Hello and welcome to Project Nitsuj. Well guys I’m still reviewing Negima and if you read the previous blog you would know that I went off at the end when I heard who the director was. So before continuing this review allow me to talk about the director for a bit. The director for this anime is Akiyuki Shinbo who has been around for quite sometime and has worked on a number of animes from Shaft. (Isis): Shut your mouth. (Nitsuj): I’m just talking about the studio. He’s not a bad director on account of he’s directed a lot of good and popular animes such as Bakemonogatari, Puella Magi Madoka Magica, Dance in the Vampire Bund, and his most recent works this year Nisekoi and Mekaku City Actors. When he first got started in his career he mostly did anime in the horror genre which in my opinion is probably his best work but at the start of the 21st century he started moving into comedy/magical anime which he’s alright in. Now here’s where the problem with him comes in at. In his early career he had an obsession with adding in parodies from past animes he directed into the current anime he was directing and nowhere is this seen more than in Negima!? I wouldn’t mind the parodies so much if they were just once an episode or so but these parodies keep popping up in almost every scene and it’s distracting. Sometimes we’ll cut away from the main story in favor of having a sketch with these parodies featuring the characters. In fact, Motsu is actually the parody of a creature from Pani Poni Dash. I don’t mind parodies in animes but keep them under control and don’t let them distract the viewer from the actual anime especially for an anime like this when you have so much to explore and talk about. After Negima!? he started to cool down on the parodies and became more under control with the anime Hidamari Sketch where the parodies are not only done excellently but they’re funny, cute, and don’t in anyway distract or take away anything from the anime if anything it makes the anime better. Here, the parodies are distracting, done out of control, and instead of adding to the anime it distracts me from the anime and that’s why I got upset at the end of the last blog. Okay, now that that’s out of the way let’s continue with the review.
Episodes 13-21
The secret is out in episode 13 with everyone in the class discovering Negi’s a mage and getting transported back into the world of illusions where Negi has been turned into a chupacabra (didn’t know the chupacabra was so small and plushy). In the world of illusion (which I think is the result of what would happen if Walt Disney was actually trying to scare kids instead of entertain them) they arrive at a Wales castle where they all get attacked by another fairy who takes control of three students and starts attacking. Since Negi can no longer use magic he can’t activate the pactios of his harem members (https://youtu.be/u2ycDWywGls). Fortunately Eva and Chachamaru come in to fight the fairy while everyone escapes into three groups. Two of the groups go into different doors where one gets transported to the jungle and attacked by a dinosaur while the other does a massive space battle (in another pointless parody that comes right the fuck out nowhere and waste time. Fuck). In Negi’s group he sees the illusions of his sister and Anya and follows them through a red door (//youtu.be/4F4qzPbcFiA). He gets transported to a courtyard where he has tea and cake with the illusions (*British gentleman impression* Negi old boy I must say this situation is highly unorthodox. Shouldn’t you be out saving your students instead of playing around with these silly delusions? But then again tea time is tea time and there’s always time for tea so drink up lad drink up). Of course Negi knows they’re illusions (than why did you follow them like a dumbass?) and the Black Rose Baron comes in and takes him back to Asuna. Eva along with the help of Takahata is able to defeat the fairy saving all the students and everyone reunites in the main hall where they’re still trap in the world of illusions and Asuna being the idiot that she is opens a door which unleashes a powerful dark magic to end the episode.
In episode 14 the dark magic begins to consume the room (go for the orange haired girl) and Eva uses her magic to teleport them out of the castle (damn it). Chamo tells everybody that there might be a way to return Negi back to normal and that way is everyone in the class performing a pactio with Negi and becoming his partners (and thus creating the biggest harem in anime I’ve seen and the kid hasn’t hit puberty yet). Everyone’s on board with this but when they find out they have to kiss him they all get cold feet (oh for God’s sake would you be women and kiss the poorly drawn and animated chupacabra so we can advance this story and get it over with). The dark magic finds them and captures Negi while the rest of the class escapes getting separated where Negi’s current partners try to convince everyone to kiss Negi (look, here are your options. A, kiss the chupacabra teacher restoring him to normal, gain the ability to use magic, and get out of the illusion world. Or B, don’t kiss him and get killed by a dark magic monster. This should not be hard to figure out ladies). They all finally convince everyone to kiss him and they head to the castle where it flies off the ground for some reason and they rescue Negi, destroy the dark magic monster (well that was easy. Makes me wonder why they didn’t beat it in the first place) and they escape the falling castle while performing the pactios in the air while free-falling restoring Negi to normal again (scene here: //youtu.be/KGAV3gYpZOU). With Negi back to normal he uses his magic to get them out of the illusion world and they returned to a destroyed school with no one to be seen.
