Project #167: Kantai Collection (KanColle)

Hello and welcome to Project Nitsuj. When people talk about WWII they tend to focus on the land battles that took place all throughout Europe but there was also a war at sea between us and the Japanese. During the war Japan’s greatest pride was their naval fleet. Japan’s naval fleet was home to some of the most powerful warships ever constructed in history. Even though we sunk most of them (I said they were powerful not unbeatable) that still doesn’t take away from the fact that these ships and gave the Allied Forces a hard time at sea and best way to celebrate these great feats of man is to create a video game off of them called Kantai Collection. Also known as KanColle or Fleet Collection when translated, Kantai Collection is a Japan only web browser video game released in 2013 by Kadokawa Games. In the game you take on the role of Admiral and command a fleet of actual girls known as Fleet Girls who are each named and represent warships from Japan’s naval fleet during WWII. If I had to compare the game to another game I’ve played in the past I would compare it to Valkyria Chronicles as both games send you out on missions, have you build squadrons that you create and control, and are based off of WWII. The only difference I think of is more micromanaging. So far the game has been a huge success having over 3 million registered players, a number of mangas and light novels based off the series using the characters, a game for the vita, and one of the biggest hentai doujin collections. Seriously, there’s like over a hundred doujins based off this series and they all vary to suit whatever fetish you might have with its large cast of characters. At the start of 2015 the anime studio Diomedea (Campione) took the series and made an original anime off the series with plans to make another season and film sometime this year. Let’s go my friends. For victory, honor, glory, and moe girls. This is Kantai Collection.

Opening and Ending Theme

The opening is “Miiro” (Ocean Color) by Akino from bless4. This is a surprisingly a good opening. It catches you off guard by starting off nice, slow, soft, and quiet but then it just takes off and gives you the chills. It’s pumps you up for the anime giving us a shot of all the major characters in the anime while also showing off the battles that’ll be taking place. The opening does a good job giving you an idea of what the series is about and what you can expect from it. The ending is “Fubuki” (Blizzard) by Shiena Nishizawa. The ending is also good and epic to boot. In a way this sounds like an anthem for the Fleet Girls who are going into battle. Continue to fight bravely and come back alive is the kind of vibe the song gives off. I also like how even when the song has its moments when there’s no singer it still manages to maintain that epic feel.

Episodes 1-4

The anime starts by telling us about the Abyssal ships that rise from the depths of the ocean to attack ships (who are they and where do they come from? Nobody knows? Some say they’re the vengeful spirits of sunken ships. Others say they’re really the Allied Forces). Because of them humanity has been pushed out of the ocean but luckily the Fleet Girls (named conveniently after famous warships used in WWII) are here to fight and eliminate the Abyssal threat all under the leadership of their no name and silent Admiral who we never get to see (in fact I think the admiral is just an illusion they all created for themselves). After this information we go to the naval district and meet our main heroine Fubuki a special type destroyer and a new recruit to the base who will be joining Torpedo Squadron Three (aka TS3). After meeting the Admiral she meets her newest friends and roommates Mutsuki and Yuudachi (or as I like to call her Poidachi as she says poi throughout the whole anime. I’m almost tempted to start a counter and take shots every time she says it but I have a review to focus on) as well as her neighbors Sendai, Jinstuu, and Naka all of who are sisters (just like in real life) and other members of the TS3. While that’s going on the 4th division fleet has found an enemy base (scene here: //youtu.be/Z4nFtIKpHJ8). Back at the district, Mutsuki and Yuudachi continue to show Fubuki around where they spy on Akagi the pride of the First Division Carriers (and Fubuki’s senpai. Scene here: //youtu.be/eyzbaNIEOwA). Yeah, you’ll see that there’s a lot of yuri undertones in this series. Which is to be expected since every ship in this anime is a girl. The closest we get to seeing a guy is in the form of the Admiral’s shadow (scene here: //youtu.be/lZjJ2m5eC7M). As they’re eating the alarm goes off signaling it’s time to fight. TS3 will be participating in the mission to take out the Abyssal base along with other ships from different fleets and squadrons. TS3 is put on recon duty and sent out first (scene here: //youtu.be/e59p5kg7TsA and //youtu.be/4BQ23SvULIc) where they find out that this will be the first time Fubuki has gone into an actual battle (you picked the wrong day to show up then) and she’s not good at sailing as she can’t maintain her balance (well experience is the best teacher). They engage the enemy (which I have to admit is a pretty good fight scene) where Fubuki comes close to almost getting destroyed only to get saved by Akagi who along with the main fleet destroys the Abyssal base (scenes here: //youtu.be/DWTe-VfQhqI and //youtu.be/ErhotfAAweo).

