As soon as you mention “from Key animation”, I’m there. “Angel Beats!” is a 2010 supernatural… uh… let’s just call it comedy. It tells the tale of Otonashi, who one day wakes up without memory, only to realize he is dead and is currently suspended in a place between heaven and hell, like an eternal limbo, that resembles a large high school. Here he meets Yuri, the leader of a secret group called the Battlefront, who’s motives are about as muddled as the concept of “God” that they’re trying to find to fight him for giving them their cruel fates. After becoming a member of the group himself, he learns of their enemy being a student nicknamed “Angel”, who has found a way to make herself a modern warfare badass in this limbo world, “Matrix” style. However, Otonashi soon begins to see the truth unfold about each individual, and realizes the problems may not be with God, but everyone themselves.
Admittedly, this was the first anime based on a Key animation that I had seen, so I didn’t have the perception of this being great. I thought I was in for some supernatural by-the-book anime tropes and an easily digestable, ultimately forgettable show, but instead what I got was something far greater: a wide smile on my face, and my insides hurting. “Angel Beats!” may not look it, but it’s easily one of the funniest anime shows I’ve ever seen. The general concept of the show is where the comedy gold comes in, as we learn each person on the Battlefront in their own “special” characteristics who can’t die. This makes for some truly hilarious scenes when the show puts the characters in some life-threatening situations, but thanks to particularly clever writing, knows exactly when to make it overly dramatic and campy for the sake of being funny. And it absolutely nails it. For example, there’s an episode where the Battlefront has to infiltrate an underground weapons factory, but constantly run into traps set up that ends in someone dramatically (emphasis on the dramatically) dying to save the group, who then brush it off like a fly had just been swatted because, well, they don’t really die. They just reappear somewhere else. Another episode (and probably the one you’ll remember this show for) involves the Battlefront trying to secretly switch Angel’s exam papers with a fake one full of wrong answers during exams, but have to think of distractions so they can make the switch. However, the distractions fail in the most epic way possible, which leads Yuri to literally strap rockets to each members seats and launch them through the roof in slow motion queued to sad pop music. It’s as funny as it sounds, trust me. What ultimately leads to this show’s strength isn’t its fluid animation or rather impressive action, but the Battlefront themselves having a new ‘operation’ each episode that leads to some hilarious downfalls. The chemistry is great between characters, and the characters themselves are lively (and obliviously dim-witted) enough to be very likable.
However, there are some set-backs when dealing with a show that has a concept such as this. The main protagonist, Otonashi, while having a very moving backstory about his life on Earth, is ultimately quite a dull character to begin with. Though he does slowly evolve into a good character, he’s still far from a saving grace as the shows lead, and often has to rely on the whims of Yuri, Angel, or another side character to save the episode. Also, given the show’s running time of only 13 episodes, you really feel like the show ended way too soon, and honestly deserved more episodes to soak in. It would’ve been great to have around 26 episodes, because it would give us adequate time to get to know each member of the Battlefront more personally, and provide more funny botched operations.
Regardless, I still had a blast with “Angel Beats!”. While it isn’t the greatest show that many lead it to be, there are plenty of great aspects to grasp, such as the lively bunch of members, the fluid and very high-quality animation, and some of the best comedy you’ll ever likely find in anime. The ending of the show also leaves much to be desired, though its quite an emotional bat to the head that Key is so famous for, so bring plenty of tissues. Also, while Otonashi isn’t interesting, he is kinda saved by his backstory which gives him a bit of weight. Though you’ll yearn for more episodes after getting through it’s very short running time, it’s still a wildly entertaining trip that deserves praise for being tongue-in-cheek, cleverly written, and a lot of fun.
FINAL VERDICT:
78/100
