Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo

(This has been adapted from my reddit thread. Spoilers ahead!) Think about something that you did within the past few minutes. Maybe it was clicking a link to read this review or making a phone call to a friend of yours. Now, why did you perform this action? Was it a preordained happenstance that you had no control over? Or did you feel compelled in some way to act accordingly? The long and short of it is, did you make such a decision of your own free will? The idea of will, that you make the choices that govern your life, is something that has been endlessly debated about for centuries. Cross Ange dabbles into this very topic. And while it might not be completely resonating, it has as much fun with the notion as it possibly can. STORY Cross Ange begins in stunning fashion; Angelise, the princess of the Misurugi Empire, is discovered to be a Norma -- someone incapable of using the "Light of Mana." Thus, she is sent away to Arzenal, a prison for other Normas whose only goal in life is to kill the DRAGONS that threaten the non-Normas. Cross Ange is crazy. This isn't an exaggeration; this show is as wacky as they come. Not in the sense that what it is doing doesn't follow logic, but that its very nature is aimed at being as ridiculous as possible. On the surface, the anime deals with obscene fan-service, machine versus dragon battles, and insane plot developments. But on the inside, Cross Ange treads on very mature subjects, such as sexual molestation, racism, and philosophical questioning. In essence, the anime spans an incredible range of emotions. One instant it is having Ange's bare crotch shoved in Tusk's face while the next has her being the object of ridicule as a means to demonstrate the social disparity that exists in their world. This tonal dissonance isn't a detriment, though; rather, it is a boon for the show. Cross Ange revels in whatever it is currently doing, whether it is comedy or drama. And it knows this: it flits back and forth between the two constantly, never letting itself become too serious. In this way, Cross Ange manages to maintain its craziness and subsequently is able to always "know" itself. While the silliness that Cross Ange engages in is its "home turf" per se, the nonstop swinging in direction is not something that lends itself to an overall direction. In other words, much of what occurs within the show happens "just because." While there may be some obtuse reasoning as to why the narrative is going one way or there exists particular events that make sense in context, the plot points are isolated instances that never truly feel connected. Ange may be struggling with her new life, then whisked to an island getaway. Only to then be transported back to her birthplace which in turn leads her to an alternate dimension. And this says nothing of the more "unfair" ventures that take place. For example, the Vilkiss -- Ange's flying machine -- pretty much has features added to it as the plot deems necessary; characters miraculously survive after being killed off; and once certain happenings come to pass -- such as Zola's death, the "Old Earth," and the betrayal of Salia and Alektra -- they are largely ignored, simply because Cross Ange needs to make room for its next "big" scene. Even when the show is juggling its absurdity and misdirection, it does manage to bring about some personal message. And this is what the introduction introduced: the idea of one's will. This isn't too far-fetched a notion; "Mana" is usually a term used in conjunction with magic, which is itself a word connected to a person's fortitude or will. And so that is what is seen through much of Cross Ange: the use of will or lack thereof. Those using Mana are slaves to the system whereas the Norma are free from the chains of constriction -- though ironically being slaves themselves to the aforementioned slaves. This is what the first half focuses on; the second half shifts to the manipulation of will. Alektra demonstrates when one's will is tarnished; Salamandinay represents someone who's will is guided by the very principles she grew up on; and Chris showcases how will can be used for both good and for evil. And that is the show's message: you are not subject to fate nor are you destined to follow some predetermined path. While people -- be it a close friend or a lover -- may be able to influence you, you ultimately have the final say in the actions you take. ANIMATION Cross Ange unfortunately suffers from quite the poor art style. The actual locations visited are not that exorbitant: Arzenal (the prison), the open world (lots of sea and sky shots), and Embryo's castle make up the majority of where the show takes place. More so than this, details are often nonexistent, with little attention given to the backgrounds, giving everything quite the boring look. The character designs are not that impressive either. Besides Ange's various transitions, Hilda's striking red hair, and the revealing outfits that all of the girls wear, the show often experiences terrible quality issues. There are numerous scenes where the designs of their faces or bodies fall below an acceptable level, distracting the audience from everything going on. Granted, one could argue that this simply adds to the charm of Cross Ange's crazy behavior, but this kind of drop in effort is nothing more than a lack of detail. Actual animation, like what has come before it, is below average. The show sticks closely to the use of CG for the machines, but even so, their available movements seem weirdly limited. Often times, the robots would perform the same up-and-down slash pattern or the same volley of rifle shots, with the machines twirling around in an indiscernible manner. And when Ange and the girls weren't flying around haphazardly, the show never had much motion, instead sticking to still shots of the girls' various body parts -- namely their butt, breasts, and crotches. CHARACTERS Interestingly, there are only two important characters throughout the entirety of Cross Ange: Ange herself and Embryo. The rest of the cast have their small moments here and there, but their true worth is in supporting these two, characterizing them, and reinforcing the ideas that they represent. Angelise Ikaruga Misurugi is, as her name sounds, royalty. She's arguably the most famous person in the Empire of the same last name...at least, in the beginning. For within the very first episode, she falls from the height of popularity to the bottom of the barrel faster than is physically possible. Her arrogant attitude, lack of empathy, and inability to cope with her new surroundings painted her as an annoying little girl lost among a sea of women. As she acclimates, and like the flip-flop nature of the story, Ange goes to the complete opposite side; she's arrogant not because of status but because of prowess, she acts rudely selfish, and refuses to associate with anyone. But this, too, wasn't working. In both cases, her personality prevents her from being sociable. At first it was due to ignorance and later it was due to misplaced worth. Eventually she finds a balance by retaining her own identity while letting others in to her world. This emotional instability makes sense; the Mana-users cast her out, the Normas mistreated her, and the Dragon people wanted her aide. Nobody bothered to ask how Ange herself felt in these situations, and through her experiences with all of them, she comes to learn that valuable lesson about will. That you alone have the power to make your own life choices. While not as strong of a character, Embryo, or "The Tuner," as he likes to call himself, is a literal manifestation of God. With the ability to teleport, make infinite copies of himself, and possessing the knowledge to alter genetic code, nobody within the millions of dimensions that exist holds as much power as he does. What's nice about Embryo is that he isn't a bad guy for evil's sake. He values beauty and power, while loat…

