed to be moving or a joke. All the characters are likeable, yet their actions are cringy. It's like watching an episode where you get to see the antagonist's side or viewpoint on things even though I'm sure that's not what the creators were going for. They hunt almost extinct creatures that aren't harming anyone for money/food and the show makes it seem like it's a cool job. They also do a 'Shokugeki no Soma' (Food Wars) thing with yummy dragon dishes. My version of an english dub for every episode would be: "What
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Aug 8, 2021
As a member of Sea Shepherd this shit is a disgrace to the anime industry. I don't understand why the overall rating for this thing is 7+.
You will see slayers of "dragons" raving about killing them and eating their meat. Except that the report is quickly made, it's neither more nor less than a kind of propaganda that tries to make the image of whale hunters prettier. They say it themselves: as long as there is some we will never stop. WTFFF? I know that in Japan, whale hunting is traditional. But we are in the 21st century, it's time to evolve and understand that our footprint ... May 1, 2020
Drifting Dragons can be summed up in two words: Dreadfully Dull. I think watching paint dry would have been a better expenditure of my time. Story really is more of a slice of life about whalers on a ship if those whalers caught funky looking sky whales..er which I guess really is what this story is about.
Art is fair to mediocre at best as it's that typical CGI crap that Netflix is so famous for producing. Color Palettes looked washed out with characters really not that pleasing to look at, symmetry or overall design wise. Sound exists but nothing to write home about unless ... Feb 11, 2020
Kuutei Dragons definitely isn't something that will be for everyone, but I ended up really loving it! I wasn't sure how I'd feel about it, at first, because of the animation style. They chose the same animation style as is used on shows like RWBY, which is a show that took a while for me to get into, specifically because of the animation style. Other actual anime that have been done this way, are not ones I've been able to stick with.
However, Kuutei Dragons only took a couple of episodes to suck me in, and align me with a character I could identify with, which ... Aug 27, 2020
I have never seen an anime that made me seethe with rage as much as this. The whole thing is trying to make you empathise with whale hunting. I watched two episodes to see if it might change but no. It's a show about murdering innocent creatures for no reason and patting yourself on the back about it.
I would be fascinated to see if the original author has family involved in whaling because that is the only way I can explain why he thought making this was a good idea. Please, please do not watch this and write to Netflix and express your disgust at ... Jun 16, 2020
What an awful anime. I can't help but draw parallels to Japan's whaling practices. This anime seems to justify and even glorify it and instead of using whales they use something that resembles a dragon but are giant slugs, also the two dimensional characters taken from the lowest rung of jrpgs that only you care when you see a little of the slice of life but the rest is awful, selfish and plain characters. Specially Mika that becomes my most hated anime character ever. An anime that works as blatant propaganda for the Japanese whaling industry; nothing more.
But yes, there are a few on good ... Sep 14, 2020
Do you like:
Interesting characters? What about dragons? Nice art style? And you obviously love a good story, right? Well, this anime has none of the above! This show is just a fantasy representation of whaling, just with dragons, that's if you can even call them that sins the hunted creatures us an organ to fly, instead of wings, and they all look like flying meatballs, with the exception of one that actually resembled a dragon. ... Nov 1, 2020
This was a really weird show. I tend to just jump into shows with little to no knowledge of what their content is, and that was the case with this one.
At first I was like, oh cool, they are kinda steam punky air ballooning around hunting dragons. Well, that feeling lasted through the first episode. Then it quickly became "why am I watching this?" After the first dragon hunt, you basically need no more action in the show for a few reasons: 1. It's repetitive 2. There is no clear reason for why the audience should care if they ... May 5, 2020
Another CG series by Netflix. I thought it would be as interesting and engaging as Kouya no Kotobuki Hikoutai as it had similar elements, but it was nowhere near as good.
This series is mostly about eating, preparing and butchering dragons with occasional hunting and drama, aka, everyday life of a dragon hunting crew. Takita and Jirou's arcs were okay but the overall experience is still lacking, especially when you're binging it on Netflix. They overused one tune and looking at the CG over and over is not fascinating at all. Overall, it's okay if you have nothing else to watch. Aug 2, 2021
This is just a piece of propaganda trying to justify why whaling is fine and them trying to show you the struggles of being a whaler. They try to justify it by saying it tastes delicious, and they use every piece of it for their needs such as the organs for medicine, and the fat for fuel.
