The Reflection

Stan Lee - the Animation. That is what I would call this strange collaboration between the Americans and Japanese, mixing together their different visual concepts regarding animation. The American style prevails on the whole, and only a few things show that the guys from the Land of the Rising Sun are half involved. So why Stan Lee? Well, this is because he was involved in practically everything, and his presence is felt almost throughout this anime series. By that, I do not just mean the fact that his voice-over introduces and ends practically every episode or the fact that there is a character in the anime series which is actually an animated version of Stan Lee because every production based on his work has to include a cameo by Stan Lee himself. It is more about the concept behind the characters and the idea of heroes in general, as Stan Lee sees it and has presented many times before. This makes it a very one-dimensional affair. However, everything is more comic book than manga and cartoon than anime, and the main protagonists are based more on the American idea of heroes. Even the Magical Girls that appear at the end do not have much in common with the enchantment of Japanese Magical Girls. They are more like something between Magical Girls and Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers. So I think this show is more for fans of Stan Lee and his comic book heroes. For those who are looking for actual anime, I would recommend ignoring this and concentrating fully on My Hero Academia which features the Japanese version of superheroes. However, that is enough about what it is or is not. Now, a few words about how I liked it. The narrative was good with some cool twists, even though I did not find it particularly profound or highly compelling. At times, especially in the beginning, I found it a bit confusing, and at times it seemed somewhat unfinished, almost to the point of having too many plot holes. The characters reminded me of other well-known characters from other heroic universes. There is probably not a single one that I found fascinating, although X-on was quite likable. The animation is a bit strange. It is very dark and comic book-like with minimal details, and there probably was not a single scene where I found its beauty captivating. The soundtrack was OK, it was well suited to a show about superheroes. The action element is weak, and the fight scenes are rather boring. However, the conclusion itself is quite excellent, even if it is pretty typical for its genre. My overall impression is 4/10. (08/10/2017)