No Game, No Life: Zero

Story : 10/10 The story is well written for both anime and Light Novel; Volume 6, content delivery is very good and easy to understand. However, it is important to watch the TV anime before proceed to the movie since not everything explain from scratch. Art : 10/10 If you like colorful anime you know NGNL have it but dark-themed of NGNL surprisingly went along with the story theme. It's the great war after all. Well drawn background and coloring, expected nothing less. Character : 10/10 This part might containing a spoiler however reading this will not spoiling your experience. Author, or rather Tet, made Riku and Shuvi similar to Soraand Shiro, keep in mind that they are not same person ( same VA though ) and Tet mentioned that he alter the story a bit so that the REAL story remain untold. In reality, probably that actually Riku and Shuvi look nothing like Sora and Shiro, but since it is 6000 years ago, the story look more interesting if the character similar to someone that we already know, Sora and Shiro. If they created entirely new character, we might not get the similar experience. ( Can you imagine an NGNL without loli heroine? ) Sound : 8/10 The sound is good, but not great. The OST goes well with anime with good impression but there's nothing catchy. If you fall in love with the anime, sound is not something that you'll hype, still it is good. Enjoyment : 10/10 Watched this twice at cinema, further explanation is not required. Overall : 10/10 This one will require math. Total of my score before is 48 which when divided by 5, resulting in 9.6 and after rounding off it, 10.

Having read the light novel, No Game No Life Zero was everything i expected it to be. You shouldn't be watching this movie with similar expectations to the series in mind mainly because the setting of both stories in the anime and the movie are worlds apart (hah see what I did there). One important thing to keep in mind is despite the movie's main purpose being to explain the origins of the world of Disboard(current NGNL world), the story is focused on the development of a romance between the two MCs and their efforts to change the world. Story:9 The story for No Game No LifeZero is much more serious and grim, taking place in a war torn world. Without going too deep into the story, there were definitely lots of feels and the general flow of the story was smooth enough. The story gets a 9 because of two reasons: (CON) firstly, there is much more explanation and content that could be put in the story, maybe a second movie.(light novel readers will get me). (PRO) The second reason is that the story was adapted well enough such that critical elements of the story are brought into the movie, such that you can watch the movie without having the need to question anything, or feeling like certain explanations or backstories are missing. TL;DR, the story can be fully appreciated without having to watch the series or reading the light novel. Art:10 I always liked No Game No Life's art style, and the series usually has a much lighter colour scheme. To match the movie's more serious vibe, darker colours were used (like purple or black for outlines instead of the usual pinkish tones), making it look more similar to any regular anime's colouring, while still maintaining a colourful vibe that's distinctive to No Game No Life. Sound:8 Sure the ED was nice and the theme music was nice, but it was nothing super amazing. The BGM complimented the scenes well, and had the right vibe. But it wasn't so good that I would go out of my way to listen to the OST. Character:10 I think most may disagree with me on this, but I felt the idea of having the two MCs, Riku and Shuvi be quite different from Sora and Shiro was a good idea. Sora and Shiro are very easygoing and carefree characters who only get serious when it's crunch time, and maybe aside from having the same voice actor and actress, they aren't similar at all. Riku is a fairly grim and emotional character who has a heavy conscience, but is still kind and caring, while Shuvi is a Ex-Machina(robot) who slowly developed her own "heart", so she's mostly close to emotionless. Even though Shuvi is protrayed as a developing character, important parts of her robot persona still remained, which I felt was very crucial in not overdeveloping her "human" side. The personality progression for both these characters are done well, while not being too sudden. Seeing Riku slowly open his heart to another, and Shuvi learning what it really means to be human. MOST IMPORTANTLY, Steph's grandmother, Corone Dola was not a pain in the ass character like Steph was so that's a +1. Enjoyment:10 There is enough of an emotional rollercoaster to make you want to keep watching. It's not just a whole new mood, but there were several aspects of the humour from the series showing in the movie. Certainly the perverse humour is way less, but the humour is still similar(deadpan retorts from the female MC/making fun of virgins). The atmosphere of the movie was also well balanced, making sure that seriousness and humour was used appropriately in any setting. Maybe it's due to me having read the light novel, but the scenes played out in the movie were exactly as I imagined, which only made me enjoy the movie even more. Overall:10 Doesn't matter if you didn't watch the original series, or have been put off by how ecchi the show is. No Game No Life Zero takes a completely different look onto the world of Disboard, so you should definitely watch it.

