BNA

I feel bad for this anime... Not because it's bad or such at all but I think it suffers from bad administration and such. First off let's start with the good stuff... Really likable characters and a great idea and concept. Michiru and Shiro our Main Characters hold this show together with their polar opposite personalities and the setting has a great idea with this city were beastmen take cover from the prejudice in the outside world only to realize their safe haven isn't so safe. Throw in some quirky characters, a bit of mystery and Triggers classic style and humour and you've got yourself an outstanding concept that could go down in anime history like Trigger's previous work Kill La Kill. However on execution not so much... First off this show suffered from only having one 12 episode season... This season could've done with being spread across 24-25 episodes so we could really dive into some of the problems and such our characters face and even dived into the world more. Instead what we got was arcs and ideas being resolved as soon as they started resulting in a bit of a rushed series. Some of these ideas could've been spread across multiple episodes and have some detail put into them. Even the biggest plot point of the season was finished in 4 episodes and the finale was over before it begun. So yeah we could've definitely done with a much longer series honestly Second is the production and release schedule... first off 6 episodes were released on Netflix Japan and then an episode a week broadcast on Japanese Networks. A bit odd as then those who watched all 6 episodes then have to wait 6 weeks to continue the show. And then the other 6 were just released after the wait... As good as it is to get more episodes this unfortunately just kills any hype the show could gather over a season against it's competition. And then the problem is because Netflix owns the publishing rights there isn't any simulcast so any hype for a Western Audience is more than likely going to fly under the radar unfortunately a bit like when Triggers other property "Little Witch Academia" So in conclusion, a great idea and anime that'll unfortunately never see it's full potential. I'd really like a season 2 and it kinda give's off that impression at the end but I wouldn't hold out for one.

Most anime about the future shoehorn in some sort of "technology can have drawbacks" or "we need to be careful not to lose our humanity" subplots. BNA goes very much in the opposite direction. Can't say too much because that would be spoiling the plot, but BNA is of the opinion that genetic modification is awesome, people should have whatever bodies they want, and being something other than human would be pretty damn cool. Plus, it's animated by Studio Trigger, of *Gurren Lagann*, *Kill la Kill*, *Darling in the Franxx*, and *Little Witch Academia* fame, so there's tons of awesome action shots. (The plot and characters are pretty good too, but frankly that was secondary to my enjoyment.) If you enjoy transhumanist themes, you will enjoy this anime. If you're a pansy ass luddite, go back to watching your zoetrope.

I LOVE this show so damn much, im hoping for a season 2! The art style is beautiful, unique and extremely captivating. Its definitely the main reason my rating is so high. The characters are extremely likeable, my favourite is Shirou (the wolfman). The story definitely has similar vibes to Beastars, the show is a (mostly) racist allegory. I loved the first eight episodes, unfortunately the last few aren't that great. I wish this art-style and the characters had a better story, because the story (mainly the ending) is what lets this anime down. However, its not majorly disappointing as its still a very good anime and I think people should really give this show a watch! Definitely worth watching, I think beastars fans will absolutely enjoy this one.

