Senki Zesshou Symphogear AXZ

"Fist 1, reason 0" Such a simple statement, yet so Symphogear! Senki Zesshou Symphogear AXZ is just utterly amazing experience for LA, from the first season's inconsistency but brimming with personality, to G going god damn crazy with it's plot and characters and was LA's personal favourite season of Symphogear to GX's still having it's own personality but felt less awesome in comparison to G and now AXZ comes into the fray and it's just as amazing...maybe even better?. From character development of the majority of the main cast as well as developing the new villains in this season and world building on the Alchemist that it did in GX, crazier battles, awesome music and cliffhangers that Symphogear is well known for in making us always guessing what was gonna happen next. Character development happens to the majority of the characters, Maria gets one through her past even before G and her trying to get stronger to combat the new Alchemist threat with the help of Elfnein who has now joined SONG as a researcher of LiNKERs and general mission control (so bringing in world building through the knowledge of LiNKER), Chris gets one through new characters of Stephan and Sonia Virena voiced by Asuna Tomari and Natsumi Fujiwara respectively, as Sonia knew Chris' parents before their deaths. Kirika and Shirabe gets one through trying to open up to everyone as well as their self-deprecative personality (Kirika for being too naive, Shirabe for keeping things to herself). Character interaction also gets a boost in combating the new villains of this season which also means NEW styles from the Symphogears we've never seen before and crazier than ever seeing new ways of different duos fight Noise and the Alchemists. LA's favourite character has still been Chris since G, right next to Hibiki and Maria seeping into third place due to this season. For the villains however we get a more sympathetic villain in the form of Saint Germain voiced by Minako Kotobuki however she doesn't show it at first, her along with Cagliostro voiced by Aoi Shouta and Prelati voiced by Rina Hidaka have a bigger leader in the form of Adam voiced by Shinichiro Miki who is the leader of the Bavarian Illuminati who had influences but separate goals to Carol in GX. Adam however is probably the least interesting villain for this season all due to his goal and his asshole demeanor not only to the Symphogears but to Saint-Germain as well, in comparison to Saint-Germain and her Alchemists especially Cagliostro. Cagliostro gets some amazing fight scenes as well as her being a rather unpredictable character as well as her personality. Prelati however gets shafted due to her character-centric episode being kinda a awkward breather episode in comparison to Cagliostro's however is redeemed in the penultimate episode. LA's favourite villain for AXZ would be a tie between Cagliostro and Saint-Germain, Cagliostro for her personality and Saint-Germain for making the plot interesting. Nonetheless the villains are great in AXZ and to be honest MUCH better from Carol if only because of Saint-Germain and the Alchemists. The plot goes out all from the first episode immediately focusing on Saint-Germain's group and the Symphogears combating as well as finding their motive of why they are doing terrible things such as collecting life energy, the plot just never stops trucking along besides the aforementioned Prelati focused episode but that in itself was meant for Shirabe's character development. World building helps immensely as well as plot twists goes hand in hand as AXZ manages to reference events from ALL previous seasons (New Alchemists that tied into but no proper affiliation with Carol, Fine from Season 1 get referenced and Maria's past from G as well as some smaller events from G) that all ties up to AXZ's climaxes and plot threads. As for plot twists they do get explained later on and again even references back to previous season and although Symphogear is known for their asspulls, AXZ still had some but they did explain as much as possible and in certain cases there is enough suspension of disbelief that you can give it the grace it needs due to the awesomeness on screen that is happening. Seriously as bombastic and crazier, plot & character-focused AXZ has become away from the slice of life elements it had in the previous seasons to say that it's gotten even more serious, the writing is extremely clever like AXZ was the thread that was meant to tie up all 3 previous