Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? Review

by Bella Boyle | July 18, 2015 11:42 am

 

Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? That title is enough to pique interest. I am drawn to a story first and everything else second, and Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? did not disappoint.

For the first couple of episodes, I felt as though I could have been watching any multitude of harem animes. There was no true distinguishing factor from any other story that had been told. Boy is alone in life except one girl that sticks by his side, boy is weak but gets strong after meeting a particular girl, all other girls have crush on boy. However the further along we go in the story, each character is further fleshed out. I am a sucker for character development, and this anime comes through with that. We learn more about what motivates our main character, Bell Cranel. We also learn about his companions, Lili, Welf Crozzo, Miss Ryu, and even his grandfather. The ability of the writers to progress the story while including backstories is noteworthy and helped make this more than another harem-esque anime.

I will say that there are fun bits in the story such as the funny, yet painfully awkward, interactions between Bell and Aiz Wallenstein, the Meow Meow girl, the rivalry between goddesses, etc. I will also say, with slight shame, that it took me 10 episodes to realize that this series is basically a video game. It has characters going into the dungeons to fight monsters, with each level bringing forth harder opponents. The dungeon basically kills you by sending trash mobs, and you have to defeat the floor boss to advance. Each monster leaves a gem that you can trade for money and sometimes, you get a fallen item. It feels eerily like a virtual MMORPG such as Log Horizon[1], Sword Art Online[2], .hack//SIGN, but we won’t know why there are monsters just yet. 

The voice acting in Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? is amazing. The balances of the vocals and ambiance makes you feel more immersed in the story. When they were celebrating at the inn, I felt like I was in a dive bar! When in the dungeon, I felt the slight bouncing of sound of the walls. When Bell’s resolve strengthened, I felt as though I was watching him grow before my eyes. These all made this anime more than the sum of it’s parts and I applaud J.C Staff’s work.

I thoroughly enjoyed watching this anime. As a cosplayer, I was enthralled by the different armor and attire of the main supporting characters. I am in love with Bell and Aiz’s armor details. And it’s not just the armor. The glistening of the gems, and crystals, the water movement in the fountains, Bell being covered in blood and the incantations. It is all beautifully drawn and helps us better understand the universe and the workings of their society. Looking at some characters, I felt as though the artists were overly influenced by other artist’s work. The Goliaths are examples of this, where they look very similar to the Titans in Attack on Titans. I still find the animation beautiful and very well done.

Should this anime have a Season 2? Yes. Should you binge this entire season? Yes. Should you use this to convince your non-otaku friends to join the maddening descent into awesome? No. Would I recommend this to others? Yes.

 

 

Source URL: https://www.confreaksandgeeks.com/wrong-try-pick-girls-dungeon-review/

---