- Episodes : 12
- Genre : Mystery, Fantasy, Action, Magic, Adventure
- Airing Date : Jul 2015 – Sep 2015
- Producers : Passione, Pony Canyon, Ponycan USA
Rokka no Yuusha Preview/Plot (No Spoilers)
Long ago, the powerful and evil Maijin appeared. Spawning terrible monsters called "Kyouma", the Maijin brought the human race to near-extinction. Despair, pain and sadness swept the world — until the Goddess of Fate intervened.
She chose six heroes known as "Braves", who have the power to defeat the Maijin and drive it into hiding. Whenever the Maijin threatened to come back and plunge the world into darkness once again, a new generation of Braves would appear, armed and ready for battle.
Enter Adlet Mayer, a teenage boy who often declares himself the "strongest man in the world". Chosen as a Brave, he sets out to find the other heroes as rumors about the Maijin's return flew all around him. Unfortunately, he and his comrades soon discover that things aren't so simple.
As it turns out, there's a seventh Brave. The legends state that there can only be six Braves at a time — no more, no less. What's going on? Can they solve the mystery behind this anomaly before it's too late?
Who Does Rokka no Yuusha Cater To?
If you're an anime fan, you're sure to find something to like in Rokka. There's the Mesoamerican fantasy setting, the well-choreographed fight scenes and the mind-boggling mystery plot. The anime does a good job balancing these, so you won't feel shortchanged no matter what type of fan you are.
The characters aren't bad, either. You have the average but resourceful hero, the cute girl with a dark past, the cute girl's bodyguard who's not-so-secretly in love with her, the stoic girl with trust issues, the well-endowed and powerful maternal figure, the creepy child and the cat-like assassin with a distinct verbal tic. If any of them sound like your type of character, give Rokka a go.
What's Appealing About This Piece of Work
Rokka's main strength is its mystery plot. All of the Braves have the potential to be the Seventh, so you're kept guessing until the very end. Even if the show starts off as your typical fantasy anime, you still have to pay close attention to notice all the foreshadowing.
Another aspect you'll find interesting is the relationships between the characters, especially Adlet and Fremy. Their feelings for each other develop gradually, so it never feels forced at any point in the story. By the end of the show, you'll care about whether they get together or not.
Rokka~Braves of the Six Flowers~PV ver.0
Rokka no Yuusha Main Characters List
Adlet Mayer
Voice Actor :Soma Saito
From the moment Adlet shows up, he declares himself as the "world's strongest man." Whether that's true or not depends on who's listening. In any case, Adlet is good at analyzing his opponents, using whatever weapon is at his disposal, and smiling regardless of the situation.
Nashetania Loei Piena Augustra
Voice Actor :Yoko Hikasa
Princess Nashetania is the heir to the throne of Piena. As the Saint of Blades, she can pull blades out of thin air, and make them appear from the ground to impale her opponents. It's hard to tell what her real personality is, since she can be a cheerful girl one moment, and a serious princess the next.
Goldof Auora
Voice Actor :Kouki Uchiyama
Goldof is Nashetania's bodyguard. He's the strongest person in Piena, and only gets defeated by Nashetania in a tournament because he supposedly went easy on her. He's in love with his princess, and will do anything to protect her. His spear, which he uses to full effect in battle, is connected to his gauntlet by a long, heavy chain.
Fremy Speeddraw
Voice Actor :Aoi Yuuki
Even though Fremy is a Saint, she isn't under Mora's supervision. That's because her power, "Gunpowder", has never been received by anyone else before her. She has the ability to conjure up explosives, and injure Kyouma with guns, even though Kyouma are normally resistant to guns. As someone who's been hurt by betrayal, she doesn't trust others easily, and prefers to dispatch of the Maijin on her own.
Hans Humpty
Voice Actor :Kenichi Suzumura
Unlike the other Braves, Hans' name isn't well-known. It's a good thing for him, because he kills people for a living. He claims that he doesn't work for free, and only went along with the Braves because he asked a king to reward him. Chamo calls him "Neko-san", because everything about him — from his appearance and mannerisms, down to his fighting style — resembles that of a cat. He's a skilled combatant, to the point that Adlet calls him a "genius."
Mora Chester
Voice Actor :Rina Satou
Mora is the oldest of the Braves, and the head of the "Temple of the Whole World." As such, she makes sure the Saints don't abuse their powers, and helps train promising Saints for their war against the Maijin. Being the Saint of the Mountain, she can boost her strength instantly, magnify her voice and see what's happening from several kilometers away. For some reason, she's the only Brave Chamo listens to.