seasons together into one story that lead up to AXZ. The animation done once again by Satelight is amazingly bombastic like it should, from it's crazier and crazier battles, slicker character designs and decent backgrounding. Satelight did seem to have gone all out though at rare times, felt like some certain scenes did seem derpy but LA just did not care, the animation was impeccably amazing right down to the character designs, battle animation and special effects, rare derpiness be damned to Hibiki's fist! The voice acting is amazing as always, from Aoi Yuuki, Nana Mizuki, Ayahi Takagaki, Yoko Hikasa Ai Kayano, Yoshino Nanjo, Misaki Kuno, Minako Kotobuki, Aoi Shouta, Rina Hidaka, Shinchiro Miki and Hina Kino. Special mention would go to Ayahi Takagaki, Aoi Yuuki, Yoko Hikasa and Aoi Shouta for their amazing vocal range, battle cries and amazing dialogue, with Aoi Shouta crossdressing voices and doing it extremely well and Aoi Yuuki doing Hibiki like Hibiki as always and loving every time Aoi Yuuki's honed battle cries and battle dialogue are just fueled with adrenaline. Nana Mizuki probably gets best vocal voice acting through AXZ's OP "TESTAMENT" which was LA's favourite OP for Summer 2017 as well as Symphoear XD Unlimited's OP "UNLIMITED BEAT" (the mobile game's OP) as an insert song with heck even Ayahi Takagaki's ED for AXZ "Futurism" being great as well as LA never skipped the ED either. The voice acting and sound is AMAZING, expected from Symphogear. If there were any flaws LA saw from AXZ however is that Miku Kohinata, Hibiki's best friend voiced by Yuka Iguchi along with many of the minor characters (Hibiki's three trio posse for instance) kinda got shafted a bit due to all the serious business in taking down the Alchemist were thus Hibiki and the gang couldn't go to school as much, however this flaw got a bit of grace as they utilized Miku at least during the last few episodes and it made sense either way. On speaking of Hibiki, Hibiki got less screentime in favour of Maria, Chris and the new villains of this season but thankfully she became important in the later half of the season and even connected with the villains (especially Saint-Germain) in some form or the other. Again Adam was probably the weakest villain in this season heck even to the point Carol had more promise than Adam did and again Prelati's focused episode was a breather episode but not much happened and Prelati got better by the final few episodes. EVEN SO... With these flaws, LA did see AXZ evolve even with all this, from the clever writing, character development that was VERY much needed to certain characters especially from Chris and Maria and the always bombastically musically fueled battles that never ceases to amaze LA time and again. The finale, well holy shit, although the scale of the final battle wasn't as HUGE as G, however the final battle was nonetheless jaw-droppingly amazing, batshit frantic and crazy as is Symphogear's fashion, even though there are asspulls in this finale, it is explained later on but seriously this finale was jaw-droppingly WHAT THE SHIT IS LA WATCHING BUT IS FREAKIN' AMAZING and yeah because of that, the finale was done amazingly and gave a fulfilling finale all things considered. The final scenes of the final episode also hinted at something amazing as well that MANY fans wanted back and this hint may have been the ticket to it. Overall, this finale was amazing with many more to come due to the 5th season in the…

Synopsis: Fourth series of Senki Zesshou Symphogear. (seriously MAL you couldn't find something else to put in here :D) Well basically there is a new threat to mankind and the girls are facing a new challenge with how to deal with this new enemy. Conflict, friendship, and explosions the perfect Symphogear formula Story (7/10): One line from episode 2 will summarize the whole thing "fist 1 reason 0" :D If you have watched the previous Symphogear seasons (and you probably did or else you wouldn't be watching the 4th one) you will see that this season offers you more of the same. Like i said in the Synopsis this season will present a new challenge to the girls that they must overcome to protect mankind once again so fans of the series will be pleased to have their favorite formula. Again the process of the story is exactly the same as the previous seasons and i mean exactly the same. The way the enemy is introduced the ups and downs of the plot everything except a little difference in the conclusion is the same (which might