Tokyo ESP

Tokyo ESP. A show about people with a variety of superpowers duking it out against each other. How can you go wrong with that? Story: 3/10 Frankly, the story of ESP is a jumbled mess. The first episode sets the stage well. It introduces the world and the conflict between factions, and leaves the story open to development. Super powered beings called Espers have rebelled and taken Tokyo hostage. People are panicking. Everything is going wrong. And then the protagonist appears to save the day. The first episode left me keen for more. I was exited to see where the plot would go. And then, it pulled aGungrave and threw the plot back into the past. Starting a story in the present and then jumping back to the past is a horrible decision. If you see a character in the present episode, you know they at least survive until that point. Therefore, any fights that are supposed to be highly impact full and tense really don't amount to anything. The entire past arc felt like I was watching a drawn out montage. After trudging through ESP's past sequence, eagerly awaiting the part of the story I was interested in, I was greeted with one of the most lackluster finales I've ever watched. All the plot's events basically amount to nothing, the villains motivations make absolutely no sense, and the conclusion is left open ended for a second season. On its own, Tokyo ESP just doesn't stack up, and I doubt a second season will change that. ESP also tries its hand at making a love triangle between characters, but it feels forced and falls flat. There's also an attempt to touch on themes of racism and unfair judgement, but again, this doesn't strike a nerve at all. Art: 5/10 Art wise, ESP doesn't stand out, nor does it suffer from poor animation quality. Its just average. Sound: 4/10 Again, nothing that memorable here either. Whilst background sounds and the VO are passable, Tokyo ESP's OST is lacking, so it falls below average. Character: 3/10 Nothing special about Tokyo ESP's characters at all. They're mostly shallow and one dimensional, and a lot of their actions don't make any sense. There are some moments where they can be likeable, but these are few and far between. ESP also contains the contender for worst villain (I've never witnessed a character this poorly constructed). Like the other categories, the characters just fell flat. In conclusion, Tokyo ESP just felt like a waste. The premise is wasted, the story is jumbled, the characters are dull. All that stands out are its flaws, and there are many. Final Verdict: 3/10

In a world full of crime, there is an anime that has potential to became awesome using superpowers, however, it turned out to be a mess. That anime is Tokyo ESP. Tokyo ESP is produced by Xebec. STORY (4): The story follows Rinka Urushiba, a normal high school student who is a bit poor and her father is the only one who raise her. Rinka has to work as a waitress after school to raise money for rent and food. One day, she sees a penguin and some glowing fish swimming through the sky. Rinka came into contact with the fish and she develops ESP powers. ESPPowers are basically supernatural powers. This anime was inspired by X-Men powers and so they produced an anime that deals with supernatural powers. It wasn't known in the US because people might think that this anime copied X-Men powers. The problem with this anime is that they never address where does the glowing fish came from. Not only that the plot is a complete mess. Events just happen randomly without any meaning at all. The second episode is basically the first episode where Rinka was lying naked in the room. The ending gives no closure to all the characters. ART (4): The animation at some parts are bland and wooded, while other parts are decent. The first episode fight was good while the rest not so much. SOUND (4): The opening and ending are ok. CHARACTER (3): Black Fist is my favourite character of the show. She is intimidating and badass. Rinka is also a badass however, her personality wasn't interesting to me. Azuma is a generic character who is always there for Rinka. I guess there is not much to say for the rest of the characters. They are too generic even the main villain as well. CONCLUSION (3): Overall, Tokyo ESP could have been entertaining but with it's lacklustre story, uninteresting characters and anti-climactic ending, it just comes off as forgettable. So I give this anime a 3 out of 10.

