The number of terrorist acts in Japan has never been lower, thanks to the efforts of a syndicate called Direct Attack (DA). The organization raises orphaned girls as killers to carry out assassinations under their "Lycoris" program. Takina Inoue is an exceptional Lycoris with a strong sense of purpose and a penchant for perfection. Unfortunately, a hostage situation tests her patience, and the resulting act of insubordination leads to her transfer out of DA. Not thrilled about losing the only place she belonged to, she reluctantly arrives at her new base of operations—LycoReco, a cafe in disguise.
Takina's new partner, however, turns out to be quite different from what she imagined. Despite being the famed Lycoris prodigy, Chisato Nishikigi appears almost unconcerned with her duties. She drags Takina along on all kinds of odd jobs under the simple explanation of helping people in need. Takina is even more puzzled when Chisato takes down a group of armed assailants without killing any of them. Feeling like a fish out of water, Takina itches to get reinstated into DA—but Chisato is determined to prove to her that there is more to a life than just taking them.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
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Comentários
Mcsuper
“You’re gonna become sad just so you can meet someone else’s expectations? That’s boring.” - Chisato Nishikigi Is there such thing as true peace in the world? Even if peace doesn’t exist though, should we be despondent and grow cynical of anything and everything? Lycoris Recoil, while at the surface, is about cute girls with guns, fighting terrorism, its true identity is trying to tell us, the viewers, how to approach living in a world where things aren’t as uplifting as they seem. It’s about a whole lot of things, such as how to live your best life every day, and how to live for yourself, andnot for others.
The main characters, Chisato and Takina, come from different walks of life, and have polar opposite personalities. Chisato is very positive and never lets anyone keep her from being as happy as possible, while Takina is very steely and keeps to herself. After these two meet each other and work together, you can see their personalities develop, and it makes for such brilliant chemistry that warms my heart.
I have to admit, I dismissed this show as a “cute girls doing cute things at a cafe” show and didn’t even watch it at first, but after seeing the response in the anime community to this show, I had to try it out. The striking balance between slice of life and dark elements really works well.
My grading criteria: Story: /25 Art: /10 Music: /10 Characters: /20 Enjoyment /15 Thematic Execution /20
STORY: 19.3/25
The plot itself isn’t the strongest, as it can get quite ridiculous and nonsensical at times, but for this show, I think that’s fine. It’s more of the story about Chisato and Takina, rather than the overarching plot throughout the series.
However, to give you a little overview, the plot is set in modern (or possibly futuristic) Japan, where a false sense of peace is instilled among the citizens. In fact, crimes and terrorism have never been more prevalent, so, to counteract this issue, a syndicate called Direct Attack (DA), raised orphaned girls called Lycoris, to assassinate these criminals. Following a mistake in action that resulted in danger, Takina Inoue, a Lycoris with great skill in battle, gets her transferred out of DA and into LycoReco, a cafe with a twist. It is here that she meets Chisato Nishikigi, a happy go lucky, but prodigious Lycoris. While Takina wants to do whatever it takes to get back into DA, Chisato teaches her that life is more fruitful than just killing, and that life can be beautiful.
It’s the chemistry between characters that shines the brightest, and the plot is alright too, with its share of tense moments, combined with some cute slice of life elements. Some shows fail to execute these tonal shifts effectively, but Lycoris Recoil does these shifts in a very nice way. The slice of life elements get you invested in the characters, the comedy is fun, but the tense moments have you at the edge of your seat, wondering about each character’s fate in apprehension. The best thing is, this is an anime original, so no one knows what’s truly going to happen, and that’s the best part, the speculation, the potential deaths that may or may not happen…
ART: 9.1/10
A-1 Pictures have really been on their game recently, with Kaguya-sama last season, and 86 last year. The animation is pretty solid, with vibrant colours and darker colours for different atmospheres. The action sequences are also done well. No complaints here.
MUSIC: 8.9/10
The music compliments the show well, with slice of life music when it’s calm, and nice action or sentimental music when it’s serious. The opening from ClarIS is pretty good, and it gives a sense on how the show is going to go, and Sayuri’s ending was one of my favourites this season.
CHARACTERS: 19/20
I believe it is the characters that are most worthy of the utmost praise in this show. Chisato’s character is brilliant, plain and simple. In a way, she lives as positively as I aspire to. She doesn’t care about the opinions of others, she doesn’t worry about things she can’t control, and she’s an incredibly positive influence. She has an interesting trait, which is valuing people’s lives. She doesn’t shoot to kill, contrary to any other Lycoris. She sees the value of human beings, because of various reasons in her past. While some people might get frustrated over her “stubbornness” not to kill people, it’s really a good writing decision in my opinion, as it’s a distinct personality that makes for good plot points. Takina, on the other hand, is a realist that desires results. She isn’t the most talkative, isn’t the most happy go lucky, and certainly isn’t as carefree as Chisato. Through working with Chisato though, she undergoes some changes in her lifestyle. She slowly opened up to her, trusted more people, and even developed a love for people. It goes to show what a positive influence Chisato can have on people.
Aside from these two, the side characters and villains are alright as well. Kurumi and Mizuki have their comedic moments, and contribute a decent amount to the action. The villains are also quite memorable, because they have interesting intentions, and felt multi-layered.
ENJOYMENT: 14.3/15
Most episodes were very enjoyable, even the slice of life moments. Every moment added to the story and I loved the chemistry between the characters.
THEMATIC EXECUTION: 17.8/20
This show executes themes quite well, ranging from comedy, action, and emotional moments as well. The comedy works so well in this show, and for that, the voice actors are to be praised, as you can tell they’re passionate about their work here, and probably had quite the fun time recording their lines. The action is nicely done, and has tense moments. The emotional sequences, when they occur, are hard-hitting and feel significant. The one small flaw has to come from some of the more ridiculous bits of “plot-armour”, and no, I’m not talking about Chisato’s ability, it’s more the events that occur, such as the timing of certain events that were questionably executed. Overall, still quite thematically brillant. Great balance between the light moments and the dark moments, with tonal shifts that didn’t feel awkward.
OVERALL: 88.4/100
Definitely one of my favourite shows from 2022 so far, and one of the best cast of characters I’ve seen this year. While it isn’t completely flawless, I still enjoyed it through and through. A-1 Pictures continues to deliver, and it’s great to see!