Inspired by Akagi’s strength in episode 2 Fubuki begins training to become as strong as her and be in the same fleet as her. We get a funny moment at school where we meet a few more destroyers and Fubuki shows off she has good knowledge of what she needs to do she just doesn’t know how to implement it (just because you have the knowledge to do something doesn’t necessarily mean you can physically do it. A kid can know mentally how to drive a car but unless he’s practiced driving physically his knowledge might as well be all talk. Scenes here: //youtu.be/ll4RY5XYaRM, //youtu.be/AGuTWiEhuA0, //youtu.be/rXrzXL7Oe0g). After her practice Fubuki decides to track down Akagi to see if she can learn anything from her so she heads to the repair docks where we see how these girls heal themselves from damage received in battle (scenes here: //youtu.be/Gssnchm8cbw and //youtu.be/k3Bfwo3363Y, well no doubt in my mind, someone out there is thinking dirty thoughts watching this scene. (Jack Frost): How did he know?). After that fanservice they go to eat where we see that Akagi is a glutton which makes sense because in the game she does require a lot of resources to use in battle (if this game ever makes it way over to America make sure you have plenty of resources because you’ll need them to use a lot of the more powerful ships. Scene here: //youtu.be/u78B_UIsPTI). After that we find out that TS3 has another assault coming up and Fubuki has to show she can fight otherwise the Admiral will remove her from the fleet (what good is a ship who can’t sail and fight?). So everybody pitches in and teaches Fubuki how to balance, shoot, and maneuver correctly for her test run where even though she does an okay job she shows a lot of soul by never giving up and kept moving forward like a real torpedo girl. After seeing this Nagato decides to let her join the assault team and they get ready to launch.

In episode 3 TS3 along with TS4 are sent on an operation to defeat an enemy torpedo squadron near W Island (oh man someone’s gonna die. W stands for Wake Island) and lure them into a night battle. Fubuki is a little nervous about the battle but everyone is there to cheer her up (scene here: //youtu.be/w1pv3WMlQRE) and tell her to have more faith in herself. On the morning of the operation Fubuki goes out to train where she runs into Akagi and Mutsuki where Akagi gives Fubuki some words of advice which inspires her and even inspires Mutsuki to be true with her feelings for Kisaragi (girl that’s your sister what are you thinking? Scene here: //youtu.be/DwcMPdGxFHw, and I just spotted a death flag). The mission begins where they all arrive in the day and spy on the Abyssals from afar where they take turns patrolling their movements. During their watch Mutsuki gets sentimental on us (scene here: //youtu.be/vDWN3Q8kOzE) and Fubuki notices an aircraft Abyssal in the sky. Nagato tells them to retreat but it’s too late, the Abyssals have spotted them and launched 2 aircraft carriers to fight TS3 forcing them to fight against a number of Abyssal troops (scenes here: //youtu.be/drNk8OLKhL4 and //youtu.be/HlVs4RDfPEE). Through the combine efforts of TS3, TS4, and reinforcements from the Second Fleet (scene here: //youtu.be/03eyW5cjuGs) the Abyssals are forced to retreat with their aircraft carriers destroyed however the Fleet Girls suffer their own loss as well (scene here: //youtu.be/UQ8jjgu-Stw and //youtu.be/nAs_A2XHnIU).

