I’ve been a huge Inazuma Eleven fan since 2010, initially watching it on my own TV with the English dub, only to find the Japanese original later on Youtube. This show has been my staple, my starting point, my humble beginnings of anime, and it brings me so much joy to see it on air once again since the end of it’s last season (Inazuma Eleven GO Galaxy).
So, what are my thoughts of Inazuma Eleven: Ares no Tenbin so far? This review has been posted since the airing of episode 13, and it will get updated later on as more episodes continue to air.
Before we
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move on to the review proper, I must explain to you all that the story of Ares takes place a year after the events of the Football Frontier arc of the original Inazuma Eleven, in an alternate timeline where the Aliea arc never happened (and the FFI arc as well) and certain characters are revived from the dead. Events of what had occurred in between the time of the Football Frontier arc of the original Inazuma Eleven series and Inazuma Eleven: Ares no Tenbin are explained with both Outer Code (a compilation of short videos that give us a glimpse of what happened to our beloved cast from the original series) and Inazuma Eleven: Reloaded, a retelling of the conclusion of the Football Frontier arc that will give way to the path of Inazuma Eleven: Ares no Tenbin.
I highly recommend you watch both the Outer Code episodes and Inazuma Eleven: Reloaded before moving on to Ares no Tenbin, as it might be confusing for some people on why certain characters are here or there. I’ve seen a lot of people who start out with Ares already without watching both Outer Code and Reloaded, and they always end up confused about certain things.
With that out of the way, let’s move on right to the review!
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Story: 8
Art: 9
Sound: 7
Characters: 9
Enjoyment: 10
Overall: 8
Story: As of 13 episodes, the story has been quite…interesting so far. I’m really intrigued about certain things and seeing how the characters have grown over time have touched me somehow.
However, I feel like the story rushes at times and focuses too much on the soccer matches than the off-times of the characters. Off-times have been reduced to flashbacks instead and while it works sometimes, it sometimes doesn’t feel proper for others. I love watching the characters struggle in their training and trying their hardest to perfect a hissatsu or a play, but instead of seeing it happen in real time or even dedicate an episode on it, they’re nothing more than flashbacks and right after, we see the results of their training.
I hope this will change (probably not) as we continue on with Ares, because their new formula on how to tell a story doesn’t often work out well for certain episodes, and it ends up feeling rushed in the end.
Art: Oh I can’t even begin to tell you how much I’m digging the new artstyle that Inazuma Eleven is going for! It looks more clean and modern and bright, which is a really nice change! Animation is also different especially for certain hissatsus, and while the new animation of the old hissatsus I’ve seen before works, it sometimes doesn’t as well.
I want to share examples on old hissatsus that don’t work with the new animation, but I think that comes down to personal tastes really.
Sound: THE OPENING AND ENDING IS SO SO SO SO GOOD. I CAN’T STOP LISTENING TO IT. However, I feel like the OST of Ares doesn’t stand out much to me. The only time I remember the OST playing is in a certain event in Episode 6, but that’s it really.
Characters: Related as well to my point previously about Ares rushing the story, this applies mainly to the character development, particularly the members of the Inakuni Raimon.
In all honesty, I do love all of them. They’re good children who are doing their best, but I feel like their development is being rushed or isn’t highlighted so well, that it makes them feel…pale.
Aside from that though, I do love all of the characters, especially Haizaki, who’s development to me stands out the most. He’s good, he’s interesting, and I can’t wait to see more of him later on!
It also makes me happy to see the old characters in this series, and their development is interesting and very…brand new, as well. It’s interesting seeing how different their circumstances are, compared to how they were in the original Inazuma Eleven series.
Enjoyment: Despite it’s flaws, I’m really enjoying Ares so much! Watching it is like taking a breath of fresh air, it’s different and new and really exciting. Seeing the old and new characters is so nice, and I’m excited to see how Ares will go on as more episodes air!
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Overall: Inazuma Eleven: Ares no Tenbin is good…not great, but it’s pretty good. It has it’s flaws but they don’t stand out so much, but hopefully they improve on it later on. Nonetheless, I’m sure fans old and new will find themselves to be enjoying Ares for what it is!
Jun 30, 2018
Inazuma Eleven: Ares no Tenbin
(Anime)
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I’ve been a huge Inazuma Eleven fan since 2010, initially watching it on my own TV with the English dub, only to find the Japanese original later on Youtube. This show has been my staple, my starting point, my humble beginnings of anime, and it brings me so much joy to see it on air once again since the end of it’s last season (Inazuma Eleven GO Galaxy).
So, what are my thoughts of Inazuma Eleven: Ares no Tenbin so far? This review has been posted since the airing of episode 13, and it will get updated later on as more episodes continue to air. Before we ... |