Alright, call me a fanboy if you want but I gotta say it: Cross Ange is by far one of the greatest anime from 2014 going into 2015. I mean people may think it is just a yuri fest of ecchiness but here is why you should watch it. Cross Ange is filled with unpredictable plot twists, and I do mean unpredictable, great character progression, a unique story, and quite possibly one of the most interesting anime that pushes the borders of the status quo of anime that I have ever seen. Story - 10 The story is a huge round-up of modern day societal problems or matters of debate such as discrimination, corrupt governmental system, along with pushing the bounds of how human relationships and sexuality are defined. Taking the ecchi, mecha, supernatural along with other tags and mashing them up into one middle finger to everything you know series is amazing. Plus how the story follows a spoiled princess who loses everything and rises from her nature through experiencing loss and hatred and evolving into pretty much the strongest anti-heroine I've ever seen is awesome. Art - 10 Obviously the artists from Code Geass had a strong influence over this series, I do believe it is the same company; have to double check but yeah anyways, the art is a plus, the CG is damn near unnoticeable because it blends so well. The color is vibrant and appealed but of course you ecchi fans will hate the blurred bits. Sound - 10 I downloaded the soundtracks and I love every minute of them. Seriously, it's like Hiroyuki Sawano had sex with Yasaharu Takanashi and gave birth to the Cross Ange soundtrack. Character - 10 FINALLY a series that is a limited thing in which shows character growth even for the background characters or non-MCs. Everyone changes over time except Tusk but Tusk is a badass so who cares. Enjoyment - 10 The moment this series gets its BD release, I plan on downloading it or buying it because I loved every minute of it. Overall - 10 Don't let the tags fool you. Yes there is fan service, yes there is a lot of yuri moments but when you consider the shit that is going on in this series and the obvious mental toll it takes, you'll quickly learn to ignore it and just enjoy this show. For you pervs out there, you'll love the little sex scenes when it comes out uncensored but yeah watch this series. Total plus. It beats that shit Aldnoah tried to pull but failed.

The plethora of unnecessary fanservice aren't actually as big an issue as some folk will allude to. HOWEVER, if you're uncomfortable being seen watching a highly-fanservice show... you might need to watch by yourself. For those not as comfortable of needless fanservice shots, tho, rest assured that practically in spite of it, it's actually so little the focus that it can be overlooked without much effort. Some cheesy effects to cover nudity is a lot more irksome. Oh, and for the overall theme of the story, it's undeniably forcing viewers to acknowledge that humanity cannot be sugarcoated regardless what you try to do. -- .:STORY:. (8) There was a cop-out I hate towards the end without any logic or reasoning offered, so I had to deduct a point. Would be a 9 otherwise. However, the writing overall is rather consistent. And instead of the series being long hurting this, the pacing is truly well-done to where any tonal shifts for the sake of moving the story along or giving a backstory doesn't disrupt the grand scheme of things. At best you'll simply be disinterested in it or know the general idea going ahead so you get impatient. Despite that, I can't promise that you won't be able to see some things coming. While there are no red herrings at play, I wouldn't be surprised if that's only because they actually took the story seriously and didn't want to risk what all original series normally succumb to (massively ignored plot holes made worse). I appreciate that for a series amongst an increasingly saturated animated market for cheap capitalistic gains as it means I have the chance to actually enjoy it. And fanservice or not, this is the kind of writing that should be the bare min for ANY series worth animating with the goal of it being worth more than simple feel-good moments. Not everyone will agree, but for me to actually enjoy the series through-out without feeling disappointed by the end... this is proof that it's possible to actually write a dang story. -- .:ART:. (8) Unfortunately, as with any long series, the art quality becomes questionable around the middle. Despite that, character models aside from Ange's hair sees little-to-no failure; her hair does actually grow some to show time moving, but there's very little consistency and so it becomes much shorter in some scenes. The style itself is quite old-fashioned so it gives the illusion it's a far older series, and the CG they employ is a tad too noticeable even if it's done well (texture differences). Another issue would be the decision to simply ignore animating and have a fairly still image, but that was rare even during the lull in quality, so it shouldn't affect viewers' opinion much. I'm also put-off by the cheesy light effect to mask any nudity. I much prefer they conveniently cover through other means, such as a better placed arm or more interesting angles to give focus to either other characters or the actual setting. This is mostly just a note of my preference. -- .:SOUND:. (10) When composing songs that may or may not have another vibe to them... it's vital they work as such. It's also vital that, if it's supposed to be a magical or truly special, it's actually memorable. I've encountered far too many series where this fails, and I'm glad that this series did that quality justice. As for the OST, nothing seemed amiss overall and sfx and music selection worked well through-out. The VAs did very well, minus a few basic "we need you for a scene or three" roles where they were either newbs or just for background noise. I'm glad that most of the voices actually sounded genuinely human as opposed to the generic animu voice - not that you'd think they're merely normal folk reading lines, but where the VAs actually brought life to their characters. -- .:CHARACTER:. (9) I think I have only two criticisms, and that relies solely upon Ange. First, she pulled a 180 in personality after deciding she'll live. Against the rest of the series, this development had no logic behind it because there was no show that she was actually working on it. She simply changed without proof. Second, there was a short-lived spurt where she felt sexual pleasure by doing something specific (explaining further would be an outright spoiler). That literally stopped after the most blatant moment of it. Never happened again, was never hinted at again. I pretty much forgot about it until trying to remember any major issue with the characters. So while I might not care for some characters, they at least moved in a direction that made sense for their purpose or were realistic within the setting. It also helps that the majority of those we follow are teens and so they wouldn't all be super mature or logical all of the time like the Nurse or Shopkeeper. -- .:ENJOYMENT:. (10) There was very little to complain about in my review, and I genuinely enjoyed the experience this series brought. While it's far from a revolutionary story in itself, it's a literal gem amongst the usual "meh" quality of shows that are still being produced.

