In spite of having a fantasy element fueled by each human in this series having fairy companions that support them in varying capacities, this is just a small part of Alderamin's story as it is largely focused on how Ikta and his companions deal with the ramifications of being part of the military and engaging in war. All six of the characters get a good deal of fleshing out to explore their back stories and how their present circumstances affect them, each having their unique dilemmas that include Ikta's disgust of the military following his father's execution by the empire, Igsem's immense loyalty to the empire in spite of being a societal outcast due to her social status, and Torway's struggle of regarding human targets up-close in spite of his excellent sniping skills. The six each have their gradual developments that they get as events escalate from their development in the military, mainly shaped from adopting Ikta's scientific and strategic approach to dealing with each of the conflicts they have to endure.
Besides focusing on our main group of characters, Alderamin also takes the time to exploring the world of this series and the issues surrounding it. The empires in the world of the series are mostly influenced in believe of the divine, which is in opposition to the scientific and rational beliefs that Ikta demonstrates throughout the series that usually land him into conflict with other soldiers. There are also corrupt and flawed elements within the empire's military as there are leaders who exploit their authority for their personal gain and others who assume they can get by with their personal beliefs or greater numbers, often underestimating the tactical advantages that their enemies can exploit with their weaponry and terrain. As the war escalates, Ikta's strategic approach to leadership in handling the conflict leads him to become a beneficial asset to the empire's cause in spite of his opposition to being part of the war. The anime does regrettably lack a proper ending due to its light novel source material still being ongoing as the war is still at large and hints of future events to come in the final episode involving Ikta and his companions are addressed, yet will not come to pass unless a second anime season comes along.
Visually, Alderamin sports a solid presentation with beautiful and vast scenic shots and character designs that sport a good amount of detail and vivid color. The animation has its moments of fluid movement and engaging sequences such as whenever Igsem engages enemy threats with her twin swords, though the anime will usually cut corners with more complicated circumstances in battles that include groups of battalions battling one another.
Gripes aside, Alderamin on the Sky is an underlooked title of 2016 that did surprisingly well with exploring how its world and main group of six characters are impacted by a war they want no part of due to religious beliefs, incompetent superior officers, and government corruption influencing it. Fans of war dramas with a smidge of fantasy elements should certainly give this title a look.
