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Anime based on card games don’t have the best of reputations, much of it warranted. Fortunately, Rage of Bahamut: Genesis bucks the odds, giving anime fans a thrilling, 12-episode-fantasy ride.
Story
The story opens with bounty hunter Favaro, a rough-ish anti-hero, coming across the beautiful and mysterious Amira. Amira is searching the lands for her mother and pleads with Favaro to take her to Helheim, the place where her mother remains imprisoned. Favaro neither agrees nor disagrees; the two more or less fall in together, especially when Favaro’s childhood friend, Kaiser Lidfort appears, determined to kill Favaro for his part in a past atrocity.
From here, the show falls comfortably into a quest formula, but with a twist. Along the way, we learn that, despite his words to Amira, Favaro has no idea where Helheim is, that Favaro and Kaiser are actually good friends, and that the world sits on a knife’s edge. Angels and demons are renewing a centuries-old war, each side terrified that the powerful Bahamut, a creature more powerful than the gods themselves, will wake to destroy heaven and earth.
The episode count isn’t without its problems, however. Plot exposition suffers. At times, it’s hard to follow how the war came about, who started it, and what they’re trying to achieve. We learn very little about the gods and angels–many of them pulled unceremoniously from the Bible. We learn even less about the demons and primary villains. Typically, a show like this needs a good scene chewing bad guy to root against. All we have here is Bahamut’s overshadowing menace.
Characters
Favaro and Kaiser’s relationship plays against this lager backdrop with ease. The two banter and fight, though ultimately, they come together to help Amira and their world’s greater good. Add the show’s most interesting character, a zombie girl sidekick named Rita, and you have a set of complex players.
Favaro himself breaks the traditional anime hero mold. Instead of being initially clueless, he’s smart, clever, and self-reliant. Kaiser is equally well-defined–an honorable knight forced to defend the bounty and foe he’s set on brining to justice.
Only Amira suffers from typical anime clichés. She’s pretty and a touch too innocent, and her damsel in distress routine is a touch overdone. Fortunately, while a central character, she’s not as important to the overall story as Favaro and Kaiser.
Animation
At twelve episodes, the animation maintains a high quality throughout. One sequence in particular, a simple folk dance with Favaro and Amira, is stunning. You won’t find animation that good in big budget feature films. The battles are, if not equally good, will still take your breath away. A positive of its card-game origins, Rage of Bahamut has a good number of cool creatures to throw at you. Zombies, dragons, and giants are just a slice of what this anime has in store.
The art is equally impressive. Favaro and Kaiser have a nice retro quality about them. Favaro, in particular, could have come out of Aura Battler Dunbine, Crusher Joe, or any number of 80’s anime titles. The show’s best artistic touch come in how it presents its spiritual characters. Instead of the sharp, clear lines of the human characters, angels and demons have an ethereal look to them. Best of all, characters with feet in both the real and spiritual worlds–like Amira–are both sharp and soft.
Overall
Ultimately, the good far outweighs the bad, and the characters of Favaro and Kaiser keep the viewer glued and involved. The action sequences are simply amazing, and unlike too many shows, the conclusion is well done.
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Clik here to view.
4 out of 5 stars
Rage of Bahamut: Genesis is available for streaming from Hulu and Funimation.
Cover image via
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Keith Yatsuhashi is the author of Kojiki, a YA fantasy that reflects his love of anime. His latest work, Torii, a short-story prequel to Kojiki is now available for free at http://www.musapublishing.com
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