“Mikumo Osamu’s Ability”


「三雲修の実力」 (Mikumo Osamu no Jitsuryoku)

Ah, Toei Animation. Where to begin…

I did say in my first World Trigger post that I wouldn’t try and focus on the quality of art and animation that we have in this adaptation, but that’s proving difficult when we’re given an episode like this. For me, this was the worst of the three so far for visuals. Not only was there severely uninspired artwork throughout, but many shots lasted uncomfortably long; which resulted in an uncomfortable watch, for the most part

It does disappoint when you really enjoy the source material of a series and then it’s given a sub-par adaptation. It happens all too often, and World Trigger is another one of those cases. That being said, this is still early stages, and I do wonder what Toei’s plan for World Trigger is in the long run. Is this going to be ongoing like they are used to doing with anime originally from Weekly Shonen Jump? I really hope not, because not only is there not near enough manga chapters to do something like that, but if this is the quality we have right now, I fear for what we’ll have if we don’t have an eventual stopping point in the horizon. As a massive fan of the manga I want to be as optimistic as possible, but this is Toei Animation we have here…

Ah, deep breaths. Okay, the episode wasn’t all that. In fact, the fight scene with Yuma and the Marmods was probably the best animated sequence we’ve seen so far – which makes it a even more frustrating to think that the whole episode could be animated with that quality. Either way, the action was on point and Yuma yet again proves himself, despite using Osamu’s purposefully weakened C-Rank trigger this time around.

We also got a mixed bag of exposition this week. The hints between Osamu and Chika early on were done quickly and fairly effectively, highlighting that she has something to do with him training to become a Border agent in the first place. I personally can’t wait to see more of Chika in the near future; she’s probably my favourite character of the series and manages to impress a hell of a lot. As for poor exposition, I would point towards the explanation of how Yuma has more Trion at his disposal than Osamu, therefore allowing him to fight to a greater extent. There may have been lingering still shots throughout the three episodes so far, but I think this one takes the cake for how overly simple and unexciting it was.

Once the action is over though we find that Yuma – in his attempt to keep his identity hidden – has pinned it all on Osamu after using his Trigger to do the job. It shocks the classmates, who were not even aware that Osamu was a Border agent in the first place, and leaves Osamu in an awkward place where he can’t exactly tell the truth without selling out Yuma for who he really is.

Then comes in the Arashiyama Unit, arriving fashionably late. Here we finally have some A-rank Border agents that you’ll be seeing more of. Arashiyama Jun (Okamoto Nobuhiko) and Kitora Ai (Hanazawa Kana) are the two we get the best first impressions of this episode: a chirpy powerhouse, and your classic Tsundere with power to back it up. They may not be the most creative archetypes, but they’ll prove themselves as fun characters down the line (even if we have so many more characters to introduce!)

To round it off I should say that these adapted chapters are probably my least favourite of the series, so I’m not entirely surprised that this episode didn’t leave much of a positive impression on me. That being said, going by online reaction that I’m seeing, it appears people generally liked this episode most of the three. I’d be really interested to see what you all thought of this episode, whether you’re a fan of the manga or not. Do you agree with me, or do you think this was the best of the bunch so far?

Looking forward to next week though, it seems that we might get some better animation as we have an episode that will almost entirely focus on the feisty Kitora Ai. That should be good fun!

 

 

Information Digest:

Synopsis:

  • Four and a half years ago, a gate to another world appeared in Mikado City. From the gate the Neighbours appeared to wreck havoc.
  • But the mysterious Border defence agency arrived to fight back against the alien invaders, allowing the city’s residents to live their lives normally again.

Previously:

  • After taking out the Bamster and learning more about the difference between Neighbours and Trion Soldiers, Osamu and Yuma get to spend more time together.
  • But before long a group of Marmod Trion Soldiers somehow appear at school – despite being within the Forbidden Zone!


 

Details Digest:

Chapters Covered:

  • Chapters 4 – 6 p.12

Arashiyama Unit:

  • Arashiyama Jun (19), Commanding Officer – A goofball who loves his siblings.
  • Kitori Ai (15), Unit Member – The Tsundere Queen
  • Tokeida Mitsuru (16), Unit Member – The sensible one with the bored expression.

C-Rank Trigger:

  • We learn that C-Rank Triggers like that which Osamu uses are meant only for training and not for outside combat. There are clear limitations depending on what rank each Border agent is.

