Animation Revelation's Animation Blog

Black Butler: Book of Circus

Did you know that Black Butler is a shounen? I always thought it was a yaoi. Hell, the first 30 seconds of the show feature a man wearing high heels, but I guess that must just be something young boys are into these days. Regardless of its demographic or genre, the first episode of Book of Circus fails to impress on any level outside of its background music. While it’s a foregone conclusion that this anime is going to make bank on its BD and merchandise sales, you wouldn’t really know it from watching the season premiere. The animation is about as halfhearted as you’d expect from a niche show made by J.C. Staff, though judging by the downright horrendous CGI in Sword Art Online 2 (which rears its ugly head here in the form of a laughable horse-drawn carriage), A-1 Pictures has just stopped giving a shit about its work altogether. Sure, they were never exactly the most competent studio to begin with, but goddamn… you can’t tell me a new Black Butler series was actually given such a low budget as to look like an early 2000’s anime.

But, of course, no one watches anime for the beautiful animation unless it’s a movie or something, and that’s fair enough. Unfortunately, the writing is every bit as subpar as the production values. While some may rejoice that they dropped Mari Okada as screenwriter for Book of Circus, the Guilty Crown and Vivid Red Operation guy was not a suitable replacement, and is – in fact – a step down, as Okada at least has a couple of good shows under her belt. Perhaps it’s because I’m not overly invested in watching bishounen men do edgy things for 25 minutes each week, but I just couldn’t bring myself to care about the characters or story in this first episode. Sebastian seems like he could be interesting, but the show’s concerted efforts to make him look badass and sexy just caused me to groan. And that stupid kid, Phantomhive, is loathsome. He does display some modicum of non-horribleness in the post-credits scene, but as someone new to the Black Butler franchise, I honestly found myself rooting for the villains.

The soundtrack, surprisingly composed by Yasunori Mitsuda (the guy behind Chrono Trigger‘s brilliant score), is too good for this show. While the circus aspect of the story doesn’t come into play until the second episode, the accordion pieces and other eclectic tracks capture the feeling of a dark carnival perfectly. The music is, simply put, a joy to listen to, and I despair that it was wasted on Black Butler: Book of Circus. While this anime is far from being without merit (though those character designs certainly are), I can’t say it enthralls me in the slightest. I’m sure there are many people who can and will enjoy this, but I’ll just be left in the corner scratching my head the whole time. — Foggle

Bladedance of Elementalers

Ok… Blade Dance… you don’t scare me, I’ve watched Dragonar!

00:12 – Um generic tournament opening, what does this have anything to do wit-oh credits.

02:42 – …and here comes the pedo bait. Oh god…

04:04 – Every time I watch a show like this I feel Chris Hanson is going to burst through my door.

05:30 – Oh hey, its that sequel to Kaze no Stigma nobody asked for!

06:35 – Why does it that every fucking magical girl anime since Madoka has to  have contrats with spirits?

07:50 – Our main moe lead is just tsssssssssssssuntastic! Ahahahahaahahahahaha.

07:53 – ECCCCKSCALIBAHHHH! BAKA ME!

08:12 – Of course, just touching the sword has to make her skirt sway…

09:20 – Oh that’s why its called “Blade Dance” because they need fancy footwork to run away from the blades…

11:18 – Fanservice counter at… god I lost count.

11:46 – Ah TNK and your troll worthy eyecatches…

13:02 – OF FUCKING COURSE he has to be the only guy at an all-girls school. OF. FUCKING. COURSE!

13:47 – TNK Half-glasses spoted. Gotta get my bingo card out…

15:02 – What the fuck is this? What the hell is going on?

16:30 – And… now its Baka and Test. Great.

19:29 – Thank you for saving me from that potentially horrifying rape scene, Norse fertility goddess lady.

20:13 – Heh, main guy literally IS Seijun Otoko.

20:43 – WHITE SLAVERY! Gotta love it!

21:16 – Dammit Sena, go back to Haganai.

21:48 – MAIDS.

23:15 – Evil Homura-clone is evil!