Cross Ange is a series that could’ve been really memorable and enjoyable. Sure, it was grimdark and dirty, with gratuitous fanservice and violence. But if that’s your cup of tea, the initial setup and writing was pretty good. Ange’s determination to be the best mercenary prisoner was engaging, her rivalries and battles with fellow pilots were interesting, and the underhanded prison setting was different with its bartering and infighting. It was by no means ever high art, but it was fun to watch and only seemed to be getting better. When Ange and Hilda bond, become a duo, and plan on destroying the rotten world, I was thrilled. But…as a lot of stories do, Cross Ange tripped. Then stumbled again. Then fell flat on its face, drug anyone around down with it, and shoved its viewers faces into the dirt. Cross Ange became a disappointing, joyless, and uninspired show to watch, and the only thing that kept me going was the fact I used to enjoy it SO MUCH, surely there was SOMETHING good left in it? But no, Cross Ange only got worse and worse, and the latter half and finale almost feel like a personal and vigorous middle finger to anyone who enjoyed its first cour. While degenerations like this aren’t unheard of, it is rare for such a clear highlighting of what caused its downfall. But in this case, it seems to be Mitsuo Fukuda and every change he made. Fukuda created the massively popular Gundam SEED and Gundam SEED Destiny that reinvigorated a dying Gundam franchise in the early 2000’s and seemed to have been given complete – or at least way too much – control over this series. Despite being the producer, in interviews the director and writer seem to be mere yes men, and nod and smile as they watch Fukuda discuss mangling their original concept. Plotlines were dropped (like Ange/Hilda, Ange’s entire character development, and…whatever was supposed to happen with Salamandinay and didn’t) to make room for Fukuda’s self-insert Tusk, who according to interviews was initially supposed to be a minor character who died and left the story. Tusk takes away any character’s development, agency, and even sexual orientation and embodies everything wrong with the worst bland harem power fantasy leads…despite this not even being the genre for that? And any rewrite, character or plot, was only made worse, and then made worse again once holes came up, if they were addressed at all. (Remember when Salia was a character and not a literal joke?) Every character that was either good, passable, or had decent moments becomes hollow, cliché, and usually contradictory to the majority of the story. The ending feels like a completely different story, and not in a “look how far we’ve come way”, but a very obvious hijacking of artistic integrity that was rushed to with no coherent effort. The finale left me wishing I never wasted time on Cross Ange, but unable to hate it fully because while the ending is one of the worst things I’ve seen in recent anime, the initial cour, or at least first 8 episodes were so good, even on rewatch. Cross Ange is a cautionary tale of giving too much power to producers who have no investment in the original product without drastically changing it to…whatever Fukada did with it.

Lets start my first ever review on MAL. I wanted to write this review because of how much underrated this show is... Some people might argue it has some Evangelion or whatsoever Mecha anime cliche, it might has the general concept or idea, but the delivery and the uniqueness of the story is what captivated me. There might be small spoilers down the line so, bear with me. Story: 9/10 We get a very unique about that amazing princess who seeks peace and everyone looks up to, she has everything a girl could dream of. Yet all of the sudden all is gone. This might some cliche to many weebs, and it is, however the anime holds a very beautiful concept of Utopia, like there is that perfect world without violence or crime and everybody almost equal and happy, yet this world is revealed to be shallow, emotionless, just a bunch of heartless people, living to satisfy their own desires, and prejudicing other people (Norma). Regardless of the world created there will be always discrimination and injustice, the beautiful theme that the anime tries to deliver is that everybody should in harmony with each other, regardless of gender, race, ethnicity or even species (lol because there are other species other than humans). The story events are really unpredictable and that what made it awesome, however the ending was a little bit cliche and somewhat predicable, but still overall the story is amazing. Art: 9/10 I dont want to talk about art, since i am not an artist myself nor that i have that good taste in arts, but the arts and graphics were really good and battle scenes were great. Sound: 100/10 I know this illogical rating, but please accept my childish behavior, since the songs and the music were really amazing. Character: 10/10 The only character that caught my attention is ANGE, I fell in love with her character, her character development was one of the best of all animes that i have seen, the transition from an asshole to a lovable amazing badass character was captivating. Enjoyment: 10/10 I did enjoy ever bit of the anime except the scenes of Embryo with Ange, those scenes made furious Lol. Overall: 9/10 Its a show that all anime and non anime fans should see as it has a very strong message, beautiful characters, nice story, and AMAZING Music And SONGS...