Alright, time to see if I can create that LycoReco signature parfait…
Tkit
Lycoris Recoil is and anime that is prioritizing action and characters over a story and while there is nothing wrong with this approach, it still requires at least a bearable story which won't distract us with its flaws. Let's start with what this series does best which is characters, main cast is good. Colourful personalities and good interactions are the biggest strength of this anime. Antagonists while having flaws which I will discuss later, are made to challenge the ideas and motivations of our protagonist. We also see some growth in the side characters which was satisfying. High quality of production makes this show even nicerto watch. Animation is pretty soundtrack was ok and scenes of action had good choreography. Unfortunately while speaking about action it is important to bring up plot armour, which is big in this anime. As we are dealing with shootouts the aim in them depends on what story is demanding. If someone has to escape or live then its a series of misses, even if skilled shooters are involved. We need to get rid of cannon fodder? Then every shot lands. This is a big problem for me. Not only it is obvious what the authors are doing, pulling me out of the fight, but it also sucks all of the stakes out of the fight.
Now to the main complaint, the story. Whole plot is depending on antagonists with stupid/generic motivations and on the most brain dead mob in the history of anime. The things that happen in the last episodes made me suffer a headache. We also need to deal with a hole lot of plot convenience in this show. At one point protagonists literally forgot about the main antagonist. Even worse Lycoris Recoil has an accidental strong pro censorship message. With how stupid the masses are and how quickly they descend into chaos in face of truth you start to think that it's better to keep those sheep in the dark. The fact that show presents undercover secret organization so simplistically is hurtful.
To sum it up Lycoris Recoil presents you with great characters and nice, mindless action. Whether you will enjoy it or not depends greatly on how much weak plot can bother you. If like me you get bothered by those types of stories, don't watch it. Otherwise feel free to try it out, characters might make it worth it.
Seregosa
Sigh, tricked by the score. Here I thought it was something special because of how much attention it has clearly been getting. It was a bit painful to watch this trainwreck right from episode 1. Don't get me wrong, the animation quality, sound, VA wasn't bad at all. It was great. The problem is the story, seemingly a lot of people think that cute girls and action can justify such horrible writing. This anime is a mish-mash of clichés, cute girls doing cute things, stupidly illogical gunfights and one of the worst secretive organizations I've ever had the displeasure to be exposed to. It's idiotic on somany levels.
We have the secretive organization that trains orphaned kids so that we can have high school/middle school girls(for some reason pretty much exclusively cute girls) running around with guns while using school uniforms and skirts while fighting crimes to pretend to be a part of the public. Oh, and of course they all use the same uniform all the time outside, as if to scream at enemies to attack them, so much for secrecy. These girls actively kill terrorists everywhere and "make japan safe and peaceful". I guess guys just aren't cut out for this(though the male version does show up in a minor version in an antagonistic fashion, they're still just kids though, stupid that there's an all female and an all male faction). Also, I guess immature kids in the midst of their teens(or preteens) are so damn well suited to special ops, they're not even well disciplined. Also, I guess adults just aren't fit for this either, gotta have cute, below 18 females, can't have any guys that aren't old and not a possible target for romance. This secretive organization is also so high-profile that there's no way it'd be a secret, it's run as if the leaders have shit for brains. There's clearly no proper structure.
Then, of course, the super hacker, the best in the world, is a cute little loli that appears 10-12. I was of the impression from the dialogue that this person was present since long ago but I guess not, her reputation is insane, maybe she started using her laptop to hack stuff while in her mother's womb. Overall, she just acts like a typical cliché loli, except she's "sooo smart and collected". As usual the "hacking" is her playing it like it's a game, literally, even including game graphics and mechanics. photo analystics are 1 button auto, she can get everything she wants easily. Not a smidgen of realism.
The other girls also act like typical high school girls in anime. Honestly, I can't stand the two main character girls. The black haired one show barely any emotions and is so stuck in her ways and inflexible it just makes her boring. The other platinum/blonde haired girl is the COMPLETE opposite. She's so high paced, hyper and my paced that she makes someone with actual ADHD look very normal and calm. I really dislike her moronic outbursts, extremely exaggerated expressions and gestures and I also hate that she refuses to kill people despite the kind of organization she is in and how dangerous the situations are, nothing more moronic than using non-lethal means that doesn't even knockout people properly, she's basically she's bringing a banana to a knifefight. Another thing about her, I just don't buy her ability to 100% avoid any and all bullets. Even rapid fire is avoided like it's nothing. I can kinda buy avoiding slow handgun fire by predicting the trajectory from the barrel position and hand movement, but what she is doing is a pure supernatural ability and that doesn't even explain how she can avoid strafing fire where there's no room to evade...
These character templates aren't too bad normally, but the issue is that they're trying to bring seriousness into what is clearly a cute girls doing cute things anime. They fit more into a school setting.
I've rarely seen animes that are so bad that I just feel the desire to drop them all the time. Anime that suck from the first few minutes all the all the way to the end.
I fail to see what the hype was about. This is just plain bad, the 3/10 rating is just for the good animation/VA/Sound. I regret watching this.
Gluomme
TL;DR first for those who don't want to read the whole rant (I understand, I wouldn't either): The show's production quality is top-notch. Top-tier animation, top tier action scenes, top-tier designs, STELLAR voice acting. HOWEVER, beneath that and except a few neat details, it's full of obnoxious characters, bullshit situations and plot holes. But apparently it seems like I'm more or less the only one bothered by that so you can give it a try I guess, at least it looks great. Onto the rant. (I'll give a warning for spoilers) You know, a wise vtuber said someday that recommending anime is hard, because every anime hassome amount of anime bullshit and it's hard to know what someone's threshold for specific types of anime bullshit is unless you know them extremely well. And, well, I feel like LycoReco is the embodiment of that. On the surface it's a great looking and sounding show, but... little girls with guns? Seriously? AGAIN? When did it become a normal trope exactly? Ok, to be honest this is the least of my problems, even though I still find this out of place in the scenario of a show that takes itself relatively seriously. But it is an example of what LycoReco is riddled with: a lot of dumb stuff, some being in the category of anime bullshit that make me sigh but am somewhat used to, some that are a testament to bad writing and some that just plot holes, plain and simple (I listed examples of what I'm talking about in the end to prove I'm not talking out of my ass, but spoiler warning of course).
Some people (most, it would seem) would be of the opinion that I am nitpicking. I like to think of myself as a fairly open person though, without to much issue with suspension of disbelief, but this show is asking too much of me. Because I on the other hand, fail to understand how it is so unconditionally loved, and why people defend it so vehemently.
And it is a shame, really, because it has been crafted with genuine love, care and passion, treats progressive subjects with refreshing subtlety and god do I love Chisato's VA soooo much, but behind this is a barely believable story pushed by poorly written characters.