23:41 – And we’re done… thank god… Wow, I could really write a 2,000,000 paragraph essay about why I just watched the worst show of the season right now! ….eh fuck it I’m tired. — Lord Dalek

Encouragement of Climb Second Season

Yeah remember that mountain climbing girls club anime from last year? It not only got a second season, but its extended to 24 episodes, each about 13 minutes from the paltry 12 episodes of 3-4 minutes long. Its really telling when the OP consists of sequences from the first season, but its very charming nonetheless…

It is essentially the silly yet charming adventures of Aoi and Hinata as they seek to conquer mountains along with their friends Kokona and Kaede. We watch the two pitch a tent in their backyard and also cook a meal in camp pots. It makes me pine for my youth when I was really active in the outdoors.

Of course, this show is vastly helped by the episode length extension. The animation is a step above the first season and the story/characters are augmented as more development on them is to be had I am sure. If you watched the first season, this is more of the same, a nice soothing SoL show with cute girls doing hiking in the woods. — The Eclectic Dude

Fate/kaleid liner Prisma Illya 2wei!

One of the first shots in this season is Ilya thinking she’s making out with Shirou, but it’s just some kid instead. That’s nowhere near as stupid as it could have been, but this show’s really one that aims for low expectations. Most of the first act is devoted to girls just preparing for school and wacky Taiga antics rather than what the Fate franchise is known for, which is 10% less preparing for school and wacky Taiga antics. I know this has probably been stated since the first season was announced, but I’m sure many a viewer would have passed if the word “Fate” weren’t in the title. Even Carnival Phantasm made you remember that you were watching something at least tangibly related to babby’s first visual novel, whereas this show feels like the Angelic Days of the franchise.

While it would be easy to mock this show as a cash-in, I’m more fascinated by whose idea it was to use F/SN characters to appeal to the PreCure demographic of adult men. I know there’s a sizable amount of people who want to bone Ilya, but is there enough of a faction to want a magical girl spinoff of her own? Were lust worms considered too lewd for a show where audible moaning and grunting is played during a transformation sequence? I mean at the very least, this show does not try to pretend it’s anything else. No tongue-in-cheekness to show that even the writers don’t care. It’s just Silver Link doing another job for job’s sake (the days of Watamote are long gone). It makes no bones about how it’s a magical girl show with no real identity of its own.

I guess if you want to see an Archer loli, this is the show for you. But if that’s the case, where are the loli versions of my favorite Type/Moon characters? I want to see magical girl incarnations of Touko Aozaki and Iskandar fighting each other. Where’s Zouken as the talking animal companion who gives out free jewelry? You’ve created a silly world like this, and you never thought to make Mahou Shoujo Shiki Ryougi Magica? I’m disappointed, Type/Moon. Perhaps the expected audience wanted some sanity from this, but why I ponder. But like I said earlier, it’s just a tie-in for people who want to fap to Ilya. The fans who want Saber fanservice will sadly have to wait another thirteen weeks. — Bloody Marquis

Invaders of the Rokujyoma!?

Light novels aren’t the best source material for an anime. Invaders of the Six-Tatami Mat Room! is an obvious example of this, like how I said The Irregular at Magic Highschool was an example of anime running out of ideas last season (and incest with a Gary Stu screeches anime lacking new ideas). Shows like this make me kind of sad. Some light novel plotlines could be humorous, and I could see myself laughing at this show if the humour wasn’t so bland and typical – people getting angry is hardly ever funny. The plotline could also offer up some humour – a guy living with a ghost, an underground resident, two aliens and a magician constantly being called a cosplayer. It might sound decent on paper, and in the worst case scenario it could only sound good as a concept. This light novel plot doesn’t transition well to animation with Invaders of the Six-Tatami Mat Room!. What a surprise. I wish I actually was surprised.

So, some highschool guy moves into a cheap apartment which people consider haunted. During a dig he participates in with his friend, he falls into a pit and meets a mysterious statue that ensues a Lynch-esque sequence of weird imagery.  He wakes up in the hospital, with a massive plaster stuck to hair instead of his head. Next thing you know, girls pop up in his apartment and they want it all to themselves for their own personal reasons. Let the harem begin.