In episode 4 we see that despite knowing that Kisaragi has sunken Mutsuki continues to go to the docks and wait for her to return (alright, one of you distract her, I’ll hit her over the head with a coconut). Fubuki is really worried about her (as she should be) but her concerns will have to wait as she and Shimakaze (the one character in the series who has the most doujins starring her) are put on a mission to destroy an Abyssal fleet on a rainy day and joining them on their mission are the 4 Kongo sisters with Kongo as their leader who is possibly the best character in this anime and my favorite character so far (scenes here: //youtu.be/wdXG_fKkJI4, //youtu.be/ptSV4Zx-MsE, and //youtu.be/0ezQ75HP7Lo, for those of you out there wondering why Kongo is coming up with weird names for everyone is because she’s reading their names from left to right instead of right to left like the Japanese do. Kongo is a British ship thus she reads left to right. So when she sees the name Shimakaze she reads it backwards as Zekamashi. As for Fubuki I guess she just likes calling her Bucky). On the day of the mission Shimakaze goes into hiding and refuses to come out (yeah Shimakaze is somewhat of a loner in the game mostly because she’s the only ship who doesn’t have a sister hence the robots to help her with her lonlieness) so Fubuki and the Kongo sisters have to lure her out (which would be easy except the sisters are pretty ditsy and I love them for it. Scenes here: //youtu.be/DJmpYKuoKd0, //youtu.be/BSE6uQclT-Y, and //youtu.be/hxNMHN3srSs). After teatime they head out to face the Abyssals where Fubuki begins to worry about Mutsuki (now is not the time for that) and becomes overwhelm by it that she gets distracted during the fight but luckily Kongo is there to save her (scenes here: //youtu.be/1AQSB7chijE, //youtu.be/CVj9u68eInc, and //youtu.be/T3EfPUxw_jc). After the battle they return back to the district where Fubuki goes to confront Mutsuki in a scene where I have to admit is done amazingly well. Fubuki doesn’t say a word to her she just embraces her and that’s all she needs to do. Everything she wanted to say to Mutsuki can be summed up in that embrace (scene here: //youtu.be/oLIBSH4AOOc). After this scene the next day comes where Mutsuki is back to normal and is ready to move past Kisaragi’s death.

Episodes 5-8

At the start of episode 5 it gets announced that the Admiral is reorganizing all the fleets (Admiral: Why? Because the game has become too easy and I want to challenge myself). While everyone is a little worried about where they’ll end up they hold on to the hope that they’ll wind up in the same fleet (maybe even join the same fleet as their idol. Scene here: //youtu.be/fHIy6Gmeg-w, I’m beginning to think Fubuki wants to do more than just receive Akagi’s praise). That night all of TS3 gather together under the moonlight and wish each other luck in the future (may the soul of the torpedo girl be with you. Scene here: //youtu.be/1N2UZg0L5GY). The next day Fubuki finds out that she’s been assigned to Fifth Mobile Fleet (aka FMF) which sadly doesn’t have Akagi but instead Kitakami and Oi (oh good the yandere lesbian is here. This will provide us with plenty of laughs), Kaga, Zuikaku, and the girl with burning love Kongo (scene here: //youtu.be/njim5jIcZ-U, //youtu.be/LmTJ8hToy_U, and //youtu.be/YCxcjBb0cR0. Admiral I think you might need to shift a few people around ASAP). While Fubuki is worrying about her new team the team already has their first major issue to discuss, who’s gonna be their flagship (normally I make a sex joke here but like I said before I’m cutting back on them this year. But that doesn’t mean I can’t have someone else say them for me. *Pyro Jack comes in* (Pyro Jack): And here I thought the issue was who had the biggest bust size. Haha thank you). In order to decide their flagship they each decide to take turns leading their team into battle (the results left much to be desired. Scenes here: //youtu.be/0sqrawDJcFE, 0:48: //youtu.be/psXJBWuaO14. //youtu.be/8m4eSdVfFfQ, boy the resources that were lost during those battles. Also, Michael Bay no doubt is having orgasms to this scene). After another fight with Kaga, Zuikaku decides to go to the Admiral and ask him to reassign the groups but they get called to take out an Abyssal fleet heading toward the base where just when it seems like everyone is about to repeat the same mistakes as last time Fubuki stops them and takes control of the situation (our little Fubuki is growing up. Scene here: //youtu.be/B6WCqLcWljM and //youtu.be/Zfi50y_D9WY). After their victory they all decide to make Fubuki their flagship (where she pretty much becomes immortal because I’ve heard flagships can’t die/sink in the game, //youtu.be/aI0euMFAWF8?t=58s).

