Kyoukaisenjou no Horizon II

There isn't really a satisfactory review for this awesome show, so I thought I'd write one.

Horizon in the Middle of Nowhere is an adaptation of a light novel of the same name. The premise is that Musashi (the main ship or the protagonists of our story), is trying to recover the emotions of P-01s, aka Horizon Ariadust, as they were taken from her to create WMDs. However, Musashi is not considered a world player in this setting, because they're simply exiles from Japan, who are being watched by the Testament Union, who "guides" the world by making sure that history is reenacted.

This premise sounds pretty ... confusing, and ittedly it is, due to the insane depth of universe. There are a LOT of and truthfully, a language system (it's Japanese, with a few quirks), that you have to get used to. The result of this though, is a sci-fi / fantasy epic that I don't think even Kinoko Nasu could hold a candle to.

The show (in my opinion) is heavily dialogue driven (, this is a show about historical reenactment, but reenactment comes through interpretation). There will be some pretty intense dialogue scenes as a result, since the premise of the show pretty much requires some sort of politics.
However, the action (e.g., fights) are not skimped on at all (ever seen a city-ship do a backflip?) The characters are all interesting, with their own quirks, and even seemingly minor characters are explored and play a role in the story. The animation is excellent, with an amazing soundtrack to boot (it's great in season 1, and just awesome in season 2).

ittedly Horizon isn't a show for everyone, but if you're willing to get through a little exposition (about 5-6 episodes of season 1), you're in a for a real treat, (what I believe to be the best action show in years).

Looking forward to season 3 and beyond!

(note:scroll down for TL;DR version)
Yay, my first review!

Kyoukaisenjou no Horizon II, an interesting anime to say the least. After watching the first season, I came into Kyoukaisenjou no Horizon II with average expectations, and in the end was rather pleased with the second season.

Story:7
As with the first season, the story of Kyoukaisenjou no Horizon II can be very confusing at times. It has a futuristic setting, yet at the same time mixing in historic and fantasy elements, and the shows on story can be pretty convoluted in itself at times, leaving people a bit conflicted on it at times. Not to say its ... bad though, far from it. Once you understand (or for some people, look past) most of the plot and back-round, you have a unique and different story the likes of which I (personally at least) have not seen before.

Kyoukaisenjou no Horizon II also does very good in the romance department, not just for the main protagonist but for quite a few of the ing cast as well, which is something I really enjoyed. Kyoukaisenjou no Horizon II also, like its predecessor, brings some interesting elements I haven't seen much in other anime to the table, such as the political negotiations. Some people wont enjoy those moment, but others like myself will find it quite interesting.

The humor in Kyoukaisenjou no Horizon II is also a high point, and it usually pulls it off rather well. Some people wont like it as a lot of is humor tends to be ecchi based, but usually it isnt too heavy and knows its place (although there are some exceptions) The humor can also be quite random (especially concerning the main protagonist) which a lot of people don't like, but others will enjoy.

In the end I'd say the whole Kyoukaisenjou no Horizon series kind of a hit or miss, and it hit for me.

Art:8
Now I'm no artist, so I wont have too much to say here. The art was very well done, with fluid action scene's that didn't seem to cut to many corners. Character design is varied, and the use of what I believe to be CG during the air ship battle's is well done. (not sure if it really is CG, so don't quote me on that) In the end I was very satisfied by the artwork and found it better than a lot of the other stuff out there.

Sound:9
A high point for the series. Kyoukaisenjou no Horizon II has some great tracks and really knows how to set the mood. The soundtrack really riles you up and draws you into the action, and can also wind down for soft, emotional scene's. I enjoyed the OP and ED, but it's nothing spectacular. There is one thing I have to give special attention to though, that being Horizons singing. It is BEAUTIFUL, and I loved listening to it every time. They know when to have her sing, and when she does its amazing.

