What captivates me about exploring anime beyond my usual preferences is the element of unpredictability, and for the most part, I really enjoy this. It is shows like this that provided me with the most fulfilled journey. However, even though "BanG Dream! It's MyGO!!!!!" falls into that category for me, I can't quite say that it resonates with my taste.
Let's start with the positives because, despite my reservations, "BanG Dream! It's MyGO!!!!!" has some commendable aspects.
Let's begin with the story. Don't get me wrong; I don't like the story of MyGO by itself. It is, in my opinion, rather weak. However, I appreciate the unconventional and experimental storytelling method they chose for the show. I enjoy anime that doesn't strictly adhere to traditional pipelines. The writer is clearly going for a more realistic feel, which I think complements the animation style.
Speaking of the animation style, I really like it. It's one of the best 3D animations I've watched. They incorporated a lot of 2D animation techniques in the 3D, which is unconventional. For instance, there are several shots where they don't move the camera but only the rendered frame. Sometimes, you can clearly see that the perspective projection is not perfect. The result is a 3D animation that looks surprisingly 2D. Also, in earlier episodes, the director used some more manga-style framing, which is uncommon for original animation in general.
The songs in the show are also above average. I personally really like the voice actress of Tomori, the main singer of the band. Her voice is soft, yet you can hear a deep desire in it. I think the voice fits Tomori perfectly.
However, despite these commendable elements, MyGO is far from being a good show.
I will share the spoiler-free version of my criticism before diving into specifics.
All the events that happen in the show feel extremely forced and lazy to me. I don't personally have any issue with characters experiencing drama, but I dislike drama that is perfectly predictable and where everyone still makes a big deal out of it.
Not to mention, the character development in the show is rather weak. Even after 13 episodes, I still couldn't care less about any of those characters. Having all these events happen to characters I have no invested interest in doesn't make it an entertaining show.
Now let's talk about the specific problems of the show.
This problem has been evident since the very beginning of the show. In episode 1, we see the CRYCHIC disassembled, and later in that episode, we learn Tomori had some trouble joining a band with Anon. Even though it might seem like a trivial thing to point out, it shows the writer's lack of understanding of storytelling.
The background story of CRYCHIC is entirely redundant in the episode, as we will learn it anyway. It would be much more interesting if we saw an otherwise cooperative girl like Tomori suddenly having a big issue with forming a new band. It would provide the viewer with some questions that would be answered in the latter part of the show.
The only reason why the story is told that way, based on my speculation, is the writer thinks a non-chronological timeline would be cool. But the thing is, any storytelling techniques are just tools for telling a story, and they are not going to be interesting if the story doesn't fit the technique.
Another problem with the story is how forced it seems. The characters never organically create any events; it's always the events that come to the characters.
If you have watched the show, you probably know the name of the band MyGO sounds like Japanese 「迷子」, which means getting lost. In order to emphasize this rather mediocre wordplay, literally every character has to "get lost (from the band)" at some point.
This might make sense for some characters like Tomori, who is autistic and is just like me frfr. However, it doesn't make sense for characters like Anon, who psychopathically wanted to form a band for no clear reason. She experienced countless rejections and even verbal abuse. Yet after all of that, she still has a strong will to form the band. But suddenly the writer just realizes, oh wait, Anon also needs to get lost, so she has to suddenly change completely and leave the band, but that will also be too out of character, so she goes back to the band almost immediately.
It felt really weird for me when I saw her leave the band. The reason for the departure doesn't even match up with her character. It would make more sense if she left the band because she wanted to be in the center, but the rest of the band wanted Tomori to be in the center. That would make so much more sense but will be impossible to do because the fact that Tomori is the singer has already been decided long before the show has aired.
The same thing can be said about the very foundation of the show: why does it have to be these people? Under any normal circumstance, they will just disassemble and find someone else to join or find something else to do entirely. There isn't anything bounding them tougher. They are not even friends, especially for Rana. The bond is important for characters to constantly have issues. For LoveLive, it was the school, for Shirobako, it was the company. In MyGO The band members are not even in the same school. I am pretty sure Anon and Tomori can find someone in the same school willing to form a band. Why does it have to be those people? Because they just are, duh.
The style of writing reminds me of the Magical Girl Raising Project. If you have watched both shows you are likely to agree with me: you know what will happen after just a few episodes and there is absolutely no reason for why things are happening. For MyGO, it was very clear after a few episodes that they would spend an entire season just so that the characters could get tougher and form a band, which makes the outcome of each event so predictable. Since you know those characters are going to keep having daddy issues until the last few episodes, the entire show just feels repetitive and unrewarding.
The characters in the show are weird. I won't go so far as to say they're inherently bad or unworkable. On paper, each character possesses an intriguing persona. However, the real issue lies in the lack of proper development for almost all of them.
While Tomori is the most developed character in the show, she still falls short compared to well-written characters like Gotou Hitori from Bocchi the Rock. To be fair, I don't necessarily think this one is a skill issue of the writer. In fact, I would be surprised if the show managed to introduce any truly compelling characters at all. Similar to most mobile games, the abundance of characters poses a challenge. For those who have played the game before, the desire to see their "oshi" (favorite character) in the show is strong.
Crafting a narrative around existing idols is a daunting task. If I were the writer, I wouldn't dare challenge the assumptions made by the passionate idol fans about their "oshi." In such a position, I'd likely opt to intentionally create bland characters to avoid upsetting anyone. This is why many game ads take on a sitcom format—it aligns with what works best for the genre.
However, I still believe the creators could make an effort to trim down the number of characters. Everyone seems to have classmates, and all of them talk and appear to be important characters when they are not. It becomes unclear who the audience should genuinely care about. For instance, in the first episode after the disassembly of CRYCHIC, there's a sense where Anon bumped into a lady in the UK. One might assume that both scenes share the same amount of narrative weight, given their proximity, and you don't usually bump into strangers without some consequence. However, that lady is never seen again, and the incident served no purpose whatsoever.
One could argue that bumping into random people is normal. While that's true, just as it's normal to go to the restroom every hour, it would be extremely odd to see characters on a show randomly going to the restroom to pee without any relevance to the plot.
In the later part of the show, there were apparent production issues. The cuts and framing become less interesting over time. However, this issue is relatively minor and doesn't pose a significant problem.
In summary, I consider MyGO a substantial waste of time, offering little in terms of reward or entertainment. However, in evaluating this experience, it's crucial to recognize the significance of learning not only from successes but also from mistakes. Despite the show being a complete disaster, it imparted a valuable lesson on how not to tell a story.
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