Kantai Collection: KanColle

With the seas under constant threat from the hostile "Abyssal Fleet," a specialized naval base is established to counter them. Rather than standard naval weaponry, however, the base is armed with "Kanmusu"—girls who harbor the spirits of Japanese warships—possessing the ability to don weaponized gear that allows them to harness the powerful souls within themselves. Fubuki, a young Destroyer-type Kanmusu, joins the base as a new recruit; unfortunately for her, despite her inexperience and timid nature, she is assigned to the famous Third Torpedo Squadron and quickly thrust into the heat of battle. When she is rescued from near annihilation, the rookie warship resolves to become as strong as the one who saved her.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Kongou Main

Touyama, Nao Japanese

Yuudachi Main

Tanibe, Yumi Japanese

Kaga Main

Iguchi, Yuka Japanese

Fubuki Main

Uesaka, Sumire Japanese

Akagi Main

Fujita, Saki Japanese

Mutsuki Main

Hidaka, Rina Japanese

Shimakaze Supporting

Sakura, Ayane Japanese

Hibiki Supporting

Suzaki, Aya Japanese

Haruna Supporting

Touyama, Nao Japanese

Yamato Supporting

Taketatsu, Ayana Japanese

Cook, Justin Producer

Motonaga, Satoshi Producer

WEST GROUND Producer, Theme Song Composition, Theme Song Arrangement

Tamura, Junichirou Producer

Reviews

Feb 2, 2025

Manjirin

Recommended

For an anime based on a free-to-play browser game this is honestly rather well put together, mostly competent and coherent. Personifying historical Imperial Japanese Navy ships into eccentric and colorful anime girls might seem like just another anime-ification cash grab, and well okay it is, but both the original game and this anime exude a certain nongeneric charm that is unique to this IP. There is a subtle genius in the way it is all put together that you never feel that this is an entirely soulless or cynical affair - there is personality here and I think that counts for a lot.

There definitely isn't ... anything groundbreaking here but it is also clear that that's not what this anime was setting out to achieve in any case. The original source material this anime is based off of is itself extremely thin on lore and backstory. Do not expect this world to be fully fleshed out or explained. The abyssals (the enemy/antagonists in this show) have zero characterization and if I recall only a literal handful of dialogue lines over all 12 episodes. They are more akin to a pest or infestation that the ship girls are tasked to confront and defeat than any kind of thinking, living and breathing opposing force in a military conflict.

But the abyssals don't really matter in that you're not supposed to be preoccupied with them all that much, or ask where they came from or why they are doing what they're doing. The game and specifically this anime are rather unapologetic about the fact that the enemy here serves merely as a plot device to give the ship girls something to shoot at and fight against and to provide a backdrop upon which to tell interesting character-driven stories.

There has been some speculation that the abyssals are intended to serve as dehumanized stand-ins for the United States Navy and are inserted in such a way as to act out a revisionist fantasy in which Japan wins the Second World War. This interpretation is unconvincing for a number of reasons not least of which is the fact that the game this anime is based on and draws all of its lore and ideas from later added American ship girls based on vintage US Navy ships of the same period, along with ship girls from other nations that participated in that conflict, foes and allies of Japan alike. In the game all of these ship girls, regardless of national allegiances during WWII, can be recruited to together fight against the abyssals.

I think that at times those outside of Japan go a little too far out of their way to read into Japanese media what they believe to be thinly concealed Japanese military chauvinism where in reality is more often simply Japanese earnestness around having an affinity for their own culture and history. While it appears that Japan may still have some unresolved hang-ups concerning their defeat in the Second World War and reconciling that with their culture of honor and the significance of shame and defeat in that context but I don't think this anime or the game it is based on have any sort of pretentions of this nature or any such political message. In fact I will venture to suggest that this IP is going out of its way not to disrespect the US or their WWII allies by instead having a totally fictitious, unrecognizable, almost eldritch enemy for the Japanese ship girls to instead fight against and subsequently destroy.

The reason they are all based on Japanese ships is simply because the original game was developed in Japan for release to a Japanese audience. It's possible to have national pride and an interest in your country's history including the assortment of storied warships constructed in the past without glorifying the brutal regime that directed those machines in wars of aggression. That is my interpretation at least and I see the references to the Battle of Midway and other allusions to WWII like the breaking of codes to be nothing more than neat easter eggs and historical tie-ins to wink back at viewers who know their military history.

This anime and the IP more broadly are really not reaching that deep and I say that affectionately. This is in no way intended to be a war-opera epic; this is an anime where ship girls blow stuff up, exchange banter, form friendships and share wholesome moments. Kantai Collection is very honest and upfront in this regard and I feel that the more pernicious characterizations of the show as revisionist propaganda are unwarranted.

Having briefly played the browser game this anime is based on I can say that Diomedea did a good job tying in both the elements of the game and the tongue-in-cheek references to real-world history and adapting it without having the show devolve into an excess of fan-servicey references or overdone WWII trivia. The characters reference in-game resources like fuel and steel and mechanics like "instant repair buckets" that might seem too silly and absurd for someone who doesn't understand the context of the show being based on a game but these things don't rock the boat enough (pun intended) to otherwise detract from the enjoyment of the series.

