Mecha fans have having fun this spring anime season with three new shows currently airing, Valvrave the Liberator, Majestic Prince, and Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet. Each have their own style, own theme, and own general feel. There's something for every mecha fan and have their own positive merits. But the question arises, which is the best? Let's take a quick look based on the first four-five episodes thus far...
Best Animation?
While this category is somehow more subjective than this very subjective article I think the winner is Valvrave. The vibrant background, consistent and well done characters, and impressive battle sequences make it stand out. Gargantia features fantastic backgrounds but pretty simplistic character animation. Outside of battles Majstic Prince is pretty boring looking. Backgrounds and character designs lack detail and just look very quickly done.
Winner: Valvrave
Best CGI?
When it comes to CGI, this is a difficult choice, a toss up between Majestic Prince and Valvrave. Gargantia's CGI doesn't look that great in comparison to the other two series. That's not to say that it's necessarily bad, it's still a fine example compared to some of the shit we've been presented over the past decade.
Both Valvrave and Majestic Prince do an exceptional job with the CGI. For the most part both series do a fine job of marrying cel and CGI but every now and then Valvrave's space lobsters show up and stick out like a sore thumb. Majestic Prince has that issue too, though not to the same extent.
Winner: Majestic Prince
Best Mecha Designs?
This is perhaps the toughest category to judge. Frankly each series has some fantastic looking designs. Valvrave's Valvrave design look great but is marred by the eccentric (though well utilized) Dorssian fleet. The ARUS planes look really cool as well but they haven't done more than act as cannon fodder. Majestic Prince's mecha are varied and uniquely designed for the different characters and enemy groups. Gargantia's Chamber has a unique look that grows on you, though the surrounding support mechs are pretty generic. However it does get bonus points for a surfing lobster submarine.
Winner: Majestic Prince
Best Character Designs?
Hisashi Hirai's Majestic Prince characters are are a mix of new and old featuring 'classic' expressions and exaggerations along side his new elongated look (move the mouth down as far as possible). It's supposed to be fun and silly but it's really just drivel. Gargantia's designs, byadult artist Hanaharu Naruko, are considerably better. For reasons I can't explain I'm not sure they quite fit the setting and designs of the Gargantia universe but they work well with each character's personality. The female characters' faces, with their rosy and shiny cheeks, may elicit thoughts of Naruko's other works, though. In the end the winner is Tatsuya Suzuki with his Valvrave work. Yes, they're pretty generic compared to the other two series, but are just so well executed. Subtle differences in facial designs, hair colour, and how they hold themselves goes a long way. Their very vibrant eyes with strong colors doesn't hurt either.
Winner: Valvrave
Best Opening/Ending?
Majestic Prince's opening features a poor attempt at shoehorning visuals to sync up with the music. The ending is just as lacking creatively. Gargantia's ending is just as average and the opening seems like it would be better suited for your average slice-of-life anime. Well, in some ways, that is the show. This leaves Valvrave and the energetic opening "Preserved Roses" by T.M.Revolution and Nana Mizuki. The high paced ending is also the clear victor here, especially how it starts, transitioning out from the show itself.
Winner: Valvrave
Best Characters?
You know which show has the worst characters thus far? Majestic Prince. They're not just bad, they're downright fucking terrible. Each of the main pilots has a quirk that is constantly being repeated over and over and over and over and over again. One dimensional writing is bad enough without the writers slapping you in the face constantly and shouting "LOOK! SHE WANTS TO GO ON A DATE" and "SEE? HE LIKES GUNS AND CHICKS! SEE! SEE! SEE!" Don't worry, the supporting cast featuring no-confidence Dr. Blight, No-Carisma-Facemask, and All-Tits-McGee will ensure you hate everyone.
Thankfully Gargantia and Valvrave have a decent cast accompaniment. Gargantia has some solid and maturely developed characters who act with more intelligence than most anime series manage. Valvrave has a more fun and interesting mix of characters running the gambit of archetypes, often with hilarious and fun results.
Winner: Valvrave
Best Plot?
Gargantia and Valvrave are two separate beasts and comparing them on plot is an exercise in apples & oranges. One is a well-executed masterpiece of science fiction and the other is a prime example of kicking sensibility to the curb. Majestic Prince is *yawn* stupid kids training to fight an unknown and emeny we couldn't be bothered to care abouZzzzzzzzzzzz.
Winner: Tie - Valvrave & Gargantia
Best Universe?
Gargantia is the easy victor in this category. Though very simplistic, it's been utilized well to drive the plot and characters. Valvrave's setting isn't terrible, it's just terribly derivative from other Sunrise features. Majestic Prince may have something going for it later... if they bother to focus on the enemy at all. Until then everything has developed just bairly enough to support the plot.
Winner: Gargantia
Overall Best?
This one's easy, Gargantia. It may not have the most original plot but it's easily the best executed. The character and world development is supremely done and the pacing is amazing. It moves at a very realistic pace as Ledo begins to understand this new world he's in and Amy and friends begin to understand him. Interesting tidbits and information about each society works slowly come up in conversation or as needed instead of some montage or corny introductory video. Gargantia is probably the best sci-fi anime I've seen since Planetes. The technological aspects, while used in a futuristic-though-realistic fashion, are secondary to the realistic and welcome time spent on culture clash in the far future.
Valvrave is an odd mixture of every other Sunrise mecha series of the past decade with countless other tropes/references thrown in. If you're not trying to be serious about everything that happens the show is a blast. A fun, confusing, exciting mixture of "what the fuck" and "holy shit that was awesome!"
Falling quite a far behind the pack is Majestic Prince. The animation and fights might be high speed fun but the main characters and supporting characters are just awful. They're not funny and spend more time on screen being annoying instead of redeemable.
Winner: Gargantia
