The time has finally come, Granbelm has been won! It was a bumpy ride for me and I tell you exactly what I thought of this closing chapter over on 100 Word Anime!
For the last time though, welcome to my Granbelm gallery. I know you should never say never but this story seemed to have an actual end so I doubt a second season is right around the corner. So instead, enjoy the pretty pictures:
Let’s jump right in! The episode was a part II so we just started right in the middle of the action and the colour palette was kept over from last week. It’s a little intense, isn’t it? As I was watching in the moment it didn’t bother me much but as I look over the screencaps now, that’s quite a vibrant magenta. Almost aggressive. I guess that suits the situation.
You can’t see it in my images but the animation (as opposed to the art) was a bit choppy this week. I’m not sure if they ran out of budget or if they decided to try some new effects at the last minute but it was more jagged and less fluid than in previous episodes. For me, it was a minor disappointment but I can’t say it ruined the episode or anything.
At first, when they crashed in the cave it was almost refreshing as everything was much cooler in tone compared to previous scenes. However the colours got warmer and warmer as the scene progressed and with Mangetsu’s presence.
Pink is her colour after all while that cooler purple blue is Shingetsu’s. The more pink there is in the scene, the stronger Mangetsu’s presence. At least that’s how I saw it.
(I can’t explain that one green image – let’s say artistic licence)
One thing I have been impressed by is how expressive character’s faces are in Granbelm. It’s too bad that Shingetsu is the ultra stoic type and her won expression hardly ever changes. Even in the ultimate climax of the series. It’s o.k. Suishou is making up for it!
I’m very proud of that two panel image. It’s not perfect but it’s pretty close!
As you can see, Granbelm went full magical girl in those last images there. Unfortunately it didn’t really lead to anything. Following that transformation power scene, Shingetsu quietly put on the crown then made her wish and the show did a flash forward. It seemed like quite a bit of ado for little payoff. Still, in isolation the scene was fun to watch.
I do think that Shingetsu’s bathing suit with collar wings costume design is unbalanced. It looks a bit awkward to me in full body views. Maybe a pair of chunky boots would have balanced out the silhouette a bit?
I really like Shingetsu with a pony tail. It suites her a lot.
This sequence is full of peace and optimism. The scenes are wide open, taking place outside in the fresh air and framed to give a scene of scale. There is a big world beyond Shingetsu in these images. The colours are pretty but slightly desaturated which further enforces that sense of clam.
Generally speaking, Granbelm was a decent production. It didn’t take too many chances and you could see the limits of the budget here and there but it was consistently pretty and the colours were gorgeous!
I leave you on one last full moon!
Â