“Wide as an ocean, deep as a puddle.” BNA: Brand New Animal is ambitious. It attempts to craft a fully-realized setting to explore nuanced political themes such as racism, fascism, eugenics, and activism. Simultaneously, it tells the story of estranged friends, super-powered crime fighters, a government conspiracy, and cults. In twelve episodes. Needless to say, Trigger bit off more they could chew. BNA begins with a hooded girl in tattered clothing running through the subway. She passes by a sign reading, “Let’s Hold Hands. Animal Rights,” above the text is a human hand holding an animal paw. This immediately establishes a theme: Humans and anthropomorphized animals live together, but not in harmony. A group of shady men walk down the hallway—the girl hides in fear because she is part animal. The men spray paint “Beastmen should die,” now we know there’s discrimination. Immediately after, the girl runs past a TV, the news is on—a reporter announces a special zone for Beastmen has existed for ten years. Soon after, we find out the beastmen zone is an entire city, known as Animacity, exclusive to beastmen. It is an ethnostate funded by a private pharmaceutical corporation. We have been given a lot of information very quickly. In this world, humans despise beastmen to the point they were forced to build an ethnostate. The widespread racism is an allusion to our world, albeit in a much shallower way. In the real world, racism leads to over-policing, biases in the court system, lower wages, and more. There’s so little indication about how racism affects beastmen, other than violence. So why do humans hate beastmen? Well, because they want to preserve Japanese values? Later on, a slew of information is poured onto us; Beastmen can transform into humans at will. The media does not indicate they pose any threat to humans. It seems like the only perceivable problem is their appearance, they look different from humans sometimes. Perhaps it will be explained later, let’s continue… While trying to reach the city, the girl is attacked by a group of racist fanatics who intend to kill her. The fanatics express their disgust for how the girl looks. Okay. Humans love animals and they’re fine with other humans, so why do they hate people who look like animals? Confusion aside, the girl is conveniently saved by a wandering beastman, a mischievous Mink who calls herself Mari. The greedy Mink demands money for saving the girl’s life, we now know her name is Michiru. I need to get Mari out of the way right now. She is a recurring figure, I hesitate to call her a character because… she isn’t one. Mari shows up at random times when it is convenient for the plot. At first, I was willing to overlook the contrivances because I expected the show to develop her, but she remained one-note. If the pacing slows down, she causes conflict or gives the plot a device to get moving. This would be kind of ok if she was a good character, but she’s one-note. She is a crook who tricks people out of their money, and she always has to remind us she is a mink. “I’m a mink, not a weasel!” Yes, that is what you are. I wish you weren’t just a Mink, but a character too. The supporting cast is full of hollow cartoonish archetypes like Mari. In comparison, Michiru is a much better character. Witnessing Animacity through Michiru’s eyes is what makes her immediately relatable. She was originally an average human with dreams and aspirations. Through mysterious circumstances, she has turned into a beastman. As an outsider, she knows nothing about beastmen culture. We learn about the world at the pace she does. Although she’s easily tricked and manipulated, her compassion for others makes her likable. Michiru is a mystery. How did she turn into a beastman? How does she have these powers? How does the government know of her? Do not worry, dear reader, all of these questions are answered. To avoid spoilers, I will say just this: you will be disappointed with how lazily written the answers are. Michiru’s motives are very simple; Why did she turn into a beastman and how will she go back to normal? Her struggle between hating the beastmen world and not being accepted in the human world is incredibly sympathetic. She was robbed of her human life, her hatred is justifiable. In the show’s subtly beautiful scene, Michiru hesitates to reach out to her human mother on her birthday. Yet she can’t do it until she’s human again. I’m sorry to say this is one of the many intriguing plot threads left unresolved. Michiru’s family and background are ignored for the rest of the show. This completely contradicts her entire motivation, to go back home. It felt like a slap in the face to see a character I liked so much be wasted on soulless writing. Michiru is no ordinary beastman. In desperate situations, she can gain a superpower-like ability. Cheetah legs to run faster, Rabbit ears for listening, long arms to save herself, etcetera. During fight scenes, BNA shines. Michiru’s creative super-powers fluidly animated and the amazing synth soundtrack underscores every action sequence. Everything that’s animated has an impactful sound. High production values aren’t enough to overlook the odd inconsistencies with Michiru’s powers; In one situation, Michiru falls from a 100-meter building, but she is unable to grow wings to fly. Later on, in a similar situation, she can fly. In the first situation, she can’t fly because the writers need an excuse for her to be saved by someone. In the second, the writers decide there are bird beastmen too, so now she has wings. When a story has internal logic as inconsistent as this it’s obvious the episodes were likely written one at a time without forethought. All of Michiru’s problems stem from her inability to swap into her human form, unlike normal beastmen. There’s one instance in an early episode in which she becomes a human out of nowhere. This asspull is never explained, it happens solely as an excuse for a side-plot. It’d be fair to say her powers don’t have any logical consistency. The deuteragonist, Shirou, is a beastman with a deep hatred for humans. He’s a superhero who needs no praise, only justice. Like Michiru, he has special powers. Along with strength and speed, his scent is so good it can be used as evidence by law. When he closes his eyes, the art style changes to silhouettes, discordant music plays, and he solves a mystery. I have no clue how the police can trust someone enough to not lie about something as arbitrary as scent. There is no way to corroborate Shirou’s claims without a criminal confession from whoever he accuses. Shirou’s work as a part-time detective often overlaps with Michiru’s adventure to find answers. Their friendship isn’t a friendship. They coincidentally run into each other, then they start living together in a co-op home. They work together to fight crime, occasionally, but they have no chemistry. Shirou is such a dry character. When he’s not talking about his incredibly deep morals or info-dumping, he provides some great humor like this: “You have a cute assistant.” -Guy referring to Michiru, who is cute. “She’s not cute.” -Shirou Oh, ok buddy, sorry I said anything. Shirou’s so damn serious he deadens the laughter of any scene he’s in. In the eyes of the writers, this is not a problem. There’s nothing wrong with him, therefore he has no room to grow. He’s the perfect superhero, except his motivations make no sense. Imagine terrorists plant a bomb in an unknown location and you can locate it, what would you do? A. Tell the police where the bomb is. B. Try to defuse the bomb. C. Evacuate the area. D. Let the bomb explode. If you guessed D, check your refrigerator temperature, it is higher than your IQ. Don’t worry, you’re not alone, Shirou is as dumb as you. He plans to “Catch the criminals in the act,” as if finding a live bomb isn’t evidence enough. Another time, Michiru is trapped in a cage by criminals, while Shirou watches nearby. Ra…