Tokyo ESP is just about exactly what it sounds like. Tokyo is the location of the setting while ESP stands for extra-sensory perception. Add two more letters to that and you get ‘esper’, the term used to designate individuals who possesses powers beyond human capability. The premise is essentially about a girl named Rinka Urushiba who develops special abilities of her own after one faithful day that changes her life forever. It’s nothing new to see really as generic would be the first word that comes to mind if I was to describe this setup. To enjoy Tokyo ESP, you’ll have to see the showfrom another perspective for some painless fun. From the same author that bought to you Ga-Rei, don’t be surprised if you see some similarities. Hajime Segawa’s writing combines an essence of supernatural in a modern setting with some depth of dark edginess. Director Shigehito Takayanagi’s involvement is also somewhat noticeable with his return. Nonetheless, the first episode essentially drops down a lot of concept. The main focus is that espers are perceived as monsters due to their potentials. Treated perhaps as malevolent entities of the world, the introduction shows espers showing off their powers while the world appalled by their actions. It quickly goes with a path of action in full throttle mode with even a bike crash gimmick to add to the mix. However, that’s only the beginning. The show actually breaks down the barriers of the story in little molecules. That’s because the following episodes begins to follow the life of a regular high school girl. Meet Rinka, a girl who has developed the ability to phase through objects. When using the power, her hair turns white. Hence, the medium dubs her the “White Girl”. Get it? Sounds cheesy but it makes sense to portray what she is. What we also learn about Rinka is that she has a strong sense of justice developed by the influence of her father. Justice comes at a price though as we learn how dangerous some of Rinka’s opponents can be. The show introduces other espers some who uses their power for good such as Kyotaro Azuma while others uses them for evil. The generic ‘good vs evil’ cliché takes onto high gear as each episode begins to unravel itself. What we also learn is the hidden motive of an organization seeking to bind the world under their power. In honesty, this whole superpower enterprise is so straightforward, one can’t help but thinking the concept is overdue. Perhaps X-Men would ring a bell with this show’s gimmicks. I don’t label Tokyo ESP as an X-Men clone though but rather as an example with their similarities. Taken for granted, Tokyo ESP also likes to play around a bit with its premise with a balance of lighthearted comedy. Despite the parallelism with X-Men, Tokyo ESP is somewhat clever with its concepts. The series both tell and shows how esper develop their powers through contact with a mysterious fish. Did you hear that right? As bizarre as it sounds, the premise adapts these tones and gets stranger when you see a penguin flying in the air. By the time Tokyo ESP ends though, you shouldn’t be too surprised with the methods this show use to introduce characters and concepts. You’ll feast eyes on flying psychic fishes, talking panda, flying penguins, and over-sized tankers in mid-air during broad daylight. This show might as well rename itself Tokyo War when it comes to the way espers are treated. From propaganda and accusation, espers are labeled as evil. The amount of prejudice is almost surprising as the show sets it up so that almost anyone can gain esper powers thus changing momentum. However, cleverness also has its limits. The classic ‘evil organization tries to rule the world’ takes no time to make itself well known. The organization led by a man named “The Professor” plays the role antagonists with his sub-coordinates. Of course, it’s easy to guess what Rinka has to say about that. But with all this, it leads to inadequate balance of the story especially with pacing. In essence, it’s bad storytelling. Besides Rinka, the show likes to surround itself with others that gets involved with the story. Characters such as Kobushi and Peggy steps into the shoes of supporting roles with little development. There is some relationship dynamics though. The most prominent would be Rinka and her father as we see their closeness. Azuma and Minami also shares an oddball bond although it sharply contrasts with the family values of Rinka’s connection. Unfortunately, characterization is almost non-existent for many of the characters as the show goes full turbo with its story. Actually, that could be wrong as the pacing of the show’s story also feels slow at times. Training exercises and peculiar humor substitutes with story development while high school girl crushes recreates an attempt at romance development between the main characters. It loses focus when it comes to the heartfelt moments. Although there are some back stories (mostly vague and leaves viewers in the dark), it doesn’t ultimate achieve its intended purpose. The heartfelt moments doesn’t really touch the heart at all as it’s easy to lose interest in the characters. Additionally, the story couldn’t be any more generic as The Professor declares the world (in his own view) as ‘beyond saving’. In truth, the show uses these generic attributes to flesh out the potentials of the heroes. Rinka in particular challenges against The Professor’s ideology with both her words and actions. Besides that, the show also likes to challenge itself with how much prejudice can go. In one particular case, a woman almost gets herself and her son killed as the world realizes how dangerous espers can truly be when provoked. It teaches a lesson to humans as to what justifies as morally right or wrong. The problem is how Tokyo ESP presents this lesson as it’s too straightforward…especially with the resulting consequences. However, the series is able to rebound a bit itself when it comes to creativity with espers. There are a variety of powers that let the viewers see the testament of esper powers. Whether it’s telekinesis, teleportation, or phasing, the show stays honest with its technical aspects. These powers also result in some spectacular fighting sequences with decent adaptation. Studio Xebecs had their hands full on this adaptation. They played around with it a bit and the result is a moderate portrait of its framework. Character designs are tolerant with faithfulness to the manga. However, there’s nothing particularly special about it either. Fan service is minimal although there are some suggestive camera shots that raises eyebrows. Background artwork is also fairly simple and underdeveloped. The most prominent aspect of the visuals might be the special effects. Some optimism will pay off as the fighting between espers can be attractive to watch. Overall though, the artwork isn’t anything special but not terribly wrong either. Music reminds me of the time when I used to watch X-Men. The OST has this vibrant beat that suggests every action should be shounen-like while adapting superpower themes. It shouldn’t be a mistake to underestimate this show’s diehard edginess with the soundtrack either. Most climatic scenes are capped off with dynamic entrances and exits. Now, I do give credit to some of the character voices in particular when they are in situations that evoke emotions. The OP and ED songs also have a sense of creativity with the artistic montage and symbolism. 12 episodes. This might raise the question such as “is that all?” The show could probably work better for a full 2 cour series especially considering the manga actually has two parts. Nonetheless, Tokyo ESP seems like one of those shows that grows progressively incoherent. It’s good for some combative action and sets up its premise right with developing interest. However, the way characters are crafted falls into a hole of non-sensational worth. The minimal character development, lack of relationship building, and dive between goofy/serious moments struggles to earn the show any praise. In the end, Tokyo ESP is a show with somewhat acceptable fashioned action and fun. However, it’s far from attaining superior satisfaction on screen.