In episode 15 we find out that the group is still trapped in the illusion world by some powerful force they don’t know. Realizing they’re going to be stuck in this world for a while they split up and see what they can find in the world and what they discover is food, a giant fairy-chicken like creature, and the internet. For the next episodes we gets a series of filler episodes not progressing the story all that much and just wasting time. Episode 16 is Asuna and Ayaka’s backstory about how even though they have fights with each other they’re still best friends. Episodes 17-18 Nekane arrives in the illusion world and we find out that all this time she’s been the Black Rose Baron and everyone’s cool with this except for Asuna who hasn’t piece together that Nekane is the Baron (there is only so much they can do before they botch a character up so much that they almost become unrecognizable). In episode 19 the whole class except for Eva and Chachamaru mysteriously turn into dud card forms and start behaving like children doing nothing but playing around and getting into trouble (not gonna lie I actually liked this episode somewhat). Eva becomes Evazilla for a day in episode 20 for some reason and in episode 21 Yue finally realizes that she’s in love with Negi just like Nodoka and Eva and Chachamaru get mysteriously stranded in the ocean away from everyone. Look I know the imagination, creativity, and effort in this anime is almost non-existent BUT CAN WE AT LEAST TRY TO PROGRESS THE TERRIBLE STORY AND GET IT OVER WITH!? Have you forgotten that your characters are stuck in an illusion world by some mysterious force who no doubt is watching their every move and plotting to kill them!? How about instead of wasting our time with these pointless filler stories we focus on the characters trying to find this mysterious force, learn how to use their powers, and develop a few of their characters!? You fucking failures!
Episodes 22-24
In episode 22 with the investigating skills of Chizuru, Negi is able to figure out that the person controlling the dark force is an expert in fortune telling and combining this information with the fact that everything seen in the world of illusions are places he used play at when he was child, he finally realizes that the person controlling the darkness is Anya (no doubt jealous that Negi is surrounded by cute middle school girls and fawning over them in private). We find out from Nekane that Anya has been struggling in her training and after Nekane told Anya how far Negi has come in his training Anya began to feel jealous and lonely so she stole the star crystal in the hopes of catching up to him but instead the crystal consumed her and resulted in this mess that anime is in right now (I knew this anime was bad because of the supernatural. No human-being could fuck up something this creative and imaginative). Nekane goes on to explain that she assumed the identity of the Black Rose Baron to watch over Negi and hopefully find Anya and save her (should have been doing that a few episodes earlier). After all of this the giant-chicken like fairy attacks them and Negi’s destroys it getting the last piece of the star crystal (seriously, you guys have been chasing and trying to capture this thing for like 6 episodes and you’re telling me it could have been destroyed in just 5 seconds with Negi’s magic? Fucking failures! Stop wasting my fucking time). Once the creature is destroyed all the star crystals unite with Eva taking control of her and we see that Eva is now possessed by Anya (I’ve got you under my skin).
In episode 23 Anya begins destroying everything Negi holds dear to him by turning Takahata and Nekane into stone (to be honest I think everyone involved in the creation of this anime was stoned both literally during production and figuratively after the ratings and reviews came in, //youtu.be/VECe-cwG7do) and nullifies Asuna’s pactio with Negi and turns her into her servant (oh~ that’s dirty). She begins going around the school finding some of the students and turning them into stone as well until Negi finally finds her and with the help of the remaining classmates he’s able to bind Eva to the group where he forms a pactio with her as well as Chachamaru completing his conquest of kissing all of his students (and if this was in real life he would be fired). The star crystal separates from Eva and when Negi goes to grab it he gets sucked into the star crystal to end the episode.
Not much happens in episode 24 except Negi using the power of friendship to save Anya and his father Nagi coming to rescue them from getting eternally trapped in star crystal (also, Motsu and Shichimi are apparently Nagi’s spirits sent to keep an eye on Negi for him. Look man if you have time to make spirits you have time to visit your son). So Negi and Anya are saved and they all return to the real world (finally. This shit could have all been solved in like 3 episodes).
Episodes 25-26 and OVAs
Nothing once again happens in episode 25. The class prepares a surprise party for Anya while Negi, Asuna, Konoka, and Setsuna help Anya eliminate the remains of the darkness left by the star crystal. Also, Anya gives Asuna a baby chupacabra (fuck this creature to hell and back).
