Otaku Digest: Dimension Gate Opens To Darkness
So can someone tell us where January went? It feels like we blinked and the month just flew on by but thankfully we are still in the winter anime season with plenty more shiny new series to sink our teeth into. So far so good on the anime of 2016, we have had some very interesting series pop up this season that may not have wowed on first inspection but gave just enough to warrant further investigation, a nice complaint after the past few lack lustre seasons we have had. With no further ado however we have this week’s episodes to feast upon, we have Dimension W, Divine Gate and Hai to Gensou no Grimgar.
Dimension W
First we have the very highly anticipated adaptation of the Dimension W manga also titled Dimension W which is a sci-fi, seined and action anime that first aired on January 10. We are transported to the year 2071 where the energy problems facing the earth have been fixed using a network of cross-dimensional electric-friend inductors or more commonly known as ‘coils’ that are extracting the energy from what seems to be a never ending source point. The source is the W dimension, the fourth plane that exists outside the X,Y and Z dimensions. Not all is peaceful however in this world there are illegal unsanctioned coils that possess powers that that police cannot even dream of going against. Enter the repo man Kyoma who hate coils so it is his job to deal with these unofficial coil issue, he forms a unenthusiastic partnership with a special coil android called Mira, after a run in between the two, a run in that will forever change Kyoma’s life.
If I was looking forward to any anime released this season it was definitely this one, which always freaks me out when I am doing Otaku Digest since I do not look forward to many and it can be disappointing when an anime does not deliver. That opening was all kinds of perfect, the techno inspired catchy song coupled with the random character dance moments with the action portions match the pace of the song perfectly and no spoilers, finally! Really this episode had everything you would hope a first episode would, it was informative about the source material explaining the whole coil aspect, it gave clear character introductions which actually came with some development that led you to want more information on them, really high sped action and even some comedy in there for good measure. Much like other anime like it what wins it for this anime is the characters, both Kyoma and Mira have their own individual lives and pasts that make you want to know more but also see how their narrative together will play out. Also an anime that uses fan service correctly and does not rely on it.
Will I Continue To Watch? Yes and yes! I need more of this please!
Divine Gate
Next this week is the action, sci-fi and fantasy anime Divine Gate which originally aired on January 8. Imagine living in a world where the heavens and the underworld suddenly became connected, this is exactly the world that was born when the Divine Gate opened, creating a world of chaos where desire and conflict overlap. When the chaos passes a certain point the World Council is created in order to restore peace and order, after that the Divine Gate becomes but a distant memory. In this world the World Council chooses those they consider adequate together. There are some who wish to make it to the gate for their own selfish personal aims and others who wish to remake the world they live. If they reach the gate will the world change? What is actually beyond it? Will it change their futures or their pasts?
No lie when this anime first started I groaned loudly because it starts up in this raining scene with a young man looking glum with a random enough voice over like any generic emotional anime but damn did that escalate quickly. It is highly confusing at the beginning with a lot of information thrown at you at once with no real explanation but something I did enjoy was the crazy man on the train explaining although quickly the history of the divine gate. Although the story is a little difficult to follow unless you are literally glued to the thing something that stood out is the animation style, I liked how it was a cross between an anime based game and an actual anime, the character designs were very crisp and sharp making the character designs themselves stand out from the sometimes abstract backgrounds. There is so much going on in this anime it is quite disorientating at times since you are trying to piece everything together but once you do the episode is very enjoyable and even though there is so much to know it become easier to follow as the disconnected characters come together forming the narrative.
Will I Continue To Watch? Unlikely, although enjoyable in the end there was nothing stellar about the episode
Hai to Gensou no Grimgar
Lastly this week we have Hai to Gensou no Grimgar or Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash which aired on January 11 and is an adventure, drama, action and fantasy anime adapted from a manga of the same name. Imagine waking up and not know where you are, where you came from or why you are there. This is the case for Haruhito as he awakes and is in the dark to everything. He is surrounded by a number of people who are in the same situation he finds himself. Not one of them can remember anything about themselves, where they came from or where they are. They all band together to move forward from the darkness they have found themselves and venture out as the world they have never seen ‘Grimgar’ is before them. No one can tell what is before them or what awaits them out there.
The animation in this series is gorgeous straight away that’s the first thing you have to notice about the episode, not even the action sequence that is currently in place but that the back ground art and character designs for it are stunning. The background art looks as if it was a water painting that somehow found its way to an anime while the character designs are straight out of an adventure game each having a job much like in those type of games, there is a mage, a white mage and other various roles. Although it opens on an action sequence a large chunk of the episode is spent explaining things through a lot of chatter which would be fine but you just showed us a lot of characters who we know nothing about bar that that have all come from seemingly our reality to land in this magical realm of Grimgar, they spent more time explaining basically a class system than they have on the characters which is a shame since some of them seem genuinely interesting.
Will I Continue To Watch? I would usually say no but the whole class system and little inkling into the characters is enough to keep me watching.
