Queen's Blade: Unlimited, as a soft reboot of the original Queen's Blade, introduces a new continuation while retaining the characters and the setting. This reboot takes a darker approach compared to its predecessors. Notably, the tournament now allows participants to kill their opponents, a departure from the previous iterations where such actions were discouraged. Additionally, the winner of any match has the power to demand anything from the defeated, intensifying the stakes and adding a layer of tension to the battles, on paper, that is.
Despite my personal distaste for the franchise, I must acknowledge that Queen's Blade manages to maintain a consistent level of quality throughout. Consistently bad, that is. It still manages to avoid plummeting into the realm of being a complete and utter disaster.
The decision to reboot the series with Queen's Blade: Unlimited stems from the unresolved cliffhanger ending of the previous anime adaptation, Queen's Blade: Rebellion. Unfortunately, even with the reboot, Unlimited consists of two-episode OVA, leaving many storylines unresolved and leaving fans yearning for more—if the horny fans care about the actual plot, that is.
Queen's Blade: Unlimited introduces Elina, the daughter of Count Vance, who embarks on a journey to locate her sister, Reina, now a warrior participating in the Queen's Blade tournament. The addition of Michelle, an amnesiac shota with a connection to the Cathedral of the 'Magic Flute', ejeculates eccentricity into the narrative and hints at the enigmatic nature of Maramax, the legendary land sought after by the characters. But Michelle is actually just there to provide fanservice for those who have sick fetishes. However, I must admit the 'Magic Flute' fanservice was a creative touch—not in the sense 'portable penis' is an original concept—it isn't—, but in the sense the animation team managed to convey heavy implied sexualisation without the need for censorship or shifting camera angles. It was a clever approach, but it still falls into the realm of fetishistic soft porn, so screw it.
Unlimited may appeal to fans of the Queen's Blade franchise who are seeking a darker and more intense iteration. But in reality, that's only on paper. As I mentioned previously, while the winner of any match has the power to demand anything from the defeated, the only demand occurred in these two episodes was Elina being the horny bisexual sadist she is, enslaving other female competitors to lick her feet and engage in sexual activities with her. She's essentially building a harem of slaves for herself, including a shota token on the side if that can be counted.
Lastly, it is worth mentioning the 'pussy tape' scene, because—ew—that's your typical Queen's Blade crude and cringy random dialogue and attempt at humour.
Ultimately, Unlimited OVA offers the usual fare of what Queen's Blade offers—mindless action, fan service, and sadistic ass-kicking lesbians.
