No Game No Life: Review

No Game No Life Review
Bound by normal conventions we start with a basic summary... No Game No Life is an anime that follows in the footsteps of Alice in Wonderland with several important twists.  We have two protagonists of amazing abilities.  They are both geniuses with only slight divergences in skill sets  Sora, he male older brother, is incredibly smart with a knack for analyzing people.  Shiro, the sister, is beyond a genius, this once in a thousand years analytical machine.  The normal formula would have two normal people go to a mystical land and find their way; however, in No Game No Life, these two abnormal game lovers are transported by a God to a world in which everything is settled through... games. 

Humanity, called Imanity in this world, is at the bottom of the sentient and magical food chain of 16 races. They are backed into a corner and must fight their way out.  Enter our heroes, and all of a sudden humanity has a fighting chance.  Shiro and Sora decide to climb the hierarchy and challenge the god of games himself, Tet. 

Sadly the series is only 12 episodes long and therefore way to short for their dreams to victory; but as a I sad sadly.  The ride through their first few battles is well worth the watch and I'm sure I'm not the only one waiting for a second season.

Each mini arc of the 12 episodes revolve around the victory of a major challenge culminating in Sora and Shiro playing a game against their opponent.  The danger of such a set up is two fold.  Firstly, the writer has to make us believe there is a chance that they could lose - not that surprising, otherwise what's the point.  Second the solution to their victory has to be believable. The game has to be solved through something the viewer couldn't have imagined themselves while still following all the rules of the game and world.  And this is where the series gets a little weak and the message seemingly built in muddled.  The games are FUN.  The solutions are fun.  But our heroes are so over the top geniuses, that often their solutions don't feel even obtainable by normal mortals.

And that is where things fall apart for at least me...  You see the set up here is that normal boring humans are weak.  But its through this weakness that they invent, they are creative, they are more than any of the other races.  Because its necessary, because its adaptation, because its what makes us great.  We don't have physical strength and we don't have magic... we have our minds.  Sora and Shiro as our champions just don't work, because their minds are inhuman.  They are so good at what they do, on such a different level than your average mortal that this message, that humanity IS clever and creative and smart is lost because not a human exists in reality will ever be Sora and Shiro level smart. 

The art is beautiful, the fan service is there, the over the top moments in more younger audience animes are all there.  In fact, as a whole I may be asking the series to be more than it was intended.  After all, what 15 or 16 year old doesn't imagine themselves or desire to be the greatest gamer, and want to be seen as a hero for it.  And the show provides that fantasy wrapped in a beautifully rendered package tied off with laughable moments. 

So I'd have to say on a scale of I want my 6 hours back, to OH MY GOD THIS IS A MUST SEE... I'd say the series was entertaining.  I'm looking forward to them making more but I'll stick to watching it on crunchy roll - I'd probably never pay full retail to watch the series. 

What do you think?  Did I get it wrong?  You have a comment?  Then please post ^.^  Also join all of us other late night otaku at our facebook page: late night otaku or by using the hashtag #latenightotaku