Unfortunately a very average anime, the relatively fast pace and short fight scenes does little for any character development, which ultimately leaves you caring less if anyone actually lives or dies in this series. The conceptual idea behind it could have made it very successful if the creators would have spent more time on fleshing out the plot, story, abilities and characters. Overall a cool idea but poor execution. It might be worth a watch of you liked underworld, however I think there are far better quality anime out there to invest your time on.
4 Reviews
Monsters or gods?: Complete series Analysis
amiranda-3927420 March 2020
Warning: Spoilers
In order to end a bloody civil war, the north decides to start turning their own soldiers into mythical creatures called incarnates, which quickly turn the tables of the war and end it. But it comes with a price, all of the incarnates begin to lose their sanity and give into their animalistic urges and begin to cause havoc. This anime is very fast paced and very brutal, and is not intended for the weak hearted. And its spectacular. This is one of the most tragic shows you'll ever see, its basically old yeller the show, where every episode someone dies, and yet you cant help but watch.
The characters: each character in this anime is sympathetic especially the incarnates, because we are shown that each one has a motive or a dream. The incarnates are awe inspiring and terrifying, everyone compares them to gods since it literally takes an army to bring just one done, and despite them being a menace, you cant help but feel sorry for them, especially once you see their flashbacks and who they used to be. But you understand that they all need to be killed since now they pose a greater threat to the very peace they fought a war for, and hank knows this is not what their true selves would want and sees their brutal deaths as mercy kills. Hank is a well developed character, we are shown that he used to be a caring man but that he was forced to become vicious in order to fulfill the promise he made to his lover and friends. It is tragic to see the burden he must carry, since he is forced to brutally kill his former friends, he is not stoic and has a few breakdowns about it, he even struggles with the thought of ending his own life, after his mission is over, which is why he is so relieved when schaal promises to end his life for him when the time comes. Schaal is the standard tagalong girl, that starts the show off trying to get revenge on hank for killing her father ( the dragon incarnate) and perplexing enough she wants to join hank on his mission to see exactly why he needs to kill incarnates, she eventually gets her answer and becomes hanks confidant. Liza is an officer in the army that is also apart of a team that is tasked with exterminating the incarnates, despite this she works with hank to accomplish their common goal, she also serves as the shows source of fanservice thanks to her " assets". Cain proves to be an effective villain, being hanks nemesis and despite being a complete hate sink, he is also well developed, especially when he argues that humans are bigger monsters than incarnates. Not every character is developed and a lot could have used more improvement, but at least they keep the story compelling. The story: The plot is basically what I mentioned already, former soldiers turned into monsters are now rampaging across the country, and hank is on a mission to kill them all. The story is Set in a 1800s era grounded world that closely resembles our own, I say this because there is nothing to indicate magic is a norm in this world. This helps to make the incarnates standout and feel more awesome. Also a steampunk aesthetic comes into the story as the government needs to develop weapons to kill the incarnates. And just when you think this is the only storyline, we find out what hanks old friend turned nemesis Cain has been up too, and it really takes the story for a spiral, as cain intends for the incarnates to take over the country as the superior species, nothing you haven't heard before but is executed quite nicely and enhances the story. Sadly the anime is very fast paced, and while taking the time to cover each characters backstory and motivation, everything is speed through to get to the fights, which isn't a complaint, but it disrupts the flow of the overall story. Also I really feel the story could have been done better In the beginning if the first episode was actually the second. The first episode should have began with hank killing schaals father and have schaal hunting the man in the white hood, and then we would see the first episode and why hank is killing incarnates. Sure the first episode does settle the worldbuilding but it took away what could have been an enigmatic beginning.
The Animation: The animation can be bland and stale sometimes, especially the human characters, but the incarnates look incredible, each done with a unique design, and given a lot of great detail There are still many times where the animation is gorgeous, especially characters eyes and backgrounds and the actions scenes are the most well animated in the show and are jaw-dropping . The Action: The action is truly epic, in no other anime will you ever see a werewolf vs werewolf fight like how its done in this one. This is the saving grace of the show, each episode hank is required to fight one of his former teammates, although hank does kill each incarnate with a god killer bullet to the head, each fight is emotionally and physically different. The action might seem repetitive, but each fight requires hank to use different tactics to defeat his opponents, which certainly gives all the fights variety. Which makes each fight feel fresh and excel above your standard monster of the weeks fights in most animes. Besides the incarnates deaths, there are so many other deaths in this anime, it feels like a trend. There is a lot of gore and brutality in these fights, and a lot of blood, so if your squeamish you've been warned, the war scenes can be shocking to watch and if you have a weak stomach perhaps it might make you feel sick, but its not excessive like in other violent animes and it makes each fight feel impactful. The best fights are visually spectacular, the top 3 would be the mansion battle, Hank vs Roy, and Hank vs Cain.
This is one of the best animes I saw this last year and despite that, it still falls short from being great. What holds back the show from being truly great is the writing, it relies a lot on coincidences, random unexplained occurences and has many continuity problems. This show is unique but still kind of familiar that we don't need everything explained to us, in fact we never learn exactly how elaine was able to turn people into incarnates, but according to the manga it was a type of magic mixed with technology, which is also the only explanation of why cains and hanks powers go far beyond their original forms. The show ends on an excellent cliffhanger, so I hope they make another season, so as soon as that happens I will add to this review. There are a lot of things that can be confusing or are left unexplained, which is why a 2nd season is needed. Its not a groundbreaking anime, but it is a well executed anime, that is all roar and bite.
The characters: each character in this anime is sympathetic especially the incarnates, because we are shown that each one has a motive or a dream. The incarnates are awe inspiring and terrifying, everyone compares them to gods since it literally takes an army to bring just one done, and despite them being a menace, you cant help but feel sorry for them, especially once you see their flashbacks and who they used to be. But you understand that they all need to be killed since now they pose a greater threat to the very peace they fought a war for, and hank knows this is not what their true selves would want and sees their brutal deaths as mercy kills. Hank is a well developed character, we are shown that he used to be a caring man but that he was forced to become vicious in order to fulfill the promise he made to his lover and friends. It is tragic to see the burden he must carry, since he is forced to brutally kill his former friends, he is not stoic and has a few breakdowns about it, he even struggles with the thought of ending his own life, after his mission is over, which is why he is so relieved when schaal promises to end his life for him when the time comes. Schaal is the standard tagalong girl, that starts the show off trying to get revenge on hank for killing her father ( the dragon incarnate) and perplexing enough she wants to join hank on his mission to see exactly why he needs to kill incarnates, she eventually gets her answer and becomes hanks confidant. Liza is an officer in the army that is also apart of a team that is tasked with exterminating the incarnates, despite this she works with hank to accomplish their common goal, she also serves as the shows source of fanservice thanks to her " assets". Cain proves to be an effective villain, being hanks nemesis and despite being a complete hate sink, he is also well developed, especially when he argues that humans are bigger monsters than incarnates. Not every character is developed and a lot could have used more improvement, but at least they keep the story compelling. The story: The plot is basically what I mentioned already, former soldiers turned into monsters are now rampaging across the country, and hank is on a mission to kill them all. The story is Set in a 1800s era grounded world that closely resembles our own, I say this because there is nothing to indicate magic is a norm in this world. This helps to make the incarnates standout and feel more awesome. Also a steampunk aesthetic comes into the story as the government needs to develop weapons to kill the incarnates. And just when you think this is the only storyline, we find out what hanks old friend turned nemesis Cain has been up too, and it really takes the story for a spiral, as cain intends for the incarnates to take over the country as the superior species, nothing you haven't heard before but is executed quite nicely and enhances the story. Sadly the anime is very fast paced, and while taking the time to cover each characters backstory and motivation, everything is speed through to get to the fights, which isn't a complaint, but it disrupts the flow of the overall story. Also I really feel the story could have been done better In the beginning if the first episode was actually the second. The first episode should have began with hank killing schaals father and have schaal hunting the man in the white hood, and then we would see the first episode and why hank is killing incarnates. Sure the first episode does settle the worldbuilding but it took away what could have been an enigmatic beginning.
The Animation: The animation can be bland and stale sometimes, especially the human characters, but the incarnates look incredible, each done with a unique design, and given a lot of great detail There are still many times where the animation is gorgeous, especially characters eyes and backgrounds and the actions scenes are the most well animated in the show and are jaw-dropping . The Action: The action is truly epic, in no other anime will you ever see a werewolf vs werewolf fight like how its done in this one. This is the saving grace of the show, each episode hank is required to fight one of his former teammates, although hank does kill each incarnate with a god killer bullet to the head, each fight is emotionally and physically different. The action might seem repetitive, but each fight requires hank to use different tactics to defeat his opponents, which certainly gives all the fights variety. Which makes each fight feel fresh and excel above your standard monster of the weeks fights in most animes. Besides the incarnates deaths, there are so many other deaths in this anime, it feels like a trend. There is a lot of gore and brutality in these fights, and a lot of blood, so if your squeamish you've been warned, the war scenes can be shocking to watch and if you have a weak stomach perhaps it might make you feel sick, but its not excessive like in other violent animes and it makes each fight feel impactful. The best fights are visually spectacular, the top 3 would be the mansion battle, Hank vs Roy, and Hank vs Cain.
This is one of the best animes I saw this last year and despite that, it still falls short from being great. What holds back the show from being truly great is the writing, it relies a lot on coincidences, random unexplained occurences and has many continuity problems. This show is unique but still kind of familiar that we don't need everything explained to us, in fact we never learn exactly how elaine was able to turn people into incarnates, but according to the manga it was a type of magic mixed with technology, which is also the only explanation of why cains and hanks powers go far beyond their original forms. The show ends on an excellent cliffhanger, so I hope they make another season, so as soon as that happens I will add to this review. There are a lot of things that can be confusing or are left unexplained, which is why a 2nd season is needed. Its not a groundbreaking anime, but it is a well executed anime, that is all roar and bite.
I want more please this is unfinished
WeAreLive21 December 2019
Warning: Spoilers
Plot
During a protracted civil war that pitted the North against the South, the outnumbered Northerners used dark magical arts to create monstrous super-soldiers-Incarnates. Now that the war has ended, those Sacred Beasts must learn how to make their way in a peaceful society, or face death at the hands of a Beast Hunter - Nancy Schaal Bancroft, the daughter of an Incarnate soldier who met an untimely end at the hands of one such Beast Hunter, turns to hunting the hunter herself. But once she catches up with her quarry, she discovers hard truths about the lives of the Incarnates.
My opinion
The series is a pretty fun ride in my opinion the characters are good and even relatable to certain extent. Though occasionally I can find Nancy a bit annoying. As far as story it was good but towards the end there is something which could probably give is a hint to be covered in a possible second season which at the moment does not exist. The voice acting, art style and designs were pretty good as well.
It is a pretty good anime overall. Maybe not for everyone since there is a bit of gore which could put a few people off and there maybe a bit of nudity but nothing major.
During a protracted civil war that pitted the North against the South, the outnumbered Northerners used dark magical arts to create monstrous super-soldiers-Incarnates. Now that the war has ended, those Sacred Beasts must learn how to make their way in a peaceful society, or face death at the hands of a Beast Hunter - Nancy Schaal Bancroft, the daughter of an Incarnate soldier who met an untimely end at the hands of one such Beast Hunter, turns to hunting the hunter herself. But once she catches up with her quarry, she discovers hard truths about the lives of the Incarnates.
My opinion
The series is a pretty fun ride in my opinion the characters are good and even relatable to certain extent. Though occasionally I can find Nancy a bit annoying. As far as story it was good but towards the end there is something which could probably give is a hint to be covered in a possible second season which at the moment does not exist. The voice acting, art style and designs were pretty good as well.
It is a pretty good anime overall. Maybe not for everyone since there is a bit of gore which could put a few people off and there maybe a bit of nudity but nothing major.
Season 2 should release
hassaamhp13 January 2021
Good concept anime but toooo short. Season 1 was good but alot of things were not explained like .....how his girlfriend is alive and why should in the end his evil friend was not killed and if like his girlfriend is still alive then it might be possible that all of his teammates who he shooted are alive ??? Like her girlfriend ....there are alot of things that are unsolved in season 1 soooo i request the writer to please kindly continue this show and explain everything and make this show a happy possible ending ....there are alot of people like me who are waiting for its next season please .....🙏....thank u
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