Summary: Giving the caveat that I could not get into the Gundam series... this is the best mech anime series I have ever seen. It is absolutely brilliant and I recommend it to anyone, mech fan or not. Story: 10/10 The story is absolutely amazing. Ange starts off as a sheltered Princess and her evolution is ridiculous. This story covers her complete transformation into a badass, has tons of side arcs and character development, covering SO many deep emotional and philosophical topics. Everything you know about the universe changes... at least 3 times! The whole concept of the world and everyone's motivations are spun on their heads several times, I assure you that this story will suck you in and keep you on the edge of your seat the entire time. The pace starts off slow and ramps up and keeps on going until the very last minute. If you want a deep story that isn't afraid to get deep and emotional but also lighthearted and funny you will LOVE this. Also, if you want a story with a concrete and satisfying ending this will definitely give it to you. Art: 10/10 It's fantastic. The mechs look amazing, the characters are diverse and done well. The color pallet is bright and full of life. Everything is unique and well thought through. As it was made fairly recently it has all of the polish you would expect from something this recent. One thing to keep in mind is it has some ecchi tendencies and shows women topless but without nipples... it is a bit weird but you get used to it. Sound: 9/10 The sound is great. The fight scenes sound intense, the Endless Song is catchy and there are some nice duets in there. The OST is diverse and wonderful and you will find yourself humming along during some moments. Character: 9/10 This is where the story truly shines. Ange transforms from a sheltered Princess into an absolute badass character. You find out so much about each character and their motivations evolve over time. The villain is logical and the good members of the cast who turn bad are all logical as well. Basically, every character has deep development and you understand their motivations. Also, the romance plots are not shallow... you truly feel for the characters and this anime isn't afraid to give characters logical romance scenes (if you're wondering why a romance anime can go a whole season without a kiss because of contrived "someone walks into the room" type scenarios this will be VERY refreshing). Enjoyment: 10/10 This one is a blast. I enjoyed every episode and thought the pacing was excellent. Every aspect of this anime was above and beyond expectations and there isn't much more I would want from it. Overall: 10/10 You should watch this. It has excellent mech scenes, gritty and dark moments and lighthearted and fun moments. It is deep, philosophical. The dialogue is well done and the characters are excellent. I can't think of anyone who wouldn't like this. Enjoy!

Many Spoilers Below. I was told that "Cross Ange is worse than Mirai Nikki." I did not believe it. Let me assure you, Cross Ange is worse than Mirai Nikki. None of the characters here are interesting, nor do they have any semblance of rational thought. Tusk, in particular, drags the show down. He has got to be the least intelligent male lead in any show I have ever seen. He is constantly failing to do things, usually because he falls into Ange's crotch and gets beaten up by her. He survives an explosion based on the completely logical explanation : "The knight of Ange is invincible!" Shortly after, in the episode preview, it is explained that in between detonating the explosives strapped to his chest and not-dying immediately, Tusk was able to become a ninja and switch to fire-proof clothing because, of course, that will save you from any explosion. Momoka survives falling off a cliff, and a separate explosion from the aforementioned. At least they explained that her gunshot wound was prevented by a conveniently placed object. My eyes were opened, what masterful turnarounds. Embryo-sama, one suave man, let me tell you. He is the embodiment of power, can alter space and time, yet he can't pop a stiffie. Jill and Salia are literally the same character. Vivian was surprisingly one of the less annoying characters, despite appearing like a trope initially. Hilda was probably my favorite. In the beginning she's mean, but she comes around. I also shipped her with Ange, and when Ange kissed her, that was pretty much the only time in the show when I was thinking, "oh that'd be good!" and then it happens. Not saying I am a masterful storyteller and have professional analysis skills, just saying disappointment shouldn't be around EVERY CORNER. Bottom line, while these things are mostly my opinion, bottom line is the show is uninteresting, has bad twists, bad characters, below-par animation, and a decent OST. Now here's a fact: in episode 5, Ange tells Tusk her name, despite having previously written it on a posted bulletin in which she attached to the drapes separating her space in the cave from Tusk's, and it reads, "Ange's Space." Thank for for reading, and please, don't watch this show unless you are really bored and want to laugh/cringe.

Before i even begin reviewing this, let's get one thing out of the way - This anime at best looks something Clamp would draw on a bad day and at worst, looks like the Gundam animators were trying to draw with toothpicks. Sunrise really gutted this one in terms of production values; But what you sacrifice in budget, you gain in artistic integrity and auteur-ship. There's no other anime that's been as daring with it's plot, it's characters and it's sound design as this. The entire anime is almost composed by Akiko Shikata, who honestly should have equal credit with the director considering how much of this anime is influenced by her music. The tone, the story, the fight scenes, the mise-en-scene are all dictated by and almost conducted by Akiko Shikata's music. The best way to describe this is watching an Orchestra performance, or an Opera. Which is appropriate, considering how closely this comes to the latter. Angelise, a princess within the Misurugi Empire lives within a society in which people known as Norma [notably all women] are sidelined and discriminated against. When it is discovered that she herself is a Norma, she is quickly captured, detained and forced to discover a world which she had been oblivious to as a princess - a world in which day and night, she is forced to fight Dragons for people who care very little for her well-being. Cross Ange, at it's core, is above being an anime about race and intolerance. It's an anime about a woman's sexuality, and her awakening to the realities to the treatment of others of her kind. It should be noted that there's a pretty graphic sequence at the beginning of this anime that signals at sexual assault, and the main character's refusal to be subdued and held down by this. Then, she discovers men, women and faces against a man who would do everything to turn her into a sexual object. Perhaps one aspect of this which was a missed opportunity was the connection between Vivian and Ange. That one psychedelic scene in Episode 11 [which i consider the best half an hour of anime of the past 6 years] hinted at something deeper between the two. I had imagined that the story would go on from there to explore a deep connection of sorts between the two characters and explore an incredible character arc, but it seems like we didn't have time for those characters. Perhaps this is a way to sell Blu-Rays, by teasing at a second season. Correction: The "psychedelic" scene referred to above is episode 11, "Dragon Song", not episode 12.

