Aldnoah.Zero holds a very special place in my heart, it really does. How one anime can so comprehensively screw up in every department, that actually matters, is beyond me. It is a feat not even the great Koi to Senkyo to Chocolate was able to achieve. So unmitigated is this disaster that I think its required viewing for anyone interested in knowing how NOT to write an anime. Everyone else would probably be better off watching boku no pico.
The Review:
Aldnoah chronicles a war that breaks out over the attempted assassination of the Martian princess, Asseylum, who was on a diplomatic mission to improve relations between the Terrans and the Martians. Tensions between the two factions had apparently been escalating ever since the last war, which purportedly took place 15 years prior the series. This is all the information we get before the anime becomes a tedious string of action sequences, interlaced with uninteresting conversations and nearly useless infodump sections. As a result, we learn barely anything about the political and economic conditions surrounding the conflict. But hey, who gives a damn if the plot is paper thin and has holes the size of Jupiter, as long as there are you have badass explosions, and a cast of high school students to boot!
The anime focuses on a handful of characters at the expense of all other aspects of the so-called war. So you would think the writers would put at least SOME effort into developing them, right? Heh, WRONG! In fact, Aldnoah has plot devices instead of 'characters.'The biggest problem with the cast is undoubtedly its size. There are simply way too many characters for a 12 episode show to handle properly. As a direct result, most of them end up being extras with no personalities whatsoever. Strangely enough, the 'main' characters don't fair any better. Inaho, the protagonist of this trainwreck, is the most lifeless individual I have seen to date. If he were to be replaced by one of the mechs, you would've have a really hard time telling the difference. This is helped by the fact that the apathetic idiot sounds as if he were voiced by a text-to-speech software. for someone labelled as the protagonist, Inaho doesn't really do much besides delivering exposition during battles. He doesn't even get into a relationship for god's sake! Even the most generic ecchi anime has a lead more human than this bag of bones.
The Martian side of things is even worse, believe it or not, when it comes to the character department. This entire faction seems to be comprised of disagreeable individuals, who are bent on starting a war with the Terrans. Moe Mars princess, (Asseylum) and Slaine, the Terran who was 'saved' by her, are apparently the only people who have a conscience. Asseylum is clearly the more annoying of the two. The anime tries to portray her as a pacifist, an angel among demons, if you will. This probably could've worked if the writers had bestowed her with an appropriate back story. But as it stands, she's a walking, talking, collection of cliches. Given the princess' fetish for Terrans, I fully expected a relationship to blossom between her and Slaine. But the guy is busy with plot device duties throughout the series, you see. His sole purpose seems to be accentuating the inhumane nature of the Martian gentry, by being repeatedly beaten and tortured. You actually feel sorry for him until you realize it's just too contrived to take seriously. The very notion that he suffers all this abuse right under Asseylum's nose is preposterous. Why couldn't the idiot just go and tell her about his misery. There is absolutely no reason for the dim-witted Terran to suffer in silence. Oh wait, there is, SHOCK VALUE!
Aldnoah zero is yet another series which squandered its potential because of lazy writing. It literally offers NOTHING of value in terms of plot and characterization. Not even the flashy visuals and catchy soundtrack can save this one from my shit list.