I have watched all the episodes dubbed and most of the episodes subbed I can say that this is an example where both the sub and the dub totally nailed the casting. Naturally there are some voices where I feel the sub did better and a few where I preferred the dub but overall the characterizations are consistent across both with some standout performances being Nao Touyama as Kongou in the original Japanese or Sarah Wiedenheft as Zuikaku in the dub. One thing I did want to mention was the insistence on Yuudachi using the same "Poi" verbal tick in the dub. The word itself in Japanese means "like" or "ish" and so simply repeating it in the English dub as "Poi" is missing the meaning in translation and doesn't convey quite the same charm as if the character was ending all of the sentences with the word "like", which is how it works in the original Japanese. I feel the localizers either didn't recognize or appreciate their responsibility to authenticity make the verbal tick make sense in spoken English or that they were too worried about being pilloried by the anime community and western KanColle fanbase who at the time this series was dubbed were fully enthralled by the "Poi" memes surrounding this character.

My take is that the most vocal, hardcore fans are just going to watch the sub in any case so localizers should worry less about that kind of backlash, real or perceived, and worry more about their job which is to make the dub (all of it) make sense in English. It is not the end of the world by any means but it stood out as a strange choice, especially during the first few episodes until you settle in.

The animation is crisp and looks medium/high budget for the most part. The CGI scenes, typically occurring during action sequences, are not all that great but at the same time could be a lot worse given when this was made. For me it's the often clumsy transitions between regular animation and the CGI models that sometimes comes across as choppy and abrupt.

The soundtrack in my view punches above its weight in a big way. I really enjoyed the loud and bombastic OP and the collection of varied tracks do a great job setting and shifting the mood of the show and are well synchronized with whatever is happening onscreen.

Overall I like this anime. It's a fun, wholesome escape with just the right mix of personality, solid production values and WWII trivia and reaches a satisfying conclusion before it starts to overstay its welcome. The excellent voice over work of either dub really steals the show and exudes so much charisma and charm that together with the original character designs taken from the game make for highly memorable and likeable characters, which are without a doubt the main attraction of this series.

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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May 14, 2024

muin_inan

Mixed Feelings

I started watching this series from 9 May 2024 and finished it today. The first season was a serious action typebar . The opening song of this season was not good but the ending song was very beautiful. And many of the scenes were so beautiful that they are unforgettable. I am very surprised to see the bravery of all the girls here. I especially like the work of the rest of the team led by Fubuki San. Not only that, the other two Yuudachi San & Mutsuki who were with Fubuki San also fought very bravely. The BGMs used ... in some episodes of this series were terrible.

But the saddest thing to see is the drowning scene of Kisaragi San. A bomb dropped on her head by an enemy plane hit her directly on the head and drowned her. At first, when Kisaragi San was promising Mutsuki San that we would meet again, I thought something was going to happen. Later, Mutsuki San waited for his beloved Kisaragi San for approximately 3 days from morning to evening. Later suddenly Fubuki San came and to tell the truth the two started crying very loudly. At this moment I could not hold back my tears. To be honest, if a good character dies tragically in an episode, it feels very bad to me. However, in the end, I don't want to minimize it by marking it on MAL. It is a very nice series.I recommend to watch it.

Now coming to the movie, it first shows that Kisaragi San is back. Then I leave a little half. It was nice to see Mutsuki San's reaction after seeing her after a long time. But later when I found out that she is actually Abyssal (actually, I couldn't catch the correct word. If it's wrong, please comment). It means that she will not stay with that team. Then I felt a little different. In fact, I saw where a girl's voice was coming from,everyone went out to search for it. Finally, Fubuki San went to the main place where no one can go. All the enemies were finished in an instant with her skills. This time I saw a tragic scene. First I told about Kisaragi San, she also disappeared with them. To be honest, watching the same scene twice in season one and this movie is too much painful.I was very patient. Finally the ending song was very good.

But at the very end of the movie, Kisaragi San's scene is shown again where she is unharmed. Here I have a question. Is Kisaragi San really came back?Is she alive?Or is it Mutsuki San's imagination?

I was very interested to see what would happen next. Accordingly, I started watching the second season. At first I was surprised to hear its opening song. It seems that the singer has sung this song very sadly. My question is, why is the opening song so sad? Then the episode goes on. But the surprising thing is that Shigure san is showing up here from the beginning. Didn't show Fubuki San, didn't show Mutsuki San. Also Akagi,Kaga,Yuudachi,Nagato etc- didn't show in this season. Is this season not related to the first season and the movie? Is Shigure San the main character in this season?? I really don't understand. It would be nice if someone told me clearly.

In conclusion, I like all the "fighting scene with bravely" in this whole series. Loved the shooting of the planes. The whole series were like a world war scene.

Reviewer’s Rating: 9

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Aug 31, 2022

Shirogari

Not Recommended

Kancolle is an anime that seems to be made solely for the game it is based on. If you play(ed) the game or are just here for cute girls then it might be satisfactory but don't expect much more. You will not see naval combat that makes sense but instead see fleets of six ships shooting at planes with their main guns and "instant repair buckets" which are probably a mechanic from the game.

The story itself is okayish. There is somewhat of a storyline but it is interrupted by random events. At some points the anime takes itself very seriously while at other points ... it's just cute shipgirls do cute things. While the more serious parts are nice for character development, it does create a feeling of dissonance with the relaxed parts. The feeling of dissonance translates into the art style as well; most of the time everything is animated normally but very often during battles the anime switches a lot between cg and animation. It's not too bothersome but it would've been nicer if they were more consistent.

The sound was alright and the voice acting seems pretty good. It's also fun to hear the different voice quirks many of the characters have. The characters overall were pretty nice. All of them had clearly different personalities and there is more character development than you'd expect from a 12 episode anime about shipgirls. Overall it's an okay anime to watch if you like the game or its characters but if you're not interested in either then this anime is not worth watching.

Reviewer’s Rating: 4

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