Foreword: Fanservice... can't say I hate it, in fact I love it. Fanservice, when done right, is like a harlot standing at the edge of the street. She whispers to you, waves to you with her silken handkerchief. And, when she gets your attention, she puts forth a leg and begins drawing up her skirt. The skin of her glossy, smooth leg begins to reveal and she keeps pulling higher and higher, only to stop at the top of the thighs. Your imagination starts running wild as you imagine everything beneath it. Black, white, purple? Hairy, shaved, smooth? As your thoughts take over, you begin making your way to her; unable to resist the seductive lure. And as you are about make contact with her you hear an ungainly shout, "FANSERVICE". You turn your attention to the voice only to see another harlot with a distorted, unattractive smile across her face, running down the street with her skirt held well at the chest, revealing everything. "FANSERVICE", she yells again. She turns left and right, baring for all to see. People turn and stare, but not out of titillation, but out of its obnoxiousness. The ruse proves ineffective as people begin to turn away and continue on about their business. This woman is Cross Ange. So there I was, sitting on a nearby bench, watching this all unfold. I too would have left if it were not for the fact that I had little else to do at this point. The woman continued to twist her face into that unsavoury smile whilst baring her underwear for passer-bys to see. But no one pays her much attention, and, after a while, she gives up and slumps home. Curious, I follow her. She arrives at a dingy house and goes inside, I follow. Standing in the doorway, I see her silhouette in the dark room. She's crying as she holds her hand over a book. "PLOT" I think was the book's title. But the tears are short lived as she notices me in the doorway. She turns, and that unpleasant smile begins creeping across her face once more. She lifts her skirt and shrieks, "FANSERVICE". Instinctively, I bolt out of there and run. I lose her after crossing the street and blending myself with another harlot. When she gives up, I return home. But with little to do, I decided to grab a pair of binoculars and watch her from afar. I watch her for several weeks. And surprisingly, she's not your average lunatic, though I am not implying that she isn't just as deranged. But there was more to her than what was initially shown. There was a warrior side to her as she'd often hunt dragons and bounties. There was a vulnerable side to her, as she would visit a select few graves where she would sit on her knees with tears streaming down her cheeks. And of course there was the obnoxious side of her, where she'd run through the streets yelling and baring for all to see. But alas, my observations come to an end as nothing further develops. Overall, this woman, Cross Ange, has shown herself to be quite erratic and oblivious as to how to present herself in an appealing manner. Though she appears like this in public, there is a more sensitive and deeper side to her. And whilst I wouldn't say that she's necessarily horrible... she is, after all however... a lunatic. Review - done short: Story 7: I'm surprised I gave this a 7. The problem with the story is that it seems to want to mash together too many concepts. It wants to include dragons because, 'oooooo' dragons. It wants to include mechs because, 'wow' mechs. It wants to include a god-like character because, 'hunger games underdog style tension'. The idea of having a sheltered protagonist go from weak to strong-willed is pretty nice, Ange just gets randomly saved one too many times for me to take her seriously, not to mention the random power buff that she gains which also plagues general shounen. However, the good part is that there actually was some sort of story overall, despite its flaws. Art 7: The character designs are somewhat bland and the girls tend to not be that attractive, the backgrounds are pretty average with the smudge, oil paint sort of style. The mechs however, were decent. The strikes had force behind it, giving it weight and I did like the transformations. Character 5: The characters were so run of the mill that I would often wonder if I'm actually watching a poorer version of To Love Ru. The male character is the typical beta male character who doesn't really accomplish much except this time he lacks a harem. The female characters, except for the maid, are pretty much either in a love-hate relationship with Ange or they're just jealous of her. Enjoyment 6: When the ecchi moments came up, it just felt forced. Instead of something that you'd want to rewind and watch again, it was more like something you'd want to fast forward. The character interactions were so poorly written it was like reading a high schooler's essay when they're trying to hit the 1000 word mark by using a bunch of redundant filling words. The combat, however I did find quite appealing and enjoyed that quite a bit. Overall 5: It's nothing to recommend. In fact, I would tell people to skip this anime unless they want an example of how NOT to make one.

You have to keep an open mind when you watch this anime, and what the director did, was perfect. This anime is actually pretty good, I think what they did at the beginning with the characters was a good idea. This way, we can see the greater good of the development, and I'll say one thing they did well in this anime. Character Development I understood in the beginning when I watch this while others insult it, it was for the sake of character development. This truly deserve to be one of the best for 2014. They kept all the side characters involve, and we get to see how they change as we go further in the episodes. The Story was also very creative and unique, you don't see many anime that's unique. I understand that its not in everyone taste, but to me it was epic. I also like the realism, you gotta understand the yuri aren't there for show, its an all girl prison, with no males, so of course there gonna have to be some desperate people for lust. Overall, it was very good and pleasing for me, but some parts were left unexplained, so its not exactly perfect but definitely one of the best for me.

After 30 years of missing out, I finally finished my first anime--and what a great ride! I honestly never knew these things could elicit such strong emotions, both to characters and the general plot, but now I finally realize what all this is about. For 25 episodes I went on a ride that included great joy, extreme sadness, fantastic music, cool mecha designs, and pretty cartoon women. The entire range of my emotional capacity was tested, and for that reason alone I think Cross Ange is a masterpiece. I only wish there was more! My only major complaint lies in the character of God, whose real motives I never fully grasped. For the first two-thirds of Cross Ange I truly thought he was a neutral observer, only interfering when necessary to steer things on a better path (much like alleged irl gods); but then, his character rapidly changed to a harem-wanting sociopath. The transition was poorly executed in my opinion, without really presenting "his side" of the shift. And for a minor complaint, I was ultimately confused about how both women and men weren't...ah...anatomically presented with everything intact. I suppose it's because I'm such a newcomer and I don't understand what is allowed and what isn't, but the lack of certain features was terribly odd. The main character of Ange, however, is tremendous. While her arch certainly follows the traditional fall then rise again, it was explored completely and left no doubt as to the why and how. Most Hollywood films don't have this quality of exploration into a character's motives, and it unironically blew me away. Obviously I'm not a season veteran of anime, but I have seen thousands of traditional films and television shows, so at least I have exposure to storytelling: and by that metric, I'm comparing this to the best those fields have to offer.