I did still finish it, 'cause it's visually beautiful and it wouldn't feel right writing a review without knowing completely what I'm talking about. I wrote this on ep 12, and then ep 13 came and just confirmed all of my feelings and then some, leading me to downgrade my score from 6 to 5
SPOILERS AHEAD for examples of stuff that violently rustle my jimmies about this show:
For anime bullshit, I'm talking about how the Japanese government had no issue in creating an anti-terrorist division exclusively comprised of schoolgirls (WITH A DISTINCTIVE UNIFORM), how the best hacker in the world is a loli or how boyish underwear triggers a diplomatic incident.
For bad writing I'm thinking about how utterly incompetent the Lycoris organisation leader Kusunoki is, several times, without a single time doing anything to learn from her mistakes, how Robota is a painfully obnoxious ass every time he's on screen or how Yoshimatsu Shinji that huge bag of ass just decided out of nowhere that Chisato's talent is about killing, when it's merely about fucking dodging bullets and NOBODY HAD ANYTHING TO SAY TO HIM.
And finally for plot holes I cannot help but wonder how Chisato shoots bullets that go through car doors like butter but are somehow non-lethal at point blank, how she dodges shots while hanging by one arm perfectly still, how a medical institution for a secret organisation just lets new hires examine agents on their first week without supervision.
And I am not exhaustive, but I'll stop here.
KANLen09
Mother's Basement: "John Wick, But Make it Anime", where Geoff Thew embraces the "stupid awesome" John Wick-like vitality of the anime. The Canipa Effect: "Lycoris Recoil is an Ideal Original Anime", where Callum May highlights the production team behind Lycoris Recoil to see what makes an ideal original anime. Hideo Kojima, creator of Metal Gear: "I stumbled upon Lycoris Recoil by accident, AND I LOVED IT." The show's title being accidentally discovered, that's reminiscent of the critically acclaimed 2021 film "Licorice Pizza" (“Licorice” and “Lycoris” are spelled identically in Japanese: リコリス in Katakana) while actually searching on Amazon Prime for the multiple Academy Award-winning film CODA. Toonly then read the synopsis about a girl working in a cafe with a license to kill, and thinking to himself if this is typical of Japanese anime standards, by which at that time, he already surpassed the 3-episode rule and was catching onto Episode 4 (where it was the now-iconic episode with the pair of boxers and the aquarium "date" with Takina's fish-posing "Sakana"), and made him remember when was the last time he went to an aquarium. In the end to finally close out, saying that he's definitely watching the rest of the show going forward. He's even now endorsing the anime's LN spin-off Lycoris Recoil: Ordinary Days (which has just recently released in Japan), commenting that: “I’ll Recoil my Lyco-like genes!“
These are just some YouTube videos and a Twitter tweet that have been making the scenes since Lycoris Recoil came out, and it's safe to say that in a sequel-heavy season that's full of long-awaited classics returning years after their original seasons first came out (only two are better but the rest are duds), this has been the anime, and I mean THE anime that has consistently charted as a top show of the season. Yes, that sequel gold medal belongs to the 2nd season of Made in Abyss: Retsujitsu no Ougonkyou a.k.a The Golden City of the Scorching Sun, but I'd argue to say that LycoReco (the show's title shortened for speakeasy) makes it on par being the show that's a no-brainer competition for Summer 2022's AOTS (and objectively AOTY masterpiece material).
The 1st secret to LycoReco's wild, immense popularity and success is a great story and premise. And to put it simply, there is just no equal against LycoReco's setting, thanks in part to Asaura, the mangaka of Ben-To, and to date, his only reputation work that got a decent anime adaptation courtesy of David Production more than a decade ago. And as one such reviewer put it: "Ben-To is philosophy. Ben-To is art. Ben-To is everything, but bad for your health." Ben-To (that's a moniker for the iconic Japanese Bento food box) features an all-out action about a male MC and girls fighting to do whatever it takes to buy unsold bento boxes at discounted prices, and friend or foe, this battle fighting for honor, pride and dinner, there's only winners and losers in this frantic battle and the learning point of what it truly means to fight for food. Now take a look at LycoReco, and it's just about the same, or dare I say it's even better featuring Hideo Kojima's reminiscent Metal Gear trademarks of stealth and anti-terrorism themes about a secret organization/agency ("DA", Direct Attack) that keeps its setting of Japan crime-free that's doing a better job than the typical municipal police corporation, with their agents being girls that are orphaned and trained to their standards, giving them the "Lycoris" badge trademark that certifies them, that like a fire that should be put out immediately, to carry out assassinations with none the wiser. All of this is naturally made like cover-ups so as to not spread fear to the public and keep Japan safe and sound, but it also begets those in full rebellion over this top-secret "spy" agency to by hook or by crook, expose DA for their "nonchalant" claims about a "safe" Japan that isn't much discussed about until being made publicly with their terrorism acts. It's definitely a neck-and-neck experience of asking yourself: "Which side should I side on: the people working behind the scenes that I do not see even if they are perfectly camouflaged within the everyday groups of civilians, or the people inflicting and causing damages just so they could give a spotlight to those that have been working for their own purposes?" And regardless of what you think about both sides, they are both legitimate to exercise their own duty to preserve both peace and conflict respectively, no matter what it takes to brandish a whole new Japan according to their rules. And this honestly, just throws Ben-To's source material out of the wall, and Asaura may have found his one and only prized possession instead, 11 years after Ben-To came out for everyone to spike LycoReco with over-the-top (and moon), notched-up greatness.
The 2nd secret to LycoReco's wild, immense popularity and success is endearing and beloved characters, with the designs provided by Imigimuru, the mangaka of one of my all-time favorite manga: Kono Bijutsubu ni wa Mondai ga Aru! (KonoBi) a.k.a This Art Club Has a Problem! At the start of the show, we are presented with Takina Inoue: an accomplished DA agent, whom amidst her serious and confident spirit, only demands perfection with her immense skills, and will constantly step in to finish the missions as a lonewolf. But when something like an extermination of enemies that's all in a state to save her teammate goes awry, she indiscriminately put everyone's lives on stake, that ultimately resulted in her immediate dismissal for neglect of duty. Down but not out, DA's Commander Kusunoki sentenced her to work at LycoReco, which looking from the outside, does look like a typical-looking cafe. But inside it, is another working branch of DA that houses the following: the Afro-American manager Mika, the typical worker Mizuki Nakahara, the skilled hacker Kurumi (also known by her codename "Walnut") and the lovable GOAT that is Chisato Nishikigi.
