I myself don't really like harem anime all that much. I'm a huge fan of romance anime, and either the anime goes for the harem ending, in which case the anime ends where it started and I feel like my whole life is pointless, or the main character hooks up with another character I don't like, and I feel like punching the monitor through the screen. Really you go into a harem anime like you would a casino. You don't expect to hit jackpot, just to lose a lot. Not only that, but it seems most of the protagonists can be summed up in one word: default. Usually they have nothing special about them, except that they're usually all nice guys. I mean a rock would have a deeper back-story and character development than them. Yet the genre is Okay, okay put your pitchforks down, I'll stop bashing on the genre and start reviewing.
Okay, okay, I.S. isn't only a harem anime. It does actually have a bit of marketing--- I mean mechs thrown into the mix as well. So a guy can pilot a flying suit of armor and happens to attract anything resembling a female in a ten mile radius. Anyhow, he's the only guy who can fly said suit of armor and is therefore the only guy in an all girls Ironman academy. It is worth noting that this guy is a harem lead among harem leads. Not only does he have his own personal elite harem, but also the entire freaking school at his disposal.
Plot-- Plot?! You expect me to have a section dedicated to plot in a harem anime?!
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Animation-- Okay so the animation is actually pretty good. Character models are appealing, and the back-rounds are detailed, if a little lacking in imagination. Now it's worth noting that relative to other anime of the same genre, Infinite Stratos has surprisingly good amount of frames per second outside of the action sequences. Actions aren't jarring, usually actions are fully animated, and it runs smoothly. The other attraction of the anime is the awesome action scenes. They're no short of amazing. Excellent cinematography, and nice mech designs lead to some really fun fights. Now this is only from my shotty memory (first season did come out in 2011) but I thought there were more tactics in the first season than in the second. I remember when Ichika fought Rin, he had to beat her using brains instead of brawn, unlike other episodes.
Sound- Voice acting is good on the whole. Yes each voice actress sounds cute and or distinctive, and yes the lead does play his role well, but no-one really stands out. All of the voice actresses are good. From other anime that they've been in this is plain to see, but they have no moments to truly. How can I put it, the voice actors are good, I'm sure. In fact I know that they're good, because some of the voice actors have been C.C, Rias, arpeggio of blue steel, Shiori, etc. Thing is, most of the voice actresses in the anime get almost no character development and have no chances to preform any kind of tear-jerking performances. Something really cool about this anime is that the endings and openings are actually sung by the actresses. Oh and in the ending theme, whichever character is closest to the main in the episode, is seen running next to him in the ending. It's not a huge thing, but it's a nice little touch. The soundtrack is largely good. Look, if there's a saxophone in your soundtrack, you know you're doing something right.
Characters--I would love to describe the characters to you, but I won't out of laziness. The characters are pretty static, so if you're expecting any kind of development, you came to the wrong anime. Actually you must be pretty desperate if you're searching for character development in a harem anime. The lead, Ichika is nothing special. He is so block-headed he might as well have been rendered in minecraft, and his personality is as dynamic as a rock. This isn't bad however, seeing as he does fulfill his purpose. With all the bashing i did to this anime, you'd think I would've hated this anime, well, nope. Despite all that it does wrong, it does do a few things right. Those few things it does right, it does really well. It has a great soundtrack, opening themes, animation and characters. Wait, wait wait, but you just said that the characters were static! You hypocrite! There is a legitimate reason why I liked the characters. Take a look at many of the harem anime that come out these days, and you'll find that they changed drastically from where they started. Highschool of the Dead, Freezing, and Highschool DXD are all examples of this pattern. What is this pattern? Fanservice.
Hold on, Infinite stratos has fanservice! Yes, that much is true, but what this anime has that the others don't is character interaction. The fun in a harem anime is watching the characters fight for the main characters. The way that they react when he favors one over the other, the way they all get back at the girl who spends the most time with the lead, it all adds to the comedic value. Meaningful romantic moments are usually non-existent until the last few episodes, so the situations that the lead finds himself in are the majority of the fun in the anime.The problem is that nowadays most harem anime focus less on character action, and competition, and more on fan-service. It is there, but fan-service plays a much steadier role in the comedy. The funniest moments in Infinite Stratos are seeing the girls form alliances, watching them become friends or enemies, and how they try to get the lead's attention. The only disadvantage to this, is that the harem isn't fully developed until around episode six or so.
So I forgot about the conclusion. All in all Infinite Stratos is a fun anime. It's not anything deep or meaningful but it has a good script most of the time, enjoyable, if static characters, and very well done animation. I recommend at least giving this anime a shot.
You know somehow this review didn't turn out the way I wanted. Anyway thanks for reading, and as always a like or a follow is always appreciated. If you liked this review feel free to spread the word around, and I'll siya next time!
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