Gender bending not your cup of tea? Harem is too redundant in the anime industry lately? Well then perhaps having one more of such show might not hurt too much. As the saying goes “there’s always an exception to everything”, and Kampfer might just be that one exception for you! Blessed with nice animation and huge plot twists (for better or for worse), Kampfer sure surprised many viewers towards the end of the show...in a negative way.
Let us start with something that is very lacking in Kampfer, the plot. Excluding the plot twists that contributed to some much needed “excitements”, the story was pretty non-existent. Viewers first find themselves thrown into the mist of a pre-planned battle between the red Kampfers and blue Kampfers, staged by some mysterious force only known as the “moderators”. Part way through the anime, any hint of potential story will be replaced by random fan service. Not only was the ending poorly made, but the lack of conclusion also made Kampfer not very satisfying.
Special emphasis should be placed on Shizuku, the student council president and the only character with a brain in the group of Kampfers. She almost single-handedly saved the character category from total destruction in my eyes. In fact, recently there have been comparisons made between Shizuku and Hitagi Senjougahara (a very well liked character among otaku) from Bakemonogatari due to their tsundere nature. Another note worthy character is Akane. She can be seen as a masochist, but due to her transformation as a Kampfer, one can also argue that she somewhat a tsundere character as well. These two characters showed the most growth and seem to be the most developed out of all the main characters. In fact, they are like two bright candles lit in a dark room.
Although there are some likable characters, the overall characters development/growth for the majority of the casts is very minimal. They start and end the show practically the same way. It seems like they did not learn a single thing during their little “adventure”. What hurts the anime most is perhaps the lack of uniqueness from our gender flopping protagonist. He/she does have the looks, but at the end of show the one that will likely have the most impact on you will not be him/her.
Perhaps I am giving a little too much credit to Nomad, the studio that produced Kampfer, but the designs on the characters (ie. their looks, their facial expressions, their Kampfer transformation, et cetera) were quite nicely animated. The animation quality also seems to be rather consistent (which is always a plus). They could have obviously improved on the details of the characters and the backgrounds, but for an ecchi/harem type show I strongly believe having your “merchandise” (ie. girl) looks good is way more crucial than anything else. And in that respect, Nomad was profoundly efficient.
The sound department in Kampfer is average in many ways. The OP may require some time to get accustom to, but the ED will surely get you hooked. However the BGM within the episodes were nothing outstanding. They may suite certain scene or event relatively well most of the time, but they never gave me the feeling that they are amplifying the scene through my ears. Sometimes BGM can make you feel all hyped up or ready to cry a river, but the music in Kampfer did not deliver to that level.
Kampfer fails as a romance anime. Kampfer fails as an action anime. Kampfer, however, delivers ecchiness and harem in a moderate level. Nothing too extreme and nothing too exciting. Its selling points are without a doubt the good and consistent animation quality, and interesting characters like Shizuku and Akane. Overall depending on what you are seeking for enjoyment, Kampfer can be a great source of entertainment or a total waste of time. Personally I liked Shizuku so much that I can ignore all the glaring faults from the show, but that is just my preference. By the way, did anyone tell you Kampfer is a show for Christmas with a story about Santa Claus?
*edit* 2nd Revision
