The tale of Allison & Lillia is interesting because it is split into 2 separate stories. The first major focus of the story is on the titular character Allison and her childhood friend Wil. Their adventure soon begins when they journey to discover something that could end the war between nations. Even though the meaning behind this WWII-like war was incredibly stupid, at least it gave meaning to the pair’s journey. The only real downside is that it’s resolved surprisingly quickly, which will leave anyone feeling quite unsatisfied. However that’s not the end of this arc-driven story, since it follows a basic structure: establish arc, develop it, climax, rinse then repeat. The second part of the series does the same but focuses on the other titular character Lillia.
The characters involved during these adventures are okay at best but it becomes tiring when so many characters appear to be inter-connected in someway. For the most part they are fairly well-developed, yet from the 2 boisterous female leads to the dull male leads; the cast as a whole leaves very little impression on the viewer. Although what does leave an impression are the farfetched decisions the characters generally make.
At least there’s one positive thing that leaves an impressions and that’s the production value. Sure the animation has its good and bad points, yet the lush environments and character designs (that are quite bland) match the whole WWII theme. Yet CGI similar to the likes of “Last Exile” is to be expected. Well even though this series may not fair so well for some in the animation department, it ends up doing a great job in the sound department by having an amazing soundtrack. The music in the series is up to par with the whole WWII theme and the SFX is certainly impressive.
Overall Allison & Lillia felt like a pretty camp, adventure series with quite a few journeys and quest that are resolved so easily that it proves to be a big disappointment. Sure there are plenty of things to enjoy in this series, like the way the main characters interact with one another and the element of combat, nevertheless with this being such a kid friendly show anything from the combat to the romance will bore anyone who’s used to something… a bit more… intense.
