Night Wizard

Varagauzer Sep 12, 2016

2

Another great idea gone wrong. Pros Absoutely beautiful music Pretty well done action scenes, its quite flashy Fairly intresting character and background design Cons Stupid humor, not funny at all Most of the series is wasted seearching for the jewels and nothing much goes on with the plot. The pacing is terrible Absoutely dull characters: you got the silent "badass" female, the innocent female, the one that yells "HENTAI" at the lead male and you have a noisy and annoying lead male. The plot is too predictable from episode 3 you can easily tell where its going. The script is terrible, the dialogue is cliche, whatever the characters say makes you facepalm at how bad it is. There is no character development, absoutely none, their attitudes don't change, their pont of view nor their goals change, nothing happens. Half of the characters are just flat out annoying. I fell asleep several times while watching this, it has a great idea (well sort of, its got this saving the world nonsense) but its was just badly handeled.

ThatAnimeSnob Aug 14, 2012

4.5

ART SECTION: 7/10 I must say I was surprised. Most fantasy anime really suck in battles but this one had some basic strategy in it. It was not just people screaming and throwing fireballs. Well… most of it was… But several important battles were based on some sort of revelation or sideway trick. Some may call this Deus Ex Machina but I personally expected much less from such a series and thus I liked it. In fact, the battles are the best thing I noticed. Beyond that, the depiction of the world is a very nice blend of our normal one with that of epic phantasy. Modern day cities and schools, packed with wizards, monsters, flying fortresses and the like; wow I was amazed again. To be honest, most monsters were carbon copies of one another and most uniforms were more fetishes than practical; but hey, I am a sucker for fantasy. Going further, the visual effects were generally pleasing. Lots of neon glow, hovering runes and magic missiles filled the screen and gave me a funny Jrpg feeling (not a surprise, the series really is based on a game). The only thing I didn’t really liked was how everything seemed to pop out of nowhere. “No kidding Einstein, that’s why they call it magic” you may say. Well, yes, truly magic self excuses everything. But the series does not implement total magic devises. Many things feel like science fiction, as many characters use laser canons, bazookas and the sort of weapons that don’t count as magical by default. And yet, look, the battle starts and the characters summon huge Claymores, rocket launchers (including their ammo!), and steel shields, literally out of thin air. That kinda felt lame.In all, as far as animation goes, the blend of normal with fantasy was done in a generally pleasing way, so seeing high-schoolers turning into male barbarians carrying neon glow Claymores and girls turning in black-clad, mini skirt, perky witches felt more pleasing than stupid.Points are lost for the simple reason that there wasn’t that much battle choreography (much less realism) during the fights and because the series lacked cool cinematics, something of which I am very fond of. SOUND SECTION: 6/10 Unlike the animation, the music didn’t have much to back things up. Besides some beatty music themes here and there, the rest of it (voice acting, sound effects) didn’t strike me as much. So, I only give a bit above average. STORY & CHARACTER SECTIONS: 4/10 Here comes the nasty part. Take the most clichéd school-life story and mix it with the most clichéd epic fantasy story. The result is Night Wizard. It would be a lot more interesting if it had some REAL plot twists or surprises but it didn’t. Even the cast is nothing more than a typical blend of romance archetypes with D&D character classes. Not bad by itself but none evolved or did things I haven’t already seen in a thousand Jrpgs. In all, Story and Characters serve less than an anime of such a blend should deliver. That is the only reason Value gets dragged down along with the other two. ENJOYMENT & VALUE SECTIONS: 3/10 If it weren’t for the weird blend of normal with fantasy, this would be rock bottom. But, since I am a sucker for Jrpgs, I just liked it a bit. That is all. VERDICT: 4.5/10 Just skip the story parts and stare at the pretty lights during battles. SUGGESTION LIST SlayersBastard!!

SEGHE Sep 19, 2023

5

"Night Wizard" is an anime that blends elements of fantasy, magic, and adventure, but it falls short in several areas. Here's my review, breaking down the different aspects of the series: Story (4/10): The story of "Night Wizard" centers around a group of magical warriors tasked with protecting the world from supernatural threats. While the premise is intriguing and holds promise, the execution leaves much to be desired. The plot is often disjointed and lacks a cohesive narrative. It introduces various concepts and plot points without sufficient explanation, making it difficult to become fully immersed in the world. Additionally, character motivations and the overarching conflict could have been better developed. Animation (6/10): The animation in "Night Wizard" is serviceable but not particularly remarkable. It features a blend of traditional 2D animation and CGI, with the former generally being more appealing. The character designs are decent, and the action sequences, while not groundbreaking, are adequate. However, there are instances of inconsistent animation quality throughout the series. Sound (5/10): The sound in "Night Wizard" is a mixed bag. The background music, composed by Akifumi Tada, is suitable for the fantasy genre and adds some atmosphere to the show. However, it's not particularly memorable. The voice acting performances are decent, but they don't elevate the characters or the story to a higher level. Characters (5/10): The characters in "Night Wizard" are a rather generic bunch, and their development is limited. The protagonist, Renji Hiiragi, is the typical "chosen one" archetype, but his character lacks depth. The supporting cast consists of other magical warriors, each with their own abilities and personalities, but they don't receive sufficient character development to make them truly engaging. Their interactions are often predictable, and the lack of meaningful character growth is a missed opportunity. Overall (5/10): "Night Wizard" has an intriguing premise but fails to deliver a compelling narrative. While it incorporates elements of magic and fantasy, it struggles with disjointed storytelling and underdeveloped characters. While it may appeal to viewers who enjoy the genre, it falls short of achieving greatness. Regarding a comparison to the manga or novel, "Night Wizard" originated as a tabletop role-playing game in Japan and later inspired adaptations in various media, including manga and anime. The anime may differ from the source material, so exploring the manga or novel could provide a different perspective on the story and characters.