Vandread is only interesting when considering how humble the show was despite all the subject matter it tackled for an unapologetic ecchi anime. Of course you saw my score so I still told you its mediocre. I'll be putting less effort into organizing my thoughts with this review in comparison to my others but you should be fine with it since nobody is coming to the show for quality anyway... If you just thought "idiot, I actually DID come for and/or to this show's ecchi qualities" or "oh my god this is not as funny as you think it is I'm about to click off
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so you won't use my attention to figuratively stroke yourself" I want you to know this review is specifically for both of you. Though if you're the second person I imagined, I'll offer actual proof I can be funny when putting in some effort by directing you my Blade of The Immortal review that I regularly cackle at. YES I do embrace masturbatory behavior by laughing at my own old jokes. Do you think we're giving Vandread our attention just to NOT get off???? Yes, me and Vandread both know our target audience and the inequality that lies within our relationship. Now that I've set the tone with lowbrow humor in a low effort review that hopefully established a measure of trust with readers in the first paragraph, lets get started.
Its funny when an anime condenses a 5 hour RPG plotline into the ladder half of stray (barely connected to the main story) 22 minute episode and lampshades how quickly a main character changes her mind while the indoctrinated church is proven wrong in their god/destiny/determinism shit, but doesn't change their opinions that took decades to form because why would they in a single hour. I appreciate how Vandread didn't drag its feet, but it still told a tangent that didn't need to be told in an incompetent way. On the other occupied hand that holds tissues but is clean (or dry) enough to continue typing my way too wordy point, Vandread is smart enough to spend an entire episode giving us a Christmas special that understood the holiday spirit (Japan is infamous for not understanding Christmas), complete with writing that regularly and comfortably explores LGBT stuff while taking advantage of the show's sci-fi genre. Its very natural since the show starts out with a war of the sexes but quickly puts it on hold. Touching on unconventional sexuality was interesting by having cultures move on without conventional procreation and explore organic ideas of romance within single sex cultures. Vandread knows its not particularly good at anything it does which is how it goes down easy. The moment to moment experience is enjoyable even if it reuses the stock "ooohh something wacky/upbeat is happening" theme twice like every episode. Vandread is smart enough to have the shading of skin tones be their natural color tweaked to be darker... sometimes. Other times these amazing character designs look like plastic as the shadows on skin and clothes become dull from failing to be pitch black. Watch the ED/credits for each episode before you read this next point. You need to see the fanservice to understand what I'm saying here. While the show is smart enough to know the most erotic parts of women's bodies are the legs and tummy (and still celebrates the idealized boobs and ass), its also too dumb to realize preventing the main 3 men from getting the same idealization with its fanservice is blatant inequality. Of course the demographic will always ignore this. I REALLY hope this isn't a surprise to anyone reading but the denial of fanservice for the men contradicts many thematic points about striving for men and women to coexist on equal terms. The show gets close to sexualizing the men when one of them cross-dresses (note the glamourous close up shots before the fake out reveal) but nothing plot or thematic related actually comes of it beyond exploring a character with a design many would think indicates a standoffish edgy personality. You don't have to be into men to recognize the cowardice (I'm not gay despite liking Shigurui). At least characters have decent intelligence where they'll ask a reasonable question thanks to their decent intuition (like with the onion recording that occurs after the accidental lewd stumble). The show is smart enough to turn the mandated "stumbling into a lewd incident" event into a substantial plot point to comment on the culture clash, but too dumb to realize fully committing to a lower stakes narrative would've fit these characters better. By the point of the last 2 episodes I wondered what the hell was the point with the high stakes. Was there a single person NOT laughing their ass off when the story got all existential to the introduction of the last "big" battle? Characters are having eleventh hour breakdowns like 2 minutes before they pep up to regurgitate thematic lessons mostly to themselves. If I really wanted to put no effort into this review, I'd draw comparisons to every other mecha that has their protag go through a mental breakdown in battles and their inability to connect with blah blah after pointing out all the intercourse analogies found in the show. Conceptualizing the person who would be impressed at another person pointing out all the sexual imagery in this show both humors and scares me. It would be very easy to feign understanding of Vandread's spirit. The high stakes moments are nearly vapid which is why the show laughing off the finale with some small cuckquean teasing between characters actually made it funny. Vandread never goes into intentional parody of the ecchi or mecha genre so I can't really give objective praise for the ending. The show isn't playing dumb for the audience, its just dumb in a few mundane ways.
