The world of anime as told by the EXILE/FANTASTICS world! No.5]

The Witch and the Beast

As a lover of dark fantasy, I found this film to be full of charm! That is "The Witch and the Beast"! The animation broadcast slot was also late at night, so I have very good memories of the time and atmosphere!

The animation was produced by "Yokohama Animation Lab", whose beautiful animation and action depiction I personally love! They also produced the dark fantasy anime "Hazama-no-Oukoku," which was a great example of how like and love can be multiplied together.

The magician Ashaf is a tall, all-back character with the distinctive visual of a huge coffin on his back and a cigarette in his mouth. He is played by Tomoyuki Morikawa. He is already too cool looking. He is a magician of the Magical Resonance Order, a magic organization for magic by magic and for magic, who finds witches and scouts them out, but he is still a bit of a mystery. That is why he is always mysterious, while being unassuming yet true to himself. Morikawa-san's acting like that is so addictive and very cool. ！！！！

And the sidekick is the other main character, Guido. She looks like a girl with a wicked mouth, ......, but she is actually a man who was originally a man and was transformed by a witch's curse. The character is played by Daichiha!

The story is about Gido's journey with Ashaf to find and avenge the witch who put the curse on herself. The witch appears in the first episode, and she is very ugly. This episode made me think that there is nothing scarier than a witch who longs for the day when she can get rid of her grudge.

The relationship between the main characters, Ashaf and Gido, is also good. Ashaf is smart and sharp, and Gido has a violent side, but he is also surprisingly sharp! The anime brought out their personalities even more, which was great to see!

This work is developed in the format of a single episode consisting of multiple episodes. Of the 12 episodes, I especially liked episode 11. It describes how Ashaf and Gido met and how they became like partners.

It was three years before the main story. Ashaf was not yet carrying a coffin and his tone was a little more cheerful. Ashaf came to a village to protect a witch. He finds a witch called Halbel and is talking to her when suddenly he is attacked by a guido carrying a coffin.

The scene when Ashaf explains witchcraft to Halbel and the children is very good, and I liked the scene where he gives Gido a cup of tea.

Halbel is targeted by the "executioners" who are trying to get rid of the witches. Ashaf, who tries to protect her, is wounded, but then Gido appears. They take each other's hands on a condition.

And then Ashaf, who knows the third of the three witches' curses on Gido, temporarily lifts Gido's curse at this point! Spoiler alert: it's romantic here! This was so good!!! I encourage everyone to watch the anime!

The following episode 12 is the one that talks about their relationship, so I was glad to be able to continue watching these two episodes in the anime.

I hope to see more of this work sometime in the anime, as it is very interesting to see what happens next!

This work is not a simple story like the so-called "witch extermination". Ashaf and Gido are not the type of people who basically work for good or evil, so I don't think they are heroes. They each have their own agendas, and the fact that they work together under certain conditions is also interesting. I am very interested in their relationship, but I am also interested in the fact that there are still many mysteries about the identities of Ashaf and Gido.

The mystery of Ashaf in particular will definitely make you want to know more about him! If you are interested in the anime, please read the original comic as well!

I-Shura

They are all the strongest ！！！！！！　Humans, wyverns, skeletons, plants, dragons！！！！

This is the best work with a variety of heroes! The overwhelming battles between the very strongest heroes are so much fun!

In the world after the defeat of the "real demon king" who caused great damage to the world in the past, the overwhelmingly powerful people become what can be called "Shura" for the people. ...... is the story of such a world. This is the story of such a world.

The identity of the hero who defeated the "real Demon King" is unknown, so 16 candidates fight and the winner is recognized as the "real hero.

But I love it very much. If you win, you become a hero no matter what. I think it's very risky.

It is based on a web novel by Silicon, which has been adapted into a light novel and a comic book. The moment I saw the PV of the anime, I knew it was going to be a "bad one," so I was looking forward to the anime broadcast! A second season has already been announced, and I am looking forward to seeing more and more of it!

The first half of the first season was an introductory episode for the heroes, and even if you watch it as episode 0 of each character, you can enjoy the coolness, story, and charm of the characters, which is unbearable. The watercolor-like illustrations that are inserted here and there also serve as an engine to further expand the world view, and the result is wonderful.

And the unshakable reason why everyone is the strongest ...... in a fierce and cruel world is also depicted along with the charm of each individual. It really makes you want to root for them all...!

I think the charm of this work is that there are various types of "strongest" in the world, not just those with strong abilities, but also those who have their own reasons and backgrounds for their strengths.

Personally, I found Dr. Kuze quite appealing. Dr. Kuze is the sole disposer of a dying cult. He is very kind and has a very deep heart for caring for others. That's right. He is not a person with the strongest specifications or special abilities. His weapon of choice is a shield large enough to hide a person.

The reason why he is the strongest is because he has an "angel-sama" that only he can perceive. This "angel-sama" is the embodiment of "mortality," possessing the absolute power to stop life.

This angel-sama, which only Kuze-sensei can see, eliminates and takes away everything that befalls Kuze-sensei. This is a very numbing situation for me, and an angel-sama who protects only himself is outrageous! However, since he literally protects "only me", he also creates unexpected sacrifices around me. Even the people you try to be nice to are ....... Even such a Kuze-sensei, in this world, throws himself into battle as one of the Shura.

