Dhruv Sharma
War based sci-fi anime with mecha is definitely not for everyone. I’m not talking about feel-good shows here, where the characters fall in love, teach you a lesson or two about life and then drive off into the sunset. I’m talking about a very complex setup of war where heavy use of futuristic technology along with some badass CGI are being portrayed. This description does fit ‘Aldnoah.Zero’ to a certain extent, but the only problem with it is that its basic “setup” is far from being complex. The CGI, the action scenes and even the futuristic sci-fi theme is great, but it falls short with its writing that is so full of cliches. Even the characters are the most typical ones that you can find in pretty much any anime of the mecha genre. But even then, I wouldn’t say that it’s entirely bad.
From the animation front, A-1 Pictures has come up with some visually breathtaking shows in the past such as ‘Sword Art Online‘. The animation of ‘Aldnoah.Zero’ is also quite impressive. But I wouldn’t really rank it above the best ones made by the studio. I have never really been a big fan of CGI in anime because it often appears abruptly in 2D fight scenes and just seems inappropriate. But this is where the animation of this show outshines everything and the CGI somehow blends very well with the 2D action scenes. The action coordination is just perfect and all the battle scenes are perfectly timed. Even the fanservice is minimal which, for me personally, is definitely a big plus point. The only problem with the action is that without the necessary story build up, all of it just feels dead to the eye because it lacks relevant context.
Hiroyuki Sawano is known for his amazing musical feats in anime shows like ‘Kill La Kill‘ and ‘Guilty Crown‘. In this anime, he brings together an intense set of techno beats that completely set apart its OST from all others. Every battle has a very appropriate background score to it that just fits every part of it perfectly. I don’t usually notice the soundtrack of every anime but it is anime shows like these that manage to strike the right chords.
Overall, I would say that ‘Aldnoah.Zero’ is a watchable show and is enjoyable solely because of its breathtaking animation and unforgettable soundtracks. The only reason why it falls short of being a masterpiece is that it lacks a compelling storyline and fails to develop most of its characters. In spite of showing a lot of potential in the first season, the anime failed to make up for the sub-par storyline in the second season as well. Now I know that many anime fans out there are pretty satisfied with an anime that offers nothing more than what ‘Aldnoah.Zero’ offers. And if you’re one of those people, then I’m sure you would love to watch another season of it. But considering the decline in its average rating from the first season to the second one, would the studio be willing to invest in it all over again? Find out more about this in the next section.
Aldnoah.Zero Season 3 Release Date: When will it premiere?
‘Aldnoah.Zero’ season 1 released on July 6, 2014 and came to an end on September 21, 2014, with a total of 12 episodes. This was followed by the second season that was premiered on January 11, 2015 and went on till March 29, 2015. Now one big reason why it seems like the show has ended is the fact that it does not have any source materials. So everything depends on what the creators want to do with it. If they want to film a new season, they will for sure, but if they’re caught up with something else, then we might have to wait for years.
Another factor to be considered is the decline in its popularity after the first season. The anime gained a lot of popularity after season 1 but most fans were really disappointed with the second one. So from what it looks like, chances of getting a new season are negligible right now and almost nothing is in its favor. In the unlikely scenario of the anime getting renewed, our best guess is that ‘Aldnoah.Zero’ season 3 release date could be sometime in 2021 or 2022. We will update this section as soon as we hear more.
Aldnoah.Zero English Dub:
The subbed and dubbed versions of ‘Aldnoah.Zero’ are available on Funimation and Crunchyroll.
Aldnoah.Zero Plot:
Set in the year 1972, an ancient alien “hypergate” is discovered on the surface of the moon. This hypergate allows humans to directly teleport to the surface of Mars. This is when the Earth’s population gets divided into two halves where one half decides to stay while the other decides to settle on the surface of Mars. The ones who end up on Mars unearth a technology named “Aldnoah” that is far more advanced than anything that has ever been created on Earth. The discovery of this technology then leads to disputes between the Vers Empire of Mars and the “Terrans” of the Earth. But what starts off as small dispute soon turns into an intergalactic war between the two planets. Later, a battle that takes place on the moon — known as the “Heavens Fall”— causes the hypergate to explode and even ends up destroying the moon. This leads to a very uneasy situation between the two Empires.
Fifteen years after this event, the Vers Empire’s Princess Asseylum Vers Allusia arrives on Earth to sort out all the differences between her Empire and her homeland. But she is assassinated and the only person who knows all about it is a school kid named Inaho Kaizuka. Soon after this, the ceasefire between the two planets is destroyed and the Martians decide to wage war all over again. Amid this chaos, Inaho and his friends must find a way to fight the Martians in order to restore peace on their homeland.
Aldnoah.Zero Characters:
Inaho Kaizuka
Inaho Kaizuka is the main protagonist of the show, who is a student at the Shinawara Academy. His height is quite average for his age and he has short black hair that rests down on his forehead. His eyes are burgundy in color and he often gives a very blank gaze with them. At school, he is one of the smartest kids and he has the ability to empathize with other people, although he often fails to express his feelings to others. But his emotional detachment actually works to his advantage during battles because he is able to stay distant from his opponents and somehow dig deep into their weaknesses.
Kaizuka is a brilliant tactician and he often comes up with the most genius strategies to find a way around the opponent’s strengths. Despite his limited military training, Inaho proves to be an outstanding pilot and when he combines his skills as a tactician with his flying skills, he becomes this invincible force that can defeat multiple enemy pilots in one single run.
Slaine Troyard
Slaine Troyard is one of the main characters of the anime. He pilots the Martian Kataphrakt Tharsis and is shown to have a very deep admiration for Princess Asseylum Vers Allusia. When he is told that she could still be alive, he goes looking out for her, alone. He is willing to fight for Princess Asseylum and would even give up on his own life for her, if that’s what it takes. When it comes to flying an aircraft, he may not be as skilled as Inaho but he is still good enough to perform some really cool maneuvers.
Asseylum Vers Allusia
Princess Asseylum Vers Allusia is one of the main female protagonists of the show, who is the Empress of the Vers Empire. She is the daughter of Gilzeria and the granddaughter of Rayregalia Vers Rayvers. She is a pacifist who hates the fact that her Empire is at a war with the ones residing on Earth. Unlike most other Martians, she sees the people of Earth in a very good light and believes that she can come to a peaceful agreement with them. She feels really regretful about all the events that led to a second war between the Martians and the Earthlings, but she somehow still believes that she can resolve it. She even takes it as her responsibility to bring peace between the two parties.
She has a very kind nature and genuinely cares for everyone around her. She believes that there’s good in everyone and according to her, no one is her enemy. She prioritizes the safety of others over herself and during the gravest situations, she can also be very bold and assertive about her decisions.
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