The storyline is a typical light-novel fest, but that is what it boils down to – a light novel fest as an anime. The characters remind me of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya – you have the normal everyday guy and the extraordinary people surrounding him and their adventures. The animation is typical Silver Link fare, and it looks like previous productions such as Kokoro Connect, WataMote and Strike the Blood, and yet it still looks more presentable than Sword Art Online II does – and A-1 Pictures have animated shows like Birdy The Mighty Decode and the currently airing Aldnoah.zero – so when Silver Link is doing a better job than A-1 Pictures is, that’s something respectable.

There was no memorable music to speak of, and I’m sure ‘memorability’ is something this show struggles with right off the bat. I cannot recollect anything from my viewing of this show, and I’d like to keep it that way – I don’t want to remember things not worth remembering. The only thing particularly memorable about my viewing was Foggle comparing this anime to Saya no Uta. Yes, you can do that with this show, if you look very closely….

I’m still waiting for my Saya no Uta anime. Hop on it, ufotable. — Mahou

Second Opinion!

Invaders of the Rokujyoma!? is truly the Saya no Uta of our generation. It features a protagonist who can see weird shit after landing himself in the hospital (in this case, a ghost – SPOOKY) and at least one loli. The similarities don’t end there. Much like in Saya no Uta, the universe of the brilliantly titled Rokujyoma!? (gotta’ love that beautiful multi-language juxtaposition followed by two punctuation marks) contains characters who mostly speak Japanese, and even cutesy anime artwork. It’s practically a rip-off of Nitro+’s 2003 work!

But is it any good? If you’re a fan of vapid characters, rehashed humor, lazy plot structuring, mediocre animation, and uninspired voice acting, you’ll love Rokujyoma!?. This is the kind of series that only comes around thrice a week and makes viewers question why they even like anime in the first place. Not since my most recent viewing of Cowboy Bebop have I seen an anime that utilized elements like color and voice acting to such an extent (I watched some Cowboy Bebop last night).

It’s hard to imagine an anime more suited to the impeccable talents of Silver Link, or one that’s more of a perfect fit to be licensed by the illustrious Sentai Filmworks, than Invaders of the Rokujyoma!?. This show has everything one could ever ask for from a 2014 anime — ghost lolis, alien lolis, magical girls, shrine maidens, giant bouncing breasts, exposed panties, gratuitous CGI, and even a moronic male protagonist! The fact that a series as creative and intelligent as this one can still be greenlit in this day and age gives me hope for the future.

While this will probably not be considered by scholars to be among the scariest, most twisted works of horror, Invaders of the Rokujyoma!? is clearly the best Saya no Uta anime adaptation the world has ever seen. In terms of visual novels transitioning to the medium of animation, it rivals the magnificent Tsukihime and the masterful Diabolik Lovers in quality. If you only watch one anime this season, or year, or lifetime for that matter, make it Rokujyoma!?. — Foggle

Love Stage!!

It’s intriguing how the first episode portrays commercialism as something that can bring people together, as if true love can be sparked by the magic of an advert shoot. This materialist presence is almost endearing in its banality, with the main character being surrounded night and day by these reminders of being a product instead of a person. I know this line of thinking sounds like a hipster’s, but when the family’s lawyer is a main character and the mom can’t stop talking about how she buys expensive facial masks to stay hot, it’s tough not to sneer at those sorts of elements flowing through this plot.

And the characterization does nothing to dispel that idea, with our main protagonist Izumi coming across as the lead in every movie where a shy kid has to come out of their shell and be with the man of their dreams. It’s in the style of most CLAMP works, where more attention is put into the frilly backgrounds and the shading of the characters’ eyes instead of the actual romance. That would be merely bad to do, if it was still 2005. But it’s 2014, where CLAMP barely sells anymore and Tokyopop’s gone the way of the dodo. Now, we live in a world where these sorts of works are only edible for the anime fan who thinks airport novels are wonderful pieces of literature.

