Final Impressions / First Impressions / Senki Zesshou Symphogear

「流れ星、堕ちて燃えて尽きて、そして―」 (Nagareboshi, Ochite Moete Tsukite, Soshite…)
“Meteoroid, Falling, Burning, and Disappear, then…”

Thirteen weeks of relics, gears, and music have finally come to an end.

I’m sorry for the delay, but here it is – the finale of Senki Zesshou Symphogear – one of the most peculiar shows I’ve ever seen! I may as well add that selecting screenshots for this show is one of the most annoying tasks I’ve ever come across. There are simply too many of them to choose from.

This finale was spectacular. It was entertaining, well executed, animations were good, and the music was nice – I finally got to hear a song performed by the trio – something I’ve been looking forward to, since Kurisu joined the team. The song itself didn’t appeal to me but I enjoyed listening to it. I don’t want to sound rude or upset anyone, but personally, I only like Mizuki Nana’s songs (in this show), please don’t kill me!

Whenever an antagonist uses some hidden ability, very late during battles, I always wonder why they save it for last. But watching shows like Bleach has taught me that questioning strategies ruins the show, however, I must say that Finé might’ve been able to pierce the moon if she’d summoned her army of Noise a bit earlier.

Equipped with new gears, the girls had the better hand in the game until Finé stabbed herself and fused with the Noise. And to top that, she also got a hold on Durandal! With a new appearance, Finé hid herself within the “shell” she’d created, which to her surprise, didn’t help at all.

Thirteen episodes later, and Hibiki finally has a weapon! With Durandal taken from Finé with force, Hibiki enters berserk mode – but it didn’t last for long, not with everyone’s support behind her back. With the opening song playing in the background, the girls hit Finé with everything they had, an attack called “Synchrogazer” which happens to be the title of the opening song itself.

When Finé was finished off, with everyone remaining alive, and more than 10 minutes left of the episode, I knew something else was to come. And guess who the final boss is! It’s the moon!

Finé’s last move was to drag the moon towards the Earth, an action that would extinguish mankind. I did not expect her to be strong enough to pull the moon, especially not after facing defeat. With that being done, Finé fell apart, pulverized and obliterated. I felt a bit sorry for her in the end; she is after all, a very pitiful character.

The battle against the moon was pretty interesting. I had a hunch Hibiki would sing her swan song in this battle. Otherwise, the first episode would make no sense. However, I did not expect everyone to sing swan songs. A swan song performed by three people at the same time is indeed a powerful one. Blasting the moon with full force resulted with the scene we saw in episode one.

Some of you had expected the death in episode one to be a troll, and guess what – you were correct! I was a bit surprised when it turned out that the girls had survived their swan songs (some of them did that twice), and had been hiding undercover for security reasons. But I’m glad they didn’t die, however, I wouldn’t mind a tragic ending either because that’s what I had prepared myself for since the beginning.

Full-length shots: 1, 6, 21, 48

Epilogue

Final Impressions:

Whenever I see a season preview, I divide shows into three categories: Will watch, check out, and ignore. Senki Zesshou Symphogear was one of my “check out” shows. Given what I’d read from Divine’s preview post, I expected music and action, nothing more, nothing less. I hadn’t set very high expectations for this anime. I even thought I’d end up dropping it, but then I finished the first episode – and I was hooked! Everything was so mesmerizing, and a lot of it felt pretty unique. I’ve never seen a magical girl series influenced by mecha (it looks like that to me).

In my opinion, the first episode was flawless. The animation, the music, the story – everything seemed exciting. But then episode two aired and the show became a roller coaster. While remaining entertaining, this show truly was all over the place.

I enjoyed watching it, I was interested throughout the show, but I was left with so many questions. There are plot holes everywhere. The show had a lot of potential, but it wasted time on the silly moments (even if I happened to enjoy them). I feel like this show should’ve been either longer or simpler. Adding more information to the story near a finale is not good, unless a second season is planned.

This show was doing very well, had relatively small plot holes until Finé was revealed. She will remain an enigma to me for eternity. While I can understand the Kadingir concept (based on the tower of Babel), I do not comprehend the curse of the moon. I’ve looked through piles of articles related to myths and religions but I couldn’t come across the “Balal” curse, or what it is based on. If some of you know something, please tell me, I’d love to know.