LycoReco's manager Mika is a former DA instructor who left the agency for his own reasons, and this is in effect thanks to the other entity that would come to be known as the Alan Institute, an institution that conducts experiments to eke out only the best and greatest people that are worthy of its name. So, think of this as something very similar to You-Zitsu a.k.a Classroom of the Elite's "White Room" of sorts. Together with the cafe's regular customer that is Shinji Yoshimatsu, both men and Chisato share a bond that would help the latter to grow into the fine assassin that she is now, though their initial promise is to make Chisato as a mass weapon of destruction that Mika backed out of due to his change of heart. The cafe's worker Mizuki, she's just your typical lazy bum, but it's not like she's the average character, NOPE. Not at all. Instead, Mizuki is a fun addition to LycoReco's crew being all that "extravagant" of wanting to live the life of a married woman and not a spinster, even going as far as to get a job at DA in the hopes of getting married. But in all honesty, Mizuki's unmarried gag punchline is just as wholesome as it is hilarious to watch being everyone's joker that at times, excel at what she does and helps with the crew as much as possible. Kurumi or "Walnut" on the other hand, she is a reliable lonewolf hacker whom was once responsible for hacking on DA's AI system Radiata (which is known as Lycoris radiata a.k.a (Red) Spider Lily, which its name is credited as the anime's original work), but due to competition, risks her life to request asylum to be transferred to LycoReco at the cusp of her killing, initiated by yet another rival hacker, the Alan Institute's robot-shaped headgear worn Robota. Both her and Robota are great hackers in their own right, but they operate on both extreme ends in the typical fight against good and evil.
That brings us all to the GGOAT/GWOAT (that stands for Greatest Girl/Woman of All Time) that is Chisato Nishikigi. Chisato is in all essence, why LycoReco works as a show; as a concept; as one that has consistently wowed us and putting a showstopper for all the world to see; and definitely one that has earned its immense praises globally. Starting off with her origins in DA, Chisato is known as the agency's most prized possession, the greatest agent in its history to date. Due to her upbringing thanks to both Mika and Yoshimatsu in the Alan Institute, Chisato is to the point of being a "superhuman", where her point-blank range bullet dodging is her most signature trademark, and instead of real firearms, she uses rubber bullets so as not to carelessly take a life and call it a day. There are more mysteries to Chisato, but one that must be spoken is her familiarity with LycoReco's antagonist character: Majima. Unlike Chisato siding on the terms of the good, Majima is just straight-out a villain that's akin to MHA's Tomura Shigaraki, one that's hell-bent on exposing DA to the ends of the earth, no matter the terrorist stunts, and certainly no matter the cartilage and damages done just to get his point across to seek for a "balance" in an otherwise artificial-looking peacekeeping world. And like "Walnut" Kurumi working for LycoReco, his backup helper is Robota, so both sides are equally matched when it comes to technical prowess.
But most importantly (and THIS is the CRUX of the show), you can't have LycoReco with Chisato alone being the front girl always at their service. That is where Takina comes in after Commander Kusunoki's dismissal command, and at first glance, the disparity between the playful and the serious creates an inner conflict that the former cannot get rid of due to her stubbornness and unwillingness to compromise. Overtime, Takina slowly grows used to LycoReco's business as both the alternate DA branch's forward and as a cafe itself, selling both Western and Japanese sweets to the unassuming public. This fresh take for Takina also provides immense character development to Chisato, that instead of being an ill-bred infectious rodent thanks to her teammates Fuki Harukawa and Sakura Otome (former team leader and replacement respectively), she subsequently gave in to Chisato's whims, and slowly and surely, Takina has become the "Yuri-like" character that's a perfect complement to Chisato, going from being hated to being just as lovable as the former. Honestly, say what you will about the Yuri-ness of Chisato and Takina's relationship, but they're like a dream team that was born out of a necessity. It's just a case of a flawless execution.
The 3rd secret to LycoReco's wild, immense popularity and success is the amazing production that's featured in the show thanks to A-1 Pictures, really giving it their A-1 grade trademark. And this is a bit of a wild story, as when Asaura's former editor-in-charge had a meeting about SaeKano with Shinichiro Kashiwada (studio producer, that we would come to know of as the other A-1 Pictures original anime "Engage Kiss" also airing on Saturday), he talked about Asaura's works, "This guy is yabai (crazy)." He (former editor-in-charge) then introduced Asaura to Kashiwada, which the former later received an invitation of a new anime project, being that the latter had read his 2013 LN Death Need Round (the 2nd most popular after Ben-To) which is a "girls with guns" work. Asaura therefore decided to include guns in the new story, created the main characters and the world view, with some deliverables including the synopsis and a few short novels. But this is not all, for the replication to real-world scenes is also what makes LycoReco interesting, such as the case of some scenes taking place in Sumida, Tokyo and featuring Kinshicho Park, Sumida Aquarium, the water bus on Sumida River, aerial view of Ryōgoku, etc. It's this attention to detail that also makes the show stand out.
But in the midst of crunch time, it's the staff team that could only make all of this possible, and this is wired down from the hands of one Shingo Adachi, who is making his directional debut after working as both character designer and chief animation director of the Working!! series and his most recent work of SAO: Alicization and Ordinal Scale. And truthfully, Shingo Adachi got all the bang for his buck, and definitely even more for the outta-the-wazoo ridiculousness that is LycoReco, yet is also much subtle and provides the kick and depth of flavour that you can only wish to see in high-quality anime production. And beneath him, you also cannot discount the efforts from chief ADs Yukari Takeuchi, Go Suzuki and regular AD Tetsuya Takeuchi. It's just that amazing to finally watch an anime that feels like not a minute, or rather a single second that's bound to be wasted because of filler padding. Everything works for its purpose, and Shingo Adachi's production team really knocked it out of the park to the point of a Home Run.
The 4th and final secret to LycoReco's wild, immense popularity and success is the music, and I shouldn't really miss this out, the VA performance as well. Chika Anzaias Chisato (Hibike! Euphonium's Reina Kousaka or even Grand Blue's Best Girl Chisa Kotegawa) and Shion Wakayama as Takina (Takt Op. Destiny's Destiny), you couldn't have asked for a phenomenal job for these VAs' dedication to their craft. And this is especially for the latter: Shion Wakayama, despite being a rookie VA for 3 years at this point, other than her voice that sounds a lot like Ayana Taketatsu or even Ayane Sakura a.k.a AyaNeru, she gave it her all, and that reward is trickled down towards the audience for her spectacular vocals that both drives Takina's cutesy and overwhelmingly stern traits that are perfect contrasts to her double-sided character (the now-iconic Episode 4's "Sakanaaa" is one of them). While this is only the 2nd work for music composer Shuhei Mutsuki, it's sound director Kohei Yoshida (also on his 2nd work, the 1st of which did one of the modern anime greats that is my 2022 AOTY Odd Taxi) that does all the directing to sound like as Geoff Thew puts it: "John Wick, But Make it Anime".