be a little bothersome) Characters (8/10): I think the characters are one of the key factors to how you will enjoy this anime as their stories and histories and relationships move the plot forward. Some of the girls will face their pasts once again and in the process will learn to move beyond some hurdles that were hampering their progress Friendship and relationships (connection in general) always have a high priority in Symphogear as ususal The villains characters are similar to the previous seasons which will make them kind of predictable and lessen the surprise factor Art and Animation (7/10): EXPLOSIONS!! EXPLOSIONS EVERY WHERE they show is full of flashy new explosions, moves, and transformations (This will be the second key factor for enjoying the show). You will never get bored watching this aside from the action sequences the show look average on every aspect whither it's characters environment or movements but it's the same design as the previous season so points for constancy Music & VA (8/10): This is the 3rd key factor for show enjoyment. Symphogear = Songs which means you will be hearing alot fo them both old ones and new ones. As with the previous season struggles and pain will show up in the voices during the songs which will give you discord but will offer more immersion (i mean what human would take a blast to the face and keep singing normally :D) OP and ED match the show vibe perfectly Effectiveness (8/10): This is Symphogear so if you are watching it you should not be expecting a complex and thought provoking plot, you should be expecting however outrageous action and explosions and lots of music and an emphasis on friendship which the show deliver to the fullest. It is a crazy ride that will keep you entertained the entire time Overall (7.5/10)

Man, Symphogear keeps getting better and better. And here I am writing another review for season 4, can't believe i made it this far and I enjoyed every single episodes of it. I'll start with the pros and cons of this show. The pros : The animation this season is veeery good compared to the the last season and much much more than the first season. The battles are very cool and fluid, they're also much more action packed than the last one. Hell, even the final battle is cool. Also, the transformation scenes are fucking LIT, every time they transform I always get excited af. The characters are also more developed here and very likeable. I've grown from hating Hibiki in season 1 to actually liking her here at season 4. Can't forget about the awesome soundtracks tho, they're the main highlight of this anime. The opening, while not as good as GX, is still a banger this season. The battle songs are also great. The cons : Tbh, The story isn't really interesting for me, it still follows the same pattern as in G. GX provided something different but it doesn't really stick out for me. We got three new villains with the same abilities as the wielders (sounds familiar?), an autoscorer and a dude who wears a suit and fedora, which is actually the real villain (sounds a lot like Dr. Ver right?) also, they're the fucking Illuminati, how crazy is that??. They didn't really explained it that well about their plans and motivation so that one felt flat to me so I'm a bit confused at certain points in the story. The world building is also confusing af. Idk where they got the alca-noises, how the alchemist is somehow in there, Ogawa being a FUCKING NINJA and how Genjuurou gets to fight on par with the wielders, even stronger than them. There's a lot of confusing things, but it'll be too much if I add all of them here. The dialogues can be a bit cheesy at times and i sometimes cringe at it. Overall : I mainly enjoy this anime for the characters, soundtrack and animations. The story might not be that great, but at least it's somewhat enjoyable because of how crazy it is sometimes. Piece of advice, watch it without really thinking about it too much, just have fun. This anime is perfect for you if you enjoy mindless fun. Thanks for reading.