Characters:9
This is another high point of the series. The Kyoukaisenjou no Horizon series features a wide array of varied cast , and the second season does not fail in that aspect. The show gives time to develop or focus on different characters, and sometimes even introduce and add more cast . For a large part of the second season Tori and Horizon actually stepped out from the spotlight to make room for other of the cast. For instance although more of a backround character in the first season, Tenzou plays a much bigger role in the second season which I really enjoyed. Other times characters come into the limelight for a few episode's before swapping places with others, and some are just there for the random hilarity. (such as nenji the slime or that random curry guy)

As stated before, romance plays a pretty big part in this series, and is even one of its main driving forces as with Horizon and Tori. The whole Kyoukaisenjou no Horizon series knows how to do romance well, and I was never really disappointed with it. It even shows you the romantic situations with ing caste such as Gin and Muneshige, Tenzou and Mary, and the two witches (although sometimes they kind of weird me out, not gona lie) And lets not forget those two students and the ghost kid, their just too cute! xD

One thing needs to be mentioned though, that being the main protagonist Tori. Many people find him obnoxious, and I myself have to agree at times. He literally never stops smiling, which isn't really a bad thing per se, but he could have been a better protagonist if he took things more seriously sometimes. I mean, he can be serious, but not frequently enough. I'm not going to start hating him as a character, I mean the show wouldn't be what it is without him, but he could have been done better. On the other hand, maybe this is all building up to some epic climax where he DOES get serious, that would actually be pretty awesome.

Enjoyment:9
In the end I enjoy Kyoukaisenjou no Horizon series for what it is, a convoluted plot with a wide variety of cast with well done romance and whacky humor. The style of the fighting really hit my sweet spot and the the end I find myself really enjoying this series and cant wait for future seasons.

Overall:8
Overall I think I'll give Kyoukaisenjou no Horizon II an 8. It hit a sweet spot for me with the action, frequent and well done romance, and a well done sountrack. In the end I find myself comparing this series to Gurren Lagann. It can be whacky at times, but it has a lovable cast with action and a soundtrack that really grabs you and takes you on a ride if you can get into it. Others, unfortunately, will be left behind, unable to either understand or look past the convoluted story line, randomness, and its lack of seriousness at time's. I myself, cant wait for more seasons, and at this speed this series is going I expect 2 or 3 more.

TL;DR version:
All in all this whole series is rather hit or miss. Those who dont wont be able to look past its randomness and whackyness, or maybe wont be able to look past or understand its convoluted plot. If you CAN, however, I believe you will thoroughly enjoy yourself with this anime, finding an unique plot, a wide variety of lovable characters, a good soundtrack that really gets you engaged, awesome battle scenes, and very well done romance.

I hope this review helped whoever is curious about this anime.

[This is my first review, please go easy on me]

This is a review of the two seasons of Kyoukai Senjou no Horizon, which I will abbreviate with "Horizon" from now on. I decided to treat both seasons as one, as the producers immediately anounced a sequel after the first season was over and it leaves with a cliffhanger. So let´s dive right into the story of "Horizon"

Story - 3

From what I understand, this anime is based on a light novel series where each novel consists of more than 1000 pages and there´s eleven of them up to this point. So it comes as no ... surprise, this story could only end up in a mess. I don´t really know which parts of the light novel got incorporated into the anime and I don´t know if the story makes more sense in the light novels. All I can say is that the story in the anime itself is a convoluded mess. Most of the time you will be struggling to all kinds of different terminologies and names. I had to stop several times just to catch my breath and trying to understand what´s going on. The whole story about reenacting the world´s history, the students on the ship Musashi trying to regain the emotions of Horizon (the character Horizon) and preventing some sort of apocalypse does sound interesting, but none of them are really explained very well and will leave you with a big questionmark on top of your head.
Everything just seems kind of random and pops out of nowhere, haha. Get it? The title of the anime translates to "Horizon in the Middle of Nowhere" and that just sums it all up. You literally feel like this story is getting nowhere as there are far too many different plot lines that are loosely connected to each other and often don´t really make any sense. I can at least say that the story of the anime pretty much sucks, but I will hold my horses for the light novel series. Maybe it made sense there, but it´s definitely not true for the animated version.

