ARKNIGHTS: REIMEI ZENSOU

DESCRIPTION

CAST

SPECIAL ActionArknights Anime PVs
MUSIC ActionLast Of Me
MANGA ActionArknights Comic Anthology
MUSIC ActionEnd Like This
SPECIAL ActionHoly Knight Light
MANGA ComedyArknights: Operators!
ONA ComedyClosure no Kimitsu File
ONA ActionLee Shi Zhentan Shiwusuo
MUSIC ActionUntitled World
MUSICAin't Seen Nothing Like This
MANGA ActionLuode Dao Yuan Shi Jishi: Hei Gang
MANGA ActionA1 Xingdong Yubei Zu
MANGA DramaLuode Dao Yuan Shi Jishi: Lai Yin Shengming
MANGA Sci-FiLuode Chufang: Huigan
MANGA Comedy123 Luode Dao!?
MUSICRunning In The Dark
ANIME ActionArknights: Touin Kiro
MUSICEgao no Hanataba
MUSICDay By Day
MANGA AdventureXinshi Angelina Manyou Shouji
ONA ComedyXiaoke de Huatu Xie Hua
MUSICAshen
MANGA DramaXuyan Zuqu: Wuju Zouyin
MANGA ActionXuyan Zuqu: Li Jian Yin Feng
MANGA FantasyYiqi Chi Ge Fan Ba
ONA FantasyArknights Xin​chun Hui: Lili Kurong
SPECIAL ActionArknights: 2024 Tebie Jinian Donghua
ONA ActionShi Dao Zhe

REVIEWS

• 

  Mcsuper

  80/100
  Brilliantly adapted, but it's just the beginning

  Game adaptations or game advertisement anime have always been a mixed bag. Whether it’s terrible plot writing, boring worlds, or obvious pandering, game adaptations always are met with skepticism. However, Arknights: Prelude to Dawn is an example of one done with passion and love for the source material. I haven’t played Arknights myself, but I would imagine many Arknights players would be satisfied with this adaptation and loved how their favourite characters came to life. Of course, that isn’t to say that the entire eight episode run was flawless, as I did find a few parts rather heavy on exposition and a bit boring, but overall, it was quite a treat to watch, and one of the better shows to come out this season, in my opinion.

  STORY:

  The story wasn’t particularly unique, as these types of dystopian stories with diseases ravaging the population isn’t anything new. We see these stories in Hollywood movies all the time. That said, the world in Arknights is decently built, with different organizations having different morals surrounding Oripathy, and the treatment of the Infected. It would have done even better with just a bit more exposition, but what we got was quite sufficient. Obviously, this part of the story was probably the weakest part of the game, if I was to venture a guess, and that makes me all the more excited for what’s to come, if there are future seasons in the works.

  ART:

  It has a very cinematic feel, especially at the start. It felt vastly different to the anime I was used to watching, but slowly eased its way back to a more “anime style”. I really enjoyed the backgrounds and some of the fight scenes, and I thought the overall production was quite solid. Props to Yostar Pictures for doing quite the phenomenal job here.

  MUSIC:

  The OP and ED are quite fitting for the show and its darker themes, and the soundtrack itself is decent, but the music doesn’t get overplayed that it covers the eerieness of some of the scenes.

  CHARACTERS:

  The overall setup of the characters and their respective organizations was good, and some of the characters do stand out quite a bit. Amiya is your typical protagonist that tries to keep peace between the organizations, the doctor is a very good leader in battle, not necessarily someone I’d see as a self-insert, especially with how he/she is portrayed.

  ENJOYMENT:

  My thoughts for this was pretty consistently positive, with just one episode that was a bit underwhelming. I enjoyed it for the most part for sure. The production was good, and the world building was quite intriguing to see.

  THEMATIC EXECUTION:

  The dark themes were actually done quite well, along with the whole idea of discriminating against the Infected, along with the moral ambiguity. You feel for each side to a certain extent, which was certainly the goal here.

  OVERALL:

  A solid job by Yostar Pictures, and an adaptation that inspires hope if there are indeed future seasons of this, which I would wholeheartedly want to see. It was a good starting point that has some interesting ideas going for it. I’d love to know how Arknights players thought of this, but even as someone who knew nothing about this game beforehand, I can definitely say that I’m intrigued now.

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• 

  ZNote

  78/100
  A wonderfully bleak series about dead people walking, but always clinging to hope.

