By Liam Gallups Posted February 15, 2015
This show is indeed one of the craziest trips you will take if you dare watch it. Why is that? Allow me to show you. First, however, we must have a brief history lesson. This show is produced by a company known as “Studio Trigger”, a Japanese animation firm founded in August 2011 by former Gainax employees, Hiroyuki Imaishi and Masahiko Ohtsuka. This show was almost a Gainax production, but due to Imashi being busy with another show called “Gurren Lagann” at the time, the project was put to the side. At first, it was going to be a short story, but they realized how much potential it had and their ideas became more explosive. This caused it to become a labor of love and a great example of excellent and fluid animation in anime.
In honor of the show being on Toonami and all, since February 7, I decided to review this and give you my opinion on it. So without further ado, let’s dive in.
The story is about Ryuko Matoi, a young woman who is on a quest to find her father’s murderer. So far, so good right? Her journey takes her to a school known as Honoji Academy, a school where the class president is a totalitarian dictator named Satsuki Kiryuin, and word is the law. Another interesting thing, certain uniforms (called “Goku” uniforms) at this school grant the wearer superhuman attributes. Ryuko is challenged by Satsuki to take on the academy’s elite members, and because Ryuko believes she will get some answers if she does, she accepts. Early on she gets a magic “sailor-fuku” (that’s a Japanese school girl’s uniform by the way) she calls “Senketsu”. This uniform talks transforms into body armor (however revealing it may be), and works in the same way as the Goku uniforms. She also possesses a red sword called a “Scissor Blade” which not only is a memento of her father, but it can penetrate the fabric these magic uniforms are made out of. Also, the fabric comes from outer space. This is a lot to take in but trust me, this is just the tip of the iceberg.
Before I forget, I should mention some of the puns that lead to the show’s premise. Some of the ideas explored in “Kill la Kill” are based on observations Imashi made on how similar the Japanese pronunciations for “fascism” and “fashion”, as well as for the words for “school uniform” and “conquest” which sound exactly alike. Puns. How meta.
This show has some great examples of how to make great characters. They’re straight, to say the least; which is good for a show this crazy. Ryuko, for example, is a brooding loner, but still a little upbeat. She has a fighter’s will and will do whatever it takes to avenge her father’s death. Even if that means wearing a demonic set of clothes she found in her basement. Ryuko, through trial and error, has a good bit of character development herself.
Senketsu, the uniform, is a character in his own right. He is the voice of reason when Ryuko goes a bit overboard (though with a plot this crazy, overboard is an understatement). He gives what he can, but the whole situation is new to him too, so he is a flawed character.
Satsuki, the dominatrix, does not want to be proven wrong. She is stubborn and believes that what she does is the only way to go. Her motives are shrouded in mystery, but she is actually a good antagonist. She even has a few human moments.
Last but CERTAINLY not least, is Mako Mankanshoku, Ryuko’s best friend. Mako is a VERY energetic and rambunctious girl. she is the token comic relief character and is actually pretty strong character-wise. She is one of the nicest people in the show and is perhaps completely insane. That’s saying a LOT considering the school this show takes place at. Also, her logic is very Cloudcuckooland. Very funny.
The animation in this adventure is top-notch. Remember, this show was made by vets from Gainax, the studio that animated “Gurren Lagann”, so great animation is expected. The visual style harkens back to some of the earlier eras of anime, from the 80s and 90s, and has that modern polish that just makes it shine. This show is EXTREMELY fast-paced, but not so that it’s hard to understand. The fights are so hectic and so edge of your seat it leaves you wanting more right up to the conclusion. And the music? Beautiful. This show has some great tracks to keep you invested, and the ending theme in the first half of the show is appropriately mellow, helping calm you down from the adrenaline rush that is this show.
The voice acting is great. I sampled some of the dub in a trailer and I admit, I like the voices of some of the characters. All except Senketsu’s voice I liked, but this is mostly due to me being more used to the Japanese voice rather than the English voice. It’s okay, but I would have liked it a bit deeper in pitch.
Overall, “Kill la Kill” is a great show that I fully recommend to any fan of action, anime, “Gurren Lagann”, or just plain insanity in general. The story is a little strange at first, but give it time and it will grow on you. The same goes for the great characters, who evolve as the story picks up, which is constant. The animation is spectacular and the music is very great and very fitting. I recommend you watch it in either Japanese or in English. You can find it on Netflix or Hulu most likely, or you can always watch it on Cartoon Network on Saturdays at 11:30 p.m. Trust me, it’s worth the ride.