Episode 6 takes us away from Fubuki’s squad and focuses on the Sixth Destroyer Division (convenient seeing how this is the sixth episode) which consist of the loli sister destroyers Akatsuki, Hibiki, Ikazuchi and Inazuma (representing the lolis). Their primary mission is going on expeditions and gathering resources for the district which they’re good at because they’re all fast and have decent defense and firepower (plus nobody’s gonna mess with 4 cute lolis unless they want the police on their tail). While Akatsuki is okay with this she along with the others want to stand out more and be seen as proper ladies. So they decide to enter the district’s annual curry contest where the winner will have their curry served at the café for one whole year and they receive a trophy for their efforts. Their first step is learning how to cook curry (scene here: //youtu.be/NUTQ5UyjPOs), then boil the ingredients with a flamethrower (scene here: //youtu.be/lp22693hJOs), get a new pot from Yuubari (a fan favorite of the series. Scene here: //youtu.be/DBwlyKsiGc0), and finally get advice from some experts (scenes here: //youtu.be/Kj19EH5o0OA). After much practicing the day of the curry tournament comes around where we meet all of our contestants (scene here: //youtu.be/k9zbRFAOZJI, my money on the loli team) and the contest begins where shockingly a few of the contestants eliminate themselves from the contest (scenes here: //youtu.be/595hJkv5wJ0 and //youtu.be/aneHOgrZguY). With many of the contestants falling out (this has got to be the quickest curry tournament I have ever seen) it all comes down to the Destroyers and Ashigara’s life struggles (and hell have no fury like a woman hoping to get married. Scenes here: //youtu.be/0WKNGToyQTM and //youtu.be/zXV8izg0TDw). In the end the destroyers win the competition (anybody else get the feeling Nagato was playing favorites throughout this whole episode?) and they hand their curry out to everyone (scene here: //youtu.be/3_0pHc-4dcM).

At the start of episode 7 FMF is out testing their new equipment when they get attacked by Abyssals and are forced to fight the day before a big mission (scene here: //youtu.be/_wPQtB-VEUg). While fighting Zuikaku fails to notice a torpedo about to hit her and she gets saved by Kaga who gets badly injured (scene here: //youtu.be/BMYVsGepxCU, and that move right there earns you the MVP award). Since there are no instant repair buckets (not enough resources) Kaga is forced to sit tomorrow’s mission out so she gets replaced with Shōkaku a close friend of Zuikaku. Before leaving on her mission the Admiral warns Fubuki to be careful because he believes the Abyssals have deciphered their codes (maybe they are the Allied Forces). Once they’re out at sea Fubuki ask Zuikaku and Shōkaku to launch scouts to check the area (scenes here: //youtu.be/BEZ78hpNaVc and //youtu.be/_Y1lr8KAxxM). They find the Abyssal fleet and attack them (scene here: //youtu.be/qHvBAWns1oc) where Fubuki and the others go to clean up but unbeknownst to them Zuikaku and Shōkaku get attacked by the Abyssals (they are learning) with Shōkaku getting badly injured (don’t sink on me~). Not having a moment to launch their planes or call for reinforcements Zuikaku and Shōkaku make a ballsy move and hide out in a squall where their plan is to counterattack the minute the squall ends (scenes here: //youtu.be/7ZqTxSFjuiI and //youtu.be/SaTei1vpp14, right in the eye. And yes for you historians out there this whole episode is a homage to The Battle of Coral Sea one of the major naval battles from the war. It was the first battle where aircraft carriers engaged one another and the US learned of the attack by deciphering Japan’s codes. While Japan gained the tactical victory having sunken more ships it was a strategic victory for the Allied forces as they defended their post and repelled the invasion. This victory would later help the Allied forces in the Battle of Midway and other battles after it). With their victory they follow orders to go to Turk Island to restock supplies and prepare for their next operation.