[Spoiler Warning] No Game No Life (TV) is, to me, a flashier version of the detested Sword Art Online as both anime share many similar strengths and faults. These similarities include poor pacing, overpowered characters and an outstanding soundtrack. However, unlike Sword Art Online which, aside from the gradual deterioration of its concepts, has relatively consistent quality, No Game No Life throws many of its strengths out in No Game No Life: Zero, the prequel to the TV series. One of the most noticeable changes is the shift from a vivid palette to a duller one which helped enforce the movies more serious and dismal tone.Unfortunately, despite the visual adjustments, the writers could not get this tone across as the utilized poorly placed jokes to lighten the mood. These jokes, though humorous, ruined almost all of the more serious, melancholic moments this movie had to offer, altering the atmosphere and creating a lighter tone. These tone setting (and ruining) jokes made the visual modifications futile as the only offered to deduct from No Game No Life: Zero’s quality. The creators of No Game No Life: Zero, despite changing the palette, fail to improve the overall caliber of its animation, keeping its quality relatively the same as the TV shows. This lack of color, however, expresses the negative aspects of the movies animation as it flaunts the numerous errors that passed us by in the first season. These poorly animated scenes, though prevalent in the TV series as well, were less prominent as the series used vivid colors and unique backgrounds to divert our attention from their errors. However, without the palette No Game No Life is so well known for, this facade is easily seen through. Battles in No Game No Life: Zero are the exception when it comes to the animation quality as it revives many of the shows vivid colors and combines them with fluid animation. Many of these astounding fight scenes were, unfortunately, ruined by the CGI that accompanied them. Though I don't believe this CGI is necessarily bad when compared to many other anime, I do feel CGI itself has a long ways to go before it can consistently and excellently be implemented into anime without ruining its overall quality. This poor CGI animation was only made more evident because of its brighter pigmentation, creating a stark difference between it and the somber background of the show. Aside from their shabby attire, the characters themselves are quite aesthetically pleasing, using many of No Game No Life's original character designs as templates for No Game No Life: Zero, retaining at least some of the artistic choices the series is so well known for. The characters themselves, however, are riddled with a multitude of flaws. One of the more noticeable flaws these characters exhibit is their lack of rational thought. Throughout the movie, almost every character, both main and side, make irrational choices that only serve to push the plot forward. Riku, for example, uses his anger at the world (and how unfair it is) and presumed thirst for vengeance as the driving forces behind his will to survive. However, despite knowing Schwi was the one who destroyed his town and forced his neighbors underground, he is willing to take her in and care for her. This hatred and fear for AI among the humans is also demonstrated when Riku forces Schwi to conceal her identity from the rest of his group for her own safety. Similarly, Schwi, hoping to learn about the human “heart” leaves her swarm, cutting off all connection to them to be with Riku.Why an AI, which is known to only make rational decisions, left in the first place and why she was allowed to, however, is never explained. What is explained, upon Riku and Schwi’s first encounter, is that Schwi is under the misconception that to understand the human heart she needs to have sex. This misunderstanding prompts her to consistently request Riku’s body. Surprisingly, it is later revealed that Schwi is incapable of having sex, making her reasoning for leaving the safety of the swarm in a chaotic world pointless (and therefore irrational). Why Schwi left her swarm to understand the heart despite physically being unable to (because of her misconception) is also beyond me and the rationale behind it is never explained within the anime. No Game No Life: Zero’s cast also lacks a backstory of any kind. What Schwi did in the swarm, how Riku survived the destruction of civilization despite being a human child and how he becomes the leader of his group of dwellers (among many others) are never addressed and are only there for plot convenience. Without Riku having survived we couldn’t have had this story, without seeing Schwi’s actions in her swarm we can grow to like her (as she presumably made some inhumane choices which is why Riku is wary of revealing her identity to his fellow humans) and without Riku being his clan’s leader, he could never have ordered his allies to die for his sake and therefore would never have fallen into as depressed a state as he did (if he had still managed to survive) therefore giving him little to no motivation. Regardless as to whether you want to know the backstories of the characters or not, their futures are just as poorly written. Aside from the cute and entertaining interactions between Schwi and Riku, there isn’t much depth to their relationship. In the anime, you see the dynamic duo meet and their first interactions and then there’s a one year time slip that leads to an anti-climactic confession. At this point you’re probably extremely confused and are asking yourself, “What time skip?” I myself didn’t actually notice it but, researching the anime on several different sources, I discovered there is a major one hidden within the anime as the movie itself spans roughly a year and a half. What exactly happened over this year, however, is left up to speculation. This major time skip, however, affects the shows pacing dramatically as it rushes major events with little to no actual build up. Because this movie also tries to cover such an enormous amount of events in so little time, the buildup and excitement meant to be felt in a lot of these scenes is lost and the anime itself feels rushed as it jump from one major plot point to another. To make up for the lack of emotion presented in and around (chronologically) these major scenes, No Game No Life: Zero implements multiple “shock factors” to move the audience. A prime example of this is with Ivan, a deceased human whom we see sacrifice himself (at Riku’s command) so that others might survive on an outing during the first 5 minutes