- Genre : Fantasy, Adventure, action, political
- Studio: A-1 Pictures
This is my second post for the Winter Games and having not seen anyone else’s yet, I’m feeling pretty confident. Wanna know what I’m talking about? Read THIS!
I was pretty happy about this choice. I’m always up for a good fantasy adventure and this looked intriguing.
The series opens on what we soon learn is a political marriage meant to bring peace between two long warring nations. The bride and groom really looked like brother and sister… The scene follows Siluca Meletes, a fanservicy young mage, and is both fast paced and dynamic which means you really have to pay attention to understand what’s going on. The wedding ceremony is interrupted by demonic interference and the tentative truce quickly dissolves as the incident becomes known as the Grand Hall Tragedy. We catch up with Siluca some years later as she travels the land with Irvin (awesome Hikaru no Go cosplay dude!) and meets up with obvious bright eyed idealistic hero. Theo.
In short order we find out the world has been plunged into chaos and humans are fighting both each other and encroaching demonic forces in a desperate attempt to find some peace. They say the word crest a lot!
This is a show I describe as “anime looking”. I have a feeling that people who don’t watch anime picture these exact designs when they think ‘anime’. They aren’t bad in any way mind you, just don’t expect me to remember them in a month. Unfortunately, the animation is rather subpar. Details vanish with any camera distance, angles are often very odd looking, and movements are sluggish. It’s not unheard of for animation to get better as a series progresses and they may have kept their budget for more important scenes but as the anime is obvious action heavy, it’s a little disappointing.
The characters are still just archetypes – I have little to say after a single episode. The story has potential, with many intriguing high fantasy elements and what seems to be a complex political intrigue behind the scenes but so far everything is presented in a very naïve way. There seems to be a lack of refinement and delicacy warranted by such an ambitious plot. There is enough here to keep me interested though.
Episode 2: the second episode picks up right where the first left off. After having taken over the stronghold of a lord, Siluca, Theo and Irvin (a 3 man army it seems) quickly find themselves besieged by an enterprising neighboring lord. Siluca calls on some old friends to help and we get the introduction of our second fanservice babe and oversexed comedic relief Aishela. The second episode is almost entirely dedicated to brainless battle and I found it quite enjoyable. Although far from perfect, the animation seems to have improved considerably. The half hour passed pleasantly as I watched ridiculous characters fly around the screen while throwing easy quips at each other. The addition of brief antagonist Lassic David was also a good asset in my opinion. I have a very soft spot for reasonable antagonists. I think they add a lot to a story and I was pleasantly surprised to find one in what seemed an otherwise superficial plot.
Episode 2 leaves behind most of the more grand aspirations of complex political machinations and sweeping fantasy epics to concentrate on what is essential a tiny localized conflict which is both bloodless and treated as a silly aside. This seems to be a much better fit for the show. The simplistic narratives and straightforward exposition was hardly as clumsy and ill-fitting in this context and not having to concentrate too much on the story allowed you to just enjoy the simple fun of a classic battle anime.
All in all, if the series respects and understands its own limitations, I think it could turn out to be great fun and this second episode was quite promising. I am looking forward to what the future brings.
Predictions
Plot: Neighboring lords will here about ep2 battle and begin a sneaky plan/alliance to dethrone out heros
Character: Lassic will hit on someone
If you want to read some crazy conspiracy theories that will never happen, go read Astral, Leap and TPAB‘s posts.