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Shuumatsu no Izetta (Pseudo-WW2 with a witch!)

LGear

LGear

Secret Society BLANKET
So I've been following this particular anime for a while ever since its existence was announced... I mean, an honest-to-goodness magical girl in a World War 2 setting? Well technically she's a witch, but what the hell...



I do like how low-key the show is in its fantastical elements in this first episode, with most of the focus being on Princess Fine being badass (note how she takes the lead in just about every action in the train escape) and her attempts at garnering military support from Great Britain Britannia. In fact, if not for the last few minutes with the titular character and the alternate nation names you'd think this was anime's attempt at a period-accurate World War 2 story, given their rather lavish attention to detail they gave the period aesthetics and most of all the military hardware.

And yes, Princess Fine is quite Fine in more ways than one :ogles:

Of peripheral interest is the fact that Wargaming (Yes, THAT Wargaming) is actually among the production team, with Creative Director Slava Makarov being listed in the credits. This comes in the wake of their announcement a few weeks back that Wargaming will be collaborating with this show, and given Makarov's involvement it'll likely be a collaboration between Izetta and World of Tanks.
 
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LGear said:
Of peripheral interest is the fact that Wargaming (Yes, THAT Wargaming) is actually among the production team, with Creative Director Slava Makarov being listed in the credits. This comes in the wake of their announcement a few weeks back that Wargaming will be collaborating with this show, and given Makarov's involvement it'll likely be a collaboration between Izetta and World of Tanks.
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I actually did notice the name Slava Makarov in the credits and thought 'gee, I wonder who that is' so thanks for the info. While there's been a few collabs between anime and these WWII games in the past - Garupan with WoT and Aoki Hagane no Arpeggio with WoWS - this is still pretty surprising. It probably shouldn't be though.

As I said in my first impressions thread I was really impressed by the first episode of Izetta. It really was a stand out first episode in a lot of ways. One of the best first episodes of the year, I think.
 
You know, Nazis really have to learn to stop opening containers holding things of a magic nature. It tends not to end well for them.
 
tankdrop24 said:
You know, Nazis really have to learn to stop opening containers holding things of a magic nature. It tends not to end well for them.
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Well technically in this case they took the item of magical nature, i.e. Izetta, and then stored her in a container - it's rather implied that they managed to capture her out in the field after she wiped out an entire company singlehandedly. It was just bad luck for them that it opened up when they least expected it.
 
Double bad luck that they were threatening the friend of what was inside it then.

Also, always nice to see People remember the Panzer III exists.
 
I get the impression that Izetta draws her powers from nature, hence why she was in a pressurised container and Berckman was talking about how it being briefly opened was a problem. It seems likely her strongest connection is with Eylstadt, too.
 
What, you mean Soviet Anti-Tank Rifles don't grow on trees?
 
In spite of the titular character not showing up until, like, the last couple minutes or so, I enjoyed the first episode. The art was nice, the aesthetics were good, Finé is not only a badass when it comes to action but also a smooth political operator too (as shown by the negotiations before the Notzi's crashed the party.) Then Izetta joining the fun definitely didn't disappoint either.

All in all, definitely staying on my watch list.

Also, I'd like a golden gun too plz :V
 
Well, that was an impressive first episode! Definitely right at the top of my to-watch list.

LGear said:
Of peripheral interest is the fact that Wargaming (Yes, THAT Wargaming) is actually among the production team, with Creative Director Slava Makarov being listed in the credits. This comes in the wake of their announcement a few weeks back that Wargaming will be collaborating with this show, and given Makarov's involvement it'll likely be a collaboration between Izetta and World of Tanks.
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Oh wow. I thought I recognized the name from some Q&A, but didn't think it was the same guy. WG did some neat collabs, but this is something else. I'm just kind of wondering what exactly they're involved in.
 
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MightyDwarf said:
Well, that was an impressive first episode! Definitely right at the top of my to-watch list.



Oh wow. I thought I recognized the name from some Q&A, but didn't think it was the same guy. WG did some neat collabs, but this is something else. I'm just kind of wondering what exactly they're involved in.
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Making the stukas and the pz2s probs.
 
I want to get on this train as hard as Finé got off it.

I didn't have much on my radar this season, so this is great. The pacing so far and the total of 12 episodes, and this being an original production make me really optimistic they might nail this one from beginning to end.
 
Ford Prefect said:
Azecreth said:
Also, I'd like a golden gun too plz :V
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You know a studio is going all out when they invest that much detail into a villainous character they subsequently blow up five minutes after his introduction lol
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Some people have complained about the Germanian officer having the motto of the British SAS inscribed on his pistol in English. I figure he's just one of those people who thinks gratuitous foreign makes you cool. :p After all the pistol in question is also gold plated and has cross symbols on the grips -not exactly the most practical weapon ever.

