...or so I thought.
Kill la Kill is by far one of the most disappointing anime I've watched so far. By disappointing, I mean I expected a lot from it and didn't get much in return. Other anime like this were Red Data Girl and Sword Art Online. Here, this anime got SO much hype and gained quite a lot of popularity (just look at the pixiv rankings) and I hardly think it deserves what it's getting. Let me get started with my review.
From here on, there WILL be spoilers. DO NOT read this if you want to avoid spoilers!
Story:
We start off with a transfer student named Ryuko Matoi who goes to Honnouji Academy, determined to find who killed her father by finding the other half of her scissor sword. She's a feisty and strong female character, which is kind of hard to find in anime with all of the moe flying all around. Honnouji Academy is different that most academies in that it lets higher ranked students were super powered uniforms called Goku uniforms. Ryuko stumbles upon and ends up wearing a special kind of uniform named Senketsu who claims to know her father (yes...the uniform can communicate with her). With Senketsu and her friends, Ryuko journeys to find her father's killer.
Okay, that was a bit harder to summarize that I thought...anyway, time to critique the story. Well, it's definitely Trigger material. Outright crazy and over the top. You later learn on that the world is about to be taken over by aliens who take form of clothing and Ryuko's mom, Ragyo, is trying to finish the process of the world being taken over by said alien clothing. The story is definitely interesting and it's something I wouldn't have expected. However, some plot points were pretty easy to predict, such as Satsuki (Ryuko's sister) who pretended to fight against Ryuko but was ultimately planning to stop her mom. Parts of the story also incredibly forced, such as Senketsu's death, Gamagori's "death", or the random incest molestation...Ragyo: Best Mom in the World.
Anyway, what I'm trying to point out is that compared to the pacing in Trigger's other works, Kill la Kill is definitely lacking in that department. The tone of the story keeps on switching back and forth like a bipolar teenager. One minute we have a kickass scene and then the next Mako, Ryuko's friend, is doing her weird little speech things (trying to be funny...but failing). After a while, I lost interest in being emotionally invested in the story because of the terrible pacing.
Art:
Freaking awesome. What do you expect? It's Trigger! They have amazing animation and the art style is very akin to Gurren Lagann (which I love). I just wish they had those cool before and after commercial break pictures just like Gurren Lagann did. Fight scenes are beautifully executed (once again, it's Trigger) and character designs are really REALLY cool. Oh, and expect A LOT of fanservice from Kill la Kill's art. There will also be random nudity (or just a whole bunch of it like in the latter half of the show). But in general, the art is great. It's one of the few things that kept me watching this all of the way to the end (along with wanting to support Trigger).
Sound:
Eh...it's not the most amazing soundtrack. The first opening and ending were quite mediocre for me. The first opening, "Sirius", was a bit generic sounding and the animation that came with it wasn't astounding (which surprised me since Trigger is great at openings). The first ending "Gomen ne, Iiko ja Irarenai", is also a bit...meh. The animation for that is also pretty boring. This takes a better turn from episodes 16 onwards. The second opening, "ambiguous", has so much more energy and fits the feeling that Trigger was trying to create for Kill la Kill. The second ending, "Shin Sekai Kōkyōgaku", is incredibly adorable and fun to listen to! For the OST, I was quite disappointed. From the great music of Gurren Lagann and Panty and Stocking (Teddyloid is amazing), I could only remember 2 songs: "Before my body is dry" and "Blumenkranz". Both songs are awesome, but they were the only ones I remembered...while I could easily recall Gurren Lagann and Panty and Stocking's OSTs.
Character:
Uuuugghhhh....this is where Kill la Kill really fails to meet the hype that it kept up. Let me sum up the characters very quickly for you: flat with hardly any development. Many of them are there to kind of force relationships between characters or to push on the story. I can't name even half of the main cast. Satsuki is quite honestly the most well developed character but even she can't compare to other Trigger characters. Ryuko started off as a badass...but then hardly changed as the story progressed. I liken her to Ichigo Kurosaki from Bleach, who just like her, keeps on getting stronger but not developing at all. I honestly expected her to be an amazing main character who would become stronger both physically and mentally...but Trigger didn't deliver well there. Mako is the comedic relief who means well but is like Jar Jar Binks from Star Wars - SHE'S NOT THAT FUNNY. I found her friendship with Ryuko kind of touching, but overall forced and not natural. Many other characters would be interesting but hardly got any attention. I wish there could have been more focus on the student council. They were really awesome characters but were usually on the sidelines.
What can I say. The characters are like ones from a children's story book - just the bare bones.
Enjoyment:
Despite how much I'm criticizing Kill la Kill, the entertainment value is quite high. With all of these crazy visuals and great voice acting, you certainly won't be bored watching this. Ryuko and Satsuki's first fight is under my list of my most favorite anime fight scenes ever. It was funny to see the running gags, such as the pink glowing nipples, the random nudity, or Mako's quirky family. If you want to be entertained with over the top action and fanservice, go ahead and watch it! Just don't expect much else.
Overall:
Overall, this anime is average. The really great stuff, such as the art and enjoyment, are easily weighed down by the downfalls, like the story and characters. The ending of the show was fitting for Kill la Kill, but I honestly was yearning for more out of it. It didn't make my mind explode like Gurren Lagann but it was alright. If you're looking for an anime that is eye candy and nothing else, you should watch it. I've done with before with High School of the Dead. This anime is incredibly entertaining but definitely lacks in great story telling. I would easily recommend Kill la Kill to action and fanservice lovers.
