HelghastKillzone

Shingeki no Bahamut: Genesis, by all accounts, should have been a completely forgettable and mediocre show having the pretense of being a teaser anime for Cygames and their mobile card game. The source material has the plot of a piece of cardboard and is little more than a collection of conceptual artwork. With all those things in mind, Studio MAPPA rises to the challenge and completely shatters my non-existent expectations as they set the standard for a promotional show. Taking place within a fantasy setting where the combined efforts of mankind, gods and demons have successfully sealed away the world-destroying Bahamut, the world ofMistarcia enters into an era of peace. To insure that Bahamut would be forever encaged in its prison, the seal's key was split into two pieces and given to the gods and demons respectively. Two thousand years, a women named Amira manages to steal the gods' half of the key and that where the show chooses to kick off its epic adventure. Caught up in Amira's quest to reach the land of Helhelm are two bounty hunters with clashing sets of personalities and values. The plot is simple enough and easy to follow but Shingeki no Bahamut: Genesis's strength lies in its brilliant execution and ever-escalating set pieces. Human, monsters, gods and demons of all different shapes and sizes come in for a battle royale that never fails to disappoint because the action is paced to be fast and furious which leaves little room for exposition. This actually works in the show's favor because it let the viewer's knowledge of other fantasy shows fill in the gaps instead of piling on explanations that would only get in the way. Fights takes place in varying degrees of captivating environments as the show overwhelm the viewers with its extravaganza displays. It does fall victim to losing momentum towards the middle portion as a dreaded recap episode shows up and the political maneuvering is less interesting than the hordes of monsters and soldiers duking it out with each other. Fortunately enough, it does manage to pick itself up to throws everything and everyone into speculate of the grand finale. Characters Having nothing but character illustrations as their starting point, the production staff MAPPA have crafted some very lovable characters that are all distinct in their attributes and eccentric personalities. It's not all about the action as the main characters are given fleshed out backstorys and motivations rather than being Amria is actually a very strong demonic melee fighter capable of tearing apart much larger monsters with ease but acts very much like a child in spite of her terrifying power and outward appearance. She is quite endearing and the focal point of which the show drives itself. Smitten by her looks and misguide notions, Kaisar Lidford is one the two bounty hunters accompanying Amria on her quest to reunite with her mother. A former knight that was disgraced, he still retains his code of honor in every fiber of his being and that extends to his fighting style, hair, and upkeep of his promises. He was overly the knight-in-shining-armor to a fault but I did warm up to him as the series went on as his character dynamics complement the other members of main cast. This brings me to my two favorite characters of Favaro Leone and Rita. To start off, Favaro is nothing like your conventional hero as his goal in life is to loudly indulge in life's guilty pleasures of women, money and booze while. As a red-headed bounty hunter, he is selfish, crass and utterly underhanded when it comes to fighting while wielding a revolver crossbow. How awesome is that? Equally fabulous is Rita, who joins up with the main cast a little further down the story. She may look like loli bait but never adheres to the stereotypical template that her appearance suggested. Her character interactions and contributions made the show that much more enjoyable on top of what was already offered. There is a myriad of other supporting characters from all the different race who don't really get or need character development but make the most of their limited screentime in just being plain awesome. Some standouts include Jeanne D'Arc of the humans, Bacchus, a god who manages the bounty system and Azazel of the demon faction. Visuals Animated by the Studio MAPPA, the very same team who created Kids on the Slope and Zankyou no Terror, the amount of quality put into this series places it among the best looking shows of the 2014 fall season. Drawing inspiration from Western fantasy aesthetics, the art style is atypical of the standard Japanese anime look and has that classic Dungeons and Dragons vibe to it. The attention to detail to the various locales and props really help immerse the audience into the world of Rage of Bahamut: Genesis and that not even mentioning the stellar cinematography which lends itself to be more of a Hollywood film than standard anime show. There are small amounts of 3DCGI and for the most part, it looks all right as it doesn't distracts from the pretty 2D visuals. Sound Yoshihiro Ike, who scored the soundtrack to Ergo Proxy and Tiger and Bunny, comes in with a full orchestra and choir to deliver something that didn't really live up to the epic action on the screen. His work, by all means, was well-composed and of high quality but I couldn't help but feel that the music was rather uninspired and lack the punch to bring the show to the next level. More specifically, it may be due to the lack of variety when it comes to just relying on strings and vocal as I found hard to recall anything memorable. Perhaps, if he had used more instruments in his ensemble, it would be an given the visuals the accompaniment and energy it deserves. In contrast, the opening credits, "EXiSTENCE” performed by SiM, was one of my favorites of the fall season with it rock music and awkward Engrish. It does what every opening should do and that is to be extremely metal and awesome in priming the viewers for each weekly installment. Game Adaption If Studio MAPPA had the goal of making me try out whatever they were advertising for, they succeeded. Shingeki no Bahamut: Genesis was amazing enough that I simply wanted more and what better way to do so than to download the game it's based off of. However, upon seeing the chunky dated interface, confusing bland gameplay and obvious microtransactions, I promptly deleted it off my machine. I'm grateful that aspects of the trading card game were integrated quite well in the framework of the show of which was the bounty system and I never felt it was overbearing or obnoxious. It was just a small reminder of what the show's roots are and just how vastly difference they are in terms of quality. Conclusion Coming completely out of the left field, Shingeki no Bahamut: Genesis is the surprise hit of the 2014 fall season. I simply cannot give enough praise to Studio MAPPA for their creativity and talent in creating a show that defies all expectations. There were a few small things that held it back from being a masterpiece, but nevertheless it was still one hell of a ride. Final Score: 8.5/10