Art - 7

I think this is the only real redeeming quality this anime has. I thought the animation was pretty decent in the action scenes and the scenery looks pretty good. So the visuals definitely make watching the anime a bit easier.

Sound - 5

Not much to say here. I found the OP songs were pretty forgettable and most of the BGM tracks didn´t really leave an impression on me. But I have to say the ED songs were beautiful. Music always depends on your own tastes, so if you did like all of the music tracks in the anime, no hard feelings.

Characters - 2

OMG! Never ever have I seen an anime with a lead character this annoying as Aoi Tori in "Horizon". I felt something was wrong, like he didn´t really belong to this anime. He is just a huge goofball with a playful and perverted nature that will soon get on the nerves of any sane person. I couldn´t comprehend how this was our main character, the one you are supposed to cheer for all the way. Most of the time he goes around with this big smile on his face that just makes me want to punch him and in the second season he runs around stark naked for the most part. Yes, you heard right! I didn´t understand this, like was there any reason for him to do this? Did he lose a bet? I don´t care if he is meant to be a pervert, most of the perverted characters I´ve seen in other animes seem fairly normal in comparison to him. And while he manages to be somewhat helpful to his friends at the end of season one, he is considerably downplayed in the second season, which isn´t really as bad as ist sounds.
This leads us to the other characters, but to be honest, there´s really litte to tell about them. Just that there is a lot of them. While the main character is fairly easy to just because he is him, you will find yourself scratching your head looking at the other characters. Very rarely will you get background information about them, e.g. for the main character´s sister Kimi and the automated doll Horizon, but most of the other characterst just have one or two personality traits, which is supposed to count as full characters. I think for the sake of this anime, it would have been a good idea to just leave some of them out. For example this curry-throwing Indian guy and this slime dude. They have no purpose whatsoever.
But if you are a huge sucker for boobs then this is for you. Most of the female characters wear skin-tight jump suits or revealing costumes to entertain you. But it does leaves you wondering, is there some kind of drug in the atmosphere that makes your breasts grow faster? Characters with flat chests are really limited and middle-sized breasts seem to be nearly extinct as most of the female cast has ridiculously huge breasts. Not that I am really complaining, but it does get kinda absurd to the end.
But aside from that, there are some pretty forgettable characters. How about this guy who is supposedly a crown prince or whatever and this girl in a wheel chair, who happen to care for a ghost girl, which appears in the middle of the first season. Except for a few comedic moments the crown prince later starts off, all three of them don´t have anything to do with the story. In fact, the girl in the wheel chair doesn´t seem to even leave her room. What´s the point of that?
I could point out numerous other problems with this show´s characters, but I will leave it at that. The thing is, we have this complex story line to cope with and then the anime throws all these characters at us, most of them with little to no impact on the story. I liked some of them, but mostly because of their "two features" and not really because of their personality. And if everything you have to offer with your characters are their big busts, then this is truly dreadful.

Enjoyment - 5

It may seem like I didn´t enjoy this flick, which is not the case. Even though the story and the characters are lacking in every aspect, it does leave you wishing to know what will happen to them. The anime doesn´t develop a connection with the characters, which is a big mistake for any kind of story in my opinion, but if you are like me (the kind of person that just automatically forms a bond with the main cast, just because you want to see the "good" guys win over the "bad" guys), you will watch till the end. The anime lacks the tension and suspense necessary for it to truly enjoy it, but it´s not that bad either.

Overall - 4

At the end you will be left with a mixed opinion about this show. Even though it fails at so many aspects, it does leave you with the feeling you want to see more even if it´s just to see if everything makes sense at the end. I think the main problem lies in the convoluded story and the big character cast. I think it´s nearly impossible to adapt a series of light novels into a 26-episode anime, if there is so much material to work with. For the animated version, you should have chosen either more story and less characters or vice versa, but not both of them. Maybe it´s just me, but it takes the fun out of it for me, if I have to look everything up when I don´t understand something. Maybe the story did make sense, but it doesn´t change the fact that it is poorly told and has uninteresting characters.