Also, it's finally great to have ClariS and Sayuri come back for the OST, especially ClariS because much of their work has only been Hataraku Saibou! and the Madoka Magica spin-off that is Magia Record for the past 4 years. Together with Shadows House Season 2's ED, I'd think that their OP "Alive" is a great return to form as one of the great Anisong artists, and one of (if not) the best OP of the season, hands down. Same with Sayuri's ED, this is what I was expecting of this now famous Anisong artist. Also, if you haven't caught on yet, the cute kicking scene between Chisato and Takina in the OP is actually a reference to Rob Reiner's 1986 film Stand By Me, which is the adaptation of Stephen King's 1982 book novel The Body and Ben E. King's 1961 song of the same name. It's certainly NO coincidence as both the film and song are timeless classics, and one would assume that Asaura and the folks at A-1 Pictures were looking for 80's and 90's action movies to get ideas from, and probably have watched this classic to make this reference. Nevertheless, it's a small detail, but one that has come to be endeared (including myself) by the hearts of the many as being one of the many icons of LycoReco.
All of these that I've mentioned sounds like an endless exposition of Lycoris Recoil. But, you can't take away that absurd feeling knowing that newbies like Shingo Adachi (directorial debut), Imigimuru (character designer debut), Shion Wakayama (3 years of VA-ing), Shuhei Mitsuki and Kohei Yoshida (music composer/director), and everybody that deserves to be mentioned are now paving the way for new innovative and creative originals for all of the world to take note of and watch, because this is absolutely bonkers that such a team that's going out of their comfort zone to concoct such a work is just mind-baffling. And especially for originals where there 99% of the time is a one-and-done story with no sequel to boot, it's a huge risk. But Shingo Adachi had one thing going for him: trust. A trust that his team is able to pull off whatever the show has its semblances in from the all-out action to its symbolism of the Spider Lily. And it did deliver to the highest and rock-solid pedigree that is on par with Made in Abyss's 2nd season as its equal sequel counterpart.
Seriously, we all thank you: Asaura, Imigimuru, Shingo Adachi, and all the others for creating this great show. To reinistate the whole point again: Lycoris Recoil is like what Geoff Thew calls it "John Wick-like stupid awesome"; Callum May praises it for being "an Ideal Original Anime"; and Hideo Kojima burning his money for something that he would not have picked up if it was just a mere coincidence, to being an immense, hardcore fan that's sharing all the love to other fans that's all the rage now in Japan.
And to me? This is THE Odd Taxi of 2022 (despite having some problems with it that keep it being being a masterpiece). Sure, you have Chainsaw Man coming next season, but right now, it's undoubtedly THE Anime of the Season and Year to beat. And originals going forward can't get much better than this (or is it?). This (like Odd Taxi) are definitely the Holy Grails of original anime, one that's creative enough to leave a mark, and we all now bear that Lycoris badge to signify our earnest loyalty to LycoReco.
Lycoris Recoil is what we aspire to see of original anime, it's a passion project that has effort put in that feels like it delivered, and then some. Really wonderful and beautiful, one hell of a job well done.
G_Camporez
Well, this anime goes from 0 to 100 very quickly. Here, you'll find cute girls with weapons killing everyone, but the anime isn't heavy. In fact, it's not that amazing because the anime "normalizes" it, even though it's not normal at all. The true charm of this anime lies in the duo of Chisato and Takina. On one hand, there's Chisato, who lives life as if each day were her last, always happy and trying to make others happy. On the other side, there's Takina, who didn't know what it was like to live until she found her partner. She only thought about work andher duties. The contrast between them gives rise to incredibly emotional and even funny scenes. As the anime progresses, you can see their relationship evolving, and you think, "Wow, what an incredible friendship."
I believe the most important lesson I learned from this anime is: Don't change who or what you are for anyone, and don't let anyone change you. If you think you're amazing and happy being yourself, then continue being yourself.
You can watch it in one day, and if you have nothing to do, I recommend watching it. Anyway, see you guys in Hawaii :)
Marinate1016
The art of the anime original has almost been lost these days. With production committes preferring to adapt popular visual novels or manga, it’s rare to see an anime original show with staying power. That’s exactly what Lycoreco is, the show that took the world by storm. Admittedly I did not have very high expectations for Lycoreco coming into it. A-1 were coming off their 86 masterclass and I thought this was the time for correction, time for the law of averages to balance things out as it were. I could not have been more wrong. Not only did A-1 stay hot, they showed everyone thatthey can make a truly iconic anime original series.
What makes Lycoreco so special is its character interactions and cute intimate moments. I’ll be honest, the plot here is subpar at best. It started out with some promise, but fell apart in the final half with a rather week villain, subpar motivations and weak characterisation, the spotlight was clearly on the girls. Takina and Chisato have one of the most fun and organic relationships you’ll see in the medium. Takina going from a cold and distant person who doesn’t understand the world or how people really work, to an extremely empathetic/kind soul who’s willing to do anything for her friend was quite a treat to see. Every week we were able to really see that relationship slowly develop, whether it’s through mundane tasks like shopping for clothes or cooking at the shop, the seeds of growth were being laid slowly but surely.
Pacing is always a challenge with anime original content, but I think they got things perfect here. We were really able to take our time and get to know Takina and Chisato, but also the side characters. By the end of the series, we definitely knew what made everyone tick. If I had to change anything with the structure of the series, again it would be to flesh out the villain more. He had a lot of promise, but then just fell flat at the end and his motivations seemed pretty weak.
If you’ve been on the internet at all this season, you’ve likely seen art that ships Takina and Chisato or at the least hints at it. The show definitely plays to the Yuri bait strongly. They’re clearly aware of their audience and know that’s what people want to see. Unfortunately it never fully goes that way and is basically a massive tease. That said, even without the Yuri bait, they’re relationship is super cute to watch play out and you can’t help but wish them the best.
In typical A-1 fashion. The art, character designs and animation are all top notch here. Spider Lilly really did some amazing designs for the show and I’m looking forward to seeing more of their work in the future. The sakuga during the big fights is really impressive. We know by now that A-1 has a tremendous amount of talent, and it seems like it’s starting to come together more consistently now.
While Lycoreco has some amazing character dynamics, awesome designs and literal anime John Wick scenes, I can’t say that it was the best show this season or my favourite. Objectively, it’s one of those shows that you can certainly see why people like it so much and why it’s so popular, but it was not even the best A-1 original of the season for me. Chisato and Takina’s relationship may be iconic, but the plot certainly wasn’t. That said, I did really enjoy it and the memes from this show will live on for many years to come.
Lycoreco gets 9 out of 10.
meridiasbeacon
The plot description that came out before it aired did nothing but set the wrong kind of expectations, and for that I am glad. The opening 5 minutes of the first episode with high school aged girls in uniform taking people out with silenced pistols as if it was no big deal is what really drew me in, and I was stuck for 13 episodes. This anime was a masterpiece and I loved every second. Chisato was infectiously, the best girl of the season imho. This anime had everything, great characters, music and animation, the comedy never took away anything from the serious tones itwould sometimes get, they clearly left it open for more, and I truly, TRULY hope we get it.