Why do you make me do this TRIGGER. I love you guys but you just arent the same after you cut your story filled testicles off Its a show that is difficult to hate, ill give it that. Its amazing worldbuilding, Art and off the charts sound design can only get you so far though. Trigger needs to focus on story more almost entirely because they care TOO much about the other things. The plot, is crap. Its a generic race is good show that Zootopia did way way better and Sheild Hero did more brutally. It wallows in western tv where the dumbest most incompetent directiors make lazy excuses to defend their films by saying "if you dont like it youre a racist". And it copies directly off other animals are actually races shows Like Beastars and Zootopia. The first 10 episodes are jumbled and disorganised, showing everyone off and braggin that their animations look cool. Then it remembers it has a storiy and CRAMS THE CLIMAX IN TEN MINUTES, TEN FUCKING MINUTES. Like why do they do this. The worst part is the story climax was parped out, not even as flamboyant as TRIGGER expects. Say what you want about darling in the franxx but the climax was a spectacle, even if the spectacle rained shit in our eyes. Characters are about as lazy as trigger can do. Remember Sakura or Ruoko from KILL LA Kill? And how their unique personalities clashed alot like fire and ice? Now you got a justice loving cop guy who fits into the quote "hes a loose cannon but by god hes good" extremely well, which is bad. The main character is alright except shes a bit brainless most of the time. Her friend is a dumb bitch who changes her view at the drop of a pin and the villan. Fuck the villan, hes garbage, hes predictable as fuck, hes unsubtle and he went out like a queec near the end for the motivation that he stole from lord Voldemort. I really really really hope Trigger tries harder with Edgerunners cause thats the last chance they get before i abandon their asses and sit in my little Kill la Kill hole and never leave

Trigger can be a great studio. That's pretty simple to understand as they've made some of the most influential anime of the modern ear of anime. This has brought them claim from many as "the savior of anime", but just like M. Night Shyamalan it seems Trigger over the past year/two year releases has fallen from what they once where. BNA is not the worst thing they've put out in that time. Darling in the Franxx was.... a wasted potential that had bad writing and went on far longer then need be. Promare was a tech demo stretched out into a movie that had no interesting aspects outside of the flashy visuals and lacked any sort of interesting characters. Now with all the set we'll move on the BNA. As for the good qualities of BNA it seems Trigger has finally gone back to what made their art style and world design so fun and used a more subdued uses of visual effects. That's not to say this is a minimalist Trigger show, but it does feel like they've cute down on the flashy visuals and the wacky over the top characters and made a show more inline with a Little Witch Academia or Kill la Kill then the more recent throw colors at the screen and hope it make sense way of presentation of Promare. The character designs aren't the most stand out when it comes to Triggers catalog of characters (the best in my opinion is still Space Patrol Luluco) but the main design for Michiru is easily the stand out of the show and could go up against some of the best Trigger has done. The rest of the characters are more hit and miss with a few stand outs being Maire, Nazuna, and Gran Grama. All of which stand out compared to the rest of the cast. The animation itself is fluid and never goes to over board but is never lacking. When it wants to go big it does and when it wants to be tame it is. The show is consistent and that when it comes to a seasonal anime is one of the most important parts. Speaking of seasonal anime SEGWAYYYYYYYYYYYYYY The negative aspects of the show come out in a few different ways and sadly are present for the majority of the show. The runtime is the first issue. Trigger has a tendency to up the stakes when it comes to their show to the point of being "world ending". Most of the time this works when the show is 24 episodes long and we have enough time to really explore and understand the world, but BNA is 12 episodes, 6 of which are main plot and the first half are split between 2 introduction episodes and 4 side stories used to try and give us those needed world building. It does not work as the main flaw of this show is presented in each and every one of the 6 episodes over having just character/world exploration in order to earn the "world ending" finally. Trigger is not new to having political messages in their shows. Many of them have underlying ideology and commentary on many political and theological things, but BNA is the worst when it comes to how it's handled. If you never felt like trigger had these messages in their show congrats, that's because they knew how to incorporate it into the narrative without making it feel like the messages where the narrative or the point of the show. BNA has absolutely no subtlety in it's comments on race, religion, and governmental systems. In the first 5 mins of episode one we are introduced to our Main protagonist not by seeing her and her personality but instead seeing her hide from humans who deface a Beasts and Humans equality poster. Then one the bus ride to Anima City we run into gangs who want to kill her for being a Beast. This adds up to the first 15ish mins of the show and tells us more on the message then it does on our main character. BNA is a message wrapped with a thin story, not a story wrapped with a thin message. BNA is the continuation of the slope that trigger has been on. It's not the low point of the slope (Promare) but it's not a sign of going up. I love Trigger a lot, so I hope they get themselves together and produce something good again because everything else so far has been disappointing at best. BNA is on Netflix so if you have that maybe give it a try if you want to, but I would honestly just say if you're in the mood for Trigger go watch the older shows from them.

