Intro
My Blue Gender review took me a long time to fully complete and many months after I had originally finished the anime, so please keep that in mind, and understand that portions of this review maybe shorter than normal for that reason.
Story
This anime takes place in a futuristic, post-apocalyptic Earth where humans no longer inhabit the planet and are forced to reside in space. This is all due to the discovery of an unknown, incurable disease that effects human B-cell growth. Decades later, humanity eventually returns from Earth’s orbit to try and recover and awaken certain people who were left behind. These people, known as “Sleepers,” are special individuals who were put into a cryo-type stasis to keep them alive from the B-cell growth that plagues their bodies.
However, their mission is not as easy as you might think. Since their departure to space, also known as Second Earth, the Earth itself has been overrun by a mysterious species of creature. They are called the Blue, giant insects that invaded Earth, consuming everything in their path, including human beings. They are the reason humanity has not returned to Earth for as long as they have.
So why, after all these years, does humanity return to Earth to rescue the Sleepers? Is there another purpose or agenda to their motives? Enter our two protagonists, Marlene and Yuji. Marlene is a space-born modern-day soldier sent to Earth as part of the recovering mission. Yuji is one of the Sleepers who happens to be a part of the “behind-the-scenes” agenda of the current Second Earth government. To what extent do Sleepers and taking back Earth have in connection to each other? That right there is the mysterious question that needs to be discovered.
In my discovery to the answers to the pivotal questions that plague this anime, here is what I discovered. There are many plot holes and bits of confusion in the first third of the series. It is not until episode nine the suspense and story begin to evolve a little more, especially when the outer space folks come into play. The mystery of the Blue is yet to unravel though other than their evolving nature, which leads to the furthering of the horror. Episodes 11 and 12 are a prime example of both their evolution and the horror in which they bring.
The story has some surprisingly unpredictable moments as well as some very predictable ones. The Blues’ origins, which becomes more and more apparent as the purpose of the Sleepers unfolds is a prime example of an unpredictable moment eventually becoming a more predictable one. It is not entirely surprising, but it is still interesting all the same. To some degree, Blue Gender has a quasi-Resident Evil sense about it.
Animation
The art is relatively bad considering the time frame in which it was produced. The animation on the other hand is well above average. Collectively they work well together and give the anime a sense of realism regarding the ever-changing emotional landscape that happens to a variety of the characters throughout.
Sound
The OP is slightly above average with a hard rock sounding edge to it. The ED is a letdown unfortunately. The sound effects of the Blue, the armor shrikes, and remainder sound effects are all very solid. However, the best part of the whole series is the eerie atmosphere the music creates in various scenes. It can draw out the suspense and really enhance the horrific aspects of the series. In this genre of series, that is a particularly large part of the overall enhancement and impact of the sound.
Characters
The characters of Blue Gender tend to be all over the place, especially ones who play an important role throughout or at a specific arc in the story. Regardless, the cast of characters plays a significant role in the success of the series, but I am only going to briefly discuss select characters.
Marlene and Yuji lead the way with solid and consistent character development over time, little by little. However, Yugi starts off as a pants peeing, big whining Sleeper baby, who grows up and comes into his own as a courageous, dependable person and soldier. At first, he reminded me of Shirou Emiya from Fate/stay night, and ends up becoming more like Marlene, in terms of courage and skill, before further "evolving" as a character. He changes so much at a couple of points in the series that it becomes easy to forget just who the heck we are watching. Pants peeing, to semi-badass, to near-bonkers extremist exterminator, to humanity’s last hope. That’s quite an epic change for one single character.
Marlene is a the seemingly cold-hearted, stoic, ruthless soldier who slowly softens up for all to discover her passionate and warm-hearted nature. She transforms from unlikable b*tch to my favorite character, while still maintaining the most consistency of any other character in the series. She is the most plausible person in this dystopian world.
Dice is a fun, carefree soldier (former) who's involvement with Yugi and Marlene is cut way too short. He has got skill, class, and is a bonafide badass! He is just a likeable guy in general.
Last, but not least, there is Tony. All I can say about this self-proclaimed Sleeper overseer is, “F*ck that guy!” Watch this anime and you will see why. He plays the part well, and I mean that as a compliment, although still, “F*ck that guy!”
There are some other important and significant characters to keep track of, including Alicia, Chairmen Victor, and Seno, but I am not going to discuss the important roles and influences they have on the plot and story development of Blue Gender.
Overall
This series is not going to be for everyone due to its sheer content, subject matter, and both character and plot deficiencies. Its characters are not bad, and its concept is quite intriguing.
If the writing was cleaned up and the visuals were given due justice, then Blue Gender would be a quite the series to behold. Still, I recommend it because its intentions, concept, and slight allure are better than a large portion of today’s modern day, tropey anime offerings.
Entertainment Score: 7/10
Achievement Score: +0 to Overall
My expectations were Moderate, and it delivered Spot-on to those expectations.
Additional Information:
Video Format: DVD
Audio Format: English
Publisher: FUNimation
Equipment Used: LG 60UH6550 4K TV, Vizio 5.1 Sound Bar System SB3651-E6, Sony Blu-ray Player BDP-S5