In episode 8 FMF arrive on Turk Island where they’re greeted by Yamato said to be the most powerful ship ever built (scene here: //youtu.be/rorRp9tzngQ, nice intro. Very subtle, nothing too big or flashy. She just says her name, class, and smiles). Yamato is in charge of the base and we see that all the girls from the Navel district are here as well waiting for their next mission (until then let’s all relax, soak up the sun, and enjoy the fanservice). As Fubuki enjoys her time here she finds that just like her previously Yamato has never been in a battle before in fact she’s never even been out to sea in order to hide her presence from both the Abyssals and other fleet girls (really!? We literally have the strongest ship in existence on our side and we’re leaving it locked up on an island!? Actually all kidding aside the Yamato for most of the war was kept anchor and rarely saw battle. This was Japan’s strongest ship as well as their flagship. If they lost this ship in battle it be a huge blow to their morality). Fubuki feels bad for Yamato being cooped up on the island so she decides to help get Yamato in the ocean but is quickly stopped by Nagato (scene here: //youtu.be/A-1hLhSGakk). But Fubuki refuses to give up so she takes Yamato out on a night stroll where we see why she’s not allowed out on the sea (scene here: //youtu.be/JMkThpu8F_k, she uses up resources and materials like crazy man. Just like in real life). The next day Fubuki thinks she’s found a way pass Yamato’s consumption and that’s pulling her out to sea herself. Unfortunately Yamato is too heavy (well this is embarrassing for all the parties involved) but Mitsuki and Yuudachi show up to help out where they go out to see and spot some Abyssals carriers where Yamato takes action and destroys them (scene here: //youtu.be/Ah16JK_PotA, farewell my resources). Nagato pretends not to see anything and lets them all go (because she too is a fleet girl. Also, she has her cute side as well. Scene here: //youtu.be/buqLpqsqUXg and //youtu.be/sVuClDI5-0I).

