First Impressions – Shingeki no Bahamut: Genesis

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An epic offering of fantastic proportions!

spring14-kyoI remember the trailer being amazingly gorgeous so I have been really looking forward to watching the actual episode. Being produced by MAPPA, directed by Keiichi Satou (Tiger & Bunny), and Berserk movies character designer, had me really anticipate this series. This looked like an epic battle series with some interesting characters thrown in. So, it’s time for the tag of skylion and I to hand out some highlights.

skylionHell yes, this is some proper Epic Fantasy right here! So mount your horses now and let’s ride the rooftops!

 

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Hello, Mr. Dragon!

//skylion: You know, that was one badass open. You see, I’ve got some long and deep TRPG (tabletop role playing game) roots. I’ve played in plenty of big fantasy backgrounds, from Forgotten Realms, to Ravenloft, and to Eberron and plenty of points in between. And all of these worlds have the “lost in the mists of time” origin stories. It’s the place where this sort of titanic battle always plays out. It has mighty god-like wizards, and looming chthonic dragons hell bent on either controlling or destroying the world. It felt apropos to have this sort of beginning. I watched it just in the same manner I read all the opening chapter to all those fantasy world sourcebooks.

//Kyokai: I personally expected dragon riding, handsome hunks with bishoujos thrown in for good measure. I didn’t get How to Train Your Dragon: the Anime but there was plenty of action onscreen to keep me busy. It’s clear that the beginning was history yet quite important as an event that would be an important plot-point for the series. As well, there are clear three sides of this magical world named Mistarcia: Humans (some kind of Knights guard), Demons (the blue team), and Gods (the golden team). Magic is the pivotal catalyst between the races and they definitely seem divided in personal interests but time will only tell if it will be for the good of Mistarcia or doom.

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Meet the Bouncy Hunters

//skylion: When all is said and done, any fictional world has to become a bit more realistic, a touch more easy to digest when you get down the the nitty gritty of life, making a living. Verisimilitude is important. This, of course, means you need to start with the basics. And that means we join insanely awesome bounty hunters in a clash, riding their horses over the rooftops and beyond. They clashed swords in a manner which defies physics and they both engaged in good old fashioned swashbuckling waterwheel riding like any respectable hero will do in a pinch. What? You were expecting the story of the washing ladies?

//Kyokai: Heck no! But I think we got more than what we originally expected. The western style surprised me for a fantasy but the mix of it with swashbuckling bounty hunters actually worked. And I’m pretty sure, I’m not alone in getting the Pirate of the Caribbean feel from the wheel scene? Whenever an anime can be compared to a popular Hollywood movie, you can guess that they are doing some things right. And there’s plenty of good stuff here. The epic opera music, world detail, amazing character designs (love the inner-glow of the eyes a la Sakamichi no Apollon), and perfect pacing. But our bouncing duo is the main attraction, brimming with potential and I’m not just talking about their looks. Prince Kaiser still needs some fleshing out from his uptight-self but Favaro shines as the crowd-favourite with his no-holds-barred approach to everything.

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Mysterious Traveler

//skylion: Oh, my Favaro and Kaiser have that Red Oni, Blue Oni dynamic down to a science. I can tell the writers had a ton of fun matching them in feats of one upmanship. But we have a clear winner this time in Favaro. And they do not spare on his character design. It’s like a Dandy in Space and Meow had a love child (and got the Betelgeusian’s voice in the process). But it totally fits his wild rambunctious nature. Just one look and you think, he’s not cut out for anything other than this job. And it’s cool to be a bounty hunter. This guy has all the mad props, and all the skills to pull through with panache. Well, unless the opponent is considerably more than he can take. Luckily he gets to know a dragon lady in the process. She gets the job done.

//Kyokai: Goodness, Favaro should thank his lucky stars for blabbering on about Helheim at the right moment or else the mysterious pink-haired girl would have moseyed on. She sure is a sight to see; more so in her demon form, kicking butt like a stylish walk in the park. I presume, Favaro was way over his head in battling the twin brother’s giant familiar but his ass got saved. IF you call growing a brand new tail, saved that is… It seems our princess has kissed the frog and our funny amphibian will be heroing out in style. I definitely can’t wait for the fun to be had in this epicly expansive adventure.

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In the End, lies the Tale

Extra Genesis

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Reminds you of someone?

