Kekkai Sensen

Title:Kekkai Sensen
Blood Blockade Battlefront
血界戦線
Overall:Rent
Keywords: , , , , ,
Notables: Animation - BONES
KOYAMA Rikiya
NAKAI Kazuya
SAKAGUCHI Daisuke
One day, New York City as we know it vanished overnight into a mysterious fog. Now known as Hellusalem Road, it has become a place where another world beyond imagining is connected to our reality. The balance within this new world is protected by a secret society known as Libra. Leo, a journalist and photographer who arrives in the city, is unexpectedly recruited to join their ranks.
(Summary Courtesy of Anime News Network)


Series premiered on April 4, 2015.
Animated by Bones

12 episodes (plus recap episode 10.5)
See second season, Kekkai Sensen & Beyond.
OverallArtAnimationCharacter Design MusicSeries StoryEpisode StoryReviewer
Rent 8 8 8 7 7 7 Ggultra2764 [series:3026#1552]
Blood Blockade Battlefront is a gritty supernatural-based action title focused on male lead Leonardo and the efforts of a group of supernatural crime fighters called Libra who halt any evil activity going on within the city of Hellsalem's Lot. Most episodes in the series are episodic with focus on exploring one member of Libra confronting an enemy threat and Leo's Seeing Eyes of God, supernatural eyes giving him a variety of powers, that often come into play to affect things with whatever case that Libra is caught up in. Things do pick up in BBB's final episode when the origins of a pair of mysterious siblings that Leo met with at points throughout the series get unveiled, along with a plan that jeopardizes the safety of the Hellsalem's Lot's populace. While gritty action and the types of characters depicted in BBB are nothing new for anime (and don't have much to show for depth), the style for it is still rather unique thanks to its supernatural setting, as well as a number of the situations that Leo and the members of Libra confront often getting on the bizarre side at points from Klaus playing a deadly and complicated version of chess to Leo befriending a strange mushroom-like alien. The style that BBB gets by on is unique enough to recommend giving the series a look thanks to its nicely animated action sequences and often bizarre happenings, even if it isn't doing much new for an anime title.

Last updated Tuesday, October 06 2015. Created Tuesday, October 06 2015.
Unevaluated Stretch [series:3026#628]
(One episode watched):

The moment the basic premise of a city (formerly New York) now teeming with freaks/monsters of every sort, due to a 'gate' to the 'Otherworld' opening, and humans and Otherworlders now living side by side, my hopes plunged because somehow that was one story I definitely didn't want to hear. Perhaps it was because there was so little originality to Kekkai Sensen; stuff like a secret society that fights supernatural evil; a guy with a unique ability; a new martial art; bizarre creatures ('sonic monkey'?); etc. For some reason this show struck me as being much like Durarara, just even weirder. Maybe the scheming villain who enjoys manipulating people from behind the scenes helped me make the connection. But whereas the characters of Durarara did a few things to earn the 'coolness' they exuded, here it seems we are just supposed to accept the characters as being cool right from the start. That annoys me. I didn't like even the members of the Libra group, who will seemingly be the good guys, and couldn't care much about main character Leonardo. Who is he? A guy who feels guilty because he didn't prevent his sister from being harmed, and has picked up a unique ability somehow. One thing which did impress me was the animation of a fight scene near the end of the episode. But in general Kekkai Sensen rubbed me the wrong way. Perhaps I also didn't like the way we are supposed to suspend disbelief and accept this freakworld as a given even though there is no explanation of how it came about and no hint that there ever will be one. As a result of all these problems, I was bored right from the start. I can't believe that I will ever care how this nonsensical story will work out, and therefore won't watch anymore.

Last updated Wednesday, April 08 2015. Created Wednesday, April 08 2015.

Other Sites
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Official Japanese Series Web Site http://kekkaisensen.com/

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