Muv-Luv: First Impressions

Sure, that first episode was pretty much every giant robot show ever. Sure, the outfits are ridiculous (the boob-hugging combat suits get the most attention, but the Upotte!!-length school skirts are equally stupid). But right now I'm feeling really good about Muv-Luv Alternative: Total Eclipse (to give it its full title).

Above all, it was fast. Months went by in a flash of intertitles, spending only as long as necessary to give us a feel for the setting. It seemed to shift genres several times in the episode, reminding me of nothing so much as Kurau Phantom Memory - though hopefully later episodes can do better than that. By the end of this first episode we have a handle on four or five characters about to go out and fight. More importantly, we know the world they're fighting for. It's episode 1 and I already care about the characters, which makes their opponents so much scarier - especially since there's a palpable feeling that humanity is losing.

Finally, it was slick; hearing the final song in particular made me feel that this could be something special. Many of the visuals in this episode were animé clichés - the schoolkids riding the tram, the fighter planes flying low over the city, the woman in a traditional Japanese house. But they were drawn so prettily, executed so flawlessly, that I didn't mind.

Of course, it could easily all go wrong. I could have written much the same post about the first episode of Senki Zesshou Symphogear. But right now, I look forward to episode two with something close to hope.

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