Black★Rock Shooter Review

Screencaps courtesy of Random Curiosity.

Our pc crashed again and I've watched this online and I don't want to give you guys crappy screen caps so I got the high quality screencaps from RC.

Just how far will you go to repair a friendship that was broken?

Story: 7/10

If we will separate the action and the school scenes in this ova, this will become your generic school life anime where the main focus of the story is the friendship of the main characters. Though I have to admit that the presentation of this is unique since the scenes between Black Rock Shooter and Dead Master was some kind of metaphor to the developing friendship of Mato and Yomi but sometimes the switching of different scenes was quite confusing. I felt that the plot of the OVA is lacking but I think that's inevitable since there was not enough time to explain everything so I'm hoping that this will become a OVA series *cross fingers*. Overall, the premise of the story is really interesting but somehow it became boring as the ova progresses since it seems that It's turning into a school life anime instead of the action packed anime that I saw from the trailers. But don't get me wrong, I still like the action of this OVA but I wished that they have weaved the story and action a lot better than what they did here so they still have another chance if they will produce a sequel.

Characters: 7/10

Kuroi Mato is your typical spirited and cheerful girl who is easy to approach and to talk to. Takanashi Yomi on the other hand is a refined girl who came from a rich family. They became friends easily when Mato talked to Yomi and since then they are always together but when they joined different clubs and as a new school year begins, they were shuffled into different class and they were separated even more and Mato has gained a new friend and because of that Yomi becomes jealous and she disappeared and became Dead Master in another world. When Mato found out that Yomi has disappeared she is willing to overcome all odds just to bring back Yomi.

Mato and Yomi's characters are not that developed and I blame the limited time of the OVA. I think what really mattered was that we saw their struggles as they try to repair their friendship. It would have been better if we saw a bit of Yomi's character because it seems that she has a sad side to her and I think if they would have revealed that, the viewers could empathize with her and her character would have shined as Mato tries her best to save her. Well, honestly their characters are dull and I hope that would be fixed in the sequel (if there will be a sequel).

Animation: 9/10

The highlight of this OVA without a doubt is it's animation & character design. The animation was really well done for a small company like Ordet. The action is fluid and exciting and sometimes left me at the edge of my seat. I really think that Ordet was able to do justice Huke's art and design and again, the original material is still superior than their anime counterpart but still *thumbs up* to Ordet. The character design is really an eye-candy. Who wouldn't be captivated to the slender, pale, blue-eyed and twin-tailed girl who wears a black bikini, jacket and very short shorts and at the same time wields a huge gun and katana. Even Dead Master's design is also captivating with her green eyes and sophisticated look and at the same time wields a huge scythe. Just hands down to Huke. Mato and Yomi's emotions are animated really well since when the scene calls for it, you could clearly feel their emotions. The back ground of the other world was able to maintain Huke's gritty style and it's like a metaphor of Yomi and Mato's friendship that had gone sour.

Sound: 8/10

Hanzawa Kana and Sawashiro Miyuki's portrayal of Mato and Yomi is very fitting. I honestly like the bgm of this OVA since it kind of reminds me of the bgm of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. The bgm in the action scenes and the ED song is nice to the ears. The song that this anime based on was nowhere in the OVA until the last part where it was played as a piano piece and somehow made the last part touching and I really like it (I want to get my hands on that piece). There were no dialogues in most part of this OVA but the silence was effective in conveying emotions.

Enjoyment: 7/10

I enjoyed this OVA despite it's flaws but mainly because of the art. I enjoyed seeing Black Rock Shooter and Dead Master in action trying to rip each other's throats off. But if I look at the story and characters, it's really mediocre and I can't blame the writers because a 50 min OVA is not enough to tie all loose ends but I'm still excited in watching a sequel since it ended with Yuu having a dark look on her face.

It is a decent anime and I think it's worthy of your time but as a fan of the BRS song and PV I'm a bit disappointed but nevertheless, Ordet was able to give fans what they want Black Rock Shooter in action. I'm probably disappointed because of the story felt lacking and I'm very particular with the plot so really hope there would be a sequel.

Overall: 7.6/10

Until then…

~ja