Reviews, Top Tens, and more! Posts every Monday and Friday at 8:00 AM PST. Follow me on my social medias for updates and other random nonsense.

Monday, January 25, 2016

Anime Hajime Review: Miritari

***Warning, the following may contain spoilers for Miritary. Reader discretion is advised.***

Series Synopsis


The Krakozhia Dukedom and the Grania Republic are at war. These feuding nations have not known peace for decades. Then a lone Japanese salaryman has managed to turn the tide in Krahozhia's. To take back the fight, Grania has targeted the unexpected hero's son, Sohei Yano (voiced by Yoshitaka Yamaya).

To protect Sohei the Krakozhia military has sent its best, 1st Lieutenant Lutgalnikov (voiced by Nao Toyama), 2nd Lieutenant Haruka (voiced by Ayane Sakura), and Colonel Aria (voiced by Misaki Suzuki). And almost immediately, Sohei becomes the prey of the Granian assassin, Sergeant Shakirov (voiced by Inori Minase).

The squad does ensure Sohei won't die. They can't promise much else though. When these military junkies clash, there is a never-ending supply of rifles, rockets, and explosives. As well as the occasional tank through a wall.

The life of a son of a military hero isn't an easy one.

Series Positives


For what Miritari was, I liked it.

I could end this review with that. There wasn't a whole lot here. Then again, I suppose that is the nature of short-form anime. It's hard to get invested in something this quick.

That said, Miritari put in a good effort. Is this a show you are going to remember in a week? Hell no, I’m having trouble remembering it now, and I watched it the day before writing this review.

On the plus side though, I wouldn’t mind watching it again.

It Wasn't Bad

When I Miritari wasn't bad, I do so with the minimum amount of enthusiasm. Like it was with Double J, I can’t deny this show put a smile on my face.

Miritari was silly both in premise and execution. Due to that, you can pull out some enjoyment from that. The fast-paced nature of the series uses its short running time to an adequate degree.

Something was always happening. That's a positive because there was no room for any downtime.
 
This show didn't bother to get to know its characters. But then again, you only needed to know one thing. Everyone was pretty high strung, and they all had quite the liberal trigger finger. It didn't take much to set someone off. When that happened, which was constantly, the resulting fall out was quite destructive.

Each episode was straightforward and didn't deviate that far from a set formula. The girl characters were in sexy positions, both voluntary and unintentionally, and somebody, usually Sohei, got hurt because of that. 

While nothing new, the show made it work.

Series Negatives


For every short form anime, I ask if a series should have been full length.

The answer, yes or no, has little bearing on whether on a show's quality. Yamishibai, for example, only worked because of its short format. 

In the case of Miritari, however, the question wasn't, "Should it have been a full anime?" Rather we need to ask, "Could it have been?"

The answer is a pretty resounding, no.

It’s clear what was wrong with this show. I mean this is the shortest review I have written up to this point. There was so little for me to talk about.

That, to me, says a lot.

It Wasn't Good Either

When I Miritary wasn't good, I say that with the minimum amount of enthusiasm. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?

There were things in this series that were fun. Too bad there was nothing worth wild. Thinking back to Double J, that show at least had its animation.

Miritari was so meh even Pupa has the advantage over it. Pupa was so horrendously awful it was a spectacle unto itself. While this series was much better in every imaginable way, it will not be the one I will remember in the long run.

The characters were simple. The situations were bland. The premise wasn't fantastic. The jokes were low brow. Even the fanservice was so incredibly mild it's not worth addressing.

Miritari was something. And at the same time, it was nothing.


Final Thoughts


Miritari wasn't good, it wasn't bad, and it wasn't anything special. It exists, I watched it, and although it was fun, my time could have gone elsewhere.

It doesn’t feel right to give such a short review of it being so middle of the road. Unfortunately, that was what Miritari was. This is a show you can watch, and it might hold your attention for the thirty minutes it will take to finish it. But you could also do a lot better.

Did I like this show? I did, but do recommend you going out of your way to see it? No, I don't, but this won't hurt should you find yourself curious.

But these are just my thoughts. What are yours? Have you seen this show? How would you advise Miritary? Leave a comment down below because I would love to hear what you have to say.

And if you liked what you read, be sure to follow me on my social media sites so that you never miss a post or update. Also, please share this review across the internet to help add to the discussion.

I’m LofZOdyssey, and I’ll see you next time.

               Google+                        Facebook                         Twitter

No comments:

Post a Comment