Hmm, this show looks awfully familiar…
Well, if that’s what you thought, you’d not be too far off the mark – this is the typical action/school/harem setting with a slight variation. Is that a bad thing? It sure as shit could be, but I think we have no cause for alarm thus far.
The main character’s name is Thor Kokonoe. Ok, I’m done convincing you fuckers now.
So, Thor and those in his world possess “Blaze”‘s, that is, special weapons that seem to be a manifestation of their soul – the only catch being that Thor’s weapon is not a weapon at all, but rather a shield. He shows himself to be extremely, surprisingly so adept at combat as he effortless handles Imari, his newfound friend, in order to secure his place in his new school, Kouryou Academy.
There, he meets Julie, who is his temporary partner. She’s cute, quiet, and quirky, but fairly harmless otherwise.
This show, if executed correctly, has the machinations to be as entertaining as Strike the Blood: that is, not A+ on paper, but fun as fun can be. That is what I am expecting going into this series and my hopes have not been dashed yet – bright colors, vivid visuals, and fairly decent character design are highlights.
But not all is sunshine and butterflies. Absolute Duo has, in fact, painted a difficult road for itself – by treading on deeply layed out and mapped territory, it runs the risk of being formulaic, familiar, and dull. We can only hope this is a To Aru Majutsu no Index/Strike the Blood rather than a Magical Warfare, with the latter example being by far the weakest and most formulaic of the three.
Julie is cute and oblivious – so what’s her deal, and what’s her fascination with Thor anyway? What’s up with Thor’s Blaze? Why is it a shield? I’m sure we’ll find out in due time. Let us hope that Absolute Duo handles these issues with grace and grants us an entertaining “shonen-esque” story – high on fun, low on substance, which is quite fine.