Episodes 9-12

Episode 9 starts off with Yuudachi glowing bright like a tree on Christmas day (scene here: //youtu.be/6V8tQQrSemk, Yuudachi’s evolving). Worried about their friend Fubuki and Mutsuki go into the factory to find her (or at least I think it’s a factory. With the way it’s portrayed here it seems like a sex fetish dungeon. Scene here: //youtu.be/VzxV0Xewgcc). They eventually find her where we see she’s been remodeled. Her weapons have been upgraded, she’s taller, has a more teenage look, and she has breast now (scene here: //youtu.be/XiGsz1YdIbk, so this is their equivalent of puberty?). While Fubuki is happy for her she’s actually a little jealous that she hasn’t been remodeled yet because she’s the only destroyer who’s a flagship (remodeling comes at different times for different girls. You’ll get your remodel and when you do you won’t see it coming because it’ll kick you right in the ass just like puberty). She goes to the more powerful ships for answers but they tell her it varies from ship to ship and not to worry about it because she’s already doing a good job (scenes here: //youtu.be/43bjFHS3cOU and //youtu.be/oJb9ovJpTQ0). Before going for her run she and Yuudachi get called to meet with Nagato who has big news for them from the admiral (//youtu.be/Hzr27jhvWiQ). First off Yuudachi is being moved to the main fleet (all of his efforts to remodel Yuudachi haven’t gone to waste) and as for Fubuki she’s been ordered to go back to the Naval District and her team has been disbanded (woah what the fuck man?). Fubuki takes the news pretty bad as she thinks she did something bad (//youtu.be/6OxKDKJJoXI). She tries to stay strong and not feel bad but hey when you’ve been doing such a good job and for no reason whatsoever get called back you be sad too (scenes here: //youtu.be/b7eyasgCUtg and //youtu.be/iFAJ59oHUJQ). The next morning Fubuki heads out to the peer before leaving where she remembers all of her past battles and how hard she’s worked to get here (you’ve come along way kid). As she’s reminiscing she spots Yuudachi doing morning training with Jintsuu and Sendai because Fubuki inspired her. Yuudachi saw how hard Fubuki was training and wanted to be just like her (scene here: //youtu.be/m3vfAACKLjY). Shortly after Fubuki leaves with an escort Nagato receives a message from the admiral telling them to return to the navel district (cancel the attack the event is over). Once Fubuki and the others get close to the district we see that the Abyssals broke through their weaken defenses and attack the district directly (my resources. NOOOOOOOOO~). Luckily everyone at the district is safe but the admiral has gone missing (must be exam week). Everyone starts repairing the district and Nagato announces the admiral’s plans and what he wants them to do next. And in those plans Fubuki is getting remodeled (scene here: //youtu.be/xxaRZn3SV5U).

So in episode 10 Fubuki is getting remodeled in fact we find out that’s why she was asked to return to the naval district in the first place. It wasn’t because she was doing a bad job or because she messed up, the admiral just wanted to remodel her because apparently she’s going to play a very important part in the next battle. However, before she can get remodeled she must increase her skills so she begins engrossing herself in training and focusing on it intensely (she doesn’t even pay attention to Akagi even when she passes by her. Now you know she’s serious). Nagato sends her along with some of her old friends to search the ocean for the Abyssal’s base where they get spotted by an Abyssal carrier and engage in a fight with them (evasive maneuvers, evasive maneuvers). Fubuki wanting to prove herself tries to take on the enemy herself (is this out of character for her? No, I don’t think so. She’s not acting like a big shot or being inconsiderate to everyone around her. She’s trying to find that last step that will help her reach the next level. Is this a dumb move on her part? Yes, but when you’ve been told your powers will be essential in the next battle you go into a state where that’s your only focus and everything else seems to not matter) where she almost gets sunk because her foolishness (scene here: //youtu.be/uQjel6ptsPo, you got lucky little lady). Mutsuki berates her for her actions (scene here: //youtu.be/x5E-vowYa4o) and after getting out of the healing docks she apologizes for her actions (again totally within character. She’s quick to recognize her mistakes and admit she was wrong). The next day Nagato and the others believe that they’ve found the Abyssal base and Akagi has chosen Fubuki to be her escort in the next mission (alright her dreams will finally come true). However, Kaga won’t accept Fubuki as Akagi’s escort (oh don’t be a cockblocker Kaga) unless Fubuki can prove her skills and the only way to do that is to train her how to handle aerial planes. Akagi and Kaga launch training planes against Fubuki and she has to shoot them all down to pass Kaga’s test (scene here: //youtu.be/zMtzLT77Dy0). As you would expect she keeps missing but Fubuki refuses to give up and keeps on trying until she finally hits them all (scenes here: //youtu.be/d5YuZ6XkaHM and //youtu.be/TzUpf2nfPes, does senpai notice yet?) earning the right to be Akagi’s escort and begins to glow (what’s this Fubuki is evolutionizing). Fubuki goes in for remodeling where she pretty much looks the same (scene here: //youtu.be/LMU99B_MTrc, this is such bullshit).

