11eyes / First Impressions

「友と明日のために barátoknak, holnapra」 (Tomo to Asu no Tame ni)
“For Friends and the Future”

After watching Kakeru run away for four episodes, I was starting to wonder when the poor guy will ever awaken his ability. He may have been hotheaded at first, but his frustration is justified at this point. Luckily that all changes now; Kakeru awakens, along with his Eye of Aeon.

Considering that Kakeru’s character growth all happened in this one episode, all his previous development felt kind of moot. All it really took was Misuzu telling him not be blinded by his desire to protect Yuka and take in his surroundings better. That, and remaining calm. Sounds fairly straightforward, but I did like her method of teaching him this — slip on a handkerchief in battle and you’re dead. Seeing how Kakeru’s been taking Misuzu’s words of wisdom to heart, I think the biggest sigh of relief I can take away is that he’s not a stupid, stubborn protagonist. This seems like a fairly common theme nowadays, but I’m not a big fan of watching the idiot character mature into someone with common sense. Kakeru may have a one-track mind, but he thinks rationally in situations and knows when other people are right. Because of that, I was happy to see him regain his composure during the battle with Ira, awaken his Eye of Aeon, and finish the Black Knight off.

The other highlight was the proper introduction of Tachibana Kukuri, whose appearance before Kakeru and Yuka was more anticlimactic than I was expecting. Sure there was the whole shock factor, but the two of them quickly accepted that she just looks like Kakeru’s deceased sister and happens to have the same name. News to me though was the fact that Kukuri can’t talk, making Rikumaru Noriko‘s job voicing her a lot easier I bet. As for the hot school doctor Akamine Saiko (Takahashi Chiaki), I definitely didn’t see her being a former bike gang member, even though it explains her menacing stares. More so than that, she turns out to be Takahisa’s guardian, having taken him in off the streets during her gangster days. I guess that explains why they get along so “well”.

Story-wise, Shiori’s role in all this is still fairly unclear. For now, she just seems content with hanging out with our side characters Natsuki Kaori (Mizuhashi Kaori) and Tadashi Teruya (Nemoto Kouta). (I think this is the first time I’ve mentioned their names and seiyuus.) In the Red Night though, two of the six Black Knights are down and Kakeru is having spasms because of his newly awakened powers. Much like we’ve seen before, his Eye of Aeon 「劫の眼」 gives him the ability to see into the future, which translates into obvious benefits in battle. In addition, it’s hinted that the eye provides him with the memories of its previous owners, including a king of a ruined country named Verard (Bifu Hitoshi), whom Kakeru’s dreams have been linked to. I may not sound totally enthused, but I’m actually quite pleased with how the story is unfolding. The ultimate mystery of course is the Red Night, which I don’t expect to be explained until the end, so I’m pretty much hooked on the plot alone. Next time, it looks like Kakeru’s awakening is taking a toll on his body, judging by the ritual that Misuzu’s performing and the kanji for “life” on her hand.

 

Preview

19 Comments

  5. I still can’t help but think that everything about this anime is generic. Everything from the lifeless seiyuu to the lifeless plot. Yeah it does have a plot but its just so drawn out that its not even staying afloat anymore. If I had to compare this to anything, I would have to put it on the same level as the half-baked bankrupted hentai Black Gate. The acting is just as bad & the fight scenes are even worse.

    Its getting better, barely. But I still would have preferred it as a 5 or 6 episode hentai OVA than this garbage. At least that would been a better excuse for the monotone seiyuu group. But I do have to say that they fit this anime perfectly – so you know what I’m saying about the anime in general. The only thing that’s saving this from “0” is Kakeru. If they would have made him into an angsty bastard, this anime would be trash.

    Megas
    Reply

  7. Barátoknak, holnapra
    For friends, by tomorrow
    From the japanese title, I think they most likely wanted to say “For tomorrow, with friends” (Barátokkal a holnapért) or something like that…
    By the way… His Eye of Aeon grants him speed, power, sharp edge for swords, and even foresight? Now that’s a really overpowered eye.
    Well, even if it’s weaker (or stronger in some sense) i’m still voting for Glam Sight.

    ps. Tachibana Kukuri has the same face, and the same name with Kakeru’s sister, and even he accepted that they are two different people? Ok, that’s japanese logic for ya…

    Linzermaster
    Reply

  8. @ Linzermaster’s ps:

    Its called being stupid for the sake of plot continuation. But that really is Japanese logic for ya 😛 Almost like how my brother filled in for me at work one day. We’re the same height, have the same face, hair style, etc & he’s 3 years younger than me – but that doesn’t really matter anymore since I’m nearly 50 now. We just don’t have the same name. An anime character will be dumb enough to call ‘shit’ ‘ice cream’ for the sake of plot continuation 😛

    Megas
    Reply

  10. kwantum0:
    Actually, I’ve been losing some sleep again because of it, but the passion/drive is back. After people didn’t mind my HnG2 blogging format, Omni gave me the vote of confidence to blog however I see fit, so I’ve opted to get rid of the dedicated summary section that I’ve always loathed writing.

    Instead, I fold a summary in the writeup when I see fit (which has surprisingly been pretty often). Doing so has made blogging a lot more enjoyable and a lot quicker. I get to go on a train of thought and just run with it. Editing is what actually eats up the most time now (and I’ve still been sloppy with it).

    That said, I still have a full-time job, but am able to write a bit in the office when it’s not busy. If not for that, there’s no way I’d be able to cover this many shows.

    Linzermaster:
    Yeah, that would be Misuzu’s Kannagiri Nagamitsu.

    divine
    Reply

  13. Did not think the doctor would get development. That was rather nice.

    I’m actually more interested in the stuff we see when Kakeru’s unconscious in the medieval-like kingdom.

    garfield15
    Reply

  15. @ Megas

    Ok, this is totally off topic but you’re almost 50?! That’s amazing. I know there are 30 year olds who is into anime but I never knew there are even older people who into it.

    Anyway, back on topic. They did not do that good of a job with the fight between Kakeru and Ira. It’s too quick. Jump and slice… done.

    @ BROOKLYN otaku
    Really? I actually love that eyepatch. Perhaps there’s something wrong with me then…

    Silver
    Reply

  18. So this nurse is someone they have at most fleeting contact with, yet she happily gives them a five minute introduction to her life? It was true by episode three, but now it is set in stone: I’m just watching this to get the plot.

    Grant
    Reply

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