Okay, I'm going to take off my reviewer hat for this one. While I usually base an anime off of its overall plot, characters, and production elements, I'm going to have to break the mold with this one. This series, I dare say, is so bad, it's good. It's like watching a Michael Bay movie. You know it's bad, but you just can't take your eyes off it.
Kakumeiki Valvrave is perhaps one of, if not, the most cliche mecha anime I've ever seen. You name a mecha anime trope and this series has got it. I'd even call it the love child of Code Geass and Gundam Seed because it steals so many elements from both. Military members sneak into a neutral country to obtain overpowering weapons? Check. High schoolers learn how to use a mecha on a whim? Check. High schoolers obtain a mysterious power that gives them an advantage? Check. An uprising takes place in the middle of a war to create a 3rd party consisting of the protagonists? Check. Overpowering lead character? Half-check. Love triangle? Check. I could seriously go on-and-on, but I'll just leave it at this. What makes this series so great despite it's cliche as hell story? The fact that the writing and production staff give us the impression that this series is self-aware. It's supposed to be aesthetically pleasing and cliche and for some reason, it made this series a fun watch. I'll be honest, this was probably the most fun I've had watching a bad anime in a long time.
The story is about as Gundam Seed as it gets. L-Elf and a special ops group from Dorssia sneaks into Module 77 to obtain secret weapons known as Valvraves. However, their plan is thwarted when our series lead, Haruto Tokishima becomes enraged by Dorssia's invasion and the assumed death of his high school crush, Shouko Sashinami and as a result of it causes him to crawl inside the Valvrave and use it against Dorssia. It seems he is successful, but he learns that the Valvraves are not ordinary machines, granting him a power that even gets him to question his own humanity. Generally speaking, it's an okay story...but it's been beaten to death by prior mecha anime. The only new element this series introduces is the element of immortal, vampire-like abilities for these would-be mecha pilots. An interesting element to say the least, but I would argue that vampire stories and mecha anime are two subjects in the media right now that are beaten to death and are getting old.
I will say that the characters for this series are pretty damn likable. In fact, I'd even go so far as to say that Haruto is actually one of the least likable characters in the series and he's not even that bad of a character. I really enjoy L-Elf's calm and scheming demeanor, Shouko's quirkiness, Saki's downright celebrity craze, Akira's adorable as hell NEET-like personality, Raizou's "It's Thunder!" badass personality...and that's only a few of the characters. It's an interesting mix and even while some are lacking development, their personalities shine through to make for an interesting watch.
The production elements (animation and music) I would say are solid, but not breathtaking. I will admit though it is nice to see T.M. Revolution back doing anime theme songs again. He's really damn good at it and his song Preserved Roses, the OP song for this series duet style with Nana Mizuki gives this series the upbeat start that gets me looking forward to each new episode.
Overall, Kakumeiki Valvrave is a downright enjoyable series. Sure, it's story is extremely cliche, but this is one instance where I can somewhat overlook it due to how fun this series is with its cliches. I'm almost willing to say this series is self-aware of this and takes advantage of it. I also have to give this series some credit, it had an event in a later episode that ended up sparking one of the funniest anime memes I've ever seen. I'd highly recommend this series to anyone that enjoys Sunrise's mecha anime like Gundam and Code Geass. I'd also recommend it if you can enjoy a series that doesn't take itself too seriously. However, if you're looking for an original mecha anime with a heavy story like Neon Genesis Evangelion, I'd say give this a pass. All-in-all, while I will say I've seen better anime this year, I don't think I'll see an anime that is as fun as this one to watch.
