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Imagine a reality in which the world's most power hungry nations battle for control and dominance in classic WW1 style. Now include the fact that these nations have troops capable of flying through the skies with almost magical abilities and weapons and you are sure to turn some heads. Now include the fact that a loli is a major for one of the most powerful mage battalions and I may have just broken your neck. As strange as this concept sounds, I found it even more strange how good this show turned out to be. Here's my full overview for Youjo Senki:

Story: 8

As I ... stated before, yes; a young girl who looks younger than a middle schooler is in charge of a massive battalion of mage-like warriors that dash through the skies as a superior form of air artillery. Their goals range from them demolishing their foes on the ground to the ones lurking in the heavens with them. The one who leads is Tanya Degurechaff, a once male salaryman that is reborn into a little girl thanks to the best/worst, all-knowing entity known simply as God. Struggling to maintain a peaceful upbringing in her new world, Tanya battles the enemies of her nation and the plans that this God has set forth for Tanya.

All in all, pacing matters little as the story is always about the war and how close the Empire is to securing a victory. It is very simple to follow as long as you focus on the situation at hand. Every episode delivers a battle where the strategy is logical and makes sense. No holes, just war and the motives that follow it.

Art: 7

I very much liked the art style in this show. It's not basic enough that you see it often in other shows. The best scenes are obviously where the action is. Seeing Tanya zip through the air striking down mages with her bullets, bayonet, or magic was a "blast". Aside from the action, Tanya's emotions are delivered very well. When you see her angry or upset, you truly see and feel it.

Sound: 6

I see the sound in this as average only because nothing was really memorable. I always skipped past the opening/ending songs so no tune were favored by my ears. If anything, the sounds of war in this are fairly nice. Whether it is the cannons going off, explosions being set, or the clanks of tanks making their way across the ground. Everything seemed good, just not amazing.

Character: 8

Okay, listen, I have a knack for evil MC's and that is exactly what you get here with Tanya Degurechaff. There are no stupid, cliché traits that plague her like countless others protagnoists. She is focused, determined, and is as serious as your dentist. Honestly, Tanya has very little backstory but she does not need it here because all that matters is where is trying to go. There are no plot holes about her that leave you scratching your heads either so she is very simple to follow. I'll say this, don't get attached to the character but her ambitions.

Besides Tanya, you'll constantly see the faces of Tanya's strategic leaders and the mages that take orders from her. I found most of them to be okay and that's about it because I've already forgotten their names.

Enjoyment: 8

Being only 12 episodes, I did find the show to be enjoyable. I found Tanya to be very entertaining and I was curious about what obstacles were bound to stand in her way. I eagerly waited for the clashes between her and God and how Tanya's perspective on it and life would change.

Overall: 8

Just watch it, it's good. I've not kept up on the news for a second season but the ending implies one. When it drops, I will be there to see what I got from the first season: a whole lot of vintage-looking battles and a loli ordering the troops around. Paradise.

Before reading this review, please know that I have not read the manga and have no interest in reading it. I've seen some reviews bashing the anime because it did not follow the manga step by step. Maybe I'd agree with them if I knew the original story but honestly I do not care. This is a review on the anime, not a review on how it compares to the manga.

Story: 5

Fuuka tells the story of a timid high school student, Yuu Haruna who is absolutely obsessed with Twitter, constantly tweeting his thoughts and activities. One day while out, fate plays its role when ... Yuu bumps into our main female of the story, Fuuka Akitsuki. What begins as two school mates stuck in a bundle of misunderstandings quickly turns into a band of talented friends who decide to chase dreams of stardom.

Unfortunately the music aspect of this show seems overshadowed by drama that only high school students would have so instead of witnessing the rise of rock stars, I saw mere speckles of light walking on rocks. There is an emphasis of romance highlighted throughout the show but I found it frustrating and typical.

Art: 6

As for the art style, little amazes me but nothing disappoints because I had no expectations. The most eye catching moments were when the band performed which is always nice to see in an anime about music. Settings do very little as I sometimes forgot whether the group were in a garage or cafe. All in all, pretty average.

Sound: 6

It does take a while to witness the true sounds (meaning the band performing) in the show. As I listened to the songs you first encounter, I thought everything was okay. Fuuka's singing does throw me off because of how different she sounds but it's pretty common when you are trying to produce a noise that sounds pleasant so I got over it. When I got far enough into the story, I did replay some performances as I thought they were catchy. All in all, the music I did hear was the type I could vibe with; even though I always skipped passed the opening and ending for the show.

