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Sep 7, 2016
THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS
Since this is a very short anime and there is only one important matter to discuss about it, I'll keep my review short as well. There is no doubt that Planetarian is absolutely top-notch in the graphics department, audio is also good. The setting is interesting, though not very original, we've seen it all before - and not just once. If the story was equally good, this show could have a really nice score, at least 8/10. Unfortunately, it fails at the most important part.
What is that important part, then? It's the revolving question of how human Yumemi actually is. Key isn't
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trying to reinvent the wheel here, ever since Blade Runner works regarding the humanity of androids keep popping up. There usually are some slight suggestions that, despite being artificial constructs, androids aren't actually that much different from humans - even to the point of having a soul, if you believe such things.
Unfortunately, this is where Planetarian fails. Not once within the 2 hours or so of the show have I felt like Yumemi is anywhere close to a human. I have not played the VN, maybe she is portrayed better there, maybe more time was required to show the human part of her, but I'm judging the anime version alone... And there, she is just a robot. That's it. There is nothing human about her, she is acting according to her programming at all times, and that is unforgivable in an anime that is trying to tackle this subject. Yes, she is cute, she is adorable and fun, and her death was crushing, but it's the same kind of sadness I'd feel if a tree fell on my car during a storm. I have felt that the MC also thinks this way. He hadn't really started personifying her, he just considered her as the last link to the lost world and that was what he was mourning in the end - he definitely wasn't mourning Yumemi as a human being. Maybe I'm wrong about him and the upcoming movie will prove it, but as of now, that is my opinion.
I have actually rated Planetarian 8/10 at first, since I have enjoyed if quite a lot, but when I thought about it a bit more while writing this short review, I couldn't help but start thinking it by no means deserved such a score. I think the most objective score would be 6/10, but since it's a Key anime and I'm a fanboy, I should rate it 7/10. It's short and it's definitely not a waste of time, but IMO it fails in the most important department. If Yumemi had a lot more screentime, it might have helped her case.
Or well... maybe I'm completely wrong and the writers weren't trying to make her look human. In that case, they've succeeded.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Jun 30, 2016
There are things this show does a lot better than anime. Then there are things it does a lot worse. This is only natural, a game can't possibly do as good of a job in the character development department as an anime. Well, it can if it's an RPG, but VC is a tactical game with very few RPG elements.
Anyway, I have already named the best aspect of the anime - character development. Watching the characters come together over the course of the war feels great. It's not like they all like each other, it's more like they're siblings - they may even hate
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each other, but they'd also die for each other. This is very realistic, the special bond between people is something most soldiers talk about , and VC portrays it in a very convincing way. The characters are very diverse, though at times quite cliche - but enjoyable nonetheless.
9/10 for me, they are close to perfection.
Story - I think I have a pretty unique approach to this anime/game, I don't really focus on the grand aspect and the whole war, as this part of the story would come down as a generic war story. It's just another story of a ragtag group of unlikely heroes defeating a great empire. Not very original. It is, again, thanks to the characters and their background story that it comes a great show. I want to give it a 9/10 based on that, but it wouldn't be fair because of how cliche the overall theme is. There's also the matter of the story being sort-of washed down compared to the game, there's a lot less battles shown. The most important battles are left intact, though. As such, 8/10 is a fair score.
Art and sound. It's a 7 years old anime, but more importantly, it's quite clear it was never a high budget show. The art and animation are quite poor. They are not really bad looking, but don't take a single step above average. Pretty much same can be said about the sound, but the dubbing is good, so it would be unfair to rate it the same as graphics. 6/10 for art and 7/10 for sound seems fair.
It was a VERY enjoyable anime. It covers a variety of themes and shows a convincing picture of regular grunts fighting in a dirty and unncecessary war, some themes are very harsh (for example the treatment of Darcsens), some are light-hearted. I don't think there's a single boring moment if you enjoy watching anime that are not all about action, but also about character development. I would like to rate it more than 8/10, but I really can't. 8/10 is a bit of a stretch as well, but I'm willing to do this since, despite the small flaws, it's one piece of a good anime. Definitely worth watching at any time.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Apr 26, 2016
Well, that will be my first review.
I guess people rather speak about things they don't like rather than the opposite. Which is why I'm picking by far the worst anime I've watched for my first review.
Let the rant begin. Note that I probably wouldn't be writing this review if Claymore had a score of 5 on MAL, but it's near 8. How can people stomach it - and more so, consider it good - is just beyond me.
Art. It's just horrendous. I know Claymore is an old anime. I know the drawing style changed a lot over the years. But I don't think
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Claymore's art was ever considered at least mediocre. I'm not even going to mention Hiyazaki's movies, since movies are movies, but there are plenty shows from the same period which trump Claymore in the art department. The animations are pain to watch, the whole world is coloured with shades of grey with some red spatters on top, and the characters and backgrounds are just god damned UGLY. It's not like I've ever actively searched for one, but I can't say I've ever seen an anime with art style worse than that of Claymore.
I'd like to say that sound was the only saving grace of this anime, but I only recall the opening and ending, which were decent, but 2 songs don't make the whole soundtrack. I can't remember any of the themes in the actual show, which means they either didn't exist or were very forgettable. OST probably was just mediocre and not worth the brain power to remember. However, considering how bad the anime generally is, sound is probably the best part of it anyway.
Story and characters. Yeah, this is just Dragon Ball with an almost exclusively female cast. I vaguely noticed the poor attempts at storytelling Claymore was making, but they were immediately trumped by retarded shouting, last second saves and ridiculous LEVEL UP moments that make 90% of the show. It actually starts off decently, the pace is quite nice, and though Raki is extremely annoying since he first appears on screen, it's bearable, though filled with cliches. Unfortunately, the further it goes, the worse it gets. It culminates in the last 6 or so episodes, in which the storytelling simply ceases to exist. They are just a huge avalanche of shounen bullshit (that is, again, LEVEL UPs, shouting etc.) that only 11 yo kids could find interesting.
There's a total of 2 possible schemes for each episodes. Both start off with Claire getting roflstomped by whatever opponent, some Terese flashbacks, and then either Claire goes Youma mode or she's saved by a stronger Claymore. Oh, make that 3 - Claire goes Youma mode and overdoses, a stronger Claymore appears and intends to whack Claire, at which point Raki appears, hugs Claire and she reverts to normal. It gets boring after a while, but there's literally nothing the writers try to surprise the viewers with. It's like watching a Rocky movie turned anime, only if it was made by first year cinematography students.
There is no enjoyment to be had when watching this anime, but there's a serious risk of a critical brain shutdown. So, unless you want that, stay the hell away from it. Don't believe the high score Claymore has on MAL, remember that the masses once thought the Earth is flat - they can be wrong. They definitely are in case of Claymore.
Reviewer’s Rating: 3
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