Do you have tons of time on your hands? Do you enjoy female fanservice? If you didn't answer yes to both of these questions, then don't watch this show. This anime is basically everything that your friend, parent, or significant other say that anime is in a demeaning way: overblown, oversexualized, and totally ridiculous. Usually, I could have a defense for all of those things, but for this show, there is no defense. Cross Ange seems very self-aware in the strangest and most demeaning way possible. Essentially, the show's premise is that a marginalized group of non-magic (Mana) wielding humans (all female) called Norma are forced to fight gruesome(?) battles against DRAGONs who appear from holes in the sky in mechs. It has plot twists, crossing dimensions, crossing time, and overall something out of the mind of a 12 year old boy. That coming along with a narrative filled with plot holes and narrative choices which don't make much sense or are consistent. Every kind of ass-pull, anime trope, and cheap emotional effect are used. Sometimes these are used well. Sometimes, these can even be forgiven. But when they happens in practically every episode, then the story becomes a montage of weird. The only reason I watched this monstrosity through is the character writing. This show certainly is character driven, beginning with the main character. Initially a pampered princess, Ange transforms into a cold, distant person. Her personality is used as emotional armor against what is presented as a potentially deadly scenario for her as a Norma "para-mail" pilot. This change is actually dealt with fairly well, and that's only within 3 episodes. What's great about her character is that she consistently subverts the expectation that protagonist mecha pilots have to show mercy, compassion, or the like. The rest of the show gradually works her towards a more balanced direction. This made sense and seemed to be the central element of the show, and the show was at its best when developing her character. Most of the supporting characters get minimal backstory treatment, and many actions seem unmotivated at worst. Some of this is a matter of presentation and execution, but there's really no points for effort here. However, a couple of side characters have nice narrative moments and relatively sensible arcs: Tusk, Hilda, and Momoka among them. Furthermore, I sort of liked the cool psychological evil of Embryo as a villain, though he is the epitome of a lack of power ceiling. Now onto the most troubling part of this anime: the sex. The show, for the first few episodes, is obsessed with women using sex as a means of control against other women. It's kind of disgustingly presented as fanservice at most parts, and is slightly sickening. This kind of makes sense with the situation presented though, being an all-women's prison/military base. Fine, but then don't try and re-present these characters as morally just characters later in the series! Furthermore, later in the show, having male-female sex seems to be some point of "purity/impurity"...which even more undermines the position the show originally takes. For a show supposedly presenting a vision of women as powerful figures, this show certainly has shotty decisions leading up to this point in that respect. The OP was originally fine, but then they decided when they were going to do a new OP that reusing animations from the first OP would go unnoticed...it didn't. Furthermore, the soundtrack was medicore at best. I didn't really think that the main "song" of the anime was particularly good or even used correctly. There are these laughable moments when the VA goes to sing this song and the recorded track, with no transition and full background music, plays as the character sings along. The idea was good, implementation was not. There's not much to say about the art. I thought it served the purpose fairly well without adding to or getting in the way of what was mainly a horrible story. There wasn't much about the animation which necessarily stood out, except for the bodies of questionably aged girls. Overall, this anime should not be watched by anyone who takes themselves seriously. I can't tell whether this was a serious project or a money grab for studio Sunrise. It seems as though there were some subtle nods here and there to the latter in the anime, but it's no roast. It's not even bad enough to be funny at most parts. If you want to watch blonde Lara Croft fight dragons in a Gundam and you absolutely don't care about anything else, this is your show. If not, stay away.

I'm aware of some hatred that people have for this show but let me set this straight. That just because the story may not be to your liking mostly cause of plot it dose not mean it didn't try it's best to give the message that it was made to convey to you. For Example most people don't like SAO , Fairy tail or Bleach for numerous reasons but let be clear that these animes may have it's moments when you say things like "why", "this is stupid" or worst "i hated that". Truth be told there are animes i didn't enjoy because it didn't send a message but just something random.Now where i'm going with this is that sometimes no matter the reason you hated the anime is in fact irreverent to the fact did you learn anything from the anime that the creator wanted you to learn. Now if you say you hate something you have freedom to say but one day when your bored try watching animes you hated to see if you change your opinion of them. Also before i'm done let me add that this anime has similarities to many mecha animes so if you did not enjoy them try looking up there related ones to find a anime that who knows you might likes. For Example When i finished Strain: Strategic Armored Infantry i was so emotional so then i looked for similar anime like it. So i found Cross Ange , at first i though this was a like either a duplicate of Strain or a sister to it. So i checked out the episodes and as i watched the series i realized that even though it looked surprising weird or similar to strain i was really enjoying it. When i finished it i was emotional like with strain. Now I know some people hate and like certain animes but no matter our feeling toward them its good to find something you learned from it even if its small. I hoped i helped