Finé is not the only questionable factor; the whole relic concept is one too. I’ve actually rewatched some of the episodes, trying to figure out how everything connects, but still, there are some things that make no sense to me.

To round things up, I’d like to say that this show is peculiar. While it is interesting and entertaining, it leaves me unsatisfied. Symphogear had everything, some of it too much, some of it too little. For me, the best parts were the concerts. The animation during the performances was top-notch and beautifully delivered to us.

So, would I recommend this show? – Yes, I would. This show may be unsatisfying, but it is entertaining, pleasurable to the eye, and definitely worth a watch.

With that being said, I’d like to thank Divine for letting me cover this. It has been very fun covering this show. I’d like to say goodbye to Senki Zesshou Symphogear with my favorite line from it: It’s like they’re in an anime!

55 Comments

  2. Fuf, I must say I was deeply entertained with this show, even if Hibiki did get on my nerves most of the time.

    About the Babal thing, I can only connect it to the whole Babel Tower story, on which humans trying to reach God created a tower as high as the sky itself. God worried about this, destroyed the tower and took away humans ONE language, and made them speak in different tongues… this created confusion and they separated, creating different cultures.

    The moon thing still keeps me guessing as well…. Maybe they just put it there..because…well it is in the sky… and if you wanna touch the sky, you will have to reach the moon.

    “I will bring the moon down for you” much? Kind of a mushy thing to say…

    But that is only a guess.

    Still, good show. Mecha magical singing girls huh? What will they come up with next?

    Raven
    Reply

  4. I liked the happy end, but still…it was a pretty average show. Could have been better. Disappointed. (they also killed off Takayama Minami’s character in the first ep! wtf?)

    Unajuuphile
    Reply

  7. How could we not doubt the troll opening. This show was too upbeat to not have a Happy Ending.

    I think the Balal curse is just the curse of Babel with different spelling/translation. Built a tower, God struck it down, people lose their language. Nothing to do with the moon though. They might have just pulled that from Gurren Lagann. Anyway, we all know, in the world of anime, everyone speaks/understands Japanese. No curse here.

    Ptolemaios00
    Reply

  8. I was less disapointed by GC or even Blood C (yeah I’ve strange tastes).
    Like you said episode 1 was awesome and I really though it would be a big thing (plus the voice actress were nicely choosen)

    It’s really sad that in the end I’ve enjoyed GC more than Symphogear :/

    KTNO
    Reply

    1. Just google that word guys, seriously, that old testament Hebrew lexicon was the first thing that popped up.

      Further info: The name “Babel” seems to be a corruption of the word “Balal” by early translators who mistook it for the name of ancient Babylon, whereas the original root word in Hebrew was (llb/ Phonetically: Balal)

      Zen
      Reply

  11. About the curse of the moon…

    On some of the UFO-Aliens websites, there is rumor of a “dimensional radio” that US scientists used in the 1970s to contact an “alternative timeline”. Supposedly other entities in that other Earth had, for unknown reasons, destroyed their Moon, and humankind got a lot better spiritually because of it. No lunacy (literally), less tidal/earthquake chaos, higher spiritual awakening and learning, etc. Our US scientists shut the project down when there was no immediate tactical or strategic advantage to talking with this alternative timeline.

    There is a strange thread in modern-day scientific reporting about our Moon. The movie “Apollo 18”. Our Moon is a magnetic and seismic anomaly, according to the newest satellites orbiting it. We need to go back – armed this time, some say. We’ve crashed at least two spacecraft on the southern pole in the last 10 yeas “looking for ice in the shadows”. Etc.

    jhpace1
    Reply

  12. I’ve followed it to the end… and here’s my opinion: it’s a trainwreck, a major one. I didn’t like it that much, but I was curious to see how this series would make up for their past mistakes to maybe hook me in… and it just didn’t happen. Here are my arguments:

    1- Hibiki is intolerable. Her role is phoned in, her attitude is clichéd to the extreme, as if we haven’t seen enough of air-headed schoolgirls with no superpower training now beating the hell out of enemies in one shot. She’s about protecting and blah, blah, blah… wrong character to focus on since the beginning, which brings me to my 2nd argument…

    2- Kanade being killed in the very first episode. I swear, I haven’t forgiven them for that cheap shot. Her story looked way more interesting then the rest. It’s bad enough that she was on the poster with Tsubasa, leading me to believe that THEY were supposed to be the main characters, but no, we get an annoying schoolgirl as a replacement. I’ve said this in a previous post and I’ll say it again: Kanade’s death was badly executed and not necessary at all. She could have hurt my throat during the first battle and lose the ability to sing properly. Even alive, the rest would have worked, like Tsubasa going on a solo career and having to deal with a new noobish partner. Finally, I simply cannot understand how did Kanade got so much trouble handling noises with a completed relic when Hibiki treats it like a walk in the park with a shattered one… how does THAT work again ?!?

