I would ditch any high expectations when going into this show. Especially if you watched the other Saint Seiya's. The first couple episodes I was really into it and excited. The animation style is done well and the starting concept was solid enough: boy hero on an adventure to grow stronger and save the girl from the big bad guy. However, now at episode 42, this show really doesn't do anything for
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I would ditch any high expectations when going into this show. Especially if you watched the other Saint Seiya's. The first couple episodes I was really into it and excited. The animation style is done well and the starting concept was solid enough: boy hero on an adventure to grow stronger and save the girl from the big bad guy. However, now at episode 42, this show really doesn't do anything for me.
To start, the story quickly degrades into a dull, predictable affair. Most of the stalwart heroes that aren't part of the group have somehow fallen for a few deceitful words from one of the bad guys. Every fight seems to be something like "haha I'm a silver or gold saint and you are just a bronze so there's no way you can beat me." And then, of course, they are somehow proven wrong every time. You never feel like you are moving on a journey with the heroes and watching them grow; it is like the show resets itself to 0 after each episode. To contrast, in a show like DBZ you had the fighters gaining new power limits, upgrading to super saiyan, etc., while in this show for almost the entire series so far the only growing they seem to do is gaining one new attack each. The plot seems to get more and more stale, particularly towards the end of the series.
The action is another let down. As said earlier, most of the fights are bronze saint vs. someone supposedly stronger than bronze saint. And then instead of a crisp fight scene you usually get the bronze saints beat up on for 15 minutes until they realize something is important to them and they manage to beat the other guy with one berserker attack. I don't think I ever felt like I watched a cool showdown of skill vs skill with fluid action and few unnecessary words, it was always some unrealistic scenario.
Finally, while I know this style of anime has an inherent corny-ness to it, this show just takes it too far. The power of love and hope and protecting something is the reason the bronzes win pretty much every single time. Despite taking attacks that probably should've disintegrated them, they somehow survive and then proceed to pitch some story about how I have to do this for so and so, I have to make a brighter future, and that gives them the one outburst of strength they need. I can see this tactic working a few times believably at most, but when you make it the outcome of 99% of your fights... well I have actually caught myself laughing out loud in disbelief that they would keep repeating that style so incessantly.
In conclusion, if you need something to watch and were a fan of the other Saint Seiya's, give it a chance you might end up liking it. As for me, I am 42 episodes in and could absolutely care less how the series turns out, which is the clearest indicator I have that something has failed to entertain me.
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