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The setting of an online card game is really not a great premise but then you add in industry renowned names and amazing production quality (did you watch the trailers?! They were simply gorgeous!), things just fell into place. Literally, I feel like I’ve hit the jackpot because even when it wasn’t a long episode, Bahamut neared ufotable’s UBW production and that’s saying something. The rich setting and vibrant characters really reel you in. I’m already curious on how magic works and what was the deal with reference to Hell (Helheim is the Hell version of Norse mythology), which states that it is ruled by Hel, the monstrous daughter of the trickster god Loki and his wife Angrboda. So, is our demon girl, Hel? And how will our quarrelling duo get into the thick of things in the middle of clashing races? Let’s keep watching to find out.

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As I said in the beginning, this is a proper epic level sort of fantasy. It has mad characters, fantastic exploits, skeezy villains, and a dragon lady that has her own designs on the world. Good times are coming, and I’m ready for the ride. I had so much fun watching this show, and I hope you did too!

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Join in the fun ride, yo!

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We live, laugh, enjoy and strictly believe on "more the merrier". When together, we usually come up with very chatty, conversation-based episodics and interesting posts.
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29 Responses to “First Impressions – Shingeki no Bahamut: Genesis”

  1. JPNIgor says:

    Woah… That was really epic. I really didn’t expect this level of epicness at all.

    And those horse legs… What they are made of? Diamond? I’m sure they wouldn’t handle a fall that tall.

    • skylion says:

      Since I dropped the D&D bomb I will venture they are outfitted with Swashbuckler’s Daring Saddle. It gives the rider a +5 competence bonus on stunt riding and can grant featherfall to the mount twice per day.

      • BlackBriar says:

        Congratulations on breaking 6000 comments! I dub thee Lord 6k!

      • Kyokai says:

        Yep, pretty sure there’s magical explanation for the horses even if they don’t wear CG bamf armour like Garo. That remind me, I need to watch that.

      • JPNIgor says:

        That’s some random D&D knowledge haha. I wonder if the owner of the houses the horses landed on will agree with this featherfall explanation of yours.

    • skylion says:

      dammit spamzilla…

    • Irenesharda says:

      Someone actually compared it with a picture of actual aqueducts in Italy that has a very similar look and style, and you have to wonder if the horse and their riders weren’t magical themselves. Those things are huge and they practically tower over the buildings below!

  2. BlackBriar says:

    Wow, just wow. This anime was below my radar so I went in with no expectations and it turn out to be too epic to describe! There wasn’t a dull moment anywhere because of how much it was watching the events unfold. You’re telling me this is based on a card game? Forgive me if I find that a stretch to believe. To my surprise, I easily took a liking to the characters. Their personalities and interactions bounced back and forth nicely.

    The animation is so fluid and vibrant as though it seemed more like an animated movie than a TV series. I could only imagine how big the budget had to have been for the studio. The action is superbly top notch. I’m with Kyokai. The fight on the water wheel is reminiscent of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest. My highlight being the mysterious girl turning into a humanoid dragon kicking some serious ass and looking hot as hell in the process. Since her introduction, it figures she’d be the strong, silent type.

    Apparently Fantasy/medieval settings are all the rage this season. Besides this, there’s Madan no Ou to Vanadis, Nanatsu no Taizai, Hitsugi no Chaika: Avenging Battle (About to watch the first episode soon), Log Horizon S2, Donten ni Warau and Garo: Honoo no Kokuin. If Bahamut impressed you, then Garo is another good series I’m recommending. I still have yet to see Akatsuki no Yona myself.

    • Irenesharda says:

      I know that many had this low on their radar, especially since it said it was based on a card game. However, I think that just makes it all the more surprising when it overshoots all of your expectations.

      Garo was okay, but I didn’t care for it as much as this. Somehow, the razor sharp CGI and that more abstract animation clashed, and nothing really grabbed me with the characters, but I’ll give it time.

      As for Akatsuki no Yona, that takes on more of a Fushigi Yugi setting, however, it’s surprisingly good, because it’s so simple. It’s like Cross Ange without the mecha, but with class. 😉

      • Kyokai says:

        @BB, Yep, a card game. The thugs being hunted do turn into cards once killed so the concept is still around. Though, I have no experience with the actual Cygames’ Bahamut game.

        This was definitely the surprise of season for me. Garo was fine but not as amazing as this. Still need to see others. I’ll be combing through the first episodes this weekend.

        @Irene, Akatsuki no Yona is on my watch-list. I do like nicely done historicals so I’ll see how this fairs.

        • Irenesharda says:

          AnY actually does a nice job of trying to get a pan-Asian feel. It mixes Japanese, Chinese, and Korean all together in one narrative, which is something I haven’t actually seen done before.