For context, I have loved Trigger for years. Ever since I saw Imaishi, Nakashima, and Yoshinari work together to create the stunning Gurren Lagann, I have been a huge fan of their work, and so once Trigger was created, I was all aboard. I have followed Trigger and tried my hardest to watch every work they are part of, even if sometimes it's not really my thing like FranXX or Kiznaiver. It's hard for me to say their track record is perfect with the releases that I have had problems with, but this is the first time I really have to say that I am disappointed in Trigger. With FranXX it was easy for me to wave my hand and say that all the problems of that show stemmed from the fact that A1 Pictures was part of it as well, but this is Trigger, disappointing me all on their own. And it's painful to have to say that. STORY - 3/10 BNA is a very mixed bag of ideas, concepts, and theories that are sat on and not really divulged for a large amount of the story, only to be thrown at you haphazardly near the end. I had problems with it in the first half, but I enjoyed it the way I enjoyed Little Witch Academia - I was more accepting of the problems that I had with it because it was made up for by at least enjoyable characters and awesome animation. The idea of spending the runtime of the show focusing less on a plot and more about the social, societal, and basic repercussions of the existence of Beastmen sounds like a good idea to me. Each episode could study the sort of ways that different forms of beastmen could be effected by the existence of Anima-City, the problems it has, the issues that effects it, the benefits it has brought, and coming to see how it can improve and how we can all improve our societies. But that's not really what happens. What happens is that during the second half of the anime, there's exposition coming out of everyone's ears. This isn't irregular for a Trigger story - several Trigger works have done it before, but those works reveled in their crazy concepts and ludicrous plot threads. BNA plays this all straight, and with half the runtime of most other Trigger anime, which means that the plot is even further condensed. The story becomes a real headache to endure, especially near the end. ART - 8/10 I love Trigger's animation. The character designs are all very stylish, very interesting, really varied, and it's very fun. The animation for a majority of the anime is ridiculously smooth - Yoshinari is an absolute beast when it comes to animation, so it's not a surprise to me. I knew I would visually enjoy this series quite a lot. I can't really say much more than that. SOUND - 8/10 I can't complain about anything related to the sound. Characters all have very fitting voices that are well performed. Yes, we do get a character voiced by Murase, as we do in all of Trigger's works, and she is great in her character. The music was really good too! CHARACTER - 4/10 This is another big problem I have with BNA. The protagonist, for a large amount of the story, feels like she has little to no control over anything that is happening in her life. Things happen to her, and around her, and her ally, the big strong Wolf Boi, saves her time and time again. Most of the things the protagonist herself does to change the story or fight for herself feels practically pointless, and if anything she can actually be detriment to the story. Then we have the Wolf character, Ogami. For a large amount of the series, Ogami feels like the one we should actually be following - he has a plot that he is following, he has more of a grip on the plot, it feels like he is much more of a focus. However, he's also pretty milquetoast. He has little to no charisma and just hates humans. I'm going to be honest, I wanted more Itami. I adored her character - the smug aura around her, the fact that she frequently felt in control in the underbelly of Anima-City, I would have loved to follow a story where our protagonist may frequently have to get help from her to find out about the reason why she has become a beastman, avoiding the roadblocks that Anima-City has implemented either through their societal structure or through their government's hands. A story analyzing the society, the problems that come with the exclusionary viewpoint of the society in Anima-City, it could have been really interesting to me. But we don't get that. The best character is sidelined. There's a character who appears later on who I actually thought was pretty interesting, though I can't go into her appearance due to spoilers. So while there are one or two enjoyable characters, the ones we focus on for the most part are kind of annoying or boring. ENJOYMENT - 5 The plot and characters weren't any fun to watch, but the animation kept me interested. I'll be honest, if this wasn't Trigger, I'd have dropped it. OVERALL - 5 Marred with problems, especially in its second half, BNA had a high concept, but fell very short. It's hard for me to say that it's legitimately bad, because Trigger is a company I hold very dear to my heart, but I have to say I would only really recommend BNA to fans of Trigger so that they can take in more Trigger animation.

