“Fear is freedom! Subjugation is liberation! Contradiction is truth! These are the truths of this world! Surrender to these truths, you pigs in human clothing!”
From the moment I saw its original promotional art and took a gander at its original series blurb, Kill la Kill had my utmost attention. Set in Honnouji Academy, main character Ryuko Matoi stumbles upon the giant city/prison-like school, looking for information that will lead her to the killer. The only clue? The other half of her own Scissor-Blade, which worked to do the dirty deed. As she battles the forces of Honnouji's ruler, Satsuki Kiryuin, Ryuko will develop bonds, friends and grow as a character as the result of her various clashes and fights. Or, at least, that was the original concept that, more or less, made it into the first half of the series.
The second half of the show, however, provides us with a great deal of inconsistencies, plot holes and some real laziness, all while still being a pretty enjoyable experience. So what's the big deal with Kill la Kill? Why do I feel that the work fell apart in a lot of aspects upon its closing? (And that's really saying something, coming from the director of critically acclaimed works like FLCL, Panty & Stocking and Gurren Lagann, Hiroyuki Imaishi! Why am I able to proclaim the goodness and overall over-the-top excitement about the series, while still pointing out its missed marks? That's something that I, personally, want to explore now and explain in detail, for good or bad.
If someone sat me down and told me that I had to pick certain exact elements of this series that were a tad more problematic than the others, I would – without much or any hesitation – mention the consistent and worrying gaps in the categories of “Story” and “Characters”.
If you've ever peered at the character design and art of Kill la Kill needless to say that it's near flawless. From Ryuko's braggadocios hair and demeanor to Nonon's perfectly matched outfit to go along with her powers and personality, it all goes together in such a way that you wouldn't expect from a modern anime. However, though the design of these characters is definitely a great strength, the biggest detraction from the characters themselves is...well, the characters themselves. While Nonon is truly beautiful from an aesthetic point of view, you will discover that she, in terms of actual character traits, can be summed up with one basic sentence, at best an elongated sentence.
The same could easily be conjured up and explained about Mikisugi, Ryuko's flamboyant teacher, undercover for the secret Nudist Beach organization. Or Gamagoori, Satsuki Kiryuin's proverbial and almost-literal shield. And even Tsumugu, the mo-hawked mayhem who's sister died in an experiment. Though they all are a glam to look at, you can't help feeling that these characters are hollow shells of over-used character archetypes...which have been done, repeatedly over the years, in much better form throughout a majority of works. (And don't even get me started on Mako!) In short, none of the characters, from most of the heroes to the villains, are memorable, other than the obligatory Ryuko, Satsuki, Issin Matoi and Senketsu.
The other aspect plaguing Kill la Kill to the point of parasitism is its balls-to-the-wall, “You're too slow!” plot that continues to speed up from the middle of the second half to the end. In some cases, this is seen in various parts of the anime community as a necessity...although it tends to be exactly the opposite. And, even if the show's story has fast pacing, we need to remember that that is not always a great thing.
I'll admit, from a completely honest standpoint, that even though the first half of the series was very linear in nature and simple in concept...it worked. It took getting through the show as a whole to realize that, but the former part of the series definitely works at what it's trying to do and establish: a simple action/comedy based world with a play-it-safe “Monster of the Week” formula, layered thinly with a good amount of tongue-in-cheek elements and various parody nods. This method of story-telling was typical, but it was also lucid and got the best out of Kill la Kill's potential than its latter half did. The first 12 episodes are the parts of Kill la Kill that marginally make sense, even if it doesn't make sense. That is to say that much of the content present in the later episodes doesn't keep things easy to absorb and comprehend.
For instance, it is stated (and assumed) that Ryuko is the only person able to don Senketsu, her talking Kamui which gives her her amazing powers, is herself. But this is later contradicted and blanked out by later events in the series. There are also Magic Bullets that end up being introduced and then forgotten almost immediately (a direct violation of Chekhov's Gun), a plot point that sends Ryuko on a trip that, in itself, doesn't add anything to the plot and turns up as useless, the true abilities of the Scissor-Blades being contradicted by the existence of one character, as well as the underwhelming reveal of what the Big Bads behind the series really are. (I'm not going to spoil it here, but let's just say that it sounds like something straight out of a bad indie film. There's no foreshadowing, no indication of anything and very much no class).
