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I first watched this show years and years ago. I've probably watched it four or five times now, including Fumaffu and Second Raid seasons (only seen Invisible Victory once). It's practically a comfort watch, which is weird because it's basically a mecha-military show with high stakes and a lot of discomfiting violence.

Or is it a rom-com?

Or is it a fish out of water?

Or is it a high school slice of life?

Or is it a cartoon-ultraviolence, farcical comedy that parodies rom-coms, fishes out of water, and high school slices of life?

Depending on which season you're watching, it could be any or all of the above. And ... that's what makes Full Metal Panic so great. One episode you'll be laughing until your gut bursts and you spill your wine/apple juice, and the next you'll be biting your nails, wondering how Sousuke and Chidori are getting out of this one alive.

The thing that really makes it work is the chemistry between our two leads. He's a soldier who wouldn't know pop culture or romance (or common sense) if they slapped him in the face with a grenade. She's a tsundere who, honestly, has a good reason (or five) to smack him. He's also earnest, determined, and skilled. She's also smart, athletic, and more adaptable than she thinks she is. They both grow as people over the course of the seasons, and their romance is a slow, if comedic, burn.

The supporting cast is also fun and differentiated, though Tessa is irritatingly tropey, and there is the occasional fan service (but, in the spirit of equality, there's a bit for the ladies, too).

All of you, watch this show and love it. Watch it until someone looks at the numbers and decides to make a fourth season after Invisible Victory. Thanks.

Some reviewer, somewhere, referred to Season 3 as "4 pm Conference Call: the Anime" and then I couldn't unsee that, because it's true. What was once a fun join-my-motley-team-and-win-a-place-in-the-world has become a bloated chorus line of sycophants who, in most episodes, spend the entire 23 minutes sitting at a table, taking turns getting their faces on camera while saying innocuous things with wise nods. Even the one real showdown in the season was kind of a boring letdown.

I guess there's a reason most stories just end with, "and then they lived happily ever after." When the revolution ends, bureaucracy begins.

That's not to say there's never ... any fun, just that it gets so bogged down in too many characters that we, along with Rimaru, really have no time to devote to caring about anything or anyone at all. Our squishy blue MC is officially OP. Everything he wants he gets by the sheer OP'ness of his myriad yes-men. There are no real stakes, just a ho-hum festival and even. more. characters. introduced.

This is a classic "stick with it" show. This is an in-depth world, and a lot of moving parts. You're going to feel a little confused and bogged-down by all the characters and intrigue at first, but oh, boy does it pay off in the long run.

The Good:
- The show takes its time to build characters, motivations, intrigue, subplots, and red herrings.
- The plot reveals reward a careful and patient audience.
- The visuals are wonderful, though some people may find the character design a little off-putting at first.
- The MC isn't a bland everyman. He's a clever, somewhat cynical kid who isn't afraid ... to dive into it.
- These are bird people. That's an unusual, fantastic setup.

The Not-Quite-Bad:
- I found it difficult to keep track of which families (north, south, east, west, etc.) were known for certain things.
- A few characters looked a little too much alike, it could be confusing.
- Parts of the second half of the season dragged a little.

I should give this a 3, but the first couple of episodes held my interest, so I'll give it a 5.
The Good:
- Narsena is a good character. She's plucky and cute, and skilled enough while actively looking to improve.
- At first, you want to see exactly what Laust has up his sleeve. How does he operate? How has he come to be that way? What is his connection to Narsena? Why does his hair look like it belongs in a '90s boy band, and his face on a mannequin?
- The conniving, greedy guild lady is a fun touch.

The Bad:
- The animation starts of lackluster, and ... is a half-hearted slide show by the end. Seriously, did they run out of budget? Were they pooling their lunch money to keep the lights on?
- Same goes for the plot.
- There is no real mystery, only deus ex machina.
- There are too many characters, many of them unreasonably mean-spirited, none of them decently explored.
- There is no world-building, only on-the-spot exposition.

This is a good, character-driven show that's nominally an "isekai" but doesn't really capitalize on the premise.

