My name is Turtle and I have returned with yet another anime review, my last one being....9 months ago.... Well hey, I never claimed to be consistent. Getting a full-time job has really put a wrench in my ability to watch anime honestly, but here goes anyway. I'll be discussing 86, both parts, the details of which I may be a little hazy since I basically watched this over the course of the entire last year due to the split cour and delays, so let's get to it.

Visually, 86 does a lot right. From a design perspective, you might get muddled down on character designs blending together and having a tough time remembering who's who at first, as many characters get thrown in your face very quickly, but fear not, that changes very quickly. Everyone who's a main focal point is distinguishable and memorable, while also generally looking like normal people who might be out there fighting. The biggest win for 86 visually, however, is easily in it's animation. It's fluid as they come, the mechs feel weighty and powerful, but most importantly, it's CGI is seamlessly integrated. It really just ticks all the boxes for what animation should be for titles like 86. The action animation is fantastic, but there's no drop-off in quality for the scenes where it's just characters talking. Consistency is the key.

For sound, I have nothing but praise. The voice acting is legitimately top notch, especially from Shouya Chiba, who gave an absolutely stellar performance as Shin. The SFX doesn't drop the ball either, especially from all the machinery of 86. The Legion sound like creepy robots, the spider mechs sound perfect, and the gunfire- I absolutely adored how powerful the gunfire sounded. All this praise and I haven't even talked about the music, so I'm just going to tell you it's incredible, as all Sawano soundtracks are. My personal favorite songs:
OP2: Kyoukaisen by amazarashi, Insert Song: Voices of the Chord, and ED 1: Avid.

Favorite Character: Shinei Nouzen/ Vladilena Milizé

I don't think it's possible to have one without the other, so I just went with both, because they are 86. This show simply doesn't work without them and their contradictory, yet strangely almost complimentary personalities. Lena is determined, righteous, adorable, and empathetic. She sees the injustice of the Republic and their treatment of the 86 and chooses to fix it. She doesn't get rattled by everyone laughing at her or telling her she's ruining her own life fighting for the 86. We spend nearly the entire first part from her perspective, learning about the 86 and the Spearhead Squadron. We watch her struggle, cry, and slowly break through to them. This is what makes her such a phenomenal character, we watch her through all the struggles. We know she's not the most amazing Handler, but we watch her become one. And by the end of the first season, we've watched her achieve some genuinely incredible feats both in compassion and leadership.

The second part is mostly focused on Shin, his internal struggles such as the weight of his gift to hear the Legion's voices, his guilt and subsequent PTSD, and general sunny disposition towards life. Not to mention he thinks he lost his Discord girlfriend after the first part. Shin being the focal character shifts 86 towards a more character focused show, while part one didn't drop the ball in developing characters, it spent far more effort building the world and introducing you to its characters and forces. 86 really comes into it's own in the second part, almost the point where it's characters are Evangelion tier in my mind.

86 baits you into thinking you're going to watch a military mecha show, but instead you get a shoujo romance with trauma sprinkled on top. And it's works perfectly. It balances its own heaviness with the adorable fluff that is Shin and Lena's developing relationship, all while never losing sight of its own narrative. And it's the balance of these moments that make 86 so engaging. Take a show like Re:Zero, a nonstop depression show. It certainly has it's moments to break through the darkness, but I'd go so far as to say 86 does it leagues better. Not once in the show does it feel like 86 dramatically shifts its focus too hard in one direction. There is always the threat of the Legion and the reality of death is never far behind. In fact, all the 86 in the show bring up this loose lease on life constantly. It's why the 86 can be so carefree, living their best lives, so to speak. The first part really shines with this blunt, rough honesty colliding with Lena's uptight, somewhat rigid behavior, as she tries to integrate herself into the squadron as both their Handler and their friend.

I couldn't make any comments on anything disappointing with 86, because that would mean that there was something I was disappointed in. The only thing I could say is that it's disappointing more people aren't watching it and talking about it. 86 really deserves to be in the same echelon as industry titans like Attack on Titan, Jujustu Kaisen, and Demon Slayer right now. It probably never will be, but my hope is that a season 2 gets announced and more people give it a shot, opening their eyes to one of the best romance/trauma simulator shows around.