GOOD HIGH FANTASY One of the genres anime never seem to get right is high fantasy. Berserk and Claymore don’t count, since they are dark fantasy, Attack on Titan doesn’t count because it is a typical zombie apocalypse with shonen characters, while Lodoss War that counts is as dry as the chamomile leaves we gathered last year for tea. Most others that claim to be high fantasy are more like slapstick comedies set in a pseudo-medieval setting, thus they do close to nothing when it comes to capturing that 2nd edition of Dungeons and Dragons I grew up with, back when everything are great because it was retro. And of course there are also light novel adaptations, which are complete garbage, regardless of what genre they deal with, high fantasy included. So here comes this show to finally break this curse by capturing exactly the magic of what high fantasy is all about. A strong sense of adventure, really high stakes, cheesy dialogues, random enemy encounters, unexpected plot twists, emphasis on character fleshing out, and epic showdowns with dragons, gods, demons, or all of them at the same time. BEATS THE SOURCE MATERIAL Despite being based on a virtual card game, not only it doesn’t feel like it promotes it by using its gameplay mechanics, but it also does not use cheap tactics like fan service, in order to simply sell, and doesn’t even resort to an episodic structure, so it can be nothing more than an aimless adventure with pretty colors. You want more? There is a plot, and there is a finale, which is solid. You want even more than that? The protagonists are not beta males and sexualized lolis but dynamic men and women you can show respect for, since they don’t constantly act like horny sluts. This is not a lifeless adaptation, made solely to advertize a game. Studio Mappa did a splendid job in making it stand on its own, and at the same time being far superior to its source material. As much as I don’t care about pretty colors, I can’t deny the effort they put into the presentation. The attention to detail when it comes to backgrounds, character motions, and dynamic music, is enough to make even the dullest of episodes fun enough to watch. GARBAGE SCRIPT The worst part of the show is the script and I am not sure if that even matters in high fantasy, but let’s pretend it does. From a critical standpoint it’s garbage, since just like most actual pen and paper role playing games, stuff happen because they need to happen at that particular moment, and not because there is a reasonable chain reaction of events that lead to them. If you dislike characters appearing out of nowhere, doing something, and then flying away without anyone being able to do the slightest thing about it, well, too bad, because Bahamut could have easily be called Teleportation, the Animated Series. It is completely chaotic in its story structure, so any strategy the characters have, means absolutely nothing. In other words, this is a show that lives and dies by the rule of cool. Trying to look for depth or underlying messages can only damage the experience. It is meant to be loud, flashy, shallow, exciting, and nothing more. PURE FUN If you stick to the action and adventure parts though, you won’t be able to get enough of it, since it is made with such passion that it grabs you in seconds and doesn’t let you go. Enjoy a cursed rogue with a tail, as he is chased around by a guy who wants to avenge the death of his father, while he escorts a half demon woman with the mentality of a little girl, through dungeons, and haunted forests, and stormy oceans, trying to get to hell and prevent the dragon of the apocalypse from awakening and wiping out everything, as gods and demons are fighting for supremacy all around them. Also, there is a talking duck. IN CONCLUSION If you are wondering why I sound so positive about it, when I keep bitching about the script being more important than entertainment, it’s because it avoids all the done to death anime stereotypes modern anime are full of. No schools, no sexualized sluts, no beta males. It stands out from almost everything else and the character chemistry helps to mesh everything together in a satisfying way. If that is not a good enough excuse for you, then see it this way: It is also the only good high fantasy anime ever made. And even if that is not enough, at least it’s very fun.
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