GeeksOasis

In depth review #2 - Shingeki no Bahamut: Genesis Shingeki no Bahamut was exactly what i wanted it to be. An epic battle fantasy anime with good characters and a unique universe that blended everything together. And DRAGONS, beautifully animated hardcore FUCKING DRAGONS! Most shows with dragons in it makes their dragons look like shitty play-doh statues but this show did i right. All you need to do is see the first scene of the show and you'll know what I'm talking about. If there are any gamers reading this, imagine the game Darksiders mixed with the opening cinematic trailer of Final Fantasy XIV and thatis basically Shingeki no Bahamut in a nutshell, epic. Story: 8.25 (Very Good) The story revolves around Bahamut, an all-powerful dragon's rebirth into the world. When this dragon was alive, It's cataclysmic rampage nearly ended all life on the planet. This truth forced humans, angels, and demons to form a temporary trues to seal this dragon away forever. From the backlash of the battle, the god Zeus and Satan himself had to sacrifice themselves by sealing their spirits in two pendants to stop him. If the two keys where to merge again, then Bahamut will be reborn and fuck shit up again. The show start off with a girl how steels one of the keys from the angels and begins the process of Bahamut's inevitable resurrection. I personally thought the story was amazing. It wasn't super convoluted and was easy to understand. Yes, its kind of a genetic (seal to big bad dragon before we get rekted) story but the journey, and back-story behind the characters separated this one from the rest. Animation: 9 (Great) The animation was so clean i could of ate off of it. Nothing but stunning. The atmosphere and backgrounds are well flushed and polished. Details can be seen in the smallest of the things on the scene that most people wont even be looking at. In addition, things such as particle were shy of perfection. The sparks that flew of off swords as they clash, the radiant illuminations that where emitted from angles and demons eyes and bodies, the smoke and stones that flew threw through the air during a huge battle. All of these entities were beautifully animated. This is what initially got me watching the series in the first place. The production value for the animation was one of the best of 2014; up there with Fate/Stay Night and Nagino no Asukara. Sound: 8 (Very Good) The sound that played in the background of certain scenes set the tone of the sequence. They did a good job at doing this since some of the less notable scenes in the anime also made me feel a certain way. It wasn't what was going on, on the scene but was the music that complemented them them gave me the intended anticipation, or unease. For the epic fight scenes in the anime, all i could say it that the music was great. The heavy orchestrated tracks made the battle scenes even more epic then they already were. It's apparent that a lot of time and work went into developing this OST and i wanted to listen to the stand alone tracks but i couldn't find them. Characters: 7.5 (Good) I'm happy to say that the creators didn't play a mindless game of (spin the wheel of generic character archetypes) when making theirs. Almost all of the character's personalities and designs felt new. The main characters were at there very peak when they interacted with each other (Favaro x Kaiser) (Favaro x Rita), however as stand alone characters they weren't as memorable as they could have been. The only exception this this would of had been Favaro. Speaking of, the main character Favaro the most unique person of the bunch. His mindset throughout the show generally stays the same but his own resolve and personality makes him like no other. Not only is his personality unique but his design is to. Favora is actually rocking an AFRO MULLET. I'm not joking here, this is a thing now. For the other main characters, Kaiser is the epitome of a knight. We will do anything to keep his vows and restore honor to his families name. Amira is kind of simple minded but has a goal that she want to achieve. It seems that's all she wants to do; that and eat food. All of the other supporting characters is also well developed. Enjoyment: 9 (Great) I really enjoyed watching this anime. I binged through the entire thing in a day and wasn't dissatisfied. The beginning is a tab slow but shit gets real around episode 6 & 7. If you pass this threshold, you wont be disappointed at all. It an anime that truly shocked me and i believe to be one of the better amines of 2014. If you like action animes, then this is a must watch because you will be blow away. Score: 8.35/10 (Good) - Must Watch