Review of Girly Air Force

I am astounded and stunned to fathom what's so good about this show, except that it is built on cliches and tropes, one after another. That's what is obvious from the get-go, and unless you're a fan of these irregularities, it doesn't help that this show gives off bad vibes from the start. The story (and worldbuilding) is that mankind/humanity is under attack from extraterrestrial entities only known as Xi, large colourful bird-ish planes who have surpassed human technology and are considered unstoppable. One fateful day, the dull MC, Narutani Kei, stumbles among one of the Xi's many attacks, and is caught in the crossfire betweenthe Zai and the JASDF's way of quantitative and qualitive control: Colourful fighter planes known as "Daughters", powered by autonomous units called "Anima", android-like human girls made from scrap Xi parts, and engineered to only serve one purpose: to repel the Xi in whatever shape and way possible technologically, that mission failures are not tolerated. And then...the storytelling collapses on its feet, HARD, as plot is basically non-existent and non-progressive.

And here...is the first problem: Inserting cliches and tropes where it doesn't really make total sense to the current (and future) situation(s). While Kei notices the first of the "Daughter" planes, which houses Gripen (the dull, naive pink-haired girl), he attempts to save her like any other righteous human would...and *kisses* him for absolutely NO reason. (Shit, that weird scene still irks so much in my mind.) Naturally, with the big effect of the Xi's attack for killing his mother, and wanting to know more about the power of the Daughters, he joins the JASDF and joins the staff responsible for the exclusive program in hopes of getting his sweet, sweet (and naive teenage) revenge against the Xi. And then, as luck would have it, Yashirodoori, the scientist behind the reverse-engineering of the Xi's weaponry and developer of the Anima system, notices Gripen's *strange* emotional dependency on Kei, and decides to "pair" them up together (ooh that "pairing romance" troupe).

The second problem is with the characters, both mains and sides. Gripen, as blank as she looks, is actually for a reason. Suffering from an inherent emotional defect which leaves her scatterbrained and lacking a sense of purpose, that's the answer to her fragile affinity with Kei (like seriously, can you believe this???). Eagle, the blonde-haired loud-talking girl, she's at best a talking parrot based on her perky and capricious personality, aside from being talented (which naturally is the case). What irks me is that on their first impressions, Eagle takes interest in Kei, but never crosses that line, as saying that the writers initally wanted a harem of sorts. (Oh God, please kill me now.) And last but not least (of the Daughters), Phantom, the green-haired original JASDF Anima that is first to be developed and built, takes a drastic step on her prideful superiority both on ground and in the skies, manipulating information as and when she likes it to gain any tactical advantage firsthand, causing frictions within the team (and I kinda hated her at first but understood her intentions well soon after).

Even more patronizing, are both Kei and his childhood friend Song Minghua. Watching Kei stumble and grow is as worrying as his character development built in the process as not only Gripen's "beck and call" backup (his MC appeal), but also the "instant training" troupe that's the cause of his revenge, that beckons to always question his purpose in helping the Daughters fend off the Xi, being 1 step forward and 10 steps back. Even worse, is his childhood friend-cum-"random sibling romance" Minghua. Strapped within the same devastating situation as Kei, she "swore" to protect him...like a girlfriend would (but really never displays "subtle" affections), with Kei sister-zoning her. Wow this is getting great...or so it hoped.

I'm not at all surpised when Satelight is involved in anything that is mech-related, as the studio's past experiences have all held up in bits and pieces, whether good or bad, and Girly Air Force is no different. The art styles have all held up decently well, and along with the frantic animation which is both clean and stylish. And of course, the Xi and planes have that artifical CGI feel to them, and is honestly not that bad and is not repulsive either.

For a show all about planes and sci-fi action, you would expect a good OST to follow-up on this piece, but what came out of it are all generic tunes, both OP/ED and the BGM. Not impressive, but decently held up.

If I can fall flat on this show, it means that this show has failed. Not in terms of expectation, but pure enjoyment. Sure, I'd like some things to at least spice up the action, but episode after episode, even the enjoyment wanes substantially to the point where I can wave my byes away in the moonlight. If you like this show, good for you, but it just isn't for me.