The beautiful visuals and the fantastic character designs are easily the most striking part of BNA. Every character is so incredibly visually appealing and the fast paced animation of Studio Trigger uses them to great effect. However, I would say the story is also fast paced but to its detriment. They have created an interesting world with potential conflict but we're whipped through it incredibly fast, to the point that I really wish we could have been given more time to luxuriate in the concepts and plots presented. I know this studio doesn't do second seasons very often so the chance we'll get more time with these characters is unlikely, which is a shame. Despite some weaknesses I definitely think it is still worth a watch, if only for the fantastic art direction and a chance to get a peek into an interesting world.

BNA (or Brand new Animal) is a weird case wherein assumption are being made (by the viewer and the cast) and the results are worse than the imagination. You think you perfectly know where the story is headed, but it subverts it with being completely unpredictable by being less than the imagination. And let's start with the story. It is a complete mess in many terms. First of all, the pacing is completely all over the place. The first half of the anime, it is a slice of life with a monster of the week approach, meaning that the protagonist and her ally go around the city to meet different people who may or may not be connected to some shady figures. And in regards to that, the show doesn't pull any punches. Sport gambling and child trafficking are only two of those things. However the show does a very good job to get us familiar with the important characters who all have their respective roles in the looming climax. The second half of the anime, namely the last 6 out of 12 episodes, deal with the circumstances on which the first half built, namely the accident that led the protagonist, Michiru, to become a beastman; a shapeshifter who can freely switch between a human and a humanoid beast appearance with all sorts of powers. The latter half does a good job of wrapping up the ties that the first half started, solving most of the mysteries for the viewer. However, it does a pretty poor job of addressing the implications of the rules at play. For this I have to go a bit into spoiler territory, so here is a warning. If you don't want spoilers skip this paragraph. The genetic beast-factor which BNA utilized to explain the shapeshifting ability is a weird mechanic as in being completely underutilized by the staff. The before mentioned accident is a contaminated blood transfusion between beastman and human. By this Michiru, and her friend, get their genetic code overwritten and are now able to shift in any beast they want, not limited to neither type nor size. Especially since those powers are demonstrated in front of a live audience, it is more than weird that no incursion was done into this by other characters. not even an "How is this possible?". But it gets worse the more you think about it. Can other humans who receive the same or different blood transfusion undergo the same chimeric transformations? Especially due to this mechanic I was pretty sure that the big bad villain would exactly do that, but then again, he was just another beastman wanting the control over the world by getting rid of all other beastman. It certainly is a pretty big let down in that regard. Furthermore, in the final episode another blood transfer is happening between Michiru and the Deuteragonist, Shirou, a beastman, which cures a rampage state, which let the transformations go out of control, creating a body-horror element with progressively bizarre figures. But this aspect is barely explored and just reduced to being something that can be triggered by stress. Yet it only started to appear after 10 years in a very black and white city full of beastman, so that explanation is by far on the weak side. As the viewer I mostly thought, that it would be trail runs for the chimera formula developed in the shadows by the big bad, but nope; it was just something that occurs au natura. End of spoilers. In that regard, like mentioned before, the rules at play are less than the imagination. And the same goes for the ending. It is less than imagined, but nonetheless satisfying as it neatly covers a good resolution for the important characters. The best thing about this show is, by far, the artwork. Studio Trigger does an outstanding job for their vision of the story with very fluent, highly stylized and exaggerated art. It is just a treat. Similarly the sound, especially the ending credits song is often utilized in important characters moments of bonding, often blurring the ending scene with a story resolution. In regards to the characters: there is a constant underlying theme of being yourself against being born as/with something, mostly dominated by being beastman against being human. Especially the deuteragonist, Shirou, is a constant offender of this preaching. At least he gets a somewhat assumed epiphany later; it was never really addressed of how his views were changed by the story and only signalled by a change in dress-code. In that regard his story is one of bias and bigotry channelled in the wrong direction with the wrong reasons. Over all Brand New Animal does a pretty amazing job in conveying the important elements with their usage of exaggerating art to tell their story in the way they want to. Even if that means to undercut expectations of the viewer.

