Sep 2, 2013 02:02 AM
(This post was last modified: Oct 30, 2013 10:29 AM by DeleteMyAccount.)
Hello everyone, in this post I will be reviewing the anime Btooom! since this is my first official review, I am not really sure how long reviews tend to be on forums so I would appreciate feedback on the length. I would also like any constructive criticism on my writing style, layout, or grading system/bias.
![[Image: 40977.jpg]](https://cdn.myanimelist.net/images/anime/4/40977.jpg)
Btooom!
Btooom! is an anime that follows the story of Ryouta Sakamoto, a shut in who spends all of his time in his parent's apartment playing the competitive online game Btooom!. In the game, Ryouta is one of the world's most highly ranked players and prides himself on being the best there is. Ryouta's life gets complicated when he is kidnapped by a mysterious group that seems to have ties to the game's designers. He is placed on a deserted island and forced to play a real life version of Btooom! against other people. The plot centers around Ryouta's struggle with his new found situation, and on his interactions with the other "players" on the island; Among whom are his former best friend, in-game wife, and a sadistic 14 year old who was recently convicted of a triple rape-homicide.
Art 9/10
The art style in Btooom! is very clean, and gives off a more realistic feeling than many other anime of this genre. The jungle on the island is beautiful when drawn in this style and I truly feel that the animation and art is one of the strongest aspects of this show. The animation very rairly falls below excellent, and each frame seems to be drawn with care. Madhouse always presents incredible artwork and animation, and they don't disappoint this time.
[img]http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mbek8vMtRq1qapu8qo1_500.gif[/img]
Soundtrack 8.5/10
The sounds of Btooom! are generally well done, and don't detract from the overall mood of the show. Many anime tend to throw in gratuitous music and sound effects to add drama or feeling to an anime that couldn't survive without it. That isn't the case here, most of the sounds come from wildlife and explosions, and are all very well done. The voice actors all fit extremely well and seem to truly be connected to their respective characters, another point for Madhouse Studios. The intro song is interesting, but fits the overall tone of the show, and even ended up being caught in my head for a few days. The only thing I can say that detracts from a near perfect score as far as Soundtrack goes, is that one of the main tracks seems almost ripped from Ghost in the Shell.
Link to GITS-like Track: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQ_V84K-AbE
Link to "Fucking Intense" OP: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d73yZRCx2NI
Plot: 7/10
The plot is one of the weaker parts of the show, and comes off as contrived and derivative of things like "The Hunger Games" and "Survivor". The story isn't weak enough to damage the enjoyment of the show, but does make it hard to take it seriously sometimes. The show also uses rape as a major plot point and point of character development for the female deuteragonist, but is overplayed throughout the entire series. The plot is by no means deep, but is fun enough to keep you on for the 12 episodes the anime has to offer and is complex enough to support further development if the manga allows it.
Personal Enjoyment: 8/10
This is something that I've decided to do in my reviews, since many reviews are biased at a basic level due to most people's likes and dislikes being subjective, I felt that adding this may help explain some of the reasons I gave certain sections their scores.
I found Btooom! to be a very enjoyable anime, and honestly wanted there to be more episodes so that I could follow Ryouta's story a bit more. I typically don't like the use of rape as a plot device, since it is usually overplayed or underplayed and almost never is used in a tasteful manner. I am a bit biased towards Madhouse studio productions and tend to like realistic art style that they use for many of their productions. I would highly recommend Btooom! to anybody looking for a fun to watch anime that doesn't require a lot of in depth analysis, or for people that want something between a Shonen and Seinen anime.
Btooom!
Btooom! is an anime that follows the story of Ryouta Sakamoto, a shut in who spends all of his time in his parent's apartment playing the competitive online game Btooom!. In the game, Ryouta is one of the world's most highly ranked players and prides himself on being the best there is. Ryouta's life gets complicated when he is kidnapped by a mysterious group that seems to have ties to the game's designers. He is placed on a deserted island and forced to play a real life version of Btooom! against other people. The plot centers around Ryouta's struggle with his new found situation, and on his interactions with the other "players" on the island; Among whom are his former best friend, in-game wife, and a sadistic 14 year old who was recently convicted of a triple rape-homicide.
Art 9/10
The art style in Btooom! is very clean, and gives off a more realistic feeling than many other anime of this genre. The jungle on the island is beautiful when drawn in this style and I truly feel that the animation and art is one of the strongest aspects of this show. The animation very rairly falls below excellent, and each frame seems to be drawn with care. Madhouse always presents incredible artwork and animation, and they don't disappoint this time.
[img]http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mbek8vMtRq1qapu8qo1_500.gif[/img]
Soundtrack 8.5/10
The sounds of Btooom! are generally well done, and don't detract from the overall mood of the show. Many anime tend to throw in gratuitous music and sound effects to add drama or feeling to an anime that couldn't survive without it. That isn't the case here, most of the sounds come from wildlife and explosions, and are all very well done. The voice actors all fit extremely well and seem to truly be connected to their respective characters, another point for Madhouse Studios. The intro song is interesting, but fits the overall tone of the show, and even ended up being caught in my head for a few days. The only thing I can say that detracts from a near perfect score as far as Soundtrack goes, is that one of the main tracks seems almost ripped from Ghost in the Shell.
Link to GITS-like Track: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQ_V84K-AbE
Link to "Fucking Intense" OP: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d73yZRCx2NI
Plot: 7/10
The plot is one of the weaker parts of the show, and comes off as contrived and derivative of things like "The Hunger Games" and "Survivor". The story isn't weak enough to damage the enjoyment of the show, but does make it hard to take it seriously sometimes. The show also uses rape as a major plot point and point of character development for the female deuteragonist, but is overplayed throughout the entire series. The plot is by no means deep, but is fun enough to keep you on for the 12 episodes the anime has to offer and is complex enough to support further development if the manga allows it.
Personal Enjoyment: 8/10
This is something that I've decided to do in my reviews, since many reviews are biased at a basic level due to most people's likes and dislikes being subjective, I felt that adding this may help explain some of the reasons I gave certain sections their scores.
I found Btooom! to be a very enjoyable anime, and honestly wanted there to be more episodes so that I could follow Ryouta's story a bit more. I typically don't like the use of rape as a plot device, since it is usually overplayed or underplayed and almost never is used in a tasteful manner. I am a bit biased towards Madhouse studio productions and tend to like realistic art style that they use for many of their productions. I would highly recommend Btooom! to anybody looking for a fun to watch anime that doesn't require a lot of in depth analysis, or for people that want something between a Shonen and Seinen anime.
![[Image: NFvdXxh.gif]](https://i.imgur.com/NFvdXxh.gif)
