GLEIPNIR: Review

What the heck means Gleipnir?

The first question I asked myself when I heard this name, I know you might be too. Well according to google the literal meaning of Gleipnir is “A bond with magic properties, forged by elves, and used by the gods to bind Loki”. A magic cord used to shackle the monstrous wolf Fenrir. One of the offspring of the trickster god Loki. In short, it’s related to Norse Mythology. 

The Genre of the anime

Now that we know that it’s related to some Mythology the first tag this anime will get is definitely the supernatural. Now the supernatural always comes with curses, yes the curses which we will call the Action and the mysteries of the anime. Well watching the tags I really thought I know where this is going now, next tag will be Isekai but I was wrong guys. The anime is completely featured in the real world and the characters are the Junior high school students only so it will not get the Isekai tag definitely. But we have a tag jump actually the last tag this anime will get us the Ecchi tag. Yes you heard me it’s the ecchi tag. Wait you know it already I guess, XD cheers then.

Gleipnir: The Story Arc

As I said earlier the name of the anime suggests supernatural and mystery elements in it, which the director didn’t shy away from swirling around and showed what’s in the box from the very 1st episode. Well, the anime is picked up from Manga so I guess the pace of the story is a little fast & perfect also just to omit those extra dialogues and scenes one junior high schooler will go through. The story has a lot of elements and characters in it which play some major roles in completing the storyline, so the author did a pretty good job in making the audience hooked throughout the episodes as you will hardly be able to predict the outcome or the storyline from the beginning.

An interesting thing Gleipnir does is they make you believe that it’s a revenge story from the beginning and they also proceed it that way till the final quarter of the anime we see a different picture building up. 

The story starts with the Shuuichi (one of the main characters)remembering nothing about how he got the supernatural powers that makes him a giant monster and he is desperately keeping this secret to himself. In the very first episode, Shuuichi met the story’s second main character Clair in an awkward or say in dangerous situation. From there on Clair starts to take over the storyline as it’s her revenge story which Shuuchi becomes the part of and also wants to know the truth behind the power. Both the characters come very close to their revenge part when the story starts to take another turn and starts moving from a revenge story to a lot of secrets hidden connected to each and every one.

Last but not least the ecchi elements are low and most of the elements will be shown in the first 3 episodes itself. The fan service part is very much well handled and matureness in the scene can be sensed easily. The first season consists of 13 episodes that will definitely keep you hooked and entertained but there is a lot to be witnessed in the upcoming seasons and we hope we get it soon.

Character Development

There are many main characters in the anime if you ask me and you will also agree, once you will watch the anime. So the two main characters according to the author are Aoki Clair and Kagaya Shuuichi. 

Clair’s character is kind of consistent throughout the first season as she is the smartest one and strong also such that even though she was one year junior to the main character Shuuichi, she manages him to follow her path of revenge. And also her bluntness in the anime from start is kind of a badass. She remains the main character throughout unlike other Isekai’s anime where the girl starts losing it’s position before the male main character. So kudos to the author once again. 

So Shuuichi, a talented student for sure also who is amazed and more confused by the new transformations in his body. Soon he discovers that he is not the only one like that. Which one is a friend or a foe is always concerns the character this is where Clair helps him and takes all the decisions. As the anime progress, the story looks more connected to Shuuichi than that of Clair which was first set up as revenge. The character is not so tough even when getting supernatural powers especially when it comes to tackling the similar creatures but as the season reaches the end more of his connection to the story and his courage and strengths increase.

There are other characters also who gave a positive impact like my 3rd main character(Elena) also who has a lot to share about her story which is still subdued in the season 1 but overall every other character is justified and the author did justice to them. But I will leave to these two only for season 1 as we will be seeing more of them and others in upcoming seasons.

The Post Production

The animation quality and the sound of the anime is decent I will say. Anime has many action encounters and the scenes are compiled well but not the best I would say. I would assume that they were short in funds but if the upcoming seasons gets well funded this might be one of the best ecchi anime.

With supernatural elements in it you can expect a great experience of animation & visuals in it but if the story is interesting this thing can be compromised a little XD. I will say the same for the sound. The direction is good and it’s very much satisfied with all the scenes in the anime.

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Conclusion

I watched Gleipnir because the anime holds a unique storyline which hooked me completely till the final episode. And for all the cultured weeb like me it’s the ecchi elements for obvious reasons also gave a push to continue watching it. If you are someone like me who like mystery, action, and supernatural with some spicy bold scenes then this anime is worth giving it a watch.

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