HAI TO GENSOU NO GRIMGAR

DESCRIPTION

CAST

NOVEL ActionHai to Gensou no Grimgar
SPECIAL ActionHai to Gensou no Grimgar OVA 2.5
MANGA ActionHai to Gensou no Grimgar

REVIEWS

• 

  TheLast

  40/100
  Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash - An anime that has a long way to go

  Keep in mind this review is based off of the first 3 episodes I've watched

  Where to start?
  Was it good? No. Was it bad? Hasn't provided me enough material to overturn my judgement yet about it being good sooo.. I guess it was.

  Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash while it seemed like a good watch at the time, when I finally started the series it left me severely disappointed. While the concept of being stuck in a fantasy world seemed interesting, I haven't seen much of this"Fantasy" or "World" in that matter to make me not gouge my eyes out because of sheer boredom. The story line hasn't even begun developing, the characters themselves I find have little development, the action while it's enough to leave me satisfied makes me yearn for something more, and the adventure I was promised (if there was any) is barely there. I did find a redeeming quality to the anime in the form of its art and animation. The fight scenes were beautifully done making me excited for more of them, especially during the 1st episode, and the artwork's style literally made me pause the episode just to view its glory.

  Now Let me explain my thoughts:

  1. The "Fantasy" - Of course I'm not blind to ignore the magic or the magical creatures (which apparently only consists of a single goblin (hallowed be thy name) or its friends) besides that there hasn't been any other fantasy elements to truly pique my intrigue towards this anime. I haven't seen any mystical, strange, or even outrageously stupid elements which I would like to see or even any different creatures or races in the world they're in. Likewise the different classes of the characters, outside of the occasional spell (which from what I've seen only consists of the same single spell) I would've liked to see any particular special skill (especially a magical or one with a single fantasy element) that's been granted to the characters due to their class. But as far as I know, all they know is basic physical skills that they constantly repeat and a single special class skill from the Dark Knight class that they touched upon but never elaborated. This lack of a fantasy element truly makes me doubt if the anime should be labeled "Fantasy" instead of just "Magical" (if even).

  2. The "World"/Adventure/Action - I was deeply disappointed by the lack of adventure seen in this anime. I personally define "Adventure" as going out, exploring the world, and participating in many different events. In Grimgar, I haven't seen even the slightest inclination towards the characters even going on an adventure. Firstly they haven't even left the bloody town where they started in and venture out more than 10ft away besides them just going to the forest, where they get their butts handed to them by a single goblin (hallowed be thy name). Secondly, all I have seen them do is sit on their butts all day sitting around something and eating food. Which tells me nothing is going to happen for a very very very long time or in layman's terms, they ain't going to do shit. Mixed in with this lack of adventure is the lack of the "world" that they currently exist in. No special land forms, monuments, or even a distinct architecture type that tells me they now reside in a different world instead of their previous human world. Even the lack of new creatures, people, races, and new ideas haven't been touched upon in the anime which would've made me very excited to see. I would've loved for more exploration of the world of Grimgar that's currently full of possibilities due to it being "fantasy" world, but alas my dreams and desires have not been fulfilled.
     Although the action is beautifully animated, the action itself leaves a lot to be desired. The amount of action is few in number and some of it can even can be considered redundant. Why do I consider it redundant you say? Well the characters have shown me a sort of functional fixedness where they keep using their weapons the same way (technique-wise) expecting a different result. Yes, I know I'm being harsh because they're relatively new to this world and haven't completely grasped the concept of professional combat. But, they have been taught by mentors of their own respective classes which means they have a lot more skills in their repertoire. I would love to see these skills and techniques be used in their fights instead of just seeing a Runescape-like hack-and-slash with them just swinging their weapons like hillbillies (no offence). I would also love to see them fight something else besides the same single goblin (hallowed be thy name), by adding more variety of creatures to fight.
     **For those wondering why I keep saying "hallowed be thy name" whenever I mention the goblin. It's because I find the goblin to be essentially immortal. It was stabbed in many lethal areas and a multitude of times then somehow it still lives (insert Jackie Chan meme here) so essentially it must be some sort of immortal god where it can brush off all those strikes of death.

  3. Story/Characters - The plot of Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash is very slow going with little development. Already 3 episodes in and I still have no idea what it's about besides the rough outline provided by the anime's summary. This overarching storyline of discovering their purpose of who they are and what their purpose is, is constantly overshadowed and left in the corner to rot. Instead of developing the storyline in the episodes, it feels more like a slice of life where we get a small insight into how the characters deal with their situation. The plot has so far remained stagnant with little effort to even try to develop it as evidenced in episode 2, where half the episode was a fight scene against the goblin (hallowed be thy name) and the other half was basically an animation of the characters dawdling around doing nothing while music is played in the background making you feel cheated in your time watching the episode. The only way I can see the plot even attempting to budge is if a huge massive Deux ex Machina just slammed into the series and made such an impact nothing or nobody can ignore it. If the storyline has to continue like this with little development and if they truly need Deux ex Machinas to move along the story this is going to turn out to be a very cheap-shot anime.
     Now onto the characters, while all they do is sit down and talk most of the day, I haven't really been able to build a connection with them because of how little I even know about them. Some of the characters don't even stray past the typical archetypes that typical anime's have which gives me little hope of the characters getting a full thorough development that would make me very happy to see. Yeah sure you can say information has been revealed about them to reveal their general character but beyond that I don't really personally know their characters of them as individuals. I can see in the story that there is a beginning towards developing the characters. But with their lack of memories, you can't truly understand how they act due to their past experiences and how they grew up.