    3- The side characters are bland and just a bunch of benchwarmers. Chris was added as a misguided good girl, Ryoko being the antagonist was as clear as water and Miku serves no purpose whatsoever expect being the dimsel in distress.

    4- The story doesn’t make much sense either. The sword appeared way late in the series, the curse makes no sense at all and a cannon to shoot the moon ? Really ?? Furthermore, the noises are like regular problems instead of being an invading force.

    5- The songs got tedious after a while, only here they get new ones…

    Bottom line: this show should have been about Kanade and Tsubasa fighting noises while leading a double life as a duet. Hibiki and Miku could have discovered their secret and would have been involved into the girls’ works due to that, or even better, screw those two and keep the focus on Kanade and Tsubasa. Finé should have been introduced BEFORE Ryoko and Chris should have been her loyal and faithful right-arm lady, not the vengeful girl with no education. The story should have been about finding the source of noises instead of the secrets of the relics and the songs should have changed in every episode.

    Thumb me down, I don’t care. I had expectations when I saw the poster and the preview, but got screwed over big time in the end. Yes, it happened with other shows like Ga-Rei Zero (showing a crew of space marines instead of two schoolgirls) and Kiddy Girl-And (showing a more action-oriented sequel than a team led by a hyperactive teenager), and guess what ? We didn’t like getting screwed up like that either. So yeah, it’s not like I wanted, bu really ? You actually liked a weird focus on Hibiki instead of focusing on both Kanade and Tsubasa ? I don’t get it… If they want their shows to be good, they should respect the characters you’re putting in front of the title.

    JiCi
    Reply

    1. This again? Kanade barely had any screentime. To say that the show would better with her around is nothing more than supposition. Its literally just trading one cliche for another. Symphogear has been nothing more than derivative but extremely fun whether Kanade had been there or not.

      Also, to answer your question about Kanade’s death, its explained in the official website. Kanade was a terrible Symphogear user. In order to use Gungnir she had to take dangerous drugs and even then she had poor compatibility with Gungnir. On the other hand, Tsubasa and Chris had perfect matches to their Relics and trained for them since childhood while Hibiki was literally fused with Gungnir(which took years to develop). This is why Kanade died with her Swan Song while the the other barely survived theirs.

      fragb85
      Reply

      1. Hey, I’ve got the right to say my personal opinion, ok ? Live with it.

        I’m not convinced that a simple schoolgirl with a few shards within her body for only 2 years would be enough to justify her role and powers. Kanade had it for far longer with a complete relic and yet, she got trolled hard by the relic. I could have understand if her breakdown would have happened later in the series and that would endanger her life, but to to kill her in the first episode is just downright lazy. Technically, I shouldn’t have to read the offical website in order to get a character’s backstory, because it should be explained in the show itself. So she was a bad symphogear user… where was THAT shown ? At the beginning ? That’s odd, all I saw was Kanade kicking asses and taking names and her sacrifice/swan song didn’t help either. Also, the poster clearly showed Kanade and Tsubasa, and nothing indicated that one of them was reckless nor had a death flag above her head. Finally, a swan song is SUPPOSED to kill, just like the legend tells. That it kills Kanade, I can understand the effect, but not justify the use, but NOT killing Tsubasa and Chris ? It doesn’t make sense, and no, having better relics to better explain doesn’t work either.

        Tsubasa being the most composed and experimented gear user and Kanade basically acting as a reckless user, just like Hibiki does, would have been a better story. Kanade had a real reason to become a gear user as she wanted revenge upon the noises. Hibiki just became that user without any real purpose. You’re telling me that HER reason makes for a better show than Kanade’s ? Wow… just wow…

        I swear, if Kanade and Tsubasa were the main characters and both Hibiki and Miku were bystanders, this show would have been better. You would have gotten 2 characters trying to work together despite having differents goals in life (don’t even try, Hibiki had none), with two different skills levels (don’t even try, being a noob gear user doesn’t count) and with a complex relationship (don’t even try, Hibiki and Tsubasa barely talked to each other).

