Basics:
To start off the review in forms of the basics, lets start with the genres. The anime in question is the following: shonen, romance, action, comedy, supernatural, sci-fi, school, magic. Setting for the anime takes place in the future of 2095 in a world were magic has been appreciated as a form of science and dictates the functioning of their society by means along with the people who can use it “magicians” being scarce. A ruling body presides of a counsel of sorts from 10 influential & powerful families who produce talented magicians. However, the story does not follow the story of a member from one of these families but instead of Tatsuya Shiba and his sister Miyuki Shiba whom are starting their first year in the prestigious First High School which has a strong reputation as the leader among magic schools/universities. Within the school a form of hierarchy exists of the “Bloomers” (people who are gifted and did well on entrance exams) and “Weeds” (people who don’t perform as well on entrance exams) with both being normally confined to what they can specialise into by the Weeds being led to become engineers and the Bloomers becoming powerful magicians that can have authority. Anyways, Miyuki is placed into the category of Bloomer whereas Tatsuya is placed into the bracket of Weed – but throughout the series shows he has potential and talent regardless of that label or placement.
Pros:
Personally, the characters are quite enjoyable to watch and all display different quirks or attributes to their personalities as well as the magic types they individually use which at times could be argued to reflect those traits during situations or through different dialogue exchanges. I will point out that at certain areas later on into the anime the main protagonist Tatsuya is blatantly over-powered in comparison to his peers or rivals, although its captured in a charming way (I know its a bit bizarre but hear me out) that it knows that you’re fully aware just how broken his ability can be at certain situations but doesn’t feel insulting and instead places it to in a manner have a laugh with the audience for/with it – as you wait for the next trick to be pulled out of the sleeve. Normally, I’m quite cold to the sci-fi genre of anime but I very much enjoyed it personally and would certainly invite someone to watch it or at least suggest it if anyone had spare time. It attempts to breakdown the magic used by scientific means (it could be completely far-fetched in its explanations for spells but Racco’s a simpleton) which can be appreciated rather than just by an explanation of “oh it just exists deal with it”.
Cons:
Some character motivations early on seem to at times be forgotten later on despite them having somewhat of an impact on the story at times which seemed a bit odd that its discarded without any future mentioning to it again, not as though it were “just a dream” sort of scenario. Personally, the relationship between the main protagonists is well crafted don’t get me wrong, but the vibes that are given off (more obvious than a sore thumb at times) are not my cup of tea admittedly. Now other people are probably fine with the “vibe” as it does become a reoccurring joke throughout the entirety of the anime which can be given props for doing so & at least remains consistent in doing so but I guess its just over-all weird to me not the point in which I think it ruins the anime in any sense as its probably common in other anime out there but would merely be something I couldn’t get my head around doing so personally.
Conclusion:
Overall, its a solid anime for its plot with a cast of decent characters that show different levels of development from emotional growth to potential being shown & would be a good watch due to that being pleasant enough. Additionally, the soundtrack is amazing throughout the anime especially during moments of combat by utilising an electronic-esq sound (might be the wrong genre of music but the point still stands) with another gem of a song coming around the 18 episode mark of “Vespertine Bloom” not for its tempo or fast pace but for the mood/atmosphere it helps in establishing or supporting during the scenes – which ends the arch of the anime quite well, if not beautifully to me personally.
