Dolls' Frontline

After World War III decimated the world's population and rendered large amounts of land uninhabitable, various private military contractors began using combat androids—also known as "T-Dolls"—to maintain peace in unstable countries. While they are physically superior to flesh-and-blood fighters, T-Dolls are incapable of formulating complex plans and thus require a human commander to issue orders.

Sangvis Ferri was an industry-leading T-Doll manufacturer until they attempted to install a specialized T-Doll as the company's sole commander—resulting in the immediate deaths of everyone at that facility. Seizing control of Sangvis factories, the rogue AI declared war on the remnants of mankind. Now facing a hostile robot invasion, Griffin & Kryuger is the only paramilitary organization strong enough to withstand confrontation and halt their destructive advances.

Investigating the events related to Sangvis Ferri's aggression, the elite task force "Team Anti-Rain" searches for highly confidential information in an abandoned warehouse, but they are shortly ambushed. Hoping to safeguard their findings, the group temporarily disbands and each Doll goes into hiding. Meanwhile, the lazy but gifted Gentiane is hired by Griffin as a rookie commander and given her critical first mission—track down Team Anti-Rain and recover the classified data before Sangvis Ferri can.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

M4 SOPMOD II Main

Tamura, Yukari Japanese

M4A1 Main

Tomatsu, Haruka Japanese

ST AR-15 Main

Katou, Emiri Japanese

M16A1 Main

Yamane, Nozomi Japanese

Kalina Main

Touyama, Nao Japanese

Gentiane Main

Komatsu, Mikako Japanese

UMP45 Supporting

Mineuchi, Tomomi Japanese

HK416 Supporting

Nonaka, Ai Japanese

Negev Supporting

Suwa, Ayaka Japanese

WA2000 Supporting

Tomatsu, Haruka Japanese

Kouchiyama, Takashi Producer

Imao, Keigo Producer

Ueda, Shigeru Director

Waki, Kentarou Episode Director, Storyboard, Editing

Reviews

Dec 1, 2023

ano420

Recommended

Good day, I hope my review finds you well that is if you didn't watch this complete toxic pile of trash. So.... 0/10 worst Anime I watched in my extensive anime watching carrier. Let me tell you a story: One day I was watching perfect blue and I thought this is the worst thing ever maid... but I could not be more wrong. So in conclusion better watch paint dry. Ty to my Editor for helping me wright this review. (he dint want to be mentioned in this extensive review).

Is the story unique? If it was predictable, did you enjoy it anyway because you ... like this genre/set-up? N N
Do you think the art style is fitting for the story? N
Were the characters well-rounded? Did they have flaws and strengths, or were they unusually strong/smart/stupid? NNNNNN
Did the characters react to situations and events in a realistic way? N
Do you think others will enjoy/dislike this series, even if you didn't? Why? N idk

Reviewer’s Rating: 2

What did you think of this review?

Nice 0

Love it 0

Funny 0

Confusing 0

Informative 0

Well-written 0

Creative 0

More reviews by ano420 (2)

Show all

Read more

Show less

Open

Gift

Report

Nov 1, 2022

garkon_icky

Mixed Feelings

All-around not great but better than the rock bottom I was expecting. Starts at story chapter 0 in the game and works forwards chronologically. Extraordinarily slowly paced for the first 6 episodes or so, but it does get traction in the back half. Might be better in a season 2 (if it happens) since now the boring part of the story is out of the way and the crew making it seems mostly competent.

The good: I like the ED and OP a lot, both the songs and the OP sequence itself. The animation isn't standout but it's consistently OK. The voice acting is good to ... excellent with some fairly senior VAs all reprising their roles from the gacha. Yukari Tamura is a stand-out as SOPMOD II even if she's basically doing a more enthusiastic murder-themed version of the Rika voice (or maybe that's why it's good). Best girl M14 is here, but she doesn't talk so it cancels out. After the boring part (most of it), it whacked me in the head with some actual clever foreshadowing like a real show, and from there through the ending it's actually not bad and kept my attention.

The bad: For the first 6-8 episodes this show is boooooooring. You can skip through entire minutes of it and not miss anything. It's not incoherent or horribly written or anything, it's an accurate recreation of the famously story-light early game in the gacha except without any gameplay. Scenarios start boring and resolve to nothing important. A lot of sangvis ringleaders are introduced that die within an episode or two and they're all non-characters except maybe three of them, all of which show up at the end when the show is better in general. A LOT more of this should've been skipped. The depictions of how t-dolls fight are also strange. They're trying to split the difference between how it works in the game meta and how actual warfighting works and it doesn't really make any sense for either. Team comps are too random to be a good even in early game, and shikikan makes the tactical decision to send the handguns to a rooftop to be snipers. Huh?