  Arknights: Prelude to Dawn is bleak, a series full of dead people walking. I don’t mean that only in terms of the world around them engaged in warfare, but also in regards to their bodies as living people. From our first long POV shot as the stasis-awakening Doctor, we are thrust immediately into the dreary atmosphere of unpleasant colors, sounds, and implications. The lack of warmth is aided by disorientation as though we ourselves have awoken from stasis and have entered a place that seems to leech the life out of everything around it. But there is one smiling figure to give greetings – the cheerful Amiya, expressing her gratefulness at The Doctor awakening at last. But plagued with amnesia, they do not recognize her nor recognize him/herself, effectively a stranger in a foreign land.

  The problems have only just begun, however. As the grounding beneath our feet gradually reasserts itself, we learn more about this world and how longstanding its problems have been. The world has turned thanks to Originium, a precious mineral that unfortunately leads to Oripathy, a disease with a 100% mortality rate. Though there is no correlation between physical contact with a person who has contracted the disease, called “the Infected,” the Infected are nevertheless ostracized and oppressed for fear or Oripathy’s spread. It is a cultural stigma that even those who know better cannot divorce themselves from, as the governments and populace have spent so much time oppressing that changing the system or the culture is too cumbersome. From the Infected come two main groups: Reunion, which seeks to overthrow the world governments for their mistreatment of the Infected, and Rhodes Island, who seek to develop a cure for Oripathy, which The Doctor was researching.

  At both a literal and metaphorical glance, there is no reason to hope for anything in this series. Among the earliest flashes of the story proper we see are gunshots and battling in expansive, empty corridors and spaces. Rhodes Island, both here and recurringly throughout the story, constantly find themselves running or on the move from Reunion. Although the factions each fight on behalf of the oppressed Infected, they do not meet eye-to-eye on how to do so. On the immediate level, Reunion is to blame – how could global justice be attained through such apparent violence when they drew first blood? But Arknights: Prelude to Dawn spends less time trying to convince the viewer which is “more correct” and instead encourages them to appreciate the sheer tragedy of it all, that presumably decades (if not longer) of not heeding the cries of dying people has led to the dying people not be able to agree amongst themselves. When resigned to such a life, what other option is there to believe in?

  So, the split naturally arises among the people: the more militant option that might get attention more quickly, or the more peaceful option which requires patience and time? As we spend that time observing both Rhodes Island and Reunion’s methods for getting the Infected people to follow their cause, it becomes clear that Rhodes Island is horribly outmatched. Both groups know that the Infected are dying, and their support not only increases their numbers, but also the morale of their respective goals. Rhodes Island only has a gentle hand and the vague promise of a cure that may never come. In a dark time, the hand of sincerity can seem like a mockery, especially when that hand is, much like you, only given a short window of time left to live.

  Reunion’s battling prowess is not merely demonstrated in skirmishes, but also in rhetoric. Horrible as their methods might be, their message is loud and clear – we are strong, we will fight, and we will win. They’ve produced results which have gotten attention, and the Infected who debate which side to consider more worthwhile are thus posed a question: take the short returns now in the hope that they rest of your life-ticking-away days are more comfortable, or take the word and leap of faith that everything will be okay? Even if all of the promises made turn out to be lies, or if civilians die as collateral, most would, I imagine, be hard-pressed to argue that delaying any chance of a better life is the better choice. In the eyes of Arknights: Prelude to Dawn’s Infected, they’ll all be dead anyway from Oripathy eventually, so what more do they have to lose by joining the more-militant Reunion? It’s easier to rationalize away the cost of life when your own life has been treated as subhuman, and any notion of life having salvation, even a microscopic amount, has likewise been relentlessly crushed.

  (And that’s not even considering Talulah, a mistress of death who seems only too eager to see any violent action through to the end).

  Like the overhanging misery of the show’s dilemma, the sun bathes the world in the murkiest tones possible, filling abandoned desolate buildings in white light that only serves to draw more attention to the crumbling walls, discarded syringes on the floor, and signs of the world’s decline. It’s as though the world itself physically is gradually giving up. Why would anyone want to live here? Would it in fact not just be easier to roll over and fade away instead? Such a question is no doubt pessimistic, but given the treatment of the Infected people, the thought doesn’t sound nearly so unpleasant given the active hellscape alternative. Arknights: Prelude to Dawn imbues pessimism into nearly all of its facets to paint the most-visceral picture possible.