  3. Highway says:

    I didn’t really care for the character designs in this one (especially Favaro’s lips). And I was getting kind of bored with the overlong chase between Favaro and Kaiser. There were some parts that intrigued me, and I’ll probably watch a few more episodes, but just being go-go-go! action isn’t going to keep my attention.

    • Kyokai says:

      You are a tough customer, aren’t you? 😛

    • BlackBriar says:

      Never easy to please, are you, Highway?

      • Highway says:

        I’m not ashamed to say that it’s a lot easier for things to make me happy if they’re cuter. Or if they have a better story. This sacrificed both in the first episode for action, and wholly unrealistic action at that. Horses on the roof? on tiles? If you’re going to explain it away by magic, go ahead and do that. I wouldn’t have a problem with that. But don’t make the audience do it for you without even a hint.

        The show has possibilities, but it also has the possibility of not doing anything more than action.

        • skylion says:

          I’m right in the kawaii camp. But sometimes it’s fun to just run with things. In this case, to ride it out…

          • Highway says:

            You guys should know me enough by now that if they’re gonna come with unrealistic realistic action, they gotta bring a lot more. And an afro, Space Dandy, and a demon girl with 30 seconds of screen time aren’t gonna cut it.

          • BlackBriar says:

            Agreed. Anime is an outlet to escape reality, after all. So having things a bit farfetched like this comes with the territory. There’s going to be disappointment if realism has to be applied in everything.

            • Highway says:

              I don’t demand realism be applied in everything. Just when they’re trying to say that it is. Like I said, if they want people to justify it as magic, then show that there’s magic in operation. If they want it to be space tech, show that there’s space tech. But don’t show things that are clearly impossible with *no* justification. And there being magic available ex post facto isn’t a justification either.

    • HannoX says:

      I’m more with Highway on this. I had the same reaction with the horses on the roof tiles and then jumping down into the street below without the horses breaking all four of their legs. Also, I’m not a fan of chase sequences because I feel they usually go on for too long at the expense of character and story development. Yes, an actioner needs chase sequences, but don’t let them go on and on.

      The end with the appearance of the badass Mysterious Dragon Lady Traveler and the obvious quest/journey to Helheim are what hooked me for more.

  4. Irenesharda says:

    Oh my…I absolutely loved this!

    The first thing that came to mind was how “Western” this show is. In the first scene it seemed like something right out of LOTR mixed with Final Fantasy. However, the transition to present day? Right out of something like Pirates of the Caribbean, or some hilarious Old West adventure. And the Old West, mixed with magic? Even better! I loved every minute of it. It had great animation, great action, great music, and was downright hilarious.

    They also seem to be adding in some Nordic mythology with Helheim (thank you Thor and Marvel for teaching me about Yggdrasil and the 9 realms). I thought the girl was an angel considering she fell from the sky, but I guess the fact that she “fell” and that she was looking for Helheim should have been a clue that she’s a fallen angel.

    I am pretty excited to see the next part. This was my favorite premiere so far (and now that all the shows I picked out for this season have premiered, I can safely say that this one was indeed the best). I like all the main characters so far. Favaro, Kaiser, and this demon girl are all interesting and I want to see where this all leads. It looks like Bahamut will make his return, but it will be up to our heroes in order to find a way to stop him.

    • Kyokai says:

      Yep, same here.

      You don’t see a mix of Western, fantasy, D&D in a magical setting. This unique mix really attracted me and I hope MAPPA can continue with their fluid animation and production values till the end.

      The Nordic connection intrigues me. I want to see how far they take the mythology part. And yes, characters are quite vibrant and really want to see this trio fight it out. I also want to see the skinny girl from the trailer, whose hand falls off comically.

      I hope our fun riding continues!

  5. akagami says:

    Hmm, you say this is based on a card game? Didn’t see that one coming… although now that you mention it, I believe I saw an artbook possibly from the same universe recently.

    I’m with highway in that while it is an interesting mix, the overall combination lacked impact for me. It does have enough to warrant several more watches at least ^^. If they had made Favro more of a bishounen or made them all moe I’d be all over this, as I like fantasy settings. Dem big lips and red afro just doesn’t do it for me~

    The SotC sized enemies are interesting at least (I haven’t played the games though, been meaning to try the PS3 remake).

    And I had the same reaction as JPNIgor when the horses jumped… all I kept thinking was “wtf?!? guess I’ll have to really suspend my belief… those are not really horses, they just look like horses. They’re really new-age dragons in the form of a horse.

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