A friend of mine once told me that if asked to describe Pacific Rim, he could sum it up as “a perfectly good stupid movie.” I enjoyed Pacific Rim. I also enjoyed Cross Ange. Most of this show falls clearly into the realm of self-parody. The fanservice in particular made me laugh almost every time, and by itself would make Cross Ange the best new anime I've found in a long time. Further, when an episode ended, I actually cared what happened next. Usually I stop watching for a while and do something that feels like work before resuming a show, because nothing holds my interest anymore. The show even uses a swimsuit episode, but instead of going wild with how stupid swimsuit episodes are, it takes a more prudent path, relegating it to the B story line behind an important section of the main story line. (Maybe its creators found that one too lame to do much with.) Of course, it still finds time for humor. I loved the "it's a tradition" explanation after Ange's quizzical response to the sudden, inexplicable swimsuit party. That said, you’ll find nothing revolutionarily new in the story. I’d call it fun, but not groundbreaking. Even the big reveal midway through had me saying, “yeah, I knew that from the moment I laid eyes on those things.” Of course, I seem to predict all kinds of things that people around me find mind-blowing, so maybe it’s not so obvious to everyone else. Either way, I found the characters a refreshing change from the usual cardboard cutouts. The show explores a surprising number of them, expanding its world in the process. (more on that subject later…) Cross Ange is certainly not for everyone. Plenty of people find fanservice (humorous and otherwise) terribly offensive. The show also explores hatred, prejudice, violence, and general mean-spiritedness in ways that may scar the timid. Many people in our own world will never understand that any other point of view besides their own could possibly exist. When they encounter someone who thinks differently, they can only see something wrong with the other party. They can only view the world through their own value system, as they utterly lack the ability for introspection required to recognize that anything they believe could potentially be less than perfect in some way. They can’t place themselves in another’s shoes even for an instant. Angelize faces these problems, and some people hate the show for it. In the beginning, Angelize (thinks she) lives in a perfect ordered world. Violence, hatred, etc. etc. do not exist because she lives in an age of reason at the pinnacle of human evolution, but oh, wait… something called norma threatens that order. Obviously this aberration must disappear. Human happiness depends on it. She sees a norma for the first time, and stops to talk sense into the child’s mother. Clearly it’s time to try for another child. The police will remove this one, letting everyone’s happiness continue. I laughed out loud, and even took a screenshot of the baby in a cage. Humans of our society may find this absurdity repulsive, but only because we judge it as outsiders. Angelize views these events through her own values: the values her society indoctrinated her with all her life. Naturally when the world finds out Angelize can’t use mana, she can’t accept it. She can’t possibly be a savage norma. She finds out firsthand how “humans” treat norma, but even when she arrives at a norma facility, she antagonizes everyone around her by treating them as inferiors. How dare they treat a “human” (and royalty at that) like a norma? Ange needs a lot of time to accept herself, those around her, and the world as it really is. That last one gets particularly difficult. How the world really is changes every time she meets someone new, because she keeps learning new things and considering things she hadn’t before. By the end of the show, she forms an entirely new value system. She also learns to see things from others’ points of view, even when she disagrees with them. It’s a pretty handy skill for someone so ready to start fights.

Yes, yes. We all know Cross Ange totally SUCKED at the beginning and all of us had our jaws dropped at the ending of the first episode, but let me say this. When I thought this show wouldn't get better, it DID. 8 - Story: Yes, when we first heard about Cross Ange, it seemed this show was going to be awesome, but did we get what we were expecting in the first episode? Heck no, that ending scene was jaw dropping, but as the story progressed, it became better and had very good plot twist. Some plot twist weren't even anything you would expect either. So, the story came around and did the show good. 8 - Art: The art to Cross Ange is very good to me. I mean, the art and animation can look awkward in some scenes, but who points out and cares about that small stuff? *coughsailormooncrystalhaterscough* 9 - Sound: The music is very good and likeable! I enjoyed all the music! The first opening and second ending are sung by Nana Mizuki, Ange's voice actor. While the first ending is sung by Eri Kitamura and the second opening is sung by Yoko Takahashi. The insert music is also enjoyable! 7 - Character: This show had some great character development. The main character, Ange, was whiny and annoying at first, but then she learned how to become independent for herself and learned that the world she originally lived in was a cruel and unjustified world. The other main characters also had very good character development. The development won't disappoint you. 9 - Enjoyment: I enjoyed this show very much! I was originally going to be one of the ones to drop it at episode 5, but I had faith in this show and kept going! It really did turn out to be something to enjoy. 9 - Overall: Cross Ange was a great show. You have to ignore some of the Yuri themes in there, but the main character ends up with a guy (I'll tell you that). It had a bad and horrible start at first, but it came to where you wanted to know what happened after a cliffhanger, it had emotional episodes and scenes where you could get sad, and the little comedy that needed. All in All, Cross Ange is something I recommend if you need a new anime to watch! :) Also, the First Opening Single is totally worth the buy! XD

Folks, this is the first show my eyes had ever feasted upon in which clearly the studio had given zero fucks for the sole purpose of achieving and delivering pure raw entertainment. This is a story in which apparently things are made up randomly or purposefully random on the fly and the plot does not even matter. In fact, the VAs at the end of each chapter would break the 4th wall to banter about something silly or absurd in the episode. Considering that Sunrise whole intent was to piss on their previous mecha works, it turns out that Cross Ange went further beyond a "parody" intent and entered the realm of unadulterated absurd romp. This might be the result of what must have been one of the most impressive brainstorming sessions in anime production ever, at least, for Sunrise. (Imagine this just for the giggles): "Alright folks, bring it!"; "Yes Director, we need dragons, but make it (*checks notes*) D.R.A.G.O.N.S."; "Sold, next"; "Parallel universe sir, and time travel as well"; "Excellent, next"; "There's a god. Also he gets hard-cucked sir"; "Brilliant! Come on folks, we are on fire"; "Sir, the pilots are women"; "Come on, come on"; "They are lesbians"; "That's the spirit"; "Sexually depraved in a prison island"; "Give this man a medal!"; "Director, transformable mechas with guns and swords. And trauma"; "YES! MORE TRAUMA!"; "What if the villain could forcefully marry any woman he meets?"; "Folks! We are changing anime industry."; "Shouldn't we tone down a little bit Director?"; (Entire room) "NO"; "Cross Ange will be the most unhinged rollercoaster Sunrise has ever unleashed. Make it happen!".... And so on, and so forth. This might explain how it ended up with a minority socially oppressed lesbians by a majority of racist mana-user supremacists, and a whole bunch of other stuff waiting in line each episode just because. That's right! In Cross Ange, you will experience the most amazing train-wreck plot twists and wild narrative swings consistently through the end, that Sunrise just shoves down your throat with a big "fuck you" on Sunrise faces if you will. The bullshit never stops, it just keeps gloriously piling up, and you just can't keep up. Putting the story aside, it is surprisingly well made. So fret not about Sunrise animation quality. And most of the characters are surprisingly well written. Ange goes through a lot of character development, as the rest of the cast. The irony! Nevertheless, I have no idea how Sunrise kept the characterization right inside such a ridiculous story, but it kind of explains why it is so enjoyable and memorable, whether you like it or not (and that's a fact). So, please enjoy. Cross Ange is one of the best entertaining wacky bullcrap your eyes might feast upon, (if you hold to such premises).