Kagashy
This review may be shorter than I expected. If you're asking why, I don't know either. The series was good. No longer words are needed. I've been thinking for a long time where to start my criticism. But I couldn't find it. This is something that I personally rarely experience. So I guess I can only criticize you on certain main issues. As I mentioned in my expectation article, when A-1 was involved, I waited eagerly and with high expectations like every other person. My plan was to watch the series after the season finale. But one day, after a Lyoris Recoil post that afriend of mine sent me on Instagram, I gave up on this idea and started watching the weekly episodes regularly. It's not a good idea to talk about my feelings here, so I'm going to be very brief. I am an easily emotional person, but after watching countless anime due to being an otaku, this emotionality has decreased for me in the anime world. Although Lycoris Recoil did not make me cry, it became one of the anime that filled my eyes after a long time. Yes, I know, it's not that emotional in content, but I have my own reasons. The emotional part is here. Now let's get to the criticism. The character designs are meticulously crafted. If you look carefully, even our characters, who are not even supporting characters, have an emotional integrity. Background scenes and drawings, animated drawings and sound integrity are higher than I expected. Even if the episode designs increase the expectation, they are not very effective in terms of curiosity. A person who is familiar with anime can almost accurately predict what will happen in the next episode. Even if the variety of venues shown in the series is not large, the correct and skillful use of these venues prevents you from getting bored even though you see it all the time. I can't say anything bad for our main characters Chisato and Takina. If we look at it from a good point of view, the conflict between them throughout the series and the time they spend together can make people happy, as they benefit from the contrasts rather than the common aspects of each other and build their friendship on this. As someone who understood in the second episode that the series would be a great success, my score is nine out of ten. If you were to ask where did you break a score, it's a very good series...
Chief_AJ
I’m going to start this with a quick shout-out to A1 pictures for doing a really good job with this anime original. Lycoris Recoil seemed to be the surprise of the season for many as it quickly shot up in popularity. I must say that at first I was skeptical but with a really solid second half of the season I have to agree. The anime did a great job with just developing a story and getting us attached to the characters while still delivering those deep heartfelt moments. Now It's not perfect, but it was areally enjoyable watch.
Art: 10
The art in this anime was phenomenal, the character's designs were really creative and enjoyable, the animation was smooth with its movements and fight scenes, and the music would always deliver. All backed up by really good voice acting too. Just watching the anime was a pleasure to my eyes.
Characters: 9
So I can't lie I almost gave this a 10. As I think most of the characters were developed really well in a short time, and there is so much much good chemistry behind each one. I think the protagonist duo is excellent and was always enjoyable well they shared the screen, but I also think characters like Kurumi and Mika were also done really well(Mika my personal favorite). But the one minor flaw that I have is that I personally thought the main antagonist Majima could have better motives for his actions and I thought he was okay at best in my personal opinion.
Story: 8
Now this score may seem a little low but it's because I really think this anime thrives with the characters more than anything else. I didn’t think the story was really where my enjoyment came with this anime, and so with Majima being the main driving force of the story, I thought it was good but not great, however, the subplots that were intertwined were a lot better, especially the stuff surrounding Yoshi. Overall it's a good watch I’d recommend to anyone. 8/10
Potatobanana
The series that unexpectedly stole the show last season. Chances are you're planning to watch it for either: The waifus, the action or the animation or maybe you're one of those people with great music taste that decided to watch it because of the banger intro and outro. Is the show actually worth watching beyond those that I just mentioned? Probably not. I feel that the characters, action and animation are the strongest aspects of the series, if you only care about these three aspects then you will probably enjoy the show. However, I find that there is not much substance to its story and ismore akin to a Slice of Life show than an Action anime. In fact, the Slice of Life scenes is an aspect of the show I like over the action scenes of it.
I discourage those who plan to watch the show and expect a great story or an interesting plot, as you will find none of those. Though if you enjoy Slice of Life series or if you approach the show with the expectation that it is a Slice of Life show instead of an Action packed one then you may end up enjoying the series as a whole.
frirensama2221
The best thing about this anime is the interaction between Chisato and Takina, the story almost takes a backseat, believe me Chisato is going to steal your hearts, he has a magical smile. Great anime highly recommended if you want to see something unique and funny at times. And the best thing is that it is original, which is a huge plus.Believe me, the anime will be too short for you hahaha, it is extremely addictive in the last part, so I look forward to a second season.and chisato hahaha never stop smiling In short, for me 10 out of 10 and recommended for newanime viewers.
Aria_Shadeslayer
Have u ever feels regretful after finished a series? that's what i feels today come to watch this series simply because of A-1 studios, also with my free time gets a little bit expanded since i only do my final project on my undergraduate. i watch Aldnoah Zero S1 & S2, 86, SAO, Kaguya-sama, and that experience make me feels that the studios always success to deliver some good stuff, at least at their standard that i familiar with. that's why i had some curiosity whether this studio will continue their success to deliver good visual & animation or even fail a little bit in this show (andengage kiss too)
but after finished this series, I feel regret, i feels naive, knowing that "it's okay to watch anime just for the visual"
Let's make it clear,
1. the Plot is simply generic, nothing special, just like isekai that had been milked for some years
Cute Girl Doing Cute Things, that's what this series all about (also add some gun action)
imagine, having adult failed to do their job? then simply let the kid do your job, oh don't forget make them "cute", so people wouldn't realize they are the actual "hero".
2. low quality of characterization, definitely 0 interest (even empathy too) on any character
almost all the character are designed to be "cute", simply just another cheap-waifu-bait (feels good not to get the bait, that's why i hate this show)
3. The ending just meh, not the worst but definitely generic AF
this was my biggest regret, since i do slightly expect the ending will be some plot twist, especially about the final villain.
but it's seems like the director are afraid AF to do some move, they just make sure "everybody happy" at the end.
4. Music is just mid, nothing special
some people might notice this series have some gay element, and yuri too
but since the plot is just trash, i don't care at all
TLDR, all i feels is just regretful, knowing i spend around 30 minutes every week just to watch this generic show
never do this again
Story: 4/10
Animation: 8/10
Characters: 3/10
Sound: 6/10
Entertainment factor: 4/10
Enjoyment: 3/10
overall Score: 5/10 (helped by animation only)
_HellBent_
~~ A HellBent Half Arsed Review™ ~~ Overall Rating: 9/10 ----- Reason for watching? ----- gay girls innit (gigguk recommendation) ----- Reason for finishing? ----- The most invested I've been in any anime in a while. Also gay girls innit ----- Story: 6/10 ----- The story is fine. It's certainly no masterpiece of fiction, but it does what it needs to do and has a few cool twists and turns. I don't really care that it's not immensely complex nor is it realistic in any sense of the word, it's fun when it's fun and it's dramatic when it's dramatic. The plot moves forwards which is more than I can say aboutquite a few targets I've scratched off of The List™ recently, so it gets points for that too. Really the plot is secondary at best, the characters are what drive the story which either you're into or you're not, it just happens to work for me.
