Laidbackers

It is difficult for me to rate this strange little movie. I thought it was very visually appealing, the character design was very personable, and at least one character immediately reminded me of Flip Flappers, a show I considered very original. All in all, of all the characters, there is probably not a single one that I could not start to like after getting to know them a bit more. However, the crux of the problem with this movie is that it was too short! The movie was packed with information about these interesting female characters, demonstrating that it had a lot of potential - maybe even for a whole anime series. However, it was unfortunately all crammed into just an hour or so, which was far too short for a lot of things that could (and in my opinion mostly should) have been addressed. What does get a lot of screen time, however, and what would probably make the eventual anime series a very mediocre affair, is the classic clichéd concept of collecting the demon king fragments together and fighting, which reminded me much more of mahou shoujo genre than a reverse isekai. However, enough already, I am addressing what Laidbackers could have been and not what it actually is... In conclusion, Laidbackers is too short, a bit confusing, and although it is definitely an interesting movie which features agreeable animation and soundtrack, and obviously has huge potential, that potential is unfortunately only partially realized. I mean, I am very ambivalent about the movie (so I awarded it 6/10) even though I think I would have liked to have found out more and liked a longer and much more complex narrative that answered some of the questions raised, and a lot more scenes featuring this interesting bunch of girls… (16/09/2019)