MatthewOfDuncan

Some context as to the kind of media consumer I am before I continue: I consider myself a sort of Anton Ego when it comes to media and I take a very, "if I don't love it, I don't swallow" kind of approach to the things I consume, which is something I'm not really proud of and I wish I could let myself enjoy more things and not complain about them. So the fact that I finished this series makes me very proud of myself and it speaks volumes to the quality of this show.

I was convinced to watch this by a friend who has been a long-time fan of the Fate series, and while we see eye-to-eye on just about everything when it comes to video games, shows, etc., I just could not find myself getting super invested in this.

The best way I could describe this is that it feels like your run-of-the-mill "cookie-cutter" anime. And while there are many many things about this show that put it well above the average anime, at its very core, it still feels like something that came out of an anime factory.

So sorry Fate fans but even though I ended up liking this more than I disliked it in the end, I think I'll be okay with keeping my viewership of this series limited to this for now.

I discovered this mini-series on a whim after I came across a clip from it on TikTok. Although the clip was just 8 seconds or so, I was instantly pulled in by the art style and the animation. I don't know why studios in the US today continue to shy away from animation like this because I must say, American animators were cooking in the 90's/early 2000's.

I feel like this is one of those shows where people will either "get it" or "not really get it." But no matter which side I think you'd fall on. This show is an absolute must-watch for fans of animation or fans of art in general.

At the time I viewed this, I was really going through some things, and I continue to go through things, but this show made "going through it" seem okay, and in fact almost necessary.

If I had to describe this show in one word, it would be "real". This show keeps it real. It's a show about broken people going through broken people things, simple as that. While there have been many pieces of media that explore the concept of "brokenness" none have spoken to me like this one has.

Okay, I'm not going to sugar coat it, this game is astronomically hard. In fact, it should be illegal to make a game this hard and not include an "easy mode." However, this is also one of the reasons why this game so dang satisfying to beat. So many people think that giving players more freedom and power makes a great game, and in many cases, this is true, but not with this game. When I played through this game my first time, I couldn't believe how difficult it was. I'd consider myself a pretty cool-headed fellow, but there were countless times where this game made my blood boil. However, once I finally beat the game and started it over, I couldn't believe that I was playing the same game. I was beating enemies significantly faster, and I was dying significantly less. It was as if an "easy mode" had been turned on, but it wasn't because of the game, it was all because of me; because of MY skill, MY finesse. Now THAT'S power to the player; THAT'S freedom of play.

P.S. Pro-tip, if you're playing this game like dark souls and bloodborne, you're doing it wrong.