----- Art: 9/10 -----
It's gorgeous. It's not quite drop dead gorgeous like some I've seen, certainly not on par with the best of the best but it beats out a majority of the slop I've been subjecting myself to. I can't even quite explain what it is, there's just moments where the animation of the characters is so full of life and you can tell the animators really put their all into it. Very refreshing to see it keep that consistency from start to finish too, rather than slowly dropping in quality like many shows I've seen.
----- Sound: 7/10 -----
The VA's popped off, this show is fantastically casted and performed. The ost was fine, I don't remember any of it really after finishing which is a shame but there was nothing offensively bad either. The sound design of the gun fights was very satisfieng, I'm not even sure what it was about them - potentially the badass matrix style gun-fu is skewing my memory of that but it is what it is~
----- Character: 10/10 -----
I. Love. The. Characters. Oh my god I love the characters. The main duo is one of my favourite pairings in recent memory, and it's not even close. Chisato is hands down my favourite protagonist in recent memory, possibly ever - she's just so endearing and loveable and goofy but also a determined badass I don't see how I would ever not adore her.
It's not only the main duo either. I can't even remember the last time an entire cast completely clicked with me like this, everyone is a complete banger (besides an obnoxious side character here and there), including the villain who was just charming and a love to hate them kinda person which I'm a big fan of. Obviously in 13 episodes there is a lot to be desired in terms of depth in a large cast, but what we did get very much satisfied me.
----- Enjoyment: 10/10 -----
At first I was watching with a silly grin enjoying the fun and thrill of it all, by the end I was having borderline heart palpitations since I went in completely blind and had no idea where the plot was going. Every action scene was awesome, every quiet moment was goofy, cute or downright touching. I found myself not wanting it to end by the end, but also being satisfied with the way things were loosely tied up. Sometimes a simple ending is all that's needed to give at least some closure (which again, more than I can say for MOST other shows I watch)
----- Rewatchability: 100% -----
Yeah definitely rewatch this one when you have the time future me. I'd be curious if it was as entertaining without the biting stress of not knowing what's gonna happen to the girls or the world around them, but regardless it's some pure dopamine to ingest at a later date
----- Afterthoughts -----
Am I swayed by the implied yuri? Yes, yes I am. Am I sorry for that? No, no I am not. I've also enjoyed plenty of hetero shows, and likewise despised a good chunk of 'yuri' ones, so I stand by my judgement for this one. Is it for everyone? Ehhhh.. Maybe not. However between the cast, the action, the humour, the tenderness, the drama the style everything - it does feel tailor made for me specifically and I'm grateful for it. If it had a more solid finale and/or a more memorable OST, it'd probably land itself a 10/10.
----- Disclaimer -----
A HellBent Half Arsed Review™ is for my own benefit, since I have a hard time remembering shows or why I liked them and I wanna document the journey through this massive anime watch list. To anyone other than future myself who stumbles across this somehow: I don't recommend you listen to me, I'm a dumbass
Modogatari
Lycoris Recoil is an entertaining, yet flawed fusion of the Girls-with-Guns and Slice-of-Life genres. The characters are generally likeable and interesting. Viewers will want to spend more time with them, swayed by their invigorating personalities. Yet, the cast is one-dimensional and most characters fail to diverge from common stereotypes and clichés. It's not all too bad though, unless you seek a philosophically-engaging portrayal of the human condition, in which case, you should look elsewhere. As a whole, the characters don't develop too significantly, but some characters much develop more than others, leaving a gulf between them in the way of development. The action scenes areextremely fun and well-animated. Past the dazzling gunfights, one gets the impression that the show isn't really about counter-terrorism. It appears to use the 'Girls-with-Guns' genre to counteract the stagnating tendencies of the 'Slice-of-Life' genre, almost bolting one genre onto the other. In the end, the anime becomes a composite of two contrasting (potentially three) genres, at a boost to shallow entertainment value. This also makes the experience extremely jarring at times, as our lead characters leapfrog from being deeply affected by their duties as 'Lycoris' to suddenly switching on 'LycoReco' mode. The 'true' focus is the relationship between Chisato and Takina. Potential viewers should consider this the absolute selling point of Lycoris Recoil.
The animation quality is high and the art is wonderful, as you'd expect from A1-Pictures. The soundtrack isn't too bad either, despite being a little forgettable. If you value production value highly, you will not be disappointed.
Lycoris Recoil has several tendencies/characteristics that'll drive away more detail-oriented, rigorous viewers. A notable issue is the blatant, recurring use of 'Plot Armor'. Strangely, for a show that introduces high-stake story arcs and indulges in the knife-edge world of counter-terrorism, one gets the impression that the main cast is invulnerable. This may be due to the series writer's change in plot direction, having opted for an 'optimistic' outlook, over the original 'darker' tone, which is great news for invested viewers, and bad news for viewers seeking a more poignant experience. Plot conveniences are also plentiful, and many characters are stuck by 'Stormtrooper Syndrome' when the story calls for it. Once again, this will annoy and disillusion demanding viewers.
Despite all of this, I've elected to score this anime a 6, and it comes down to the same reason why I've chosen the 'Mixed Feelings' option. This is a show that strongly depends on what you value as a viewer and how much cognitive labour you dedicate while watching. The less you think about the specifics, the more enjoyable this show becomes. If you've read through this, and still feel unsure about whether to watch Lycoris Recoil, it's probably worth trying. But, in the end, Lycoris Recoil is ideal for viewers who are seeking a simple, light-hearted but high-octane viewing experience. Viewers seeking a 'deeper' experience will likely walk away disappointed.