DISCLAIMER!!! THIS ANIME IS NOT IN ANY WAY SIMILAR TO BEASTARS!!! If I see one more anime site that says "BNA is similar to Beastars" I may, in fact, learn how to hack just to delete that website. BNA is WAYY more lighthearted. If you are looking for Beastars 2.0 you WILL be disappointed. With that disclaimer out of the way, we can get into it. I may be biased, but this is my number 1 favourite anime I've watched. The world-building is excellent. The character dynamics are incredibly good. The only thing I wished the anime had was a diversion from big action at the end and a FOCUS on world-building. It was a great slice of beastman life type anime, but the needless and pushed fighting at the end kinda ruined it. My favourite episode was episode 5, which probably had the most world-building in it. the show could have utilised 24 episodes well, 18-20 episodes full of world-building, and the rest of the episodes used for the fighting that trigger so much wanted. All of those episodes strengthen the bonds of the characters and the investment of the person watching. In the end, I loved this anime. So much, in fact, I got 2 shirts of the anime and forced my family to watch it. My family also loved it. A great watch for those who don't have anything else to watch. (Also, it is great for those furries in denial. YOU MUST AWAKEN)

-Just finished watching this on Netflix and I started with pretty low expectations, but I ended up really enjoying this anime- Story: (7) I agree with what others say that this was a very short anime at only 12 episodes so the actual substance to the plotline and main conflict was kinda rushed in the last few episodes. Also, it would've been nice to get more background on the characters and the show's setting. However, I did enjoy the storyline. I thought that it was engaging and different than a lot of other animes I've seen out there. Also, I have to give them props for doing a beastman show that wasn't creepy like Beastars was. Art: (9) I thought the art style of this show was amazing, and honestly, that's the thing that caught my eye and got me to watch the show. I think the creators did a great job animating this. It was super colorful and I really liked the character design as well. Sound: (7) Not much to say other than the music was good. It was catchy but nothing that blew my mind. Character: (8) I think overall all of the main characters are likable. I enjoyed the character development as the show progressed as well. I just wish they went into more background on them especially the main character Michiru. All we really found out about her past was that she used to be human; so basically nothing lol. Enjoyment: (9) Really enjoyable show. I ended up watching the whole thing in one night and would've loved to see more. It had some good action scenes as well as plenty of comic relief. Overall: (9) The art was amazing, the characters we loveable, and I had fun watching it. I've been getting tired of the same anime premises that are popular lately so I found this show to be really refreshing. I would recommend this show to anyone who wants a short anime that is funny and has some good action as well.

I found BNA: Brand New Animal, really good. I like the characters and the setting and it explored a decent number of social issues that we have in our society. It's a decent amount of crime/crime solving, social issues such as: poverty, racism, etc. I also liked the way the writers approached issues, it felt fairly realistic for a city setting. Animation was quite clean and it was visually pleasing, both the characters and the scenery. It's a 10 in my books mostly based off personal enjoyment and things i factored into why i found it so pleasant to watch

BNA touches on a lot of topics that could be seen as a metaphor for things in real life, but masterfully never makes it allegory and thus avoids the trappings so many would be good stories fall into. Instead you get a fully realized emotional experience because it does not give you a solid narrative and tell you what to think but instead asks you to think for yourself. It allows the viewer to experience and interpret and relate to the story and characters in a way that they are drawn in and can easily put themselves into it and add their own life experiences to it, as it should be. If that isn't enough, the characters are actually believable. Which I find something to be lacking in a LOT of shows, anime or not. Michiru and Nazuna's friendship felt real. When I read up on the writing they have two female writers on staff whose job is to make sure their characters are realistic. This attention to detail shows and takes the series to an entire other level. The male characters are also pretty realistic and the main writers say they mostly relate to Ogami, who is himself a very interesting character in my view. While he has a defined and focused purpose, Michiru's influence on him leads to a lot of character development. The realism of the characters and their decision making and how they express themselves is just simply put, masterful. It's always in character and also helps define the character. The show also avoids many tropes, something anime seems to have a huge issue with. While it doesn't avoid all, we have Nazuna wanting to be an idol for example, even the way this was used is clever and felt fresh so I didn't mind it. The character designs, animation, color choices, ability to do visual story telling are all over the top. Trigger studio should not leave you in doubt of this, but they have done it again. The way they drew Michiru's and Nazuna's eyes were amazing for example, the liberal uses of color and exaggerated and deformed animations are what I would expect and also love. The complimentary retro's color palette was also amazingly used, the the teal and magenta theme proving useful over and over again. It's been since the Blade Runner video game I felt so captivated by the use of color. The music is catchy and while not suited to a style I like most the time does the series a service in it's own way. The series is a mix of darkness and light, hot and cold, fast and slow, and best of all it holds no punches when it comes to pacing. The closest we got to filler was the baseball episode and while I could've lived without it, and find the bears annoying, I read some found this the pinnacle of greatness for the series so I guess it has a bit of something for everyone. The story also has a lot to say. One criticism I feel might be valid is that a lot of the progress of the series is not surprising, the series goes where you can maybe guess it will at some points. There is a lot to be said however about doing something well, and avoiding the pitfalls of countless imitators to create something great. That has been done here. The attention to story telling from the opening scene to tell you the way things are to the fact they avoided exposition and telling you how the world is from the get go is just masterfully done. You KNOW because it's shown to you and because you immediately are grabbed by the character. Why is she running up to the ATM covered like that, she looks so afraid. Something as simple as getting cash from an ATM is a near death experience. It really puts you into the world and introduces you far better and quicker than any amount of exposition could have and other story tellers could learn a lot just from the first few scenes. That isn't to say that informing of a world or situation isn't sometimes important. But they mostly save any long dialogue for characters expressing themselves to others. Not info dumping. But working out their relationships with other characters. Trying to understand one another. I'll cherish this for as long as I live, it's a gem, and I'd mostly given up watching anime after they all seemed the same and just like they were copying each others tropes. It made me feel alive again. They also finished the short series off well and I'm one to favor a short series. The inspiration from Tezuka's The Vampires is seen as they have said influenced them to create it. Spoiler here, so don't read it if you haven't finished, but the final message of the series is Michiru liking who she is and being comfortable with it. The entire show she was trying to get back to being human, but she likes who she is. She realizes the role she can play and how her unique situation makes her able to help people. She also realizes with one of Ogami's last words in the later scenes that it's ok for her to be like she is. He never asked for her help, but he appreciates it and it did a lot of good. Nazuna's criticism of her, that had her so bent, is resolved. She likes herself. That's as good an ending as one could have imo and an important thing.

