B'T X Neo

B'T X Neo is a great sequel to the original TV series. It not only has better writing but also offers an upgrade in the technical side of this animated series as a whole.

About the writing, B'T X Neo is darker, grittier, with a more dramatic atmosphere, compared to the regular B'T X. I totally liked that change. It fits the overall tone of the later arcs and the climax itself. It also allows for a better portrayal of things that, sadly, were not present in the TV series, I mean many significant characters' backgrounds or motivations.

The soundtrack has improved over the TV series. The ... greater variety of songs and their matching to the scenes they accompany makes the whole thing more comfortable and immersive to watch. Just like in B'T X's opening theme's case, Neo's opening theme is a total banger of a song. Not better than the previous one, but still awesome.

When it comes to art style and animation, the OVA series is also an improvement. Art style remains pretty much the same. It doesn't have drastic changes, but that's good. What felt underwhelming when watching the TV series was the animation. It was not bad, but not good either. Just average. Luckily, B'T X Neo has better animation in general. That also includes the direction and dynamism of both action scenes and more timid ones.

I thoroughly enjoyed this sequel. A brilliant conclusion to the show and a visible upgrade in many aspects of the prequel series. Sure, it is not without any cons and some things could've been done better, but for 14 episodes, I think B'T X Neo is packed with very decent content coated with well-done audiovisuals. In short, different types of shortcomings are covered by elements that are polished and simply properly made.

the story picks off from the t.v serie´s wich goes in a far darker tone and more serious aswel the plot directs in a very twisted and acceptable closure. seems many ppl haven´t heard the ova´s or seen it ( yes its oldskool, deal with it ). I liked the t.v series a lot, but the ova a lot more. New charachters that appears in the scene, both good and bad, each having a story to tell about their past and stuff wich in not like a no brainer putted in just to fill it all up or rush it, no its quite ... well done and tought through. same for the new apprerances of mystical/-like-mecha creatures. i don't remember much of the ova's , but Pegasus gets and powerfull upgrade and the Original owner returns wich develop in an sort of dissapointment between the owner and the current holder of Pegasus, wich Black Pegasus comes into the story.I like the nice 'superhero' intro that fitted, very good background animation and little to non pussy chara. that annoys you in the show. and it has some funny moments ofc.

B'T X Neo is the continuation of the first two seasons and concludes the story of the anime with a third season. As such, there are many similarities to the previous part although some sections differ highly, it still feels like the former part, and not in a good way.

Story: 2
Animation: 3
Sound: 5
Characters: 2
Enjoyment: 3

Total: 2

In comparison, and partly because of the concluded nature, I can safely say that B'T X Neo is worse than its unfinished predecessor. The bad and boring section are drawn out more and character development comes to a halt for the main cast as it is already concluded in the ... previous seasons. But the above scores can also be used for the totality of the whole anime; and here is why.

Let's start with the story structure and action. As mentioned in my previous review, the story is a monster-of-the-week style gauntlet for the main cast to fight through. Most of them went for 2 episodes and in Neo partly for 3. The biggest problem this show has is that the action is stiff. Because it always boils down to when can the main character hit the enemy. At first and in every fight they are caught off-guard by some mystical power from the enemy, but after they can overcome it, he punches so enemy so hard that he retires.
And for a show mostly about robots and the technical advancement of humanity, magic power are everywhere. At first they at least try to explain of how they function, but they give up half way and energy beams out of thin air are on the daily norm.
In general, the show lacks explanations. The big bad of the show is essentially the blob and punching him doesn't do much. The evil behind the blob has never any text to speak and only appears as a shadow in a flashback. His motives are mostly communicated by his ministers who run most of the empire he controls.

And I have to talk about the plans of the bad guys here, because it makes no freaking sense.

<Spoilers onward here>

A Lieutenant of the empire captures scientists around the globe to figure out how to defeat the blob they created as he seems invincible to all weapons. The few cases we get to see they demand an audience with the emperor but only get to see the ministers. This point makes no sense. Why would they even allow outsiders into their heart and not kill them right on the spot? All of them gets sent into a forced labor camp underground, but the empire also seem to have a giant amount of staff to spend. So instead they keep them alive which ultimately bites them back, because we can't have a main character be killed in the first 6 episodes. Since the camp is full of scientist slaves this scenario happened at least 100+ times. Why was the lieutenant still in her job?

And this problematic of internal logic is flawed in many instances. For example: a scientist for robotics and mathematics solve chemical biology by themselves when they probably have someone for that on site.
Or: At first it is said that the blob cannot be harmed by anything. Later everything seems to be capable of destroying large chunks of him.

<Spoilers end here.>

Consistency is generally flawed within this anime. Large distances stretch in and out for conveniences sake and how the plot requires it.

What is also somewhat interesting is, that the plot structure is very similar to JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 3: Stardust Crusaders. A Monster-of-the-Week show with magical abilities mostly set in a desert to fight the big bad evil at the end to save a relative while the main character mostly punches the evil guys. The original manga run also started a few years after JoJo Part 3. The main difference, however, would be the main cast size. Due to the large cast of 5 main members JoJo avoids staleness in its fights. There are only so many ways you can punch someone. B'T X Neo fails to deliver of that front completely. Fights are dull and the action is repeated by concept every single time. Also, the ability to fly is completely underutilized and only serves as means of travel.

Animation-wise there were some improvements. However still-shots are still used massively and obvious errors still pop up every so often. Sometimes in company with disfigured character models.
The sound is fine for most of the parts and serves its duty.

In total B'T X Neo continues on the trend of its previous two seasons. Flat action combined with flat characters and an underwhelming story which is surprisingly capable of missing everything it throws before its own feet. There are oh so many sections where characters could've been developed from in massive ways, but they always ignore those situations. Ultimately this anime is about ... something... I guess to not lose hope so the Deus ex Machina can fall into his hands? Honestly, there are many themes presented in the anime, but, as mentioned earlier, none are resolved in any satisfying measure. It blindly waddles through this sea of plot holes and lack of logic towards something that resembles probably one of the worst endings I've ever seen.