In a way, it feels like yaoi’s the last realm that bad chick flick writers have left. You can use clichés that would usually be eyebrow raising in a straight romance, because the readers will think it’s more acceptable to see these ideas applied to boy’s love. It’s like a failed pitch at a regular shoujo manga becomes a successful pitch once you put a penis on the girls. However, it goes further than that, where deplorable plot devices once used in straight romances are embraced in yaoi. I remember humoring myself by reading some of the source material as preparation, and got a couple scenes where Izumi gets molested out of nowhere. Now imagine if Izumi was a girl, and that becomes horrifying for the audience. But because it’s yaoi, it seemingly loses those connotations. And that happens because some people have different standards between homosexual and heterosexual love stories. For instance, imagine the seme-uke relationship applied to a man and a woman. It becomes a bit creepy now, doesn’t it? But then again, who reads yaoi for the plot? — Bloody Marquis

Momo Kyun Sword

Jiggle jiggle jiggle. Momo was born from a peach. Jiggle jiggle jiggle. Thus, her breasts are like peaches. Jiggle jiggle jiggle, she has a sword. Kyun. Jiggle. Bad animation. Jiggle. Kyun. Momo, bad story. Jiggle kyun kyun kyun. — Mahou

Nobunaga Concerto

I have to wonder how Oda Nobunaga would feel about being the subject of so many anime series these days. As one of history’s biggest certified badasses, I’d have to assume he’d be none too pleased to be the subject of a light comedy series, but fortunately for the folks behind Nobunaga Concerto, he’s not here to brutally cut them down with his sword.

It’s hard to imagine a TV show giving off a worse first impression than this one. The downright ugly artwork and animation converge with slapdash storytelling to deliver a wholly unsatisfying introduction into the world of this anime, though thankfully it quickly veers off the appalling road I was afraid it would head down. At its core, this is a silly comedy starring a high school slacker who gets thrust into the past and ends up taking the place of Nobunaga after the latter runs off to take a vacation. While it utterly lacks depth in any capacity, somehow Nobunaga Concerto actually manages to be pretty funny. It’s not bust-a-gut hilarious or anything, and many of the jokes are fairly obvious, but I did find myself laughing a couple of times, and by the halfway point I was genuinely interested in finishing the episode, which is more than I can say for a lot of anime comedies.

While I would by no means call the humor brilliant, this episode featured a number of clever moments that made it stand out among other “modern day person accidentally travels back in time” stories. The way it incorporated such things as a history textbook and bug spray into the story were worthy of a chuckle or two, and Saburou (the main character) managed to be fairly likeable, if a bit bland. Unfortunately, the technical aspect never proved itself, and more often than not failed to progress past the point being an eyesore. Between Nobunaga Concerto and last year’s Flowers of Evil, I truly hope this trend of rotoscoped anime does not catch on, because it has yet to be done well.

Overall, while probably not good enough to justify someone going out of their way to watch it, this show surprised me in how fun it was. I doubt I’ll be keeping up with it, but maybe if I’m bored I’ll check out some future installments. It seems like a good time killer, if nothing else, and is a damn sight ahead of many other recent anime comedies. — Foggle

Persona 4: The Golden Animation

Adapting the contents of  a video game into another medium is pretty difficult. Especially if you’re going for a direct re-telling. Due to the nature of video games as an interactive medium, the director of has the challenge of not only faithfully retelling a story that may be as thin as Super Mario or as complex as Metal Gear Solid, but also doing it in a way that adequately reflects the experiences that a majority of players may have over the course of playing a game. With this having been said, while I’ve never played a game in the Persona series, I do know a bit about the community and their love for the characters and such. So when diving into Persona 4 Golden: The Animation (based on the Playstation Vita remake of the original PS2 title), I was hoping that I would perhaps be able to see even a fraction of what so many people find great about this JRPG that involves teenagers jumping into CRTs. Instead, I found myself falling asleep under the glow of a television screen.

