Blast of Tempest

Summary: >

Yoshino's girlfriend was murdered a year ago. At her grave, he again meets Mahiro; her brother who disappeared months ago. Mahiro now assists a clan of magic users who claim they will help discover who killed her. They are then caught up in a recent phenomena which turns people into metal. The government has been suppressing knowlege of this happening, so with the town now emptied, Yoshino has no choice but to join Mahiro.

Mahiro's priority is helping the magic clan leader known as "the princess", currently marooned on a desert island after exile by her own allies. Although they all depend on each other, Yoshino never told Mahiro he dated his sister. This could tear their friendship apart. Worse still, if they fail to cooperate, the princess's mission will fail and that could mean the end of the world.

Thoughts: >

Blast of Tempest hooked me to whre where I couldn't stop watching - for the first half. The second half feels very different and doesn't fair so well. Many people get down on Blast of Tempest but I think it's overall a decent show. It's messy even when it's good and disappointing how it falls later but still better than many anime out there.

The setup for the first 12 episodes is awesome. A mysterious affliction turning people to metal, the government cover up, and a clan of magic users trying to stop Mairo and Yoshino. Not to mention conversations with the scantily clad princess stranded on a desert island (ingenious fan service that doesn't interfere the show).

The stand out feature of Blast of Tempest is the friendship between the boys, however they almost don't get along. They've known each other for years yet there is a lack of trust and friendliness between them. Mahiro had something of a sister complex and Yoshino secretly dated her before her murder. It's hard to say how Mahiro will finally blow up if he finds the truth or if Yoshino will be capable of keeping the secret. There are great character dynamics coupled with action fantasy stuff. This part of Blast of Tempest totally rocks.

Then.. the 2nd season. After the 1st season climax, many issues providing tension are resolved, making Blast of Tempest feel far less ominous. It's replaced with a wacky mystery about the "Tree of Genesis", which may or may not the end of the world. Honestly I wasn't very insterested, so the the anime resolving this wasn't something I cared about. There is enough momentum to keep watching if you can get past the change in direction. The princess has a crush on Yoshino but fears her subconscious desire may inadvertently kill his unseen girlfriend if she admits it - which is kind of cute. What kept me watching was the mystery of who killed Aika - decent payoff for that reveal.

To be a let down, it has to be good in the first place. The 1st season bites off more than it can chew with coordinating some pretty cool content but it holds together well enough to be very entertaining. The 2nd season lags and I didn't care about the biggest story element. I felt the show didn't know how to tie the main two protagonists into the story of the second half, making the finale pretty lame. Despite all that, I think it's a good watch even if most don't agree with me, so maybe take this review with a grain of salt.

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