Sagrada Reset – Episode 3 & 4

REACTION – Sagrada Reset is turning one of those anime series where there’s too much going on and not everything is making sense.

There are somehow new characters being introduced and the whole relationship between Haruki and Kei is just horrendous to watch. Haruki is turning out to be this stale princess that needs her prince to operate and function like a normal human being or get stuff done.

For these two episodes, there seems to be some sort of problem presented. The relation of the Service Club request of rescuing a cat turns out to be a search for a murder suspect.

Yoka Murase is introduced as a normal person who’s requesting help from the school’s Service Club currently done by Kei and Haruki in order to rescue her cat. They, then, find out that its not her cat after contacting with a high school girl who has an ability to use the senses of any cat in the town saying that it’s actually a stray cat they’re looking for.

So somewhere in Episode 4, we have a race to find some sort of object called MacGuffin which holds the power to wield any ability between Murase and Kei. Now, this is where I think it gets really confusing.

Sure, this MacGuffin object is supposed to be the most overpowered thing in existence and everyone would want to have their hands on it but Murase’s intentions do not make sense.

She claims to do this because she wants to avenge her brother who died in an accident and the Bureau did not do anything to revive him with any ability – which is understandable since “revival” always have some sort of bad aftereffect in every story, whether anime, film, manga or any media.

So we have a confrontation between Murase and Kei to the death. Kei intentionally gets killed by Murase to get her somewhat shocked because that was never her intention but smartly, Kei asks his friend to send a telepathic message to Haruki to reset.

Now this is pretty smart since Haruki would never do anything at all without Kei’s permission and orders – and this is a twisted concept.

I was very confused throughout this entire two episodes. I admit that this series had potential but at the moment its just trying to be Steins;Gate, Oregairu, Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei in just one sitting – and that’s not great at all.

I’m dropping this anime series. I had my hopes up but it’s not getting better for me anymore.

 

Sagrada Reset – Episode 2

REACTION – I am extremely infuriated about this episode right now. Not only does it feel too absurd, it’s going at a ridiculously faster pace than usual. The first episode had a slower pace which was both boring but acceptable given the genre, but right now, it’s just out of whack.

The episode’s main event was to help out Mari and persuade her mother not to leave her alone in Sakurada.

A group of high school students. I repeat, a group of HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS managed to psycho-analyze an adult woman and convinced her of staying with her child, which she created using an ability, just because our main character thought it was wrong.

It would’ve been better if the problem at hand was something realistic and can be solved by a bunch of high school students – but no, it’s just became a complex situation in a span of twenty minutes.

The thing that bugged me was the instant development of romantic feelings between Haruki and Kei. It happened too fast and feels too fabricated to be a legit romantic relationship between the too. There was a really bad kiss scene – no emotions, no proper conversation, no reason, no nothing.

At least, it was acknowledged by the main character that Haruki “might be confusing trust with love” but still, it’s just too goddamn fast.

After that, Sumire Sona dies after taking a hike in the mountains. Prior to the whole confession scene, Sumire talked with Kei after the whole Mari situation and pointed out that he’s making the whole thing as an excuse to feel righteous – which, for me, is a valid fact.

But when she told Kei that “you love Haruki, don’t you?” Kei just, downright, says yes – which is pretty much me going like… why?

This episode was a mix of hate and love due to the points I mentioned before. It was too fast in terms of story pacing, character were developing in weird ways, but the setting still shows some bit of promise.

I hope this series doesn’t drive itself right into a wall. At the moment, it’s pulling a Charlotte episode two.

What’s good and bad about “deep anime?”

DISCUSSION – When I mean “deep anime”, I am referring to anime series that tend to use wordy, complex and metaphorical dialogue and processes that might seem to be a headache for a casual viewers to understand.

After watching the first episode of the anime series, SAGRADA RESET, I was left thinking to myself – “what makes a complex anime series great or bad?”

I want to put the Monogatari series as an example for this article. The charm of this anime series is not mainly because of the fighting, the softcore ecchi but the witty, and intelligent remarks the characters give whilst they communicate.

Over the course of time, people have always said that it takes away some sort of realism when a male high school student converse as if he was writing an essay about social norms but that’s just it – this is what makes the anime great. Coupled with great humor, some ecchi, and seriousness, the Monogatari series shaped up to be one of the most head-turning anime series every time they release a new season for it.

The good thing about anime series that tend to go in-depth is that we learn more and more about the world they are in and we can further understand the events unfolding around them.

But an anime series with characters that talk seriously and in-depth doesn’t work if they don’t include one important aspect – how do viewers relate to these characters?
Sagrada Reset lacked in character depth to be able to appeal to the majority of its viewers for its first episode. The dialogue was interesting and deep coupled with the great usage of metaphors and short moral stories but in the end, it was for naught as these characters were not, in any way, relatable to anyone at all.

It felt like someone wrote an essay about astrophysics and it was read aloud by a toddler. It doesn’t feel, in any way, somewhat real in order for the viewers to relate with these characters. But then again, anime is a story-form based on mostly fiction so it’s not really expected to be real. However, we should at least be able to relate with these characters but the anime series fails to do this in its first episode.

So what’s the bottom-line here?

An anime series can have deep, complex, wordy, and interesting dialogues and characters but in order for it to sell to most people, it should be at least relatable.

Series that pull this off are the Monogatari series, Hyouka, Oregairu and many more.