A friend of mine recommended this anime series. And I have to say, I was skeptical about it at first. I had watched the trailer on Netflix and thought, "It looks good but it also DOESN'T look good." So I put off watching it. But two weeks after it was released, I just turned it on. To my surprise, the series was actually really good. I enjoyed the majority of it, but the most appealing piece of this series would have to be the story. It isn't difficult to create a story that revolves around the struggle of two races. But it is difficult to create a good fighting story on racism without adding romance. That's what I find interesting about this anime. Though, I can't say it will not include romance in another season. But a lot of movies and shows I have encountered about the struggle between two races include a romance between two paralleled characters. In this case, Shiro and Michiru do not appear to have romantic feelings towards each other. But more of a kinship bond that you would see with family members or in a pack. The least appealing piece of this show would have to be the opening song. For me, the opening song has some kick, but it doesn't appeal to me. I feel a ringing in my ear every time I hear it. And I always feel tempted to skip the intro whenever it comes up. Not all of the music is bad though. I like the fight cinematics and simple action sequences.

The story is fine, it does what it wants and is pretty enjoyable and doesnt feel jarring. The Sound, Art, and Character Design all help the story create a very fun and enjoyable setting for this show which makes the show a blast. So if your looking for something fun, entertaining, and easy to watch this would be a great choice. The music and sound design does its job insanely well, helps its setting and never feels weird or out of place. This show touches on some deep themes, and while being important and a big part of the story isnt the main focus and it doesn't overshadow the main character which was what I was most happy and pleasantly surprised about. Overall, the show was great and even though the first few episodes felt somewhat unimportant to the plot they were utilized well to be really enjoyable and helped define the city and worl they live in.

Story-7 I think the story was pretty good and well thought.I really liked that there were animals who can turn themselves into humans. Art-8 It was pretty colorful.While watching the anime and listening to the opening and ending you can somehow feel blue,pink and purple.They were like the main colors.I really like the way the characters are made.Especially Shirou and the ,,tanuki girl'' Michiru.The way they are drawn and the colors they are painted with not only look good but also describe their temper. Sound-8 The opening was good,the ending was good.What more do you need :) Character-8 Personally my favorite character is Shirou(i think that's the favorite one to everybody but come on he is so damn good).I pretty much described them above.Lastly Alan is one of the villains that you can't just hate.I mean he looks so cool and when he is talking he is choosing his words very well(well he is a villain after all).Also he has almost the same powers as Ogami. Enjoyment-7 It's really enjoyable,totally not a time waster.Enough enjoyment for only 12 episodes. Overall-8 The anime is brand new,it's with good art and cool characters.I would totally recommend it. I hope this was useful!!!

