What a surprise! Another rare Anime that blows the Manga out of the solar system.
Those opening 3 episodes were certainly a stroke of genius, lacking any OP what so ever and directed to capture the viewer into its den of amusement.
A breath of fresh air.
Space pirates, Isekai, Struggles between Nobles, Well thought out backstories? It's got a bonanza of pure bliss. It's smooth, oozing with sauce and super-bingeable to boot.
Fantasy lite, taking a few pages out of the 'Fantasy Encyclopedia' and whipping up a bit of Sci-fi and focusing their efforts there. A great choice by them. Not enough sci-fi to start wriggling around your brain centres for continuity notwithstanding us fantasy lovers would rather have a sea of our fan-favourite elements, but contentment still comes easy. The backstory behind this Isekai is extremely relevant becoming the driving force behind the plot. A Rare sighting, how brilliant! An author actually using the true purpose of the isekai theme. What a backstory it was! It's crazy but not unbelievable with ample time to take in the true emotion, and to empathize with the perils of the MC. The Manga attempted the same thing, but it felt like an amateur attempt, compared to this which was just short of excellent.
Once we enter back into it's main plot, we get back on track for most Isekai. It's still retains some charm and ingenuity but it does start to ride the same train tracks we are used to, but with a few jump switches, regarding the pacing which aren't so appreciated. The is plot somewhat acceptable, right up our alley, lacking tension and having our beloved MC mowing down his enemies in the classic Dynasty warriors esque fashion. I will say that what it does quite well is that you can genuinely hate every single opponent he mows down, the directors with the guidelines from the author expertly lay the foundation for each of the confrontational encounters making every fight meaningful and every defeat feel deserved. This is important, because, I cannot even begin to talk about the amount of isekai where I rooted for the bad guys. The authors of those poor shows were so incompetent that it was so easy to take off the wholly superficial plastic packaging of obtuseness forced on to these characters for the sake of plot. These villains were likes of rapists, thieves, demons, murderers corrupt in all kinds of ways but at the end of the day I preferred and could empathize with their characters more than the main ones. Here I hated every villain, and loved the main cast. There's real villains, scoundrels, scalywags, evildoers and they love it! The type of wicked people, the only thing you can sympathise with is how much they love their job. I can't stress that enough, i used to pray for times like these.
The conclusion was very satisfying, and was cleverly directed. The type of ending that you don't know whether a next season is needed. Naturally, a new installment is gladly welcome but I wouldn't be distraught if it never came. This studio isn't known for longer projects either.
When time is put into them, it's extremely hard not to love them or appreciate them, they're written with understanding. They mostly play their roles but there's a richness to their interactions such that where you never feel that you need more of them, especially in these short 12 episodes. For most of them, don't expect any grandiose character development, the meat is for the main cast. The way they're written allows the viewer to understand them and empathize with them so barely any of their actions seemed out of place. There's lazy scumbags in this show that surpass the best characters in so many of the isekai released today. A few of them really gave me a good a chuckle, it's a bag of sweets, so enjoy.
Oh boy did they do well here. From all your favourite sound effects to the soundtracks underscoring its heated moments their efforts shone through. The composer 'Ceo Yusuke' I've only heard his work from another underrated banger of a show 'Under Ninja'.
He was great there also. From those 2 it's evident that he's got a massive range breathing the life into these worlds, giving me goosebumps at the heights of the show. They were tactful with most of the material sounds and effects although some were a bit off. Comedic tones were clever and the more eerie tracks whilst simple outshone what was going on on-screen sometimes. If I had a critique it could definitely sound a bit more intergalactic, cosmic and celestial it certainly fits the theme, but sometimes you could definitely use it for a world devoid of these elements.
Nothing too remarkable, for the most part a serviceable adventure. Ample detail where needed, various scenes showing good facial expression, minus the robots. If my favourite manga/LN was adapted with this level of animation, I'd have absolutely nothing to complain about, it more than does the job. With a space setting, spaceships, advanced technological weapons, 3D is just perfect for this scenario. It's ok, but as is standard with Japanese production it's never that good. The space fights, well everything is followable, but lets just say its the writing and characters carrying the experience. It is possible to get the feeling of grandiose intergalatic fights of sheer magnitude but i suppose the feeling is quite fleeting. They tried very hard with the visuals so the effort is evident and undeniably there though it lacks polish. You'll see all sorts of contraptions and ideas in this, some comes out quite well, some leave a lot to be desired, by all means it's appreciated.
After finishing this season, if you hunger for more. Do not read the manga go straight to the LN.
Final Rankings.
Animation - 7
Sound - 8
Story/Plot - 7
Characters - 9
Enjoyment - 9
38/50 = 7.8
8/10
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Hope this helps.