Chamo Rosso
Voice Actor :Ai Kakuma
Chamo may look like small child, but she's actually a teenage girl. She's also the Saint of "Swamp", who's supposedly second in strength only to the Saint of "One Flower." With her green foxtail, she can make herself vomit "pets", which fight her opponents for her and have the ability to regenerate. Because of her powers, and her tendency to flippantly declare that she wants to kill people, she's feared by both friends and foes.
Contains Spoilers
Rokka no Yuusha Review
Before watching this show, I read a bit about it. I thought that was worth mentioning, because if I didn't do my homework on Rokka, I probably wouldn't have made it past the first three episodes.
Not that those episodes were bad. They were actually a nice introduction… if you were expecting yet another "Chosen Ones vs. Big Bad" anime. Otherwise, it would've been better if they hinted at the "Seventh Brave" subplot before Episode 4, since they chose to devote two-thirds of the show on that subplot.
That said, I think the rest of the show is solid. The art was good, although the CG Kyouma can be a bit jarring. The music matched the show's atmosphere, and it's nice that they gave character songs for Adlet, Fremy and Nashetania at the end. The pacing is just right: You'll never lose track of who's who, and each episode moves the plot forward.
Speaking of "plot", the mystery is the kind you should watch out for early on. Looking back, I realized that they've been hinting at the Seventh Brave's identity from the very beginning. I'd like to discuss more about the hints here, but then I'd be going off-topic.
Anyway, let's move on to the characters. To me, Adlet is and isn't a typical hero at the same time. Yes, he's another average, overly-optimistic guy with an unshakeable will, but he also gives you the feeling that he's less naïve than he pretends to be. Once you find out about his past, you'll wonder if it's only a matter of time before his inner darkness comes out.
As for Nashetania, I'm honestly glad her arc developed the way it did. If not, she'd be reduced to a cutesy, giggling love interest for Adlet, and the Seventh Brave's identity would look like it completely came out of left field. Some of you might disagree, but I think the creators made the right choice in this regard.
Fremy was a bit off-putting to me, at first. She seems to insist on being distrustful, despite Adlet's efforts to make her look the other way. But after finding out about her past, and given that she still doesn't want to throw herself into Adlet's arms by the end of the show, I became a little more sympathetic towards her. Parental betrayal isn't something you get over so easily, after all.
Hans is, by far, the most interesting of the Braves. He's an assassin through-and-through, and he never tries to convince you otherwise. At the same time, he's a good guy in his own way, as shown when he spares Adlet, and when he blushes after the same guy praises him. (Come to think of it, Adlet's the one who brings out the best in him. I wonder if there's doujinshi/fan fiction for them right now.)
The rest of the Braves, unfortunately, could've been done better. We're told that Goldof, Mora and Chamo are three of the strongest in the group, but that's about it. Goldof looks like he can't function without his Princess, Mora hasn't done much other than force Nashetania's hand, and Chamo hasn't shown any sympathetic qualities so far. Given that the light novel is still ongoing, though, I hope to see better development from them in the second season.
I'll end this bit by saying that I did NOT expect that ending. Who would've thought the author would throw in an eighth(!) Brave to raise hell for our heroes? I guess it's back to square one for everyone.
In the meantime, let's look at the show's highlights:
1. The Kyouma
As mentioned earlier, the Kyouma (also known as "Fiends") are the Maijin's spawns. They're so powerful that normal people can't even scratch them. When they are killed, however, their corpses turn white. One of them, Tgurneu, was responsible for killing Adlet's sister and best friend, as well as creating the half-human half-Kyouma Fremy. True to the anime's setting, they seem to be modeled on Mesoamerican monsters.
2. The Braves
Since Rokka revolves around them, it's only natural that the Braves be part of the highlights. Every one of them has their own personality, which you may or may not like depending on your personal preferences. Also, it's interesting how all the girls are saints, and all the guys are badass normals, yet they're all on-par with each other. Let's see how things play out come the second season.
3. The Mystery of the Seventh Brave
Okay, I probably should've chosen the picture of the actual Seventh Brave. But given that the headline to this section is in big bold letters, it won't take long for the non-watchers to put two-and-two together if I used a certain someone's picture underneath it. So I won't spoil things for anybody.
Instead, I'll say this: Rokka is worth a second watch, if only because things will make more sense in hindsight. The rules of Rokka's universe add more complexity to the mystery, but that's what makes it fun to solve. Whodunit plots all the way!
So far, there's no announcement about a Season 2 yet. In the meantime, you can watch the 6-episode picture drama airing from September 2015 to February 2016, or read the light novel on which the show's based. And if you have more thoughts to share about Rokka no Yuusha, share away in the comments!
Author: Issa M.