        Like I said, it’s just my honest opinion. Yes, I watched the series entirely, but again, I thought it would get better, and it just didn’t. Hell, if Kanade got resurrected by a new relic, that would probably have given us a new perspective, because she would have to deal with Hibiki as her new partner, as well as re-working with Tsubasa, she could have gotten a new set of powers that would be compatible with her and for god’s sake, it would definitely have improved Tsubasa’s character, who was just bland and narrow-minded. Everything could have worked nicely if Kanade was still in the picture.

        JiCi
        Reply

      2. And I have a right to find your raging hard-on for a character who barely had any relevance to the story ridiculous. Deal with it. It also doesn’t change the fact that you are still making more supposition.

        Hibiki’s powers were practically a plot point. Hibiki was the first of a kind unlike any other, which is why she’s has more potential than the others. That’s all that was needed to be told. But apparently you can’t seem to accept simple explanation like that. And yes she did have a reason to fight: Her near death experience led her to altruistic outlook to save others. Its cliched and derivative because Symphogear is a show that glorified these kinds of cliches.

        A swan song isn’t lethal. Its an attack that pushes ones limits. Its just that Kanade’s poor compatibility that kills her because she pushed herself too hard to protect Hibki. That’s it. Don’t try to make stuff up that the official word has already established.

        fragb85
        Reply

    2. Yeah, I never really cared much for Hibiki; way too Naruto-ish with her looks, attitude, and sudden power-ups/owning of enemies. Hell, even her berserker mode screams “Naruto 4-tailed state”. I really just watched for Kanade (><*) and Tsubasa, and later Kurisu, lol.

      And I kept wondering what the point of Kanade was besides (mental) emotional support for Tsubasa since they just killed her off in the first episode without us even getting to know her at all. We got a couple small pieces of her past, but that's it. And all that really established was how similar she was to Hibiki in the relic sense. Considering she was showcased up front so much beforehand, it really was quite a gip.

      Agreed on Ryoko and Miku.

      Same with story…they could've at least made it longer (which could've also allowed a change in the characters too to like you mentioned), with the Noise fighting being one arc and THEN the relic-discovering next after we figured out the whole Noise thing and resolved it. This way both of them could've gotten a lot more development and info learned about them. Instead, the Noise were regulated to being little more than blobby, grunt nuisances rather than the world-threatening force they were made out to be in episode 1.

      We rarely got to see much of them in their regular lives either. Just a few moments here or there that were mostly the same thing (Hibiki with Miku and friends, Tsubasa in her own mind, and such). We didn't get to see a whole lot of personal background on them, so it makes it tricky to really connect with them in any way. And the whole thing with Tsubasa being recruited to sing overseas never went anywhere. Not even some sort of hidden plot by another country or anything. Just…there and then…gone…and never revisited…

      I wouldn't say it's a bad show, but it definitely had a lot of potential that could've been executed much better.

      HalfDemonInuyasha
      Reply

      1. Hibiki was your classical “athletic girl” in anime, easily brought over to America for easy dubbing. See Cardcaptor Sukura for the trope. The redheaded boss who fought the Noise with mere martial arts was actually the most interesting character of the show. He added a new look to the stereotypical “magical girl” show. The same for him As for Finé taking over a researcher because of her bloodline and then desiring to blow up the Moon in revenge for the ancient Tower of Babel….boring. Why not explain the Noise as interdimensional, or advance the status quo by some other means? Hibiki not dying in the final episode with Chris and Tsubasa? Why? So another series can be made?

        6.5 out of 10

        jhpace1
        Reply

    3. -Hibiki is intolerable
      Speak for yourself, many of us love her because she is a good person and that matter most than anything mistake. I happy because they survive because they are good people and this matter more to me

      Kitsu
      Reply

    4. Well said JiCi, could not agree more. I’ve stood by this point about Kanade and that the show should have been about Kanade and Tsubasa from the beginning as well and that definitely hasn’t changed after watching the crap fest the show became ever since the first episode’s “troll”.

