Review of To the Abandoned Sacred Beasts

This is a review of the anime only. I have not read the manga. I felt this anime had a ton of potential that it never lived up to, but let me preface with two confessions: 1. I watched this in the background while doing other things. It had about 65% of my attention. I did go back and rewatch parts if I was suddenly confused or lost. It didn't help. I don't know if this was a manga first (most are) and there was an assumption that we'd read it ... or what, but it was easy to get lost where it concerned character actions andmotivations.

2. I didn't read the blurb about it before I started watching it. I don't know if I would have watched it if I had. I felt that it started off fantastic. It was intense and unexpected and awesome. But because I hadn't read the synopsis, I felt it was misleading and was quickly disappointed when it changed direction.

***This review contains mild spoilers, nothing that you wouldn't figure out on your own after the third episode.***

Again, back to my first statement, this had a lot of potential that was never developed. The characters were static, each being more of an archetype than a full-blooded character. Yes, they gave snippets into the pasts of each incarnate, but not enough to make them sympathetic. The episodic nature made it difficult to get attached to anyone. That and [semi-spoiler], it quickly became apparent that the incarnate was going to die anyway so there wasn't any reason to get invested.

The archetypal natural of the incarnates and their motivations, including even the hero and the villain, ended up feeling petty and trite. It seemed this anime was trying to pose a philosophical question (I'll let you decide what that was), but it fell short. Or I'm just over this particular philosophical question because it's been done a lot. There's no answer for it and probably better ways to pose it.

Some character motivations were never explained at all and that was confusing and frustrating as well. In short, this was disappointing. It was episodic with not enough oomph to make me care about the characters and without that, I can't truly enjoy a story. It became just one battle of supernaturals after another. It was repetitive and predictable. It wasn't terrible, but it wasn't really enjoyable either.