Aired: Apr 9, 2014 - Jun 25, 2014 Studios: Madhouse Episodes: 12 Hi and welcome back everyone! So I was looking through all the posts on my blog recently, thinking about which anime or manga to write about next. I came to the sudden realization that I HAVE NOT WRITTEN ABOUT MY FAVORITE SERIES OF ALL TIME! ノಠ_ಠノ I'm so disappointed in myself that it took me this long to talk to you guys about this series. I don't think I have been into a series as I have with No Game No Life. I've watched the anime like three or four times, bought all the light novels while anxiously waiting for Vol. 7 to come out, and even watched the movie No Game No Life: Zero when it premiered in the U.S. If you haven't already noticed, I'm going to be SUPER biased, but I know that this anime might be one of those cult animes. It's a type of series where you either love it or hate it. There really isn't a happy medium, but I hope I can convince you guys on the side of loving it. Let's go ahead and hear the legendary story of the 『 』 - the world's best gamers. Synopsis: Sora and Shiro are brothers and sisters who are shut-ins that have completely disconnected themselves from society. Living their lives in their tiny room, the two are known as 『 』(Blank) in the online gaming world. The online community does not know who 『 』 is but their name pops up on the top of the leaderboards on every online game, making them the most famous gamers in the world. One day, they get a mysterious email challenging them to a game of chess. After becoming victorious, the mysterious sender offers them to join a world revolved around games. Believing it to be a joke, they accept the invitation. The next moment, the two are teleported to a different world which they later find to be called "Disboard" and meet the mysterious sender, Tet - the God of Games. Disboard is entirely governed by the Ten Pledges that prevents people on this world from physically harming each other and resolving everything through a game the two parties mutually agree on. There's one catch, cheating is allowed as long as the cheating party does not get caught. In a world of magic where different races have varying magical aptitudes, Imanity (humans in Disboard) are at a severe disadvantage and the lowest ranked race out of sixteen. Through a tournament, 『 』becomes the monarch of the Imanity race where they set off to conquer the other fifteen races to be eligible to challenge Tet once again to another game. Storyline: The premise this anime got me initially intrigued when I read its description. Back when it was released, I was a hardcore gamer and spent every waking moment on my computer or Xbox playing games. I always tried to be the best in whatever game I picked up and 『 』was what I wanted to be. I know now that they are kind of OP and I don't think anyone will be able to be the best in every single game they play, but at the time, I thought it was a cool concept. The biggest appeal to me throughout this anime is how Sora, Shiro, and Stephanie deal with the disadvantages they have and come up with a plan to overcome them. As Sora mentions in the early episodes, humans are imperfect, but because of this, they are able to learn from their mistakes and learn to become stronger. I love the way how most of Imanity think that they are helpless and can't measure up with the other races since they are at the bottom of the ranks. Sora and Shiro flip that mentality and say that because they are at the bottom, they have no where else to go but up. You can almost immediately see the advantage of being imperfect. It makes the other races undermine what Imanity can do and allows 『 』to think outside the box. Another thing that this series does well is push the envelope on social norms. One of the long running jokes is walking the thin line between what would be considered ecchi and hentai. The characters sometimes even explicitly state that if they take one step further, then it'll be X-rated. The interactions between the different races could also be indicative of how society may be wary of foreigners and how segregated the world is. Sora and Shiro set out to assimilate everyone into an international country filled with all the races of the world to challenge the One True God, Tet. I just love how people think Sora and Shiro are evil by wanting to become conquerors of the whole world, but they always end up showing how compassionate they are to everyone they meet. There's this quote that Sora says after acquiring an entire race that really resonates with me. I'm going to paraphrase here but he says something along the lines this:
Music: I'm going to be honest here and say that the soundtrack in the anime is not the best soundtrack ever, but I am always happy to hear it. The opening is the only song I really listen to because it always gets me pumped up and brings up the nostalgic kind of feeling. Whenever I listen to it, I always want to go back and watch the whole series (majority of the time in one sitting) so I try to stay away from hearing it often |−・;)Anyways that's I have to say on the music in this section xD Art: Alright y'all. This is the biggest reason why I love this series so much and what drew me in in the first place. I love everything about the aesthetics in this anime and also in the light novels. The bright vibrant colors might not be for everyone but I'm all for it. Loved the lighting and the pinkish-purple and blue palettes that they decided to use throughout the anime. The character design for the characters are also distinct and cute. The majority of them have soft tones to their designs and makes them almost chibi-like. Just look at Stephanie above. She's so cute! Another thing is the world of Disboard. The landscape is vast and wide with chess pieces visible off in the horizon. The skies are always bright and sunny without any indication that it is ever gloomy. This world is much better in the eyes of Sora and Shiro and it shows when they look out their balcony from their palace. Back in their world, the scene was dark and bleak, only to be lit up by computer, phone, and tablet screens. This contrast is very subtle but it really gives way to how much Sora and Shiro prefer being in Disboard since there's nothing left for them back in their world. I appreciate these types of contrasts which can be seen throughout the series. There you have it guys! You guys finally get to see what I officially claim as my favorite anime of all time. I could go into it more by bringing in the extra content that includes the light novels, mangas, and the side stories but I'll spare that unless it's something you guys are interested in. I hope you all enjoyed this post and I hope to see you guys back here again next week!
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Coffee senpaiJust an Otaku who also loves his coffee. Grab some coffee and watch anime with me ٩(θ‿θ)۶ Posts for this blog every Friday!
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