Review of Fire Force
I first heard of Fire Force when a friend described it as "an anime about firefighters" and I wrote it off in my head. Boy, this description really didn't do the show justice! As soon as I heard that the manga was by the author of that other shonen hit, Soul Eater, I decided to check it out. I'm glad I did! I actually liked Fire Force a little more than Soul Eater, believe it or not. I think I made it about 20 episodes into Soul Eater and then got bored and dropped it (probably would give it a 7/10), meanwhile I loved all24 episodes of Fire Force and still want more!
The story of Fire Force is nothing amazing, but it sets up an interesting world (7/10). Basically in this fantasy world people who undergo "spontaneous combustion" turn into fire demons called Infernals, at which point the titular Fire Force has to come in and save the day with their pyrokinetic powers. Think Ghostbusters but with a fire theme. Honestly I thought the fact that EVERYONE has fire powers would get so boring so quickly, but it really didn't. That's because there's a surprising amount of variety in their powers even though they are all connected to flames. The main character, for example, can shoot jets of flame from his feet and take off like a rocket, while his rival has a badass plasma sword (!?). Flaming cat girls, people who can use "thermal expansion" to basically freeze time---it only gets crazier! I also have to mention the leader of Shinra's Fire Force team, who is basically "firefighter Batman." Even though this guy has no powers at all, he's a skilled fighter and has a tool belt full of things like fire extinguisher grenades to get the job done. I'll say the early episodes where they go around fighting Infernals got a bit stale for me, but when it's revealed that the true purpose of Shinra's squad is to investigate the other Fire Force squads and we see Fire Force members fight each other---that's when the show got great for me!
I'll admit I was very worried when I heard studio Bones (who animated Soul Eater) wasn't behind this adaptation I was a bit worried. Luckily David Production stepped up and knocked it out of the park with the art (8/10). When Shinra uses his jet feet to breakdance-fight against people, man the animation is so beautiful, it's easily on par with Soul Eater's fight scenes. I also need to make special mention of Tamaki's crying scene from episode 8, which was so damn realistic that it made my jaw drop. The soundtrack was also fantastic (9/10). It's rare with a 24 episode show that I can't decide which OP I like better, but both of them were head-bangers! I saw a few comments where people much prefer the first OP, but after watching OP2 a few times I find myself liking it a little more. Honestly the screamo metal fits the visuals very well! Sound effects were very well done in this show too, particularly the sound Shinra's rocket feet make, as well as Arthur's plasma sword.
The characters were't amazing but pretty good (7/10). Honestly the score would have been an 8 if not for the cat girl Tamaki. She is a fanservice cat girl (already a trope), but the way her fanservice moments break into a scene is just so jarring! To give an example, characters will be talking and literally out of nowhere she'll just trip and (somehow) land with her crotch on Shinra's face. Or her pants will magically fall off, it's just ridiculous. The other characters were a bit trope-y too but likable enough. I like how Arthur, the hero's rival, is very dumb and aloof compared to Shinra, when usually it's the opposite in shonen. I don't know if it's only because I just watched High School DxD recently, but Sister Iris is the EXACT same character as the blonde, doe-eyed, "nice girl," nun character from that show! But by far the breakout hit for me, best girl of 2019, was Maki Oze! This chick is used for fanservice as well a few times, but most of her screen time is devoted to her kicking ass with her bare fists! She usually wears a cool sleeveless black top that shows off her bulging biceps. It's just so rare/refreshing to see a physically strong girl in an anime like that, y'know? The large cast list goes on and on, and I loved even minor characters like Vulcan or Princess Hibana. When I watched Fire Force I knew it wasn't award-winning like, say Demon Slayer, but it still entertained the hell out of me (9/10).
When I first started the show it was about a 7/10 in my mind, but those later episodes really fired me up and punched the score up to an 8/10. Fire Force could've easily been a 9/10 shonen in my mind like Dr. Stone, but a few things held it back: the slow early episodes that felt like the plot was meandering, the awkward and forced fanservice moments with Tamaki, the recycling of character designs and concepts from Soul Eater to the point where it felt like the author was being a little lazy, the way certain main characters were just dropped toward the end of the season, etc. All of these factors held the show back just a little. Still, I loved it and can't wait for season 2 in July!