Character: 5

Eh. I don't hate any of the members of the band but I gotta say that the two MC's, Fuuka and Haruna are my least favorite. I found it very sad because they did it to themselves. Instead of just focusing on what really mattered, these two gave me such headaches as they ignored problems and kept their emotions bottled up. If you told me they weren't in high school I wouldn't believe you. As for the rest of the band members and famous pop stars that you see, I had no problem with their characters. If it wasn't for them, I would've lost interest long ago.

Enjoyment: 5

I'm trying to convince myself that I liked the show but I can't help but be relieved about finishing this mess. It actually started off okay and I was genuinely interested in it too but that spark of interest quickly died as with each week came a new episode. I probably would like the manga more but I still have no cares for it, even after the show's conclusion.

Overall: 5

I do know that if this show focused more on the music side of things and less on the high school love drama, I would've enjoyed it a bit more. The story, art, and sound was all okay but none of it was enough to really feed my appetite for entertainment. I thought this was going to be a great show so that's probably why I kept at it. Oh well, on to the next one.

Jumping into a second season of Konosuba, I knew exactly what I was getting myself into. A comedy/fantasy show circling the highjacks of a group of weirdos in a time where adventurers and slaying monsters are relevant. Instead of boring myself with a show with an overused premise, I found this one to be quite unique.

Story: 6

So there isn't really a linear story going on here. If you are familiar with the first season then you can already imagine how random and chaotic an episode is. The events that take place at the beginning may and probably will be completely different twenty-three minutes in. ... It may sound unappealing, especially for those who care very much about story but it doesn't hurt the show as much as you'd think. This is a comedy that does not require you to stay focused and capture every single detail. But if you are looking to see adventurers conquering challenges, you'll get it here in a silly manner.

Art: 6

When I first started this series, I struggled to find any visuals that were attractive to my eyes. From the character animations to the different settings that our heroes were in, everything was as average as a white egg. However, I must admit that some "explosive" scenes were always nice to see as well as the opening for the show.

Sound: 6

As for sound, everything seemed okay to me. Listening to the opening and ending songs for the first time never prompted my brain to rewind my video player to listen again. As for the voices from the many characters, it is the same as the environments, typical and unimpressive.

Character: 8

Now I usually don't expect to care for the personalities or backgrounds of a character if it is a comedy series; I'm purely in it for the jokes and giggles. However, noticing back during the first season, I was surprised to see how much I liked the characters throughout the story, especially those in the main group that you will always see. If you don't know them, here's a quick summary.

Kazuma, the MC and unannounced leader of the wacky gang is my favorite part of the show. I'm usually disgusted with male MC's because of how cliché they can be but Kazuma gives me zero reasons to hate. I found him to be very relatable, especially when he brought up something modern from his time. Being the only male in the group, a certain quality about him is highlighted along with almost every other male surrounded by women but I never found it to impact his character negatively.

Aqua on the other hand, goddess of the group who is probably my least favorite character of the heroic bunch could've been a lot worse. She has a huge ego and often gets in the way. I find her annoying and completely senseless at times but it is the interactions between her and her comrades that really saved her from meeting my mute button.

Darkness, the beautiful, energetic, heroic masochist is a worthy addition to the group of strange oddities. I find her hilarious at times when all is going wrong. Megumin is the final concluding member of the group who is a young, hyper arch wizard that surprisingly contributes to the group when all else is lost.

Overall, I could say a lot more about these four characters but I think I'll lock my descriptions and allow you to unlock them yourself and determine whether they are appealing or not.

Enjoyment: 8

I really, really, really liked this anime. I started this series wanting to laugh and I got exactly what I wanted. It's not easy for a show to make me laugh. And when I mean laugh, I don't mean the laughs you keep in your head. I eventually grew tired of smiling because I could not watch an episode without smirking. Every episode left me wanting more and it was all good while it lasted.

Overall: 7

So yeah, I liked the show and gotta say that this is one of the best comedies I've seen in a while. I feel like the jokes were of mixed variety and context, minus one kind that I ended up excusing. It really sucks that this season only has ten episodes but I think I received a lot out of them. I'd be stoked to see another season of Konosuba and hopefully by the time you finish this season you'll feel the same way.