Madan no Ou to Vanadis

I loved this anime very much..expecting for the next season..

I found this while not knowing what anime to binge next, so I decided to watch it. It's pretty good (not many clichés). While this is considered a harem, I don't see it as much. First of all, (I GUESS SPOILER EVEN THOUGH IT IS ONE OF THE FIRST WORDS SAID) the main lead is already "property" to this girl. The other girls that have fallen for him, Tigra, are more or less either ones that have known him forever or just take interest in him because of his skills (he is a very skilled archer).

The plot does get confusing sometimes if you don't follow along and watch/listen closely like I didn't. It was still really good and the animation itself is good too.

The voice acting is good. For the dub, there are lots of well known voice actors who are in it, and Tigra's voice is very soothing (at least to me). I would definitely watch it again if the plot was bad (which it's not) simply from the voices.

There's also a narrator that helps explain battle strategies to the audience as well as visuals on a map.

With a few small things that could've been better but I would definitely watch again.

I liked this show, but somehow it just fell a bit flat for me. Not sure why, because I usually enjoy fantasy/battle shows in general (GoT is the bomb!).

Tigre is a young nobleman from the fictional province of Alsace in Brune. He is a highly skilled bowman, but he gets captured by a cute and busty War Maiden of Zchted named Elenora during a skirmish. She takes him prisoner but treats him very well, eventually lending him her army to defeat some unpleasant Dukes in his own kingdom with designs on the throne. Cue lots of battles and bouncing bosoms.

The animation is quality and the characters are all likable. The story is interesting enough to hold your attention, but maybe I might have liked it more if it wasn't so tame. Overall, it wasn't bad, but just not great either.

This show certainly deserves higher rating than 7.

For one, all actors in the story pursue their own interests, so there is no inherently evil non-characters.

Then, none of the commanding officers are incompetent in battle tactics. Even in case of silver spoon boy, despite being priory shown as a detestable person, he still implies textbook-class tactics and requires a few ruses to be beaten.

What brings us to the battles. All of them are well thought through, major ones even consist of multiple stages. Also, despite significant role of magic, they still leave a surprisingly realistic impression: the breaks for the night, numbers of troops participating, their equipment, banners, logistics, visuals, finally tactics - everything greatly contributes to the warfare's authentic feel.

Then, goes the magic, which also is handled well here: despite providing an immense power to the user, due to it's exclusivity, it doesn't become some omnipotent force that renders all other types of combat obsolete.

Broadening the scope, we come to the politics. This aspect may not be quite as sophisticated as the battles, but is still competently done.

Lastly, the story of Tigrevurmud, the young earl of Alsace who gets caught in a political turmoil due to power vacuum in the kingdom of Brune is well written and pleasant to follow. All main characters are likable, their actions are coherent and understandable.

In conclusion, it isn't perfect, but at the same time without any major flaws.

P. S. In regards to a supposed lasciviousness of the show, except for the character design, there really isn't much to it. There is barely five or six short humorous or awkward "fan service" scenes, like stumbling on someone in a bath and that's the extent of it. Not sure why people focus on it so much.

The series plays out like a "Docudrama", with explanations of enmities and alliances, breakdowns of larger combats explaining troop movements and how a small force / "hero's" impact change the balance, etc.

(This means Anime fans who want non-stop action should likely skip this one.)

The slight difference was enjoyable and allowed for more massive engagements without turning each episode into endless combat. With only a few exceptions the majority of characters didn't feel like cardboard cutouts.

Pros:

• Battle "synopsis" during combat explaining actions taken by the armies is an interesting story trick.
• Nice variety of personalities and motivations behind the factions.
• Magic (weapons or casters) are rare and powerful, making it it something that changes the balance of conflicts.
• Characters are generally not cardboard cutouts.
• Consistent Animation.
• Good English Dubbing.
• "Fan Service" is uncommon.

Cons:

• Harem situation made sense at first and then got a little silly.
• Comically oversized special sword.
• When "Fan Service" shows up it's a bit distracting.
• Short ending.

I wish it had a follow up season, but plan to track down the OVA shorts, "Tigre and Vanadish" hoping for some closure.