Deatte 5 Byou de Battle

[neflight86]

1920

It was just a usual morning. Shiroyanagi Akira, a high schooler who loves games and Konpeito (Japanese sweets), has suddenly been dragged into a battlefield by a mysterious girl who calls herself Mion. The participants are told that they are "erased from the family register, involved in an experiment, and gained certain powers."
Akira is determined to win the game with his newfound powers and destroy the organization. Armed with a power no one expects and his "brain" skills, the new period of intelligence battle of begins!

Source: M-U

Genre(s): Psychological, Action, Mystery

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This probably has the best first episode I've seen this season (maybe tied with Koboyashi and Re:Main). Expecting nothing, this really got more interesting than the poor sell of the synopsis, not wasting time or droning on with exposition. Not spoiling, the power Akira gets for this death game is much more clever than I expected out of an edgy show like this, and if the writer has the chops to capitalize on the premise, this could be very interesting. Definitely give it a try and let me know what you think.

[neflight86]

2

Still good, but not quite as entertaining as the first episode as we focus on a slightly less interesting character who has a deep seeded grudge against RNG. It didn't help that her power wasn't that interesting, but her nasty attitude suggests she'll make a good addition to the cast.

So, the new edgy is quantity of depravity, not depth? This episode we got not one, but two creepy Ojii sans, and a bonus suicide stalker. They must be running a special; throw in an abused child at no extra charge. Funny that the light beam censoring of her undress also obscured the bruises on her back- the whole lynchpin of that scene, leaving the audience to piece together what shocked and saddened main girl. Still looking forward to more, but character drama so far has been heavy handed and only saved by its super brisk pacing.

[neflight86]

3

This feels like a weird distillation of the HunterXHunter 'trick tower' arc and 'Death Note', if Light was actually Killua instead. It's edgy, and some of the humor doesn't land, but it doesn't dwell on its those weaker elements. Definitely give this a try.

[DarthEnderX]

...is the title of this "Believe 5 it! the Battle"?

[neflight86]

I think it's supposed to translate to "Battle five seconds after meeting", or the like.

[DarthEnderX]

I was making a Naruto joke.

[neflight86]

An obscure reference to the Naruto dub? That would have been my second guess.

Did ya give it a try? Speaking of references, can we get an "f" for monkey man? Died trying to gamble for safety...

[neflight86]

4

Team battle is over with only one fatality and the obligatory fanservice 'punishment'. The greatest praise I can give this so far is that it hasn't been too awkward with how it reveals strategy, tactics, and powers. Some good restraint and thoughtfulness fill the dialogue (and monologue) keep things interesting and somewhat grounded. Death games are more fun when the actors play rationally, and so far, this doesn't disappoint.

[neflight86]

5

A team battle taking into consideration the meta implications of simply creating a society within this trial is a pretty good concept. I wonder how Akira's surprise will play into the situation? He mentioned they could be harboring the weak as a result of having excessive strength, but that is seemingly not the case? I wonder if they have an ace up their sleeve. Also, the pregnant woman giving birth within the trial suggests that people have been here for over six months. Who knows how long this experiment has been going on?

[neflight86]

6,7

Low production values aside, this is becoming a pretty (good) tangled web of causality that can take its time unravelling, for all I care about the poor spectacle of the action. The tactics and wits are what is keeping this engaging, and now there's a spy to deal with, though my money is on arrow dude. I wonder how they'll delineate who's side they are 'officially' on to prevent the spy from dying, or if that ever crossed the spy's mind. I wouldn't be surprised if a poll was conducted where participants have to select their true side right before the match- that would be cruel, chaotic, and fitting with the cat lady's past provocations.

[neflight86]

10

This has become a mess, but still a fun time. Animation and pacing are sketch as all get-out, but the battles themselves and the attempt at having strategies and unique powers is working plenty well enough.

This episode alone saw the death/defeat of three separate battles, and set up two more. I really can't complain about how much cheesy stuff is going on in a single episode, while still being easy to follow.

[neflight86]

11

You are in my trap

No u

NO U!

...

Well, that could have been worse, but at least the conflict is wrapping up in time for the end of the cour. My biggest wonder is if they will show the beginning of the next phase after this is over, like a teaser. I also hope they come up with some more varied powers in the future offerings.