Classic fantasy series brought to life.
I’m not going to lie, I did not know what the hell The Heroic Legend of Arslan was before the end of 2015. I’ve never even remotely heard about it until Omega Force announced their new Warriors spin-off in the form of Arslan: The Warriors of Legend. Omega Force’s Warriors game series is easily my favorite game series, so I decided to check out the anime for Arslan before ever jumping into the game.
While I have not yet done said jumping in, I have watched the show, and I must say, it’s very good. But for those not in the know, I feel like I should provide some background.
The Heroic Legend of Arslan, or as it’s known among Japanese fans Arslan Senki (Arslan War Records), is a fantasy light novel series written by Yoshiki Tanaka, who is also known for Legend of the Galactic Heroes.
The first book was published way back when in 1986, and is still
ongoing today, with the story encompassing fifteen books and counting.
The series took much inspiration from Cyrus the Great and other
historical figures from 6th Century BCE Persia.
These novels would go on to be adapted into both an OVA series (which I
have yet to watch) and a manga, which received its own ending. However,
later on, it would be adapted into a second manga, created by the great
Hiromu Arakawa (of Fullmetal Alchemist fame),
which would go on to be the most widely known version of the storyline.
This manga serves as the basis for the new TV series and Arslan: The Warriors of Legend.
With the backstory out of the way, what is The Heroic Legend of Arslan
actually about? The story follows Arslan, the Crown Prince of the
Kingdom of Pars, and his faithful knight companion Daryun, as their
kingdom is overtaken by the neighboring country of Lusitania. Arslan’s
father, King Andragoras III, falls victim to a plot set up by his most
trusted retainers, and is imprisoned, his country being overtaken by the
Lusitanians and a mysterious masked individual known simply as
“Silvermask”. From here on, Arslan and Daryun travel the country of Pars
to obtain allies in order to reclaim the capital.
So how does the series actually hold up? Well, it starts off pretty
chaotic. After a short sequence introducing the kingdom of Pars and
Arslan’s worldview on slavery and other important political matters, he
is thrust into his first battle at the young age of fourteen.
Unfortunately, shit hits the fan pretty quickly. The ensuing battle is
brutal as all hell, and actually resembles the final battle from the Spartacus TV
series quite well. It’s an intense opening to the series.
Unfortunately, after Arslan and Daryun successfully retreat from this
battle, the series begins to slow down immensely.
Much of the first half of the season is spent wandering around with
Arslan finding new allies, or questioning his own beliefs and whether or
not he is fit to rule Pars. While this does wonders for character and
world-building, unfortunately it feels like little progress is being
made in the overarching series.
Come to the end of the first half, however, and immediately series picks
right up. Action sequences are plenty, the plot -- while still
involving world and character building -- is far more involved, and gets
quite intense at several points. Hell, plot twists are everywhere, and
it’s at this point that you really begin to
enjoy the plot and its characters, because all the building led up to
this point. For a good third of the series, it was really slow-paced and
kind of dragged, but once you pass that, you’re in for a hell of a
ride.
Visually, if you liked Fullmetal Alchemist or Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood,
you’ll like the visuals in this. As they’re based on Hiromu Arakawa’s
artwork, the series looks mostly the same. However, animation-wise, this
series trumps both of those in all regards. Simple things such as
moving hands while speaking or trembling when scared are all animated
well, and the fights scenes are damn well animated (not at the level of
something like K-Project, mind you, but still very good).
Sound-wise, the music is good, works well enough, but not particularly
memorable. The only bit of music I remember is the jingle that plays at
the halfway point of the episode, but that’s it. Sound effects are about
what you’d expect from an anime about war, and it sounds great.
Voice-wise, the Japanese dub is great. However, the dub is hit-or-miss.
Characters like Arslan and Daryun sound great, but others like Narsus
and Gieve have one tone of voice that they use throughout. They’re both
good in their own right, however, and actually feature some of
Funimation’s more notable actors like Aaron Dismuke (Alphonse Elric),
Vic Mignogna (Edward Elric), Christopher Sabat (Vegeta/Piccolo), and
Jerry Jewell (Jimmy Kudo).
Overall, I won’t say much more about it aside from the fact that I do
recommend this series. It’s a good 25-episodes that’s definitely worth
watching. Plus, there’s an 8-episode second season that’s currently
airing right now, and is even being dubbed (premiering Aug. 3). So yeah,
do yourselves a favor and hit this one up.
+ Last 2/3 of the season is excellent.
+ Visuals and animation are great.
+ Daryun is a fucking badass.
- Soundtrack is not particularly memorable.
- English voice track is hit or miss.
- First 1/3 of the season really drags.
OVERALL RATING:
8/10
No comments:
Post a Comment