The more I think about this series, the more my head hurts. It's not that it's bad because it knows what it is pandering to and that's the lowest common denominator (hell, even in the finale, Ange just had to jump naked, crotch first into Tusk's face), but so many of the motivations are contrived and the villain does not work for me. Most of these characters don't really work for me. It had some decent action and graphics when it wanted to, and some aspects of it were fun enough that I give them some credit, but this was a pretty frustrating watch for me. I enjoyed talking about it in a group watch, but not so much the watching of it. It's better in retrospect, but not the kind of thing I'd give a straight up recommendation.

Cross Ange is one of my favorite mecha animes and one of the most underrated. It has great art and great characters. If you love the Amazon trope you'll love this show (and if you don't you might hate it). I really like how the mechas are portrayed; it actually kind of makes sense how they transform between a kind of hoverbike and a giant humanoid robot. Probably a lot more energy efficient. The characters are portrayed realistically, from the womanizing fighter jock lesbian captain to the main character to the rest. It's awesome. The villain is an intriguing take on an evil immortal genius but is otherwise not super important to the story, except for as a villain. In many ways this series is a slice of life military story (at least in its first half), in that sense I don't think the villain is all that important to the show. Anyway, give the series a chance if you like mecha shows.

Cross Ange seems to be an anime, that is well accepted and liked by the community. However it fails miserably, let me tell you why: # # # What to expect # # # Cruelity, discriminity and a rotten world Quite decent female lead, many say she rocks Good OST Gundam like vehicles Fanservice Yuri-Fanservice Almost all female cast, pleasing to the eyes, battlesuites that barely cover their skin Wide variety of genres (Romance for example) Unillogical stuff happens, aswell as plot holes # # # Conclusion # # # It´s a series about a fallen princess named „Ange“, in a rotten world. She must fight everyday to live on and she is pretty damn good at it. She doesn´t put up with every bullshit, is though, strong willed and an ace at fighting. Every inch the woman, sexy and a lead character with personality. She surely is memorable and a strong point of the show. (Alongside with the great OST) In terms of the Story progression we have the first one or two episodes that feel a bit annoying, sometimes cruel and awkward. Then the show actually starts to become decent and enjoyable. However be prepared that around the middle the pacing will change and we will often see plot twists and weird shit going on. From that point onward you can´t really tell what´s going to happen in the next episode. Illogical stuff occurs and some things aren´t explained. The biggest problem I have with this show, is that at a certain point it had no more clear identity. I didn´t see or get what it wants to be. The creators tossed everything, that they thought will be appealing for the viewer, into a blender and pressed ON. The outcome is a smoothie, that tastes like everything, but you can´t really define one of the flavours exactly, nor does any of them stand out. It´s purpose is, that it´s a drink for everyone. Imagine, you watching an episode and there´s some really cruel shit happenening, lots of blood, people dying, corpses burning. Then the next episodes you feel like you are watching an awkward slice of life romance with supposedly humoric elements. The next episode you are in a postapocalyptic, asian style like, wonderworld. And after that? Guess what, pure Michael Bay action! Armored combat in mechas above the sea with many explosions. Feels awkward man. On top of that, we have illogical things happenening here and there, that don´t get explained. One of theese events even made me rage. (Almost ragequit heh!) Oh and lots of Deus Ex Machina of course to kill every bit of tension that could build up. I wont say it´s outright bad or horrible, but there isn´t anything great in it either. Like I mentioned before there is identity missing. The „jack of all trades“ mentality is bullshit. And it kills the atmosphere. 5 from me Cheers

I personally love "Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo" both subbed and dubbed. It's with full honesty tied for my number one spot of my favorite anime of all time list. It was great as a drama, mecha, harem, romance, and action packed adventure. The plot was solid, it's characters and lead complex, and was just dripping with atmosphere. I found the story and setting just so emotionally intriguing and interesting. I found all the characters to be surpurbly developed by the series end which is why I was so into it. It showed a complete story arc for almost every character in the series both supporting and Main. That's something I'm sure is seen in anime but it just felt so well done for me personally. I know it's definitely over the top and cheesy at times, but that just makes me kinda enjoy it more, it knew what it wanted to be and I say it did it right. It's various twists and turns had me on the edge and totally invested the whole time, in fact it's one of the few animes I've rewatched more than three times and will definitely rewatch in the future to relive the whole thing for years to come. My only complaint is that there isn't more of the series to watch, like an ova. Honestly that's the sign of a true classic, the fact it left me still wanting more even to this day. So if your looking for a anime with solid story, strong female leads, and just all around original epicness, I definitely recommend you check out cross ange. It's defenatley worth the watch. So yeah, I know might see this as over praise, but I'm sure we all have something like this in anime and this one is will as always be mine. By the way is my first review, I wanted to keep it short and sweet to hit the high points with no plot spoilers. I had just finished rewatching the dubbed version when I wrote this review, still lived up to its epicness. (I want to give a shout out to all my fellow Cross Ange: Tenshi to Ryuu no Rondo fans! Keep up the fandom guys✌!)