of the movie. Apart from knowing his loyalty to Riku and his clan, the only thing we really know about Ivan is that he has a (presumably young) daughter. After this scene ends (where Riku and another young man escape the crashed Dwarven ship), the anime cuts to a makeshift classroom where a young girl proudly proclaims that she can write her own name and can’t wait to show her father. Aside from this and a name, nothing else is known about poor little Nonna. The movie then transitions to Riku’s return where Nonna rushes out to greet her father. The father who didn’t come home. The movie then tries to play this off as Riku’s breaking point (ruining it with a bad joke mind you), making us feel pity for both him and Nonna; characters we know next to nothing about. Emotionless scenes similar to that one are abundant in No Game No Life: Zero as they express where certain characters relationships are in the movie. However, because of the time skips, these relationships aren’t fully expanded upon or developed and we’re left with poorly written shock factors and our own assumptions to fill in the multitude of blanks. To make up for its poorly written “emotional” scenes, No Game No Life: Zero implements a heart wrenchingly beautiful soundtrack. Though the songs themselves aren’t as catchy or memorable as the TV series, they’re much better at eliciting the desired emotions from the audience. Unfortunately, No Game No Life: Zero, despite boasting a beautiful soundtrack, misuses its OST which, more often than not, takes more from a scene than it gives to it. Music in most anime (including No Game No Life: Zero) is meant to add to the scene and the dialogue but, in No Game No Life: Zero, the music competes with the actual dialogue for the limelight. This competition takes a lot away from the scene and I found myself becoming much more emotional because of the unbearably loud music than the actual dialogue or story it was supposed to be aiding in the delivery of. Overall, despite being satisfied with the concepts No Game No Life: Zero had, I found the experience ruined by a multitude of factors ranging from poor writing to poor volume control. These negative aspects took so much from the actual experience of the movie that I just couldn’t bring myself to enjoy it, especially as it became more evident that my burning questions wouldn’t be answered.

*Royalty-free fanfare* What is up Trash Alert Nation? It’s your host PizzaOnPineapple and let’s get roigggght into the review! The first topic today will be kind of shocking to many of you: recently, there has been a large increase of buddhists among young, lonely adults that spend all of their free time in their room watching anime. While there doesn’t yet seem to be a clear answer to the question as to why that is, many experts have formed a consensus: the reason is this movie! How this could happen, you ask? It’s simple really. These innocent young men were tricked into watching this piece of buddhist propaganda!How it works is pretty simple: they created a movie loosely related to an already established, popular anime franchise and made it so boring that all onlookers would immediately fall into a deep state of endless meditation! As such, the movie is a piece of pure genius - nothing could accomplish its goal quite like the movie itself - but today I wish to explore exactly how and why this movie is so mindnumbingly boring and life-draining. Please fasten your seatbelts, but know that nothing will happen! Exhibit 1: The world is really not developed at all. All the movie really does is show us some locations without ever connecting or contextualizing any of it. Instead of exploring the world and the giant war taking place, they rather jump from place to place without any explanation as to why or where the characters are going. The good thing is you can’t possibly lose track of what is happening, because nothing really is. Exhibit 2: The characters are really not developed at all. The two main characters are the only ones with more than one character trait, because they have two, but that’s as far as this movie goes. If you are looking for character motivations, character development, or just characters really, then you have come to the wrong place. The development of the romantic relationship of the main characters is actually non-existent. All they do is “play chess” for like four times, but these matches aren’t actually really shown. In the end, Jibril turns up as a villain for fanservice reasons but it doesn’t matter as she barely contributes anything to the overall piece and just props up randomly. The emotional moments connected to this finale however don't pull any punches - because there are no punches to be pulled. All in all, this movie is as heavy-hitting as an old woman without arms. All it amounts to is a pity-party for this cute robot girl (please cry). Exhibit 3: Literally one of the least visually engaging experiences ever. I don’t know why people say this movie looks amazing. It really, really doesn’t. All it is is still shots, some panning shots and one disoriented fight. While the special effects themselves look cool, that’s really all they are: kind of cool. Sadly, there is no actual impact behind these glorified laserpointers, mostly because I have no fucking idea who these people or where these places are. It’s like they skipped several steps in pre-planning. There is a similar problem present in the audio department too: Oftentimes there’s just ambient noise, and the few times the music gets “dramatic”, it sounds really shallow, like a Hans Zimmer track but three quarters of the orchestra fell asleep mid-movie (I don’t blame them, I dozed off several times as well). Exhibit 4: All they do is talk, talk, talk. If you think there’s games or a war in this movie, you are sorely mistaken. All that this movie is is dialogue, monologue, dialogue and so forth. This dialogue is not of the sophisticated kind however, we go from recounting the names of dead people to scenes that will definitely put you on the lists of several governmental organizations, directly to the n-th time the two main characters tell you their goal (I wanted to count but lost track). By the way, did you know the robot girl wants to understand the human heart? Isn’t this MOVING, please buy her merch. Currently, experts are looking into ways of saving the millions of people caught in never-ending meditation, but a cure has yet to be found. Please watch this movie only with parental supervision (and get disowned). In other news, Sword Art Online is receiving a th- Score: 10 (out of 100)