The story hinges on a place called Mato, where people land after a strange event and gain powers from magical peaches. While there are monsters and an "Anti-Demon Corp" fighting them, focusing on Mato as a bleak wasteland is unlikely to develop characters or move the plot forward. This is because Mato itself is not very well-developed. There's some character growth outside of Mato, but it's so predictable that it's not worth mentioning.
While Chain Soldier, an anime known for its fan service, boasts characters like Eris, Roxy, Cliff, and Sylphie, none of them are particularly unique. Even if the story focused on any of them instead of the main plot, it wouldn't feel any more impactful. The problem lies in how generic these characters are; they fall squarely into tired anime tropes. This lack of originality prevents the series adaptation from capturing the essence of the source material.
For instance, Yuuki is a self-insert MC with black hair whose main character attributes are that he gets shy around ladies and feels obligated in a stereotypical "good boy" way. Kyouka is a stereotypically strong leader who questions Yuuki's insecurities and says trash about leaders for 90% of her talk. Shushu is an extremely aroused "teasing girl." Himari is a tsundere who doesn't like men at first, but for some reason, she's attracted to our main character right now. The only character I genuinely feel a little fondness for is Nei, mostly because she serves as a delightful diversion from the other characters.
Chained Soldier might be categorized as an ecchi action show, but it fails to deliver on both aspects. The story and characters are forgettable, and the animation is underwhelming. The fan service is there, but it's not good enough, and even if it were, it wouldn't be enough to save the show.
So, what does Chained Soldier do well? Honestly, not much. It's barely even bad - not offensive, not infuriating, not exciting. It just sits there, firmly in the realm of mediocre. The problem? That makes it completely forgettable. In fact, I'm forgetting it as I write this. Maybe the best I can say is that it's inoffensive.
While Chain Soldier, an anime known for its fan service, boasts characters like Eris, Roxy, Cliff, and Sylphie, none of them are particularly unique. Even if the story focused on any of them instead of the main plot, it wouldn't feel any more impactful. The problem lies in how generic these characters are; they fall squarely into tired anime tropes. This lack of originality prevents the series adaptation from capturing the essence of the source material.
For instance, Yuuki is a self-insert MC with black hair whose main character attributes are that he gets shy around ladies and feels obligated in a stereotypical "good boy" way. Kyouka is a stereotypically strong leader who questions Yuuki's insecurities and says trash about leaders for 90% of her talk. Shushu is an extremely aroused "teasing girl." Himari is a tsundere who doesn't like men at first, but for some reason, she's attracted to our main character right now. The only character I genuinely feel a little fondness for is Nei, mostly because she serves as a delightful diversion from the other characters.
Chained Soldier might be categorized as an ecchi action show, but it fails to deliver on both aspects. The story and characters are forgettable, and the animation is underwhelming. The fan service is there, but it's not good enough, and even if it were, it wouldn't be enough to save the show.
So, what does Chained Soldier do well? Honestly, not much. It's barely even bad - not offensive, not infuriating, not exciting. It just sits there, firmly in the realm of mediocre. The problem? That makes it completely forgettable. In fact, I'm forgetting it as I write this. Maybe the best I can say is that it's inoffensive.
