So, this is my first public review. I never planned to make one, but something about this show enticed me to do so. I will break them up into sections. There will be spoilers, I have warned you. Also, please do not consider me a professional at writing/making reviews. I am simply voicing my opinions.

Lisa Mishima:

Look, I get why she’s here, I really do,(No seriously, I understand very well), but that still doesn’t mean much when she could be removed. Lisa Mishima doesn’t feel like a character to me.
She’s more like… a pawn to demand conflict/motive. Do you follow me here?

If she was removed, and the story just focused on Nine and Twelve and their terrorist ideals, I would honestly like this show a lot more. However, this is not the case. Every time the show gets “intense” or it gets “suspenseful”, Lisa comes in and ruins it with her own, out of nowhere conflicts. For example:

“A government building is about to collapse from a terrorist attack? Um, Lisa’s in the bathroom alone and she’s not evacuating.”
“A police building just blew up? Well, Lisa’s running away from home.”
“The police are close to figuring out Sphinx’s riddle? Oh, well, Lisa is getting stalked by creeps.”
“The airport is about to blow up, killing hundreds, and our protagonists are about to be blamed for it? Aiya, b- but Lisa’s cooking some noodles and she wants to prove her worth!”

It. Gets. Tiring. And I personally dislike it.

Five:

Now, I don’t have an enormous problem with her (Can you tell I’m lying?). They should bring her in as… something different. Maybe she’s an ace of the terrorism control department?
What if they brought in and introduced her as “the ultimate obstacle” in the form of something slightly easier to believe? I get why the USA was involved in this, (sort of), but I seriously feel she should be… different in a sense. (If we HAD to keep her in the story).

She should be obsessed with tracking them,(Twelve and Nine), down differently. Maybe like how L in death note was tracking down Kira? (By extension, we can also say Near. Yes, I know what I’m implying.)
Actually, let’s sort of use the Near example.

Let’s say the police fail to solve the riddle, and the subway blows up as usual. Now, Five is on the case because these attacks are getting out of hand.
…Does that sound interesting to you? It’s fine if it’s not, just throwing out ideas.

The Story In General:

Now, this story is pleasant and I quite enjoy it, but I can’t help but feel something is wrong, and not in the “something feels wrong and it’s intentional” way.
I can’t quite explain it, for the words are out of my vocabulary, but it’s a strong feeling in my gut. Something could be better here, but what is it exactly? What is causing me this feeling? I think I know.

The story could be rewritten somehow… All stories can, obviously, but this one could use it. I don’t want everything to change, I just want Lisa out of it, for Five to be a better antagonist, and the backstory to be moderately different. Those were my feeling throughout the entire thing, and I don’t want it to be.

During the entire anime, every time Lisa showed up, I wished Twelve just killed her like he said he would. Heck, maybe even just left her to die. I don’t want these characters, Twelve and Nine, to be completely humanized or come to their senses. I want these characters to be true anti-heroes, and that’s what causes my gut so much turmoil.

They should be anti-heroes with strong morals. I wished they destroyed those buildings whilst making sure people were generally unharmed. I wish they continued their terrorist attacks while constantly bringing the police into their little game.

It’s the type of show I long for and can’t seem to find. One where we follow bad people who barely change their ideals…
And win.
That’s my problem, however. I’ve had too many expectations for this show.

Bonus:

“Why is Lisa in this story? What is her part?”
Lisa’s part in this story is quite simple. She is the chance for Twelve and Nine to prove they are no longer weak. What do I mean? Listen here.
In the past, they couldn’t save the other kids in the institution they grew up in. Those kids were weak, they were fragile. Man, who does that describe?
Lisa, it’s Lisa.
Lisa is weak. She is fragile. She can barely do anything herself. She needs constant saving. These are the reasons I hate her entire being and why the boys need her. She brings some humanity into their lives.
This doesn’t mean I’ll think of her as a character, however. She’s still just a pawn for a motive to me. That’s all she ever will be to me.

“What did you like about this anime?”
Aiya, I’m a real sucker for fire and explosions, you know. I also adored the ending of the 10th episode. ‘Sayonara’. It was said with the same delivery as ‘Farewell’. The eeriness of it makes me smile.
I also liked Nine and Twelve’s interactions. They are such good friends. Furthermore, I liked the concept: Terrorists destroying Japan, and they’re not 1 dimensional? Sign me up.

That’s it for me, I wish you a fantastic day.