Edens Zero

As this anime series opens we are introduced to Shiki Granbell, the sole human living on the planet Granbell; an abandoned theme park planet otherwise only inhabited by abandoned robots, which Shiki considers his friends. When the planet is visited by Rebecca Bluegarden and her robotic cat Happy the robots 'persuade' Shiki to leave with her. Together they determine to explore the cosmos and find 'Mother' a possibly mythical entity who Shiki believes he has met before. Following an early encounter they acquire a new ship; the titular Edens Zero. This ship had four powerful robots helping operate it; to get it running optimally they will need to scour the cosmos for these robots; in doing so they will come across various dangers.

I thought this series was a lot of fun. It nicely combines sci-fi and fantasy tropes. The characters are fun to watch and their quests, to find the four robots and Mother, are interesting. The Ether Gear used by various characters is effectively a magical power which gives the characters different skills; in Shiki's case the ability to control gravity. There is a fair amount of fan service although it will seem tame to anybody who has watched the likes of 'Strike Witches', Elfen Lied' or 'Ikki Tousen'. Similarly the level of violence may be higher than most western animation but is tame compared to many anime series. Overall I'd recommend this to fans of sci-fi and fantasy anime; I look forward to future seasons.

These comments are based on watching the series in Japanese with English subtitles.

Trust me when I tell you this story is misleading; It looks like a classic adventure anime and all happy but really this story is not what it appears to be that by the way I recommend the manga 100% and the second season will come strong.

At the time of writing this, it's been nearly three months since this show was released but yet only a little more than a hundred participants have rated this show. 7/10 is totally undeserving for this great work of art. Edens Zero is fast paced with no fillers and has a good storyline. The adventures are awesome and you do not need to be a space lover to enjoy the anime. At first, it may look like the old "power of friendship" but it gets serious right from episode 2. After the episode where the villain turned the poor ladies into furniture art, I saw that this show meant business. Hopefully it gets better and better.

To explain the full reason why I've given such a high rating to an anime that - for all intents and purposes - is just an introductory arc is hard to explain without actually seeing it, knowing the author's work and their way of doing things, but I'll give it a shot and without spoiling things.

One constant throughout Hiro Mashima's writing is the 'journey adventure' that comes along for a hero or heroine who is then swept up in it, we got that with Groove Adventure Rave with Haru and we got it with Lucy in Fairy Tail, both are people who actively seek out adventure and are brought into a larger world.

So It's a shock when we get a hero this time around who is the reluctant hero, Shiki is a guy who likes his life and doesn't want change but has it forced on him due to loving people around him and that's the first thing I thought was both interesting and different for a Mashima work - and I like it.

Add to that the idea of sentience in robots being a constant and you've got a pretty amazing beginning for a story.

I won't go into other characters dynamics and their lives as it's spoiler territory but surprisingly this one is a little darker for a Hiro Mashima penned piece and I'm interested in that, the plots that are just beginning to be uncovered and the family dynamic built.

I stayed away for too long too as I wasn't sure whether it was linked to his other works - and it is tangentially - but it's still good, definitely interesting and I'm waiting season 2.

I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the first few episodes and by the third or fourth I was downright rooting for our MC. The art style to me is reminiscent of anime I'd watched in my childhood but pleasantly in a modern aspect ratio and with better coloring and detail. I'm really REALLY looking forward to season 2+. KEEP. IT. COMING.