While it is very clear from the show alone that the source material has a great, solid premise, the execution in this second anime adaptation falls prey to the problem of trying to condense over 70 hours of gameplay and story into a measly six hours. A challenge like that requires fast pacing, but the speed at which director Seiji Kishi decides to tell the events makes everything feel rushed and underwhelming. From my understanding, this series takes a New Game Plus approach to the crafting of its story; it is a quick alternate retelling of the original anime for those that have already watched that. This is all well and good for those fans or people that have played Persona 4, but this take just leaves newcomers like me scratching their heads and wondering what the hell is going on and why they should even care about the characters on screen. In order to squeeze everything into twelve episodes, they throw out everything that isn’t important to the main plot. So you don’t really get to hear about the mysterious murders that are mentioned near the beginning of the game, or why Yu Narukami is so quick to believe the tales of the Midnight Channel, or get those important little moments of character interaction that establish group dynamics. For a series of games where half the fun is getting to know the characters and becoming friends or even romantic partners, that’s just weird to me. All you get with P4GA is that you’re a badass new kid, you can travel into a TV, and you can now summon a monster without even questioning to yourself how or why. It’s quick, clean, and straight to the point, but as a result, you get something like a bite-sized brownie. Delicious, but not enough to satisfy.

This show will be enjoyable for tried-and-true fans of the franchise. The anime has a pleasant look that captures the art style of the games, the music is nice to listen to, and fans will be happy to see that Marie is making her grand anime appearance. But if you have little knowledge of the source material, then there is absolutely no reason to watch Persona 4 Golden: The Animation unless you desire to be confused or bored. If you want to gain an understanding of the game, pick up a copy on Playstation Network or Vita, or just watch the original, slower-paced anime. — RacattackForce

Sengoku Basara: Judge End

Sengoku Basara returns to the anime world, and that means it’s time to party! Adapting the third game of Capcoms wildly popular spin on Dynasty/Samurai Warriors (localized as “Sengoku Basara: Samurai Heroes” overseas) Judge End follows the conflict between former brothers-in-arms Tokugawa Ieyasu and Ishida Mitsunari, who both served under the ruthless Raou-esque warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Their rivalry begins when Ieyasu, believing Hideyoshi’s might makes right philosophy to be a load of crock, and that the power of bonds will bring the nation together, betrays him and slays him in a heated battle. Mitsunari, after effortlessly defeating series main character and poster boy Date Masamune (who’s pretty much Devil May Cry’s Dante if he lived in the Sengoku period), hears his lords death cry and rushes to the battle site only to find Hideyoshi dead at Ieyasu’s hands. This combined with the death of Hideyoshi’s strategist Hanbe, drives Mitsunari into despair as he swears vengeance upon Ieyasu, thus starting a chain of events that will eventually lead to the final battle at Sekigahara.

Despite its slightly darker tone, Judge End retains the franchises hot-blooded energy and charm. Animation (produced by TMS this time around, instead of Production IG) looks crisp and vibrant, and the music is just as excellent. Likewise, voice acting is also suberp, with all of voice actors from the games and previous anime reprising their roles and bring in that bombastic energy the series is known for. Kazuya Nakai’s Date remains as charismatic and badass as ever, and hearing him sprinkle random engrish in his dialogue never gets old, while Soichiro Hoshi gives an equally energetic performance as Sanada Yukimura, Date’s main rival. Hoshi captures Yukimura’s spirit as a young, hotblooded warrior eager to prove himself as a general well, and helps make his character legitimately likable and gung-ho, rather than annoying and ear-grating as most characters of his type are. Tomokazu Seki gives a very solid performance as Mitsunari, capturing his arrogant, fanatical warrior side, and giving real weight to his bouts of anger and despair (which you will be hearing a lot), his scream of anguish at the end is especially chill-inducing. It should go without saying that the rest of the cast excel in their roles, they’ve been voicing these characters for years, and it’s clear that they have a lot of fun voicing them.

Watching the previous two seasons of Basara isn’t strictly necessary to enjoy Judge End, as they have seperate continuites.  The opening narration gives a decent summary of the setting and what’s happening, and the first episode is an effective introduction/reintroduction to the characters and their general personalities and relationships. Familiarity with the characters would help, but newcomers can jump in and still enjoy Judge End without much confusion. Fans last years Kill La Kill will especially find a lot to like here.

