Dragon Pilot: Hisone and Masotan

The premise is... odd, to say the least. But then, this is anime. Girls piloting dragons from the *inside* is no more strange than girls who are half battleship. Comes with the genre.

What I found most difficult to handle was the English voice-over of the lead character. I don't believe I've heard a more annoying, screeching portrayal of a female voice in any anime. The series may have been more enjoyable if not for that one, constantly annoying issue. It seriously took 6 episodes to get used to it enough that it wasn't annoying.

The plot is basic: new and hesitant recruit tries to fit in with the establishment and bond with her team mates. She's clueless, naive and unskilled beyond belief, but was chosen by her dragon so what can anyone do about it? That's the core foundation of the plot and it works to an extent. However the final two episodes throw all sense out the window and ends on a barely-scrapes-by finish. One wouldn't have to try all that hard to come up with a better finale.

The animation is questionable. Obviously someone really likes fighter jets; they have that down pat. The dragons on the other hand, as well as the rendition of the characters themselves, are well into the realm of goofy. Still, if they'd looked "better" perhaps a sense of the humor would have been lost. But truthfully, I think the only time I actually laughed in this is when she punched her dragon in the "gizzard" (or whatever that organ was). The dragon's reaction was pretty funny. Other than that, it simply wasn't funny.

Overall not an exceptional anime. I'm sure some will find it cute. Others won't find it worth reviewing. Many people won't make it past the first episode or two. Value of this anime will be largely open to personal taste and willingness to ignore gaping plot holes.