Review of Land of the Lustrous
Houseki no Kuni, Land of the Lustrous. The thing with an anime adaptation is usually it either transforms the original content to the best of its abilities and still barely manages to pass, or creates a new story without any critics comparing it to its source material. Houseki no Kuni is one of the unique animes that completely transform the manga into this wonderful, colourful world. [Story: 9] With the compelling story of Lunarians (Moon people) who come down periodically to attack to abduct them and to turn them into decorations. While this may seem like an odd basis for a story, the matter is takenquite seriously. Accompanied by the intense atmosphere and beautiful visuals, the series does a wonderful job of showing the world. The show delivers the story at an amazing pace.
[Art: 8]
The CGI was utilized to the utmost perfection. While it was low in frames, since rendering is typically the guilt of that, and I personally have had trouble rendering videos, it did not play a big role in my rating. Studio Orange was certainly not lazy about the art when they decided to use CGI, instead, it allowed them to enhance the visuals and cinematography.
[Sound: 7]
The opening has some of the best music in the show accompanied with wonderful art, while the ed and soundtrack are nothing to brag about. Compared to the Fall 2017 season of awesome ost, this anime will probably be overlooked because of the lack of iconic music. Music is after all the international speaker in every community.
[Character: 9]
This is where HnK surprisingly shines. Each character has their own quirks
and development. While the Mc is indeed a bit annoying at the beginning, Phos quickly became a point of empathy and relatability as the series went on. Redemption by the mc from her annoyances in the past came, like any typical Mc, but it was at a steady pace and gladly at the end was satisfying; a very good development.
[Enjoyment: 9]
To be honest, I wasn't bored of this series one bit ( i did binge it if that was the case), but it was immensely compelling and felt like a golden tentacle was wrapped around my foot, forcing me to click on the next episode.
[Overall: 8.6]
Though I think 8.6/10 is most fit, I could see one taking a point away if they watched it weekly. There are a lot of points that if you forgot, like about the characters, the show would have been less enjoyable, but for an anime, 12 episodes long and with CGI, it blew me away on how good it was. While this anime was certainly amazing, people typically enjoy anime that leave a hole in your heart, this wasn't one, though sad moments, it's not a finished story, thus lacks the emptiness because you are expecting more later.
Whether you like CGI, Diamond Humans, or Fantasy plots, I would give this one a go. Whether you enjoy it in the end or not, it certainly is lustrous.