Judge End’s premiere works as a prologue,  doing an excellent job of showing the motivations of Ieyasu and Mitsunari, giving equal weight in their causes and making both  sympathetic to the audience and never favoring one over the other. I really like this as it gives a lot of dimension to their characters without making them seem too generic. Great characters have always been Basara’s biggest strength, and  here’s hoping Judge End keeps it that way. The action was good, but not quite as over-the-top as it has been in the past, but I’m positive that the action will quickly escalate once we get to the main plot. My only real complaint is the lack of TM Revolution or Abingdon Boys School, but even in their absence Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas provides a headbanging OP that gets you pumped for some hot-blooded sengoku-period action, easily one of my favorite openings of the season.

If you’re looking for the anime to watch this season, then look no further, Sengoku Basara Judge End is easily the best the season has to offer. Whether you’re a fan of the games, the anime, a newcomer of the season, or just love all things hot-blooded and badass, then what are you waiting for? Check it out and join the party! — Rynnec

Shin Strange+

So apparently there was a gag anime last year which had our dear comrade Seki Tomakazu as some guy who tries to find his cross-dressing brother only to find him running a detective agency. However, instead of bringing him home, Seki decides to stay with him and then hijinks abound! Apparently, there was an audience for such hijinks that a second season was greenlit. The premiere’s MO? Recapping how much of a shitty job they did establishing the show in the first season, then added a new character doing the same thing the brother did, but did a shitty job at it so now she’s fired and has to join the agency.

Yeah I got nothing. If you’ve somehow came across this anime last year and liked it then maybe you have something, if what little there is satisfies you. — The Juude

Terror in Resonance

There appear to be no less than two distinct and different directors currently working under the name “Shinichiro Watanabe” in Japan. There’s the guy who makes quirky action comedies nobody in Japan watches like Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo starring lazy assholes usually voiced by Steve Blum and then there’s the one who makes off-puting artsy Noitamina stuff nobody in America watches like Kids on the Slope starring normal people who’s slice of life gets rudely upended (there used to be a THIRD one that made mecha shows like Macross Plus but we haven’t seen head or tale of him since 1996).  Why am I bringing this up? Because this season we have BOTH of them making shows! Goofy comedy Watanabe is once again credited with another of Space Dandy (although like Season 1, the degree of his involvement is questionable), and serious Watanabe gives us Terror in Resonance, a bold attempt to finally get some recognition for his other career pursuits.

So in the near future, two mysterious transfer students, the rather cold Arata and far more outgoing Toji, arrive at a Japanese high school and immediately become involved in the life of one Lisa Mishima, an introverted girl with self-esteem and mother issues. Turns out these two are actually Nine and Twelve, members of an organization known as SPHINX which uses minors to carry out serial bombings around the world. In this case, using toy teddy bears to blow up where Mishima is coincedently, making her an accomplice against her own will to this dastardly plot.

First things first, if I didn’t know Watanabe had made this show I could have swore it was by somebody else. It feels much more reminiscent of the works of Kenji Kamiyama, in particular Eden of the East. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing as I liked Eden of the East (the TV series at least, that movie sucked balls) but its not something I’d expect from Watanabe. Its a very slow burn of a plot, building a heavy degree of tension until finally the two terrorists carry out the plot and the show kicks in some nicely animated CGI explosions and debris. The music by Yoko Kanno, whom we haven’t heard from a while, adds to this sense of tension with lots of electronic and generally eerie sounds. At times it sounds like something out of GITS:SAC which was directed by… you gussed it… Kenji Kamiyama. I also really like the OP for this show done by the Galileo Gallelei guy, it and Tokyo Ghoul’s are probably the two best looking and sounding of the season so far.

So yeah Terror in Resonance is a bit of a change of pace for Watanabe but then again so was Kids on the Slope. Whether or not it takes off anywhere remains to be seen. — Lord Dalek

Second Opinion!

Shinichiro Watanabe trades his pompadour, space travel, and boobies for teens and terrorism in Terror in Resonance. So far, it seems like a good transaction.

