I will be up-front and say that I am probably incredibly biased in my opinion of Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet. You see, I'm a BIG Xenoblade fan and this anime had a lot of similar vibes going on. For those of you who haven't played a Xenoblade game (which I fear might be most people out there), it's a bit difficult to explain. I went to a good friend of mine who is also a massive fan. He provided a very brief summary of how the world in Xenoblade looks that I really liked:
'Science fantasy' where there's futuristic tech in proximity to more traditional aesthetics and cultures. Something more down to earth, while having fucking crazy science.
Hopefully you now have a better idea, even if it might be very vague. I will compare this anime to Xenoblade a few more times my review. But my goal is to illustrate my personal thoughts such that anyone can understand regardless.
I will avoid spoilers in this review.
# Story/World-building
Imagine an isekai where the main protagonist (Ledo) has an OP mecha (Chamber), in a world where everyone has much cruder technology. In other words, a massive disparity in power. However, Ledo is still in a totally new world. Everything they once knew and believed isn't helpful and is constantly questioned. And to top it off, Ledo is forced to interact with a foreign group of people. The general story revolves around Ledo having to adapt to this new way of life.
If you were going in expecting epic fights and action, then you might be disappointed. That isn't really the focus (not to say that there isn't any action). Rather, the focal point is the world-building, which I think is done incredibly well, in my personal opinion.
I really liked how the world got established. We the audience, alongside Ledo, are trying to learn and understand this new world. Though for us, new might not be the right word, since there is technology that we might be familiar with. Even so, these people rely on salvaging to get a lot of the stuff they use. So even they themselves might not even fully understand the technology, since it can come from long before their time.
Then there's just the whole premise of seeing how people might adapt to living on a planet seemingly covered entirely in water. I thought that the system shown was unique and interesting. It might've been borrowed or inspired by something else, but I couldn't think of anything. I've seen some people compare this to Waterworld, but I never saw it, so I can't personally comment. But for those of you who have, it might have a similar feel to that.
Honestly, this all just reminded me a lot of the world in the different Xenoblade games. One of my friends who saw this said it felt like they fused the Argentum Guild (from Xenoblade 2) with the Blade Barracks (from Xenoblade X). I personally just felt a mix of the colony life from Xenoblade 1 and the salvaging aspect from 2. It felt strangely nostalgic and I loved it.
I guess to more specifically point out what it was that I liked, it was this blend of technology that we might see today with that of the future. There was this cool environment of past (what was salvaged) and future (what came with Ledo) coming together to make something that works for the present. And the anime did a really good job at still showing the difference between the two (which I will talk more about in Art/Animation section).
The story itself could probably be best described as feeling very much like a slice of life in the first half of the show. Tons of ambience and beautiful scenery to behold. For me, I found it to be unique and loved it. As for the latter half of the show, I think most who have seen this would agree that it was a bit rough around the edges. I won't go into much more detail, but I just wanted to acknowledge that there is a noticeable change in tone/direction that could potentially impact personal enjoyment (which depends on what one is hoping to get out of this).
Additionally, throughout the story, there are a few plot-holes. I was able to look past them and didn't let it ruin my enjoyment. However, they were present and I wished that they got addressed. So if stuff like that bothers you, it could be an issue, but I don't think there were enough problems that made the show unwatchable or anything like that. There were just a few parts that had me scratching my head and that I wish had better explanation (or in some cases, got explained at all).
I do think it's worth pointing out that this is an anime original. Meaning that it didn't have any source material to go off of. With that in consideration, I honestly think that even if the story got a bit shaky towards the end, it still stuck the landing for me.
# Characters
It is very clear from the start that the most attention is given to Ledo, Chamber, and Amy. There is still a pretty wide cast of supporting characters, but they don't have close to as much screen-time. So if you wanted to see development beyond the main characters, you will be disappointed. Not to say that the supporting cast doesn't get any development, but it isn't much, is only for a few of them, and is spread out.