Like many other people, I thought thatSenki Zesshō Symphogear GX was just okay, so I had no real expectations, when jumping into the fourth season! But, lo-and-behold, I found that AXZ is the epitome of what every Symphogear series should be! It was so satisfying from beginning to end, and even when the series was already over, I was still cheering, "Oh my god! Symphogear is so cool!" So, yes, AXZ temporarily transformed me into an excitable, little child! ⚠️ This review will have spoilers ⚠️ —Story/Characters This season starts out strong, when yet again, Chris comes vis-à-vis with her personal demons. There's a strong scene when she accidentally shoots a little Brazilian boy, named Stephan; and she gets blamed for his injury, and this really wounds her because of the association that their families had. Chris is forced to grapple with her childhood, once more, and comes to terms with what it means to be a savior of mankind. It's heartbreaking to see Chris relive memories of her parents' deaths; one of her strongest character moments in the entire franchise! The amount of character development density increases, when Elfnein enters Maria's memories (in the same fashion as the movie, "The Cell") in Episode 5: Risking Your Life in a Fictional Theater. In a span of two episodes, Maria is forced to contend directly with her inner-struggles and childhood abuse. There are even some weird implications that she may have harbored romantic feelings for John Wayne Vercingetorix? And if that is the case, Maria was possibly the victim of child grooming and Stockholm syndrome? Either way, in the very end, Maria is able to properly face her fears and uncertainties, to come to a greater understanding of herself and an appreciation of her friends. Not to mention that later in the series, Kirika has to fight away from Shirabe, and has a panic attack from separation anxiety. They are forced to face their own separate trials, as Shirabe is also reunited with her estranged grandfather! Hibiki is also brought head-to-head with her uncertainty and self-doubt in the final battle, and is revealed to be the ultimate badass. This season is just chalk-full of beautiful and touching characters moments, each of the alchemical triad even has a small emotional arc. A very exceptional arc, in the character writing department! The plot also comes together like clockwork, each cog in the machine renders itself useful to the grand finale, which quite frankly, blew my socks off! It was just so grandiose, phantasmagoric, and well-choreographed. Each sequence had an incredible pay-off, and Hibiki's birthday party and her intimate moment on the balcony with Miku, was so eloquent, because her fight against the Bavarian Illuminati was the bravest she had ever been, in the face of adversity! The last episodes felt so rewarding and harmonious! Bonus: This season was extra exciting, for me personally. Because I'm naturally a speculative thinker, I've researched almost every conspiracy theory out there, so finding the correlations between the folklore about the actual Bavarian Illuminati and the representation of them in the anime was great fun! Here's a compilation of similarities: * The leader of the Bavarian Illuminati in the anime is the actual founder of the secret society, in real life. Adam Weishaupt is credited for creating the underground freemason group, the Bavarian Illuminati, in 1748. In the anime, Weishaupt is portrayed as being a fedora-wearing, pedophilic, nudist. * Pedophilia scandels with the Illuminati: In the AXZ anime, Adam is shown to be rather intimate with Tiki, the doll-girl with the child-like body. * Child sacrifice: Adam sacrifices Tiki, to transform himself into a giant Baphomet-like demon, an actual monument in the Church of Satan. And is said to have a correlation to the Bavarian Illuminati. * Trangender characters: There are many theories that men have been disguising themselves as women, and vis-versa, for centuries. There have even been conspiracy theories about people employing the use of alchemy to change genders or to use full-on shapeshifting, so it's interesting that they chose to make the Illuminati characters androgynous. * Saint-Germain, Alessandro Cagliostro, and François Prelati were all real, historical figures; that were said to have dipped their fingers in magic and alchemy. —Technical Luna's Favorite Works by Each Respective Creator = ✅ Katsumi Ono (director), notable works: * Beast Saga * Girly Air Force ✅ * Hataraki Man * Hypnosis Mic: Division Rap Battle — Rhyme Anima * Isekai Izakaya: Koto Aitheria no Izakaya Nobu * Master Mosquiton '99 * Yū☆Gi☆Ō! 5D's * Yū☆Gi☆Ō! Arc-V Commentary: Haven't watched many of Mr. Ono's discography, but his choreography in the Symphogear series is awe-inspiring! After the first season, I was unsure of whether I could get attached to any of the characters, but the later seasons are a Herculean fusion of some of the coolest action scenes in "Dragon Ball Z" with sweet, saccharine