Qwibs
K-On! meets Bourne Identity somehow works. This unique mash genre mash up is worth your time if you love slice of life anime and like films like Bourne and John Wick. The star of the show is Chisato and Takina friendship and it's development made the show a joy to watch. The driving conflict takes a second place to their relationship and acts as a mechanism to have Chisato and Takina react to different events. The animation is very slick and blends the slice of life style with the dynamism required for quick cut action scenes. Jumping between the two is a joy and Chisatois animated perfectly in each action scene.
helsaabi
Lycoris Recoil is a 2022 original anime series produced by A-1 Pictures and directed by Shingo Adachi. The series follows the story of Chisato Nishikigi, a highly skilled Lycoris agent who works at the Lyco-Reco café, and Takina Inoue, a rookie Lycoris agent who is transferred to Lyco-Reco after failing her mission. Lycoris Recoil is a must-watch for fans of action, comedy, and slice-of-life anime. The series features fluid and dynamic action sequences, witty dialogue, and heartwarming moments of friendship and camaraderie. The characters are also well-developed and likable, with Chisato's optimistic and outgoing personality contrasting perfectly with Takina's serious and reserved nature. The series also exploresa number of interesting themes, such as the nature of good and evil, the importance of teamwork, and the power of friendship. Lycoris Recoil is a series that has something to offer everyone, and it is sure to leave a lasting impression on viewers.
Here are some of the things that I particularly loved about Lycoris Recoil:
The action sequences are top-notch. The series features some of the best fight scenes I have ever seen in an anime, with fluid animation and dynamic choreography.
The characters are well-developed and likable. Chisato and Takina are a great duo, and their supporting cast is also well-written and engaging.
The series explores a number of interesting themes in a thoughtful and nuanced way.
The anime is visually stunning. The animation is smooth and fluid, and the character designs are expressive and appealing.
Overall, Lycoris Recoil is a masterpiece of an anime. It is a must-watch for fans of any genre, and it is sure to leave a lasting impression on viewers.
I highly recommend Lycoris Recoil to anyone who is looking for a well-made, entertaining, and thought-provoking anime series.
10/10
kiiiiillllll
From the perspective of statistics, it gains its greatest increases in score for its first few episodes, 7.80+0.12+0.14+0.10. Then, there are no great increase or decrease in scores anymore before its last episode finished (most anime get a drastic increase after the airing of the last EP). That's certainly true, the first few EPs are good, but we all know what are those marks given to. If these are what people looking for and giving award for, then say less. A starting score of 7.80 is a bit overrated, but still in my acceptable range. However, the plots and characters building& development get weaker andpoorer in the later episodes, which deserves a remarkable deduction of score. However, such deduction is not reflected. That's why I think it's overrated- when its disadvantages are neither recognised, admitted nor reflected.
Personally, this anime is fine. Some plots give me quite a lot of fun. However, it's only at the medium level, so I definitely won't rate it as if it's a masterpiece over 8. It should be somewhere around 7.50-7.80 for the highest. I gave it a 6 because "Things need to be balanced- Majima".
First, let me ask, what's the key focus of this anime?
"Slice of life and Comedy", "Action", "Plot", "Settings", "Background low-key Yuri (Yuri bait)"?
Actually, all of these are the focus, but they are not close to the level of extraordinary. They are just mediocre.
Start from "Setting": a near future setting.
Good thing: There are things flashing out in the anime setting such as the talented children, and the organisation who are helping them. However, they didn't elaborate more about this organisation, that's quite a pity.
Bad thing: The DA organisation, JK killer, and the ability of dodging bullets, all these settings are just... neither surprising nor interesting. Except the machine heart, there is nothing else about the near future setting.
TBH, there are tons of near future setting SF works with better settings that people could play around with. If they choose to play with near future settings, try to work harder plz.
Well, then quite a few people would say:" idc about the setting, I'm here for the 'Yuri + Slice of life + CGDCT'."
Good thing: There are quite a few slice of life plots being quite good as I remember about the cake selling plots and running the SNS account of their caffe. All these stuffs are fine.
Bad thing: However, the plot of slice of life are quite limited, because it needs to give way to the main plots. There is a poor balance out there. As a result, it satisfies neither people looking for Slice of life, nor people looking for good plot.
I've watched Yuri for years. Personally, I find a strong feeling of Yuri fan service when watching Lycoris, which makes the Yuri scenes very... unnatural? I used to be fine and loving these Yuri fan service, but not anymore these days. These things do depend on your personal favour, so no judgement on fan service.
Since the focus of Lycoris is clearly not "Romance GL", I'm not comparing it with those heavy romance GL works, that would be unfair to it. However, just comparing with other "Yuri+Slice of life+CGDCT" animations, the level of comedy and slice of life is lower than average, probably again because they need to make a balance between the main plots and slice of life. The contents of Yuri (Bait) is also very limited.
The "Action" is fine. The "Plot" is fine, as long as it's not completely broken. However, it's the part being judge by people the most. It's quite annoying to see that every time in the later episodes Chisato has to fight against Majima with the help of Takina. It's obvious that they want to show their close partner or friend ship, but 1v2 to win is bad for expression, and again this part of plot is very unnatural. "Sorry I have to go to help Chisato even though I may not get back to DA". It just feels weird and bland, probably because the development and change of Takina wasn't really shown adequately.
If they give up the "Slice of life" and turn it into a tragedy ending and a dark depressed atmosphere, and focus more on the development of Takina and make her more like the MC, the plot would be perfect.
Anyway, this anime is fine but mediocre with flaws. It's neither extraordinary nor a masterpiece, but it's popular.
Haha... quite a few anime these years are like this I guess. Sometimes we gotta review ourselves and what we like. Demon slayer, I loved it, I finished the whole manga, but I know as a whole (manga) it's clearly overrated, and as expected, people do realise this and the scores are getting reduced by few decimals now, and I agree with the criticisms.
PrimeExamples
Okay... let me start off by saying... I did not expect this show to be as good as it was. I really, really, enjoyed this show. Despite having slice-of-life elements, almost every episode of Lycoris Recoil was, simply put, really good. Speaking of slice-of-life, the show does a fantastic job of switching between that and action. Every scene just feels right, even if it has no major impact on the story. The Animation in the show clearly shows an extensive budget with some really talented artists. But by far Lycoris Recoil's strongest trait is its character design. Aside from Kraft Lawrence and Holo (Spice & Wolf),Chisato and Takina might be my favorite anime duo of all time. Their dynamic is just so well executed that it's very easy to look past some of the flaws in the show.
Speaking of flaws, there are a couple. First, without spoiling anything, some of the action scenes in this show logically make zero sense. However, while in some shows I would find this to be a detriment, in Lycoris Recoil it doesn't bother me one bit. If you're reading this and trying to decide if you want to watch it, this might not make a lot of sense, but trust me on this one. Second, The "opposition" I initially found to be slightly confusing, but over time it eventually started to unfold quite nicely. A couple of nitpicks with the sound design that are few and far between (I'm an audiophile to be fair) and maybe a goof with the animation once or twice (the animation is fucking incredible otherwise) but overall I simply can't find any major or even minor flaws that hinder the experience of this show. To me, a show like this can have flaws and still be an amazing show.
9.3/10... Well done A-1.