The ugly: People made a big deal about shikikan becoming a named character with voice acting, it's mostly fine but doesn't really achieve anything for the show. She doesn't really do anything and is a passenger while AR team drives the plot around her. Other named shikikans are introduced and when they start talking to each other about their favorite t-dolls the show teeters dangerously close to becoming pokemon, but thankfully does not and starts being good after that. Pedantic point but all of AR team's guns are incorrectly drawn as AR15s.

Conclusions: Season 2 should steal Lycoris Recoil's homework and be about the moe adventures of [spoiler character] and SOPMOD. I would watch that and it would be good. Otherwise probably skip this, but if you want to watch it's less bad than it could've been and isn't a total disaster.

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

What did you think of this review?

Nice 0

Love it 0

Funny 0

Confusing 0

Informative 0

Well-written 0

Creative 0

More reviews by garkon_icky (9)

Show all

Read more

Show less

Open

Gift

Report

Sep 23, 2022

TheDigitalDummy

Not Recommended

This one hurts. As a massive fan of the game I was hoping the story would finally get the adaptation it deserves as it pertains to what might just be my favourite sci-fi/alt-history world ever created and anyone who's committed the (admittedly large amount of) time to the game would surely understand. It was inevitable that at first the show would not reflect this as the story only picks up at around Chapter 8 but that is no reason to drop the ball on the first part of a narrative that certainly requires multiple seasons to be told well.

Unfortunately, what we were instead met with ... was a lazily-made, half-baked excuse of an adaptation where its only redeeming quality was its intro. It's a mess confused by what it wants to adapt (i.e. including the most 'controversial' element of the manga) while lacking in the artistry necessary to make its way through the most dull parts of the story. The sound design is lame and generic and the show outright refuses any of the games' stellar soundtracks rather relying on an uninspired and forgettable OST that says sci-fi and nothing deeper. The exceptions of course being the OP which are for more inline with quality of any of Vanguard Sounds' work.

Speaking of which, the OP is also the only place there is any effort put into the animation. Some character designs were simplified (read: neutered) and those that weren't were instead dragged into depressingly simple and poorly choreographed fight scenes filled to the brim with guns that constantly go off model and feel more blasters or water guns than proper real-steel firearms. How? The entire premise is based around androids named after the firearms they wield and the show can't get guns right.

My only hope for this show is that it becomes the Studio Deen Fate adaptation of Girls Frontline.

Reviewer’s Rating: 2

What did you think of this review?

Nice 0

Love it 0

Funny 0

Confusing 0

Informative 0

Well-written 0

Creative 0

More reviews by TheDigitalDummy (3)

Show all

Read more

Show less

Open

Gift

Report

Military Moe

by Curlybrace101

22 Entries · 5 Restacks

Doll Anime

by TabBanana

9 Entries · 4 Restacks

Anime with a Main Cast of 6 or More Females (No Male MCs)

by iftsistrnn

27 Entries · 45 Restacks

Winter 2022 Simulcast List [Update 2/6]

In this thread, you'll find a comprehensive list of television anime acquired for simulcast release during the Winter 2022 season. Anime series licensed for hom...read more

Dec 29, 2021 1:21 PM by Snow | Discuss (43 comments)

'Dolls' Frontline' Unveils Supporting Cast, Third Promo

The official website of the Dolls' Frontline (Girls' Frontline) television anime revealed ten supporting cast, and a third promotional video. The anime is ...read more

Dec 28, 2021 3:42 PM by DatRandomDude | Discuss (8 comments)

	Poll: Dolls' Frontline Episode 5 Discussion Stark700 - Feb 4, 2022	20 replies	by EmiFumiko »» Mar 29, 11:33 AM
	Poll: Dolls' Frontline Episode 3 Discussion Stark700 - Jan 21, 2022	37 replies	by EmiFumiko »» Mar 1, 6:54 AM
	Poll: Dolls' Frontline Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) Stark700 - Jan 7, 2022	145 replies	by EmiFumiko »» Feb 25, 10:42 AM
	Poll: Dolls' Frontline Episode 12 Discussion Stark700 - Mar 25, 2022	40 replies	by bushman66 »» Aug 7, 2023 6:03 PM
	Poll: Dolls' Frontline Episode 2 Discussion ( 1 2 ) Stark700 - Jan 14, 2022	61 replies	by bushman66 »» Aug 6, 2023 4:59 PM