Reviews for Break Blade (6.72)
irohma
Amino Tetsurou
Habara Nobuyoshi
Break Blade caught me by surprise. While it`s somehow typical and may be forgotten admist the huge amount of mecha animes, this show can`t be left out of the spotlight. The way everything de...
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- Unrated
05.11.2011 21:58 - direct link
(rs8317)
Break Blade caught me by surprise. While it's somehow typical and may be forgotten admist the huge amount of mecha animes, this show can't be left out of the spotlight. The way everything develops, the nice pace and fast approach to solve the story's problems, the superb quality with which almost every element of its genre is done. Nearly everything in Break Blade makes it a must see for anyone who likes military-based anime or some plot with war and intrigue.
Art & Animation
Being an OVA the series is given a special care in this department. While art style can look like a bit lazy, the animation is superb and everything is kept at maximum quality through all episodes. Fights are really well done and ordinary sequences are given a bit more care, rarely using static images while only using voice or music to show things. The scenario itself is a bit too simple, with more deserts and brown areas than necessary, and leave you wanting for more shots of cities outside the place where the story occurs.
Sound
Break Blade starts with some very nice opening theme, showing exactly what to expect from the series: epic moments of conflict, war losses, military tragedy, etc. Background music fits very well the series and is never lacking. Voice-acting is very mature and very well done despite having a few childish characters mixed. Those looking for a consistent sound direction will certainly find it here.
Story
Break Blade is the tale of Rygart, a young man with an unusual lack of magical skills in the world. He is invited by an old friend, the king Hodr, to check a mysterious golem/mecha thet have found but couldn't put to work. When the enemy's army strike, Rygart finds himself as the savior of the day.
Character
Break Blade has some very nice characters. They fit in stereotype roles most of the time, but grow very likable through the series. The way they can show emotions and face them with a greater degree of realism than others shounens is very surprising and they never become annoying or boring. Despite the well paced development of the main characters, secondary characters are forgotten too soon and seems to have bigger importance when they appear. One of the old friends of the story, for example, looks like a main character for the first two episodes and than it's left out of the spotlight and almost completely forgotten from this moment. This is bad and can really annoy those who like character development, but this can only be noticed and annoy after the series has already ended.
Value
Break Blade brings nothing really new aside from a setting that is very rarely used (similar to Escaflowne) and has a nice pace and use of typical elements of the genre. The animation and sound direction are top quality and the dramatic moments and combats are worth watching it, filled with tension and constant action. While it brings a fantasy setting and shows some nice background history, these are never really developed like it should and the focus is centered only in a small cast of characters and a single place, making it more simple to understand and easier to rewatch, but leaving you wishing for more when it ends.
Enjoyment
Break Blade has an awesome fun factor due to its combats, pace, and intrigues. The small number of episodes help to keep the anime away from fillers and helps a lot to increase its tension and pace. Those looking for some nice mecha anime or some war-themed series with more political intrigue will surely find one of the best animes in the recent years here, but those expecting more for character development will probably feel Break Blade a bit bland.
Comments
Break Blade looks like a very common series, but can be surprisingly good. It's hard to tell where the series really shine, but for me it was the best series I've watched since Code Geass and up to its release. It's short, it's well paced, has nice combats, nice dramatic moments, superb animation and sound, huge production value, etc. Maybe because of this positive points most of the steryotypes, the lack of development in the setting and the lack of originality in the story elements can be overlooked.
Those who like not only mecha, but war-themed animes as well will be pleased with this show for sure. If you expect romance, emotional problems, comedy, supernatural powers, or other things like that will be left empty-handed. I see many similarities with Gundam Seed and Code Geass, from the military use of the mecha to the feeling of powers beyond known technology, but it's hard to compare those three. Give Break Blade a chance and it may catch you by surprise like it did to me.
Art & Animation
Being an OVA the series is given a special care in this department. While art style can look like a bit lazy, the animation is superb and everything is kept at maximum quality through all episodes. Fights are really well done and ordinary sequences are given a bit more care, rarely using static images while only using voice or music to show things. The scenario itself is a bit too simple, with more deserts and brown areas than necessary, and leave you wanting for more shots of cities outside the place where the story occurs.
Sound
Break Blade starts with some very nice opening theme, showing exactly what to expect from the series: epic moments of conflict, war losses, military tragedy, etc. Background music fits very well the series and is never lacking. Voice-acting is very mature and very well done despite having a few childish characters mixed. Those looking for a consistent sound direction will certainly find it here.
Story
Break Blade is the tale of Rygart, a young man with an unusual lack of magical skills in the world. He is invited by an old friend, the king Hodr, to check a mysterious golem/mecha thet have found but couldn't put to work. When the enemy's army strike, Rygart finds himself as the savior of the day.
- Typical Shounen Start with Quality
Story-wise, Break Blade does not bring anything new. The typical political struggle between huge kingdoms and the main character's kingdom being throw admist such war, a group of old friends meeting each other after a while, some secret mecha that only the main character can pilot, etc. Everything is very predictable here, but is executed with great quality. Dramatic moments are plenty, battles are good and the development of the war is very unpredictable in short-term.
Poor Presentation
Break Blade's story creates some good moments of tension and fill it with war tragedy, but it fails to develop the setting in the way it should. Because of its short length and very limited focus, you'll be left without much information about the surroundings of the main area, leaving the scenario less believable than it should and mainly without a true conclusion regarding the presented kingdoms and characters.
Character
Break Blade has some very nice characters. They fit in stereotype roles most of the time, but grow very likable through the series. The way they can show emotions and face them with a greater degree of realism than others shounens is very surprising and they never become annoying or boring. Despite the well paced development of the main characters, secondary characters are forgotten too soon and seems to have bigger importance when they appear. One of the old friends of the story, for example, looks like a main character for the first two episodes and than it's left out of the spotlight and almost completely forgotten from this moment. This is bad and can really annoy those who like character development, but this can only be noticed and annoy after the series has already ended.
Value
Break Blade brings nothing really new aside from a setting that is very rarely used (similar to Escaflowne) and has a nice pace and use of typical elements of the genre. The animation and sound direction are top quality and the dramatic moments and combats are worth watching it, filled with tension and constant action. While it brings a fantasy setting and shows some nice background history, these are never really developed like it should and the focus is centered only in a small cast of characters and a single place, making it more simple to understand and easier to rewatch, but leaving you wishing for more when it ends.
Enjoyment
Break Blade has an awesome fun factor due to its combats, pace, and intrigues. The small number of episodes help to keep the anime away from fillers and helps a lot to increase its tension and pace. Those looking for some nice mecha anime or some war-themed series with more political intrigue will surely find one of the best animes in the recent years here, but those expecting more for character development will probably feel Break Blade a bit bland.
Comments
Break Blade looks like a very common series, but can be surprisingly good. It's hard to tell where the series really shine, but for me it was the best series I've watched since Code Geass and up to its release. It's short, it's well paced, has nice combats, nice dramatic moments, superb animation and sound, huge production value, etc. Maybe because of this positive points most of the steryotypes, the lack of development in the setting and the lack of originality in the story elements can be overlooked.
Those who like not only mecha, but war-themed animes as well will be pleased with this show for sure. If you expect romance, emotional problems, comedy, supernatural powers, or other things like that will be left empty-handed. I see many similarities with Gundam Seed and Code Geass, from the military use of the mecha to the feeling of powers beyond known technology, but it's hard to compare those three. Give Break Blade a chance and it may catch you by surprise like it did to me.