The first half of episode 11 is all build up for Operation MI and Akagi taking the necessary precaution to make sure it’s a success and nobody dies because she’s been having images of the past. Not just any past real world history past where she and everyone else dies in this fight (scene here: //youtu.be/zSGITY9_N-A, that is so scary). In the second half the operation begins where Akagi’s team will meet up with Yamato’s team (yep. She’s finally joining the fight) and attack the base directly (scenes here: //youtu.be/Uu0EsnLtJz8, //youtu.be/aNWxug8UtVY, and //youtu.be/SRT1j44-0_Q). Yamato’s team doesn’t show up so Akagi leaves Fubuki and Kangou behind to meet up with them while the rest of the force scouts the Abyssal’s base. They engage one of the enemies but the enemy catches them from behind with carriers and battleships of their own totally surrounding the fleet and the episode ends on a cliffhanger with Akagi about to be hit by a missile that will most likely sink her (Akagi! No~. Scenes here: //youtu.be/Z_ZOz4r8UxE, //youtu.be/Wobe-YC3NGc, and //youtu.be/WVx8Ig3vXFE).

In the opening moments of the final episode Fubuki comes in the nick of time to save Akagi (scene here: //youtu.be/9u2qYzgXdas, yes! She lives) and Yamato and her team show up to help out in the fight (scene here: //youtu.be/t2FgmfgqVlM) and the tide turns in their favor where they regain superiority in the sky and attack the Abyssal carrier however the ship doesn’t sink and the group becomes surrounded by battleships once again completely exhausted and almost out of ammo (scene here: //youtu.be/atde4arALX8, well you guys wanted an accurate description of the war so here you go. All the girls you fell in love with are going to die. I hope you’re happy). But Nagato shows up with a deus ex machina of fleet girls and they fight once again gaining the upper hand and this time all ships fire upon the Abyssal carrier trying to destroy it (well that’s overkill). But once again the Abyssal carrier doesn’t sink because it can regenerate (scene here: //youtu.be/LtXdQ9SQn-o, hax! I call hax!). Fubuki realizes that they have to destroy the enemy battleship first in order to destroy the carrier so they destroy the enemy battleship and fire at the carrier once again but it still regenerates itself (hax I say! Hax!). The admiral returns (scene here: //youtu.be/gVBAM210N2o, exams are over. He failed) and tells them to destroy the battleship in order to win (we just did that and the game still haxes us). It turns out there’s a third battleship and this one is the same battleship Fubuki shot in the eye in a previous episode (hey I think she looks cooler). Fubuki and Kangou team up to take the ship down and when they do they fire on the carrier one more time and this time it goes down for good (scenes here: //youtu.be/34PNI6j0DOA and //youtu.be/9mj4IR0kXGM, haha take that history). The girls all return back to the base victorious and they end the season with Fubuki welcoming back the admiral (scenes here: //youtu.be/bYNJAIkSn6E and //youtu.be/RJSFLwLukjU. Seriously, is the admiral just a figment of their imagination?).

Final Thoughts

So that was Kantai Collection. I wouldn’t exactly call this a bad anime but I also wouldn’t call it a good one as well. The animation is very nice, the music is good as well, and I have to give a major shootout to the VAs. I normally don’t talk about the VAs because I usually think they’re all good but for this anime they deserve a major shootout. A lot of the characters in this anime are all voiced by one person. For example, the Kongo sisters are all voiced by the same VA so she is essentially having a conversation with herself using four different voices and she pulls it off incredibly well. Fight scenes are also quite good as I do like how the ships fight like actual battleships instead of reverting to CQC and I even like how some of their fights are based off of actual battles from WWII. I also like how the anime isn’t really all that ecchi. There’s barely any ecchi moments and in a series like this where a majority of their cast is all female it would be so easy to make this all one big ecchi anime and give it no plot. Luckily, the anime avoids doing this and tries to give us a good story to get invested in. But other than that everything else falls flat.