I don't really think there were any characters I hated. Nobody seemed overly annoying and I just loved each and every one of the crew. My favorite character overall would probably have to be Chamber. For an AI, I think he was written exceptionally well. It was weird, he didn't feel like a full-on robot, but wasn't human either (obviously). I got similar vibes to J.A.R.V.I.S. from Marvel.
If you were looking for romance, this ain't the anime for you. There is zero romance and very minimal fan-service (only a few scenes and didn't seem too forced to me). For some, this might be a huge deal. For others, a breath of fresh air.
To my surprise, there were some moments where philosophical questions got brought up. I suppose it made sense, since Ledo constantly had to reevaluate what he formerly believed. What was once accepted as truth and purpose became questioned. To avoid spoilers, I won't go into much more detail. But the show raises some interesting questions that I honestly never thought to ask. And while Ledo and some other characters do examine these questions and share some insight, it still felt as though it could've been explored more. I think that part of the issue stemmed from the show only being 13 episodes. But I still thought it was an interesting inclusion and that it didn't hurt my experience much, if at all.
# Art/Animation
This is a very beautiful anime. It's very colorful, it's vibrant, and the art was just really well-done in general.
As I've said before, this anime did an exceptional job at contrasting the two worlds. Ledo's technology was all black and/or just dull in colors. Conversely, everything else in this new world was full of color and life. But despite this obvious difference, it worked and looked great.
As for the fights, I think it still looks fine. CGI is clearly used for any mecha/ships, which isn't all that surprising for me. Almost every other mecha I've seen up to now has done this. Since I am still new to anime and the mecha genre in general, I can't speak to how frequently it gets seen. All I'm trying to say is that I personally found no issue with its use. It didn't hinder my enjoyment or experience, but it is noticeable and definitely isn't the best. So if the use of any CGI is a turn-off for you, then you might not like it.
#####The CGI ain't bad, but it's there.
I don't think I have much else to say. I just really liked how this anime looked and didn't see much wrong outside of maybe some nitpicks with the CGI.
# Audio/OST
Holy shit. Where do I even start. I liked the OP for this show. It really fit the vibe (for the most part) and was just a bop. I can't comment on the ED; I would usually skip it to see the next episode as fast as I could.
Then there's the OST, which is, in my opinion, one of the best I've heard in any anime up to now. Tarou Iwashiro did a fantastic job at bringing everything to life and setting the mood. Each scene had a track that felt appropriate. And once combined with the already beautiful visuals, really elevated my experience. Everything just worked for me.
#####This sounds like a track out of a Xenoblade game.
As for the audio, it generally seemed great to me. All in all, anything to do with sound was a 10/10 for me.
# Conclusion
Nothing is without its flaws. Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet might not be perfect. Despite that, I still enjoyed it a lot. I fell in love with the world and characters and was left wanting more. Unfortunately, we won't be seeing a season 2. However, there are a pair of specials and OVA that expand on the story. So if you liked this and wanted more, then you'll most likely like those too (I think, I know I did). I know that a lot of people who enjoyed this anime were really disappointed about the sequel not happening. I too was one of them. But now I'm not sure. It ends at a good spot (with a fairly "final" ending) and doesn't overstay its welcome. I don't know if I'd want a potentially bad sequel to mess anything up.
I think I would honestly give this a 10/10. But what even is a 10/10 anyways? Is anything truly flawless in every aspect? After some introspection, I determined that for me, a 10/10 would be something that I found a lot of entertainment in. There might have been some bad parts, but ultimately, the positives outweighed the negatives so much that it didn't matter. I enjoyed it from start to finish and felt as though I had to nitpick to find anything I really didn't like. This is something I can see myself re-watching in the future. And most importantly, this is 100% something I would recommend to anyone else. It is sad this anime seems to be so underrated.
I give Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet a 10/10.