I've been wanting to write a review of NGNL for quite some time now, but I decided that I'll only do so when it finishes. While I am very much part of the hype surrounding NGNL, I wanted to wait and see whether the writers manage to finish as well as they started and keep the anime entertaining and clever till the very end. I can with pleasure say that they indeed did a great job, and while it is definitely not free of faults, I have many good things to see about this anime.
Pardon for the incoming wall-of-text. But that's just how I roll.
Note: I didn't read the light novel on which NGNL is based, so I'll just review this anime regardless of the LN.
Enjoyment/fanservice: 9
Normally, this section would be the last in my review, as it should be, but in the case of NGNL, there is something that must be said at the very beginning: NGNL fanservice level is off the charts. Ecchi moments are plentiful, cute animal girls as well in the last few episodes, basically just a dream come true for Sora, the lead male character. However, what is extraordinary, is the way in which the writers make it work. I mean probably not everyone will agree, but for me, personally, fanservice usually serves little purpose, but in NGNL, it was always done in a clever way and it always felt like not one wink from the creators, but two: first one for "Hey, here's something for ya" and the second one for "Yup, we damn well know this is blatant fanservice, but just watch us do it with style". Especially in the glorious episode 6 you can see how they manage to justify so much with the plot.
And of course it's still fanservice, nothing more. But the creators never go too far, one of their favorite things to do is to tease the viewer with something that seems like the oh-so-cliche incest theme, only to turn it into a huge joke a few seconds later. Basically, the writers seem to be having as much fun as the viewer, both pleasing and teasing him. It definitely is one of the main things that makes this anime extremely enjoyable... and I'm seriously not talking about just the jiggly boobs, believe me, as a still single male I tend to stay away from echhi for sanity's sake, but it's just the way in which it's done. So even if ecchi is not your thing, give this anime a chance. If anything, it's just a perfect humorous addition to an anime that is... perhaps surprisingly, so much more.
Of course, since I started with enjoyment, I need to highlight the most prominent aspect of the anime: games. In an anime where everything is about games, the whole idea could've just collapsed if the games were just your run-off-the-mill games, but thankfully the games the main characters' find themselves playing are always original and unique takes on well-known games and are plenty of fun to watch. Especially when the genius-gamer mode gets switched on.
Story: 9
Frankly, I haven't seen enough animes to be one to talk about originality and interesting concepts. I'm pretty sure games and gamers are quite a popular motive in the anime/manga industry. Regardless of that, however, I think the story of No Game No Life has a fantastic concept - I mean two siblings who are absolute masters of games but hate real life getting transported by a childlike god of games into a fantastic world where literally everything is a game? How could a perfect setting like that go wrong?
Well naturally, it could have. Quite easily, as many great ideas can get wasted. But thankfully the writers made sure to keep up with the pace they set themselves and not only did they make sure to keep the story interesting until the very end with various twists and turns, they also managed to entertain me heartily with unique games the characters played - and the usually mind-blowing strategies that came with them. I have to admit that the ending of this season was not as spectacular as I had hoped, but it wasn't bad either and it did directly suggest a season 2 coming, so I'm not going to go complaining about it.
One issue I had with the story is that sometimes the train of thought of Sora or Shiro got hard to follow and I needed to rewatch some moments to fully grasp what's going on in their heads. Also, the further the anime progressed, the more far-fetched the main characters' genius mind abilities became and even for a completely unbelievable setting like this they were a bit TOO unbelievable. But those were rather minor faults.
Some might complain that the pacing was uneven - there is some truth in that. The fast-paced episodes, which were usually about the main pair playing a grand game against an opponent were usually intertwined with slower episodes which set the stage. But personally, while it was noticeable, I don't necessarily think it was a bad thing, especially since the slower episodes gave us interesting backstories, progressed the characters' relations and, like I just mentioned, set the stage for the action-packed games.
Art: 8
I gotta admit, when I first saw NGNL, I really didn't like the rather clashing color palette used to depict the fantasy game world. It seemed too sweet yet at the same time too aggressive for the eye. But maybe it was just because I simply wasn't used to colors as bold as these in animes (that's saying something, isn't it?) and it was a bit of a shock, because with time not only did I get used to it, I started to grow very fond of it since it proved to be a huge asset of making the game world seem like, well, a game. Also, it went with a quite unique style (I especially enjoyed the different shapes of eye irises according to race) which made all the intense moments even more intense... and the cute things even cuter. So in the end, while it slightly scared me at first, the art became one of my favorite aspects of this anime in the end.
Sound: 8
The soundtrack was good. On one hand, I can't remember any memorable themes from this anime, but on the other hand that's not necessarily the point of OSTs. Because what the soundtrack should do (and it did in this anime) is just play in the background, helping build up the atmosphere, quicken up the pace in moments full of action and setting up the right mood when things got serious for a moment.
The opening was quite decent, but personally I preferws the ending. The ending was quite different from the rest of the anime, I'd even risk saying it was quite touching, but still both the OP and ED fit the anime very well in my opinion.
The voice acting, while not something absolutely mind-blowing, was also good. I think the voices fit the characters very well and were pleasing to the ear, so the VA will surely not get in the way of you enjoying the anime
Characters: 8
As in most animes with 12-13 episodes, there is relatively little time for building relations and character development and such is the case here. We don't see much (if any) character development or relation progressing, but then I wouldn't say it's really something that's missing in this anime. The characters are an entertaining bunch, they interact with each other well, giving us both hilarious and touching moments, keeping the story involving. The supporting characters, while not extremely complex or original, are still given some interesting backstories and traits that make them important parts of the story.
However, it's the main protagonist duo that really got me really attached to this anime. While, as I mentioned before, the creators tend to joke around and tease the viewer by adding some brother-sister lovin' jokes here and there, in reality Sora's and Shiro's relationship actually strikes me as very deep and even moving. They are literally everything to each other. They spent their entire childhood together, hiding themselves from society and becoming the legendary unbeatable "Blank" gaming team together and it is quite often emphasized how important they are to each other. Not only in comedy, but also in some touching moments. Especially one episode (about which I can't say much for the sake of not spoiling it to anyone) explored their attachment to one another and for me it was one of the best, if not the best, episodes of the anime. Especially since it was paired with a mind blowing solution to a game, naturally.
So to sum up, NGNL is quite an unique anime. It has a great setting and an interesting plot, it brings plenty of enjoyment with it's games and hilarious fanservice. It has it's faults as far as the story is concerned and I guess quite a few people will find the cliches and fanservice tiring, but I personally enjoyed it immensely. While I don't think it's current standing on MAL's top anime list is really deserved (but isn't that always the case when hype is up), I definitely think it's something every anime fan should at least check out. And if you don't like it, at least check out episode 6 because that truly is something.
So yeah, I highly recommend it. Just don't watch it with friends unfamiliar with anime nearby, or if they peek at your screen at the wrong moment you'll have a hard time explaining how this anime is, after all, not about boobs and that it is just "part of the game they're playing" ;P
Cheers!