On a more serious note, I was wondering if Fine might end up keeping that Luger, but upon review it seems she dropped it (not directly shown, but implied by the fact she was no longer holding it after she got shot in the arm) and given the fate of the aircraft... well, I doubt it would be easy to find again. Though I won't be hugely shocked if does show up again either.
 
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Though if this is set in the beginning ww2 period, iirc the SAS didnt exist yet. Back then, they called em Commandoes. I think. Not very familiar with special forces on my part.
 
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IIRC, WG's collab with GuP der film included giving hte animators detailed interiors of the tanks involved and using one of their staffers as the live model for Katyusha's hand gestures/commands.
 
Episode 2... now that's what I call a witch dogfight :D

After the first half where Izetta shows off her chops with her powers (including forming icicles from snow using her blood), she and Fine manage to join up with a retreating column of defeated Elystadt soldiers under the command of one Obermeyer, as Izetta remembers her past with Fine, and her circumstances as a nomad.

I must say, Izetta is too utterly adorable, which makes her badassery with her air combat skills rather incredible. Also, Fine continues to show that she's no pushover by being the one to get the last kill of the dogfight using the anti-tank rifle they're riding on, which was such a nice display of teamwork among the two. The ace they were fighting though definitely lived through that encounter, and I imagine he'll be a recurring character with a vendetta versus our witch. Also, props to that attention to detail in the dogfight - for example, the massive recoil an untethered anti-tank rifle would make if fired in the air, and the fact that it became too hot to be held by the barrel after firing

While we do see more of the fantastic elements this episode, I like how it still feels rather 'grounded' despite that, as so far the show has yet to lose its wartime feel, and if the OP is any indication I'm looking forward to combined fighter-witch combat in the future. :D

Poor AT-Rifle kun though, NTR'd by a Princess... he never had a chance in this relationship ;-;
 
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Despite reading that the show would have additional "action" girls aside from Fine and Izetta, I'm a bit surprised that Elystadt appears to have an amazon brigade squad.

Probably my biggest issue with the show right now is that the appearance of some of the younger, more "anime-ish" characters like the aforementioned amazon squad and the boyish member of the Germanian special unit contrast so starkly with the more realistic looking secondary characters. That along with a drop in the production values compared to the excellent looking premiere sapped my enjoyment of this episode a bit.

All that being said, I'm still enjoying the show and am eager to find out what will happen next. Also on the plus side this episode fleshed out Izetta. She seems rather likeable (although a bit lacking in self esteem).
 
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Yuri goggles are getting stronger.....`:p

I'd found this episode largely enjoyable, however it was not as captivating as the first episode. I think it may have something to do with the SFX sounds and the overall choreography - the gun sounds during the dogfight scene was a bit underwhelming for me, and having played Warthunder things just sound off if I see WW2 planes flying and I don't hear the roar of the engine. The overall choreography also felt a little static, though that's probably because this show does have that much in the way of budget(this was especially apparent to me in this episode).

That's largely aesthetics however.

In terms of plot...pacing of the story is slow. Really, the only thing that happened in this episode was that Fine and Izetta met a retreating column of Eylstadt soldiers, and that's kinda it. There's some exposition/commentary by characters regarding Fine's character and personality, more specifically regarding her respecting other's lives regardless of class as much as hers, which I felt was a bit redundant because anyone with a brain can see that Fine is that type of person. The past-remembrance scene with Izetta and Fine I felt was handled average-ly, so to speak. It's not 100% show-don't-tell which I personally prefer, but it's not 100% anime-mid-fight style exposition either. I think it would've been better to just show Izetta's life before and after she met Fine, to illustrate why Fine was so special to Izetta, since that really was the central message and theme throughout the whole scene. The dialogue and voice acting also felt a bit...corny, so to speak? Especially during the fight scenes, the dialogue of the Germanian fighter pilot mook who got killed felt very stereotypical, and more importantly, it didn't feel like they genuinely meant their confusion upon seeing two teenage girls riding a f*cking anti-tank rifle in the air. Which is surprising considering IIRC this show had some impressive VA cast.

The art - or to say more accurately, the static scenes - remains beautiful to look at, and the combat scene was enjoyable minus the factors I already mentioned above. The attention to period detail is also excellent like the first episode.

Overall I would say this episode was average, there wasn't something terribly bad, but it wasn't really terribly good either. This episode was certainly much weaker than the first one.

Darthtabby said:
Despite reading that the show would have additional "action" girls aside from Fine and Izetta, I'm a bit surprised that Elystadt appears to have an amazon brigade squad.
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Okay I must've missed this, when was this in the episode?
 
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