There are many other "Shura" who have the most powerful abilities. When they fight! If they encounter each other on some battlefield!

While I was thinking about this, the fateful seventh episode arrived! For various political reasons and the instincts of each shura, wars and struggles are inevitable, aren't they? In times when there is no threat from the demon king, there are those who try to create a new order, aren't there?

That is why episode 7, in which the shuras fight each other for the first time, is truly amazing. The moment when Sojiro Yagyu, one of the guests from the world called "the other side," who calls himself the last "Yagyu" of the earth and the greatest and strongest battle-mad swordsman, and Sharuku the Sound Slayer, a mysterious "skeleton demon" who wields a spear with overwhelming speed, collide, I couldn't help but feel chills. I could not stop the thrill.

Shura, who has many other thoughts and feelings, tries to subdue the people with fear, and Shura, who tries to fight in cooperation with the people. Besides the battle scenes, there are many other fascinating aspects of the Shuras.

The musical accompaniment is also very cool! Every single note is grainy and powerful.

The animation is very interesting, but what makes it even more appealing is the gorgeous cast that plays each of the heroes!

The narration is by Takaya Doji! When he calls out each character's name, when he talks about the world, everything is overwhelming.

It is a dreamy, cool, cruel and funny anime with a mixture of various characters. Please watch it once, everyone! I hope you will experience the thrill that I also felt!

Longing for a Magical Girl

This season has been the most enjoyable season with various dangerous works. This work is one of such bad anime!

I have never been attracted to magical girls, but this work makes me think that it might be fun to be a magical girl.

However, the content of this work is quite out of the ordinary.

I had read the original novel, and when I heard that an anime adaptation had been decided, my only thought was, "Is it really going to be okay? was the only emotion I had when I heard that they were going to make an anime.

The main character is Hiiragi Utena. She is a pure and innocent girl with cute double teeth who longs to be a magical girl. Suddenly, a mascot named Venerita appears in front of her, who may or may not look familiar. Venerita says to her, "Would you like to try?

"Would you like to try? Transformation.

The story begins with her being told such a thing, and she transforms herself without any choice but to do so, in a super-royal magical girl story ....... But, to her surprise, the person she transforms into is, unexpectedly, a female executive of an evil organization!

Then, the refreshing OP starts, "I was just under the illusion that it's Sunday morning now? It is a very nice OP that makes you think "I was just under an illusion and now it's Sunday morning!

Venerita is actually the mascot of an evil organization. He seems to have already investigated everything in Utena. Although she is a little shadowy, Utena is an average girl who "spends her monthly allowance on magical girl activities. In the first episode, we are told why she has to fight the "Tres Magia," the righteous magical girls, but in an almost threatening manner, Utena is handed a weapon and forced to fight.

This weapon is also a problem. If you whip something with a whip, you can create a special Utena demon, but the moment this demon does this or that to Tres Magia, Utena's expression (kao), which she is not supposed to show, comes out. This is something we have no choice but to fight!

Utena finally whips the Puella Magi, but even though she feels guilty about it, she says to herself, "This is a dream, so let's enjoy it! If it's a dream, let's enjoy it," she says to herself. ...... Yes, she is a sadist! She is a sadist.

The moment I saw this scene, I had a gut-punch in my heart! It is an outrageous anime.

Moreover, Utena-chan and the other members of the "Tres Magia" (Magical Girls of Justice) are actually classmates, and they get along well enough to have normal conversations at school. Because of the "recognition inhibition" setting, once they transform, they don't know each other's true identities, so their other faces are shrouded in mystery.

Utena is such a person, but from the very first episode, she is dyed evil at full throttle. There is something about the way Utena feels troubled by the gap between herself before and after her transformation that makes me sympathize with her. Everyone has a persona (superficial personality), and I think the charm of this work is that it depicts the personas and inner personalities of all the characters, not just Utena.

I think there is love lurking there. The way Utena makes me think that her love for magical girls is very deep, although the way she expresses it is a bit crude, is also an attraction of this work.

This is a very erotic anime, but the essence of it is the abundant use of magical girl stories and special effects!

If you were to actually eat that technique, it would be like that. Or, if that damage would leave a mark the next day, .......

My personal favorite is the wonderful way Utena says "transformation (transmagia)" when she reluctantly transforms.

Also, Venerita, who really does all the fine plays, is the best.

If something happens, she immediately tries to post photos and videos on the Internet, which is pretty insidious, but it's an evil organization, so it can't be helped.

There are many other fascinating characters. First of all, there is a shrine maiden named Saya Mizugami, who transforms into Mazia Azul, with hair color like Morigan's and whose family owns a shrine.

And Kiwi, aka Leopardo: ！！！！！！！！！

Oh no, this guy is the best. She is so cute when she is simply pissed off or when she is honest about anything. And she's smart too!

He is a genius. What a high spec in everything!

The depiction of each and every character is truly wonderful. Of course, the battle scenes are full of power and are also wonderful.

I wonder if there will be a second season. ...... It is one of the works that I would very much like to see a sequel.

Oh, and the ED theme was a really great song and video.

(Text/World [EXILE/FANTASTICS])