Back to ColdEvans's Profile ColdEvans's Profile

before start this review, I must say that first season was really dessapointing for me. Not bad, just not as much outstanding like people said. It was suppossed to be remarcabble, but instead was just a rom-com that actually had very little of romance and comedy on it, leaving behind nothing but an average slice of life. Probably I was expecting another thing when I started to watch it, and maybe that's why I found so hard to completely enjoy the first season.
However, second season gived to me a very different feeling. Now that I can look the entire picture, I can say that ... first season was more like an introduction of the whole plot and characters, leaving the big story and characters development to second season.

Story
the story and plot are really simple and generic. A group of friends with their own issues that help other students to solve their problems. Except for some chapters, the first season centered almost exclusively on this problems, and I really missed some major development from the main characters. Fortunately, second season was all what I was expecting, and you can see more emotional situations around the 3 mc and some genuine developments from them.

Art
The art of the second season was way better than the art of the first one. The design, color and contrasts improved alot, giving to the series a more serious tone. The light in the scenes was also better and there was some beautifull and detailed landscapes too. Nothing to complain about art. 10/10

Sound
The sound was really appropiatte, specially in the emotionally charged scenes. The pieces of piano worked surprisingly well, creating a very good atmosphere around the events. Also, the opening and ending are really good.

Characters
Characters are the real strong point from this series. They are unique, different and really complex, to the point that we are still learning things about them by the end of this second season. Of course, hikigaya is the most remarcable character. His way of think and see the world is the most interesting thing about this series, even if he is wrong in many aspects. He considers himself like a secondary character, though he touches everyone around him and changes them and their lifes for good, even if some of them end up hating it.

Ejoyement
When I started to love the characters, I started to love the whole thing, so i must say i really enjoyed this series. Doesn't matter what you thinked of the first season, i recommend you to watch the second season. Though, i higly recommend you mentalize this like a slice of life anime and not like a rom-com

it is hard to analyze an anime with 6 minutes of long, since in some aspects would be unfair to make comparisons with other series who have 200 + minutes to present the story and create a better character development. On the other hand, a short has the advantage of the detail: all the work and the inspiration are focused in just a few minutes of animation, wich allows in most of cases create a work much more similar to the primary idea of the autor. So, when you read this review, you have to know that my scores and appreciations are adapted to ... the pros and cons of a short film.

Story (9/10)
There's not such thing as a story in Shelter, but there is a plot, and the plot is very interesting. Porter did a great job in there, and he managed masterly to present this plot to the audcience in just a couple of scenes and dialogues (there are no many dialogues in Shelter, and most of the scenes where meaningless for the general plot). IMO they did a great job in the most dificult aspect for this kind of films, and that's why the high score.

Art (7/10)
Yes, the art is good, chord to a short anime. The designs and scapes are beatifull, though they are not outstanding, at least for me. If I had to summarize what I think of the art, I would say that it almost meets my expectations, wich is not bad.

Sound (6/10)
This is a totally subjetive topic, since the soundtrack's enjoyment depends of the personal music taste. In my case, I don't dislike this music, but is not entirely of my style. Though I must say the soundtrack really goes with the animation, wich is obvious since the animation was obviously made for the song.

Character (8/10)
There are only two characters in this anime, and I think their developments are well done for a short, specially the mc's development. This film is markedly sentimental, and tunrs out to be easy to follow since we can understand what the girl is feeling in each moment. The contrast between the natural and childish happiness and the loneliness that awaits in the edge of that happy screen is remarcable, so I think they did a good job here.

Enjoyment (7/10)
The enjoyment was good. Is not a masterpiece, but I don't feel like this was a waste of my time.

In conclusion, I recommend you to see this, but not expecting much (If you do that you will hate this, like some persons in other reviews did). This is not meant to have a ton of content and story, so you better see this like an AMV and not like an actual anime.

I’m doing this review like a person who doesn’t consider himself a big fan of the echi. I think echi can be a plus when is correctly used, but, to be honest, this doesn’t happen much. There are so many animes which develops an excesive fanservice, puting the story and the characters in a secundary place with a poor and barely convincing development, and leaving behind a cuestionable legacy of breasts + erotics and pointless scenes that can get you a boner, but not much more.

I think this isn't the case of High School DXD. Yes, the serie has a lot of echi with naked ... girls and erotic scenes everywere, but this anime actually has a decent (not great, but decent) plot. The characters are actually deep and complex. Even if the first impression shows us another idiotic mc with a strong breasts obsession, we can see other sides of him as the story progresses, and this also applies to the other characters, each one with their own dark past and fears. The romantic development is also a plus, since most echi-harem animes don't make a good job in this topic.
Also, the serie settles in a well-constructed and politically complex world with an interesting history, rules and factions that makes us get interested in the story and, at least in my case, enjoy it.
By last, I think the soundtrack is also a plus for the series, since the music really gets to the point and influences the ambient in the right moments.

Conclusion: If you are looking for a good and entertained shonen-echi anime, you should probably enjoy High School DXD.