Plot (7): The magical academy setting has been done before, but not every anime has to come up with something super innovative as long as it is done well. It starts off with the cliché "male MC accidentally enters a room with the female MC changing" trope. However, unlike most male MCs who freak out, Ikki tried to rectify the situation with a rather... interesting tactic. I was kinda scared that the anime will go overboard with the ecchi-ness, especially after Episode 2. However, the anime really started to pick up for the 3rd and 4th episodes. I liked how the romance between Ikki and
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Stella progressed. It was not too fast nor was it too slow. I have noticed that Silver Link decided to take some liberties by shuffling the material around a bit compared to the manga and LN. For instance, the romance between Ikki and Stella was pushed earlier, though I can see why SL thinks the move was justified: to make the romantic sub-plot more continuous. I didn't mind the idea of shuffling things around, but the execution could've gone better. The Sword Eater arc has been very engaging as it managed to keep me interested in Ayase. Episode 7 uses the often utilized "the power of friendship" trope, but it's the execution that counts and it was executed extremely well. Episode 8 attempts to develop Ayase's character a bit more, but it wasn't that much as most of it was Ikki vs. Kuraudo. The plot has been good, but not great. However, I thought Episode 9 did a really great job advancing the romance between Stella and Ikki. While the anime did modify the plot from the LN, it did a decent job. It was a bit rushed, though. Episode 10 is the first time where a supporting character gets the spotlight and Silver Link did not disappoint. Episode 11 goes back to focusing on Ikki (and Stella) and SL did a good job advancing their development. The last episode did a good job concluding the show where the first half is dedicated to some more Ikki development.
Art (9): Character designs aren't original, but again, as long as it is done well, I'm okay with that. The color palette and backgrounds have this "pop" that is really appealing to the eye. One very good example would be the pink petals of the Japanese maple trees in Episode 2. The anime has also done a good job using a variety of color palettes and backgrounds such as the dark and dull blizzard in Ikki's flashback. The animations, however, are what takes the cake here. This is especially true in Episodes 3 and 4. They are very clean and use different angles effectively. I also liked, in Episode 5, how Silver Link used animations in a comedic way when the sparkles suddenly disappear when the guys freaked out at Nagi (Alice) Arusuin posing in his swimsuit. The animations show their strength in fight scenes again in Episode 7 and 8, utilizing a variety of angles and color palettes. As for Episode 10... holy crap. I can say that it was the zenith. The animations were intense and dynamic. Superbly done. Episode 11 takes a very interesting route by having the artstyle correlate with the mood and I thought it was done well. While Episode 12 wasn't as risque as the previous episode, it still use some variety in artstyle. The fight, while brief, was animated very well, too.
Sound (8): The soundtrack does a very good job at enhancing various moments, whether they be action scenes or romantic scenes. There is a good variety in the instrumentation, ranging from predominantly percussion to a string orchestra with a classical guitar soloist. Certain tracks are reused, but they are spaced out well enough so that they still sound fresh. Episode 7 is a perfect example of how reused tracks are utilized effectively. They did a really good job at enhancing the atmosphere and emotions of various scenes. I stated earlier that I hoped that the anime added some new tracks to keep the old tracks fresh. Thankfully, Silver Link has done that. However, a few tracks have been used a bit too much.
The opening song is very upbeat and perfectly fits with the theme of the anime. I was initially "meh" on the ending song. My feelings towards the ED are still pretty neutral, but it's not so bad.
Characters (8): Initially, nothing home to write about in this department (originally a 7), but I thought this aspect gradually improved later on. The main characters fit in the archetypes that have been already used in lots of other anime. Stella is the pink-haired tsundere who initially dislikes the male protagonist because he accidentally peeped on her. However, unlike other tsunderes, the "dere" is more dominant than the "tsun". In fact, in the anime, Stella is even less "tsun" than her manga counterpart. In Episode 9, she is surprisingly quite forward with Ikki at advancing their relationship even further. I am so glad that Ikki isn't the immensely dense male protagonist that annoys me to no end in other anime. I like how he tried to take it upon himself to make things even with Stella after he accidentally peeped on her even though it was goofy. In Episode 6, his head got smashed by a glass bottle and Kuraudo spat on his face as insult to injury, but he kept his cool extremely well. That's the kind of patience I highly admire. I've noticed some people have criticized Ikki for being "Jesus-kun" or ass-pulling. However, this is quite false. Episode 8 showed how he can get very into the heat of battle. Episode 9 showed how Ikki isn't OP and unbeatable.
The other two characters, Shizuku and Alice are also pretty good. Shizuku was pretty hard to figure out, at first. Was she actually romantically infatuated with her brother or was she trying to compensate for Ikki's family's mistreatment of him? Or is there another reason altogether? You will find the answer in Episode 11. She also got good character development in Episode 10.
Alice really reminds me of Jann from Valkyria Chronicles. I really liked his interactions with Shizuku and Kagami. He has also played a significant role to Ikki's development. However, despite his motherly character, there was one tiny instance where he portrays coldness. I will leave you guys to figure out when he does that.
Kobayashi did a really great job playing as Ayase. Episodes 6 and 7 showcased her incredible range. In just those two episodes, we see a large variety of emotions, from shyness to manipulative sadism to desperation to sadness. As for Ayase's background, she is quite relate-able to Ikki whether they are both swordsmen or had an extremely difficult past. Nothing groundbreaking, but the portrayal of Ayase was very decent overall.
I will talk more about Touka as the next episodes air, but man, what an entrance! Her fight against Shizuku further reinforces her bad-assery. However, in Episode 11, she has a clumsy, but motherly character.
Enjoyment (9): Rakudai Kishi no Chivalry's action scenes are really fun to watch. While they are its strongest points, in my opinion, it doesn't mean the other aspects are lacking. The romance has progressed nicely and the anime does a great job with the comedy. The ecchi-ness, for the most part, is kept in check. At times, it goes overboard. There was one time where Silver Link thought it was funny to add some wardrobe malfunction to a certain scene in Episode 2 whereas it didn't happen in the manga. That's a really cheap and lazy way to gain some laughs, but thankfully, that was only one time and it happened early. Episode 9 was a good example of fanservice done right, in my opinion. It was not out of context and it was funny.
Overall (NOT an average of scores of the 5 specific categories) (8): It's a very fun anime to watch. The artstyle, sound, and animations are well done. It has a healthy dose of comedy, action, and romance. The characters, while encompassing generic archetypes, are decent thanks to good development and interactions. Despite appearing to be a harem, it is actually not. I think the quality is decent enough to warrant a 2nd season.
Jan 2, 2016
Rakudai Kishi no Cavalry
(Anime)
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Plot (7): The magical academy setting has been done before, but not every anime has to come up with something super innovative as long as it is done well. It starts off with the cliché "male MC accidentally enters a room with the female MC changing" trope. However, unlike most male MCs who freak out, Ikki tried to rectify the situation with a rather... interesting tactic. I was kinda scared that the anime will go overboard with the ecchi-ness, especially after Episode 2. However, the anime really started to pick up for the 3rd and 4th episodes. I liked how the romance between Ikki and
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