shōjo-ai! I play the mobile game for "Hypnosis Mic: Division Rap Battle," so now, I'm super stoked to try out the anime adaptation! Brilliant director! Aoi Yūki as Hibiki Tachibana, notable roles: * Tōru Ichii, A-Channel * Nyx Megami, Accel World: Infinite∞Burst ✅ * Yoshiko Hanabatake, Aho Girl ✅ * Riko Mikogami, Anyamai Tantei Kiruminzū * Tsugumi Aozora, Asobi Asobase ✅ * Hana Oshiroi, Ben-To * Varel Jin, Blade & Soul * Kayo Hinazuki, Boku dake ga Inai Machi ("Erased") ✅ * Tsuyu Asui, Boku no Hero Academia ✅ * Akiho Kōsaka, Boku no Kanojo ga Majimesugiru Sho-bitch na Ken ("My Girlfriend is Shobitch") * Boogiepop and Tōka Miyashita, Boogiepop wa Warawanai (2019) ✅ * Mina Tepes, Dance in the Vampire Bund * Arisa, Death March kara Hajimaru Isekai Kyōsōkyoku ✅ * Couvert Eschenbach Pastillage, Dog Days * Tamaki Kotatsu, Enen no Shōbōtai ("Fire Force") * Victorique de Blois, Gosick ✅ * Mihoshi, Gundam Build Fighters ✅ * Mayoi Ayasato, Gyakuten Saiban: Sono "Shinjitsu", Igi Ari! ("Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney") * John, Hakumei no Tsubasa * Konju, Kakumai to Mikochi ✅ * Nodoka Hanadera, Healin' Good PreCure ✅ * Jūbei Yagyū, Hyakka Ryōran: Samurai After * Korone, Ichiban Ushiro no Daimaō * Alice Blanche, Ikoku Meiro no Croisée ✅ * Serika Ginyūin, Kanojo ga Flag wo Oraretara ("If Her Flag Breaks") * Kiriya Ubuyashiki, Kimetsu no Yaiba ✅ * Kino, Kino no Tabi: The Beautiful World * Tomo Kunagisa, Kubikiri Cycle: Aoiro Savant to Zaregototsukai ("Zaregoto Series") ✅ * Murasaki Kuhōin, Kure-nai * Giselle Collette, Last Exile: Ginyoku no Fam ("Last Exile: Fam, the Silver Wing") ✅ * Madoka Kaname, Mahō Shōjo Madoka★Magica ✅ * Diane, Nanatsu no Taizai ✅ * Tatsumaki, One Punch Man ✅ * Clementine, Overlord ✅ * Krul Tepes, Owari no Seraph ✅ * Aika Nakamura, Persona 4 the Animation * Futaba Sakura, Persona 5 the Animation * Iris, Pokémon ✅ * Maihime Tenkawa, Qualidea Code * Mélie, Radiant * Kasumi Midō Barnett, Ragnastrike Angels * Fremy Speeddraw, Rokka no Yūsha ✅ * Shizuno Takakamo, Saki Achiga-hen: Episode of Side-A ✅ * Shizuno Urushibara, Seiken Tsukai no World Break * Sunako Kirishiki, Shiki * Noël Kannagi, So Ra No Wo To * Toshiko Tatsuno, Soredemo Machi wa Mawatteiru ("And Yet The Town Moves") ✅ * Meme Tatane, Soul Eater NOT! * Tika Blunche, Star Ocean: Anamnesis * Kayo Fujikawa, Stella no Mahō * Yūki Konno, Sword Art Online ✅ * Rino Tanaka, Tanaka-kun wa Itsumo Kedaruge ("Tanaka-kun is Always Listless") ✅ * Claire Cruz, Toaru Hikūshi e no Koiuta ("The Pilot's Love Song") * Yōmu Konpaku, 東方 Niji Sōsaku Dōjin Anime: Musō Kakyō ✅ * Komachi Hikigaya, Yahari Ore no Seishun Love Comedy wa Machigatteiru. ("My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU") ✅ * Loup, Yakimochi Caprice * Noa Takigawa, Yamada-kun to 7-nin no Majo ("Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches") * Tanya Degurechaff, Yōjo Senki ✅ * Inaho Misora, Yōkai Watch * Ichigo Amano, Yumeiro Pâtissière * Mitsuko Yurizono, Yuri Kuma Arashi ✅ * Yutori Tanaka, Yutori-chan Commentary: Ms. Yūki has become a strong …

At the end of the day, if you like Symphogear (and considering you're on season 4, you probably do), there will be things in here to like. The music is still good, the action is still well done, the animation is good, and the plot keeps finding ways to raise the stakes. Not to mention the main villain is defeated via Jojo reference, it's a show that knows exactly what it is and tries to deliver on it as best as it can. However, AXZ has no idea what it really wants to be. The story is haphazard a best and nonsensical at worst, the character arcs are generally retreads (how many times can Tsubasa comment on being an emotionless sword) and while a couple are interesting (Maria and Chris have some legitimately interesting moments in this season), they get resolved so quickly that they barely have time to register as arcs. Seasons 1-3 at least had overarching plot that you could track through the season, but AXZ tries to mix 2 and 3 together and ends up with the weakest aspects of each. It has the lack of vision and chaotic ending G and the underdeveloped side-antagonists of GX with an extra dosage of insanity. There's fun to be had by nature of the series. If you already enjoy it, there will be episodes and moments that are very enjoyable, but the sum is worth less than the total of the parts. Fun action can only carry a poor story so far, and even if I score it low, I still had more fun with it than I did with some shows I ranked similarly.