Described as Yu-Gi-Oh meets Madoka this doesn't miss its mark. While having the prospect of getting your wish granted for playing cards, anyone would think this as an attractive deal, but naturally it got a catch.
The story is very well executed. You got a good amount of foreshadowing, which can help you guess the key points when you are familiar with these kinds of stories, still I would say that the end is surprising.
While the focus is on the main story, you still have your subplots which get enough attention that you care for the story, as well as the characters and you feel satisfied in the end. Most of the subplots get nicely wrapped up, before the finale, others I guess will bleed into the second season.
The stories are neatly told, but you won't get a lot of the rules for the WIXOSS Card Game, which is okay, because it isn't vital to the story. You get how the duels work and later on how the wish-system works, which is enough to get the story told.
The plottwists are really well established, so that you don't feel cheated when you get the resolution for certain storylines. Overall there is a lot of suspense, which is quite nicely handled and lets you fly through the episodes.
At the end you get some more question to take with you into the second season, also a lot of feelings and suspicions. While most of the subplots are wrapped up, it seems the main story is just gaining speed.
For our main character we have quite a blank slate in the beginning, which is perfectly okay in this case, because it kinda ties into the story and what is happening with her. Still Ru-chan is really likeable. In general you have a lot of trope-characters, which isn't as bad as is sounds. While meeting the other Selectors, especially Yuzuki and Hitoe, Ru-chan gets a lot of character-development, which still is kinda slow, but not a problem.
Also the LRIG characters are really well developed. Hanayo, Midoriko and Tama make a great addition to the main cast. Throughout the story and their dialogues you get a lot of hints, but if you're not familiar with these kinds of storylines, you won't be able to put them together quite that fast.
Another thing I really liked were the dynamics between the name-characters (all the nameless ones seemed to be kinda bad and ill-mannered). You get a lot of friendship, but some are also enemies. While there are emotions in the mix, I never felt forced to feel something for the characters or the storylines, it felt really natural.
There where some minor setbacks for characters introduced but then vanishing, but I'm hoping, we will see them again in the second season.
I also really liked the music, especially the opening and ending met my taste, but also the music within the episodes was good and well placed. It never felt too much or too over the top. The mix between intense and calming tunes is well rounded.
Overall I enjoyed this series a lot and am looking forward starting the next season. I got a lot of questions I want to have answered!
I would recommend it to people who are into magical girl animes, with dark themes and can take a bit of heartache thrown at them. It looks like cute girls playing cards, but it is so much more!