The characters really don’t have that much of a personality and we never get a chance to really explore them all that much. While they’re all cute you need to expand on their characters and personalities more. A lot of the main characters aren’t all that interesting and the characters that you would like to know about are either side characters or characters who only show up for one scene and never get seen again. I will however admit that one of my favorite moments in the anime is the relationship between Fubuki and Kongo. While Fubuki may respect and admire Akagi as a senpai in truth whenever something looks bad for Fubuki or she’s lost on what to do it’s Kongo who’s always there to calm her down, listen to her or give her a shoulder to cry on. Stuff like is good but they never expand on it. That’s another problem with the anime. It tries to have dramatic moments but they don’t execute them all that well or the drama gets buried with a comedic scene or filler which is what a majority of this anime is. In my opinion the major fault of this anime is that it leaves so much unexplained. Throughout the anime you are riddled with so many questions such as where these Fleet Girls come from, how and why do they have the soul of ships, and why do they refer to themselves as machines when it’s so clear they’re flesh and blood? What’s the deal with the Abyssals, what are they, where they come from, what’s their goal and why are they such a huge threat to the world? We’re told they drove humanity from the sea but we never see how this has had any effect on the world or humans so is this really such a big deal? As I said before the majority of the anime is filler as there are a lot of moments where the plot comes to a standstill and instead of using this time to develop characters or explain their world we just get stuck with filler that serves no purpose.

Final Score

This is a tough one but the final score for Kantai Collection is a 5/10. From the perspective of a fan this anime isn’t really all that good and they’ll probably dislike it but from the perspective of an anime watcher it’s not all bad. I will admit that I’m interested in the series even more now and want to see what happens next. I just hope that when the second season and film come out they can do a better job at developing its characters, balance out comedy and drama, explain the world and their enemies more, and get rid of that useless filler. I still have faith and believe that this series can make a good anime which is why I’m in the neutral position with this anime, there just needs to be a little more effort put into it. Cute girls will attract people to an anime but putting effort into the story and its characters will make it a memorable anime for them. Thanks for reading and I’ll see you next-

(Isis): Master! We have a problem! It’s Chibi!

*Nitsuj gets up and follows Isis down stairs down to the living room to see Chibi glowing blue*

(Yin-Yang): Chibi, how do you feel?

(Chibi Isis): Like I have a fever but at the same time like I could run a marathon.

(Seras): Is she infected with a virus?

(Mira): I don’t think so. I don’t sense any corruption or anomalies in her.

(Shizuku): Fus ro patronum! AHHHH~!

*Shizuku holds out her hand and nothing happens as everyone starts at her blankly*

(Seras): What the hell are you doing?

(Shizuku): I thought that if I said some magic mumbo jumbo something would happen.

*Nitsuj and Isis come in*

(Nitsuj): Woah! So it’s finally happening. Chibi come with me into the system. The rest of you, I’m putting you in charge of next week’s review.

(Isis): Hey wait what’s going on here? What do you mean by its finally happening?

(Nitsuj): I’ll explain later, just know that Chibi isn’t in any danger. In fact, truth be told this is something that I had theorize would happen one day. I know you guys have a lot of questions right now and I’ll answer all of them but for now just trust me and take care of next week’s review.

*They all nod*

(Mira): Alright, we’ll trust you. But we want a full explanation once all of this is settled.

(Nitsuj): Of course. Let’s go Chibi.

*Nitsuj heads upstairs with Chibi Isis*

(Seras): Now with that said who’s doing next week’s review?

*All videos, pictures, and music are not owned by me and belong to their respected owners. All rights reserved.*

Thanks for reading. As always feel free to leave a comment, feedback, or request down belong or send to iamprojectnitsuj@gmail.com.

 

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