Consider this show on notice.
It's not hard to make me happy when it comes to magical girl shows, but this one struck the wrong chord with me long before the main character was attacked by vines that just *happened* to pull down her shirt. My prediction that this show would try to capitalize on the call for more "edgy magical girl" by those who have only seen Madoka Magica seems to be correct, yet it tries so hard to sell that angle that it all comes off as ridiculous instead. It paints in broad strokes and makes the conflict so black and white that it forgets to give the characters a motivation or the viewers a reason to care.
For example, this first episode does follow the standard "awakening of a magical girl" path, yet there is no reason given for these series of events to happen. We're expected to like the main character based on the single fact that she's cheerful despite being an orphan, and for the same reason we're expected to dislike her relative (Adoptive sister? Cousin? It was very unclear) just because she doesn't like her. They never even state what her problem is with the main character. It's basically, "She's getting attention at school for her tarot cards! Guess it's time to try to murder her with plants!"
The magic system is just as vague and confusing, but I imagine they're saving that explanation for a later episode, so I'll let it go for now. That said, I can't think of a magical girl heroine that gives up immediately when a problem presents itself. Even season one Sailor Moon managed to get her transformation sequence in before she would realize she was outmatched. The show seems to be implying that her magical girl half is a dormant personality or something, but I did not like how it was presented here. If the hero can't think of anything to fight for in a dire moment, how am I supposed to root for them? Then there's the magical time and space altering moment, and I have a sinking suspicion it'll be abused to allow the characters to do whatever they want with no real-world repercussions.
However, I'm willing to give the show the benefit of the doubt for now. I really enjoy the art style, and it's possible that this episode just caught me at a bad time. I'll make a judgement call once it explains its world and magic system. That said, one more tentacle pulling down a shirt and I'm out.
Images from Crunchyroll.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment