Lycoris Recoil (2022) User Reviews

Peaceful, safe, and beautiful Tokyo...

[cile-chan · 9/10 · 19 July 2022]

All thanks to a covert organization that trains orphan girls to become Lycoris; all-girl assassins dressed in high school uniforms who ensure Tokyo stays crime-free. Stoic Lycoris sharpshooter Takina, meets the cheery Lycoris elite agent Chisato, whose remarkable trajectory insight makes her an impossible target to shoot (Neo who?). Together, their wide-ranging missions begin.

Only 3 episodes in and Lycoris Recoil is already proving itself to be one of summer 22's best original anime series. It succeeds in blending slice-of-life, comedy, and action, and its vibrant animation perfectly contrasts with the story's underlying dark aspects. The best selling point of the show besides the neat action scenes (and the occasional action movie references), is the dynamic between the main characters Chisato and Takina as they're literally each other's opposite.

If you're up for some gun-toting girl spies, foil characters, and Loli hackers, you'll certainly gonna love this one.

Fun girls-with-guns action

[Tweekums · 7/10 · 29 September 2022]

This series is set in a future where there is no crime in Tokyo... at least not officially. In reality a group of school-girl assassins, called Lycoris, tackle criminal threats. One such operative is Takina Inoue; after an incident where she was considered to have endangered others. After this she is recruited by Chisato Nishikigi, an elite agent working out of a café. Chisato has the ability to dodge bullets but refuses to kill anybody. This sees then facing various threats; including terrorist Majima and a hacker known as 'Robota' due to the headgear he wears.

I thought this was fun series. There is plenty of action as well as some humour and likeable protagonists. The story progresses well after setting up the characters. The action is fairly dynamic and there is a good sense of danger even if the antagonists fall into pantomime villain territory at times. Away from the action there is some slice of life showing the girls off duty; this provides some more character depth. The character designs are good, as is the animation. Overall I'd recommend this to fans of the girls-with guns subgenre.

These comments are based on watching the series in Japanese with English subtitles.

Very fun and entertaining !

[Lugarian · 8/10 · 14 July 2022]

Watched only the first episode so far and honestly this is very nice !

The plot is very simple and the characters are engaging enough, I really dig the mix of genres : action, slice of life, comedy, it works really well.

This looks very promising !

Plus the end credits song is a banger ;)

One of the best anime ever I seen

[slsivaraman · 10/10 · 16 June 2023]

One of the best anime ever I seen. My friends also a big fan of Lycoris Recoil. I recommend every one to watch this one of my favourite anime, No words left to tell, mind blowing, I hate animies before, but after watching this I am adicted to this. I eagerly waiting for season 2. Season 2 must come that's my wthat th I request A-1 studios to release season 2. Then only it will be full filled to viewers. Season 1 has a wonderful happy ending. But the main villian is still alive. If season 2 come it will be full filled to viewers, If season 2 released I definitely tell I am the most happiest person in the world.

A reasonably good story with a remarkably fantastic protagonist

[glumski · 9/10 · 9 August 2023]

The premise of Lycoris Recoil is pretty much the typical anime idiosyncrasy: Tokyo is kept crime free by a secret agency of teenage assassin girls which are referred to as 'Lycoris'. What sounds like one of those shows with a generic plot wrapped around scantily clad characters is actually the opposite.

Lycoris Recoil tells a reasonably clever story surrounding the Lycoris agents Takina and Chisato. Takina is the quintessential no-nonsense professional that has been raised from early childhood to be the perfect agent. Chisato is her cheerful antithesis, treating life lightly. Yet neither character is as generic as they sound. Chisato especially is as joyful and wholesome as few fictional characters manage to be, reminding me a bit of Kitagawa from the romantic comedy 'My Dress-Up Darling'. This is greatly helped along by the fantastic (Japanese) voice acting of Chika Anzai who received well-deserved awards for her performance.

Besides the wonderful main character, Lycoris Recoil's greatest assets are the clean yet vibrant style of animation, the furious action, the perfect balance between lighthearted slice-of-life moments and a grim plot of secrecy and terrorism, and the charming and heartfelt interactions between the main and support characters.

For me personally, the show was a perfect fit. Kickass girls with commendable morals and a cheerful personality are always welcome, much more so than the violent psychopaths that usually fill the 'girls with guns' genre. I also quite enjoyed that there was pretty much zero fanservice. The violence might still be a bit much for a true childfriendly rating, though.

I'd be greatly enthused if Lycoris Recoil were renewed for a second season. According to Wikipedia, a second animation project has been confirmed; I can only hope that we'll get to see Chisato and Takina again!

A Mix Of Slice Of Life And Action

[natertateer · 7/10 · 25 September 2022]

Lycoris Recoil does a decent job of finding a middle ground between slice of life and action. The main characters are likeable and very interesting, almost every character plays a real role in the story. It wouldn't be a show about stopping crime without a villain! This anime's villain is what helps make it a successful and suspenseful story.

Now the overall concept of cute girls with guns working behind the scenes to stop crime isn't unique to this anime but Lycoris Recoil does it the best out of any show I've seen. Without any spoilers I will say however the final two episode's are lackluster and disappointing. For a anime I actually enjoy this definitely hurts the shows rating in my honest opinion. 7/10.

More then just an anime with cute girls

[WeAreLive · 9/10 · 1 March 2023]

The number of terrorist acts in Japan has never been lower, thanks to the efforts of the Direct Attack syndicate. The organisation raises orphaned girls as killers to carry out assassinations under the "Lycoris" program. Takina Inoue is an exceptional Lycoris with a strong sense of purpose and a penchant for perfection. But when she is transferred out of DA headquarters for insubordination, she arrives in her new base of operations - LycoReco, a branch of DA in disguise as a cafe. Feeling like a fish out of water, Takina itches to be reinstated into DA, but her new partner, the famed Lycoris prodigy Chisato, is determined to prove to her that there is more to a life than just taking them.

I loved this anime from start to finish, the chemistry between Tanika and Chisato was very entertaining.

The animation by A1 pictures was good, the English dub was excellent and the intro was great as well.

Looking forward to season 2.

Not Perfect, but it's very entertaining, charming, and has its moments of shining.

[peteromg6 · 7/10 · 5 October 2022]

Good animation (as always with these summer anime), with a good soundtrack, i like most of them during my watching experience.

The characters, are surprisingly good, the main cast (Chisato and Takina) are very "distinct" in terms of personality, and have a meaningful backstory, enough for me to get invested

Nice action, i like most of the shooting, especially with the main cast as mentioned earlier

The story, it's good, definitely isn't innovative any means, it's basically like a thriller-esque story, with some depth.

The only main flaw, i had is although the action is nice, some of it are quite confusing in their own, without watching at least the first 3 episodes, you won't understand why the main cast is being badass

Overall, This anime is charming in its own merits.

Just a guy who watch anime

[ibnu-08266 · 10/10 · 5 February 2023]

Good anime, I haven't watched good original anime in a long time and not many original anime have quite interesting stories. I suggest you watch it if you are an anime connoisseur because there are very few original anime that are good and will really support the anime industry if you watch original anime, because the anime industry is experiencing turmoil such as a lack of quantity of animators, very short deadlines, etc. Which makes a lot of good anime whose broadcast was postponed for a long time due to problems in the anime industry. Thanks to the staff who work hard to create interesting stories.

Conspiracy override

[Sh31kh_H0kv5 · 7/10 · 13 January 2023]

Okay like what's next, aliens in human clothing l protecting mankind that's not great from this thank you, truth be untold but i have no choice, 2022 was a great year for anime but some didn't just made the cut they were the cut yeah nice graphics and cute characters but still not for the general public, hard work was poured into this anime but still the feeling of void is there present till the very end and at the it's funny course everything centers around one particular person, if she's happy they are all happy but I'm reality am not not that it matters but let my rating speak for me and my opinions.

More than just a Slice-Of-Life

[talking_about_movies · 9/10 · 30 September 2022]

This is another anime that, at the start of the season, I never expected to be this great, which is why I was greatly surprised by how much I enjoyed this. This is an action-filled, heartwarming, and emotional thrill ride. I loved the action in this anime, gunfights, hand to hand combats, the whole deal. Look, it was very unrealistic, but I can't deny how cool it was. I loved the 2 main characters and the main villain. They were very likeable, and all the banter between them was really entertaining. The friendship between the main 2 characters was very sweet. And the story, while not perfectly told, but still was really good with a few surprises along the way. The sound design was great too.

Either episode is on the level of a cinema movie.

[panflute00 · 10/10 · 25 July 2022]

A combination of a bullet-dodger and a sharpshooter plays the secret agency for public security. The senior partner is a genius able to suppress an automatic rifleman with a handgun on one-to-one and the junior partner is a markswoman able to hit a drone flying at a vehicle speed from the vehicle, which vehicle has jumped over the road. "Sugoi," "Subarashii," "Gaccoi," Aibo(partner)-dachi is the main 'heroines' (literally) of this remarkable anime. The emergence of this two heroines is a sudden birth of a great anime in this year.

The character of the senior partner is a peacemaker in one word. Peacemaking seems the main theme of this work and the senior partner leads the junior partner in that way though the character of the junior partner is straightforward in one word. The heroines are orphans, so the junior partner has personality in gloomy mood. However the senior awakens the inverse side of the junior's personality in episode 4, showing her the bright livings, as a mentor, naturally(this is the role of a mentor).

The drawing and animation are precise, and the combination of colors makes the scenes fine shots. Hardly any complain would exist. The plot is also excellent. Exquisitely composed storyline does not allow the audiences to do other things while watching this anime. Literally either episode is a cinema movie. Yet every episodes are not aired, this work is already a masterpiece.

An anime maniac.

Let's get some coffee drinking and terminating some bad guys

[st-52753 · 9/10 · 27 September 2022]

8.8/10 Cute girls, agents, guns. Where is the reason for me to not watch it? This idea came to my mind when I found the information about this series.

Now I tell you, it's even more terrific than I expected.

The theme could be a serious, dark story, but the writers and director are so brilliant, making it so funny (even though there were still some serious scenes). Even no those terrorists, and cruel killings, I bet that every audience could accept watching the girls' daily normal lives.

Because every character is so charming, even including the villains. Chisato is no doubt the most lovely one, she's also one of my favorite female anime protagonists. Takina's journey from a manic assassin with cold blood to a humanized girl who knows how to love people (even take partners more important than missions), is beautiful. She also made the unforgettable "Sakana", which is her best work for this anime.

I didn't predict this ending. From ep. 11 to 12, I thought that some terrible, heartbreaking twist would come in ep.13 (maybe one of the main characters dies, or Chisato turns into the darkness like Sasuke somehow, which was also the ending I wanted to watch). Not knowing unfortunately or fortunately, everyone is safe in the end, LycoReco even expands their business blueprint to Hawai. I'm glad to see the girls and Mika are happy, but it's also a pity that there was no pain in the ending of Lycoris Recoil. Anyway, you still have to watch it, definitely.

An adorably fun and crazy ride

[jochang-30856 · 8/10 · 4 May 2024]

So this title centers around teenage girls that have been trained since childhood by a secret government agency to counter terrorism/crime. Basically, they're fixers for the state when things go wrong, and they wear Japanese school girl outfits as a type of urban camouflage. The main character, Chisato, is apparently some type of genius combatant that has reflexes so advanced she can dodge bullets. Also, when she's not taking out bad guys in stylish fashion she runs a popular dessert cafe with a bunch of her friends. There's more to this but that's the gist.

Doesn't it sound absurd? How could this premise actually work without being ridiculous? Because they're cute girls doing cute things. That's the answer. The power of adorable teenage girls having a good time in fashionable outfits and oversized sweaters cannot be matched. There could have been any number of additional absurdities in this show and it would still work. Aliens, telepathy, demonic possession-- it doesn't matter. When you see Chisato pretending to be marine wildlife in an aquarium, or Takina stressing out about her latest dessert creation looking too much like poop, nothing else matters. Especially when the characters are so likable and endearing.

A premise seemingly nonsensical and a draw that sounds like it's nothing but a tired gimmick would probably come off as generic or mid, but this show was actually super entertaining. If you look at it from a storytelling point of view minus the crazy details, it was told well. Character introduction, momentum, world building, evolving mystery, all of this was excellent. Add to that quality animation plus a wicked soundtrack and you have a winner. Chisato and friends really could have been inserted into any number of genres and it still would have worked with few adjustments if any. This is evidenced by the fact that they made an appearance in THIS show. Compared to what we see here, a drama, slice of life, romance, coming of age, or something supernatural would have been a far easier undertaking.