Zenshu Review

Why Did I Choose To Watch This

Zenshu is an original anime created and produced by studio MAPPA. At first any anime fan hears MAPPA and the automatic assumption is the anime's destined to have steller animation and beautiful artwork. Initially that was enough to draw interest into the anime for me. The story is about an animator who struggles to create a storyline for her upcoming series that she’s directing. The irony of an animation studio creating a series about an animator was a nice twist that made me want to at least check out the first episode. After giving the first episode a shot, I learned that the series was an… isekai?

Plot Mechanics

The plot seemed simple to start things off but it went down a route that I wasn’t expecting. To avoid spoilers I’ll try to be brief and spoil-free as possible.

Natsuko Hirose, the main character, is transported into another world that ends up being based on her favorite childhood anime film “A Tale Of Perishing”. Unfortunately, that movie does not have a happy ending, however, she makes the most of her time in that world. Natsuko along with the main characters from the movie battle “voids” that are trying to destroy their world. Luckily, Natsuko awakens a power that she was granted upon entering the world.

The show started off with an episodic feel where she would save the world and have fun with the main characters of the movie, and it felt rinse and repeat. But, that all changed after a certain event. By episode 6 or 7 the episodic feel was gone and the real imposing threats of the ‘perishing’ world were apparent. The show got more and more unpredictable as the story progressed. The ending did a great job of tying in plot points from the first few episodes to really wrap things up.

Overall, the switch from an episodic feel to a more serious tone felt well orchestrated and well timed. As the stakes got higher and the imposing threats settled in, the anime did a great job of switching gears and maintaining excitement for me. For an isekai anime, this was beyond my expectations in terms of a plot.

Plot : 9.75/10

Character/Character Designs

The characters were all extremely unique and had great designs. The main character, Natsuko, is somewhat of a passionate maniac but is always true to herself. I found that to be an extremely pleasing characteristic to find in a main character. Her character design was different too, with her hair covering her eyes. But when her eyes were shown, not only was the artwork on the eyes amazing, but you can see the deepness behind it. All the other characters had unique designs too, even the “npc” characters. The world had demihumans, dragons, monsters, a unicorn, humans, and so much more. The world felt endless because of the many different types of characters. Aside from the character designs the characters had great personalities too. Even the characters meant to have a lesser role were interesting. Lastly, the character development especially with Natsuko and Luke Bravehart was just amazing.

Overall the character designs were so unique and fun. The character development of the main characters was amazing. The main character was also super fun to root for and watch which rounds off my reasoning for a high score here.

Character/Character Designs: 10/10

Aesthetics/Vibes

This anime had such great vibes. The first part of the show had really fun vibes. Natsuko’s relationship with the nine soldiers was an entertaining dynamic. Her being not fully accepted by the nine soldiers but also somewhat accepted as a hero was a nice gimmick. The comical moments delivered and the intense moments did too. When the script flipped in the second half of the show, the vibe the show was trying to emulate once again hit. Lastly, the opening and ending songs were phenomenal, particularly the ending song. I love when a show has an ominous ending to an episode and the ending song kicks in simultaneously with the episode's ending. This particular ending had that same ominous feel making the ending leave a sense of wanting more but also leaving a lasting impression.

Aesthetics/Vibes: 10/10

Art/Animation

MAPPA delivered. The art and animation of this show was top tier. Although there wasn’t the craziest of fights which MAPPA is known for, the fights that were in this series were eye candy. I loved the coloring in this anime too, especially when a random beam attack would come out of nowhere. The artwork on Natsuko’s eyes really stood out to me. Animation was fluid and the artwork was beautiful. The world was created perfectly when depicting the world as beautiful and as a barren and destroyed world.
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Art/Animation: 10/10__

Overall Rating/Recommendation

In all honesty I was not expecting to absolutely love this anime. I decided to give it a shot solely out of boredom as it was one of the first anime to air in the new season. However, I don’t regret it one bit. I was really immersed in this anime. The main character’s vibes really drew me into the series and the unpredictable plot alongside the anime’s aesthetic drove it home for me. The beautiful artwork and animation was an added bonus. Not to mention the ending song is probably one of my favorite ending songs ever. I would love to give this a show a 10/10 because that’s how I felt whilst watching it. So yeah it’s an easy 10/10.

I would recommend this to someone who wants to watch a visually appealing anime that can be both fun/light hearted and serious too. Again to reiterate it did a good job of having two different parts to the show. The first feeling episodic but that turning into something that was higher stakes and consequential.
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Overall Rating: 10/10
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