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Tokyo Ghoul: re is a prime example of an adaptation that deserved better but didn't suck either.

--SPOILERS--

Tokyo Ghoul has its fair share of variety between adaptation strength. The first season in my opinion was very strong and solid with changes from the manga being done in a relatively fair way. The art was fantastic and the soundtrack was goosebump inducing. The second season, root a, was disappointing to say the least where the changes from the manga were almost entirely harmful, but retained good enough animation and a good soundtrack.

After several years comes re, from the famous sequel manga. As a reader of ... the manga i was curious how they would be able to continue the story without much of the setup that was skipped in root a. I will say, Pierrot surprised me and managed to just leave the story as was as if root a never happened, and that worked in this adaptations benefit. Unfortunately many anime only viewers were confused, but manga readers could help clarify for the curious. The issue was with the inconsistency in character priority. This season could have used an extra episode, because although many episodes were very faithful to the manga, certain characters who already were glossed over in root a, were again glossed over (I'm looking at Suzuya in particular).

The worst part about re, was the animation. The animation was inconsistent and fight scenes were much worse than even root a. There were times I felt like i was watching an anime from the early 2000's with the still frames. This anime deserved a better staff or a better budget, perhaps both. This was massively disappointing because my biggest grievance with the manga was not being able to tell what exactly was happening in the fights, and i desperately hoped the anime would fix that, but except for rare occasions the animation was entirely lackluster and often downright awful compared to the source material.

The music and soundtrack were good. I enjoyed the opening very much and it grew on me more over time. The ed was decent, and the ost was pretty good, although sometimes misused. I felt the lack of ost in a certain death scene in the final episode was a smart way to make it more impactful.

Overall, my enjoyment of this series was just fine. It wasn't bad, not nearly as bad as root a, but it was damn disappointing to see the animation and art quality drop so dramatically. The story is good enough, but backstories are glossed over too quickly to really be lasting. It was not a waste of time to watch this season, but it was entirely unnecessary for any manga reader. Studio pierrot should devote a franchise with so much support a more experienced staff or a greater budget, as I'm not sure which was the more predominant issue.

When watching a given anime one usually feels one of four ways: They could love the anime and be invested the entire running, they could hate the anime or feel detached from it the entire time, they may feel detached at first but slowly develop great investment towards an anime, or they may find that at first they loved an anime but it lost their investment with a weak finish. Golden Time does not fit any of these four criteria. To me Golden Time Started strong, however from episodes 7-15 I began to feel detached from the story and characters. The drama felt bland, the ... comedy wasn't enough, and I considered dropping the show. I am glad I didn't. Golden Time pulled itself together and pit its best foot forward through the rest of the show, despite the occasional melodrama. Ultimately it was well worth the watch and the ending was very satisfying.

Story: 8

I was intrigued by the amnesiac romance story that the show entailed. In fact had this been played straight the enitre show, It may have achieved a higher score than it did. Unfortunately the show tries to use other disputes for focuses of drama that temporarily derail the plot. Eventually the work towards the progression of character arcs, however they could easily have been replaced with more meaningful events, instead of crying over a dream you had for 2 episodes, because that unfortunately happened. Otherwise the story is very exciting and dramatically successful when it deals with its original focus, the amnesia. Although the transitions may have been unsteady, the introduction and conclusion of the story generally make up for most of the plot's sins so I'd say it averages off at around 7.5-8

Characters: 8

The side characters are what got me through the rough patch this anime had. 2-D Kun was a crucial cast member that always brought comic relief. I enjoyed the dynamic between the main group of friends as well as Linda's personality. The scenes where they where laying back and enjoying a slice of life were the ones that shined during those middle episodes. Most side characters had an important role in the story, including Nana who I initially thought would be more of a nuisance. Golden Time's hidden strength was the likeability of the cast.

The reason I rated the characters an 8 out of 10 is because the two main characters caused a lot of the problems I had with this anime. Though I liked them most of the time, there were times they drove me crazy with their tendency to jump to irrational conclusions and act like middle schoolers. I'm not saying its necessarily unrealistic, but it was rather annoying to watch. For the latter part of the anime on the other hand, they seem to mature a good bit which naturally played out much to the show's benefit

Sound and Art: 8

the sound and art where always great when they needed to be, but lackluster in slower moments that could have felt faster had there been better art and good background music to fill the time (as in Nagi no Asukara). Regardless it never took away from the show, it just was not good enough to warrant anything higher than an 8.

Enjoyment: 9
I grant the enjoyment a 9 because the show hooked me in very quickly, the yes or no scene was phenomenal to mention, and the show ended with the same feeling. Ultimately 2/3 of the show i was completely invested in and teared up towards the finish. As such I would be lying if I said I did not enjoy the show as well as I rated it.

Overall: 8

Unfortunately Golden Time was not golden, however, it was good enough to warrant a recommendation to anyone who enjoys drama or romantic anime. This show is not for those who cannot tolerate melodrama or slice of life. Although the characters may be in college, do not be prepared for them to act as such. Despite some grievances the anime was very solid and it left on the same emotionally strong note it began on. I am disappointed to see some reviews that are utterly negative without recognizing any of the show's strong points, but to each their own. Personally, I think Golden Time is worth a shot, and if you find yourself bored towards the middle of the story, it should get better.