These anime series pride themselves in having witty and wordy dialogue, intricate scenarios and premises whilst maintain entertainment by keeping their characters in check.

However in the end, it all comes down to what a person is interested in. Is he/she a casual viewer? Or does he/she long for more deeper and intricate story lines in order to pique his/her interest?

I, for one, am the latter.

I love stories that go deeper and explore ideas that I’ve never thought of before. It makes me think and ponder about how things are possible or not.

What about you? Do you love stories that are more deep and intricate? Or do you prefer stories that cut to the chase with all the actions and the like?

Leave your opinion in the comments below!

First Look: SAGRADA RESET – Episode 1

FIRST LOOK – Sagrada Reset is an anime series set in the seaside town named “Sakurada” where people with special abilities live. However here’s the catch: most of these powers are basically useless, and you lose your powers once you leave the town.

The series centers around two high school students: Kei Asai, who has the ability to remember every thing that has happened to him with his five senses, and Misora Haruki, who has the power to reconstruct every thing to their previous states (at least three days).

Sumire Sona sets them up to meet and intends to have them acquainted with each other for some unknown reason. It could be so that she can use the “reset” ability that Haruki has and use it to her advantage. Despite the complications, Kei Asai still goes through with the his intentions of gaining Haruki’s trust and friendship.

This episode was very much set up to explain every thing there is to know about each character, in regards to their special abilities. The characters seemed too dull as they show little to none humane characteristic. They are all very mysterious which is probably where this series grabbed me.

Most people would not enjoy this anime series. If I were to compare how it feels to watch this series, it would be similar to watching the Endless Eight arc in the anime series “The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya.” It is very mysterious but it gets you thinking.

The thing that I like about this episode is that it prefers to go for deeper levels of communication using metaphors and short stories to relate the current situation to the viewers – which, to a normal and casual viewer, it would be really boring.

It is true that the characters are not all that appealing and show little to no humanity in them at all but come on, this is not the first anime series to have done that with its first episode.

This anime series’ way of pacing itself may not sell to everyone but it does to me. You may not like this series but you will remember it, at least, for its interesting setting and premise.

Judging from the previews for the second episode, we might expect some escalation from the first episode.

Overall, this anime series’ first episode was very dull and it was mostly information-heavy which does not really help selling it to new viewers. However, I am optimistic for the second episode.

At the moment, I am torn whether this will be a good series or not – but hell, I do love an anime series that’s pretty wordy.

If you’ll watch it, don’t set your expectations too high – you’ll be disappointed. Not every anime series appeals to everyone.

I love this anime, is that wrong?

 

Top 5 Anticipated Anime for Spring 2017

DISCUSSION – It has been a long time since I have followed closely with the releases each season due to being pressed for time. In this article, I will be sharing the different anime series that I am quite excited and intrigued for this spring season.

1. Shingeki no Kyojin Season 2

After receiving a lot of hype for its first season, it is not a doubt that Shingeki no Kyojin will be part of this list.

The first season ended up with people asking a lot of questions: the titans in the wall, Eren’s basement, Annie being a titan and more. All of these questions need to be answered by this second season.

I hope that is the case for this season and there will be no similar cliffhangers or plot holes for us to banter about.

2. DanMachi: Sword Oratoria

DanMachi’s first season had some sort of arguments whether it was great or not. Was it just another Sword Art Online copy?

For me, it is not the case since this is the kind of setting the anime series is in. It is not similar to Sword Art Online’s case where the characters are trapped. No, the setting in DanMachi is the characters’ reality.

This season of DanMachi will apparently focus on Aiz Wallenstein, the female swordsman (best grill) and her adventures in the Dungeon.

3. SAGRADA RESET

The story is set in a town where almost half of the population possesses some form of special power. The story centers around two high school students: Kei Asai, who has the ability to remember everything he sees and hears, while Misora Haruki can “reset” time to a maximum of three days.

Time travel has always been a wonderful and interesting concept to me, especially when it’s in a story.

The whole pairing of a guy who possesses a sharp memory and a girl who resets time makes me wonder about the possibilities.

Say that you witnessed someone’s death – the girl can reset the time whilst the guy can remember every specific detail and work out some sort of plan to avoid such event.

But then again, that would cause some time travel problems which would require a whole other article for me to explain in.

Quite excited for this and I cannot wait.

4. Alice to Zouroku

The story centers around a girl who has the power to make her imaginations into reality. She and other girls who possess the same power are locked up in a research facility and are treated as subjects.

Sana has a specific power where she ignores the laws of physics and can bring anything into reality (literally).

However, she escapes the research facility and meets an old man named Zouroku (oh no) who takes her in (oh no), to his annoyance.

I am quite intrigued at two things: first, how her power actually works and secondly, why does this old man take her in? Just because? Or does he have ulterior motives?

Because of these two things, I am putting Alice to Zouroku as one of my anticipated anime series for this spring season.

5. Tsuki ga Kirei

Tsuki ga Kirei catches my eye because of three things:

Firstly, it is a romance anime and I have a knack for anime series in this genre. Secondly, the studio working on this is feel. which worked on Oregairu’s second season. To top it all off, the director is the same one who did Angel Beats.

This is a wonderful thing because, judging from the preview video alone, it is going to be a slice-of-life, romance anime series which might have similar vibes to Angel Beats and Oregairu.

Tsuki ga Kirei will be one of my most anticipated anime series for this season because of these reasons.

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What about you? What anime series are you excited for this spring season? Share in the comment section below!