      Plus, the entire “swan song” thing was a freaking first ep troll too. Basically it cost the show it’s most promising character and then was conveniently subverted pretty much every single time making that opening episode’s use of it completely ridiculous (and a troll set up) and a BS way of writing out the only intriguing character in the show. Heck, the brief flashback about her past even when she was already dead(!) still was more interesting and, just as importan, involving than Hibiki’s (and the other main girls’) entire storyline, not to mention Kanade had better chemistry and more lively and interesting interactions with Tsubasa and Genjuro etc. in basically one episode and a flashback than boring/annoying Hibiki had with the entire cast in a whole 13 episodes.

      DangerMouse
      Reply

  13. You’ve never watched a mecha influenced magical girl show? What about Nanoha?
    I’m not quite sure about the curse of “Balal” either, but there are some other references to a curse from a god that takes away mankind’s unified language. One example can be found in the Shin Megami Tensei games (more specifically, the first Devil Survivor game for the DS).

    Laziness
    Reply

  14. I would have liked it if Hibiki did died in a tragic way. It sucks that the opening scene of the first episodes was just a troll. Well I’m glad I dropped it after 4 episodes. I was still curious enough to see how it ended, but I guess that sucked then.

    Julio
    Reply

  15. God. This show… If it wasn’t for this blog, I would have forgotten to watch the last episode already. This by itself already showed that this show failed.

    I got a huge facepalm when Hibiki carried Finee to her companions, only to have Finee betraying them and draw her last bits of strength to draw parts of the moon to Earth… because for the whole time I was wondering how Hibiki will die, and they gave the lamest reason for it.

    Then it turned out that she did NOT die. Double facepalm.

    There are still many things which are unanswered. I think the biggest one is how a guy who sleeps, eats, and watches movies can have strength on-par with one with Symphogear. It’s almost as if they wanted to keep it for a sequel.

    Anyway, I would say this show is passable for a watch, but I probably wouldn’t recommend it to anyone.

    suff
    Reply

  18. I watched the show until the very end and I did enjoy watching it for pass time sake. The battles were always great to watch.
    Aside from an all time favorite of mine, Nana Mizuki, Kurisu’s songs were a pleasant surprise and in my opinion one of the best character songs in the show. Love me some hard rock.
    The thing about this show, though, was that the first episode basically was the highlight of the show. I liked it, but after the first episode I felt let down. My expectations for the show, from the preview and cast, were higher.

    Nabi
    Reply

  19. Not killing the trio puts a franchise (a-la Nanoha)in the horizon: for Yuuki Aoi to escape of the Madoka Magica Curse, for Nana Mizuki to do what she do better (singing), more Genjuurou being Genjuurou, and the fact that we’ve only seen 4 relics up to now from different cultures – Ame no Habakiri (Japan), Gungir (Scandinavia), Ichii Bal (Middle East, I think) and the demonic one.

    SeedStriker
    Reply

  20. I loved watching this Show. i admit, the Singing Force hooked me up. Because with Sound and Music you can create Emotions, they have Power

    I hoped for an Trine Combine power Attack. Where Hibiki and Tsubassa and Chriss would Synchrony in their Song, where everyone “tops” the other. a Song that build up from “Power up” the Tune/Song

    How i explain, they sing in exact same Speed, same Phrase. But they pitch their voice above the other. So, with the “Pitching” the “Song” build up Strength.

    Well, perhaps they can use this Idea for Future Productions. Or an Live Concert.

    Glad i saw this Show.

    Germanguy
    Reply

    1. or Hibiki, sing a Slower speed. Where Tsubasa sings with her, but Doubles speed, and Chriss triples the Speed

      All of them should sing different Phrases, but it should sound like if they combine it into one

      I know, its hard to explain. But hey, you like formidable challenge? 🙂 You have one 🙂

      Germanguy
      Reply

  21. So, I don’t know if anyone’s already answered this, but here’s my take on the curse of “Balal.” I’ve only watched the series with subs, so if I get some of the finer points wrong, please understand!

    As far as I can tell, the curse of “Balal” seems most close to the concept of the tower of Babel in the Bible. In the book of Genesis, the first people (and some Bible scholars would argue the first Babylonians) had established a civilization that prospered greatly with technology and engineering skills that were unparalleled up to that point in time. The biggest clue is here: “Now, the whole world had one language and a common speech.” (NIV, Genesis 11:1). A clue inside the anime is that Fine refers to “Balal” as the Creator, and if it is indeed the case that Fine’s supposed lover is the Creator himself and the one who was responsible for the dispersing of language, then the biblical perspective makes more sense, as in the traditional telling of the story of the Tower of Babel, the people grew arrogant and attempted to build a city with a “tower that reaches to the heavens.” (Genesis 11:4) God is not pleased about this “gauntlet in the face” attitude by the people and confuses their language, so that “they will not understand each other.” (Genesis 11:7). All of this is in line with the claims made in the series by Fine that should the curse of Balal fall (represented here by the Moon), then all people will speak the same language again.

