Granbelm First Impressions

“This is a type of illusionary world. It was created by Magiaconatus.”

Judging Granbelm on the merits of its first episode is rather difficult as it seems primarily focused on showing off its action. There is certainly a decent amount of drama going on in the background of that action, but, without context, it’s little more than background noise. I’ve definitely seen worse in terms of opening episodes providing context or an understanding of the overarching narrative, but the core issue remains the same. I can’t tell if this show is going to be good or not without first understanding what this show is. If you want a modicum of predictive analysis, it looks like Granbelm will at least be okay. The dialogue isn’t terrible, the exposition kinda is, and the action is nuts. Anything beyond that, I may as well be consulting the oracle at Delphi.

Granbelm starts off with our main character, Kohinata Mangetsu, returning to her school to pick up a bento box she had left there. However, she begins hearing whispering and finds herself in another world where large mecha are engaged in combat. Two of the mecha remain engaged in combat while two more begin searching through the ruins of this mysterious world for Kohinata. This carries on for a while. There is a decent amount of dialogue between the two combatants, and I suspect this is that occasional type of first episode where a lot of what is going on will make more sense once you’ve watched the entire series. All we know is the girl in the purple mech that looks a little like chibi Eva Unit-01 is the enemy of the other three, and those three are in something of a loose alliance that involves substantial disdain for one another. Eventually, the Unit-01 pilot, Shingetsu Ernesta Fukami, is able to rescue Kohinata and explains to her that magic used to exist on Earth but a thousand years ago seven sages sealed away the powers of magic to protect the planet. Now their descendants fight for… some reason. They didn’t get to that, and it was around this point that I was, in all seriousness, checking to make sure that I hadn’t gotten roped into reviewing a Fate spinoff. Afterwards, a fight breaks out again, and Kohinata is forced to summon her mech, chibi-Escaflowne.

The production for this series is handled by Nexus. I didn’t even remember Nexus, but evidently they were the ones behind the production of Chivalry of a Failed Knight. The only other series they have produced were two 4-koma adaptations. I’m starting to think that this summer is the season of relatively unknown studios showing they can animate just as well as the big boys. That’s not to say there aren’t hiccups here and there. The episode relies a little too heavily on color filters. It isn’t distracting (or painful like GoHands’ works are), but it was enough for me to notice. There was also a moment of particularly odd foreshortening that did stick in my memory. Despite those gripes, this is much better than I’d have expected from the studio behind Chivalry of a Failed Knight. I’m not a big fan of the designs of the mechs as they come across as squat and small, hence my references to them being “chibi,” but they do succeed in being distinctive.

Before I wrap up, a few Notes and Nitpicks:

• The bit where Kohinata asks Shingetsu whether she’s in an isekai and the idea is immediately rejected is cute.
• Man, this really isn’t a kind comparison, but after referencing GoHands it occurred to me that there are more than a few similarities between this and W’z. I mean, we’re thrown headfirst into a complicated battle in an alternate landscape involving people we know little about… I guess this goes to illustrate what a difference good dialogue and not looking like glass shards in your eyes can make.
• The show doesn’t even make the stakes clear. It seems that if a character’s mech is destroyed then they begin regenerating it, but the details are vague. More importantly, I still have no idea why they’re fighting. It’s probably to control the world’s magic or become the king of the pirates, but this is one of the circumstances where a couple cryptic lines at the beginning like, “‘Who ever controls the Magiaconatus, controls the world…’ – – Benjamin Franklin,” would have been appreciated.
• I’m really torn on my scoring here. Part of me wants to give this episode a lower rating, but I was never annoyed by it. It was just okay, and that’s what I’m giving it, a thoroughly okay rating.
• Has the Fate franchise had a mecha spinoff yet? I’d be surprised if the answer was, “No.”