When I watch this thing, there are a couple of things that remind me of: 1. Batman 2. X Men 3. From Paris with love (the 2010 action movie) 4. 300 5. Big Boss 6. Taking of Pelham 123 (2009 action movie) 7. Dan Inosanto ( the Kali guy whom Bruce Lee fought in "Game of Death") 8. Jumper (A 2009 Sci-fi movie)9 DC Comics heroes 10. Samurai Flamenco So, I just gonna go direct to the point by stating my ratings for this anime. Story, art and characters: Poor 3. It maybe a spin off of "Gai Ren Zero," it may have a plot and it may have a story, but it ain't original, the concept was a complete plagiarize of plot from the things that I've mention from above in a bits and pieces way, from the Espers running amack in the streets of Tokyo to the occupation of the diet, I mean-c'mon, what's more to explain, when it was pretty obvious from the very start up to the finish, also, one can't deny as to how inconsistent as the first episode conflicts the last episode and that's something you have to watch since putting a spoiler would result them mods getting in my nerve (dang). About the characters and art, it was pretty obvious that the way they were illustrated by writer Hajime Segawa and anime director Shigehito Takayanagi where somewhat plagiarize as well except that they modify it a bit to in a parody way so that it won't look like it was plagiarize, but still their characteristics where also plagiarize as well, now let go to them characters one by one: Rinka Urushiba: Frankly, she is a parody of Storm from the X-man, except that she has the powers of Shadow cat, frankly she is Storm who has the attitude of Wonderwoman, her Kali skill was a copy from Dan Inosanto's scene from the Game of Death. Kyōtarō Azuma: He is like Masayoshi Hazama from "Samumenco" in fact he is a complete plagiarize of the character from the said anime, except that he has feelings for Rinka, his powers was the same as "Night Crawler" from the X men and he also has the same traits of Hazama from 'Samumenco". Rindō Urushiba: the main heroine's dad who for obvious reason looks like Wolverine, who has the powers of Magneto, and has the attitude of Batman. Kobushi Kuroi: One look at her you would know that she is Jean Grey, who has the powers of Sue Storm from the "Fantastic 4," however she has the attitude of Wolverine from the 'X Men." Murasaki Edoyama: One look at her , she is a female Bruce Lee who has the powers of "Psych-lock" or is that another telepath from the "X-men?" Well, I not sure since I'm not familiar with all the characters from "X-men." Ayumu Oozora: he is like Dan Inosanto whose powers of Precognition whom I don't know where to refer it to, didn't fare up as far as I'm concern. Pandaemon Youdani, Peggi and Parrot the Pelican:..........I just have no way of describing them. The Professor/Hokusai Azuma: Ok, for obvious reasons, he is more like a parody of "Two face" who is one of Batman's nemesis and happens to have the powers of Professor X. Minami Azuma: as I describe her, she is like Mystique who has the powers of Nigh Crawler as well. Of course let's not forget the other support characters like: Murasaki's dad who is a parody of King Leonidas from the 300. The Police Chief who looks like Jules Winnfield from 'Pulp Fiction." and the baldie guy of the anti esper task force, who looks like Charlie Wax from "Paris with love." So why would I give the story, art and Characters a poor score? Co'z there really is nothing original about them and I think I've mentioned that already. Sound and Enjoyment: Good 7. Let's see, I like the opening theme and I like the seiyuus who did the character's voices, PERIOD! The enjoyable part was seeing the antagonist getting beaten by the good guys and that's as good as it gets. Overall: Decent 4. Despite of all the plagiarisms that has been modified into a parody and despite of hoe good the sound and how enjoyable it is...unfortunately, I can only give it a 4, since I can't deny about this anime's lack of originality, but it was still good enough to be enjoyed and that's how the cookie crumbles in this anime.