  And from that pessimistic state of mind thus presents the main hook that makes Rhodes Island, and the ensuing drama, worth following. In the midst of all this sadness, these are the Infected who choose not to give up to despair and take up the sword of salvation instead of blood. Theirs is a mission not only against the Reunion that actively seeks to kill them, but against the world that would sooner see them out of sight and out of the way. They’re struggling, but not helpless. They know that the dream they cling to is fragile, and that it may be a fantasy they’re chasing after all. I referred before to how their extended hand of sincerity can seem like a mockery, but buried under that assumption is genuineness. Amiya believes in her conviction, and seeks to act upon it by leading her friends and fellow soldiers into the fray. Their combative style (and the animation by extension) may not be the flashiest thing ever seen, but it and the cause keep moving forward, bolstered by a good, sometimes-bass-heavy soundtrack.

  I would be remiss if I did not remark that Arknights: Prelude to Dawn stems from the Arknights video game, and that this adaptation is clearly meant to be more table-setting for future installments as opposed to rounding out a fully-complete story. In that sense, it does stumble in the execution of some of its expository elements and elsewhere. The Doctor is more a setpiece instead of an active player due to his amnesia (though his involvement does improve as the show goes on), some of the introduced characters are given brief moments and then vanish for most of the season—if not the rest of it—and the intrusion of the PRTS is an obvious allusion to an in-game mechanic that the anime replicates when it’s not necessary to do so. It’s an unfortunate circumstance of source material retention that works in a game format and less-well in an anime.

  Overriding all of this though was that the immersion ultimately did pan out, that the resigned, crushing tone succeeded. Most of what I described could be labeled as “necessary evils” since the season is meant to be expository, relying on the “Infected Civil War” and the complexities of the overall scenario. The show does not relent for one minute, as even the quiet moments are tinged with melancholic smiles and reminiscence. It has no time for comedy (except for Ezusiai, which never sat well with me both in the moment and in the aftermath), choosing instead to indulge in morose, soul-draining affect. Perhaps for that reason, this series is a bit of a hard sell. In regards to how it stands as an adaptation, I cannot say since I have not played the original Arknights.

  Arknights: Prelude to Dawn insists on knocking its characters and their hopes down every chance it gets. Each fumbled operation, each person who dies, and each time that Reunion and Rhodes Island either ideologically or violently clash reads like another page in a Sisyphean tragedy. No matter how many clashes occur or how many gambles take place, everyone is racing against their own personal clock. Whether it be due to Oripathy slowly killing someone over time, getting The Doctor to safety, or whatever scheme Reunion has cooked up, time is everyone’s greatest enemy. With the overarching dilemmas and quandaries, the show coils itself around its characters tighter and tighter. Yet, the promise that relief awaits still persists. And even if the promise turns out to be nothing more than a pipe dream, it’s a promise worth clinging to.

  But then again, in a world like this, promises may be easily broken…

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• 

  LordSozin

  50/100
  Arknights: Prelude to Dawn as a Prologue is Just Meh.

  Arknights: Prelude to Dawn is an anime made for people who are already familiar with the series and the franchise, to begin with. It should be noted that the anime is an adaptation of the same game by the same name: Arknights. And as the rest of the anime title implies, the anime is a prologue to what the fans often allude to as an introduction to a much grander narrative filled with plentiful world-building, complex characterizations, and profound mythology. It goes without saying that people who are fans of Arknights and have played the game will have an ecstatic time with Arknights: Prelude to Dawn because of their immense knowledge of the game’s narrative and events. Moreover, seeing it all play out in a well-produced animation format will surely satisfy most of the fans. However, speaking for myself, a person who never played the game and couldn’t care less to dive into a gacha game for that matter, don’t have many positives to say about the anime in itself.

  I don’t believe this anime adaptation is bad, nor do I believe the anime does anything exceptional or marvelous. It’s a prologue after all. And as a prologue, it’s an introduction to the world of Arknights. One thing to be noted is that the pacing is rather slow this time around. Which, I believe it does works in the series' favor somewhat. The slow introduction to the world of Arknights allows the anime to present the intricacies of its setting and firmly establish the tone and atmosphere of the narrative. And this really is the main appeal of the prologue: the bleakness and hopelessness of Terra—at least on the surface level.

  Set in the land of Terra, the world of Arknights has been plunged into conflicts and terror since the occurrence of natural disasters known as “Catastrophy”. The regular occurrence of these catastrophic events brings down hellfire and destruction to humanity and its civilization. However, it doesn’t stop there. Its leftover remnants also radiate an incurable disease known as Oripathy upon the populations, which is the main cause of human conflict in Terra. The central focus of the entire narrative in Arknights: Prelude to Dawn can be pinned down to this internal conflict. Every plot point and event that occur within the anime happens as the result of this continuous phenomenon. Nonetheless, the issue lies in that despite the captivating establishment of its conflict, the factions involved in this conflict are left with a lot to be desired.