As of yet, there is no overarching raison d’etre of Nine and Twelve’s (our terrorists) inclination towards societal disarray, but Watanabe ably establishes that they (and the show) are not to be taken lightly. A rather exciting opening sequence where both non-lethally acquire a device from a nuclear facility sets that stage very well, alongside their subsequent integration into Japanese society. Personality-wise, they do not set off any particularly strong fireworks in originality, but they work nicely as foils to one another. While Nine is taciturn and morose, Twelve is free-spirited and unpredictable, with surprisingly lateral thinking when it comes to dealing with matters like handling dark, shadowy, pasts or handling unexpected variables in their plans like one Lisa Mishima. The way the show integrates her into their web of intrigue, as well as establish her disconnect from society due to peers and parent, is clever and does not feel forced at all. How she will figure into the trio (Will she maintain a moral centre or will she win the battle over herself and love Big Nine and Twelve?) is going to be something to look out for.

So overall, very impressed. With such an impacting first episode of a short 11-episode run, it sounds like they won’t be lollygagging all too much with the story. Good. With a title like Terror in Resonance, each episode after this one should leave a lasting impact that gets us primed for the next one. Watanabe, please do not disappoint. — The Juude

Tokyo ESP

Once in a while there comes a show that defies all conventions. A show that pushes the boundries of what the animated medium can deliver and pulls it off flawlessly, leaving us agape with its brilliance.

…this is not one of those shows.

In fact, Tokyo ESP is anything but a decent show. Hell its not even much of a show as it is a clusterfuck onto itself, feeling as if it were twenty other shows at once and none of them particularly good. It’s a trainwreck and it baffles the mind that Funi felt this deserved their attention when they could have had Akame ga Kill instead and made a mint.

So the plot is this: Parliament has been kidnapped by Espers!!! Are you a bad enough dude to rescue the parliament??? …ok I fudged the last bit but its still pretty accurate. There’s this nasty esper guy and he wants to take over the world along with his gang of fashionistas, Daft Punk cosplayers, and sidekick/special guest star Shiki Riyogi who seems to have abandoned Nasu now that the Kara no Kyokai money’s run out (yeah, yeah its not her… OR IS IT?). Opposing them is the rather unfortunately named “White Girl” organization, lead appropriately enough by the rather unfortunately named “White Girl” and a bunch of glasses clad nerds (as well as the token chick with big boobs). In the end all it adds up to is a ton of explosions and pointless destruction of millitary hardware. All in a good days work?….yeah no.

What’s the glaring problem with this show? Simple:  it has no idea what it wants to be. Tokyo ESP starts as a banal slice of life christmas special, flips a switch and becomes a Die Hard style action thriller, then turns into a martial arts style show, before finally saying “Fuck it, We’re X-Men!” All within the span of about 20 minutes. This isn’t a show, this is one of those 4chan “What I wanted…” charts come to life crammed into one 23 minute stretch of confusion. The animation isn’t much better as clearly Xebec is spending more time on that Argevollen dreck and not this dreck. Clearly time well spent am I right? — Lord Dalek

Second Opinion!

Ah, I believe I’ve found our Wizard Barristers for the season in Tokyo ESP.

You’ve got a malevolent force of super-powered humans (some of whom are wearing half-done cosplays of Rejected Mega Man Robot Masters) pulling Tokyo to shit. Followed by that there’s an elite government agency, filled with ESPers as well (don’t forget that!), trying to stop them. Then there’s the most elitiest of the elite in the form of a White Girl, and some anime girl stand-in for Nightcrawler wants to kill her or bone her or whatever. It all sounds very very familiar.

Whether or not this is a good or a bad thing depends on your mileage. For me it was rather inoffensive stuff that just looked nice. Really nice. In fact it was one of the only things that kept me invested in the episode as there’s bumfuck in everything else about it. Like Aldnoah.Zero, and I sure hope this isn’t a thing, protagonists are only barely established during the premiere. Maybe its fine, since most of them seem remarkably stocked, but I would like to know who I’m supposed to be rooting for against a rather malevolent set of enemies. I don’t want this to end up like Gundam SEED Destiny and have to refer to the heroes in both series as “Those Guys”. That would suck.

But yeah, nice momentum you got there for a rather humdrum concept Tokyo ESP. It would be a shame if you lost it or never did much with it while airborne. — The Juude