Kill la Kill

Title:Kill la Kill
キルラキル
Overall:Buy
Keywords: , , , , , , ,
Notables:
The story is set on a high school that the student council president Satsuki Kiryuuin rules by force. Wielding a giant Basami scissors sword, the wandering transfer student Ryuuko Matoi brings about upheaval on the campus. Ryuuko searches for the mysterious figure who caused her father's death, but confronting her are the student council's "four divine kings." Fortunately, Ryuuko is aided by a talking sailor uniform who tells her, "Wear me. When I am worn by you, this power will manifest."
(Summary Courtesy of Anime News Network)

[TV series, 2013, 24 episodes, 23 min; original story (the Seinen manga started together with the anime); animated by Trigger]
OverallArtAnimationCharacter Design MusicSeries StoryEpisode StoryReviewer
Buy 8 7 8 7 9 8 Ggultra2764 [series:2785#1552]
I was getting vibes of Gurren Lagann watching Kill la Kill in its 24-episode run and I mean it in a good way. Like Lagann being a homage to old-school mecha anime, Kill la Kill is an action-comedy paying homage to old-school action anime with hot-blooded young fighters, crazy attacks, a ridiculously powerful student council, overly elaborate plot twists and over-the-top villains. It also packs plenty of revealing attire and nude bodies in its focus on superpowered clothing being capable of granting its wearer superhuman attributes and unique abilities, as well as a resistance group consisting of folks who wear nothing but strategically placed military equipment.

Like Gurren Lagann, the series does sport substance to it beyond being a hodge-podge of cliches to poke fun of. While the first half starts off somewhat formulaic as Ryuko's abilities with her uniform Senketsu increase and she takes on the school's student council in a gauntlet-style tournament battle, the second half of the series shifts into a somewhat more serious and grand ongoing plot when major details are revealed concerning the origins of the superpowered uniforms, who kill Ryuko's father, some shocking revelations about Ryuko's origins, some seemingly villainous major characters from the first half not being as they seem on the surface and two new major villains coming into play for the second half. While these revelations may feel like the typically too convenient or cheap plot twists you would expect from a long-running shounen battle series, the show's direction was clear and there were some hints dropped that things may not be seemingly ordinary with elements to the title's plot and characters with the typical mold it seemingly had on the surface for much of its first half. The only major issue I have with the series was that there were points where the first half to Kill la Kill dragged in terms of developing its plot since it was fixated to a good extent on milking action anime cliches.

Visually, the series milks use of subdued color tones and a drawing style for scenery and character designs almost like the work done by Gainax. The animation makes use of a number of standard techniques and shortcuts employed for 90s action anime, while mixing in its own unique spins to such tactics such as Nui's limited movements and cheap-like animation for much of her battles. The choices for Kill la Kill's animation are a great fit to compliment the title's over-the-top and manic action sequences.

Overall, Kill la Kill was a fun run for 24 episodes with its manic comedy, over the top action and elements to older action anime being a nice combination for an action-comedy title. If you enjoyed Gurren Lagann, you're likely to get similar enjoyment out of this series.

Last updated Friday, March 28 2014. Created Friday, March 28 2014.
Unevaluated Devil Doll [series:2785#752]
This one was perhaps the easiest candidate for deciding not to watch it, with a premise that I've seen not working in many shows before, and gimmicks as replacement for likable and developing characters.

Last updated Sunday, October 13 2013. Created Sunday, October 13 2013.
Unevaluated Stretch [series:2785#628]
(One episode watched):

The one series this parody of school fighting shows most reminds me of is FLCL--a crazy comedy with a good deal of wit. What remains to be seen is whether the plot makes any sense or if it is all just a bunch of fancy jokes. There's nothing wrong with fancy jokes, but a good plot as well would be even better. I guess jokes tend to be funnier if they interlock with a good plot, at least to me.

I wonder if Kill la Kill might be having the same effect on me as Gurren Lagann did--a flashy, stylish show which everyone raves about, and highly amusing at first, but ultimately striking me as more flash than substance, and consequently not holding my interest for long. I read that one of the leaders behind this show held the same role in GL. After just one episode I felt a distinct reluctance to watch any more; I compromised by saving the episodes to presumably watch them at some point in the future. This is a show which part of me is saying ought to be great fun, but the rest of me doesn't like it for some ill-defined reason.

Last updated Friday, February 28 2014. Created Friday, October 11 2013.

Other Sites
NameURL
Official Japanese Series Web Site http://www.kill-la-kill.jp/

Community Anime Reviews

anime mikomi org