Review of Akashic Records of Bastard Magic Instructor

STORY: 7/10 CHARACTER: 8/10 ART: 8/10 SOUND: 10/10 ENJOYMENT: 10/10 OVERALL: 9/10 A surprisingly entertaining anime, never expected that after reading the long title of "Rokudenashi Majutsu Koushi to Akashic Records"! It starts with a bang, delivering perfect episodes that balances out fresh Comedy with serious Action very well in a Magic Academy setting. Sadly, it can't end on the same note as new arcs with new characters are introduced late in the game that aren't given much exposition. Still they do a good job with explaining the magic of this world logically, making it sound both interesting and realistic. This is further supported by the shows focus on the studentsto NOT just become a bookworm, rather participate willingly to field work as well. However, I would have liked more explanation with the makeup of spells and their mana cooldowns. In addition, I would have liked more types of magic used during combat rather than the few we get to see. And the competition arc needed a bit more flare to it cause at certain parts they came close to mading me felt like I was in Hogwarts! And while the plot is nice, the storytelling is weak which is why some things go unexplained like what’s the use of gems when casting strong magic or what’s the secret behind Rumia being an 'Amplifier' or what is really an 'Amplifier' in this world? The current story arcs don't have a conclusion and they leave an open end to the series, so I would have liked more closure, who doesn't? Plus, the last few episodes felt rushed and I am not a fan of it! We also get to see a lot of blood in this show, but then again the anime isn’t exactly 'Rated R' since it refrains from showing violent deaths. And while they couldn't get their storytelling right, they did a better job with their characters.

The main characters all get fleshed out pretty well and have their moments to shine! But the spotlight wasn't consistent with the girls, since the show would focus on each individual while the others would remain more of a side character like Re=L for instance. She is a weird one who apparently has only 1 strategy on her mind, which is Attack! And I’m afraid no matter how much our MC squeezes her brains out, she will remain a thickhead forever! However, she is scary and despite her deadpan look, her unpredictability can make you her enemy or a friend in a matter of seconds. Removing swords from the ground and stabbing people is all she knows! Rumia, on the other hand, is strongminded but comes across a bit naïve as well as an optimist which is further explored by her insight and desire to help people with magic. Regrettably, she's also the unlucky one who finds herself in the 'damsel in distress' situation all the time which gets boring so I would have liked something else from her. Albert comes across cool and mysterious but turns out to be a good friend who apparently has a thing for cats! And 'White Cat', ahem, I mean Sistine has quite a temper, I particularly enjoyed her frame of inner struggle dilemma which she gladly overcomes. (Side Note: I found her parents funny!) While she comes off as a hardworking student from a prestigious background, her relationship with Glenn is the most interesting thing about her. The have a rocky start but they do warm up to each other eventually. I particularly liked this setup since the 2 are polar opposites of each other so we get to witness the classic romantic tale of Opposites Attract! (Though they still need a lot of work for us to take them seriously) Thankfully the MC is always at the centre of the story cause he's just amazing! I loved his quick remarks and his constant trolling nature despite being a lazy bastard as the title entails! He's very strong as well with a rich yet dark history that's moderately explored but it’s his attitude and resolve as a magician and teacher that helps him in standing out! Radars is hella lot of fun to be around as he makes fun of his students and teachers. Thankfully this is just an outer layer, like a mask, to hide away his true self which is dark, gloomy and bloody. Constantly haunted by his past mistakes, he wants to erase all of that with something useful and positive. And lastly, Celica was left as a background character which sucked cause she’s so powerful, but she seems to have more going on in the next season so I won't complain for now.

Voice Acting is top notch across the board with Josh Grelle stealing the show once again! He just has so much fun with this role and it clearly shows with his Comedic line delivery like ‘Later Nerds!’ or ‘You may now kiss my A**!’ which always springs a smile to my face. Glenn's expressions are on point which helps in delivering his lines across and that makes him a fun Main Character. The smile of Rumia mirrored her mother’s which was a nice touch. Sistine, voiced by Rachael Messer and Celica, voiced by Morgan Garrett had a certain flair to their accents which helped them in standing out. Sistine rages of fit or screams are well done and Celica’s concern for Glenn is shown by the warmness emanating from her which further bands the Big Sis, Little Bro kinda relationship between them. The animation is simple but beautiful when it wants to be, especially the magic casting parts. I liked how healing spells represented bright colours with soothing sound effects while dangerous spells had sharp colours with quick and loud sound effects. The OP is catchy due to it’s upbeat track that can easily be assigned as your ringtone, but I didn’t like the ED very much as it sounded very generic.

This is one of my favs from last year, it even ended up in my Top 5 Anime list of 2017! It’s not perfect as it tries to cram around 4 arcs in just 12 episodes, so you can tell when details are omitted out. Still it's very good for it's 1st season and I have high expectations for S2. I hope they organize their storytelling better and improve the screentime for their characters along with some further development. Also, if they had refrained from rushing their story, this anime would have made a bigger impact with the audience. I also thought the costumes for the girls were too showy which didn't make sense and I absolutely adored the short theatre skits at the end of each episode. Overall this certainly made me laugh and care for the characters and I would love to see their next adventure in the coming season. (P.S. where's the Comedy tag cause this s*** is funny!)