  In the prologue, there are two main factions within this conflict. And that they exist simply because of their ideological differences. One, the Reunion side, which the series sets up as the main antagonist force of the two, strongly believes in the superiority of the infected people. Their belief, although vaguely presented thus far, stems from their suffering at the hands of oppression and annihilation from governments and their opposing force: Rhode Island. Rhode Island, contrary to Reunion, is a much more coordinated force that heavily serves the role of extension to the supposed existence of governments within the land of Terra in the series. But because many elements in Arknights: Prelude to Dawn is so ambiguous and up in the air, the conflicts that do happen feels dry and devoid of urgency in the narrative. The post-apocalyptical societal commentary that the show intends to portray is lost in the ever distractions of one-off antagonist forces that don’t get fully fleshed out; sub-plots and side missions that don’t contribute much to the narrative other than to serve as some superficial drama and dull action sequences on screen that’s also plagued with conventional anime dialogues that get your eyes rolling over at its corniness, and tire-some ways of conveying to the viewers.

  The conflicts that happen in the show feel dry because of the show’s ideological and literal conflicts that are embodied by the Reunion and Rhode Island is plagued with bland characterizations. Throughout the entire run, there’s nothing profound to be revealed about the Reunion’s idealogy and their psychotic devotion to the cause. On the surface, whenever they're on screen, they illuminate the aura of sophisticated groups with personalities. That despite their divided sub-factions, they seem to have the same ideological connections. But when they actually speak and talk, they embody the typical one-off villains that are never to be seen again with corny dialogue and obnoxious voice acting. The anime never once attempted to explore that side of the conflict. Which, by a long shot, is the most interesting of the two main factions. Instead, the time spent on the Reunion side has gotten nothing but vagueness for the entire duration.

  Furthermore, with the introduction of a “doctor” who’s all but lost their memories of themselves, the show relies on the supporting cast to remind the “doctor” and by extension, the viewers, that there’s a reason for all the chaos, destruction and rescues without saying much at the same time. It’s the usage of ambiguousness in the introduction of the series that holds back the overall appeal and attention that the show at the same time demands of us. Much of the show is in a state of multiple concurrent moving pieces despite its slower pacing, which prompts itself to never settle down and take a breather to present its ideas through the characters and actually show the viewers of its world’s societal complexities and complications that the series emphasizes. Because of this, over the course of its runtime, there’s nothing to be taken away from this installment. Even if Arknights: Prelude to Dawn is a prologue, there should have been a clear objective of what it wants to achieve, which the show seemingly doesn’t have outside of its visual compartment.

  The next section of this review is more of a personal grudge that I have for the series as a whole rather than a universal problem that it has. And I’m well aware that the consensus of likability on this specific aspect of the show obviously varies from person to person. But what I find particularly distracting about Arknights: Prelude to Dawn is the semi-animal-humanoid character designs. For a series that reiterates again and again about its bleakness, a hopeless world where everything is either collapsing or on the brink of collapse, certain characters with cute slim bunny ears or tiny rabbit ears and tails really take me out of the immersion. It’s one thing if, from the onset, there were only these semi-animal-humanoid species on Terra that resembles human-like attributes and they have populated and ingrained themselves into the world. That way, everything would feel organic. But that’s clearly not the case: there are regular humans inhabiting Terra too.

  Having semi-animal-humanoid characters in a series is not the problem, the issue lies in the series' deliberate design to make them cute and adorable in contrast to a much dreary tone that constantly overshadows the series. Personally, I’ve historically got a problem with the clash of tones in shows and films—especially the ones like Arknights. Where having the moe, ‘kawaii’ or straight-up fanservice moments ruin the immersion for me. And I see it as nothing but an attempt to be more than what it actually is.

  As I have aforementioned, the fans of Arknights will probably be more than thrilled to see an adaptation of this prologue. The expectations and hype surrounding the release were already evident. But no matter how much hype and positivity the fans generate for a show like this, however, the flaws will always seep through in the end. Arknights: Prelude to Dawn is a popcorn flick with flashy visuals and an initial intriguing narrative and themes. With it, the show managed to grab an audience but never did anything with the initial appeal.

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