They try to show you the struggles of being a whaler like not being welcome anywhere, and being one of a few ships left who do it. They even admit in the first episode that the dragons seldom hurt humans. If you can look past the obvious allegory then maybe it's ... Jul 23, 2020
I really love polygon animations and im a huge fan of Blame and Sidonia no Kishi.
For me personally the show had two big issues. 1. The first was that I got the feeling that they try to justify nowadays whale hunting of Japanese fisherman. 2. And secondly: as other people here also mentioned. Mikas main drive is fresh dragon meat. The show was missing some originality in this point. Otherwise I would say were a bit spoiled from all these epic anime series that fit so much action into 12/13 episodes. In my opinion they did a great job filling the 12 episodes with ... Sep 6, 2023
Drifting Dragons had the potential to be amazing but blows it thanks to the problems with 3D animation and a lackluster (arguable nonexistant) plot.
The plot is mostly slice of life as it follows the Quin Zaza in their daily duties as Drakers (Dragon hunters). From hunting to selling the parts in port, Drifting Dragons covers it all. However, the concept of the show is what does the majority of the heavy lifting. Action and cooking sequences supplement the narrative, they alone aren't enough to make up for an unexplored plot that was set up from episode 1. Within the first few minutes it's mentioned that ... May 1, 2020
This is my first review here so I ll try my best.
Story: Never heard about the manga this is based on but I really liked the story base here. There was big potential on never ending exploration of skies for new dragon kinds but at the end it really did not deliver on it. The very last two episodes got my attention really going on: baby dragon, dragon mountain "arc". Most of the show is kind of a filler around basic formula: we see a dragon, we hung it, Mika jumps, Mika eats... So much potential - such a bad delivery. Sound: Hm... It did ... Nov 29, 2020
This is literally the worst "anime" I've ever watched - or rather - tried to watch.
It basically follows along an airship of dragon hunters, who, there's really nothing else to it, hunt dragons. They hunt them, they butcher them, they sell them, they eat them. That's literally it, episode after episode. Beautiful, majestic dragons get introduced only to be eaten moments later. In one instance our crew discovers a small dragon that flew off from another ship. They catch it and.. surprise, they eat it. The episode ends with the other ship's people looking for it, revealing that it was a gift worth a fortune. ... Jul 28, 2022
Do you enjoy a well-paced, well-thought-out plot with interesting and fun characters? Then look somewhere else.
This show doesn't know what it wants to be, and never quite hits the mark in the 12 episode run. It can never decide if it wants to be a fantasy cooking show, a whaling series, or a fantasy adventure. Sadly, what it does pull from these genres is minimal and poorly executed. A majority of the characters are completely forgettable and downright unlikable. Mika is by far the worst. Its like they took the "Im not like other girls!" trope and said "lets me them a guy, but even ... Oct 6, 2022
Repeating my previous review on this anime.
It is still a bit boring for me. I tried to finish this anime with no high expectations and im glad i did. Because the ending was just meh for me. Its an anime where cooking and hunting dragons is the main plot. There is no background story onto how the dragons came into and no such thrill in watching. Maybe i was used to watching anime with same genre such as Restaurant to another world but that was much much better and i hate that i even compared it to this. This anime just lack the proper story telling it ... Aug 10, 2020
Picture "Carnival Eats" meets Nausicaä with some influence from Moby Dick. Every episode is food heavy with bizarre eats, usually in tandem with killing a dragon. The motivation for everyone is basically "Fly, kill, eat. Repeat." Backgrounds are hinted at but never fleshed out. Most characters are really one dimensional, and the leads are boilerplate. At least the anime is entertaining.
The best part is the dragons. Each new one is more interesting and original, from abilities to appearance. The Anime is 100% CGI, and while that makes for some lack of details, it really takes advantage of it when it comes to epic shots, sweeping ... |