As expected of the team at Studio Trigger the character designs are distinctive, and the animation dynamic. I couldn't think of a single issue with the visuals. The background work is gorgeous, and the various color pallets the show uses are always pleasant to look at.

Overall art consistency is pretty high.

The soundtrack is a strong 9, only dragged down by the fact that songs get reused incredibly often. In the case of the ED ''Night Running'' (which may just be my fav ED from this year) it appears as an insert track so often that it's become a sort of running gag.

I understand ''Night Running's'' use as a callback to nostalgic times Michiru and Nazuna shared as humans, but they really pushed how much mileage they could get out of it.

Aside from that admittedly petty nitpick, each song is incredibly evocative and fits the scene it's used in. Possible contender for 2020 Anime OST.

Despite the fact that we spend a large amount of time with Michiru, it doesn't feel like she got any character development past episode 3 (excluding the Nazuna flashback scenes) I honesty couldn't tell you what I've learned about her. She misses home. She's stubborn. She wants to be human again. BNA's cast is likeable, but lacks depth.

Michiru's characterization is incredibly thin, to the point of approaching cliche

Much like Promare, BNA suffers from having a cliche plot with thinly veiled allegories for racism. In fact, I don't think it would be reductive to say the two series are plagued by the very same sets of issues.

While it isn't incompetent by any stretch, the narrative of BNA is by far it's weakest component. If you've ever watched a social commentary on [racial issues] you won't be impressed by the plot here. As long as you pay attention you should be able to sniff out plot twists with ease.

Perhaps the most disappointing criticism I could throw at BNA is that for all the time it spent on beast-men conflict, the show doesn't have anything interesting to say about it's themes. ''Racism is bad, let's just try to understand each other.''

To put it bluntly, the narrative comes across as uninspired

BNA is at it's best when focusing on being pure spectacle / fun as opposed to it's own plot. Episode 5 (in which Michiru plays softball) was easily the strongest episodes in the entire show. After realizing mid episode it was story-boarded by the legendary Hiroyuki Imaishi, I suppose that's not a surprise.

The staff at Trigger have mastered the art of using limited animation for visual comedy

BNA managed to win over a lot of good will from me early through it's run, however like several other Trigger series fails to deliver a cathartic ending. For all the criticism I have against this show, I don't actually dislike it in the slightest, I just wish that the writing was tightened up a bit.

Compared to it's older sisters Kill La Kill and LWA, BNA it doesn't manage to live up to the hype. However, in spite of it's flaws BNA is a fun show worth watching, especially if you're a fan of the studio behind it.