  4. Art/Animation - Just like I said in my introduction, amazing and breathtaking! Anymore of my abhorrence towards this anime would make me negatively judge it.

  Overall:
  This anime so far as been a disappointing experience for me as I continue to watch (begrudgingly) in hopes of a new direction the anime is going. I hope the anime becomes better than what I've depicted because I'm just not ready to throw in the towel on this anime after I selected it out of the multitude of others I could've chosen. But as long as I see this anime remain this way this review isn't going to change neither is my opinion. So I tell you, if your interest was piqued by this anime like mine, go ahead by all means go watch it but in my opinion it's going to be a very disappointing ride.

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• 

  Peng

  50/100
  Refreshing, but doesn't live up to its potential

  You know how, after a while, it feels as if certain genres and subgenres of anime – or any medium for that matter – become parodies of themselves? Whether it’s the super-dramatic, super-scaled mecha adventure, the fan service-ripe, godforsaken high school harem rom-com or the tried and true, bombastic, never-ending battle shounen, it’s sad that with seeming inevitability, anime eventually become victim to their own tropes and clichés. The fantasy genre, and more specifically the isekai/‘trapped in a fantasy world’ subgenre, is no exception. In recent years we’ve been treated to a plethora of shows where the dark, edgy protagonist has flexed his muscles and, with the aid of his unrivalled intellect and the immutable power of love, has overcome whatever obstacles, villains or beasties the world has thrown at them, virtual or otherwise. And as much as we enjoy watching teen nerdboy wish fulfilment, I think I speak for a lot of people when I say it’s gotten old, fast. Enter _Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash_. Adapted from a light novel series and coming out of [A-1 Studios](http://anilist.co/studio/561/A-1Pictures), it’s a familiar scenario. Our hero, Haruhiro, awakes in a fantasy world with no recollection of his past life, though it’s clear that he came from the modern world. In order to make a living, he is forced to band together with a group of other misfits and slay monsters for loot. Been there done that, right? Except, despite its similarities with other titles in the transported-to-another-world genre, _Grimgar_ has one simple yet fundamental difference. It asks the question: what if __real__ people were placed in this scenario? How would actual people, totally unaccustomed to such an archaic, savage lifestyle, act and fare if they were thrust into a world where the rules are literally kill or be killed? The result is perhaps one of the most refreshing takes on fantasy-action anime in recent years. Instead of the usual overpowered heroes we’ve become accustomed to, we’re treated to a range of unique individuals, scared, desperate and somewhat incompetent, but still willing to do whatever it takes to survive. As such, the series isn’t so much a plot driven action-adventure series as it is a character drama. There is no apparent goal, no evil villain and no way to escape. Instead, our unlikely band of heroes can only learn how to survive and grow and adapt with only each other to rely on. As its originality is undoubtedly _Grimgar’s_ greatest strength, by natural extension you’d think that its unique focus on character growth and development is one as well. And it is, for the most part. All the main cast grow. They’re forced to, given the gruelling situation they find themselves in. Most of this occurs through character interactions and how they differ over time. In other words, there’s a lot of dialogue. And yet, said dialogue rarely becomes burdensome or boring. In fact, it’s by far the most gripping aspect of the show. As the group are forced to endure mounting hardships, the individual members respond in a range of different manners. Tensions flare and tears are shed. And ultimately, it all feels so organic, so natural and so very real. That’s because most of the cast are really quite authentic. Each has their own traits, their own strengths and their own flaws, with a particular emphasis on these flaws and how the cast climatically confronts and overcomes them. However, majority of the screen time was on the two principal characters. And by majority, I’m talking the vast majority. Whilst the rest of the cast certainly have personality, they are nowhere as nearly developed as our primary two. In fact, it was almost disconcerting how, considering how nuanced and well-rounded Haruhiro is, a couple of the main crew are restricted to having only one or two defining character traits. This is partially due to pacing. _Grimgar_ is a slow burner. Like, slower than that old lady driving in the fast lane slow. On one hand, this is undoubtedly a good thing. Not only does it set the series apart from the usual breakneck pacing of fantasy adventure titles, but it pays dividends in allowing the characters to interact and mature at an organic rate. On the other hand, _Grimgar_ can get __distractingly__ slow. Initially, this wasn’t an issue for me. Sure, it takes a while before things start rolling, but I found the lackadaisical pacing to be endearing and refreshing as opposed to irritating. However as the series progresses it becomes painfully obvious how little is actually happening at times. It’s as if the show became so consumed by its own lethargy that it decided to hit the pause button on a few occasions. When it literally takes a character half an episode to get out of bed and walk to a café, any and all charm is spontaneously replaced with frustration-inducing nausea. It’s perfectly acceptable for a series to progress gradually, but when time that could have been spent further developing secondary cast members, world building or the likes is wasted on __absolutely nothing__, it becomes burdensome and obnoxious. A large portion of the pacing issue can be attributed to the obscene number of self-contained tropes _Grimgar_ creates for itself. The irony is almost painful in this respect, where a title that distinguishes itself by defying genre tropes is victim to its own quirky but tedious meta. A ridiculous amount of time is spent on montages, tonally conflicting fan service, insert songs, cooking segments, freeze frames, circular introspection - you get the idea. It’s perplexing how this actually happened, and again detracts way too much time that could have been spent more productively. For a fantasy title, surprisingly little attention is given to world building. Now as a huge fantasy/sci-fi fanboy, I personally would’ve preferred some more exploration of what seems to be a rather typical medieval setting, though it wasn’t the be all and end all. What _Grimgar_ does achieve, however, is a seamless integration of thematic weight into the world surrounding Haruhiro and co. _Grimgar_ deals with some heavy subject matter, often verging on melodrama, and the emotional impact and weight of these themes is almost palpable in the various scenarios the cast encounter. As per its title, _Grimgar_ encompasses both the wondrous implications of _fantasy_ as well as the more sombre, morose ones of _ash_, with one element never quite overshadowing the other. Also, the action sequences are deliciously gritty. Visually, the series is very hit or miss. The watercolour backgrounds, which are undeniably gorgeous and also help invoke the whimsical, fantasy feel of the series, eventually become somewhat stagnant and repetitive. It was clear there were budget difficulties, with frequent dips in art quality, extended freeze frames and some rather hilarious animation hiccups. Character designs were okay for the most part. Music was pretty cool. Once again, I emphasise the prevalence of insert songs – apparently one of the major sponsors was a music label. The OST, if a bit generic, is dominated by rock tracks and is pretty much exclusively performed by the band (K)NoW_NAME, just like the OP << Knew Day >> which I personally enjoyed a lot. The ED << Harvest >> is comparatively tenderer. _Grimgar_ is a satisfying series. It handles itself with maturity and distinction, and is a welcome and refreshing addition to the fantasy genre. And yet, I can’t help but feel that it falls half way. So much is left unrealised, so much screen-time is wasted and so much of its maturity is needlessly subverted. And while _Grimgar of Fantasy of Ash_ was a solid start to the 2016 anime calendar, it could and should have been so much more.
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• 

