This is so retro that if it wasn't for the CGI, I'd have a hard time believing it was released in 2013.
One of the biggest gripes I have with the anime industry is the
overuse of CGI. Not that this isn't a problem elsewhere, or even necessarily a problem in and of itself, but I just personally don't like the aesthetic it creates in most cases. In some cases bad use of CGI really drives a stake through otherwise good shows, while in others it's just a small detail that annoys in the back of my mind. Perhaps it's because I'm a bit old-school about this sort of thing, or because I'm spoiled by the likes of studios like Bones, but while I like my mecha, I prefer most of it to be hand drawn. Which, I realize, is asking quite a lot based on the current state of this industry. That being said, CGI use isn't really the issue with
Ginga Kikoutai: Majestic Prince. The issue is that I'm
just not as in to it as I'd hoped.
There's nothing really wrong with the show, other than one rather annoying thing I'll address in a moment, but regardless, I just don't see myself coming back to blog this next week. Watching it, sure, but there's not exactly a lot to talk about based on this premiere or on
what kind of series this wants to be. I knew going in that this wasn't going to take itself all that seriously, so I was prepared for the comedy. What I wasn't prepared for was the blatant retro feel of the series. Not that I think retro is bad in the least, but every cliche of the mecha era is thrown into this one episode, right down to the blonde commander and the unlikely heroes found amongst the "Fail Five" (who would send out a group that uncoordinated into such an important battle, anyway?). Even the character designs have this
strange 80s/90s feel to them, and while all of this is well and good, if this series took itself too seriously, it would be a huge disaster.
Thankfully it doesn't do that at all; more than anything I feel like this is a bit of a joke on past stereotypes of the mecha genre. However, that does lead to my one big problem with the series, and that problem lies in the character
Tamaki Irie (
Iguchi Yuka). I have no idea why, but from the moment Tamaki opened her mouth I had to stop myself from mentally cringing. Perhaps it's that whole cutesy/ditzy thing going on (though the voice might have something to do with it), but occasionally a character comes along in an anime that I just can't stomach. Objectively I couldn't tell you exactly why Tamaki bothers me while I'm perfectly fine with similar characters in other series, but unfortunately she does, and it did detract quite a bit from the
overall experience of the premiere. Still, Tamaki or no Tamaki, I'd be hard pressed to fit this into the schedule, though I'll keep it on my watch list for the pure love of mecha.
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