Review of No Game, No Life: Zero

This film is a visual marvel, with extreme detail and a great 2D/3D integration. However, gorgeous visuals are sadly not enough to carry the confusing story. I won't go into detail about the story, but it felt extremely rushed and didn't explain itself enough. The details the characters give about their plans are extremely vague and hard to follow. I hardly had any idea what the main characters were talking about when they discussed their plans. Comparatively, the NGNL tv-anime explains the characters' plans perfectly to where I totally understood what was happening. I don't know how they ruined it like this. The overall tone ofthe film shifts with no grace whatsoever. Overall, the film is much more dark and serious than the series. However, it will switch to a comedic encounter on a dime. A main character's life will be in danger in one scene and within 2 minutes they'll be cracking jokes. It was too jarring to be enjoyable.

Also, If you're a fan of the No Game No Life TV-series, the character of Jibril is made completely unlikable to the point of ruining her completely. She's depicted in the film as sinister and sadistic, which contradicts her lighthearted nature of the anime (and the brief part of the film which takes place in modern times). It didn't sit well with me.

I think the problem is that I desperately wanted this film to be amazing but I ended up being completely confused the entire time. I guess it's worth seeing if you're desperate for more No Game No Life, but I just hope a second season comes to continue the story instead of taunting us for more.