    My other idea is that Fine is essentially a personalization of the ideal of “wisdom” as portrayed in the book of Proverbs, and I really don’t have that much proof for it, except that Fine states in one episode that she was with the Creator at the start of his works, and that she was the “first of his creations.” This is remarkably similar to some passages in the book of Proverbs: “The Lord brought me forth as the first of his works, before his deeds of old… I was there when he set the heavens in place, when he marked out the horizon on the face of the deep… Then I was the craftsman at his side…” (Proverbs 8:22-30).

    I guess the rationale behind the Moon as a symbolism for the curse of confusion (of languages) is that the Tower of Babel was meant to reach to the heavens, and one common interpretation of this in pseudo-history is that the tower of Babel was actually a project to “connect” the earth and the moon. Naturally, this is somewhat of an absurd claim, but the imagery is there – what better to represent the futility of “trying to reach the heavens” than the Moon itself? The Kadingir attempts to undo this imagery of futility (and in the case of the anime, physically so), and it is interesting that Kadingir is a Sumerian word that can be translated into “The Gateway of the Gods” or “Gateway through which one can reach God.” All of this seems to support the idea that the Balal mythos set up in the anime is based upon a biblical concept, with a heavy dash of pseudo-history, science fiction, ridiculous plot management, and a bit of awesomeness, and so, perhaps the entire conflict is a representation on screen of the human futility of reaching god-hood – a concept that is relatively common in the Shinto religion. Kami may very well be interacted with, but the realm of man, is for man.

    There you have it. Something for you to think about/discuss. Enjoy.

    wasting_time_productively
    Reply

  22. Was hoping we would see more about Genjuro and Fine before the series ended. In episode 11 during the fight he seemed to imply that he was far from human and could stand up to the noise without a symphogear, just as Ryoko/Fine could with her weird shield ability etc. So I was hoping they would expand on that but it never happened.

    EroThraX
    Reply

  23. alright then yea i guess all is ok yea we get happy ending.

    everyone is wow cause hibiki, tsubasa, & chris are back with power-up super mode.
    oh they also develop mind saying so fine release the noises of kraken army.
    cue chris riding the infinite justice jetpack blasting, tsubasa’s bigger sword, & hibiki punch beam.
    equal squash all the noise but fine gut slash self to combine all noise & sword.
    to a giant red viper that blast a city.
    now triple team attack with distract to give hibiki the sword even pushing by chris’ gun.
    sword grab & with everyone support the viper been slayed by synchogazer slash!!!
    after fight hibiki carrying & trying reason fine then here come last boss.
    aka fine just pulled the moon piece to fall onm earth.
    yea after some fine saying just one soft tap punch by hibiki on fine give some wake-up saying.
    ryoko within fine came back with little finger touch & believe in the song of your heart.
    so now hibiki flying to stop moon piece with tsubasa & chris to join as well.
    cue bigger sword, endless missile, & hibiki launching boom moon piece & miku crying.
    fast forward back to crying miku on hibiki’s grave hear trouble & oh remains of noise.
    look like oh no but surprise they’re back & ok yes miku you can leap jump grab hibiki now.
    finally hibiki & miku get their meteor watching shower indeed THE END.

    well now it all done give indeed this what we get combine madoka, nanoha, singing, chris the human gundam, xenosaga, genjuro-akuma, etc & yes yuri lesbian on it overall ok then now is ok all worth some watching now let wonder a dub version on it?

    MAR-KLAC-VELOUS DE-KLAC-CADE
    Reply

  24. Every scene seemed to try and one-up the scene prior. My suspension of disbelief was hung so high this episode it’s gonna take a while to come back down.

    For me, Symphogear was never really a favourite of mine. Nana Mizuki voice/ singing is great, but I’m not a huge fan of Hibiki’s voice/ singing in general. Add in an(almost) all female cast + yuri vibes, and this isn’t my cup of tea. Fighting and singing at the same time never really clicked for me. But nonetheless, it was enjoyable.

    One thing I would have liked to see was Kanade play a larger role, rather than being merely a flashback character.