This is my first review on MyAnimeList. Typically I refrain from writing reviews simply because there are many more experienced users to do so. Here I felt compelled to write my own review to clarify a very annoying assumption about this show. I've seen several people allude to or directly state that Gate is promoting right wing Nationalism and Imoerialism, as well as theorizing that it is made as propaganda to support the reinterpretation of article 9 in Japan. This notion is simply irritating. here are some facts: Gate started in 2010, the reinterpretation was proposed and enforced in 2014, this anime is an adaptation ... of the light novel series, as such one would presume it would follow the same plot. So to say that this anime was made as propaganda is drawing a connection where one isn't neccessary when no one asked for it. War is literally the point of the story, if there wasn't an enemy or a conflict then there wouldn't be a novel series or show. Saying that this show is propaganda is as ridiculous as saying that The Hunger Games is propaganda encouraging kids to kill each other. Just chill and watch the show for what it is, a fun and thrilling story.
Story:10
so now let's talk about the story. It continues where the first season left off. Itami is alerted that Tuka is wandering around town in search of her late father. He decides to go in searcg if the dragon to slay it in hopes of snapping Tuka back to reality. The show's main plot here is pretty simple: hit the road and go on a quest to stay a dragon. The premise is simple but the execution is absolutely thrilling.
What really stands out in terms of plot is the sub story that has been happening behind the scenes. The Empire is destabilizing and some clear power struggles are emerging between the candidates for king and those close to them. The way this involves the Japanese Defense Force is extremely interesting to watch play out. As Japan tries to reach peace treaties, the Empire reaches another setback preventing the talks from progressing. I'lol leave it at that so as not to spoil any details.
Art: 8.5
A-1 has done very well with the animation for this show. Nearly all the character designs are visually appealing. The color pallete is bright bringing out the adventurous side of this fantasy world. The backgrounds are usually inc dinky animated. Where Gate falls short probably stems from budget and or time constraints. It is not particularly uncommon to see an off model character or a stoic expression from background characters. This is what holds the art back from being great. Otherwise the art is very modern and enjoyable, so as long as you can stand the weekly off model background character for a few seconds, the time when the art shines will most definitely make up for it (especially those fight scenes).
Sound: 9
The soundtrack for Gate is very enjoyable, however, It is slightly underwhelming when compared to the first season. This is not because the second season lacks good music, it's simply because you cannot beat the incredible music of the first season: the original op, and the insert sing from the heli raid. That said the music is still very fitting for the show and never ceases to aide whatever tone the show is demonstrating. The voice actors are also all solid and Rory's seiyuu particular does a phenomenal job.
Character: 9
It's hard to rate the characters of Gate. Gate has a very large cast of characters, some of which are very well developed, some of which are underwhelming. One thing that is certain is that all,the characters in Gate are in an upward trend of development.
Itami: a very interesting main character who continues to be laid back but never falls short when it comes to protecting those he cares about
Rory: a very fun amd provocative character constantly teasing Itami. Not much development but still a very fun character.
Tuka: a character You WANT to love, but seems slightly out of place until this season. I'm Season one she never contributed anything notable. And in the beginning of this season it seemed as though she was going to maintain an annoying trend, however in the finale of the dragon arc she finally proved her worth and gets a pass the inconvenience she caused.
Lelei: a character who once was very boring and stereotypical, that recently became a temporary badass. It will be interesting to see how events in the finale of the dragon arc will impact her character progressing throughout the show.
The last thing I will mention is the diverse and very exciting cast if side characters. I've never been as invested in every individual character nearly as much as Gate has made me care about it's side characters with the exception of two wild cards, Zolzal and Tyuule. So far each has the potential to be great characters if the team continues to maintain the current trend, I just hope we don't see them turn into stereotypical throwaway antagonists. But alas I have faith in A-1 yet.
Enjoyment: 10
This show is an incredibly fun watch and will have you waiting for the next episode each weak. Never short of drama and action this show still knows when to be lighthearted without the use of slapstick gags or piss poor humor. This season Gate continues to hit the mark of being an extremely fun show to watch. It may not be nearly as complex or well written as Fate/Zero or Steins; Gate, but its damn good at what it does and that's the simple fun of the show for that reason I rate it a 10. It is not a masterpiece in comparison to some of the classics. But for what it has tried to accomplished, it has exceeded any and all expectations Incould have had so far for this series.
Conclusion
Ignore the conspiracy theorists. This shows politics are not meant to be taken seriously, they are a very small but neccessary plot device to keep the show going. It IS NOT PROPOGANDA. the empire is a fictitious land, they are. It colonizing it. Sure they are searching for resources and taking advantage of trade but such is the reality of the world we live in regardless, the show never tried to convince anyone that these things are okay or that they aren't, it simply is not important. The show is a fantasy/action/military/adventure. If you came into this expecting 100% peaceful relations or a show where violence is not the response, ,aube you should try reading the tags or description of a show before you watch it. And if a show is not trying to make a point about anything, stop drawing unnecessary conclusions about simple plot devices. The real world has enough conspiracies as it is, stick to stuff that isn't completely fictional or fantasy, at the point is it really a problem with the show or the viewer? Amyways 99% of you out there will enjoy this show and some of you may love it like I do! I hope this review was helpful, I would love feedback, thank you