| Average |
6.5 |
| Animation |
8 |
| Sound |
6 |
| Story |
5 |
| Character |
6 |
| Value |
7 |
| Enjoyment |
7 |
| Originally, I ran into this OVA when I found a remix of one of Kotoko's songs. The name piqued my interest and the premise sounded vaguely interesting, so I decided to check it out. Right off the bat I was surprised, as what I thought was originally going to be a light-hearted children's action anime quickly turned more ominous. Baldr Force is riddled with many graphic scenes, ranging from gore to rape, and definitely is not suited for younger audiences.
The animation initially didn't appeal to me all that much initially, as the CG scenes seemed a bit awkward and out of place. Overall this remained somewhat true, but it grew on me as the OVA progressed. It reminded me a bit of Reboot actually (that brings back memories!) and fit the theme of the show rather well. Character/background animations were actually done quite well, as expected of an OVA, and are definitely passable. The actual animation aspects are also particularly detailed, as everything flows together smoothly. Not the greatest eye candy around but it does its the job more than adequately.
Aside from the spectacular opening and ending themes, there's not much to comment on regarding Baldr Force's sound score. Kotoko, as usual, did a fabulous job with both, but there wasn't anything else that was memorable. The background music is decent along with the Seiyuu. Pretty typical overall, don't expect much.
The first three episodes of the OVA aren't bad, but the fourth sucked tremendously. Basically it's set in the future where humans have the real world and the virtual world, where the virtual world has become so advanced that it is a second 'reality.' This second world is created by making a person's body into an electric circuit, which results in any trauma caused in the vitual world to directly impact the body in the real world. Both worlds are torn by violence as a terrorist group called Fei Dao fights against the government run security Flak. Not too original but it's put forth fairly well. There are a few twists and turns, but I don't think they're really all that dramatic considering the OVA's lack of clear focus. On the bright side, this doesn't really matter, as they are executed well enough to hold your interest until the end. The OVA doesn't stay in one spot for very long, as something is constantly happening to shake up Tooru's life, so this more than aptly makes up for it by keeping things interesting. Aside from episode four, I was kept interested from start to finish.
As far as characters go, pretty run of the mill, though Tooru is rather interesting. The problem lies in that they tried to make him *too* interesting, but they end up splitting him in way too many directions. For instance, we have his past with Steppen Wolf, Flak, VSS, Ayane, Fei Dao, and Ren all incorporated into a four episode OVA, and what's worse is they try to tie everything up in the last one. As such, the fourth episode seems way out of place and dumb (and rightfully so...it's impossible to tie up 20 character connections in 20 minutes with any decency). Still, the first three are fast-paced and exciting, mixed with a lot of action and drama that keeps you on your toes. Being that Tooru jumps around so much, he's really the only "main" character, so not too much is explained about the side characters. Being that there wasn't enough time as is, that's definitely a plus. Overall, not too shabby for an OVA and definitely strayed from my somewhat low key expectations.
In the end, however, the most crippling aspect of Baldr Forces' characters is that there are just too damn many. Again, we have a whole caste from Steppen Wolf, Flak, VSS, and Fei Dao, more than many 26 episode series dare to introduce. In my opinion, had the number of organizations been cut in half, I think it would have made Baldr Force's drama a bit more dramatic. Regardless, as is the side characters move the story along surprisingly well despite their overall shallowness. You don't really have to remember names, just a couple faces (probably about 70% of the side characters appear once...twice tops) so don't bother.
In conclusion, not half bad. If you're looking for a nice way to blow a couple hour's time, check it out. Again, keep in mind it has quite a few mature scenes scattered throughout, so it's probably not for the faint of heart. All in all, however, if you like action and intensity, you won't go wrong here.
Recommended.
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