    Kentaiyoshimi
    Reply

  26. Yeay! Happy Yuri ending!! (But… where’s my kiss between Miku and Hibiki!? C’mon writters!!)

    Symphogear is far from perfect, but I liked it a lot. The characters are charming. The action is good. The music is fantastic. The writting is… confusing. Has some QUALITY here and there. I can live with that.
    About the writting, well, cutting the lenght of the show in half and giving the writters a week to rewritte all, must have taken its toll in the script. Its sad, isnt?

    This need a remake, with more budget and with the proper lenght!! (Fatest remake ever! Yeay! :P)

    rincewind
    Reply

  28. FINALLY watch the episode last night. I have to agree this show should have been longer to explain the mythos they are using and taken that time to expand on the characters and other elements, or explained it earlier in the series and simplified it.

    It was fun but sadly forgettable series. Out of the single season series this winter BRS, Highschool DXD (Build on that great ending) and Another stood out for me.

    Ani_BEE
    Reply

  30. I have a feeling that our 3 heroines and the whole schoolgirls have accidentally discovered the “one true” language. “Song” is the one true language. The magical powers of Songs revived Chris and Tsubasa; recharge + power-up all 3 symphogear users; and gave them mind-reading one another. This seems like hints to me. May be the writer should proclaim it and make it over the top plot. (^^)

    nsync
    Reply

  31. Otsukaresama everyone. It was pretty entertaining while it lasted. The finale was indeed ridiculous, but since the whole show never tried to make itself look very serious, I actually find it quite enjoyable. This anime would belong to my “I’ve started watching it so I’m obliged to watch through”-list and it’s good that I don’t regret watching it 🙂

    On the other hand, I heard from Japanese sources that this anime exist for the sake of selling Elements Garden’s songs (and after visiting the official website I am inclined to believe so). If that’s really the case, however, I don’t think that Symphogear is successful in that aspect. First of all, plot-wise, music did not seem to be given that much attention to. Well, there were speeches about how music connects people’s heart and such. I like how they tried to present the concept of music as universal language, but it’s not well-executed unfortunately. And then there’s the issue about the the music itself; except Nana’s and Zwei Wings’ songs, and perhaps the ED, other songs were pretty mediocre. Not to say that the music was tasteless, but I expected better.

    Jellyfish Marine
    Reply

  32. Unsatisfying seems so to me as well.
    I just have to think that I’m watching a ‘Super Robot’ type instead of a ‘Real Robot’ type 😛

    Finé in the genetic level reminds me of Sadako.

    iron2000
    Reply

  33. Ehh, I’m rather lukewarm for this show. The concept was interesting enough with the background info we were given, but then after a while the show went nowhere until the last three episodes, and when you only have a one-cour show, it’s best to make use of the little time you have to actually tell a story. The show also didn’t seem like it knew what it wanted to be, as it bounced back and forth between lighthearted and serious too often, so much that I wasn’t even certain whether I should take the “serious” parts seriously. The only characters that are passably fleshed out enough are the main girls, the rest of the background characters suffer and don’t have much use unless the plot demands it. And even then, the main girls are not very memorable or unique, making them feel like carbon copies of characters from some better show.

    Overall not as satisfying as it promised it would be. Lots of potential that was never used and shown the light of day. Good for a casual watch but not something you should expect to get invested in.

    Donyo
    Reply

  34. I was also pretty disappointed. The first episode promised a lot, but in the end none of the following episodes delivered the same intensity. I also haven’t been able to really understand what our villainess was all about. Many parts just seem so random and confusing to me. And yes, I do feel somewhat trolled, and not in a good way.

    In the end, I personally wouldn’t recommend this show to anyone. Pretty generic, with a few interesting concepts, which they however fail to really use well. I’ll probably have forgotten all about it in a year myself. There are many better shows one can watch. Pretty forgetable overall.

    Zreon
    Reply

  35. I gotta say…Tsubasa kicks ass. Not only did she survived 2 swan songs she survived a 3rd with much more force! WOOT! I knew there’s a reason why I was attracted to Tsubasa character!

    shamaticgrl
    Reply

  36. So disappointed with such a rather promising show with an awesomely made episode 1 , still nice to watch but if they get a budget that allow them to make it run longer, maybe we will not have such a hasty and not heart fulfilling ending… And seriously Hibiki is annoying….

    Tingster
    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *