Story :
The main story is about a group of kids trying to survive after waking up and realize they are in another world, but they can't recall any memory on where they come from. Now the concept of "living in another world" are becoming more common in recent anime shows, but Grimgar has differentiate itself by portraying one of the most realistic scenario on what would happen if a normal people began their life in a RPG style fantasy world.
'Normal' might be an overstretch, as even from episode one you can already tell the MC and its party are both weak in skills and lacking in interpersonal skills. Combined with the RPG approach of figuring things by yourselves unlike being given a target of reaching the top level of a certain floating fortress or defeating a demon king, this anime is going to deliver itself in a more of a slice-of-life type pacing.
So what would the plot of a slice-of-life living in a fantasy world anime be like? You've guessed it! Most of it are character development, both from fighting monsters and the interactions between each party member. Although there are multiple girls within the party, it is not a harem type anime but you could see a bit of romance sub-plot building between some of the party members.
Art:
Your typical A-1 pictures, the art is stunning, the settings have a water-color like pictures, although there are a bit of inconsistencies and a noticable drop in (CG?) quality at the last few episodes.
Sound:
OP and ED are nice, there are music that accompanies the fighting scenes that make it more enjoyable and sometimes the pairing between the music and the animation are spot on.
Character:
As i have explained a bit previously, the characters are weak and most of them does not have a good interpersonal skills. If you imagine a group of people that represents shyness, stoic, wishy washy, and arrogant, then you have an idea on what most of the party members are like.
It is not to say that they are not likeable characters as there are many other things to like from them as the story progresses. The main noticable character development on this show is on Haruhiro and Mary, with the remaining party member have a slightly more subtle changes.
You won't be seeing many side characters in this show, as the main focus of this anime is on the party itself.
Enjoyment:
The first few episodes are enjoyable with a decent amount of action, but as the show goes on you are going to realize that they are dragging the show and making you wonder whether if this anime is one of those rushed one cour series. In multiple episodes, they add a lenghty song while showing not much activities from any of the characters.
Those of you who have read the LN, you might go on a rage on why they omit a big event while deciding to show watercolor painting with music that does not do any justice to the LN. Then again, i personally think that this anime is a complement to the LN, and not a substitute so it is still somewhat enjoyable despite the fact that they adapt 8 episodes for the first volume and only leaving 4 episodes for the second volume.
Overall:
Objectively speaking, it's a good anime overall but the enjoyment factor is not too high making it difficult to recommend to others.
I can only recommend this anime to people who have read the LN and wanting to see most of the fighting scenes or those who like slice-of-life anime coupled with a different type of setting. If you don't like slice-of-life kind of show then you probably won't like this anime.