Story 5 I gave the story a 5 because it s not that much a good story ıf u want to watch this for the story don t do it. Because this anime (in my opinion) is more provides it s art,some comedy and good music and the last 2 or 3 eps makes 0 sense. But I am literally seeing a trigger anime that doesn t involved aliens in it Art 8 It s art is uniqe and good. Sound 9 This anime s music is so good. The OP is catchy , the ED is relax and that s it they re pretty good. charecter 6 I like the Tanuki girl and bear team but other than that there s not much of a charecter in it. Except the furry wolf Batman (Oogami). Overall I enjoyed it but I felt like I wasted my time for the story because the story doesn t get me anything for this anime

If I were to sum BNA up in one sentence it'd be "The totally didn't see that coming anime". BNA starts pretty well, you got all the ingredients for a well above average anime: unique setting, studio Trigger's signature art style, likable MC, and solid plot foundations. So where does Brand New Animal fail to deliver? Short answer: story and characters. As I said at the very beginning the plot is very predictable and plain. Since the beginning you build up a lot of excitement and expectations just for them to be extinguished by cliches and dumbed down issues. I think that it's great for an anime to go the next step and take a more serious approach towards ethical and political subjects but then you must commit to it. Don't talk about poverty, child exploitation, war veterans, and terrorism if you are gonna give as much space as a couple of dumbed-down filler episodes, because it's just gonna confuse people. Am I supposed to laugh? To feel? It felt like it was more of a mocking of the issue than something to meditate about. The two things that saved the story from a negative score were definitively the unique setting and the BANGERS ending, which i liked and did not expect to be this good. Seeing how the anime was proceeding i was afraid of a rushed ending but thankfully they kept it simple and entertaining, while fixing some of the plot holes they made along the way. If the story was able to hold tight somehow, characters are a total disaster. Everything except the MC sucks. No character development, every single one of them is prefabricated, totally forgettable, soulless, and useless. Episodes were dedicated to introducing characters who saw the screen 3 times at best or that resulted in pointless to anything plot/development related. This isn't a 1 just because of the MC Michiru, who is actually likable, somewhat original, and subject of development. The other MC Shirou is a walking cliche somehow Batman-inspired who just ruins the mood with dumbed-down speeches. Last but not least we get to the good stuff: art and sound. By far the strongest points. The voice acting is really good, I loved how some of them were even able to save the soulless characters. Both the opening and ending, despite they're not getting the credit they deserve, are well executed both soundwise and in terms of animation. Too bad BNA doesn't present any OST to brag about. No need to waste time endorsing Studio Trigger's animation, it's a for the eyes that only Trigger can deliver. Perish the thought BNA isn't an enjoyable anime yet the wasted potential leaves a bitter taste that won't disappear easily. 6,5/10

looks great, music is great, most episodes do a fine job of telling an understandable story. I gotta say one big issue is with the ending. The final ending arc misses it's chance to take it's ideas about conflict between class and race and really explore it. BNA misses an opportunity to really express it's ideas though it's world. I guess trigger needed more episodes to really express their story. In the eLike maybe another cour, but honestly more importantly an overhaul of the plot and some people to really tie the story together with it's themes. Like did Alan Slyvesta really have to be [What he was in the final episode]? What about the prime minister? 7/10 overall, visuals and design are really good.

SPOILERS! Disappointed overall 6.5/10, was good up until baseball team, however Nazuna and Michuru pissed me off a lot as Nazuna felt like 'im so perfect uwu' so best girl=dolphin girl. Trigger hasn't met my expectations this time, the ending wasn't great either. At first BNA it felt like psycho pass, I wished they didn't use the friendship is magic bullshit, something different, like Nazuna and Michuru, not being friends? Ost and animation is 8.5/10 , i wish there was more worldbuilding, as the last 2 episodes were rushed alot :( If there is a season 2 i hope they don't ship Oogami and Michiru, however how would the story of a season 2 be like? How I felt about the characters: Nazuna: As I explained she is annoying AF she needed a friend to tell her that rape snake was evil, she had some good sides though, like it was cute seeing her with Michiru rather then completely running away. 4/10 (I just found her wanting to be idol, repetitive) Michiru: Completely loved her until ep 8, kept shoving 'Alan is good!' up Oogamis ass, also for wanting to be human, then not wanting to be human??? LIKE YOU CAN CHANGE NOW, HOW DID YOU FORGET, YOU DONT NEED THE SERUM? But... 6/10 for looking like Tom Nook Mayor: the 2nd best character, as she surprised me a lot with her backstory. 7/10 Oogami: 9/10 for design, 8/10 for character, too op imao, and acts like everyone who is 10,000 years old in anime's (silent type cliche) I wanted something different. The villain Alan was cliche too 6/10 10/10 for bread and water boy though. I don't think I can say anymore, as there wasn't much to see in just 12 episodes