Review of Schwarzes Marken

The world is under attack by an alien life form known as Beta and East Germany appears to be next on the aliens' munch list. Schwarzesmarken is supposedly the best mech platoon in Eastern Germany, and charged with performing surgical strikes to give the country a chance. Our protagonist, a young, disagreeable pilot, serves on this mech squad where he must survive countless waves of ugly CGI aliens and the generous breast sizes of his fellow pilots. However, his country is also under dire straits internally as various government factions vie for control, leading to Stalin-style purges and wasted resources. Will his unit survive thedual threat of alien invasion and internal civil war?

Let me preface the rest of the review by noting that this is the first work I've seen in the Muv-Luv universe. Schwarzesmarken is an action-based mech show with a very pessimistic overall mood- full of random killings, deaths, betrayals, and really just anything to compare the worst of humanity with the worst the aliens can bring. I've read of some people having PTSD after watching Total Eclipse- while I didn't experience anything to that level here I would say that it's probably comparable to Aldnoah Zero. While it is a pretty engaging watch from a thriller perspective, it isn't full of particularly smart people; bad choices are made pretty much throughout the entire plot. Furthermore, the story is rife with inconsistencies and gotchas that are jarring and off-putting. If you're just looking for some action and don't mind the plot, it's a pretty fun watch. Otherwise, I'd say this is only average at best.

Animation:
I came across mixed overall for the animation in the show. I liked how they set the dark atmosphere with moody clouds and many grays in the palette but more often than not, this was overshadowed by ugly CGI and rather repulsive and anatomically illogical aliens- though I have to say the laser-class aliens add a humorously cute flair to the otherwise dreadful alien mobs. The mechs are also drawn via CGI and though they're better than those a decade ago, movements still feel off occasionally. The characters themselves are fairly diverse in appearance though most of the girls are overly proportioned in the chest region. The show also uses overly-heavy eye shadows on the girls, which just makes the antagonists' instant-giveaway look all the more apparent. I also found the mech outfits rather outlandish; seems to be specifically tailored to highlight bouncy parts. Expressions are pretty generic and other than a few sequences with Katia, rather bland overall.

The show has a lot of action, be it mech battles against mechs or aliens or ground warfare with conventional arms. Though a majority of the show is just bullet spamming, some of the sequences aren't bad (even a few moments of tactical brilliance) - I'd still put it a few levels beneath a Gundam show, however. There is a lot of death and a bit of gore, though the camera angle tends to shy away from the bloodiest scenes. Given the rather serious tonality of the show, there isn't much accidental ecchi here. Other than the obvious harem-friendly figures of the female cast, there are just a few suggestive scenes.

Sound:
The show opens with a fast-paced OP with a nice melody and the typical electronic instrumentation of FripSide (think Railgun). The ED is a cool down piece by two of the VAs- the first few measures would probably fit just as well in a breakup scene in a drama. The BGM is pretty well utilized with a wide range of instrumentation. Peaceful moments are full of light orchestral and piano pieces with wide reverb. Battles are much more intense with vocal choirs and brass/electronic instrumentation joining the string-leads, some pieces here are particularly good both melodically and in giving a sense of tension.

The VA cast, like the character cast, is quite huge; there are some notable surprises though. I think Nozomi Yamamoto gives by far the strongest performance here. She gives her character a commanding yet reassuring feel, which is just perfect for her role. It is also impressively different from her previous role as Julie in Absolute Duo. I think this is also one of the first roles in which I've seen Yukari Tamura play an antagonist; though in this case her character doesn't have much depth.

Story:
Schwarzesmarken tells a fast-paced yet vile story about our inability to work with each other. It is a fine plot for those who don't try to poke holes at it, but unfortunately for me poking around is what I like doing. If you really dig into it, this story is chuck full of inconsistencies, miracles, and improbable circumstances; unfortunately, many of these surface too late in the show to divulge in this review.

The story follows one central plotline that pivots wildly between various events; you really are just along for the ride. Many of the show's twists are predictable, some are along the lines of things you don't want to be true but know will be true... The show builds to a final, mech battle climax that is a bit of a letdown given the falling action. This is followed by a fair conclusion that ties up loose ends fairly well. I still can't get over the fact that, despite having advanced mech technology, they don't try at all to save their injured.

If you're looking for a thriller with lots of last second saves and plenty of action, this is your kind of story. If you're looking for thought-provoking political dialogue or any real depth to the almost universal mech question of "why are we fighting", you won't find it here. The disposability of the famous "Schwarzesmarken" team members really leaves a sour aftertaste for me.

Character:
This is kind of a mess. If you check the character ratings for the show on anidb, you'll see that most of them are horridly rated. There are many issues in this section that would negatively affect the characters. First, the huge breadth of primary and supporting characters makes it difficult for the viewer to relate to everyone. Second, the show attempts to make as many characters dynamic as possible; this only backfires as it makes a lot of characters (such as Kirce) feel very simple-minded. Third, the show can't choose whom to pair up with the protagonist, I counted five potential visual novel potential routes in this animation. Fourth, despite the incredibly important nature of Katia to the story's plot, she gets relatively little development- often just shoved aside by Lise. Which brings up number five, Lise is just an unnecessary distraction that ends in exactly how one would predict. Finally, sixth, the antagonists are abhorrent cookie-cutter villains with no depth.

I usually like dynamism in characters, but the usage in this show just feels cheesy. This combined with unstable character relationships (especially those involving the protagonist) really bring down this section.

Value:
Schwarzesmarken is a relatively dark show. Perhaps there is some parallels with the real world situation of today; but philosophizing aside, the show's fairly good production and entertainment values are overshadowed by an inconsistent storyline and weak characters- and no I'm not just ranting about the various pointless deaths in the show. I'm going to go on a limb and say this is a good watch for those who liked Valvrave- lots of interesting mech battles but little if any real core substance and heart.