Like a comedian, Vandread sells a lie with intent on appealing to the audience. The bad comedian deceives the audience to sell a social view and look good. The good comedian deceives the audience to sell a joke. Obviously Vandread has no underhanded agenda of looking good when this anime is locked at 480p with 3D mech models that move just serviceably for the time (but I doubt have been desired by anyone in the audience). The absence of celebration over male bodies comes off as being half assed rather than an intentional slight of hand. Either way the insincerity is there. Vandread is a mediocre but kinda funny humble comedian with a few unconventional ideas that can't save itself. This is because their conventional techniques of communication contradict their actual point to the people watching with a critical eye while the complacent viewers are sidetracked with stimulating themselves (in a stand up comedy context this means looking at your phone while the comedian is talking but in the context of Vandread and its demographic it means embracing the best aspects of the male fantasy). You're telling me we'll get a nipslip of the blonde gal's areola in the ED to every episode, but we can't get any awooga moments for the men unless they abandon masculinity for a subversion? Vandread, take it from a comedian, you didn't complete your joke. You could call this the post nut or postcoital segment with how disappointed I sound upon reflection. By labeling myself as a comedian I admit to having lied somewhere in this review, have fun figuring that part out for yourself. Was it when I boiled down being competent at the art of comedy as lying? Was it when I said I called myself a comedian who lies just to make my points and stylistic choices cohesive? Was it when I said this review took a low amount of effort? Is there only one lie? Explaining a joke kills it, so you'll have to get it on your own.
Pfft, gotcha. See how easy it is to express last minute half baked profound ideas into art? Did you accept it just because you read that far into this review while wanting it to have some sort of merit you could be immediately directed to look for? There it is, a 1-1 recreation of what Vandread did. Blunt or subtle doesn't matter in this case. A piece of art deciding to incorporate profound ideas won't be good if its done with bluntness or subtlety. Those are just stylistic choices to help convey quality, not make quality. If its done well it'll be done GRADUALLY above all else, not at the last minute. There is merit to this review and lemme tell you, very little of it is found in identifying falsehood. I didn't write all this just to slap you in the face.
With that being said I did acknowledge Vandread's spirit by saying its possible to feign understanding of it. I still like this show for the ecchi and its actual substantial ideas that it somewhat fails to convey. All of the characters were inoffensive at the least and most had their charm. I also like how they didn't rush a particular ship at the end of this season, though I'm not compelled to watch the next one so I guess I don't like it that much. Its more fun to think about than it was fun to watch, which is bizarre since thats something you say about esoteric art, not a mediocre ecchi of all things.
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Apr 3, 2025
Vandread is only interesting when considering how humble the show was despite all the subject matter it tackled for an unapologetic ecchi anime. Of course you saw my score so I still told you its mediocre. I'll be putting less effort into organizing my thoughts with this review in comparison to my others but you should be fine with it since nobody is coming to the show for quality anyway... If you just thought "idiot, I actually DID come for and/or to this show's ecchi qualities" or "oh my god this is not as funny as you think it is I'm about to click off
...
Sep 17, 2024
Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu
(Anime)
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Visuals & Atmosphere - This adaptation has the most cubicle office worker art direction and presentation I’ve seen in anime. If ships aren’t departing or Reinhard’s hair isn’t the focal point of a couple frames, the animation is gonna look stiff but consistently being on model. I personally found the designs of the ships and armor bland at best. In what possible world is the imperial’s armor being made to resemble skeletons not extremely corny? Star Wars can get away with this because its demographic has always been twelve year old boys, while this story clearly has an older target audience. The real visual strength
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Apr 23, 2024
Omoide Emanon
(Manga)
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This is not a story or parable. It's a shallow think piece that was born from a lonely fantasy the creator had. It has likable characters that bond organically. It brings up interesting concepts of reincarnation, war, myth, history, evolution, memories, and love while not making a single point on any of them. I read this three times and initially enjoyed surface level aspects while questioning why something about it felt hollow. I realized while walking my dog an hour later that the manga had no lesson to derive meaning from. The closest it gets to something meaningful you can take away from is when
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Apr 19, 2024
Mugen no Juunin
(Manga)
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You can't have a competent story with a horribly written protagonist.
Manji isn't the main character. His goal isn't the focus. Manji's goal isn't even worth mentioning. He'll complain and moan, but go along with some dumb girl and accidentally flirt with her because he's an unambitious hobo that stopped putting effort into fights due to being carried by immortality. At least he's honest about being a bloodthirsty adrenaline junkie gremlin. Despite being an immortal who's literally claimed to have met a ton of idiots like Rin before and turn them down, he warms up to Rin by projecting his dead sister on her. He ... |