The Good:
- The MC, Ars, is a likeable kid. He's got his special power, and he uses it to find extraordinary people and be extra nice to them so they'll join him, which they do.
- His friends are interesting, especially as they relate to what he can see about them, and how they have room to grow.
- The progression from minor noble to increasingly powerful noble is believable. It doesn't go too fast, and the wins feel earned.
- We know what the goal is -- it's straightforward, but ... there's more than enough challenge in the way, and no one is so OP that it doesn't seem like a challenge. There's one scene, especially, that highlights that Ars' ultimate goal won't just be about winning over enemies, but potentially stepping over allies -- and some of those allies are noticing.

The Bad:
- Please, I'm begging you: someone send the writers/director/whoever a basic guide to siege warfare. The way it is presented in the show literally hurts me.
- Resolutions and changes of heart can be a bit too convenient at times.
- I like Reitz as a character, but he's been kind of nerfed in Season 2. I hope they don't sideline older characters in favor of new ones as the series goes on.
- Everyone's too nice, especially Ars. It can get a little tedious.

This show could have been good, if it had been more focused.
The Bad:
- Most of the cast are Tiresome Girl Tropes :TM:, which is off-putting because the MC is a middle-aged man, who looks like (ok, a not-quite-silver fox) middle-aged man, and all of them are annoying.
- How many bunny-people villages must we endure?
- Everything about city-building this show does, Slime did better (and then beat to into the ground).
- There are too many characters. Most of them are high-pitched and whiny.
- There are a lot of interesting mysteries, and none of them are explored.
- It can be funny to see an ... OP MC and his friends traipse through the world's most dangerous elements with comical ease, but this show doesn't manage it.

The Good:
- I liked the arc early in Season 1 when it was just the scary dude and the cute little girl, together against the world. Can we go back to that?

There's a lot to like about this show: The protagonist is assertive, skilled, and fun, the supporting characters as individuals are interesting, and there's the good ol' "I can fix him!" plot.

BUT. It falls flat, and not just because of the elephant in the room (literally, they could cut out that whole "younger than 14" contrivance and it would make no difference to the plot). The emperor's personality is off-putting, not endearing. The plot wavers halfway through and doesn't go anywhere. The central conflict at the heart of the matter isn't well explored, and the whole thing falls flat. The action scenes aren't great.

Which ... is a shame, because the MC would have been a fantastic lead ... in any other show.

This is better than the standard RPG-ish anime (bonus: it's not an isekai). Interesting characters and good plotting/pacing make this show worth your time.
Good:
- The combination of action, "magic-system," and scheming are done well and keep the episodes moving quickly. Most end on a cliffhanger that leaves you wanting more.
- Our MC, Noel, is a ruthless little manipulator who actually puts in the hard work and homework into his plots to make them a success. He's "edgy" without being "edgelord," because he doesn't sulk and mope his way through the world. No, he's having a ball screwing over people who get in his way. ... He doesn't have a heart of gold, but he doesn't exactly punch down, either. It's implied that his "victims'" downfalls make the world a little better off.
- Few characters in this show are "nice," so you can safely cheer his schemes without feeling bad about it. It's entertaining to have a character who makes full use of his brains -- and others' brawn.
- Noel's scheming isn't a hopelessly unfollowable web of contrivances. Most are pulled together nicely, though there are a few that seem a little too convenient.
- Alma can be annoying, but you've got to feel sorry for her. She got the raw end of an already raw deal.

Bad:
- I kind of don't understand what the level of tech is in this show. It's a mix of genres + RPG-ishness that fail the worldbuilding a bit.
- I wish a particular character had been introduced earlier, since he's a good foil to Noel, character-wise. Maybe in season 2, we'll get a bit more of that.
- The plot gets rushed in places -- this would have been a better 24-episode series.

The MC's superpower is quite literally the power of friendship, and it's pretty funny.
Good: This is a situational comedy that banks on the trope that everyone thinks the MC is playing 4D chess ... he's not. He spends most of his time avoiding responsibility, while everyone else thinks he's subtly mentoring them into right action. It sticks the landing often enough to be good enough to watch. It reminds me of those episodes of Gintama where everyone is sitting around the table trying to figure out how to outmaneuver the others to get the last bit of meat in the pot, except one person ... just wants to go to bed.
Bad: Tino. Wow, she's annoying.