More pointlessness happens to end this god awful series. After releasing the chupacabra into the wild Negi feels the presence of his father nearby and everyone wants to help Negi search for him. He activates everyone’s pactios and we see all their various powers throughout the episode where instead of actually searching they just goof off. We also find out why Makie keeps calling Motsu her father. It turns out that Makie has a dog named Father who resembles Motsu in no way but to her he does. So to sum this up when Makie was calling Motsu father she didn’t mean her actual father she meant her dog who’s name just happened to be father (//youtu.be/Z3JVsmtYkTY?t=4s, what an annoying pointless joke with a disappointing end). Motsu and Shichimi tell Negi that they are now his servants and Negi along with his class vow to get stronger and one day find Negi’s father. The end.
There are 2 OVAs whose only purpose is just fanservice and good time fun. The first OVA is actually based on an actual series of chapters from the original manga with the story changed up a bit to fit the context of the anime. While researching late at night Asuna comes to see what Negi is up to. He pushes her away saying it’s none of business and sneezes stripping her naked and everything. The next day Asuna is furious with Negi and refuses to talk to him even though the whole class is going on a trip to a south island courtesy of Ayaka. Throughout the OVA the class tries to help patch things up between Negi and Asuna but their plans keep failing and eventually Negi loses his glasses somewhere on the island. That night Asuna finds the glasses and gives them back to Negi where the two make up. Also Setsuna can’t stop staring at Konoka’s butt (scene here://youtu.be/tZvPlRnvqUw, in Setsuna’s defense it is very inviting)
In the second OVA Nodoka uses a magic book which binds her and Negi together through a red string of love. Chamo tells them the spell will disappear after sometime so they decide to let it be without telling everyone else about it but Ayaka comes in and invites the whole class to try out her family’s spa resort where Asuna gets raped by a machine, Haruna uses this opportunity to get Negi and Nodoka closer together, and eventually Yue becomes jealous of Nodoka and unleashes a water monster while practicing her magic and Negi saves the day with the red string spell finally fading away. These OVAs are okay they’re pretty safe fanservice stories which if you’ve read the original manga you would know that the series has a lot of them but for some reason the animes skipped over them but I have to admit I actually enjoyed these OVAs more than the first and second Negima anime so I say check them out and just ignore those horrible animes.
Final Thoughts
It’s horrible. Horrible, horrible and it will stay horrible till the end of time! All of the characters are idiots, the animation looks like something out of a bad horror anime, in every scene something in the background is distracting you, action is boring and goes by quick, and so much time is wasted in each episode. Why couldn’t they have just followed the manga, I admit the manga wasn’t good but hey it was better than the shit they came up with in this anime. And if you’re wondering if there’s anything even the slightest thing redeemable about this series. . .the character songs are good. I mean it, there are a lot of character songs from this anime and they’re all sung well. I actually created a small playlist dedicated solely to the anime’s character songs so I guess that’s one good quality if any this anime has.
Is it better than the first season
Hell no! The first season was bad but I have to give that season some credit, it actually tried to follow the events of the manga. It failed miserably and fucked up but they tried. This anime didn’t even come close to following its source material. This anime doesn’t even feel like a Mahou Sensei Negima anime, if I didn’t know who these characters were I swear this was an entirely different series that was just a cheap rip-off of Mahou Sensei Negima. We went from watching a bad anime to an even worse anime. You think they would have learned.
Final Score
The final score for Negima!? is a 1/10. A God awful poor excuse of an anime that should not exist. This anime was an insult to the Mahou Sensei Negima franchise and as a fan of the original manga I am very pissed and disappointed that this anime exists in the world. Stay away from this anime, you be better off watching the other anime than watching this shit. Actually, no, don’t watch the other anime go out and read the manga it’s 100 times better than both of the animes combined. Like I said I’ve read this manga from beginning to end, the story is great, the characters likable and funny, and the action is pretty badass. My only hope is that someday somebody will come along and give this series the proper respect it deserves and turn it into a good anime. Until that day comes I’ll be waiting patiently. Thanks for reading and I’ll see you next on Project Nitsuj. Girls you can let me out I’m good now.
(Mira): Well you sound better.
(Nitsuj): Yeah, in a strange way being locked up in here has helped me come to peace with this anime. So can you please let me out?
(Yin-Yang): Sure.
*Shizuku unlocks the door and Isis takes off the straitjacket*
(Nitsuj): *Takes a deep breath* I am one with the world and the world is one with- AHHHHHHHHHHH!
*Mira fires her stun gun at Nitsuj’s back shocking him and he falls to the unconscious. The other AI girls stop and stare at her.*
(Mira): What? You don’t just give a girl a charged stun gun and not expect her to use it.
(Isis): True.
*Shizuku and Yin-Yang nod an agreement with Isis and they all walk out leaving Nitsuj on the ground lying unconscious.*
*All images, videos, and music do not belong to me and belong to their respected owners*
Thanks for reading. As always feel free to leave comment, feedback, or request in the comment section below or sent to iamprojectnitsuj@gmail.com