I blame all of these missteps on the script writing/story making process of the entire staff, more-so the head-writer of the series, Kazuki Nakashima. In an interview about the series, he admits that With Kill la Kill, the whole staff (with myself included) submit ideas, like“Hey, this would be cool”, and the series' layout keeps changing. It's really a live production. If anything, it's quite similar to the experience I had when I was producing weekly manga. With weekly manga, you keep developing/making things in the direction the characters are moving, so it's really fun. Kill la Kill gave me that vibe.”. The bold portion of the quote says it all: not only did Kill la Kill have a rather chaotic schedule (this is normal for manga and most anime, so I'm not surprised), but Nakashima and the crew basically came up with the story week-by-week. And what's worse is that, how Nakashima makes it sound, it seems like any Tom, Dick and Harry had a hand in the process of the story structure. So you have people that aren't even used to making stories contributing to the story. If it were a group of established and critically acclaimed authors and editors, I could understand – this, however, just seems like a situation where there are just too many damned cooks in the kitchen. Now some of the fan-fiction-esque moments in the later half seem to make sense as to how they were made.
But that's not to say every element smelled of mediocrity. There were moments that I truly appreciated, such as the further development of Satsuki and Ryuko's relationship with each other, Senketsu's amazing bonding with Ryuko and there's a great amount of symbolism in the series itself! (Although, the symbolism itself makes no sense in the overall context of it all). So it's not like everything in this element fell to complete calamity and chaos. It is just that, overall, the series' story is definitely not one of its strongest points and fails to hold on to an air of cohesiveness.
Now, if the characters and the overall story of Kill la Kill leaves more to be desired, what does that mean for it's art/animation and the musical score of the show? Well, you can rest knowing that these two are the strongest elements of the series, although not free of their own small blemishes and boils. While some of the animation can seem not only stiff, but very cheap (as in character's sliding off the screen in the worst manner; I could understand if it was for comedic effect, but this happens in the most serious of moments), there are moments where it can shine gloriously. For instance: Ryuko and Satsuki's first fight was, for the most part, amazingly animated and, for lack of any words, C R A Z Y:
But then, there are parts of that same battle that look like they belong in a novice Newgrounds game and honestly make me cringe:
Needless to say, the lack of detail and attention tends to diminish the value of the moment a bit. Even if the show and its animators may lazy around in some scenes, the lovely over-the-top action scenes (with the exception of a pretty unfulfilling “Field Trip” arc) more than make up for it.
The musical atmosphere of the show is incredibly impressive and awe-inspiring in many aspects, shifting effortlessly from classical pieces to hard metal jams to melodic ballads that help in every moment needed. It is bombastic when it wants to be and feeling inducing when it can be! However, you can feel that some tracks get overused to the point that you don't love them as much as you first did. Before My Body is Dry gets played at least twice every episode in the later half, while the amazing, mysterious Blumenkranz apparently can get placement every time Ragyo, Satsuki Kiryuin's mother, enters. It wallows in hype for the first instance, but when you hear it played every time she walks for the first time in an episode? The whole thing tends to get a little unfitting. Nevertheless, those scars are not much in the grand scheme of the musical aspect of the show.
While Kill la Kill is more than a very enjoyable viewing experience, that is not to say that, on the other hand, it isn't flawed. With various plot-holes, inconsistencies and a cast of characters that, as a majority, are just too underutilized and undeveloped, it keeps the smash-hit from feeling like a completely cohesive work. If I could take the time to make a humble enough comparison, Kill la Kill is, to me, 2013's Sword Art Online – and for a large number of reasons. Both series' have a cast that is largely undeveloped as characters and tend to remain stagnant, contain a story that can be problematic at various points and repetition that can tend to get on your nerves. One of the only real differences I could be able to point out is that, while Sword Art had a story built with much more planning involved, Kill la Kill was exactly the opposite.
So, yes, Kill la Kill is a flawed piece and shares much from the international hit S.A.O, along with enjoyment and overall hype. But even when the show tends to “lose it's way” in several aspects, it gains its way in another. There's definitely a question as to the replay value of the series as a whole, whether or not we will continue coming back – like Gurren Lagann or Panty & Stocking or even FLCL. And, while that is, for sure, a question that can't be truly answered at the moment, there is no doubt in my mind that, for better or worse, Kill la Kill is a viewing experience that you will never forget.
Initial Rating: 7.5/10 (After 6 episodes).
Final Rating: 8.2/10.
Scattered Pieces:
>Gamagoori and Nonon, while very bland as character development goes, are amazing in terms of their look and design! A++ to Sushio, the character designer!
>Blumenkranz is an extremely great and edgy pump-up track to use for a gym playlist! (Hint, hint!)
>Even though we've already tackled plot inconsistencies, the Magic Bullet still irks the hell out of the dude. Sue me.
>Have we talked about Mako and how she's the most undeveloped, irritating, non-funny, uninspired, uninteresting, poor excuse of a “character” in this series? Or a series in any medium of entertainment? Seriously – it seems like my hate for her increased with every episode she was in!
I hope you liked my Kill la Kill review! Or, if you hated it...at least you took the time to read it! :)
If you've got some tips on what I could have done better in this review or what you liked about it, be sure to leave a comment! And, remember, “To disagree is not to disrespect!” :D
