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Mars of Destruction is an anime often said to be the worst anime ever made, an opinion backed up by it's abysmally low score. Despite its many flaws, however, there are still reasons to take the time to watch it.
Story: This is one of the best parts of Mars of Destruction, though that isn’t saying much. The story was inconsistent as it mixed a number of different anime and clichés into it's easy-to-watch 19 minutes, detracting from the over all plot while the climax, though interesting, was unfulfilled due to it's brevity and awkward delivery. The story had potential, enough that it may have been a semi-popular series had it been of proper length, but that's about it. Potential is only potential if it remains untapped. It was a short, poorly flowing anime rife with inconsistency.
Art: The animation was very bad with the fight scenes being particularly unimpressive. The enemies did not instill any fear or wonder and the entire thing was very choppy while the backgrounds, aesthetically adequate, were nothing special. The character designs weren’t bland, but they were uninspired and the anime looked like it was made many years before it actually was; it was haphazardly designed. It was so poor that a member mistook the anime for something else entirely, becoming confused.
Sound: Mars of Destruction featured many artists, including Beethoven, Satie, and Chopin. While we all agreed that we liked compositions, it did not fit well with the style or theme of the anime. As far as we could tell, there was no OST to speak of. The voice acting was also very bad with the voices of the antagonists being especially poor while the "moaning" of the characters, though "interesting", didn't translate to good acting. Unequivocally, it was a mess.
Characters: We did not find ourselves attached to any characters, although we admit this was in part to the time limit the anime had. There was a single character that had some semblance of character development, and even then it was somewhat typical. None of us could remember any of the characters names. For some reason there were a lot of female characters, skewing the gender ratio--perhaps in the hope that it would draw in more viewers.
Enjoyment: We were split on enjoyment. Some of us liked the anime and enjoyed it thoroughly while some of us were forcing ourselves to finish it. The climax of the story is definitely memorable, if nothing else. If you like gore, it definitely scratches that itch. Don’t try to watch more than once to try and solve the most glaring plot hole as one of our members did, there is no solution! It is perhaps the most noticeable flaw in this anime, which sets a precedent of poor quality for the rest of the show.
Values in the Anime: There is value in this anime that makes it worth watching--certain life lessons that we can all take to heart.
Peace Above All Else: The two opposing forces in this anime fought for various reasons that are never fully explained. We all agreed however, that this fight could have been avoided. There is one line where a character asks the enemy, “You can talk?” A peaceful resolution might have been found through talking. Things are not always what they seem. Consider everyone before a fight starts, or you will regret it later.
Throughout the anime, we have the badass squad of super-soldiers fighting against the evil aliens. We immediately have the idea that this badass squad is made up of the great heroes fighting against the terrible, ugly invaders. Violence is glorified, and those who fight on your side are always the good guys. The enemy is always the bad guys. Violence is a often avoidable and should always be the last resort.
Anime and contemporary reality: To think that "we" are all martians who invaded earth million years ago means only one thing. "We" destroyed Mars and now Earth is on the verge of dying. This anime in its erroneous way was trying to expose a truth about our current world. If we don't take care of Earth, then we will yet again have to consider looking for another planet.
Love Earth, love nature.
Stand up for Yourself: Do not fight because the law dictates so or because you're simply told to, but follow your personal beliefs while being aware of what lives are being risked over. Stand up for yourself even though the result is clear, and don't accept your ‘planned fate.’
Story: 4/10
Art: 2/10
Sound: 3/10
Characters: 2/10
Enjoyment: 5/10
Overall: 3/10 (Not an Average)
VIA (Value in Anime) – Graveyard Division
To find the true gem’s in anime!
Vigilate et discite!
Officer “Kami_no_Kage”
Agent “fortepiano”
Agent “Moros_Fate”
Agent “Hitsuzen24”
Agent “kaitoukudo”