Preview

23 Comments

  1. I agree with you about the even-more-than-usual awkward animation this episode, especially that moment when Replica was explaining to Osamu how Yuma had more trion than him. I mean honestly? That could have been wrapped up in about half the time they spent explaining it if they didn’t flat line the speaker at the beginning and end of that sequence so they could expand/deflate the trion weapons the two people were holding.

    Zero
  2. I agree with you the animation was all over the place and it probably doesn’t help that I watched Fate/Stay Night right before watching this it’s pretty jarring to say the least. I will keep watching because I am still overall enjoying the story and characters I just hope it gets at least a little better as far as visuals go.

    PaladinJoe
  3. I completely disagree here. This was a very nice episode. Animation quality has improved a lot since the first episode. The battle scenes were pretty cool, actually. Not perfect, of course, but good enough for me.

    André
    1. I’m glad you enjoyed it – I’ve seen people saying they did like this episode the most so that’s why I was curious if anyone else on here felt the same. Either way, I hope next week’s episode proves to be the best yet.

      Samu
      1. The animation outside the battle was still pretty bad, but the battle sequence was pretty well made. At least for me, this is why I liked this episode. I’m also more confident about the rest of the series because if future battles look like this, they’ll be good enough for me.

        Also, the plot and characters are still great, so even with mediocre animation, World Trigger is still a good show.

        And maybe I’m getting used to the crappy animation and somewhat awkward directing.

        André
  4. Chenji Za Nyuu Waadu!!
    (Change the New World)

    I can’t get over the op.
    As far as the episode, it is really taking its time explaining things. Looks like the strict “follow the rules till death” girl is voiced by the MC of Psycho-Pass herself…

    Anon
  5. Watching this series makes me recall the good ol’ days in the 90’s (with the various animations from Japan getting dubbed with local languages). If there’s any noteworthy direct comparison, it’s either GaoGaiGar or The original Sailor Moon for me.

    In other words, there’s better be some noteworthy overarching plot that requires animation of this consistency. (Even though we still need the explanations…) Forgot this was a LN adaption…derp.

    ps. HanaKana being (in a) serious (role)? Finally!

    info600
    1. The most important scenes in any Shounen. Case and Point: One Piece.
      At the same time, they like to…. shit on every other scene that is not important, as to allocate time and budget.

      Anon Royale
  6. Osamu’s face… urgh, I just can’t take him seriously. Not to mention he’s been extremely nagging.

    Btw, why does everyone seem to have neon-green or magenta/red eyes?

    Petit Orenji
  7. I liked the episode, though the animation just makes me sad. The story hasn’t disappointed me yet, and I feel that this will be a series that takes time to get to the good stuff, so I have rather high hopes. But the animation just makes me want to sigh. By the way, thanks for the information at the side of the post. While there isn’t that much to remember now, I expect that to be really helpful in the future when all those new characters start appearing.

    ZJZJ
  8. I just found this site, and I think your reviews are great! It’s nice to find reviews from another fan of the manga, and I really like the little details you’ve put on the side. I don’t have much expectations for the quality myself (Toei shounen manga adaptation + Sunday 6.30am slot so high chance of longrunner = so budget) so I guess my feelings right now is that it could be worse? There’s no episode next (this) week though, because of women’s soccer sadly.

    Chippokenabokura
  9. oh god classic fucking Toei haha…

    i read the manga , i was excited when i knew that there was going to be an adaptation, then i saw.. it was.. TOEI… lol i said FUCK… oh well lets give it a try

    i dropped this shit after episode 1 lol… i just come here and read if the quality have improved and i saw that sadly.. it have not..

    defc
  10. To be frank, didn’t expect World Trigger to be this shitty (the only TOEI i know of is Warriors Orochi), and it’s nice to see that others hold the same opinion of the anime as well.

    (Dat time when they transform using fireworks though… just a waste of the fucking budget…)

    sachiotakli
  11. I’m a manga reader too, and I quite liked this episode better than the others. I did notice the long pauses during Replica’s explanation and thought that was disappointing too. However I’m loving the extra content/foreshadowing Toei is putting in. They’ve really got the voice actors working pretty much perfectly. Arashiyama and Kitora are just how I would have imagined. And of course the fight was nice, and the more comedic parts done towards the end was good ^-^

    thestormfall

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