  SolidQuentin

  90/100
  A masterpiece that delivers great character development and a believable fantasy world.

  One of my favorite series!

  I really love the Grimgar anime and even more the light novels, but i will try to only review the anime here.

  Setting

  Well the setting is not the most original, a bunch of people trapped in a fantasy world that works like an mmorpg.
  There are already a bunch of shows/series that handle that setting well like Log Horizon, the .Hack// series and Kono Suba, but there also shows which don't handle it well like Sword Art Online.

  To come back to Grimgar, it may not be very innovative but it delivers a fantastic world, there are actual stories that explain why something is a ruin overrun by goblins or how the hierarchy of the goblins is and how that effects their equipment and their way of fighting.
  Details like that create a believable world.

  The show also doesn't tell you nor the characters if they are actually trapped in a mmorpg, well there are a lot of mmoish things like different classes: Hunter, Dread Knight, Thief, Priest and etc.
  There is also no type of Interface for the characters.

  Story

  I won't give a summary of the story here, i will rather focus on what makes the story so appealing to me.

  When this show came out i noticed many people complaining about its pacing.
  The party of the protagonist doesn't make fast progress in this world, but instead of skipping that stuff for the viewer it spends its time to develope the different party members, giving them actual personalities and also introducing the world they now live in.
  This leads to a point where you actually care about the characters and gives you a somewhat realistic and thought provoking view on this scenario.
  So the slow pacing does this show really well, in my opinion.

  You shouldn't watch this show if you expect nonstop action, but this show has some amazing action.
  It gets brutal and gritty in fights and your attachment to the protagonist party makes those fights intense.
  And it doesn't stop there the monsters they fight aren't portrayed as only enemies but also living creatures that struggle for their lives in the fight for survival, which lets you feel bad for them sometimes.

  Characters

  I keep it short here.
  The characters are well written with complex personalities and also develop during the story.
  Some characters may be not likeable but are still good designed characters.

  Audio

  The soundtrack is really diverse, it contains Rock, Pop, Hip Hop and even has one beatbox track.
  And is overall well produced and fitting.

  The voice acting and the sound effects are on spot.

  Visuals

  The backgrounds are beautiful, the design of the characters is good (but it differs from the LN, especially Merrys) as well as the monsters design.
  The animations seem really smooth and i couldn't find any flaws.
  This is one of A-1s good animations.

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