I give this anime a 7.5 and I'll tell you why. For those looking for a brief summary, skip to the “Overall” at the bottom of this review.
Story: 7
The story of a new challenges arising as a result of a portal to another world opening up is not new. I’ve seen it in World Trigger and I’ve seen it in Zero no Tsukaima. What this anime did differently is make the other world technologically inferior to Japan, which I have never seen done before, and also delved into the politics of Japan as well as the new world. If not for this spin on the usual plot, I would have given the story a 6, but no matter it was not the story that carried this anime.
Characters: 8
The characters and relationship between the characters were the best parts of this anime.
Itami is a brilliant commander and leader but dense when it comes to matters of love – the classic formula for the main character and center of a harem anime. For the first time, I actually didn’t mind this stereotype. His lovable personality and refreshing decision to put his hobbies before work covered for his flaws. It is also nice that this anime didn’t make his inability to detect romance the main focus of his screen time.
Even though I include this in the sound rating, Rory’s voice actor. Enough said.
Art: 7
The character design was fantastic. I love how they drew the different characters, but aside from that, the art wasn’t anything special.
Sound: 8
It is rare that I actually enjoy the theme music for an anime but this is a rare exception. The fact that the theme music was so epic, combined with Rory’s voice actor, was enough to score this anime an 8 in sound. Lelei’s voice actor had the perfect amount of innocence as well.
Overall: 7.5
What makes this anime so enjoyable to watch and gives it an even higher score than Erased and Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo! is its ability to add original twists to an already proven formula. The classic invasion story was made more interesting by portraying the enemy to be clearly inferior to Japan and delving into the political intrigue of the new world. The main character of this harem anime acted as a fool when love was involved but rather than focusing on that minor detail, the anime focused on his reliability and general badassness. The art and sound worked well together to bring out the charm and humor of the characters. A solid anime all around and I look forward to the next season.
